The moment the Archer Chieftain was destroyed, the Skeleton Archers fell into collective shock.
None of them—not even the oldest among them—had ever imagined their mighty leader could be slain by a low-tier skeleton.
For several breaths, Archer's Hill was deathly silent.
Only the howling wind swept sand and gravel across the slopes.
Then—
Chaos erupted.
Skeleton Archers turned on one another without warning. Bone arrows screamed through the air as slaughter broke out across the hillsides.
This was their law.
The old leader was dead.
A new one would be chosen—
through blood and bones.
"Hah! Beautiful," Shen Daolun said leisurely, arms folded, eyes gleaming as he watched the carnage. "By the time a new Archer Chieftain crawls out, at least half of them will be scrap. What do you think, instigator?"
Lin lan didn't answer.
He didn't have the strength to.
He dragged his lower body closer, aligning it with his upper half. Then he forced what little spiritual energy he had left into his shattered spine.
White mist rose.
Thin. Unstable.
The bones trembled.
Crack… crack…
Pain tore through him. His soul flame dimmed visibly, flickering like it might go out at any second.
This repair was brutal.
Ten full minutes passed before the light finally stabilized.
The spine reformed.
Lin lan collapsed flat onto the ground, utterly drained.
No hesitation.
He pulled the Archer Chieftain's soul flame into his mouth and activated the Eight Desolations Soul-Refining Technique.
Death energy surged.
In the Nine Nether, the stronger the undead, the purer the soul flame. As ruler of Archer's Hill, the Archer Chieftain's soul flame dwarfed anything Lin lan had absorbed before.
Power flowed.
Circulate. Penetrate. Reshape.
The damage healed.
Then—
More than healed.
Lin lan felt warmth spread through his frame, like soaking in a hot spring. The tension drained from him. Exhaustion caught up all at once.
He let go.
As the last of the soul flame was refined, a faint silver-white halo formed around his body, lifting him gently into the air.
His awareness drifted.
Time lost meaning.
His bones dissolved into nothingness—
leaving only his soul flame.
Brighter. Denser. Sharper.
When he finally woke, the world felt… different.
His soul flame burned deep white, steady and powerful.
Lin lan flexed his joints.
Ding.
The sound was crisp.
His bones gleamed faintly, like white jade—dense, smooth, unyielding.
His vision pierced the darkness effortlessly, the world clear as daylight.
He checked his soul flame again.
Stronger. Far stronger.
The soul flame was the core of an undead being—their brain, heart, and foundation all in one.
Each color evolution meant an explosive leap in power.
Lin lan laughed silently.
Advanced at last.
This feeling—damn good.
Shen Daolun took way longer to reach this stage back then.
Looks like I really am built different.
Human body… I'm coming.
He struck a pose without thinking—one hand on his hip, the other pointing upward.
Then froze.
"…Right."
The Piercing Void Divine Ring.
That was the whole point.
He dropped to the ground and began searching frantically.
His final strike had obliterated the Archer Chieftain completely. Bones were scattered everywhere—but no ring.
Nothing.
Cold dread crept in.
Don't tell me… I destroyed it?
"Relax," Shen Daolun scoffed. "You're not that impressive."
He spat lightly to the side. "That's a divine-grade artifact. Even if your attack were a hundred times stronger, you couldn't scratch it."
Lin lan steadied himself.
He searched again—slower this time.
Carefully.
He pushed aside a heap of shattered bones.
A ring rolled into view.
"That's it," Shen Daolun said.
Lin lan picked it up with reverence.
The Piercing Void Divine Ring was pristine. A faint blue glow flowed within it. No excessive patterns—only a single ancient gate engraved on the inner band, accompanied by one short incantation.
Simple.
Powerful.
He slid it onto his finger.
Chanted.
Blue light exploded outward.
Space rippled.
An ancient gate formed in midair, identical to the engraving on the ring. From its threshold, a long ladder extended down—ending right at Lin lan's feet.
His soul flame flared.
Finally.
I'm leaving this place.
He stepped onto the ladder—then paused.
Turning back, he waved casually.
"Too bad you lost yours centuries ago," Lin lan said. "Otherwise, I could've shown you the outside world."
He grinned.
"Mountains stay green. Rivers keep flowing. We'll meet again."
Then he jumped into the gate.
Blue light flashed.
Lin lan vanished.
The gate faded.
Silence returned.
Shen Daolun stood alone.
After a moment, he calmly reached into his storage bracelet and took out a ring—
identical to the Piercing Void Divine Ring.
He smiled.
"Something this important?" he muttered.
"How could I ever let it be destroyed?"