Chapter 207 - Li Chunming’s Spite

The third trial of the Treant Ruins proved challenging. The Osteomancer faced off against 100 Centurion Treants, each standing six meters tall. These were Heroic life forms, each with unique traits. Some wielded weapons—wooden clubs, vine whips, or wooden bows—capable of inflicting serious damage.

Despite its massive size, the bone bear’s body cracked under the relentless assault of the Centurion Treants. Fortunately, the Golden Skeleton, Holy Skeleton, and the new Heroic half-dragon joined the fight to support it.

The battle stretched on for six grueling hours. By the end, the four Heroic units were exhausted. Han Wu chose to claim his rewards and retreat from the ruins for the moment.

He was presented with three options again.

[Reward 1: 8,000 Wood.]

[Reward 2: Level 1 Worker Altar: Grovekins. It can summon 10 Elite Grovekins daily.]

[Reward 3: Adamantium Tree Seed. Seed of an Adamantium Tree. Its branches are exceptionally sturdy and ideal for forging weapons. Highly compatible with the wood attribute.]

Han Wu examined the second reward closely, intrigued. This was his first encounter with Grovekins. The Worker caste usually consisted of units tied to food production in some way.

Could the Grovekin cook?

The question piqued his curiosity, and he selected the second reward. Without delay, he inspected the altar to read the Grovekins’ description.

[Grovekin. Elite life forms. Skills: Ingrain, Breadfruit. Famine ceased to exist where Grovekins live.]

“So this is a food-producing unit!” Han Wu’s interest spiked. His army kept expanding, and food supplies had started to tighten. The skeletons didn’t need to eat, but the Scorching Dwarves, half-dragons,and Dark Cursed Bugs all needed regular nourishment. The Dark Cursed Bugs, especially, consumed vast amounts due to their Gluttony trait.

Han Wu chose the Grovekins Altar as his fifth altar, leaving part of his skeleton army behind to continue the trials below the third floor while he returned to his shelter.

Soon after, he placed the Grovekins Altar in the fifth slot and summoned ten Grovekins. These creatures stood three meters tall, with slender branches, but their crowns were exceptionally lush.

Han Wu commanded them to embed themselves deeply within his domain. In less than three hours, the first batch of breadfruits had matured. He plucked one and tasted it. The fruit was soft and mildly sweet, rich in carbohydrates with a hint of minerals. It was a vital source of sustenance, capable of staving off famine.

In the first harvest, Han Wu collected 300 breadfruits. He stored 200 for himself and sold the remaining 100 for 1 Gold Coin each. The students competed fiercely to buy even a single fruit. The Worker caste had become a rare and valuable asset. The student who had units capable of cooking was so overwhelmed with orders that their woks were nearly melting from nonstop use.

Han Wu’s breadfruit offered a timely solution. It relieved some of the pressure and, more importantly, sparked a new idea. He realized he could build a lucrative trade selling both weapons and food.

As soon as the breadfruits sold out, the students flooded Han Wu with messages, pleading for more fruit or direct sales. Han Wu ignored every message.

Naturally, his silence offended some of the more prideful students. Li Chunming was among them, raging alone in his mansion. “Han Wu, that bastard. How dare he ignore me?”

Two female students in skimpy outfits tried to calm him.

“Chunming, don’t be angry at him. There’s no reason to lose your health just because of him,” one said.

The two female students’ shelters had been destroyed in the calamity and were slated for elimination, but they managed to remain here because they pledged allegiance to Li Chunming. He had granted them permission to occupy two of his altar spots, and they preserved the right to stay here.

“Chunming, why don’t we do something we both enjoy?” one of them purred, shedding her clothes with surprising dexterity.

Li Chunming felt a flicker of attraction, but his anger refused to subside. “No. Han Wu has insulted me one too many times. I will show him who’s in charge here.”

He rummaged through his storage and pulled out a map. It resembled Han Wu’s magic map but served a different purpose. This was the Nemesis Map, which he had acquired after the calamity. Instead of using blood to activate it, he needed only to pour in genuine hatred from his heart to reveal his target’s location.

Li Chunming clenched the map tightly, summoning every ounce of hatred he could muster. He recalled Han Wu’s insults in the group, his showy behavior in class, and his close ties to the beautiful Qin Shuang. His spite surged, and the map marked the location of Han Wu’s shelter.

Li Chunming checked the distance and laughed. “Only fifty kilometers away? I will lead the assault myself to tear down your shelter!”

He rose and gathered his forces. The two female students had submitted to his command, so they used their authority to summon their units and join his army.

Li Chunming’s core race was the Azure Demons. They were Unique demons from the Demonic Civilization, and their main Skill, Underworld Flare, produced a type of flame that water couldn’t extinguish. It was a troublesome skill.

With the Azure Demons filling the Archer caste, Li Chunming quickly asserted dominance in the area. Fortune smiled on him when he discovered the Wight Ruins. He cleared the trials and claimed numerous treasures, including the Vanguard Rotten Wight.

True to its name, the Rotten Wight appeared and smelled vile. Yet it proved a formidable unit, boasting incredible defense and vitality. Additionally, the poisonous gas it emitted protected his forces. With the Rotten Wight as his Vanguard, his Azure Demons could strike freely without fear of counterattack.

𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

The two female students were no pushovers either. Li Chunming had chosen them carefully. Their core races were just as troublesome to deal with. They commanded the Styx Maidens and Abyss Moths.

The Styx Maidens belonged to the Archer caste and fired corrosive, poisonous water spheres. In contrast, the Abyss Moths were part of the Physician caste and wielded two deadly Skills: Berserk Powder and Bloody Powder.

Berserk Powder drove victims into a frenzy, reducing intelligence while dramatically increasing raw power. Meanwhile, Bloody Powder was a potent hemotoxin. Exposure disrupted the victim’s hemostasis, causing wounds to bleed uncontrollably until death from blood loss.

Li Chunming had offered them two altar spots because he recognized the sheer power of their core races. Once his army was assembled, he set off at once toward Han Wu’s shelter.