Undead Mage: I Have a Skeleton Clone-Chapter 520 - 373: Proof of Mastery, the Gift of the Bone-Eroding Blood Spring!

As he spoke, Master Sandro took a gilded letter of appointment from his Space Storage Capsule and handed it to Fang Zhou.

"After several months of discussion and confirmation, our Undead Mage Professional Association has decided to grant you, Fang Zhou, the honorary title of [Skeleton Tutor]," he said. "We hope you will continue your efforts and develop even more powerful skill trees for us Undead Mages in the future."

Fang Zhou accepted the Skeleton Tutor appointment letter from Master Sandro with both hands and happily glanced at his attribute panel. At the moment he took the letter, a familiar notification sounded from the panel:

"Title [Skeleton Tutor] successfully activated."

[Skeleton Tutor]: An honorary title bestowed upon you by the Undead Mage Professional Association. Only Undead Mages who have made significant contributions to a particular skill tree are eligible for this honor. Holders of this title receive additional bonuses when learning and deriving skills from the Skeleton Series skill tree. When casting Skeleton Series skills, mana consumption is slightly reduced and skill effects are slightly increased.

Fang Zhou looked at the fifth title he had just acquired, a surge of delight washing over him.

This truly was a pleasant surprise. After all, although some first-year cadets at the Sea City Military Academy had privately called him the Skeleton Tutor, Fang Zhou never paid much attention to the unofficial title. Even though he was the initiator of the Skeleton Series skill tree for Undead Mages, he had always prioritized practical benefits over fame and never actively sought publicity. Therefore, Fang Zhou never expected that, without his knowledge, Great Mage Sandro would voluntarily apply for the Skeleton Tutor honorary title from the Professional Association on his behalf. More importantly, the attribute panel actually recognized this honorary title and provided such powerful enhancements.

Firstly, the bonus to learning and deriving Skeleton Series skills was extremely useful. Given his future plans for the profession, the entire Skeleton Series skill tree would become a significant part of an Undead Mage’s combat power. As his Corpse Clone continued to advance, the Corpse Armor skills he mastered would naturally advance as well. Consequently, the Skeleton Series skill tree derived from the Corpse Armor skills would also progress smoothly, with no insurmountable hurdles. The Skeleton Tutor title provided an additional bonus to learning and deriving skills for the Skeleton Series skill tree. In other words, it would reduce some of the cost for him to derive new skills—whether in time, effort, or even Soul Power consumption. These bonuses would greatly improve his efficiency in skill development and cultivation. This meant he could master new skills faster and optimize existing ones more efficiently, thereby gaining a greater advantage in actual combat.

As for the other two effects of the Skeleton Tutor title—reducing the mana cost of Skeleton Series skills and increasing their effects—these were immediate boons. Reducing mana consumption meant he could use Skeleton Series skills more frequently in battle. Meanwhile, increasing their effects directly enhanced the power of these skills, making his combat advantage even more apparent. 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

After all, his most powerful direct attack was the Skeleton Flying Spear, and his most reliable defensive measure was the Skeleton Shield. The help from these two skills alone was enormous, not to mention other utility skills like Skeleton Shackles and Skeleton Wings.

Master Sandro had only just arrived to join the Undead Mage research project group at the Sea City Military Academy, yet he had already brought Fang Zhou such a huge surprise. This made Fang Zhou even more confident about the kinds of research results the growing group would produce in the future.

Master Sandro smiled and handed a black gemstone box to Fang Zhou. "I heard from Instructor Su Xinyan that you’ve already broken through your bottleneck and advanced to the Black Iron rank," he said. "The Apprentice-level, Undead-attribute Heavenly and Earthly Treasure I prepared for you, [Nether Amber], is no longer of use. Fortunately, I obtained some [Bone-Eroding Blood Spring] in my youth—one of the two Heavenly and Earthly Treasures required for a Black Iron-rank Undead Mage, the other being [Breath of Decay]. I gave some to Silvanas and kept a portion for myself. Fang Zhou, we were fated to meet. Since that is the case, I might as well give this last portion of [Bone-Eroding Blood Spring] to you."

Upon hearing this, both Su Xinyan and Fang Zhou’s faces lit up with excitement. Before Fang Zhou could even speak, Su Xinyan excitedly took the black gemstone box from Master Sandro’s hand and placed it in Fang Zhou’s. "Thank you, Master Sandro!" she said. "Fang Zhou and I were just worrying about how to find a Heavenly and Earthly Treasure for the Black Iron rank. I didn’t expect you to be so generous!"

Master Sandro sighed. "I naturally understand the hardships of being an Undead Mage better than you do," he said. "Especially when it comes to Undead-attribute Heavenly and Earthly Treasures. They are exceedingly difficult to find. This is the last of my supply. As for the remaining [Breath of Decay], you will have to rely on your own efforts, Fang Zhou. I believe that with your talent, you will not let my goodwill go to waste."

Fang Zhou took the box, feeling the weight of the precious [Bone-Eroding Blood Spring] inside. A warmth spread through his chest. He gripped the black gemstone box tightly, gave Master Sandro a solemn military salute, and said, "Thank you for your gift, Master Sandro."