52: Chapter 52 Rating: S! Miracle Treasure Triggered!

Xu Qin began to adjust his tactics.

Fifteen Sand Jackals rushed out again, this time targeting two adjacent guards.

Both guards were provoked simultaneously and chased after the Sand Jackals.

Xu Qin's micromanagement was becoming more refined.

The Sand Jackals continuously adjusted their positioning, always staying just outside the guards' attack range, without causing the guards to give up the chase.

During this, seven more Sand Jackals were sacrificed.

The two guards were successfully lured in front of the main army.

Manniu used Taunt, Tian Ming provided crowd control, and the ranged units fired in unison.

Their coordination was becoming increasingly proficient.

The two guards fell one after another.

Ding!

[Battle Results]

Targets Killed: Abyssal Rift Guard (Level 25 · Elite · Rare) × 2

Talent [War Gift Level 10] triggered!

Final Rewards:

Abyssal Guard Bone × 22

...

Battle Rating: A+

Upgrade Progress: 1180 / 6000

"Still an A?" Xu Qin said with a disdainful laugh.

He was not in a hurry.

Next, he gradually increased the intensity.

Three, four, five.

The number of monsters lured increased each time, yet the tactical execution became increasingly smooth.

The tacit understanding and coordination between the heroes visibly improved.

After the sixth batch of five Rift Guards fell.

Tian Ming waved his bone staff.

[Legion of the Dead]!

Hum!

A dark purple light enveloped the pile of guard corpses.

Crackle!

The skeletons began to reassemble.

In less than ten seconds.

Thirty new Undead guards climbed up from the ground.

Burning in their eye sockets was now ghostly blue soul fire.

Xu Qin opened the attribute panel.

[Undead Rift Guard · Tier 2 (Elite · Rare)]

Attack Power: 120 (+12) (Physical - Bite / Dark Erosion)

Defense: 55 (+8)

HP: 1800 (+40)

Loyalty: 100/100 (Eternally Loyal)

Morale: None

Traits:

Abyss Erosion (Passive): Attacks inflict 12 points of Shadow damage on hit (ignores defense), lasting 6 seconds.

Rift Charge (Active): Charges forward 15 meters, dealing 80 points of area damage along the path. Targets hit are slowed by 50% for 4 seconds. Cooldown: 18 seconds.

Abyss Regression (Passive): When HP is below 30%, recovers 4% of max HP per second for 10 seconds. Triggers only once per battle.

After reading it, Xu Qin exclaimed out loud.

"Good heavens, these stats... they're even fiercer than the living guards."

"Tian Ming, oh Tian Ming, this conversion of yours has completely offset our battle losses."

Xu Qin, stationed within the territory, praised Tian Ming with a smile through the command panel.

The soul fire in the Great Lich's eye sockets flickered twice, serving as a response.

"Alright, all troops on alert. Now, the guards will do the luring!"

Xu Qin clicked on the newly converted Undead guards.

Thirty guards strode with heavy steps toward the Rift.

They were slower than the Sand Jackals, but larger in size and made for more obvious targets.

By the edge of the Rift, a new guard had just crawled out.

The two sides of guards locked eyes.

The living one was clearly stunned for a moment.

It probably hadn't expected that its own companions would turn into enemies.

But the next second, thirty Undead guards slammed into it with [Rift Charge].

Boom!

A cloud of dust was kicked up.

Thirty Undead behemoths were seen directly trampling the Rift Guard underfoot.

"Manniu, go!"

Manniu activated Taunt and unleashed Stomp.

Tian Ming covered the area with double Wither.

Jackal Hunter applied a mark.

The ranged units fired in unison.

After two rounds of attacks, the battle ended.

"Continue," Xu Qin ordered again.

The thirty guards formed a squad and charged directly toward the Rift.

By the Rift, the three living guards that had just crawled out were clearly confused when they saw thirty of their own kind charging over.

But their battle instincts drove them to launch a counterattack.

It was just...

Thirty against three.

It was a complete crush.

In less than a minute, all three guards fell.

Xu Qin stood in the territory, arms crossed, watching the scene before him.

"Tsk tsk tsk, so easy."

The number of guards inside the Rift was decreasing.

The speed at which they jumped out was getting slower and slower.

Twenty Undead guards stood at the edge of the Rift.

They stood in a row, facing the Rift, ready for battle.

Just at this moment.

A low roar came from the depths of the Rift.

Immediately after, the Rift began to shrink.

The dark purple demonic energy gradually thinned.

The light at the edge of the Rift dimmed.

Ten seconds later.

The Rift disappeared completely.

Only a shallow mark remained on the ground.

Ding!

[Battle Results]

Battle Rating: S (All Abyssal Rift Guards annihilated, battle loss rate below 5%, tactical execution perfect, demonstrating extremely high tactical literacy and command ability)

Upgrade Progress: 2340 / 6000

[Miracle Treasure Triggered!]

[Randomly drawing...]

Xu Qin stared at the panel, holding his breath.

Three seconds later.

Golden light burst forth.

A line of purple text appeared.

[Congratulations on obtaining: Undead Hero Summoning Contract · Shadow Assassin (Epic)]

[Description 1: After use, you can directly summon a Level 21 Undead Hero "Shadow Assassin". This hero possesses a complete skill tree and can unlock subsequent skills at the Dark Altar. Initially carries Epic-grade equipment "Shadow Blade", excels in stealth assassination and single-target burst damage.]

[Description 2: This hero does not occupy a promotion slot at the Dark Altar.]

Xu Qin was stunned.

Then...

"Holy crap!"

"Directly giving a Level 21 Epic hero? And it comes with Epic equipment?"

Xu Qin clutched the contract, unable to stop laughing.

"It really is a miracle! This is awesome!"

Immediately, he gave an order directly to the command panel.

"Army, return to the city!"

Rumble!

The army began its return journey.

Within the territory.

Xu Qin took out the newly obtained summoning contract from his inventory and crushed it.

Hum!

The contract turned into a deep black smoke in his palm.

On the plaza, in the open space near the obelisk, black mist seeped out from the sand.

Suddenly, the black mist, gathering ever thicker, abruptly shrank.

A figure appeared.

Its build was even leaner than the Blade Guard, with long limbs.

Its head was slightly bowed, the soul fire in its eye sockets extremely dim, looking a bit creepy.

At its left waist, a blade was tucked away, faintly emitting a purple ghostly light.

Xu Qin opened the attribute panel.

[Shadow Assassin · Hero (Epic)]

Level: 21 (0/3000)

Attack Power: 78 (Physical - Pierce / Shadow)

Defense: 18

HP: 320/320

Loyalty: 100/100 (Eternally Loyal)

Morale: None

Equipment:

[Shadow Blade (Epic)]

Attack Bonus: +25, Additional Effect: Each attack deals 8 points of pure Shadow damage (ignores defense); on critical hit, triggers "Ghost Erosion", increasing Shadow damage taken by the target by 30%, lasting 6 seconds.

Hero Traits:

[Prowler] (Passive): After exiting combat for more than 3 seconds, automatically enters stealth, increasing movement speed by 40% and avoiding enemy detection.

Skills:

[Fatal Strike (Active · Single Target)]: Launches an assassination attack on a single target, dealing 300% of Attack Power as physical damage. If the target's HP is below 35%, instantly executes them. Cooldown: 30 seconds.

[Shadow Leap (Active · Displacement)]: Instantly teleports behind the target, accompanied by a normal attack. If the target has their back turned to the assassin, this attack triggers a 100% critical hit. Cooldown: 12 seconds.

[Ghost Step (Active · Self)]: Enters a state of complete invisibility for 8 seconds. Moving does not break invisibility, but attacking causes it to dissipate. During this time, immune to all area-of-effect skill damage. Cooldown: 40 seconds.

[Blood Path (Passive)]: After each successful attack, recovers 4% of self max HP. Recovery is doubled on critical hits.

Hero Special Restrictions:

[No Command]: This hero does not possess leadership abilities and cannot lead troop formations.