Another World: When a Necromancer Possesses the Banner of Ten Thousand Souls

Just as he sat down cross-legged, preparing to enter a meditative state, the pale blue energy barrier in the cubicle suddenly rippled violently, like a pebble thrown into water. Then, the barrier silently slid open to both sides like a curtain of water.

Lin Ya, the class advisor for the Summoning Department, stood with her hands behind her back at the door of the cubicle. Today, she was wearing a well-tailored dark blue business suit, casually draped with a white lab coat, a hallmark of researchers.

Her gaze didn't immediately fall on the sweat-drenched Li Xingyao, but rather, like the most precise scanner, landed precisely on the energy impact marks on the alloy target that hadn't completely dissipated, and on the peak data recorded on the screen beside it. Her gaze lingered for a few seconds, especially on the two slowly rotating "bone shields" that emanated a cold, bony aura.

Lin Ya's gaze slowly shifted, finally settling on Li Xingyao. Her face, usually bearing a professional and serious expression, now showed a subtle upward curve at the corners of her mouth, forming a clear arc. That arc held a pure satisfaction and profound expectation.

She turned around, her gaze sweeping across the entire summoning training ground like a searchlight. She noticed that in many of the cubicles, students who had been resting, chatting, or just finishing a round of practice and looking forward to catching their breath had involuntarily stopped what they were doing.

An invisible yet intense competitive atmosphere was ignited in this small class. A barely perceptible smile flashed deep in Lin Ya's eyes; this was exactly the scene she was most pleased to see—pressure transformed into motivation, and role models inspiring progress.

"Very good," Lin Ya's voice wasn't loud, but it carried clearly throughout the training ground, with an undeniable affirmation. "Good focus. Keep this up, and I hope to see a transformation in all of you by the end of the semester."

Her gaze lingered on Li Xingyao for a final moment, her eyes seeming to say: Continue. Then she turned and left deftly.

Li Xingyao stood there, feeling a strange sensation from Teacher Lin's expectant gaze.

On the weekend, the alloy door closed silently behind Li Xingyao, and the training room was very quiet. The air was filled with the fragrance of grass and delicate flowers emitted by the purification system. This deliberately created natural atmosphere was particularly comfortable and gave people a sense of tranquility.

Li Xingyao took a deep breath and walked straight to the center of the field.

He didn't immediately summon the undead, nor did he even look at the silently standing alloy target. He simply closed his eyes slowly, focusing all his attention on the realm deep within his consciousness—the undead space, a realm that belonged only to him.

Mental energy pierced through the spatial barrier. A hazy mist surged silently, and a ten-square-meter domain unfolded in his consciousness. Twenty-four gray-white skeleton warriors, like the most loyal guards, stood silently in two neat square formations.

Some of their skeletons were noticeably thicker than when they were first summoned two weeks ago, their surfaces displaying a polished sheen. Rusty weapons were gripped tightly between their knuckles, and deep within their empty eye sockets, a single, eerie blue spark burned silently.

A subtle connection entwined with Li Xingyao's spiritual perception; he could clearly sense the "state" of these spirits, which felt far more "vivid" than when they were initially summoned. This was proof of the continuous nourishment from the Soul Banner's power, and also an effect bestowed by the spirit space.

His spiritual power bypassed the skull formation and struck the ancient banner floating in the center of his spiritual space. The banner's surface remained dim, but the delicate starlight tassels adorning its edges were much brighter than when it had awakened, now emitting a faint, dark glow. Soul Power Reserves: 400/1000.

"Four hundred points..." Li Xingyao murmured to himself. The 1000 points of soul power required for the first stage of repair could be obtained by maintaining the status quo and continuing to systematically communicate with the world of the dead to "fleece" those ordinary undead, while also nourishing his spirit with the trace amounts of soul power he absorbed from the Ten Thousand Soul Banner during his daily meditation.

Therefore, before the end of his high school career, the Myriad Soul Banner will surely accumulate enough soul power to activate its second stage.

"Hoo..." In reality, Li Xingyao slowly opened his eyes, exhaling a long breath, as if trying to expel the expectation and pressure from his body. His Star Energy intensity had increased by 180 points, a real boost. He had mastered the core skills available to necromancers in the early stages: Summon Basic Undead, Bone Shield, and Death Arrow.

Even under intense training, he has made great progress in "micro-management"—while maintaining the three-sided white bone shield, he can also accurately guide the arrow of death to hit the moving bullseye within fifty meters.

The existence of the Necromancer's Space grants him a summoning resource reserve far exceeding that of other professionals of the same level, as well as a summoning speed with almost zero latency.

The hardware capabilities were steadily improving, and the data was impressive. However, Li Xingyao's brows furrowed slightly, almost imperceptibly, as a shadow of unease lingered in his mind.

The lack of ranged attacks is an awkward weakness in his current combat system, and it's what he's been thinking about the most lately.

In the early game, necromancers rely heavily on summons—that's an ironclad rule. But what are these summons? Currently, they're the skeleton warriors under his command. They're not fast, and their attack range is limited to melee attacks.

Once he encounters an opponent with powerful ranged attack capabilities, whether it's a ranged archer or elemental mage of the same level, or a star beast in the wilderness that can attack from a distance, his situation will instantly become dangerous.

The ideal battle mode would naturally be to have the tough-skinned skeleton warriors at the forefront, while he himself would stay at a safe distance and use spells to attack the enemy from a distance.

But reality is always unpredictable, and there will definitely be all sorts of situations, especially since Li Xingyao currently has little combat experience.

The Arrow of Death is reasonably powerful, enough to inflict effective damage on physical attackers of the same level or low-level star beasts. However, the problem lies in:

1. Range: The effective killing range of the Death Arrow is approximately fifty meters. Beyond this distance, the arrow's energy structure becomes extremely unstable due to the limits of mental guidance and natural dissipation, resulting in a precipitous drop in power and rendering accuracy nonexistent. Compared to the Ranger's attack range of over one hundred meters, this range is child's play.

2. Star Energy: Each Death Arrow requires a steady consumption of approximately 5 Star Energy. With Li Xingyao's current Star Energy reserve of 180 points, it seems he can unleash it up to thirty-six times consecutively. However, during combat, he also needs to maintain his Bone Shield and replenish it when summoned creatures are damaged. Frequent use of Death Arrow for firepower will leave him vulnerable once his Star Energy is depleted, like a tiger with its teeth pulled.

3. Limited tactical options: Death Arrow only deals pure energy damage and inflicts a death energy erosion effect, lacking ranged physical damage. It lacks adaptability to different enemies and battlefield situations.

Li Xingyao frowned, his fingers unconsciously rubbing together. Summons absorbing damage? That was a clumsy method. He certainly had a large number of skeleton warriors, and the Undead Space granted him the ability to quickly repair and rejoin the battlefield after losses.

But what does repair require? Every time a summoned creature is severely injured or completely destroyed, it means that precious soul power is consumed. In the perilous and unpredictable wilderness, once he is forced into a passive situation where he needs to constantly consume skeleton warriors to fill the gaps in ranged firepower, his meager soul power reserves simply cannot withstand the squandering of such a war of attrition.

The crucial repair plan for the Myriad Soul Banner will be severely delayed, and may even come to a standstill due to insufficient soul power.

Team up? A bitter smile appeared on Li Xingyao's lips. The reputation of necromancers, especially among newcomers, was hardly good.

Summoned creatures are clumsy, have low intelligence, unstable damage output, and are difficult to control in the early stages. Coupled with their visual shortcomings, they are prone to causing teammates to instinctively reject them. Teams that are willing to sincerely accept a new necromancer are either forced to join due to a shortage of manpower or are themselves weak and stick together for mutual support.

Li Xingyao wasn't naive enough to believe he was lucky enough to stumble upon a strong, well-coordinated team that was willing to tolerate his weaknesses and patiently work through the gaps. Besides, relying on others was ultimately a poor strategy. Self-reliance was the key to survival and controlling one's destiny.

"If I were to explain my unique abilities to people... like instant summoning, or enhanced skeletons... the communication costs would be too high, and there's also the issue of the undead space." Li Xingyao shook his head inwardly. "Even if the other party reluctantly accepts it, in the end, in terms of tactical arrangements, my summoned creatures will most likely still be used as cannon fodder that can be sacrificed at will to attract firepower."

What's the fundamental difference between this and me acting alone, using skeleton warriors to fill the gaps? It's just an added layer of so-called "team" security. But what about the loot distribution? He recalled some rumors Chen Hao had complained about, "I heard many teams use contribution-based loot distribution, with damage dealers, defenders, healers, and controllers taking the lion's share. How much do summoners, the cannon fodder, get? They might not even recoup the cost of repairing their summons with soul power..."

"Going into the wilderness alone... the danger level is still too high." He muttered to himself, his gaze sweeping across the walls of the training room. He needed more firepower! He needed a greater striking range!

The most threatening ranged targets need to be effectively weakened, disrupted, or even directly sniped before summoned creatures can even reach them! Summoned creatures are extensions of his power, shields, and blades, but they should never be mere expendable consumables for passively taking hits!

His class is a summoning necromancer, not skilled in strength amplification. Bows and crossbows require extensive training and specialized equipment, making him difficult to combat in the short term. Firearms? They seem to be the only physical means to supplement ranged firepower in the short term.

However, purchasing a reliable and powerful firearm requires a considerable amount of money.

He has too many expenses right now: meditation potions, armor, training materials... The credits his sister and brother saved up for him are his last line of defense and cannot be used lightly for the time being. Firearms can only be a supplementary option as a last resort.