Volume 2, Chapter 44 – The Problem

The sound of the wind howled in her ears as she ran. Her long hair, caught in the air currents stirred up by her movement, fluttered wildly around her face.

Even so, the girl’s eyes stayed locked on what lay ahead.

“Hiss.”

The undead let out a shrill cry, and the moment she was about to close in, it raised its sword high and brought it down toward her slender body with deadly force, as if intending to cleave her in two.

But just before the attack could land, her body twisted slightly to the side, slipping past the blow in an impossibly sharp motion. In the next instant, the short sword in her hand flashed, stabbing straight into the skeleton’s dark eye socket where a ghostly blue flame flickered.

“Critical Hit -2637”

After landing the fatal blow, she didn’t even bother to look at the result before sprinting forward again. The short sword in her hand began to glow with a green light.

If a ranger of the same class had been watching, they would have instantly recognized that glow, it was the signature light of a Paralysis effect.

For a ranger, control skills like this were as vital as the Stun skills of a warrior. They were the core of combat.

And she hadn’t coated her blade with that green light by chance, it was entirely deliberate.

Don’t think that just because her enemies were undead from the Graveyard, they would be immune to paralysis.

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In this System-driven game, the Paralysis effect wasn’t limited to the biological paralysis of nerves. Rather, just like Stun, Blind, Petrify, or Immobilize, it was a status judged by the System’s mechanics. If successful, it would take effect regardless of the enemy’s nature.

So she had no reason to worry that the onrushing skeletons wouldn’t be affected.

Then, she suddenly hurled the short sword in her hand toward the group of undead charging at her.

Yes, she threw it.

Before the sword even hit the ground, it exploded midair, scattering countless glowing green fragments of metal over the undead below.

Due to the difference in rank and level, nearly all of her Paralysis effects were successfully judged by the System. Before her eyes, the undead that had been rushing toward her in a tight cluster all froze in place at once.

It was obvious that the paralysis effect had succeeded.

“Now’s my chance.”

The System’s control effects lasted at most five seconds. Knowing that rule by heart, she wasted no time. In those few seconds, she drew a new short sword and dashed forward, driving it one after another into the dark eye sockets of the paralyzed skeletons.

“-2453”

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“-2466”

“-2563”

“-2334”

Lines of blood-red numbers floated above their heads before the skeletons burst into countless glimmering particles and faded into the air.

“Haa…”

It had taken some effort to clear them all out. Though it might have seemed that she had easily defeated the undead with her Paralysis attacks, she knew all too well that this clever method wouldn’t always work.

The real issue was whether her control skill could still be used again, and whether her short sword’s durability was reaching its limit.

“I’m so tired… Guess I’ll stop exploring for today. Better find a hidden spot to log off. I’ll continue tomorrow.”

She sheathed her sword and sighed softly.

Her gaze held a trace of melancholy, a quiet sadness that would make anyone who saw her heart ache.

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She gathered her disheveled black hair with her hands, glancing around at the desolate forest that surrounded her.

“…Even though I know Xiaoyin is somewhere within the Graveyard’s territory, that area just keeps expanding… I really… I really don’t know where you are right now, Xiaoyin…”

“So tell me… what am I supposed to do… what should I do to find you, Xiaoyin…”

She murmured softly, her voice heavy with helpless sorrow.

……

Meanwhile, on the other side, Tianyin, who had now proudly become the leader of the entire NPC army, was also facing some troubles along the road.

But those troubles were minor, merely small patrol squads of skeleton soldiers. Though her army wasn’t large, under the leadership of Orgum and Sharl, they had successfully handled the undead attacks that came their way.

However, this had also made Tianyin realize just how terrifying the undead truly were. Those patrols consisted only of low-tier soldiers. Acting purely on instinct, these skeletons moved mechanically according to their leader’s commands, and when they spotted Tianyin’s group, they never hesitated, even though their numbers were far fewer.

They simply charged forward with their weapons raised.

What shocked Tianyin the most was how utterly fearless of death they were.

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No… to be precise, these undead were already dead. They merely existed now in another form, a state that wasn’t truly living, but also not entirely gone.

Once she understood that, Tianyin could only sigh. Of course they wouldn’t fear death, after all, they had already died once. How could they be afraid of it again?

Although the encounters along the way had only been with small bands of undead, and their journey was now mostly unobstructed, another issue had arisen within the ranks.

That issue was… the lack of supplies.

In other words, they had no food left.

In this world, players didn’t need to eat, but NPCs did. Without proper sustenance, NPCs would eventually fall into a state of Hunger, and in that state, they would be unable to fight at full strength. If they couldn’t perform well in battle, then the entire army… would collapse.

“But the problem is, in this wasteland that’s been occupied and corrupted by the Graveyard, where could we possibly find food…”

Faced with this problem, Tianyin couldn’t help but feel deeply troubled.