The icy air usually filled with screeches and wails had plunged into complete silence after brief lamentations.
Crackling campfire sounds accompanied the skinned wild boar as it slightly charred under the fiery flow, reaching the optimal degree for consumption, provided one can ignore the pungent stench mixed with the aroma.
Wisps of mist from outside the cave drifted softly in, tinged with a bloody hue, like the air had condensed the rich scent of blood.
A small yellow-green cloudy eyeball rolled out from the half-crushed skull, reminiscent of those frosted crystal spheres favored by nobles in Neum City, with chewy, elastic "mochi" attached, bits of flesh sprinkled like red spice, doused with a few drops of creamy, thick "congealed bean liquid," finally enveloped in a layer of freshly boiled, warm crimson "hawthorn honey syrup," completing the mold.
Only, the rustic lad from the farmers’ field presently had no appetite for this delicately crafted "dessert."
The mud-stained leather boots heavily stomped down, the crackle of shattering objects faintly resounding beneath his feet.
As he lifted his leg to step forward, accompanied by the sticky sound of mucus clinging, blood mixed with unknown murky liquid dripped slowly from the sole.
Standing on the ground paved with blood and limbs, Xia Nan held a piece of gauze, meticulously wiping the silver-white longsword in his hand. Read full story at novel·fire.net
A barely perceptible hint of relaxation hovered on his face, the lingering aftertaste of indulgent enjoyment.
Though only a temporary weapon during the reforge of his beheading longsword, the good habits cultivated during over a year of his adventuring life still made him fastidiously wipe off the lingering blood from the blade post-battle, ensuring the sword edge remained as dry and clean as possible.
More detailed maintenance would be carried out at night when setting up camp, together with armor, leg armor, and other equipment.
To be safe, Xia Nan did not sheathe his sword but held it ready in hand.
His gaze swept across the nest.
Though he had a premonition concerning the scale of this nest when traversing the extremely complex and elongated corridor at the entrance.
But standing within, he could not help but marvel at the vast openness of this space.
It’s like an anthill of green-skinned goblins dug out by countless goblins, densely populated with varied-sized openings on both walls.
Some shallow enough to see the bottom at a glance, the deeper ones held deep darkness, concealing unknown destinations.
The corridor entrance he came through was merely the most inconspicuous among dozens of holes.
It’s hard to imagine what kind of enormous goblin community could excavate and construct a nest of such scale.
The number of goblins here would be unimaginable.
Only now did Xia Nan truly have a sense of the encounter of the high ranking adventurer team that lost members here.
The nest was excessively broad, and the goblin tribe composed of those fifty to sixty goblins that he had just eradicated occupied merely a part of it.
Coupled with the overall dim environment, the low visibility significantly slowed Xia Nan’s speed in collecting post-battle treasures—the walls had burnt-out torch remnants presumably left by the cave’s previous owner. This goblin tribe that occupied the nest merely lit the area around their dwelling; other sections depended on bioluminescent fungi on the walls for recognition.
Luckily, his perception ability was outstanding, and enhanced physique slightly improved his night vision. After feeling around for about twenty minutes, he uncovered the Earth Goblin’s stash from a hidden small hole on the side wall.
Some scattered coins along with a few sparkling stones.
Could likely fetch over thirty Gold Coin?
Without material identification skills, he would have to get it assessed at the River Valley Town grocery store.
Regarding the rewards for goblin extermination, paradoxically, the treasures found in the nests of small goblin tribes located on the Mist Forest outskirts are generally richer than those of larger communities at the forest’s core.
The reason is straightforward.
Small goblin tribes at the forest outskirts, though less potent than their larger core counterparts, often encounter low-level adventurers exploring the forest, and occasionally indulge in raiding villages and passing convoys. Even without actively collecting treasures, the Gold Coins carried by those intelligent creature corpses accumulate to a noteworthy amount.
Conversely, goblin communities able to establish in the Mist Forest’s core have significantly more elite individuals and combat abilities.
But their enemies primarily consist of high-challenge-level, extremely perilous, vicious demons.
Routine hunts merely satiate hunger, leaving negligible spoils.
As for adventurers...
Like Xia Nan now, adventurers capable of traversing the forest’s outskirts to the core require both strength and experience.
Impossible to be like the so-called "adventurers" who merely wore an extra piece of armor or wielded a weapon, defeated and captured by green-skinned goblins.
Unless excessively unfortunate or encountering unforeseen circumstances, allowing goblins to pick leftovers, they practically won’t meet with failure.
Thus, the scarcity of war spoils among these goblin communities teeming with numerous goblins becomes foreseeable.