Then he threw the coil of rope into the center of the array, and tossed in the soul crystal he had obtained from the Intermediate Corpse Witch in Ridenburg. To be honest, he felt a bit pained. Soul crystals from Intermediate Corpse Witches weren't that easy to come by, especially since Madara had now made peace with Erune, and who knew how many years it would be until the next war–if not for the lack of better substitutes at hand, he really didn't want to waste such precious materials here.

Of course, life was more important in comparison.

He turned the longsword and cut his finger, letting a drop of blood fall into the array. His heart clenched abruptly. Brand immediately felt his life drain dramatically, losing more than a third in a brush. The higher the level of the material, the greater the energy demand. Although he anticipated it, he was still taken aback.

He couldn't help but laugh foolishly, thinking how fortunate he was that the only material on hand wasn't something like the Heart of Demon Dragon, otherwise it would suck him dry. Of course, that was just a thought. If he really had the Heart of Demon Dragon, he might as well take it to Kruz's Emperor and exchange it for a duke's title.

However, thinking of rare materials, he couldn't help but feel a jump in his heart, recalling something he had been carrying in his backpack this entire time. He instinctively opened the backpack to take a look. A brush of golden light seeped into the young man's eyes, the light pulsating rhythmically as if it were alive—like a heartbeat.

Brand took a deep breath. This was a secret he hadn't told anyone. Because it was too crucial. Though, he almost certainly knew who put it there. He just didn't understand; it was merely a fleeting encounter, why would the other side do this?

What's the motive?

Framing? Or perhaps testing?

Brand couldn't feel happy about this. To be honest, this item was important to some, but not of much use to him. He was only four levels away from unlocking his second talent; he had long had a different goal and didn't plan to rely on this. He thought for a while, still without a clue, and soon returned his thoughts to the present.

For now, his biggest problem was still that Ghost Knight. Other matters could wait.

He glanced at the alchemy product within the array, now completed. It was originally an ordinary rope, but now it had become pitch black as ink, emitting a faint black light constantly. The item looked immensely impressive, somewhat like the Immortal Binding Rope in many cultivation novels—of course, judging from the color, compared to the golden glow of the Immortal Binding Rope in those novels, it might need a new name such as Binding Demon Rope.

Brand mocked himself, fully understanding that this was actually a rather crude alchemy product. He had simply injected the energy from the soul crystal into the rope. Yet, the absurdly high-quality raw materials had turned this ordinary rope into its current state.

He thought if Tama knew about his squandering, he would probably use a Soul Walker on him.

Oh, right. In this history, the future alchemy master Tama had not yet forged the legendary half-artifact sickle. Brand immediately corrected himself upon this realization.

He picked up the rope and looked towards the other end of the battlefield, quietly waiting for the moment the battle would end.

...

The Ghost Knight was raging in vain. Its Spirit Gun initially hit a few people—but the injuries inflicted were merely grazes caused by the wind pressure. Soon, the mercenaries became more cautious, and the fierce Undead immediately revealed its paper tiger nature.

Though the undead creature felt neither fear nor joy, it gradually became a bit impatient. Especially its demonic mount, which couldn't resist restlessly lifting and lowering its hooves.

Witnessing this, Hu Que was initially worried. He was mainly concerned that the Ghost Knight would perform another Thousand Army Strike. However, after suffering once, the creature had restrained itself well, fearing that another attempt would take it out completely.

The Ghost Knight had computational abilities and wouldn't make such a basic mistake.

Of course, it perhaps didn't realize it kept making another basic mistake.

The Mercenary Captain launched his last Ice Split Arrow. After nearly ten minutes of fighting, the Ghost Knight couldn't hold on anymore. Its upper body, almost entirely engulfed in frost, began to crack, and it started retreating.

This Undead's retreat was incredibly swift, far exceeding everyone's expectations. They initially thought that after being hit by so many Ice Split Arrows, its movement ability would be somewhat restricted, but it seemed that was only slightly the case.

Hu Que reacted quickly and shot a Wind Binding Arrow—unfortunately, it wasn't very effective.

The mercenaries exclaimed in surprise, with some preparing to pursue it, but Hu Que immediately stopped them. It would be a joke to pursue if the Ghost Knight were to turn around and strike again; they'd all meet their end.

If they died here, that would be one thing. But if Brand got killed, it would truly be a catastrophe.

Hu Que turned his gaze towards the forest, knowing at this moment the enigmatic Lord must be thinking of something. Unknowingly, these mercenaries had developed a trust in Brand, their summoner.

And indeed.

Two silver arrows appeared one after the other in the dark forest, looking like two white lines extending forward against a black backdrop—

So striking.

...(To be continued, for more updates, please visit www.qidian.com. Support the author and legitimate reading!)

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