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

Li Xingyao took a deep breath, sat back down on the comfortable sofa in the lounge, and brought up the holographic virtual shopping interface on his personal terminal. The pale blue screen unfolded before him, reflecting his calm and focused face.

The original plan needs to be adjusted. Lin Wei's offer was extremely generous, and she even provided him with the necromancer-specific weapon he desperately needed: [Gris's Whispering Skull]. He had originally planned to sell this star core today, but since he received another bonus, he can now modify his plan.

Li Xingyao opened the trading mall interface and easily navigated to the armor section, entering the familiar kinetic armor purchase interface. He slightly adjusted his posture, his eyes gleaming as he gazed at the dazzling array of kinetic armors on display.

He had wanted to buy this for a long time—a kinetic armor, a product of this world combining advanced technology with stellar energy technology. It has its own power system that helps the wearer increase their carrying capacity and movement speed, and external defensive components incorporating stellar energy technology.

Kinetic armor is a special type of armor that can be worn by ordinary people or non-power-based professionals. It has many functions, including basic defense and amplification of star energy, as well as the ability to add attack modules. However, the choice of attack modules is quite expensive. Cheaper ones include technological weapons, advanced ones include star energy technology weapons, and the most expensive ones are weapons that combine both.

Li Xingyao's fingers slid rapidly across the screen, entering the filter criteria one by one: Equipment Type - Power Armor; Applicable Level - Advanced; Core Functions - Defense Enhancement, Mobility Improvement, Mental Power Amplification, Environmental Adaptability; Special Requirements - Can be Equipped with Star Cores (Standard Interface)...

The list refreshed rapidly, displaying countless dazzling armor models, each with densely packed specifications and prices ranging from millions to tens of millions.

Li Xingyao's gaze quickly swept over those models that were too flashy or had mismatched functions, and finally settled on a high-grade tactical power armor called "Jianwei-VI".

The streamlined, dark gray composite armor plates cover the entire body, with the outer armor plates made from star beast skin combined with a special alloy. The joints employ an advanced biomimetic fluid transmission structure to ensure flexibility, and can use star energy or star cores to provide power or enhance output power.

The back integrates a micro-reaction engine and a short-range jetpack, providing powerful mobility, endurance, and high-speed movement.

The overall design exudes a powerful and robust technological aesthetic. One of its core selling points is the highly compatible star core slot in the center of the chest armor. Depending on the attributes of the embedded star core, it can grant additional attribute defense skills or energy interference shields.

"The Fortified-VI... Its basic physical defense has been tested and can effectively withstand close-range direct fire from 30mm armor-piercing rounds. It has excellent resistance to energy attacks and is immune to intermediate skill damage. It has a built-in miniature environmental detection and life support system that can connect to a personal terminal to gain additional computing power. It can support users to work in vacuum, underwater, or moderately toxic gas environments for short periods of time."

The reaction engine increases carrying capacity by up to 10 tons, and the jetpack provides brief bursts of displacement or low-altitude gliding. The included 'Psychic Amplification Module' enhances spellcasting stability and increases elemental perception range, perfectly matching my needs.

Li Xingyao read each parameter word by word, his eyes shining brighter and brighter.

Especially that star core slot, it was a perfect match for the high-level star core in his hand that he obtained from the Crystal Armored Earth Dragon, which contained both earth and crystal attributes!

Once inlaid and activated, this armor will have an astonishing level of defense, enough to withstand the attacks and spells of most high-level star beasts, providing him with unprecedented defensive capabilities.

This equipment can transform a mage into a defensive, heavily armored warrior.

However, when his gaze shifted downwards and he saw the price tag—4,000,000 Federal Credits—Li Xingyao's lips twitched involuntarily.

The huge bonus I just received is about to be mostly spent before I can even enjoy it! This feeling of spending money like a waterfall is still heartbreaking, even if I was mentally prepared, as if I can hear the credits flowing away.

But Li Xingyao didn't hesitate for long. Strength was fundamental, especially in the upcoming exploration of the ruins. A top-tier survival item was worth far more than credit points. Investing in oneself was always the option with the highest return.

The fingertip landed heavily on the virtual "Confirm Purchase" button.

【购买成功！商品：「坚卫-VI型」高级战术动力装甲（含基础武器挂载模块及一年保修）。提取码：PA-T6-TJ-0918-001。根据您的选择，将配送至您的公寓，预计明天上午12:00前送达。】

Watching his personal account balance shrink by the vast majority in an instant, a strange feeling mixed with pain and excitement welled up in his heart. At this point, the equipment he had prepared for this exploration was complete: the [Whispering Skull of Gris] provided by Lin Wei, the newly ordered [Steelguard-VI Power Armor], and the [Crystal Armor Earth Dragon Star Core] that would soon be fused with the armor.

This setup is enough to place him among the top professionals.

After finishing all this, Li Xingyao got up, left the lounge, and took the elevator to the "Deep Therapy and Recovery Center" attached to the Career Center building. He chose a premium relaxation package, lay down on the ergonomic treatment bed, and let the energy flow massage probe and gentle life-restoring light waves soothe his tense muscles and tired nerves.

A faint, calming aromatherapy scent filled the air.

Amidst the gentle hum of the physiotherapy device, Li Xingyao took a short nap. It was as if he had entered a deep sleep, allowing his mind to enter a semi-meditational state of rest, slowly and effectively restoring his depleted mental energy, which could replace the recovery of the body from deep sleep.

When I woke up again, the bright moon was already high in the sky outside the window, and the dazzling neon lights dyed the sky orange-red.

Li Xingyao felt his condition improve and his energy returned. Instead of returning to his apartment, he took transportation again to the North Suburb Industrial Park. He needed to seize the last moments to accumulate more "soul power" for the Myriad Soul Banner. Although he was ready to advance, he planned to do so on the train to visit his sister.

The industrial park was much quieter under the cover of night than during the day, but some slaughterhouses operating on three shifts remained brightly lit, like tireless steel behemoths, continuously consuming life and products. Li Xingyao, like a tireless harvester, walked between shadow and light, using the powerful suction of the Myriad Soul Banner to seize every second to absorb those scattered, faint fragments of souls.

【魂力+0.07…+0.05…+0.1…+0.06…+0.08…】

Numbers silently accumulated in his mind. Li Xingyao knew that after receiving the new equipment tomorrow, he would have to set off to take it to other cities, and it would be difficult to find such a stable and efficient "soul power farm" along the way. He had to make use of this last window of opportunity to store as much soul power as possible for the Myriad Soul Banner and for the adventures to come, in order to deal with all possible situations.

The morning breeze had barely dispelled the chill of the night, and Tianjing City remained shrouded in tranquility in the early hours. The streets were deserted, save for the soft hum of cleaning robots as they moved slowly along their predetermined routes, their robotic arms deftly sweeping away the occasional fallen leaves.

The air was crisp and cool, typical of early autumn, and the temperature in the early morning was no longer as humid as in summer.

Li Xingyao stood on the platform of the early morning electric bus leading to the intercity underground station, his figure appearing particularly tall and straight in the gradually brightening sky. He wore an ordinary gray-black training jacket, simple in style but clean and tidy.

He carried a dark blue backpack, a souvenir provided by the certification center, with government badges on the corners; his entire outfit reflected his professionalism.

His gaze was unfocused, fixed on the deserted end of the street, as if he were falling silent along with the city that had not yet fully awakened.

Today was the day he would leave Tianjing to visit his sister, Li Xingyue, a thousand miles away. This thought had been brewing in his heart for a long time; since he could remember, his sister had been his closest relative. Although as they grew up, their time together gradually decreased due to studies and training, the bond of blood remained constant.

"Whoosh—" The streamlined electric bus silently glided into the station, and the doors quietly opened. Li Xingyao stepped onto the bus and found a seat by the window. The bus started moving and headed towards its intended destination.

The cityscape outside the window began to flow by, and Li Xingyao's gaze swept over the towering buildings, a sense of emotion rising in his heart.

This world is completely different from the information-explosive and transportation-developed era he knew from his previous life. Although technology has made amazing breakthroughs, and the application of stellar energy technology has changed the course of human civilization, intercity transportation has become extremely difficult due to the high risks of the wilderness.

Large populations are concentrated in major urban clusters, and movement between cities is no longer as free and unrestricted as it once was. Apart from the safe passages regularly cleared by the military and a few heavily guarded main transportation routes, the vast wilderness remains teeming with alien beasts and dangers.

This also makes intercity transportation expensive, resulting in relatively low demand. About half an hour later, the bus arrived at its destination. Li Xingyao stepped off the bus and stood in the station square, looking around. The station square wasn't large, with only a few hurried travelers and some automated robots maintaining order.

Compared to the fully militarized stations leading to various frontline outposts, many of the passengers here are ordinary people. They need to travel to other cities for a variety of purposes.

A middle-aged woman held a little girl's hand tightly; several men in work clothes huddled together, talking quietly; a young couple embraced goodbye, and the girl's eyes were filled with tears...

These ordinary scenes made Li Xingyao feel somewhat dazed. Since awakening as a professional, his life had been completely immersed in star energy cultivation, skill training, and hunting in the wild.

Schools, training centers, certification centers—he was almost always surrounded by professionals or environments and people related to those professionals. Sometimes, he almost forgot that the world is still made up of ordinary people.