My Skeleton Soldier Is Strange - Chapter 229

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 229
I gazed upon this virtually manifested Heavenly Realm with eyes gleaming with profound purpose. My gaze burned with the ambition of conquest.
“Those who wish to join me in embracing the forces of darkness.”
My words were less a question than a declaration. I was recruiting those who would follow me. It was an ambitious plan to invade the domain of angels and claim it as a new hunting ground.
The reaction from the players remaining in the Plaza was immediate. After a few seconds of silence, voices erupted from all directions.
“Me! Count me in!”
“Let me join too!”
“I want to participate!”
“Please give me this chance!”
The voices multiplied. What began with only a handful swelled to dozens, then scores. Their eyes blazed with longing and exhilaration.
I observed all of this in silence. My plan was unfolding flawlessly. I slowly raised my hand in a welcoming gesture. In that instant, the crimson current surrounding me ignited with far greater intensity, bathing the entire Plaza in scarlet light.
The red current blazed with unprecedented ferocity, drenching the Plaza in its crimson glow.
The scarlet radiance flooding the Plaza began to ripple outward like waves. The crimson current emanated from my fingertips, spreading ever wider until it reached the players. The contact began subtly at first. The red essence rising from their feet enveloped their bodies gradually, like mist ascending a mountainside, until it consumed them entirely.
Crimson currents flowed from the players’ bodies. Initially, they were merely faint threads of light tracing across their skin, but gradually the luminescence intensified, growing denser and more vivid.
Then the transformation began.
The players’ skin commenced its metamorphosis. The first change was their complexion. Their natural human coloring vanished, replaced by a spectrum of red-tinged hues. Some shifted to deep crimson, while others took on shades of violet-red.
Next, their physical forms began to alter. Small horns sprouted from their heads, each unique in size and shape. Some grew straight and pointed, while others curved outward at angles. Their fingernails sharpened and lengthened.
Thin, leathery wings formed along their backs. Initially small and underdeveloped, they grew progressively larger and more substantial. Each pair bore its own distinct form. Some resembled bat wings, while others took on shapes reminiscent of dragon wings.
They had transformed into beings resembling the Demon Lord’s kind. They were no longer ordinary players. They had been reborn as denizens of the Demon Realm. The transformation transcended mere appearance. New power surged within their bodies, amplifying their existing abilities and unlocking unprecedented possibilities.
The transformed players initially failed to comprehend what had happened to their bodies. But as their vision sharpened, their bodies felt lighter, and they sensed the demonic energy blossoming at their fingertips, they gradually became aware of the change.
Recognizing their transformation, the players gazed at one another. Their initial bewilderment swiftly transformed into exhilaration and joy.
“Magnificent!”
Cries of wonder burst from their lips. It was far more than simple astonishment. Within those exclamations lay pride in their newfound strength and excitement at this unexpected metamorphosis.
One player lifted his transformed hand to examine it. Small flames flickered and vanished at his fingertips. Another player unfurled the wings that had sprouted from his back.
All reveled in their new forms. It was not merely a change in appearance, but a profound fulfillment—as though they had been granted a new identity and sense of belonging.
The Plaza now teemed with players transformed into Demon Lord’s kind. Their eyes glowed with crimson light, their horns and wings took myriad forms, and their sharp claws and fangs created a stark, violent contrast against the city’s peaceful atmosphere.
I gazed down upon this spectacle with a satisfied smile. My plan was progressing faster and more perfectly than anticipated. As I beheld my newly created army, I envisioned the battles that lay ahead.
It was truly beautiful.
* * *
Three hours had passed.
A crimson sunset stained the horizon red, drawing darkness across the world. The Plaza of Den now stood empty. Only faint footprints and traces remained in the desolate square. The city’s inhabitants had all retreated indoors, bolting their heavy doors and windows shut, deliberately ignoring what transpired beyond.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
I led the players transformed into Demon Lord’s kind through Den’s eastern Castle Gate, departing the city. Our procession now numbered in the hundreds. I, clad in the form of a Dark Knight, led the vanguard, followed by the Undead Magician and Barcode. Behind them stretched a column of transformed players.
The Guard Soldiers who had been stationed at the gate had already fled. The massive gate hung wide open, abandoned, with armor and weapons scattered across the ground. They had clearly been seized by terror, abandoning everything in their flight.
“Advance.”
At my command, the Demon Legion stepped beyond the city and into the Grassland. The evening wind swept across the plains.
The vast grassland, with its undulating grass, appeared peaceful.
But that peace would not endure. The moment my legion touched the Grassland, the grass beneath their feet withered and died. Black scars marked the path they had traversed. It became a trail that clearly revealed their destination.
Scattered throughout the Grassland were small villages and hunting grounds. There, players unaware of my presence continued their ordinary gaming activities. Some hunted monsters, others gathered resources, and still others conversed with their companions.
When my legion reached the first village, the villagers initially failed to comprehend what was happening. They gazed in wonder at the magnificent procession led by a knight in black armor.
But that fear transformed into something else. As Kim Jae-beom raised his hand, crimson electricity surged through the air once more. The current enveloped the players throughout the village, and they too began to transform in an instant.
“What, what is this!”
A player cried out, but his voice soon changed. It deepened, grew rougher. One by one, the village players transformed into Demons, their eyes blazing with the same crimson flames.
Remarkably, the initial fear and confusion faded swiftly. Smiles bloomed across the faces of those who had become Demons, and they willingly joined Kim Jae-beom’s legion. The joy of gaining new power and identity had seized them completely.
This process repeated across every village and hunting ground in the Grassland. Kim Jae-beom’s legion expanded as it crossed the plains. What had begun as merely hundreds swiftly exceeded a thousand, and within less than two hours, it had swollen to thousands.
The legion’s march was visible from great distances. Crimson eyes glimmered in the darkness, and black wings fluttered, obscuring the moonlight. The sound of their footsteps thundered across the land like a tempest, and the mana they exhaled corrupted the very air itself.
At last, when we reached the edge of the Grassland, Kim Jae-beom gazed upon his destination. Beyond the horizon, an enormous Castle Wall came into view. It was the Empire’s Fortress: Shupen.
Shupen was a crucial fortress guarding the Empire’s eastern border. It was constructed of towering walls, deep moats, and pointed spires. Elite NPC soldiers were stationed there.
A Guard Soldier standing watch in the fortress’s watchtower first spotted the strange sight. A black tide was advancing across the Grassland. At first, he thought it merely darkness, but he soon realized it was a legion composed of thousands of Demons.
“Enemy! Enemies approach!”
With the Guard Soldier’s cry, alarms blared throughout the entire fortress. Trumpet calls pierced the night air, and drums beat urgently. NPC soldiers instantly assumed battle positions and climbed atop the Castle Wall.
General Balte, the fortress’s supreme commander, ascended the watchtower himself to observe the approaching enemy. His face paled in an instant. Throughout his long military career, he had experienced countless battles, but never had he witnessed anything like this.
“Damn it all….”
A curse escaped his lips. What approached beneath the Castle Wall was no ordinary enemy force.
Thousands of Demons marched in perfect formation, and at their vanguard stood a Knight clad in black armor.
“All forces stand ready! Prepare bows and siege engines!”
General Balte’s command spread to every corner of the fortress. Soldiers nocked arrows with trembling hands and loaded stones into the catapults.
The Demon Legion halted one hundred meters from the fortress. Kim Jae-beom stepped slowly forward. His black armor did not reflect the moonlight; rather, it seemed to absorb it entirely. He lifted his gaze toward the soldiers atop the Castle Wall.
The NPC soldiers defending the fortress were terrified by this entire spectacle. Some dropped their weapons, and others attempted to flee their posts. Yet General Balte’s resolute command barely kept them from breaking formation.
“Divine one….”
A young soldier prayed in a trembling voice. He instinctively knew this would be his final battle. Every soldier in the fortress felt the same emotion, harbored the same thought.
Kim Jae-beom smiled as he observed them.
A smile spread across his lips.
He slowly raised his hand. At that signal, thousands of Demon players roared simultaneously. The sound shook the earth and seemed to tear the very sky asunder.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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