Chapter 25: The Scent of the Weak

Goblins had an absolute numerical advantage, and all they could smell on Yang Yu was the scent of a weakling. Dealing with such a presumptuous person required no skill at all, just a rush of attacks, a hammer here, a stick there, and he would be lying in a pool of blood, unable to get up again.

"Now's the time! 'Ice Cone Skill.'"

When the goblins were close enough, Yang Yu issued the command, and Bai Jin, hidden in the shadows, unleashed the 'Ice Cone Skill.' Pristine snowflakes danced in the air, causing damage and significantly slowing down the goblins' advance.

Far from retreating, Yang Yu moved forward, picking up his not-so-long sword to strike back, delivering a horizontal slash where the goblins were thickest.

Taking advantage of the situation, the goblins surged forward, but their attack didn't slow Yang Yu's movements, which were more fluid than they appeared. Swinging his arm, he sent a goblin flying with his shield, and cleared a path in the encirclement, allowing for some face-to-face close contact with the surrounding goblins.

More and more goblins came forth with spears, but Yang Yu stayed calm. The battle had completely fallen into his rhythm, each subtle movement of the goblins caught in his sight, not dodging to the extreme, but leaving enough room to increase the margin of error.

Seeing this, Sekamens didn't know what to say. If earlier he still harbored the thought that Yang Yu's victory over him was a fluke of underhanded tactics, now he was completely impressed by Yang Yu's maneuvers.

It was like their first encounter, as if everything had been calculated by this seemingly ordinary young man.

"If it's him, he might really be able to defeat this group of goblins alone," Sekamens said reluctantly, his companions by his side agreeing, enjoying the sight of Yang Yu dancing among the goblins.

"You guys are thinking bullshit!" Yang Yu said with a grin, thinking "Damn it" in his mind, "Don't just stand around on the edge; come help finish them off as soon as you're recovered! I can hold them off, but I can't beat them on my own!"

It was all completely true.

To steadfastly follow a defensive battle path, Yang Yu had allocated most of his free attribute points to endurance, and added just a tiny bit to speed for better positioning. As for the attacking aspect, he had mostly left it to grow freely, investing little, which resulted in his continued low output.

A horizontal slash executed, and some of the more enduring goblins stood up as if nothing had happened. Sometimes it wasn't that Yang Yu didn't want to finish them off; it was just that his attack power was too low.

At this rate, even if he could hold off the goblins, Yang Yu would eventually fall due to his inability to inflict significant damage, letting the goblins grind him down.

Fortunately, after Yang Yu's reminder, Sekamens' team, who had been enjoying the show, suddenly realized the problem and, despite their fatigue, joined the battle tirelessly to exact revenge.

And then, Yang Yu's monsters were snatched away time and again...

Whenever Yang Yu saw a goblin he could kill with his own attacks, someone would silently finish it off.

Initially, Yang Yu could still gain some shared experience from Bai Jin's finishing blows, but as time went on, following a slight cough from Bai Jin, her aim became unstable, nearly hitting Yang Yu several times. Turning around, Yang Yu saw Bai Jin's pale face and decided to let her rest on the side.

The uncontrollable aspect of her frail attribute was truly troublesome; Yang Yu silently resolved that once the big task was over, he would immediately start an investigation to remove Bai Jin's frail attribute, help her grow rapidly, and become a central pillar of the team. Then, he too could casually take it easy like He Meng, shouting "666," and reward himself for a while.

The battle gradually drew to its conclusion, with the killing of the last goblin, the sweat-drenched Sekamens, combing his golden hair, became handsome and dashing once more. His companions, Iron Wall and Qi, sat on the ground powerlessly, gasping for air, while Rococo used her Priest's Staff to support herself, refusing to compromise her ladylike demeanor unless absolutely necessary.

"Thank you from the bottom of my heart!" Although there had been some conflict before, Yang Yu's act of selflessly saving them had been enough for Sekamens to put aside past grievances and shake hands with him in peace.

Unexpectedly, Yang Yu ignored the hand extended by Sekamens and walked up to Rococo, speaking with extreme gentleness, "Are you alright, Miss? You all are safe now, and you might ask why? Because we are here."

Rococo blinked, puzzled.

However, Yang Yu quickly redirected his focus toward Sekamens.

"How can you even call yourself a captain? Don't you know that the best way to deal with goblins that mate in pairs is to run away? Just run out of this forest and you'll have plenty of adventurers to help you. Why would you still insist on fighting? It was your insistence on fighting that almost got you all annihilated."

Upon hearing Yang Yu's words, which were delivered in a contrived tone yet carried a familiar ring, everyone had a mixed reaction of laughter and tears.

The young man still harbored resentment towards Sekamens for the injustices inflicted upon him.

"Now you know what it feels like to be ignored and have accusations forced upon you, don't you?" Yang Yu smiled at Sekamens.

Scratching his cheek, Sekamens somewhat sheepishly admitted, "Indeed, I somewhat understand now."

"Well then, my purpose has been served. Please remember this lesson," Yang Yu said, laughing with everyone for a while before his expression suddenly turned serious, "Enough chit-chat, let's get straight to the point. You all escaped from the goblins' main base, right?"

"Yes, yes, yes!" Qi, who was overtired, answered before Sekamens could, "Fortunately, I was cautious and stole their keys before they locked us in, allowing us to escape in the middle of the night."

"That's right, but because we didn't communicate to formulate a plan beforehand, the goblins discovered us and have been chasing us since last night," Sekamens added.

"It's also because they were keeping a close watch, and if you spoke out of turn, you'd get hit on the head with a club. Plus, if it's too noisy, the goblins might take you somewhere unknown," Qi said, perhaps relaxing a bit as he yawned wide.

"Take you where?" Yang Yu pressed on.

Qi shook his head, "I don't know about that, but what I do know is that once people were taken away, they never came back. Who knows what those goblins did to them..."

Unlike Qi who appeared more relaxed, Sekamens's face was marked with solemnity as he said, "It probably wasn't anything good. The cage where Iron Wall and I were kept was somewhat different from the one where Rococo and Qi were held. There was a small red flag hanging in the upper left corner of our cage. Moreover, yesterday at noon, I smelled blood in the air. It wasn't the smell of any livestock's blood..."

At this point, perhaps out of consideration for Rococo, whose face was turning increasingly pale, Sekamens did not continue.

But all those present more or less knew exactly what had happened.