Chương 21: Choosing The Skill Upgrade

"Is there really any point? Bone Pandemonium is much more valuable than Muscles right now." Alex made his decision quickly and selected the best upgrade available. [You have chosen the Bone Crafting Upgrade +1: Bone Pandemonium!] The internal bone storage of his Bone Crafting Skill had been upgraded and expanded tenfold. It had transformed into a gigantic building complete with its own surrounding terrain. To enter, he simply needed to think about it and create a special portal using his soul.

While inside the Bone Pandemonium, however, his physical vessel would remain motionless and vulnerable. The system strongly advised using it only in a safe location.

"I see. I cannot abuse it to teleport away from danger or similar situations," Alex thought.

"And if this body dies, I die as well in the end. I am unable to transfer my entire soul to a new vessel as easily as I once imagined. I have already run several tests." Alex looked around the area and decided to visit the Bone Pandemonium. He ordered his golems to watch over his body while he was gone. Meat would also remain present, providing additional protection for his skeleton. In a brilliant flash, the moment he gave the command, Alex found himself standing inside an eerie white palace.

Everything around him was constructed from bone. He reached out and touched the smooth surfaces, surprised by their cold, solid feel. He explored the space using only his bare soul and soon discovered that his soul had taken the form of a spectral skeleton.

"Not even my human form remains in my soul. Has it mutated too much after I grew so strong as a skeleton?" he wondered.

"It might be the influence of Nether energy, or perhaps I have simply become unable to identify with my past self. I have already left my humanity behind." Alex considered these possibilities, yet he felt little emotion about the matter. Ultimately, he decided it was pointless to worry and continued exploring the Bone Pandemonium. He discovered that the entire palace was nearly as large as a stadium.

When he stepped through a window to the outside, he found the massive building surrounded by an arid, black wasteland that stretched into the distance. He landed on the dark soil and touched it with his skeletal fingers. The ground felt sterile and completely devoid of nutrients, yet strange nether essence slowly oozed from it.

"Maybe if I add mana, monster core corpses, dust, and other compatible materials, I can improve this place," he thought. He walked across the barren terrain, carefully observing his new domain. The area was mostly empty, but he eventually came across a few scattered trees and small patches of dark blue grass. The trees stood leafless and pitch-black, with unsettling red eyes peering out from cracks in their bark, staring at him in complete silence.

He identified the trees as Abyssal Chrysanthemums and the grass as Nether Grass. Both could be harvested and used effectively for alchemy. He could tell their value at a single glance. In addition, Alex located three small deposits of dark blue crystals and strange black metal. He identified them as Nether Crystals and Abyssal Stone, both highly precious materials for alchemy and crafting. However, the quantities were still quite limited.

He realized that by regularly feeding the Bone Pandemonium and its surrounding territory with corpses and other suitable materials, the richness and variety of its resources would grow alongside the space itself.

"I cannot escape here indefinitely, unfortunately. I will also need to settle down outside once the tutorial ends. Still, this secret space is quite valuable," he thought. Satisfied with the upgrade, Alex nodded and returned to reality. He repossessed his skeleton, stood up, and immediately moved toward his next goal. Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author's preferred platform and support their work!

"I do not need to sleep, so I will use the coming hours to craft more bone pills." Alex decided to spend the rest of the night synthesizing Bone Pills. He used his own Bone Clay, Alchemical Nether, and the fresh herbs that the Spider Golem, Arachne, had gathered for him by venturing through the hole in the dungeon. By morning, when Gryg finally woke up, she panicked at the sight of four huge golems standing silently in front of her.

"Aahh! What the hell?! Enemies?!" she screamed. She shook her arms wildly and suppressed the golems, smashing them down into the floor with raw strength. In the end, Gryg proved far stronger than the Bone Golems. Alex could tell how easily she overpowered them.

"Calm down," Alex said calmly while finishing the last batch of Bone Pills.

"They are my Bone Golems. I spent the entire night conducting many experiments. I created them. As you can see, they are harmless and quite hardy, although they still cannot match your strength yet."

"Huh?!" Gryg looked shocked.

"Skelly, you made these little guys?! Wow!" She burst into loud laughter.

"Hahaha, they're actually kind of cute. Sorry about that! No way, you really made golems… wow. Not even I know how to do that."

"I can teach you. It is simple," Alex replied.

"My soul has reached its current limit, so I can only maintain four at a time. Yours might be larger and offer more options."

"Making golems… me?" Gryg wondered aloud.

"Only my sister ever managed to do that, and hers were massive titans she used to crush enemy factions. Can you really teach me?"

"I can teach you normally, or I can force your body to learn the spell by infusing a Spell Formula directly into your body or soul. The choice is yours," Alex said.

"...?! That's a thing?" Gryg asked, clearly stunned.

"You have taught me so much already, and I am very grateful. The least I can do is repay the favor with interest," Alex spoke in his low, steady voice. His tone sounded rather gentlemanly despite the lack of strong emotion behind the words.

"Huh…" Gryg blushed for a moment without any clear reason. No man in her entire life had ever spoken to her with such genuine kindness.

"Well, whatever! Sure, why not? Hah, you do owe me a lot after all!"

"Perfect," Alex nodded.

"Let me check something first, and then I will help you." Ding! [Congratulations, you have successfully crafted White Bone Pills (D+ Grade) x200+] [Profession: Shamanistic Alchemist (F) has reached Level 10. Stat points allocated. +2 free points.]"Ah, Level 10 in the profession. That was fast," Alex noted.

"Level 10?! What the fuck?!" Gryg screamed.

"Alex, just what have you been doing?!"

"Hm? Just creating all kinds of wonderful things," Alex answered.

"This world and everything within it is truly incredible. There is not a single second when I am not entertained by trying to understand something new or creating something from it. It is all most fascinating."

"…I guess I shouldn't have even asked. Seeing these four huge golems is more than enough of a feat to reach that level," she sighed, shaking her head.

"I made more than just golems. I also crafted their weapons and armor," Alex added.

"Though I have yet to obtain any other crafting skills." Ding! [Profession Level Threshold has been reached. Please choose a Skill to learn.] The options appeared before him: [Concoct Poison – Tier 1] Grants the ability to concoct all kinds of poisons, toxins, and deadly acidic substances through the combination of compatible materials. These can then be imbued into weapons and attacks. With enough practice, deadly toxins capable of melting metals can be created. There is nothing that can resist your poison.

[Toxicology – Tier 1] Grants complete knowledge of any toxic plant or material you encounter. It provides valuable information about each substance and allows you to absorb toxins into your body and synthesize them. Eventually, your body will become the deadliest poison. [Bone Synthesis – Tier 1] Grants the ability to freely synthesize and combine bones to create stronger bone constructs or other structures.

Other compatible materials, such as precious metals, ores, crystals, and more, can also be added to the synthesis. This evolves and strengthens your bones far beyond their original level. Alex glanced at the choices. As Gryg had mentioned earlier, the three skills he had not selected before were available. However, a brand-new fourth option has also appeared. [Soul Cauldron – Tier 1] (New) As a Unique Undead Alchemist, your very soul has attained the Element of Alchemy and has begun mutating with tremendous power.

It can now harness these abilities to synthesize and create items through Alchemy and related skills by using your soul itself as a cauldron. With this skill, you will never need an external cauldron or additional accessories. Your soul will also grow continuously stronger and larger the more items you create through it.

"This is incredible, and exactly what I need," Alex thought.

"A larger soul will allow me to control more golems, perhaps even more undead, and further enhance all of my abilities." He began to reconsider his options carefully.

"Should I choose Bone Synthesis, or go for this new skill instead?"