Chapter Forty-Eight: Bringing Little Six into the Fold
Ivy wore a look of curiosity as well. Although she hadn’t been in this world for long, deep in her subconscious, she believed that abyssal creatures rarely possessed such spiritual intelligence.
“Can you understand what I’m saying? If you can, nod your head!”
The skeletal archer pressed itself against the wall and shook its head...
...If you can’t understand, why bother shaking anything! Ivy, this is the perfect chance to test your healing spell.
Don’t speak, just heal it!
At that moment, the skeletal archer suddenly collapsed, its humanoid form disintegrating and bones scattering across the ground.
The scene before her stunned Ivy for a moment, but she still cast “Divine Healing” on the skeletal archer.
Muchen’s gaze sharpened, watching closely for any changes.
A soft, white glow enveloped the bones on the floor.
Crack!
The fine fractures on the skeleton widened...
The healing continued...
Crack, crack, crack...
The sound of splintering echoed incessantly. The skeletal archer immediately stopped falling apart and reassembled itself into a humanoid shape within the gentle, white aura.
However, severe cracks appeared all over its body, some ribs even snapped clean in two. Though it reformed, the broken bones did not return to its body.
Seeing the skeletal archer rise, Muchen immediately produced the Soul-Stilling Spike. Ivy said nothing, but the cross in her hand swung toward the skeletal archer.
Crack...
In a moment of crisis, the skeletal archer dove to the ground, narrowly avoiding the dangerous blow.
“Wait, Ivy, hold on.” Muchen halted Ivy’s next attack.
Because—
The skeletal archer lay motionless, entirely resembling a posture of supplication...
“This...” Muchen was speechless. It seemed this pile of bones not only had a sense of humanity but was also highly intelligent!
“Can you understand what we’re saying or not! If you can, stand up and nod your head. Otherwise, your bones look pretty decent—maybe I’ll treat you to another round of osteoporosis.”
No sooner had he finished speaking than the skeletal archer scrambled to its feet, nodding vigorously. Its jaws clacked together, producing a nervous “clack clack” sound.
It was clearly flustered...
“Don’t worry. I’ll ask questions, you just nod or shake your head.” Seeing its anxious manner, Muchen was intrigued.
“Do you have any companions?”
The skeletal archer shook its head like a rattle.
Muchen pondered.
“Can you understand every word I say?”
This time, the skeletal archer both nodded and shook its head.
[Originating from the lower depths of the Abyss, this tiny skeleton accidentally absorbed the resentment of other spirit entities and mutated. No matter what language is spoken, it’s all the same to it—communication is through consciousness, not words.]
[After a hefty dose of healing, this little trickster just wants to survive. You can try to let it follow you and later form a contract with it.]
“A contract...” As the name implied, it was probably some kind of ritual or tool. Muchen didn’t care much about that; he only wanted to know if this creature could be safely kept within the territory. If it harbored ill intentions, it would be a catastrophe.
He gritted his teeth and glanced at Ivy. Deciding to take it in for now, since the territory lacked fighting strength, and with Ivy keeping an eye on it, it would surely behave.
“Ivy, you’ll take it with you from now on, otherwise I won’t feel at ease.”
“Clack clack clack...”
The white skull shook again and ran straight behind Muchen.
At this moment, Muchen could see that, to it, Ivy was akin to a natural disaster...
“......”
“Fine, fine, from now on, you’ll be called Little Bones. Follow instructions on the road and don’t cause any trouble, or you know what’ll happen!” Muchen glanced at it and saw it nodding repeatedly, putting on an obedient demeanor.
In no time, the two brought the skeleton back before the prone Nightmare Tiger. Since there was no kill notification, Muchen knew it was still alive.
Yet the Nightmare Tiger lay on the ground, barely breathing, its massive belly limp against the floor...
“Flattened...” Muchen glanced furtively at Ivy, inwardly amazed.
Though the tiger couldn’t move, its wild eyes stared at them with madness. If its body weren’t paralyzed, it would have lunged at them in fury.
Without a word, Muchen drove the Soul-Stilling Spike straight through its eye.
[You have slain the Nightmare Tiger.]
Upon hearing the notification, he retrieved the spike and took out the workbench for disassembly.
“Obtained [Exceptional Twisted Bones] x17, sent to backpack.”
“Obtained [Fresh Nightmare Tiger Meat] x22, sent to backpack.”
“Obtained [Resilient Tiger Hide] x9, sent to backpack.”
“Obtained [Dark Matter Soul] x1, sent to backpack.”
“Obtained [Source of Impurity] x6, sent to backpack.”
A bountiful harvest! Besides food, the Source of Impurity was particularly vital, indispensable for base construction.
“Clack...”
Little Bones paced back and forth where the Nightmare Tiger had lain, as if trying to convey something.
“???”
Its behavior baffled Muchen and Ivy.
“What is it trying to say?”
He thought for a moment and took out a Source of Impurity from his backpack.
Little Bones shook its head.
“Dark Matter Soul, then?”
But it kept shaking its head.
“You’re just a pile of bones, surely you don’t want meat?” Muchen produced a piece of meat and a bone.
At that moment, Little Bones accepted the tiger bone and cradled it to its chest.
The scene fell silent.
Little Bones lowered its head, staring at the bone, wordless—as if frozen.
But the tiger bone dissolved before their eyes, vanishing completely within a minute. Two ribs, previously missing from its body, were restored.
“No wonder it deliberately provoked other monsters—the reason is right here! This creature has its own means of recovery.”
Muchen and Ivy exchanged glances, both seeing astonishment in each other’s eyes.
Originally, Muchen thought it would be easy to control since it feared Ivy, but now he had a new approach.
He took out a twisted bone and waved it in front of Little Bones.
“Do you want it?” Muchen’s voice was filled with temptation, and Little Bones’ skull followed the bone back and forth...
“Clack clack...”
Watching the bone in Muchen’s hand, Little Bones nodded eagerly.
“No problem, as long as you stick with me, ten bones a month minimum—never short on these. Let me tell you, there aren’t many places as good as ours, everyone’s highly motivated, the team atmosphere is great, and the work hours are flexible...”
After hearing this, Little Bones’ entire skeleton trembled.
Seeing its frantic nods, Muchen tossed it the bone, which it absorbed with delight...