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“Whew…” Zane patted his chest and looked down at his nearly empty health bar, his heart still pounding.

The ghouls had finally all been defeated.

Thankfully, Zane had a high Vitality growth stat—otherwise, there was no way he could’ve withstood that many ghouls.

After that intense battle, the entire party leveled up. Shiu even jumped two levels, reaching Level 17!

“Those ghouls were insane… I thought they’d run off, but turns out they took a detour and came back,” Shiu said, slumping helplessly to the ground. He had to admit, facing such brutal undead monsters head-on was terrifying.

“Yeah, we were almost wiped out,” Zane said, still shaken.

Hearing that childish voice, Shiu suddenly remembered something. “Hey—wait a second. Why the heck are you a little girl now?!”

“Hidden skill~ Hidden skill. I got it from the forbidden zone in Grayridge Plains,” Zane replied offhandedly.

“…No way. That’s an actual hidden skill? Not only does it change your avatar, but it gives a hidden class too?”

“You’re telling me… you’re actually a guy?” YoyoPink was stunned.

“As real as it gets! 100% man!” Zane puffed out his chest proudly, hands on hips.

“…”

…

The ghouls were stingy to the extreme—they didn’t drop any equipment at all. The total loot came out to just 10 gold coins. Split five ways, that was only two coins each.

Despite the close call, no one had died. For an average party, encountering this batch of ghouls would’ve meant certain death. Not just anyone could handle so many monsters with high speed and strong attacks.

However, the battle did highlight a serious problem.

That problem was—healing.

Without a Priest, even if they managed to survive the first wave, a second group would completely overwhelm them. Their current party setup consisted of: a Swordsman (Starry, Beginner class), a Wishkeeper (Zane, who also doubled as a mount), a Mage (BesideStillWaters), a Summoner (YoyoPink), and a Knight (Endless Sea).

A completely healer-less party!

It wasn’t that Zane disliked Priests—he just didn’t want to casually invite random players. Whether strong or not was one thing, but what mattered most was compatibility. He couldn’t be bothered screening strangers for personality.

While they were chatting, a pale grayish-white specter slowly floated over.

“Zane, look—what is that?” Shiu pointed at the spirit.

“What?” Zane looked carefully, and the specter’s attributes appeared before his eyes.

A wraith? Could this be the start of a quest?

Sure enough, as the spirit floated closer, a faint, ethereal female voice echoed from it. “To think someone actually defeated those hateful ghouls head-on… Adventurers, have you come for the Saintbloom Water as well?” Fia’s ghostly tone held a trace of emotion.

“What do we do?” Endless Sea shot a glance over.
“Who are you?” Zane asked knowingly, pretending to be curious.
“I… am just a soul bound to this village. If you’ve come for Saintbloom Water, you should leave now.”
“Why?”
“Because… this place has already fallen to the undead.” Her expression was filled with sorrow. “Saintbloom Water no longer exists.”

“What?! Has the Spring of Life been corrupted?” Zane asked urgently. This was crucial for Starry’s class advancement—he couldn’t afford to miss any lead.
“…Little one, you guessed right.” Fia nodded. “The Spring of Life has been defiled. The water now reeks of rot. Ordinary people who smell it might even fall gravely ill.”

“…” Damn, had those undead seriously taken a bath in the Spring of Life?

After saying her piece, Fia looked at the group deep in thought, shook her head, and began to drift away.

“Wait!” Zane quickly called out to her.

Fia turned her head, a look of confusion on her face.

“You came all the way here just to tell us that?”

“I just… don’t want to see anyone else die for nothing.” Clearly, during the time the village had been occupied by the undead, many NPCs—and perhaps players—had lost their lives here.

“That’s not it!” Zane countered. “If you’ve become a wraith, it means there’s something unresolved. We can help you!”

As if hearing something absurd, Fia let out a soft laugh. “Even the Empire’s army has abandoned Saintbloom Village. What could you possibly do?”

“Don’t be so sure. We’re adventurers from another world. As for our strength—you’ve seen it. That group of ghouls couldn’t even scratch us.”
“There’s more here than just ghouls…”
“Our lives are infinite. We can keep coming back.”
“But…”

Shiu was growing impatient. A spark of Flameburst ignited in his palm.

Fia flinched in fear. “What are you trying to do?!” As a level 5 spirit, she’d likely be instantly obliterated if that spell hit her. “Don’t hurt me! I… I’ll take you there, alright?” She bit her pale lip, on the verge of tears.

“Nice!” Zane gave Shiu a thumbs-up.
“Brutal, bro. Didn’t think you’d threaten a ghost girl,” Endless Sea said with a laugh.
“So pitiful…” YoyoPink said sympathetically.

…

Earlier, the ghouls had detoured downstream, which meant there must’ve been something connecting the two riverbanks—or perhaps the stream narrowed there.

While Endless Sea could leap over directly, Zane didn’t dare take that risk. After all, during the physical fitness tests, he’d never jumped farther than three meters. In his mind, anyone who could jump more than that might as well be a demigod. Not to mention, they still had two girls to worry about—well, one, since Starry was under his control.

Following the stream downstream, they did in fact discover a narrow log bridge. It didn’t seem man-made—more likely, it was a large tree that had fallen across the stream. Nearby stood a massive stump, as if it had been knocked down by force.

Who knew whether it was a typhoon or the aftermath of a battle between powerful beings?

The tree was at least half a meter wide. Judging by how the roots on the far side hadn’t yet been corroded by the toxic water, it must have fallen recently.

No wonder the ghouls had been able to cross so easily.

Visually, walking across this kind of bridge took a lot of nerve. The other four crossed quickly, leaving YoyoPink and Lordsey still on the far side.

“Do I really have to cross this…?” She placed one foot on the log, then immediately pulled it back.

That earlier scene of the ghoul dissolving in the stream wasn’t something she could forget.

“Sigh.” Lordsey exhaled—and then grabbed YoyoPink by the waist, lifting her into the air!

“Ahhhhhhhh—!!” Completely ignoring his summoner’s screams, Lordsey walked forward with firm steps. In less than ten seconds, they were across.

But after bearing the weight of so many people, the log groaned under the strain. Finally, thin cracks appeared, then quickly widened.

Boom.

Their way back collapsed, swallowed by the dark current.

And worse still, the loud noise and the scent of the living had drawn yet another pack of ghouls. Endless Sea’s HP was only halfway restored. Zane’s was barely a quarter. They weren’t ready for another fight—but it was already too late.

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