Chapter 432 - 139: Just the Beautiful Mentor’s Mission (Part 2)

Chapter 432: Chapter 139: Just the Beautiful Mentor’s Mission (Part 2)

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"Wh-what?" Airendra’s amber eyes widened, the half-elf completely stunned. "D-dead!?"

Her mouth opened and closed, but for a moment, she was speechless.

The traitor to the Ranger profession, Blackthorn—the Tier Five Fallen Ranger who even her mentor was wary of—had just died? Inexplicably?

Seeing Airendra’s dazed and distraught expression, as if her entire worldview had been shattered, Lynch didn’t have the heart to provoke her further.

’Right. I’d better not tell her that Blackthorn has now become one of my Zombie Rangers, currently stewing away in the Sleeping Tomb.’

Speaking of which, Blackthorn’s "corpse material" was rather special, and his future cultivation path would differ from other zombies.

Logically, a class like the Ranger—which emphasizes agility, excels with dual blades and bows, and can also serve as a Scout—was best suited for conversion into a Skeleton.

After all, Skeletons were light and agile, with flexible joints. Even at a High Tier, they wouldn’t be stiff and slow-moving like zombies.

But in reality, Lynch had refined him into a zombie.

During the Black Corpse and Purple Zombie stages, a zombie’s body does indeed become extremely stiff. While this greatly enhances its defense and strength, for a Ranger who needs to dodge and maneuver, using finesse to overcome force, this was undoubtedly a fatal flaw.

Thus, on the surface, it seemed like a waste of a high-quality Ranger corpse. The cost-effectiveness was far inferior to converting it into a Skeleton Ranger.

However, one couldn’t make such generalizations.

This was because once a zombie advanced to a Tier Five Copper-Armored Corpse, its overly massive body would begin to gradually shrink, while its bone and muscle density would grow exponentially.

If it could endure until it became a Tier Six Copper-Armored Corpse, its body would shrink to the size of an ordinary person. By then, the shell would possess both the terrifying defense of a zombie and an agility close to what it had in life.

With Blackthorn’s foundation as a Tier Five Fallen Ranger, he had more than enough potential to be cultivated into a Tier Six Peak Copper-Armored Corpse Ranger.

At that point, he could truly integrate his pre-death archery skills, dual-blade combat techniques, and Ranger instincts with the characteristics of a Copper-Armored Corpse, becoming a perfect killing machine.

Of course, this cultivation process came with two major problems.

First, until Blackthorn was restored to Tier Five, the combat effectiveness of this Copper-Armored Corpse Ranger would be pathetically weak. It wouldn’t just be weaker than a normal Purple Zombie; it probably couldn’t even match an ordinary Skeleton Ranger. The cost-effectiveness was appallingly low.

Only upon reaching Tier Five would its power curve begin to level out, with the real payoff coming later on.

Second, raising a Copper-Armored Corpse from Tier Four to Tier Six Peak would take an incredibly long time, and the resources consumed would be astronomical. It was bound to be an agonizing process.

But high-quality corpses were rare, especially one from a powerful expert like Blackthorn, who had reached Tier Five in life and had distinct class characteristics. Such an opportunity was nearly impossible to come by.

So Lynch gritted his teeth. An investment had to be made. In the long run, it was definitely a worthwhile transaction.

"Lynch..." At that moment, Airendra finally snapped out of her shock. She gave him a complicated look, her voice a bit hoarse. "I... I need some time alone. Goodbye. I hope you achieve excellent results in the graduation exam."

In the end, she didn’t ask the question: "Who killed Blackthorn?"

Perhaps in her subconscious, she believed that this Necromancer, who was still just a student taking his graduation exam, had only learned of Blackthorn’s death by some coincidence. There was no way he could have killed him personally—he was a Tier Five Fallen Ranger! How could he possibly die at the hands of a student?

She could never have guessed that at this very moment, Lynch’s mind was completely occupied with how to cultivate Blackthorn’s corpse into a Tier Six Peak Copper-Armored Corpse Ranger.

"Yes, I wish you excellent results as well," Lynch nodded slightly, offering a polite reply before turning his gaze back toward the island.

******

About an hour or so later, the Silver Moon dropped anchor and came to a stop about two or three hundred meters from the island.

Afterward, seven or eight small boats shuttled back and forth, transporting the students and teachers of the three academies to the island in batches.

On the shore.

The "Three-Academy Examination Committee" had already chosen a location and set up a temporary base using Magic Tents and simple Magic Arrays.

Rows of densely packed, army-green tents spread out along the coastline. These tents were divided into an area for the instructors and a residential area for the students of the three academies, separated by a conspicuous dividing line.

The Imperial Capital Academy’s tents were naturally located in the most central and level area, while those of Hurst and Silver Moon Academy were arranged on either side.

After everyone landed on the island, they first rested for a day.

The next morning, all the students were summoned to the open ground in the center of the base, where the instructors from their respective academies took a headcount and confirmed their identities.

Once everyone had assembled, the Grand Mage Buddy from the Imperial Capital Academy levitated into the air. His voice, amplified by a spell, reached the ears of everyone present.

"Esteemed candidates, welcome to the Silent Island. I will now announce the rules for this joint graduation exam."

"The entire Silent Island is divided into four zones based on danger level. The first is the Green Zone. This area is designated for the year-end assessments of lower-grade students and has a low level of danger."

"The Yellow Zone represents a moderate level of danger. It is the main assessment area for graduating students. We do not recommend that ordinary lower-grade students enter."

"The Red Zone is a high-danger area. There are Magical Beasts of Tier Two and above here. We do not recommend that ordinary graduating students enter."