The moment the bone spear collided with its neck, a piercing shriek erupted as a shockwave rippled outward.

The Giant Axe Skeleton Warrior's incredibly hard neck bone shattered instantly under the impact, sending shards scattering like flower petals.

The spear tip, bursting forth like an unsheathed sword, pierced straight through the neck bone and hoisted the Giant Axe Skeleton Warrior's entire skull into the air.

The moment its skull flew free, the Giant Axe Skeleton Warrior's body lost all support, and its massive frame crashed to the ground.

Seeing the Soul Fire still flickering within the skull, Fang Zhou attempted to cast the [Skeleton Monarch] skill.

The bones of the Skeleton Clone shimmered with a ghostly blue phosphorescence. From its hollow eye sockets, two cold blue lights blazed fiercely, as if an invisible Magic Power was bursting forth.

A violent wave spread out from it, rippling outwards.

The moment this wave touched the Giant Axe Skeleton Warrior's skull, a glimmer of struggle and confusion flashed within its once-chaotic Soul Fire.

Immediately after, a dark beam shot from the bone crown atop the Skeleton Clone's head, precisely penetrating the Giant Axe Skeleton Warrior's Soul Fire.

Its Soul Fire pulsed defiantly a few times before quickly settling into stillness.

Shortly after, a pleasant notification came from the attribute panel.

"Successfully enslaved the Giant Axe Skeleton Warrior!"

"Servant +1."

Fang Zhou's curiosity was piqued as he looked at the skull impaled on his spear tip.

He placed the Giant Axe Skeleton Warrior's skull back onto its original body. Soon, the skull and body began to fuse back together.

Once fully restored, the Giant Axe Skeleton Warrior stiffly turned to face the Skeleton Clone, its bright Soul Fire flickering with absolute loyalty to its new master.

The giant axe in its hand emanated a cold gleam under the Blood Moon, seemingly ready to Charge into battle for the Skeleton Clone at any moment.

Walk forward a few steps.

CRUNCH.

CRUNCH.

As this thought surfaced in Fang Zhou's mind, the Giant Axe Skeleton Warrior stepped forward at almost the exact same moment.

After completing Fang Zhou's command, it stopped and awaited further instructions.

After several experiments, Fang Zhou came to understand the extent of his control over this Giant Axe Skeleton Warrior.

When he concentrated, he could completely take control of the Giant Axe Skeleton Warrior, maneuvering its body according to his will. In this mode, he could even see through the Servant's eyes.

After exiting this control mode, he could also direct the Giant Axe Skeleton Warrior by issuing commands, such as ordering it to follow him or letting it hunt independently.

Of course, in this mode, Fang Zhou's commands couldn't be too complex.

Simply put, the Skeleton Clone had gained a completely controlled underling.

In high spirits, Fang Zhou led the Giant Axe Skeleton Warrior he had named Fu Yi into the distance.

When he spotted a Great Sword Skeleton Warrior, Fang Zhou sent a mental command. Fu Yi brandished its giant axe and charged toward the other skeleton like a flash of lightning.

It raised its giant axe high overhead and swung down fiercely with thunderous force.

The Great Sword Skeleton Warrior was quick on its feet, evading the axe's edge with a sidestep while thrusting its greatsword toward Fu Yi's chest like a striking serpent.

Fu Yi countered with a horizontal sweep, attempting to force the Great Sword Skeleton Warrior back.

The Great Sword Skeleton Warrior used the momentum to leap into the air, dodging the axe. Flipping mid-air, its greatsword traced an arc from above, aiming straight for Fu Yi's skull.

Fu Yi reacted swiftly, blocking with its axe handle. The metallic clash was deafening, and sparks of Soul Fire scattered.

The two exchanged blows, their fierce battle raging.

Meanwhile, Fang Zhou stood at a distance, quietly observing this duel between two amateurs.

Over the past few days of hunting, he had gained a basic understanding of the weapon types used by Skeleton Warriors.

The most common were giant axes, greatswords, long spears, great shields, and bows, each with its own strengths and weaknesses.

For instance, Fu Yi was now leveraging its strength advantage, repeatedly trying to overwhelm the Great Sword Skeleton Warrior with brute force.

The Great Sword Skeleton Warrior, meanwhile, used its agile movement techniques and precise swordsmanship to constantly search for weaknesses in Fu Yi's defense, hoping to land a deadly strike.

Soon, the prolonged battle left both combatants scarred and battered.

Fu Yi's giant axe had developed cracks after numerous clashes, and its strength was waning from the continuous swings.

The other skeleton's greatsword blade was chipped from the repeated impacts, and its bones had begun to fracture under the heavy blows of the giant axe.

Having observed for so long, Fang Zhou confirmed that Fu Yi, now enslaved, followed his orders perfectly without any loss of its original combat power or instincts.

Having reached a satisfactory conclusion, he stopped observing.

Taking the opportunity when the Great Sword Skeleton Warrior was distracted, Fang Zhou unleashed a clean and sharp [Brutal Strike], severing its skull.

Taking the skull from Fu Yi, Fang Zhou activated the [Skeleton Monarch] skill again.

Following the same procedure, this Great Sword Skeleton Warrior was also successfully enslaved, becoming his second underling.

"Servant +1."

This time, however, Fang Zhou didn't name the skeleton or place its skull back on its body. Instead, he dropped it to the ground and crushed it underfoot.

After checking his Skeleton Clone, Fang Zhou was relieved to find he was unaffected by the Servant's death.

In that case, he could use these skeleton Servants as cannon fodder without any hesitation.

Afterward, Fang Zhou had Fu Yi collect the skeleton's remains. He then placed his large, bony hand over the pile.

[Skeleton Armament] initiated!

A familiar warmth surged into his body as Fang Zhou squeezed the last bit of value from his second, short-lived Servant.

Strength +0.2, Soul Power +0.4.

After digesting this wave of Skeleton Essence, Fang Zhou stood up, satisfied.

Looking at Fu Yi standing silent guard before him, the Soul Fire in his eyes flickered as a plan gradually formed in his mind.

Fang Zhou's original plan, upon entering the inner layer of the Burial Wilderness, was to first hunt Skeleton Warriors that had just broken through to the Lower-rank of Black Iron to increase his Attributes and Skill Proficiency.

Once those skeletons were of no more use to him, he would begin hunting stronger enemies to continue bolstering his own power.

The greatest advantage of this method was safety, but it was also quite slow.

After all, the Undead Realm was an incredibly cruel world, and Fang Zhou only had one life.

Using strength to bully the weak, crushing them with overwhelming superiority—that was the true path to power!

However, after improving his [Skeleton Monarch] skill and gaining the ability to enslave skeletons, he realized there was a much faster way to increase his strength.

Enslaving skeletons!

A Skeleton Legion!

The Sea of Bones Skill!

After all, besides their weak individual fighting ability, the most memorable impression of the Skeleton Race was their ubiquitous Sea of Bones Skill, which could drown any enemy in sheer, overwhelming numbers.

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