Xia Nan gazed at the goblin cave not far ahead, a strange look on his face.
It had been a long journey throughout the day, coupled with the abrupt end to last night’s conversation.
Even if the barbarian remained silent, not uttering a single word,
he could barely guess the reason why he was brought here:
Choosing a battle skill is no easy task; Frogon likely wants to test and observe his actual combat power and fighting style through a real battle.
He had no way of knowing how the other could accurately pinpoint this goblin nest hidden deep within the forest.
But it’s undeniable that the barbarian had chosen opponents for Xia Nan that were just within his capability to handle.
As long as there were no elite individuals like "Bear Goblins."
The inherently weak combat power of the goblins made the battle itself not too difficult; yet the numerical advantage brought by the entire nest added a lot of challenge.
The barbarian expressed his thoughts through actions, without words.
As his presence gradually diminished, his originally brisk pace also slowed down.
As they neared the goblin nest, he unknowingly stood behind Xia Nan.
Subconsciously, Xia Nan turned his head and glanced at the barbarian behind him.
Unlike Wood, whom he’d encountered before, who used the advanced techniques of a Wanderer, blending shadows and various subtle maneuvers to reduce his presence.
The barbarian Frogon standing silently in his line of sight made no attempts at concealment.
Yet his massive body seemed to blend with the surrounding tree trunks and shrubs.
It felt to him as if a Winter Wolf, patiently waiting for prey, was ambushed deep in the snow.
It was a primal and primitive instinct for hunting.
Comparing the two, the former relied on agility and experience, masking "existence" with "technique";
while the latter utilized perception and instinct to merge "nature" with "existence."
Xia Nan had no intention of comparing the two, but even though he was clearly aware of the barbarian’s exact location, his brain and body sent signals that subconsciously wanted to ignore the barbarian’s presence.
It was as if what stood behind him was just an ordinary tree or an ordinary bush.
Shaking his head vigorously,
he no longer focused on the barbarian Frogon who had faded his presence.
Xia Nan drew his Beheading Longsword, positioning it diagonally in front of him.
With cautious steps, he silently entered the cave.
His first thought was "narrow."
Jagged rocks squeezed in from both sides, and the sword’s blade reflected an iron-gray sheen under the sunlight at the cave entrance.
It was not well considered.
The restrictions of the narrow terrain made it difficult to unleash the full power of a two-handed longsword, even ordinary swings felt cramped, unable to fight freely.
He should switch to the One Handed Sword style of [Green Pine].
Considering that he was walking through a passage leading into the caverns, and had not yet reached the core area where the demons reside,
"There is still room for error."
Xia Nan shifted slightly sideways, returning the Beheading Longsword to its sheath without a sound.
He held the light Wooden Sword tightly in his hand while maintaining a defensive posture.
Surprisingly, tension gripped his heart.
In truth, given how many goblins had perished by his sword, and with his equipment being good along with protective magic accessories, it shouldn’t have been .
Yet as Xia Nan ventured deeper, with the environment growing dark and oppressive and stray white bones occasionally at his feet, his heartbeat quickened.
It was certainly not claustrophobia—after all, he had never felt such suppression even in the cave with the giant snake carcasses.
Xia Nan found this odd himself.
Remaining extremely vigilant of his surroundings, he delved into his mind, searching for the source of his anxiety.
What surfaced before him was his unpleasant experience two months ago, when he first crossed over to this world, alongside Hunter Magi and the half orc Gag, within a goblin cave.
Bloody, mangled bodies, a boiling cauldron of bubbling grease, saliva-drooling small goblins, and even the Bear Goblin that almost took his life...
To a person from a civilized modern society, such a shocking scene, though long past, still lurked like a demon in the depths of his heart.
Taking a deep breath, he tried to calm his emotions as he had done before, to soothe the rapid pumping of his heart.