To break through the level 30 bottleneck, Leo decided to go all out.
He left the daily management of the territory to Alfred and the craftsmen.
He himself mounted his Cave Wyvern and plunged straight into the mid-core area of the Black Forest.
The monsters here started at level 30 without exception.
Elite monsters were everywhere.
For any adventurer team, this area was nothing less than a death zone.
But for Leo, it was a buffet paradise.
“Experience points, here I come!”
He quickly found a narrow mountain valley entrance—a perfect spot to grind monsters.
His ultimate party was about to begin.
“Undead Legion, form up!”
Three towering Bone Golems crashed to the ground, blocking the valley entrance like three white-boned gate guardians.
Their wide-swinging giant fists were perfect for clearing out mobs.
Behind them, ten Skeleton Soldiers formed a tight phalanx, bone knives drawn, ready to cut down any stragglers breaking through the line.
On the mountain walls flanking the valley, twenty Skeleton Archers lined up in a row.
Their pale arrows were nocked, eerie blue soul flames flickering in their hollow sockets, locking onto every living creature outside the valley.
Further back, five Skeleton Mages raised their bone staffs.
Gray auras of Slow and Weaken curses quietly spread, turning the valley mouth into a deadly quagmire.
Fire Elementals were assigned to long-range bombardment.
Venom Spiders laid traps.
Water Elementals stood ready to heal the damaged golems.
Leo, wielding the power of one, summoned the longest-lasting skeleton units first, then, as his mana recovered, supplemented the rest one by one.
A three-dimensional net of death quickly took shape.
He sat leisurely on a large rock, commanding the entire battlefield through his mental link like a true general.
“Start.”
He ordered a Shadow Wolf to rush out of the valley, letting out a taunting howl at a pack of Lv32 [Claw Terror Wolves] feeding on carrion nearby.
The wolf pack was instantly enraged.
They roared, drool dripping from their fangs, and swarmed into the valley.
Then, they crashed headlong into a wall called Despair.
The moment they stepped into the valley mouth, their limbs suddenly felt heavy, their speed plummeting.
A withered aura of weakness quickly enveloped their bodies.
The next second, a deadly net of arrow showers and fireballs rained down from above.
A few terror wolves lucky enough to reach close quarters didn’t even get a chance to bite before the Bone Golems’ absurdly huge fists crushed them into pulp.
This was not a battle.
It was a massacre.
Minutes later, the valley returned to silence.
[You have slain Claw Terror Wolf, gained 2520 experience points]
[You have slain Claw Terror Wolf, gained 2520 experience points]
***
Watching the experience bar shoot up rapidly, a satisfied curve appeared on Leo’s lips.
“Now that’s efficiency.”
For the next several days, Leo simply settled down in that valley.
Tirelessly, he lured monsters and killed them, converting batch after batch of creatures into experience points with high efficiency.
His mana grew denser through repeated depletion and regeneration.
His command over this undead army became smoother and more confident.
His level skyrocketed under this near-mad squeezing.
Lv30… Lv31… Lv32…
After commanding the entire legion and spending nearly an hour grinding down a Lv35 elite monster, the [Fear Demon Wolf], a series of dazzling golden lights exploded around him.
[Congratulations, you have reached Lv33]
[Congratulations, you have reached Lv34]
Overwhelming over-level experience let him level up twice in a row.
“Phew…”
Leo exhaled deeply, the fatigue vanishing in an instant.
He eagerly opened his system panel.
On the [Summoning] skill tree, a new branch he had long anticipated was glowing with a distinct golden light.
[Sentient Unit]
His heartbeat skipped a beat.
He clicked into the branch; the description matched perfectly what he remembered from the game.
Sentient units.
The ultimate pursuit of summoners.
They were no longer mere magical constructs but unique partners with independent personalities who could grow alongside their summoner.
Each sentient unit was a one-of-a-kind existence.
They were the hero units of the summoner.
And the first sentient unit skill unlocked at level 30 was—[Summon: Human Knight]
“This is it!”
Without hesitation, Leo chose to learn it.
A simple customization interface popped up immediately.
[Please select the gender of the summoned knight: Male/Female]
“Do I even have to choose?”
Leo’s mouth stretched into a wild grin, fingers flying fast enough to leave afterimages as he tapped “Female.”
No way.
His army was mostly skeletons or stone lumps, so another rough guy would just ruin the whole scene.
A valiant female knight was exactly what would raise the whole team’s style.
[Please select appearance template: Template One/Template Two/Template Three]
Leo quickly scanned the three templates.
All top-tier modeling quality: one fiery and passionate, one gentle as water, one cool as the moon.
He finally picked the one with silver long hair and blue eyes.
That noble yet cold aura perfectly matched all his fantasies about the word “knight.”
After completing all this, Leo felt a large chunk of his total 1800 mana drain instantly.
A full 800 points.
This was the highest mana cost among all his skills, a huge spike.
But the effect was worth the cost.
The summoned unit’s duration was counted in days.
When time was about to expire, he could use the skill again directly to reset it.
Even if defeated and dismissed, the cooldown before the next summon was only one hour.
The presence was simply too commanding.
He found a clearing in the forest; moonlight filtered through the leaves, casting dappled spots on the ground.
He took a deep breath and activated the skill.
“In my name, answer my summons!”
A dazzling, holy white beam descended from the sky, instantly dispelling the darkness of the forest.
The light was so brilliant that Leo instinctively squinted.
This summoning effect was a hundred times cooler than all his previous summons combined.
The light slowly faded.
A female figure clad in a full set of silver-white plate armor stood quietly at the center of the beam.
Tall and graceful, her silver hair flowed like moonlight down to her waist.
The lines of her armor were smooth and elegant, powerful yet feminine.
At her waist hung a slender knight’s sword, one hand resting lightly on the hilt.
She slowly opened her eyes.
They were a pair of clear, sky-blue orbs.
Her gaze landed calmly and deeply on Leo not far away.
Then, under Leo’s intensely expectant stare, she took a step forward and knelt before him.
Her movement was smooth and elegant.
Right fist clenched, pressed to her breastplate, producing a crisp metallic clash.
She raised her head, blue eyes locking onto Leo’s, and with a voice both ethereal and solemn, uttered the classic line:
“Tell me, are you really my master?”
She said it!
She actually said it!
Leo felt a chill run over his scalp, an indescribable surge of excitement and satisfaction bursting through his mind.
He forced down the wild stream of thoughts in his heart, striving to maintain the aura of a mysterious lord, and cleared his throat.
“Yes, it is I. Rise.”
The female knight obediently rose, standing silently by his side, awaiting further orders.
“Do you have a name?”
Leo asked, following the usual game procedure.
“I have no name, Master.”
Her voice remained steady.
“Please, grant me one.”
“Hm…”
Leo pondered briefly, then spoke the name he had prepared long ago.
“From today on, you shall be called Alice.”
“Alice…”
The female knight softly repeated the name.
In her pure blue eyes, a faint, indescribable light seemed to flicker.
“I understand, Master. My sword shall cut down all obstacles for you.”
[Your sentient unit ‘Alice’ has been named]
Leo immediately opened Alice’s status panel.
[Name: Alice]
[Level: 34]
[Class: Guardian Knight]
[HP: 1500/1500]
[MP: 300/300]
[Strength: 45]
[Agility: 35]
[Constitution: 75]
[Spirit: 15]
[Skills: Holy Strike, Shield Bash, Guard Stance, Taunt]
Wow.
Leo’s breath caught for a moment.
These stats were just too luxurious.
Her level matched his exactly—both 34.
The total attribute points were alarmingly high.
This was the true value of a sentient unit.
She leveled up synchronously with her summoner, enjoying equal growth.
Though she couldn’t freely allocate points, and her attribute growth on leveling was randomly determined by the class template, it was no issue at all.
Her combat power alone was enough to rival a small, well-equipped adventurer team.
A perfect tank.
Outstanding single-target damage.
And she came with crowd control skills.
With her, his summoned army finally had a true, independent core leader.
Leo looked at Alice standing silently beside him—like a silent, reliable silver mountain.
Territory development was now on track; funds and levels kept pace.
Now, he had such a powerful companion as well.
The days of “fishing” at the Royal Magic Academy were drawing near.
“All right, Alice.”
Leo’s face broke into a bright smile.
“We’re going home. I’ll introduce you to the rest of the family, though… most of them are just skeletons.”
Alice tilted her head slightly, as if trying to understand the meaning of “skeletons.”
But she didn’t ask further, simply replying.
“Yes, Master.”
In high spirits, Leo summoned his Cave Wyvern.
“Let’s go home!”
Man and female knight mounted the wyvern, swiftly vanishing into the night.