Undead Mage: I Have a Skeleton Clone

*"Task completed. Time taken: 12 minutes, 30 seconds. Clearance Rating: [Perfect]. Reward: 3 contribution points."*

*"First clearance of [Horn Demon Outpost] on Easy difficulty. First-Clear Reward: 4 contribution points."*

*"Congratulations, Junior Sergeant Fang Zhou. Your team is the first in this grade to clear the [Horn Demon Outpost] on Easy difficulty. All team members will receive the grade's First-Clear Ranking Reward of 10 contribution points and an achievement blessing: Simulated Battlefield loot drop rate +1% (cumulative 6%)."*

*"Congratulations, Junior Sergeant Fang Zhou. Your team's clear time of 12 minutes and 30 seconds for the [Horn Demon Outpost] on Easy difficulty ranks 50th on the historical speed leaderboard. This month's estimated ranking reward is 3 contribution points."*

*"Loot drop triggered. Obtained: [Low-Level Spiritual Recovery Potion] x1. Can be exchanged for 1 contribution point."*

*"You may challenge the Normal difficulty in 5 minutes."*

A series of prompts echoed in Fang Zhou's ear.

First clear for the grade, that was to be expected.

He raised an eyebrow at placing only 50th on the historical speed leaderboard but wasn't too surprised. After all, this was a team dungeon. No matter how efficient he was alone, he couldn't necessarily compare to a well-configured three-person team with a balanced offense and defense.

What's more, this historical speed ranking was calculated using each person's best-ever performance and could be run repeatedly to improve one's time. The teams on the leaderboard all set their records when their strength was at the absolute peak of the Middle-Rank Apprentice tier, with perfectly optimized Skills and Equipment. They also had seamless teamwork and were intimately familiar with the [Horn Demon Outpost] clear process.

Compared to these veterans, it was already quite a surprise for Fang Zhou—a newcomer who had just reached the Middle Rank of the Apprentice Stage—to break into the top 50 while clearing it solo for the first time.

Not to mention, if he teamed up with Ye Fan and Bai Xiaochan after they reached the Middle-Rank Apprentice tier, they could challenge the leaderboard on Easy difficulty again. With Bai Xiaochan providing various buffs and Ye Fan contributing extra damage, their clear time would surely be drastically reduced.

Fang Zhou shook his head slightly, pushing these thoughts aside.

After tallying his gains and subtracting the entry fee, his net profit was 19 contribution points, which was quite decent.

Fang Zhou glanced back at the massive corpse of the Horned Demon, then left the Simulation Battlefield.

「...」

In the meeting room, the instructors' faces filled with admiration as they watched the footage of Fang Zhou calmly and effortlessly slaying the Horned Demon Boss, and they broke into applause for him.

Shen Hongyu sighed and said, "A one-man army with extraordinary combat power. Truly, the younger generation is formidable."

Chen Qing also praised him sincerely. "To possess such comprehensive combat capability during the Apprentice Stage... I'm really looking forward to seeing what kind of spectacular feats Fang Zhou will perform on the battlefield when he breaks through to become a Silver or Golden Powerhouse."

Seeing the instructors heap praise on Fang Zhou, Su Tiankuo was inwardly ecstatic. However, still stewing over last night's embarrassing incident, he couldn't stop himself from nitpicking.

"Hmph, I think Fang Zhou still has a long way to go. He lacks effective group-attack methods for dealing with those Little Inferior Demons. The Skeletons he summons are sufficient for handling cannon fodder, but they struggle to inflict any effective damage on elite Demons like the Horned Demon. Furthermore, his self-preservation is limited. He has no Displacement Skills, making his weaknesses all too obvious. If he encounters an enemy's decapitation strike, he'll have no choice but to stand there and wait for death."

Hearing Su Tiankuo's words, the instructors exchanged speechless glances.

Our dear Principal Su, at the end of the day, Fang Zhou has only been an Awakened for one month. Your insistence on finding fault is really rather comical.

Lu Hu shrank into a corner like a frightened quail, his mouth seemingly sewn shut. Daring not to utter a sound, he could only protest with his eyes.

Last night in Su Xinyan's office, he had been unable to hold back his laughter, causing both Principal Su and Su Xinyan great embarrassment. Afterward, he was naturally given a "generous" drilling by the Principal.

Therefore, he didn't dare to speak up for Fang Zhou now, fearing he would bring trouble upon himself.

On the training field, the spectating students wore expressions of utter disbelief as they watched Fang Zhou's results.

That Fang Zhou could clear the [Horn Demon Outpost] solo was one thing. What they found most difficult to accept was that he had managed to break into the top 50 of the historical speed leaderboard relying solely on his own strength.

Didn't this mean that Fang Zhou alone was now strong enough to defeat the vast majority of three-person teams?

In a corner, Ye Fan stared up at the combat footage of Fang Zhou commanding Undead and Skeletons, slaying Demons as if they were chickens, and felt his blood boil with excitement.

"This is how a true man should be! One day, I, Ye Fan, will take his place."

Beside him, Bai Xiaochan's beautiful eyes sparkled with dazzling light. She clasped her hands to her chest, secretly fantasizing about following Fang Zhou as they conquered every challenge in their path.

Hmph, we'd make an amazing team.

In the crowd, Meng Hongzhuang, Gu Zhiqiu, and others also wore solemn expressions. They mentally calculated the gap between themselves and Fang Zhou, an intense fighting spirit igniting in their hearts.

「...」

Lying in the Simulation Pod, Fang Zhou silently reflected on the shortcomings he had discovered in the previous battle.

His group-attack abilities were a clear weakness; he had wasted far too much time on the cannon fodder Little Inferior Demons. If he wanted to improve his clear speed, this was the first problem he needed to solve.

With a direction for improvement in mind, Fang Zhou focused his attention on the Attribute Panel.

Time for my ingenuity to shine!

*"Detected sufficient Skill Materials to infer Unknown Skills. Estimated cost: 10 Soul Power."*

*"Begin inference?"*

Fang Zhou immediately confirmed. In a Burst of Inspiration, countless brilliant ideas flooded his mind.

Since a single Skeleton Flying Spear couldn't hit multiple enemies, what if he weakened the power of the Bone Spear but increased the number of projectiles? That would naturally transform a single-target skill into a Group Attack Skill.

*"Successfully inferred the skill [Skeleton Arrow Rain]."*

[Skeleton Arrow Rain] (Apprentice-level, Skilled): Fires a barrage of skeleton arrows at enemies within a certain area, dealing Armor-Piercing physical, Corrosive Poison, and Death Energy damage. Arrows explode upon hitting enemies. Quantity, power, and range are determined by the Spirit Attribute and Skill Proficiency.

A perfect Group Attack Skill. Fang Zhou nodded in satisfaction.

With [Skeleton Arrow Rain], his demon-slaying efficiency would undoubtedly skyrocket.

After resting for a short while, Fang Zhou prepared to challenge the Normal difficulty of the [Horn Demon Outpost].

Paying the 4-contribution-point entry fee, he once again stepped through the Teleportation Gate.

*"Mission: Eliminate all Demons and reclaim the Riverfront Outpost."*

The familiar dense fog appeared once again.

Although there had been no enemies in the fog on Easy difficulty, Fang Zhou didn't let his guard down. Just like last time, he first condensed a Bone Shield and summoned a large number of Skeletons, then familiarly made his way toward the outpost.

This time, Fang Zhou discovered a Little Inferior Demon acting as a sentry at the outpost's gate.

It leaned lazily against a stone pillar, completely oblivious to Fang Zhou and his Skeleton Army hidden in the dense fog.