How to Raise Your Skeletons

Chapter 101: Thousand Poisons Immunity

“Hnng, ugh.”

Groaning through his wounds, the Spear of Judgment seemed to be pondering something deeply.

I watched over him quietly.

[‘Bonehead 7’ used the skill ‘Intermediate Healing’ (Lv.1)]

I kept healing him patiently while waiting.

“Hm.” The Spear of Judgment parted his lips, “Ah… so that’s what it was? Indeed, amazing. The realm of spear techniques is truly profound and fascinating.” He shook his head in disbelief to himself, then nodded alone, talking like that.

Is this the way a genius acknowledged by the continent thinks?

From just the few words Sunny passed along, he independently realized something and attained enlightenment. For someone like me, an ordinary person at best, it was an incomprehensible situation.

As expected.

No matter how much I thought about it, the answer for me was necromancer. If I couldn’t be a genius myself, it would be better to tame a genius and make them my subordinate. That’d be much easier and far more useful.

“…”

About an hour passed, and the spearman, who had been sitting cross-legged, opened his eyes. He then stood up and bowed politely with his hands cupped together.

“Skeleton King, was it?”

“Yes.”

“Thank you sincerely. Thanks to you, I’ve gained the clue needed to break through the wall that was blocking me. My complicated mind feels refreshed.”

It was a surprisingly neat thanks.

Then the Spear of Judgment bowed his head even lower. “You wouldn’t understand how significant this is to a martial artist. I owe you a debt, and should the time ever come when I can help you,” his voice sank into the surroundings, “I promise to assist you with all my might. This is a promise made in the name of my teacher, the Spear King.” The Spear of Judgment raised his head and looked at me. “However, this promise only holds if you don’t violate my principles. You can afford that much consideration, right?”

“And your principles are…?”

“Even if you are my benefactor, if you were to commit senseless killings, I’d have no choice but to punish you with my own hands.”

Not bad—having one’s own set of principles. Just as I had my own rule of “giving back as much as I get,” he also had his absolute principles. In fact, I found that admirable. Perhaps I might even want to be friends with this guy after the trials were over.

“Hm.” I nodded. “Alright. I’m not someone who goes around killing without reason.”

“Exactly. Right! Now that I think about it, you couldn’t possibly be an evildoer.”

“Jumping to conclusions so suddenly? Weren’t you just calling me a dangerous individual that should be kept under watch?”

As I tilted my head in confusion, he shook his.

“If you harbored ill intent, you could have easily killed me while I was meditating to gain a huge amount of trial points.”

“Uh…”

Well, to be honest, I didn’t think your points were high enough to be worth doing that…

“You’re right. I apologize for the misunderstanding. You are different from ordinary people. Someone without greed. Someone I don’t need to judge or watch over unnecessarily.”

“Aha…?”

What was up with this guy? He was doing all this by himself while I was just standing there.

I scratched the back of my head awkwardly and smiled. “Thank you for thinking of me that way. Then, since our bet is settled, I’ll just be on my way…”

I was about to leave when…

“Wait,” the Spear of Judgment stopped me again.

“What now?”

“How old are you? I’d guess you’re not yet past your mid-20s.”

“Hmm… You’re spot on. It’s been about three and a half years since I awakened, so I’m 23 now.”

“23…?” The Spear of Judgment’s eyes widened slightly.

What was it? What about my age?

“Why? Do I look too young to you?” I asked.

“Not at all. 23… We’re the same age?”

“…”

Huh?

I blinked and stared at him. “…Excuse me?” I asked again. My eyes were twice as wide as his.

Wow, this was… a shocking revelation. What kind of 23-year-old talked and acted like such an old soul? Frankly, I was more surprised by this than the fact that he was the Spear King’s disciple.

“Haha, this is truly fascinating!” The Spear of Judgment’s eyes lit up. “Fate is a strange thing, isn’t it? They say even a brush of sleeves can be considered a fateful event. Look at us. We exist in the same time and space, recommended here by the same number of rankers. We discussed spear techniques and helped each other like this. Yes! If this isn’t fate, I have no clue what it could be.”

“Oh, uh… sure. If you say so.”

Why was he suddenly acting like this? It felt overwhelming. His first impression was that of a quiet, cold, city guy. Now, he was feeling oddly talkative.

“And we’re the same age! Beyond fate, you could call this destiny! Ah, it can’t be helped. We’re destined to become close.”

“Haha, well. Becoming close sounds good. Maybe after the trials are over…”

“You’re a hunter from South Korea, right? What about your guild? As you know, I belong to the Xian Society established by the Spear King. If you don’t have any affiliation…”

“Oh, I’m affiliated with Demir’s Workshop,” I answered quickly, anticipating a recruitment pitch.

Kim Jinah told me…

That she’d turn the workshop into a major guild. While it might not happen overnight, since I promised her, I couldn’t join anywhere else. Even Gi Soyul had left her family’s guild to join me!

“Demir’s Workshop? Never heard of it.”

“It’s probably not well-known in your country yet… But eventually you’ll hear so much about it your ears will hurt.”

“Haha, really? If you say so, then I’ll believe it. Well, it looks like you’re eager to leave this place.”

“…”

Oh. He’s surprisingly perceptive.

—Swish!

The Spear of Judgment extended his hand. “Let’s shake hands before parting. May we meet again under better circumstances.”

With such a suggestion, how could I refuse?

—Grip!

I reached out and shook his hand.

“Alright. See you next time.”

At that moment, I gained a connection in China.

My journey continued—a journey both solitary and toxic. I consumed so much poison that the once-blue sky now looked green to me. I couldn’t even tell if the reflux in my esophagus was stomach acid or poison anymore. I truly understood the meaning of being utterly fed up.

Days passed, and time flew by. Perhaps tomorrow or the day after, the poison mist would appear at the central area, according to the intel.

“Lad.” The old man stared at me from midair. “Are grade 2 poisons even registering in your body anymore?”

“Yeah, honestly, I feel like I could eat poison as my three daily meals now. Actually, it tastes pretty good.”

“…You madman.”

“Hey, you’re the one who taught me this, old man.”

“It’ll happen soon. The day you achieve the Thousand Poisons Immunity is near.”

“…”

He was right. Even without the system notifications, my body could feel it. Was this what a larva felt when it knew it was about to molt? Just like you could feel your body pumping when you exercised, I could feel myself becoming “poison-pumped” as I consumed more.

“You’re doing well. Even if this is a different world from mine… to achieve the Thousand Poisons Immunity in less than a month is astonishing. Sometimes you truly amaze me.”

“Hm.” I closed my eyes. “Still, I’m a bit worried. Will the Thousand Poisons Immunity be enough to face the poison mist?”

“The poison mist, you say?”

“Yes.”

“I won’t know until I see it… but if it’s made of all the poisons in this place, you’ll just have to handle the grade 1 poisons included in it.”

I supposed so since the Thousand Poisons Immunity seemed to handle up to grade 2 poisons.

“If there are hundreds or thousands of grade 1 poisons… and they all hit me at once… Ugh, even if poison is precious, I won’t be laughing then.”

“That’s why you must move quickly. The number of grade 1 poisons isn’t as high as you think. You need to consume as much as you can to build up resistance.”

“Alright, let’s move. Hearing that really woke me up.”

Following the old man’s advice, I didn’t stop. Before the poison mist appeared, I kept moving.

Finally, after about another day…

[Skill ‘Hundred Poisons Immunity’ (B-rank) has been upgraded.]

[You have acquired the skill ‘Thousand Poisons Immunity’ (A-rank)!]

[This skill has the potential for further growth.]

I had reached the Thousand Poisons Immunity.

* * *

In the center of Delilah’s Hologram Room…

“Hmm.” A red-eyed man with a sword at his waist, the Arcane Swordsman, Lucas, stroked his chin in thought. “Lady Delilah.”

“Yes, what is it?”

“Joo Donghoon. That man…”

Lucas had been keeping an eye on Joo Donghoon since he discovered Floa the Thundercry, for he was the man who had achieved the most trial points ever. Who wouldn’t be curious about what kind of ranker he might become?

“He must have purchased both information tickets from Floa… So why hasn’t he left the central area yet? Normally, anyone in their right mind would stay as far away from the center as possible. Unless…”

“Yes.” Delilah nodded. Her expression darkened unexpectedly. “It seems he intends to face the poison mist directly. Foolishly…”

“The poison mist…!” Lucas muttered to himself, “So that’s what it was.”

“In the past, there was a child named Jang Daewoong who did the same.”

“Jang Daewoong… You mean that Berserker from South Korea?”

Lucas wasn’t the judge at the time, so he didn’t know much about him.

“Well, he didn’t face it directly but was half-forced to flee later.”

“Huh, I see.” Lucas shook his head.

It seemed having “berserk” in one’s title required an extraordinary mindset.

“Lady Delilah,” Lucas swallowed and called out to her.

“Yes?”

“By any chance… has anyone ever subdued or destroyed the poison mist?”

“No, not even one.” Delilah shook her head firmly. “The poison mist isn’t meant to be defeated. It’s merely a condensed mass of toxic waste from another world. You’re not supposed to fight it.”

“Then… what is Joo Donghoon…?”

“Reckless actions only lead to death.”

“Do you believe Joo Donghoon will die?”

“If he tries to face the poison mist alone, yes.”

“Haah,” Lucas sighed deeply.

If Delilah said so, it must be true. She was acknowledged even by Sophia Silverstone, the Oxford Sage, ranked 4th in the world.

However, something about it felt exciting. From what he’d seen of Joo Donghoon so far, there was something about him that stirred a mysterious emotion deep inside.

So Lucas asked again, “By the way, hypothetically… What if Joo Donghoon actually manages to defeat the poison mist?”

“…”

Even Delilah didn’t know the rewards for defeating the poison mist. All she knew was that they matched the difficulty and contribution of the feat within reason.

“It could yield incredible rewards, couldn’t it? Since the poison mist is a monster you deemed impossible to defeat.”

“…Even I’m not quite sure about that…” Even Delilah’s dark expression now held a hint of curiosity. “But it’s certainly intriguing.”