Chapter 6: Bear Goblin
Xia Nan carefully examined his attribute panel.
Compared to the surprise brought by the quantification of his own attributes, his various values were nothing special.
All six-dimensional attributes were "5", which was probably the level of an ordinary person.
Moreover, the attribute panel itself was extremely rudimentary, like something from an unfinished third-rate game; nothing could be discerned from it.
The only thing worth mentioning was the solitary existence in his skill bar:
【Spinning Slash】 lv4 (99/100)
"Just 1 point away from leveling up?"
Xia Nan muttered in his heart.
Although he knew he couldn't rush it, he was only 1 point of experience away from leveling up to lv5.
He couldn't help but feel an itch in his heart, eagerly wanting to know what kind of benefits this level increase would bring him.
He recalled the timing of the proficiency increase just now.
"I wonder if using moves in combat has a bonus effect compared to regular training."
Having just arrived in this world not long ago, he was a new adventurer, and he only had one skill inherited from his previous body.
The attribute panel had only a few lines; looking at it further wouldn't reveal anything new.
Xia Nan glanced at it a few more times, then composed himself and returned to his duty of keeping watch.
...
The next day.
As soon as dawn broke, the Rotten Fish and Shrimp Squad packed up their various luggage and supplies and left the camp.
In the Thin Mist Forest early in the morning, visibility was no better than at night.
The dense fog filling the air, coupled with the lush vegetation that looked identical to Xia Nan, made it impossible for ordinary people to discern the path.
After walking for half a day, he even had the illusion that they were just walking in circles.
However, the two people ahead showed a confident and assured appearance, as if they had a mini-map in their heads.
Xia Nan didn't say much either, just followed closely like a little tail.
When the two stopped, he stopped with them;
When the two lowered their voices, he also became sneaky.
As for why low-level adventurers like the Rotten Fish and Shrimp Squad could stroll through the Thin Mist Forest as if it were their own backyard, and even locate the general direction of the Goblin Lair in complex terrain...
Xia Nan had a vague guess.
On one hand, it should be the past experience as "veterans" that allowed Maji and the others to distinguish directions based on certain details in the forest that he didn't know;
On the other hand, judging from the way this displaced Hunter would occasionally stop his forward steps and lean down close to the ground, sniffing like a hunting dog...
He should also possess some kind of prerequisite skill similar to 【Spinning Slash】, belonging to a specific class.
But just like Gagu and Maji, after the battle, they didn't mention the skill he used, as if they hadn't seen it.
Xia Nan didn't ask much about this.
He just noted it down in his heart, that when encountering other adventurers in the future, he needed to be discreet in this regard and not talk too much, so as to avoid unnecessary disputes.
After traversing the forest for about another three hours, a small dirt slope came into view.
In the center of the dirt slope was a mud and stone cave clearly excavated by creatures, with abundant signs of activity at the entrance.
A faint stench could be smelled in the air.
"We're here!"
Maji's face showed irrepressible excitement, and he said in a low voice.
"What do you say, should we go straight in?"
Gagu held iron axes in both hands, his pupils slightly red, clearly ready for battle.
"This kind of cave shouldn't have any back exits." Maji carefully examined the small dirt slope ahead and said after a moment of hesitation, "We can go straight in."
"You go in the front, Xia Nan in the middle, and I'll cover the rear." He weighed the longbow in his hand, "Be careful everyone, don't be careless!"
Hearing this, Xia Nan, who was about to follow the team into the cave, couldn't help but ask the doubt in his heart:
"The size of this cave entrance is wide enough for two adults to stand upright and walk side-by-side, right?"
"Is it a Goblin habit to dig the entrance this big?"
"Uh..."
This question seemed to stump Maji behind him; his voice paused, and he didn't speak for a long time.
"The main force is already dealt with, what are you worrying about so much for?!"
The Goblin's treasure was close at hand, and Gagu's tone was particularly impatient,
"If you're scared, get lost! You won't get any of the spoils in the cave then!"
As he spoke, the few people didn't stop walking and had already entered the cave.
"Damn it!" Xia Nan cursed inwardly, glanced at the size of the surrounding cave, and immediately felt a sense of unease,
"These two sons of bitches have me sandwiched between them."
"If I back down now, I'll probably be the first one to suffer a heavy blow."
As things stood, he could only follow the two all the way to the end.
Actually, it was just that Xia Nan hadn't been in this world for long and didn't have a deep understanding of the adventurer profession.
If he had a few more days of exposure, he would understand.
The reason why low-level adventurers are called "low-level" may partly be due to their lack of strength, but on the other hand, it's also because of their untimely courage, "just right" cowardice, conscience that can be blinded by a few bags of gold coins,
and brains manipulated by greed.
Frequently changing team members, still wearing tattered equipment after years of adventuring, a team of Rotten Fish and Shrimp, and being able to casually let a complete newcomer like Xia Nan join the team...
Just based on these, some clues could actually be seen.
But considering these things now was too late.
All Xia Nan could do was grip the longsword in his hand tightly and carefully be vigilant of everything around him.
The cave was not deep, and soon it seemed to reach the end.
"Gurgle..."
Accompanied by a faint firelight, some strange sound came from the corner ahead.
Unable to suppress the excitement in his heart, Gagu, who was walking at the front of the team, had his muscles bulge and his eyes turn red.
Roar—
With a very undisciplined roar, he raised his double-handed axe and charged forward.
Immediately,
like a wild dog whose throat was choked,
the roar came to an abrupt halt.
Although Xia Nan was startled by Gagu's voice, he didn't slow down and followed closely behind.
Therefore, a moment later, he also saw the scene that caused Gagu to lose his voice.
As mentioned earlier, Goblins, as a single-sex species, need to rely on individuals of other races for reproduction.
And humans, as intelligent beings more widely distributed in the multiverse than Goblins, while possessing an exaggerated number of high-end combatants, also have the largest number of ordinary individuals among all races.
Therefore, the females of other races who were abducted by Goblins for the purpose of reproduction were mostly human.
And due to the relatively weak physique of ordinary humans, most of these females would lose their lives before the second birth due to the Goblins' brutal and inhumane methods of reproduction, harsh environment, and various other reasons.
And these inherently vile bastards would naturally not hold any funerals for them.
Goblins, who constantly scraped by on the edge of subsistence, would naturally prioritize filling their stomachs when faced with those poor women.
Thus, the scene that Xia Nan saw unfolded.
Predictably, this scene would bring an explosive impact to Xia Nan, an ordinary person from modern society.
Even if he became a veteran adventurer in the future, this would be deeply etched in his memory.
Of course, what could make a Half-orc like Gagu, who had lived a life of savagery since childhood, lose his ability to speak due to terror, would naturally not be this kind of scene they had long been accustomed to.
Rather, it was the burly figure sitting in the deepest part of the cave, hidden behind the shadows.
Behind him was Maji's panicked scream, like the crowing of a chicken:
"Bear Goblin!!!"