According to the mission briefing, the Flesh and Blood Golem's nest contained approximately 8,000 to 10,000 golems. With only a little over a thousand skeleton soldiers under Han Wu's command, a frontal assault was out of the question.

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But Han Wu was smart. If a head-on clash wouldn't work, then he'd resort to guerrilla tactics, gradually wearing them down.

The muscle-headed Flesh and Blood Golems would never anticipate such a simple plan.

Immediately, Han Wu ordered an Iron Bone Skeleton to stroll in front of the Flesh and Blood Golem's nest.

Sure enough, the Flesh and Blood Golems couldn't tolerate another race wandering around their territory.

Over a hundred Flesh and Blood Golems chased after it, determined to smash the daring Iron Bone Skeleton into bone dust.

Following Han Wu's instructions, the Iron Bone Skeleton led the Flesh and Blood Golems to a trap.

Then, over a thousand skeleton soldiers jumped out, ganging up on the hundred-plus Flesh and Blood Golems.

Ten against one, and armed to boot.

The Flesh and Blood Golems were quickly wiped out by the skeleton soldiers.

At this point, the Skeleton Knights stepped forward, using their ability to summon skeletons on the bodies of the fallen Flesh and Blood Golems.

Newbie skeletons emerged from each Flesh and Blood Golem's corpse, joining the ranks of the skeleton soldiers.

Han Wu couldn't help but marvel at the unique way the Skeleton Race increased its numbers.

After repeating this operation dozens of times, the skeleton army grew to over 7,000 strong.

Meanwhile, only about 3,000 Flesh and Blood Golems remained in the nest.

Han Wu decided it was time to launch a full assault.

But before doing so, he distributed some bone crystals, boosting the skeleton soldiers' ranks with 800 elite Iron Bone Skeletons.

With their enhanced strength, the skeleton soldiers stormed the Flesh and Blood Golem's nest, conducting organized raids.

In less than three hours, all the Flesh and Blood Golems were eliminated.

The Skeleton Knights searched the Flesh and Blood Golem's nest and found a Heart of Flesh, which they presented to Han Wu.

Han Wu looked at the blood-covered, still-beating heart with some disdain.

But, like it or not, it was a Level 1 sacred relic, meant to enhance the physical strength of core followers.

Though it was useless for Han Wu's core followers, the Locusts, he gritted his teeth and accepted it.

He submitted the mission and earned 60 assessment points.

Han Wu's ranking rose to 108.

However, Han Wu wasn't in a hurry.

Once the Skeleton Knights converted all the Flesh and Blood Golem corpses into skeletons, his total forces would exceed ten thousand.

With enough followers, how could he worry about not completing his tasks?

...

In the forest where Bone Demon Fruits were harvested, Zhang Xiaolong, transformed into a Demon Wyvern, ordered his 200 Hellhounds to search the area, only to find a few locust eggs.

"Damn it, where on earth did that kid Han Wu go?" Zhang Xiaolong cursed.

Then he noticed Han Wu's ranking had changed, with his assessment points suddenly increasing by 60.

Combining this with the mission list information, Zhang Xiaolong deduced Han Wu's location.

"Using the Locusts' advantage over the Flesh and Blood Golems, he completed the Flesh and Blood Golem nest mission. Han Wu, you've really exceeded my expectations. But your luck ends here!" Zhang Xiaolong muttered, following the map's guidance, heading towards the Flesh and Blood Golem's nest.

Soon, he arrived at the Flesh and Blood Golem's nest, finding it occupied by numerous skeleton soldiers.

Zhang Xiaolong was puzzled. Wasn't it Han Wu's Locusts that defeated the Flesh and Blood Golems? Why were there skeleton soldiers stationed at the Flesh and Blood Golem's nest?

When he saw Han Wu, transformed into a Skeleton Lord, everything became clear.

"Damn Han Wu, you secretly raised a Skeleton Race following. Dream on if you think you can achieve good results in this assessment with that!" Zhang Xiaolong grumbled internally and immediately issued a divine order for the Hellhounds to attack.

The Hellhounds were inherently powerful. In the Abyssal Plane's environment, their strength was further enhanced, far surpassing ordinary elite lifeforms.

The hundred or so ordinary skeleton soldiers outside the Flesh and Blood Golem's nest didn't even have time to resist before being torn apart by the charging Hellhounds.

The Hellhounds then lunged at Han Wu.

The surrounding skeletons couldn't allow their leader to be attacked and rushed forward to block.

Ordinary skeleton soldiers formed a bone wall, shielding Han Wu from the Hellhounds' assault.

Hearing the commotion outside, the Iron Bone Skeletons and Skeleton Knights inside the nest swarmed out.

The sight of over a thousand elite Iron Bone Skeletons, along with a Transcendent Skeleton Knight, left Zhang Xiaolong stunned.

It was only the second day of descending into the Abyssal Plane, and Han Wu had already amassed such a force.

If given a few more days, who could stop Han Wu?

Realizing the potential threat, Zhang Xiaolong resolved to kill Han Wu today, leaving him no room to grow further.

With that, Zhang Xiaolong, in his Demon Wyvern form, charged forward.

His thick-scaled body collided, easily crushing elite Iron Bone Skeletons.

Only the Transcendent Skeleton Knight could withstand the blow.

However, the Skeleton Knight's abilities were limited, and after several collisions, its bones were severely shattered.

Zhang Xiaolong suffered some minor injuries but retained most of his combat power.

Seizing the opportunity, he pushed back the Skeleton Knight and faced Han Wu directly.

Han Wu had already recognized the attacker as his classmate Zhang Xiaolong.

"Zhang Xiaolong, we have no grievances. Why are you attacking my followers?" Han Wu questioned.

Zhang Xiaolong coldly replied, "I just can't stand you. Die!"

The Demon Wyvern's massive tail swept across with great force, pulverizing stones along its path.

Han Wu's bone claws resisted but couldn't withstand the immense power, shattering like jade.

Seeing this, Zhang Xiaolong assumed Han Wu's skeleton form was destroyed.

When Han Wu's true form didn't appear, Zhang Xiaolong concluded that Han Wu, fearing death, had chosen to withdraw from the assessment.

He let out a roar of excitement.

Without their leader, the skeleton soldiers' soul flames flickered intensely.

They collectively charged at the Demon Wyvern form, fearless of death.

Though they were skeletons, they possessed a soul of loyalty and righteousness.

With their leader dead, only by annihilating all enemies could they honor their leader's spirit.

Zhang Xiaolong wasn't afraid of the skeleton soldiers, but fighting them was pointless.

These skeleton soldiers weren't part of the mission requirements and held little value, making their destruction meaningless.

Zhang Xiaolong charged again, breaking through the skeleton soldiers' barriers and retreating to a distance.

His core followers, the Hellhounds, also broke free from the skeleton soldiers' encirclement, following their master away.

Unable to catch up, the skeleton soldiers reluctantly returned to the nest, the soul flame in the leading Skeleton Knight's eye sockets burning silently, as if mourning Han Wu.

Though they hadn't been with him long, the Skeleton Knight's faith in Han Wu was unwavering.

After all, in the Abyss, no other Skeleton Lord would distribute pure bone crystals to help their subordinates improve.

But at that moment, Han Wu's bones suddenly began to tremble.

It was as if some force was drawing them together, reassembling into a whole.

This was one of the Skeleton Lord's abilities: Resurrection.

Revived, Han Wu once again felt that choosing to descend into the Abyssal Plane as a Skeleton Lord was the right decision.

The Skeleton Knight, still mourning, stood frozen. If it had a face, its expression would be one of disbelief.

"Don't just stand there, gather all our forces and leave this place quickly," Han Wu knew that in his current state, he couldn't defeat Zhang Xiaolong's formidable Demon Wyvern form.

To continue the assessment, he had to hide.

Hide somewhere Zhang Xiaolong couldn't find, cut off all communication, and build up strength.

Once he had enough forces, he would seek revenge.

"Zhang Xiaolong, the next time we meet, it will be your end!" Han Wu said coldly.

Meanwhile, Zhang Xiaolong, having shaken off the skeleton soldiers, checked the assessment leaderboard.

Students who withdrew or died would drop to the bottom of the list, displayed in gray.

On just the second day of descent, ten students from the entire grade had already withdrawn or died.

Perhaps their followers were too weak to survive in the Abyss, or they encountered attacks from native lifeforms and died unexpectedly.

But Zhang Xiaolong didn't find Han Wu's name among them.

Unconvinced, he checked the main leaderboard and found Han Wu ranked 163rd.

Which meant he hadn't withdrawn!

In that moment, Zhang Xiaolong realized.

Perhaps Han Wu hadn't descended in his true form because his skeleton form hadn't actually died.

"Damn, Han Wu faked his death," Zhang Xiaolong quickly turned back towards the Flesh and Blood Golem's nest.

This time, even if it meant wasting time, he would kill all the skeleton soldiers to ensure Han Wu couldn't escape again.

But when Zhang Xiaolong and the Hellhounds returned to the nest, they found it empty.

Not even a single intact bone was left.

No doubt, Han Wu had anticipated his return and fled in advance.

"Search the area within a hundred miles, don't let a single skeleton escape!" Zhang Xiaolong angrily commanded.

The Hellhounds dutifully spread out, searching for any trace of the skeleton soldiers.

But Han Wu, having been attacked once, wouldn't give Zhang Xiaolong a second chance.

At that moment, Han Wu was leading his skeleton forces in the opposite direction of Zhang Xiaolong's departure.

They had already traveled 50 kilometers.

After the battle with Zhang Xiaolong, the skeleton forces suffered heavy casualties, reducing their numbers from over ten thousand to five thousand.

Han Wu had no choice but to use more bone crystals to aid the skeleton soldiers' recovery.

Absorbing the pure bone energy, the skeleton soldiers not only healed but also evolved into Iron Bone Skeletons.

One Iron Bone Skeleton even hit the jackpot, evolving into a Skeleton Knight.

With two Transcendent Skeleton Knights guarding him, Han Wu felt reassured.

Yet, this small force was still far from meeting Han Wu's expectations of achieving a good result and attracting the attention of the Imperial Capital Academy.

"I need to find a way to develop the skeleton soldiers further."