Xuan Cang Continent, Da Luo Dynasty, Mangcao City.
As dusk approached, the setting sun glowed with vibrant colors.
Inside a resettlement house in the inner city, Ning Zhu floated in mid-air, his gaze fixed on the gray Magic Coffin before him.
On the inner lid of the Magic Coffin lay a small humanoid Skeleton Soldier.
It was only one and a half meters tall, and its bones were not the common grayish-white, but a leaden gray, emitting a dull, dusty light.
Because there was no decaying flesh or blood on its body, the aura it exuded, though gloomy, was not terrifying.
It wore a tattered black cloak with a stand-up collar and a front opening, its body-length reaching its ankles, draped over it like an enveloping night, an endless void rushing forward.
Ning Zhu blinked.
Wasn't he eating? Where did he come from?
Wait, why am I floating in the air? What's going on??
“Crack crack crack—”
The quiet and peaceful gray-boned Skeleton Soldier suddenly extended a lightning-fast claw without warning.
An intense pain shot from his neck, and Ning Zhu's breathing quickened, his face instantly turning crimson.
He remembered! He had transmigrated! He had transmigrated long ago!
This was a transcendent world where human Magus could transform into demonic creatures to fight—
Transform into a 'Stone Giant,' majestic as a mountain, possessing boundless strength.
Transform into a 'Winged Archer,' soaring through the sky, shooting down eagles with his bow.
Transform into a 'Shadow Sword Goblin,' condensing shadows into a sword, capable of slaying young dragons.
Transform into a 'Six-winged Angel of Light,' with a brilliant halo, like a divine descent…
Gigantism, charm, longevity, fire, frost, lightning, holiness, evil, assassination, healing… whatever superpower one desired could be indirectly obtained through demonic creatures…
Ning Zhu's mind spun with an endless stream of memory fragments.
In reality, his hands gripped the bony claw that was squeezing his neck, struggling to pry it open, barely creating a gap.
It was this gap that allowed him to take a breath, lessening the fatal sense of suffocation.
“Human, how dare you covet the noble bloodline of the Undead race! I want you dead, you must die!”
Within the skull of the gray-boned Skeleton Soldier, a faint green flame flickered.
The tip of the flame danced, and a roar filled with disgust and hatred, like rusted gears grinding together, sparks of anger flying, drilling straight into his bone marrow.
No… He didn't want to die… He wanted to live!
At this moment, cold sweat drenched his clothes, and fear permeated his skin.
—Ning Zhu remembered everything!
In this life, he was still named 'Ning Zhu,' originally living in a family of three. His parents died when he was five, and as an orphan of a hunter, he entered an orphanage.
Now sixteen, he was a 'Provisional Magus,' trying to become a full-fledged one.
The gray Magic Coffin before him was his innate 'Internal Magic Coffin,' which had matured after sixteen years of extremely arduous cultivation.
Based on the innate quality of his Internal Magic Coffin, he was not a waste; his talent was above average. If he could match it with a suitable demonic creature's corpse and complete the two steps of 'Corpse Sealing' and 'Coffin Opening,' becoming a Magus would not be difficult.
But in this era, he took a dangerous risk, attempting to transform a stronger demonic creature into his Magic Coffin, and failed!
“Isolated and helpless, unwilling to be mediocre—it's understandable.”
“But what can I do? I've only awakened my past life's memories and become the primary consciousness. The quality of my Internal Magic Coffin hasn't improved, and the corresponding talent is still Inferior Species Initial Stage. How am I supposed to deal with this mess now?”
Ning Zhu was troubled, but his will to survive erupted, and he desperately resisted the bony claw gripping his neck.
【Detecting host's true soul awakening…】
【'Skeletal Divine Court' activated!】
In a daze, a golden light of primordial chaos pierced through his mind.
Ning Zhu's head throbbed with pain, and a beast-like roar erupted from his throat, lasting for several seconds before abruptly stopping.
The pain subsided.
A towering divine hall, soaring into the clouds, suddenly appeared in the depths of his soul.
It was so dilapidated; the collapsed archway resembled the broken spine of a giant beast, the sky-high colonnades were covered in spiderweb-like scars, rolling rocks brought the wailing of the wind, and everywhere were ruins and shocking sights.
However, at the very top of the divine hall, a plaque shone brightly.
Engraved on it were the four characters “Skeletal Divine Court.” Each character was like a gray sun, overlooking the passage of time, witnessing the alternation of glory and decay, always standing tall.
His golden finger had arrived?
Ning Zhu woke as if from a dream.
Sixteen years, oh sixteen years, do you know how he endured these years?
Did he not deserve to have it if his past life's memories didn't awaken and he maintained his native identity?
“Human…”
“How dare you covet the noble Undead bloodline? The great Exos grants you death!”
The gray-boned Skeleton Soldier lying in the gray Magic Coffin extended its bony claw again, a chilling killing intent emanating from its body.
However, this time, before it could touch Ning Zhu's neck, a suppressed life fluctuation spread out.
“Whoosh whoosh whoosh!”
Ning Zhu's eyes reflected a glimpse of the Skeletal Divine Court.
In an instant, he seemed to be coated with a layer of divinity; his features became more defined, and his gaze more majestic.
“Pfft…”
The last flicker of flame remaining in the gray-boned Skeleton Soldier's skull could not withstand the pressure and extinguished with a sound.
Before its demise, its skull was aimed at Ning Zhu, and in its hollow eye sockets surged intense disbelief, and… soul-piercing fear.
“No… you cannot invade my clan's bloodline…”
“The noble Necromancy Apprentice race cannot be humiliated…”
The shattered divine hall reflected in Ning Zhu's eyes slowly dimmed.
The world in his ears became quiet.
In the gray Magic Coffin, the gray-boned Skeleton Soldier lay silently, no longer emitting any dangerous aura.
Ning Zhu was silent for a moment.
He extended his right hand and grabbed the gray Magic Coffin.
“Boom!!”
The gray Magic Coffin disintegrated instantly.
All the fragments swirled around Ning Zhu, finally rushing like moths to a flame, crashing into his body.
Thump thump thump—
Ning Zhu could hear his own heartbeat quickening.
An unknown power was pouring into his internal organs, then transforming his entire body.
Was he finally taking this step?
Necromancy Apprentice—the precious legacy left by his father in this life.
It possessed the extremely rare ability to summon Minions at a low level, allowing him to act as a big boss from the start.
It also possessed at least two vertical evolution chains for the future; as long as it could be transformed into a Magic Coffin, he wouldn't have to worry about not reaching higher realms, and the path to becoming a strong individual would be smooth.
For it, risking nine deaths for one life… it was worth it!
—Ning Zhu spread his arms, emptying himself.
A moment later, when his light blue pupils transitioned to pure gray, and the confusion faded from his cheeks, he woke up again.
“Switch.”
With a thought, the gray Magic Coffin hidden deep within his flesh and blood opened its lid.
In an instant, Ning Zhu's human body disappeared from its original spot.
The gray-boned Skeleton Soldier, which had once released a chilling killing intent towards him, stood in the room again.
Only this time, the primary consciousness was completely different.
“Whoosh!”
In the empty skull, a cluster of dark green soul fire ignited.
As it blazed, the temperature of the surrounding space dropped instead of rising, as if eroded by frosty winds.
Ning Zhu rotated his cervical vertebrae, turning 180 degrees horizontally, easily surpassing the limit of Earth humans.
Then he lifted his right leg bone, bending it behind his head, standing on one leg as steadily as a golden rooster.
Following that, his foot bones tapped the ground, spinning, jumping, and doing splits in the air… constantly familiarizing himself with the skeletal body.
“As expected of a rare Undead, the bone joints are very flexible, not stiff at all.”
“Even though there are no sensory organs like eyes, nose, or ears, he can perceive similar sight, smell, and hearing through his soul fire… He can even sense ground vibrations and temperature changes…”
Ning Zhu, who had been darting around like a mischievous monkey, suddenly stopped.
In his dark green-shrouded vision, a translucent box suddenly appeared, catching his attention.
【Race】: Necromancy Apprentice
【Evolution Level】: Inferior Species Initial Stage
【Talents】: Soul Fire / Dark Cloak / Loss of Pain / Bone Splice Talent
【One-Star Skill】: Summon 'Skeleton Soldier' (Beginner)