Chapter 12: Ashen Bone Serpent

Chapter 12: Ashen Bone Serpent

"Alright, let's try this again," Jack said, turning back toward the dead serpent's carcass lying in the scorched ash.

Extending his right hand over the lifeless body, he focused his intent. "Rise!"

A sudden, dark purple mist surged out from his palm, wrapping tightly around the snake's remains. The temperature surrounding the corpse dropped drastically for a split second as dark green ambient energy was forcibly drawn out of the volcanic air. The flesh and scales melted away like wax, leaving behind a skeletal structure forged from glistening obsidian bone. With a clattering hiss, the creature slithered upward, taking shape in front of them.

[Ashen Bone Serpent] (Undead Summon) Original Monster: Volcanic Poison Snake (Level 2)

Grade: Bronze (Undead)

Level: 2

HP: 250 / 250 (Original: 350)

Attack: 35 (Original: 40)

Defense: 25 (Original: 10)

[Passive Traits]

Undead Body: Completely immune to poison, bleeding, pain, and fear.

Lava-Proof Skeleton: 100% immune to fire, heat, and magma damage. Can crawl directly through molten lava without taking damage.

Zero Consumption: Requires absolutely no food, water, or rest to function.

[Skill: Necrotic Magma Venom (Cooldown: 30 seconds)] Infuses its obsidian fangs with corrupt death energy and boiling lava. On bite, it deals 35 physical damage and inflicts a rotting poison that deals 20 HP per second for 5 seconds, slowing the target’s movement speed by 40%.

[Active Skill (Linked to Class): Mobile Corpse Bomb] Because of its high agility, the user can command this summon to slither swiftly into the center of a pack of enemies and trigger the class active effect, detonating the skeleton to deal 500 area-of-effect damage within a 10-meter radius.

[Description: The skeletal remains of a Volcanic Poison Snake, held together by the user’s necrotic mana. Its flesh has burned away, leaving a terrifying slithering spine of dark obsidian bone. Eerie purple and green flames flicker inside its hollow eye sockets and ribcage.]

"WOAH! It actually worked!!" Aria gasped, hovering closer while eyeing the glowing green flames in the serpent's eye sockets. She crossed her arms and puffed out her cheeks. "And from what it looks like, it's almost as strong as the original beast!"

"Even better," Jack replied, a satisfied smirk touching his lips as he reviewed the stat panel. "Before the first monster wave hits our base, we need to assemble a solid vanguard of these. We'll have Brul build defense walls around the perimeter, and keep these undead summons stationed outside the barrier to intercept threats before they reach the shrine."

He looked down at his status window, nodding to himself. "And the best part about upgrading my class talent to Lord of the Dead is that raising any carcass up to Level 3 doesn't cost me a single drop of mana anymore. It draws power directly from the environment."

"Then what are we waiting for?!" Aria declared, waving her tiny fists in the air with dramatic enthusiasm. "Let's keep hunting! Aria wants an entire legion!"

---

The duo trekked further through the jagged basalt terrain, using the towering obsidian boulders as cover. It wasn't long before the Ashen Bone Serpent raised its skeletal head, its dark ribs rattling in warning.

Up ahead, patrolling near a bubbling magma vent, was a quadrupedal beast covered in soot-black fur and burning embers. A glowing blue screen floated over its head:

[Hellhound]

Grade: Bronze

Level: 1

HP: 180

Attack: 28

Defense: 8

Jack didn't even need to unsheathe his sword. With a simple mental command, he ordered the serpent forward.

SWOOSH!

The Ashen Bone Serpent moved like a strike of dark lightning, slithering across the hot ash without making a sound. Before the Hellhound could even turn its head to growl, the snake lunged, coiling its obsidian bones around the beast's torso and sinking its glowing fangs deep into the creature's neck!

CRUNCH!

[Skill Activated: Necrotic Magma Venom!]

Green and purple rot surged through the Hellhound's veins. Within three seconds, the beast let out a muffled whimper and collapsed onto the hot dirt, completely lifeless.

[Congratulations! You have gained 30 EXP.]

[System Notice: Your summon [Ashen Bone Serpent] cannot gain EXP. Undead summons cannot exceed the user's current level.]

[Congratulations! You have leveled up! You are now Level 2!] A warm current of golden light washed over Jack, instantly flushing away the physical fatigue weighing down his limbs.

[ Name: Jack Mercer ]

[ Race: Earthling Human ]

[ Level: 2 (20 / 250 EXP) ]

[ Class: Lord of the Dead +1 ]

[ HP: 100 / 100 ]

[ MP: 50 / 50 ]

[ Stats ] (5 free stat points available)

STR (Strength): 4

AGI (Agility): 3

SPI (Spirit): 5

PHY (Physique): 5

[ Talents & Passives ]

SSS-Rank Hidden Talent: Infinite Enhancement {Current Enhancement Points: 1}

Passive Trait: Heat Tolerance +1 (Permanently makes temperatures up to 60°C feel like a comfortable 30°C)

[ Equipped Gear ]

Weapon: Rusty Iron Sword +1

(Grade: Trash | Attack +30 | Special Effect: 50% chance to inflict Deadly Corrosion Poison dealing 100 HP/second for 10 seconds)

'My MP pool automatically restored to full upon leveling up,' Jack analyzed silently, clenching and unclenching his fist. 'Earlier, when my MP was drained down to 5 points, my body felt heavy and exhausted. But now that my talent passive handles the summoning cost for low-level corpses, I don't need to dump points into Spirit just yet.'

He pondered his allocation options carefully. 'HP is vital for survival so I don't get one-shot by higher-tier monsters, but I can always rely on armors and gears after enhancements later to stack my total health pool. Right now, physical combat capability and reaction speed are priorities.'

"System," Jack commanded in his mind, "add 3 points to Agility and 2 points to Strength."

[Stat Points Allocated Successfully!]

[ Name: Jack Mercer ]

[ Race: Earthling Human ]

[ Level: 2 (20 / 250 EXP) ]

[ Class: Lord of the Dead +1 ]

[ HP: 100 / 100 ]

[ MP: 50 / 50 ]

[ Stats ] (0 points available)

STR (Strength): 6

AGI (Agility): 6

SPI (Spirit): 5

PHY (Physique): 5

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