The ordinary goblins were instantly frozen into ice sculptures by the overlapping Aura of Cold emanating from the skeleton swarm.
The goblin mages fared slightly better, clinging to a final breath, but it only cost the skeleton soldiers one extra swing of their blades.
【Killed a goblin mage, gained 20 experience points. Obtained a goblin mage's finger bone.】
【Killed a goblin mage, gained 20 experience points.】
A goblin mage provided ten times the experience of an ordinary goblin, but in terms of actual power, the gap was far wider than ten-fold. Chen Xu felt as if the world consciousness was skimping on his bonuses.
As for the finger bones, they could be used to craft spellcasting items, and the Daxia authorities bought back such materials in bulk.
"Are there many specialized goblins here, like those two mages?" Chen Xu asked Bone Guard Two.
"My Lord, I sense soul signatures of similar magnitude. There are approximately a hundred of them."
"A hundred? A tribe led by one specialized goblin usually has about a thousand ordinary goblins. A hundred specialized ones would mean a population of roughly one hundred thousand."
"However, specialized goblins don't usually share a single tribe. Bone Guard Two, do you sense any even more powerful souls?"
The presence of two goblin mages, one fire and one ice, in the same tribe had caught Chen Xu's attention. This was why he had used the Necrotic Space to teleport directly to Bone Guard Two to investigate.
Goblins lacked any concept of tribal brotherhood. Specialized goblins were usually rivals competing for territory. If two were found in one tribe, it meant only one thing.
A higher-tier goblin existed, and it commanded all the goblin camps in this area.
Since there were still three hundred thousand remains in the Ancient Battlefield waiting to be transformed into skeleton soldiers, Chen Xu wasn't afraid of attrition. He planned to have his army begin a full-scale assault on the goblin camps.
"Bone Guard Two, can you command skeleton soldiers? I'll give you a unit to lead as well."
"My Lord, I am not skilled in command. However, I can share the locations of the goblin camps I've scouted with Bone Guard One."
"Oh? You hero units can communicate with each other?"
"Yes, My Lord. Since the core souls of all skeleton heroes reside with you, we can communicate directly through our souls."
"That works. I'm heading over to Bone Guard One then. Continue scouting this area. If you find any high-tier goblins, report back immediately."
With that, Chen Xu recalled the skeleton soldiers on the field and returned to the Necrotic Space. He then sensed Bone Guard One's location and teleported to his side.
"My Lord!"
Bone Guard One had just finished clearing a goblin camp. Judging by the corpses, it had been led by a hobgoblin.
"They didn't flee even when facing an enemy far beyond their strength. It seems a high-tier goblin really is ruling this region."
Chen Xu raised his hand and summoned every skeleton soldier from the Necrotic Space, placing them under Bone Guard One's command.
"Bone Guard One, follow the camp locations shared by Bone Guard Two and clear this entire area. Do not let a single goblin escape."
"My Lord! I obey your will!"
"If you encounter something you can't handle, use soul communication to call for help. I'll teleport over and summon the skeleton swarm to gang up on it."
Prompted by Bone Guard Two's reminder, Chen Xu tried the soul communication himself and found he could indeed speak directly to his hero units.
Returning to the Necrotic Space, Chen Xu instantly moved to the Ancient Battlefield. Within his own space, he could appear anywhere at will.
Facing the piles of remains, Chen Xu resumed his grand task of mass-producing soldiers. His limit had been one hundred and fifty thousand at level 1. He wondered what the cap would be now that he was level 5.
...
In the outside world, Bone Guard One led one hundred and fifty thousand skeleton soldiers, clearing one goblin camp after another.
Ordinary goblins couldn't even get close to the skeleton soldiers before being frozen solid by the Aura of Cold.
The specialized hobgoblins weren't frozen into sculptures immediately, but their movements became so slow they looked like a slideshow.
Only the goblin mages and goblin spearthrowers with ranged attacks could hurl fireballs, ice bolts, or spears from a distance, offering a slight hindrance to the skeleton army.
These specialized goblins were roughly on par with the tribal leaders from the Decagon Hegemony.
Chen Xu's level was pushed to level 9 with full experience by the massive influx of kills. The next step was rank advancement, but he chose not to undergo the sublimation here. He planned to return and see what arrangements the Dragon Seed Program had made.
He currently lacked rare items. Certain rare items found in dungeons could be used during sublimation to increase the difficulty of the task while simultaneously boosting the rewards afterward.
The vast number of goblins and specialized variants also provided Chen Xu with a mountain of materials.
【Goblin Teeth *1532】
【Goblin Mage's Finger Bone *32】
【Goblin Spearthrower's Arm Bone *20】
【Hobgoblin's Skull *20】
【Goblin Archer's Eyeball *30】
Among them, the goblin teeth were common drops. They weren't very useful, usually ground into powder by Daxia to produce livestock feed.
The rest were dropped by specialized goblins. Once crafted into items, they were common utility tools for those under level 10 and were highly sought-after raw materials.
Despite clearing many camps, Chen Xu did not lower his guard.
The architectural style of the camps was too uniform. While he wasn't sure if goblins even had a concept of style, the number of tents, the wooden stake walls, and the distance between camps were all remarkably consistent, as if following a strict regulation.
Bone Guard One had analyzed these details and reported them to Chen Xu via soul communication.
"It's a pity the dungeon isn't connected to the real-world network. Next time, I need to download a copy of the Encyclopedia of Dungeon Monsters onto my smart terminal beforehand."
The Encyclopedia of Dungeon Monsters was a compilation by the academy covering monster data encountered by Daxia and other nations, primarily focusing on Daxia's data since other countries were in worse shape.
The data showed that the same monsters appeared in multiple dungeons. Researchers speculated that the source of these dungeons was one or more complete worlds.
...
As night fell, Chen Xu left the Necrotic Space and teleported to a goblin camp that Bone Guard One had just conquered.
"How many camps does this make?"
"My Lord, this is the 137th camp."
"Mm. Keep pushing through the night."
With that, Chen Xu walked over to a campfire that hadn't been destroyed in the fighting. He pulled out the backpack Tang Hezhou had given him and retrieved an assorted hotpot, a small aluminum pot, and a large bottle of water to start preparing dinner.
Food didn't just provide energy. A delicious, hot meal could relieve mental tension, especially in the stressful environment of a dungeon.
Other class holders didn't have a massive army of skeleton guards to act as security. In a dungeon, they faced danger at every moment, keeping their minds under constant strain.
There had been cases of class holders whose spirits became so weak from prolonged stays in dungeons that their souls were snatched away by specters. However, mental recovery potions were always scarce, and Daxia could only provide them to teams tackling critical dungeons.
Other dungeons rarely received sufficient supplies, which was why easy-to-cook pre-packaged meals were included in survival kits.
Perhaps good food truly had magical powers, or perhaps it stirred memories of home and loved ones that strengthened one's resolve. Whatever the case, the number of people suffering from mental exhaustion had dropped significantly since then.
"Burp!" Chen Xu finished his hotpot and extinguished the fire. "Pre-packaged food is still just okay."
"My Lord! I have a new discovery."
Bone Guard One sent a message through their soul link.
Chen Xu wiped his mouth with a leaf and used the Necrotic Space to teleport to Bone Guard One's side.
They were currently at the edge of the forest, facing a cliff.
"What did you find?" Chen Xu asked.
"Below the cliff, there are goblins everywhere," Bone Guard One said, pointing forward.
Chen Xu stepped out of the forest and reached the edge of the cliff.
Below was a vast plain that seemed to stretch endlessly from the cliffside.
The plain was densely packed with goblins. Wooden huts and leather tents stood one after another, covering the land.
"There must be at least a million goblins here!" Chen Xu was stunned by the sight.
【Discovered a massive goblin settlement. 'First Encounter with Goblins' mission upgraded. Current mission: 'Goblin War'.】
【Goblin War: With so many goblins, one can only imagine what the creatures of this land have sacrificed to satisfy their hunger. Eliminate these goblins and liberate this land from their grasp.】
"A land that can support this many goblins must be truly prosperous! Bone Guard One!"
"My Lord!"
"Conquer the plains!"
"Yes! Jie-jie-jie!"
"Er, you don't have to do the evil laugh."
"Yes, My Lord."
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