The lone wolf's claws were incredibly sharp. With a forceful swipe, it left a deep gash on Alexander's leg.

Thanks to his enhanced attributes, the lone wolf's attack didn't cause him significant harm, merely slicing through his skin.

However, the wolf's attack triggered a bleeding effect.

Alexander noticed his wound beginning to fester, with blood continuously flowing out. Under these circumstances, his health points were decreasing by one every second.

The scent of blood stirred the lone wolf's bloodthirsty nature, intensifying its desire to attack.

Undaunted, Alexander, unarmed, chose to engage in close combat with the beast.

Soon, Alexander, with his robust physique, pinned the wolf down. He continued to pummel it with his fists, eliciting pained howls from the creature.

To avoid attracting more wild beasts with the wolf's howls, Alexander decided to kill it quickly.

Exerting all his strength and feeling a mysterious power surge within, Alexander's breath grew rapid. As the power of death circulated within him, his magical energy was swiftly drained.

Then, his palms began to emit a black light, and the wolf's body started to blur and twist as if warping.

A black ripple was released from Alexander's hands, mercilessly striking the wolf.

The wolf emitted a shrill, ear-piercing scream, its body convulsed intensely, and then it ceased breathing.

Alexander breathed a sigh of relief; the beast was finally vanquished.

He walked over to the wolf's corpse and stored it in his spatial storage. The meat was essential for Alexander, a quick way to restore his strength.

[Ding, congratulations on defeating a level 5 creature, the lone wolf. You have gained +20 experience points.]

Only then did Alexander remember his overflowing experience points. He wanted to use the remaining experience to level up, but each time he tried, he received a notification.

"Since you are the lord of Hope City, which is currently at level 0, you cannot level up further for the time being."

"Rebuild these ruins. When Hope City reaches level 10, you will unlock a new level cap."

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Faced with these notifications, Alexander couldn't help but feel speechless.

He wanted to relinquish his lordship, but for some reason, he found himself bound by this lifeless city, unable to break free.

In other words, if he didn't develop the city, his level would remain locked at level 10.

Developing a city is a resource-intensive endeavor, but fortunately, Alexander possesses a crystal bracelet.

This bracelet automatically produces a crystal every day, which Alexander can exchange for a wealth of basic resources, alleviating his concerns about such materials.

However, the most pressing issue at the moment is the desolation of Hope City. Other than Alexander himself, no other surviving humans have been found. Without manpower, even abundant resources are useless.

But in such a remote place, where could he find people to help?

With no immediate solution, Alexander could only continue exploring the ruins.

His exploration revealed the ruins to be much larger than he had imagined. He had been walking for hours, yet he had covered less than 1% of the entire city.

Alexander marveled at how grand and powerful this city, known as Hope City, must have been before its destruction.

After crossing a small hill, he found himself facing a vast, flat wasteland.

The wasteland was strewn with countless skeletons, stretching as far as the eye could see!

These endless bones, he estimated, numbered at least 100,000.

At this moment, Alexander remembered he possessed a peculiar skill called "Soul Summoning."

Surrounded by skeletons, he wondered if this skill could revive these deceased souls.

With a mindset of giving it a try, Alexander focused on the nearest skeleton and began casting "Basic Soul Summoning."

Standing in front of the skeleton, he commenced the summoning ritual.

As the soul summoning began, the ground beneath him started to tremble.

Suddenly, a cloud of black mist emerged from the skeleton, floating above the barren land.

As the mist dissipated, a small skeleton appeared, seemingly reassembling its body, with faint sounds emanating from its bones.

Alexander continued his chant, and the skeleton's skull began to morph, forming a small skeletal head.

The little skeleton slowly broke free from the ground's grip and stood up. Faint glimmers of light flickered in its eye sockets, as if searching for something.

Alexander extended his hand towards it. The skeleton turned its head, looking at his palm.

Suddenly, black smoke began to emanate from the skeleton's body, its bones growing thinner and its form weaker. It emitted a faint sound, as if proclaiming its existence.

Alexander, observing this frail skeleton, felt a tinge of disappointment.

This skeleton was too weak, likely to be dispersed by a mere gust of wind. It was incapable of combat or participating in city building.

[Ding, you are on cursed land, and the summoned undead creature is about to escape your control.]

The next second, red light began to emerge from the empty eye sockets of the skeleton, like flames of the soul burning, emitting an evil aura from hell.

Alexander could feel the instability of the skeleton, seemingly ready to break free from his control at any moment.

"How could this happen?"

As a level 10 Paladin, Alexander wasn't afraid of such a weak skeleton, but the thought of his first attempt at soul summoning failing left him somewhat disheartened.

"Well then, if that's the case, I'll end this myself!"

Just as Alexander was preparing to act, he suddenly noticed that the red light in the skeleton's eye sockets had dimmed and then transformed into a silver-white flame. Its aura also became more stable.