Chapter 011: Existence

Just as the six skeletons surrounded Du Fan, Moses and Basha arrived. It was unclear whether these skeletons were simply stupid or if the green flames were too tempting for them. When Moses and Basha showed up, the skeletons didn’t even react!
Basha swung his axe at one of the skeletons’ heads, shattering its skull. Immediately afterward, a green flame emerged. By then, two green flames had appeared, leaving the remaining five skeletons unsure which one to attack.
It seemed these green flames held a deadly allure for them! Abandoning their attack on Du Fan, Moses and Basha, five skeletons rushed toward the green flame near Du Fan, while three headed for the one near Basha!
“Moses, go help Basha! Remember, let these skeletons fight over the Skeleton Fire first, then strike when the opportunity arises!” Du Fan shouted before stepping back suddenly.
The Skeleton Fire referred to those green flames. To skeletons, the Skeleton Fire was like a soul to humans—it was their very soul!
With the Skeleton Fire, skeletons gained life and some instinctive intelligence. Of course, skeletons could also evolve by absorbing more of this fire. Every skeleton contained some amount of it. Those who had practiced combat energy or magic would have much more Skeleton Fire after turning into skeletons than ordinary people. However, the amount in a single skeleton would never be enough to create an intelligent being.
To achieve such an intelligent level, either a dark mage would gather a large amount of Skeleton Fire or there would be too many corpses in one place. As these corpses decayed, countless skeletons emerged. Over time, these tiny flames merged, creating an intelligent-level Skeleton Fire.
Those eight skeletons must have formed this way naturally!

Moreover, these eight skeletons had evolved to a very high level—they could even withstand the bows of Saint-class archers, and they also possessed magic immunity! Such skeletons were at least at level eight, and possibly even level nine! Of course, they couldn’t possibly be Saint-class skeletons. Saint-class skeletons were almost as intelligent as humans! As Du Fan stepped back, Basha also stepped back, exposing the two clusters of Skeleton Fire to the five other skeletons. These skeletons, unknown how they had advanced beyond level eight, still tried to seize the Skeleton Fire and absorb it under such circumstances. Seeing this, Du Fan sighed. It was like the drug addicts he had seen in his past life—clearly aware that continuing to use drugs would lead to death, yet unable to resist the temptation of drugs! The remaining five skeletons paid no attention to the three enemies around them and bravely charged at the two clusters of Skeleton Fire! Although these skeletons had all advanced beyond level eight, it seemed like an instinct formed over time—the instinct to absorb Skeleton Fire! Only by continuously absorbing it could they grow stronger and survive! Moses’s two great swords were also extremely high-quality weapons; though not yet at the level of divine weapons, they were very close. As the son of the elf ancient tree clan’s leader, Moses’s weapons were not far behind. After all, the elves’ tens of thousands of years of accumulation, along with their long lifespans, gave them enough time to acquire excellent weapons. With their strong physiques and powers above Saint class, although Moses didn’t possess the holy combat energy specifically designed to counter evil beings, the power of his sword was as vast as the ocean or abyss. This sword, carrying the mighty natural combat energy of the elf race, split one skeleton’s skull in two! Though it didn’t shatter the skeleton’s skull like Basha’s axe or purify it completely like Du Fan’s sword, it still managed to split the skull in half! The Skeleton Fire could only survive by residing within the skeleton’s skull. Once the skull was split, the skeleton would have to find a new one to survive in.

If a host skull isn’t found within a certain time, this cluster of Skull Fire will face the threat of disappearing! Once the Skull Fire is extinguished, that skeleton will be dead beyond death! Just as Moses split one skeleton’s skull with his sword, Du Fan and Bashah each killed one skeleton as well. In an instant, five clusters of Skull Fire appeared around the two remaining skeletons! Faced with these sudden Skull Fires around them, the two skeletons didn’t think of anything else but started dancing excitedly! A feast! For these two skeletons, it was truly a feast! They had never seen so many high-level Skull Fires appear around them at once! Their intuition told them that by absorbing these Skull Fires, their strength would advance by leaps and bounds! After absorption, not only would their strength increase, but their entire bodies would also become lighter, allowing them to run faster. Not only would their bodies be lighter, but their minds would seem much clearer as well! As the two skeletons screeched and danced frantically, these instinctive creatures, who regarded absorbing Skull Fire as the most important thing in their lives, suddenly felt a severe impact at the back of their heads. Then, everything went dark, and their bodies crashed to the ground. Du Fan quickly took out a jade bottle and trapped all seven clusters of Skull Fire inside it. Inside the bottle, the seven clusters of Skull Fire merged together! Gradually, a green, tiny human-like figure appeared within the jade bottle! Although not very distinct, the head and limbs of this green figure could still be clearly distinguished. Du Fan showed the contents of the bottle to Bashah and Moses. Moses exclaimed in surprise, “If this cluster of Skull Fire can find a host later, it can transform into a saint-class skeleton!” “Indeed, it’s a valuable item. But I still can’t figure it out. Judging from the Skull Fire formed after their merger, these eight skeletons should all be at level nine or above. It’s strange that skeletons at such high levels only possess such limited intelligence!” said Bashah. “I wonder if there’s any way to turn this cluster of Skull Fire into something I can use,” said Du Fan, holding the bottle containing the tiny human-shaped Skull Fire in his hand.

That cluster of skeleton-like flames seemed like a living entity, thrashing around inside the jade bottle. It seemed determined to break free from the bottle that confined it and venture into the vast world outside.
“Actually, it’s quite simple. These skeleton flames have evolved to the sacred rank. If you force them to sign a master-slave contract with you, they’ll be completely under your control,” said Basha.
Obviously, there were many magical beasts in the Dusk Mountains, and Basha was quite skilled at forging various treaties with such creatures.
“Oh, Second Brother, why don’t you just take out the contract for these skeleton flames?” said Du Fan.
“That’s not quite right. After all, it was you, Third Brother, who captured them,” Basha said. He seemed eager to take them but felt embarrassed to do so outright.
“Haha, Second Brother, don’t say that. You killed a few of these skeletons too. To be honest, among the three of us, your cultivation level is the lowest. It’s only fitting to find you a helper,” Du Fan said, laughing at Basha’s honest expression.
“Third Brother, just accept it. Besides, there are many dangers in the Divine Ruins. Having a sacred-rank helper will increase our chances of success. And who knows, there might be more treasures there. If there’s a good opportunity next time, just leave some for us,” added Moses.
“If that’s the case, then I won’t be polite anymore,” Basha said after hearing Moses’ words, and he took them.
Du Fan handed the jade bottle to Basha, who took it without hesitation. Opening the lid, Basha channeled his combat energy, and a drop of dark red blood fell into the bottle!
Muttering a few spells, a red glow flashed inside the bottle, and the chaotic skeleton flames immediately calmed down.
While Du Fan, Basha, and Moses were dealing with the skeletons, Naixiu arrived along with the elf archers and three mages.
These people stared in amazement at the skeleton flames inside Basha’s jade bottle. Green flames, shaped like little figures—such things the elves had never seen before. And those green, humanoid flames even seemed more adorable now.
“Basha, let’s move forward and find a good skeleton frame for these flames to reside in!” said Moses.
Basha nodded, and the twelve explorers of the Divine Ruins set off again.

The further they went, the more terrified Du Fan and his group became! The bone mountains they had passed earlier were covered with human bones and those of ordinary beasts. But now, as they moved forward, the bones on these mountainous piles became increasingly astonishing! There were bones with wings attached—clearly identifiable as the bones of angels! Angels are beings who serve the gods! Even the lowest-ranking angels are among the strongest in their realms! Besides the angelic bones, there were also other bones that, despite being worn down by countless years, still exuded a powerful aura! Only those who have reached a very high level in martial cultivation can refine their bones to be as hard as steel or jade! To achieve such a level of bone strength, one must at least be a warrior of the sacred rank! After passing through several bone mountains filled with ordinary people’s bones, the bones in the next mountainous pile turned out to belong to many figures who had been legendary in life! Such individuals would be renowned powerhouses anywhere in the current continent!