This Black Corpse wore rotting noble attire, and at its waist hung a single-handed sword with a scabbard inlaid with Gemstones.

Though its flesh had withered away, its skin was jet-black, and its muscles and bones looked as if they were forged from black iron, giving it an appearance of extreme durability.

Simply by standing there, it exuded a powerful, deathly aura.

Moreover, two balls of chilling, eerie-green Soul Fire burned deep within its eyes, a clear sign that this was an intelligent Undead Creature.

And right now, its gaze was fixed intently on Avril.

It was her. She was the one who had cast that sickening Holy Light.

Avril’s heart trembled under its gaze. Her legs went weak, and she stumbled backward, falling against a broad, sturdy chest.

Uh...

Under normal circumstances, Lynch might have teased her with a line or two, something like, ’Of all the times to make a move on me...’

But now, Lynch felt a headache coming on. He simply pulled her behind him.

He had indeed deliberately let Avril test her Holy Light Purification Skill to see if he could fish anything out, but he never expected to hook a Black Corpse.

Black Corpses weren’t like those trash zombies that could only groan and gurgle; they typically possessed immense strength and considerable resistance to both physical and elemental attacks.

The so-called "ancient" Black Corpse, meanwhile, referred to a particularly malevolent creature that had either formed naturally over countless years or been meticulously cultivated by a Necromancer, its power far surpassing that of an ordinary Black Corpse.

What’s more, a huge, dense crowd of ordinary zombies trailed behind it.

Furthermore, in the tomb’s antechamber, the previously sealed stone coffins had been awakened by its deathly aura, and their lids began to shake violently.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

One after another, decaying arms pushed open the coffin lids from within. Amidst a low, terrifying roar, another seven or eight zombies climbed out of the stone coffins.

Including those that had followed the Black Corpse, the total number of zombies in the tomb reached twenty or thirty. The stench of decay and a chilling aura of death filled the air, nauseating and suffocating.

However, upon seeing Lynch’s army of Skeletons, the Black Corpse seemed to show a hint of apprehension.

It didn’t recklessly charge forward. Instead, it stopped about ten meters from the entrance to the cavern. Its Soul Fire flickered, and a low, guttural roar rumbled in its throat.

「The next moment.」

The zombie horde under its command charged Lynch’s Undead Army. Urged on by a series of frenzied roars, even their usual shuffling gait quickened.

’Damn it!’

’This thing actually has a brain...’

Lynch’s original plan was to wait for it to charge recklessly into his Skeleton Corps, then dispatch his elites to surround it and hack it to death.

He hadn’t expected that even after becoming a zombie, the old thing would still be such a coward.

’Fighting near its lair obviously isn’t a wise move. Who knows if more zombies are lurking deeper in this ancient tomb?’

’What if the old guy has a few concubines buried with him as well?’

In a flash, Lynch made his decision.

With a single thought, his army of Skeletons began to retreat in an orderly fashion.

Only Bone Jade and his subordinates remained behind, executing a fighting retreat to slow the zombie horde.

A short while later, Lynch’s army had retreated into a long, narrow mine tunnel, a passage only wide enough for three or four people to walk abreast.

More importantly, the pursuing zombie horde was forced into a long, drawn-out line within the tunnel.

The Black Corpse, meanwhile, hid at the very rear of the zombie line, occasionally letting out impatient, guttural roars to urge the zombies at the front to move faster.

Seeing this, Lynch sneered to himself.

’Heh, a zombie is still just a zombie.’

’Even an ancient Black Corpse is leagues behind a human when it comes to tactical flexibility.’

And this was, in fact, the case.

Unless they were extremely high-level or exceptionally gifted Undead Units, most mid-to-Low Tier Undead Creatures had very limited combat autonomy without a commander.

"In that case," Lynch chuckled, "don’t blame me for picking on an old-timer."

Under Lynch’s command, Bone Jade, who was holding the line, suddenly burst forward, driving back the zombies before it with a few slashes. It then disengaged, commanding its subordinates to follow the main army and accelerate their retreat.

Soon, Lynch’s forces had retreated to an open area.

It appeared to be a material storage area for the mine. The space was quite large, and the ground was littered with discarded ore and timber.

"This is the place." Lynch swiftly arranged his troops, deploying all his elites.

This time, he took personal, direct command.

His goblin Warrior Skeleton, Bear Goblins Skeleton, and eleven elite goblin Skeletons, along with Bone Jade, Bone Valor, and their cohorts, were pulled aside as a separate unit.

They quickly formed a curved defensive line at the tunnel entrance leading into the storage area, completely sealing off the narrow exit.

The moment the defensive line was formed, the vanguard of the zombie horde surged through the exit.

"ROAR!" "GURGLE!"

Withered, decaying arms and rusted weapons reached out from the tunnel, attempting to break the line.

However, the tunnel exit was only wide enough for three or four zombies to emerge at once. Squeezed together, they got in each other’s way and were unable to mount a proper attack.

Lynch’s side, in contrast, had more than a dozen elites fanned out in the open space. Facing the three or four zombies crammed together, they enjoyed an overwhelming numerical advantage.

Bone Jade’s Bone Knife flashed like lightning, aimed squarely at the zombies’ joints and necks.

The goblin Warrior Skeleton, possessing both strength and skill, swung its heavy steel scimitar with great force, often carving a huge gash in a tough zombie with a single blow.

A swing from the Bear Goblins Skeleton’s Wolf Fang Club could send a zombie stumbling backward.

The elite goblin Skeletons coordinated their attacks, thrusting with bone spears at the zombies’ lower bodies and torsos...

As for the three Skeleton Wolf Cavalry, they remained far off on standby, per Lynch’s orders.

In such narrow, cramped terrain with no room to maneuver, cavalry was completely ineffective.

All magic-casting units were on standby, conserving their Mana to deal with any unexpected developments, such as the Black Corpse charging the line itself.

Of course.

There was one other melee unit: the Warrior Maiden.

Looking eager to fight, she got Lynch’s permission and then asked Avril for a blessing of strength.

Then, with a sharp cry, she raised her sword and shield and joined the slaughter.

With such a perfect tactical setup and terrain advantage, the battle became a one-sided slaughter.

Each group of zombies that squeezed out of the tunnel entrance was immediately swarmed and killed by the elites, who outnumbered them several times over.

"SQUELCH!" "CRACK!"

The zombies fell faster and faster.

Foul, black blood and mangled flesh piled up at the mouth of the tunnel, the stench overwhelming.

At the rear of the tunnel, the Black Corpse, now blocked by its own minions, could only watch. It was both anxious and enraged, letting out a series of furious, guttural roars.

Unfortunately, it had no ranged attacks and could only fret from the rear in a perfect display of impotent rage.

But its guttural roars seemed to anger the Black Robe Bone Skill, which had been on standby. The Soul Fire in its eye sockets flickered, and it suddenly raised the well-worn Magic Staff in its hand.

A pale, deathly energy surged forth, enveloping the bodies of the fallen zombies.

[Skeleton Resurrection Skill].

CRACK CRACK CRACK! CRUNCH CRUNCH!

One by one, Skeletons began to rise from the zombie corpses.

...