Surviving the Apocalypse as an All-Time Best Overpowered Necromancer - Chapter 116

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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 116
116. The Start of War (7)
Three days later.
Kang Pil-du reached Level 25 first. Like Seo A-rin and Seo Hwa-rin, he had gained a massive amount of experience and a skill.
Just as he had believed that a higher level meant greater physical ability and therefore greater strength, he obtained a skill that dramatically enhanced his own physical abilities.
By this point, Lee Gang-hyuk had started to get a feel for it.
He could guess what kind of skill he would receive.
‘It’s probably a skill that strengthens their physical abilities.’
Like Kang Pil-du, he believed that growing stronger came with leveling up.
But unlike Kang Pil-du, he saw his own strength as lying not in becoming stronger himself, but in his tamed beings growing stronger. In his mind, that was the same as him growing stronger.
He predicted that he would receive a skill that raised the physical abilities of his zombies and skeletons, rather than one that strengthened his own.
But…
Two days later, the moment he completed a quest as his level rose.
A notification he had nearly forgotten flashed up, and Lee Gang-hyuk’s brow furrowed on its own.
[You have completed the Job-Exclusive Quest. You have received a large amount of experience as a reward. An additional reward is granted.]
[Please select one of the presented rewards.]
1. Job-Exclusive Skill.
2. Job Trait Ability +4
3. All Physical Abilities +4
An exclusive skill, or traits and physical abilities.
Which one should he pick?
Torn, Lee Gang-hyuk asked the others why they had chosen their skills, but for some reason, all three of them looked at him as if they couldn’t make sense of the question.
“There were other options besides a skill?”
“…I only got a large amount of experience and a skill… Why would you be the only one who got something different?”
“I only got a skill too… There were no other choices.”
“…I see.”
He nodded along to what they said, but.
The question of why only his reward was different left his mind in a tangle.
‘Why…’
Why would that be?
What could the reason possibly be?
‘Is it because I have two classes? Or is it because the standard for strength isn’t clear?’
Troubled by the question, he thought it over slowly.
Since he had already completed the job-exclusive quest anyway, and there was no longer any reason to hunt, Lee Gang-hyuk asked the others to excuse him and absentmindedly rubbed his chin.
As he thought about it, it suddenly occurred to him that his standard for strength might consist of several things. He found himself nodding without quite knowing why, and for some reason, he felt he could accept it.
Zombies and skeletons growing stronger, their numbers increasing beyond what they were now, and even crafting high-performance items to arm them.
‘I suppose that’s right.’
Only then did he understand. He studied the options that had been hovering in front of him all along, and then the four points he had gained from this level-up came to mind. He immediately selected option 2.
[You have received 4 Trait Points as the reward for completing the Job-Exclusive Quest.]
[Distributable Points: 8]
– Dexterity: 20 > 28
After checking the notification, he invested all of his distributable points into Dexterity.
With a war on the horizon, raising Charisma would have been the textbook choice rather than Dexterity, but.
If he greatly raised his Dexterity, he thought he might be able to draw out every ability embedded in the Mutated Zombie’s Core, so he decided to take a gamble.
If…
If he could draw out all of the abilities, as he had judged,
he could become far stronger than he is now.
Still, the problem was…
He had no spare Core to craft with.
But Lee Gang-hyuk glanced down at the bone bracelet he was wearing, as though he had a plan for this too.
‘When I crafted the bracelet from the Giant’s Core, the necklace was used as a material too.
A Giant is the name for a massive zombie. Since calling every huge zombie by that description would get confusing with the bigger ones, I decided to call them Giants.
Either way…
Since even finished products can be used as materials,
what if I used a finished item as a material even without a Mutated Zombie’s Core?
Couldn’t a better item come out of it?
I can’t be sure.
But Lee Gang-hyuk judged that it was worth a try, and he turned to those waiting and nodded.
“Now that we’ve reached our goal, let’s head back right away.”
* * *
As soon as he reached the Hideout, Lee Gang-hyuk asked for everyone’s permission and headed up to the third floor, where he set down the accessories he had collected from his teammates.
‘If it doesn’t work at 28, then my Dexterity goes no further.’
What if, even after pouring every last point into raising it to 28, he still couldn’t draw out the ability lingering in the Mutated Zombie’s core?
There was no need to raise Dexterity at all.
Rather than clinging to a Dexterity that might not pay off, investing in Charisma was the faster way to get stronger.
Lee Gang-hyuk made up his mind and reached out his hand.
‘…Will this work?’
Now that the moment had come, a flicker of unease crept in. He steadied his breathing and spoke.
“Bone Accessory Crafting!”
The first material was the bracelet he had made from the spider’s core, the one he’d killed in the Underground Parking Lot.
Flash.
‘It works!’
Perhaps because he was picturing the bracelet as he activated the skill, it was recognized as a material; a brilliant white light burst from it.
Just like the bone necklace he had used as a material not long ago.
Seeing the light from the bracelet, Lee Gang-hyuk’s eyes lit up as he continued crafting.
[Crafting a Bone Bracelet.]
[Your Dexterity will affect the crafting.]
[Sufficient to draw out the ability dwelling within the material.]
“!!”
Just as he’d expected, he was able to draw out the ability lingering in the Mutated Zombie’s core!
As Lee Gang-hyuk’s lips curled in satisfaction, a new notification flickered before his eyes.
[Crafting successful!]
[You have crafted a Bone Bracelet of Binding.]
[Bone Bracelet of Binding]
– A bracelet made using the core of a mutated zombie.
– When the wearer’s Mana or Core Power is consumed, there is a 40% chance that the consumption will be reduced by 40%.
– When Stamina drops below 50%, it stimulates the wearer’s nerves and raises physical reaction speed for 120 seconds.
(Cooldown: 2 hours.)
– Skill ‘Silk Spray’ available for use.
* Silk Spray (Active)
– Sprays sticky silk to bind the target.
‘Silk Spray? That’s a truly spider-like ability.’
Recalling the spider that had filled the valve room with webbing, Lee Gang-hyuk nodded and studied the options.
‘That’s true, but the ability has improved too. The cooldown’s shorter… Wow, this is incredible.’
It was tremendous.
As if to say the one he had made before had been nothing but a joke.
The performance had improved dramatically.
Perhaps that was why.
Greedy for more, Lee Gang-hyuk pulled out the bracelet he had made from Bulldozer’s core and, without hesitation, activated the skill.
After a moment…
[Bone Bracelet of Strength]
– A bracelet made using the core of a mutated zombie.
– Enhances the wearer’s Stamina and Strength. (+4)
– When Stamina drops below 50%, it stimulates the wearer’s nerves and raises Strength by 10 points for 120 seconds.
(Cooldown: 2 hours.)
– Skill ‘Charge’ available for use.
* Charge (Active)
– Charges toward an enemy.
(If used repeatedly on the same target, its power gradually increases.)
‘…Incredible.’
After the spider and now Bulldozer, with accessories of such outstanding performance being made, Lee Gang-hyuk activated the skill on the bracelet he had gifted to Yu Ha-neul and then taken back.
[Bone Bracelet of Throwing]
– A bracelet made using the core of a mutated zombie.
– Raises the wearer’s Strength by 5 points and strengthens throwing ability.
– When an object is thrown, the core reacts and forcibly activates the arm and shoulder muscles for 60 seconds.
– While active, throwing speed and destructive power rise dramatically, and the thrown object is imbued with strong spin.
(Cooldown: 6 minutes)
– Skill ‘Throw’ available for use.
* Throw (Active)
– Sharpens the user’s eyesight, greatly increasing the power and accuracy of thrown objects.
“Investing in Dexterity was the right call.”
Honestly, every time I leveled up and put points into Dexterity, I’d felt uneasy.
I’d even blamed myself more than once, thinking I should have picked Charisma instead.
But…
Today, all that anxiety finally melted away.
Crafting high-performance items with Dexterity had been the right answer all along.
‘Yeah, whatever the situation, gear is king.’
Satisfied, Lee Gang-hyuk carried the upgraded accessories and headed upstairs.
* * *
“Huh…”
“No way. This is insane.”
“Y-you actually made this, Gang-hyuk? S-seriously…”
Everyone stared at Lee Gang-hyuk with wide eyes as they checked the accessories’ stats.
Seo Hwa-rin was too stunned to breathe properly, while Yu Ha-neul and Yu Bit-na kept muttering things that were hard to make sense of.
Seo A-rin was so flustered she couldn’t finish a sentence, and Kang Pil-du looked Lee Gang-hyuk up and down before shaking his head in disbelief.
“…What exactly are you? A necromancer? A crafter? How on earth did you manage something like this…?”
“Think of it as something similar, I guess.”
“…I see.”
Having learned Lee Gang-hyuk’s true class from that shrug, Kang Pil-du studied the accessories’ performance again and murmured in quiet wonder.
“Whatever the reason, the performance on these is absolutely incredible.”
At that, Lee Gang-hyuk chuckled and handed the bracelet made from the Catapult’s core to Yu Ha-neul.
“Ha-neul. You keep this one on. I’ll make you a throwing weapon soon enough.”
“Huh? M-me?”
Taken aback, Yu Ha-neul asked back, and Lee Gang-hyuk nodded.
“I figured adding Wind Attribute to your throwing ability would make it stronger. So you wear this one, and…”
After handing Yu Ha-neul the Bracelet of Throwing, Lee Gang-hyuk trailed off and glanced at Kang Pil-du.
Then he passed the Bone Bracelet of Strength to him.
“You take the Bulldozer’s bracelet. You’re a melee type, so a boost to Strength should suit you.”
“Thanks. I’ll put it to good use.”
Kang Pil-du bowed his head in gratitude, and the moment he slipped the bracelet on, he looked down at his hand with clear satisfaction.
Just then.
“Oh! The bone sword. I almost forgot. Hand that over too.”
“Sure.”
At Lee Gang-hyuk’s words, Kang Pil-du readily handed over the bone sword he had received, crafted from the Cricket’s core.
Handing over a weapon was, in itself, a sign of trust.
But Lee Gang-hyuk was only thinking about what ability dwelled in the Cricket’s core, and didn’t even register that Kang Pil-du had just given up the sword so easily. He turned to Seo Hwa-rin and Seo A-rin and handed over the remaining two bracelets.
“Then, A-rin, you’ll use the Bone Bracelet of Binding, and Hwa-rin, you’ll use the Bracelet of Gluttony.”
For A-rin, who excelled at fighting with the Water Snake, the Bracelet of Binding made sense.
Though falling into the Hungry State would lower Mana and Agility, the Bracelet of Gluttony boosted Skill power, so it seemed best for Hwa-rin to wear it.
That was why he had handed the bracelets to the two of them.
“Huh? Then what about you, Gang-hyuk…?”
“What about you, Gang-hyuk?”
Surprised that he had crafted them all and was now handing every one to his teammates, the two of them waved their hands in refusal and asked back.
“I’ll take mine later. It’s better for people whose synergy is strong to wear them.”
“Ugh.”
But Lee Gang-hyuk insisted he was fine, and with a smile, pressed the bracelets into their hands before turning to Yu Bit-na.
“I’ll make one for you soon too, Bit-na.”
“Okay!”
The others had put on bracelets of tremendous performance crafted by Lee Gang-hyuk, but Yu Bit-na, who had secretly felt a little left out for not having one, brightened in an instant.
With the accessories all distributed,
Lee Gang-hyuk picked up the bone sword made from the Cricket’s core and continued.
“Alright, I’m going to go upgrade this one too.”
“Ugh. Fine. We’ll get started on dinner while you’re gone.”

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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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