Building the Strongest Undead Empire from Scratch

Xiao Mu was taken aback. They hadn't yet secured Windcrest, but they should be able to retreat before the enemy arrived.

Seeing that the group showed no signs of retreating, Death Spirit revealed the truth.

"Torin clashed with the King Ghoul in the Dark Forest. Although it managed to repel the enemy, its injuries worsened, and its level has dropped to King level!"

"What?!"

Xiao Mu and Drake were stunned.

"Abandon Windcrest, retreat immediately!"

Xiao Mu and Drake wasted no time in issuing the order. The Beastman Empire was unaware of the undead empire's location. As long as they escaped through the undead fortress, it would take the enemy days to find them.

The six race kings immediately abandoned their assault on Windcrest and retreated towards the distant undead fortress behind them.

"Death Spirit, inform Xiao Hui and Ruby immediately. Tell them to retreat as well and have all members of the Arctic Tigerfolk migrate to the undead empire!"

The situation was becoming increasingly dire. Xiao Hui's side was also likely to face retaliation from the Gnolls.

If an Emperor level being attacked, it would be without warning. Xiao Hui and Ruby wouldn't even have time to escape.

"They've been notified."

Death Spirit had informed everyone simultaneously to ensure they could react immediately.

The undead empire and the Beastman Empire were now sworn enemies. Once they escaped, the enemy would scour the entire northern continent. It was uncertain how long the undead empire could hold out in its current state.

As the undead fortress came into view, a deafening roar echoed through the air, and the fortress crumbled before their very eyes!

Their pupils constricted as they looked up. A white birdman hovered in the sky, his gaze fixed upon them, filled with murderous intent.

He had arrived so quickly!

Xiao Mu and Drake's hearts pounded in their chests. They knew they were in grave danger.

"You damned undead, who gave you the audacity to trespass on our territory!"

Skyplume roared, and a tempestuous wind erupted around him, its force like countless blades. The undead below King level were instantly swept away, disintegrating into dust that scattered in the wind.

Such overwhelming power! A mere aura was enough to obliterate all undead below King level!

The surviving King level undead felt immense pressure. Facing Skyplume's formidable aura, they struggled to maintain their forms, resisting with all their might.

A wind field had formed around them, created by Skyplume's powers. From the outset, he sealed off all escape routes, leaving them with nowhere to run.

"Damn it, fight him!"

Xiao Mu roared. They had no choice but to fight for their lives. Even Death Spirit, in this moment, stood its ground. It gathered the power of all its clones into this single clone and then split into dozens of fragments, merging with all the surrounding King level undead.

They unleashed their abilities, all targeting Skyplume. However, within his wind field, under the influence of his sphere, they couldn't even take flight!

With a mere glance, Skyplume immobilized Xiao Mu and Drake. Two wind blades sliced through their bodies, instantly reverting them to their human forms.

Thud!

They crashed to the ground, completely paralyzed. Skyplume spread his white wings, and hundreds of feathers materialized, hovering in the air before transforming into streaks of light that scoured the ground.

The density of these attacks was akin to a torrential downpour. No undead could possibly dodge such an onslaught.

However, these white streaks of light avoided the immobilized Xiao Mu and Drake lying on the ground.

Skyplume intended to capture them alive!

"Damn it, I can't break free!"

No matter how hard Drake struggled, he couldn't escape the enemy's grasp. Even his bloodline seemed to have become unresponsive, beyond his control.

They could only watch helplessly as Skyplume slaughtered the surrounding King level undead, powerless to intervene...

Meanwhile, on the western border of the far north.

Upon receiving Death Spirit's notification, Xiao Hui and Ruby immediately chose to retreat. With the undead fortress right behind them, the process was smooth.

However, Xiao Hui didn't retreat herself. Instead, she instructed Ruby to return to the far north and organize the evacuation of her people.

As a death angel, with the Dark Angel Resurrection Pool at her disposal, she didn't fear death.

Xiao Hui had her reasons for doing this. She intended to use her ability to resurrect indefinitely to keep the enemy's attention focused on the far north.

She wanted to buy time for Xiao Mu and Ruby's escape, while also preventing the enemy from easily locating the undead Imperial Capital.

Although the enemy alpha had taken action, it was in the south of the Beastman Empire. As for the north, at least for now, Xiao Hui believed it was still safe.

Currently, nearly a third of the undead empire's forces were concentrated here. After learning that Torin's level would drop to King level, Xiao Hui had ordered all elite troops to withdraw, leaving behind only some Monarch level undead and cannon fodder to deceive the enemy.

Her duty was to hold this position, to fight defensively. Besides, they were running low on Fortress Essence Shards, so she couldn't employ the same tactics as Xiao Mu and Drake.

With a resolute gaze, Xiao Hui stood atop the undead fortress, her eyes fixed on the distant forest. She had only one hope: that Alex would return soon.

What was she doing? Two months had passed without a single word.

"Awooo~"

Suddenly, a wolf's howl pierced through the forest, echoing across the land. Xiao Hui felt a sharp pain in her head. The next second, a massive Gnolls materialized before her!

A giant axe descended towards her, its blade growing larger and larger in her vision.

The surrounding space seemed to lock down, paralyzing her body. Her mind went blank as death loomed.

In a split second, the Sword of Judgment erupted with black energy, and Xiao Hui vanished from sight, narrowly dodging the Emperor level attack.

This was the Sword of Judgment's passive life-saving ability, with a twenty-four-hour cooldown.

The undead fortress behind her wasn't so fortunate. It was reduced to ashes under the enemy's attack, and countless undead were caught in the blast, their soul fires extinguished instantly.

Seeing her dodge the attack, Alpha Gnoll was slightly surprised, but he swiftly followed up with another unstoppable axe blow.

With nowhere to retreat, Xiao Hui gripped the Sword of Judgment, channeling all her strength, and charged towards the attack.

Death was a small price to pay!

===

Was this the power of an Emperor level being?!

Xiao Mu, Drake, and the others were utterly helpless against it. They were only mid-King level. Would the outcome have been different if they were high-level?

They had misjudged the situation, underestimating the enemy's reaction speed. They hadn't anticipated that Skyplume, wielding the sphere of wind, would be so swift.

This miscalculation would cost them their lives, and the undead empire they had painstakingly built would crumble overnight.

Could Alex arrive in time?

She always seemed to appear at crucial moments. However, Death Spirit's level hadn't reached Emperor level, which implied that Alex's level was still at King level.

Even if she arrived, could a King level being stand a chance against an Emperor level opponent?

By now, most of the King level undead had been slain. Forget about attacking Skyplume, even touching him was a challenge.

Death Spirit remained silent, observing. Through analysis, it had determined that this Alpha Birdman was at least stronger than the King Ghoul.

He was definitely not a low-level Emperor!

"Your bloodlines are quite impressive, worthy of research. I shall capture you and study you. Consider it compensation for your transgression against the Beastman Empire."

Skyplume chuckled sinisterly as he descended to the ground. He intended to personally extract their bloodlines and bring them back to the empire.

Compared to the loss of his people, he could leverage these bloodlines for greater gains. This was actually a blessing in disguise.

As Skyplume approached, they remained paralyzed, utterly helpless. The other King level undead had been slain, leaving only the six race kings, Xiao Mu, and Drake.

The powerful wind field held them captive. Skyplume slowly raised his right hand, a peculiar energy gathering in his palm.

His fingers curled into claws, reaching for Drake first, aiming to extract his bloodline.

This was a special technique developed by the demihumans, a method unique to the Beastman Empire for bloodline extraction.

Drake couldn't resist. He glared at Skyplume, filled with rage and regret for his own lack of strength.

Was this the end for him?

Crack!

Suddenly, a black chain, wreathed in flames, shot towards them, wrapping itself tightly around Skyplume's right hand, halting his advance.

"Ladies and gentlemen, are you okay?"

A deep, magnetic voice called out. They turned to see a man clad in a denim jacket, astride a flaming skeletal warhorse. He held his cowboy hat with one hand, the other pulling taut on the chain.

Who was he?

Confusion filled their faces. They didn't recognize him, but judging by the undead warhorse beneath him, he was likely another former race king, like Torin!