Chapter 327: The Goblin Tribe

Rumble!

The massive stone doors finally came to a halt.

Accompanied by one last deep grinding sound, the dark golden light emanating from Tiamant’s forehead gradually condensed into a faint, incomplete crown mark above the doorway.

Zich raised his head and carefully observed it for a moment. After confirming that the seal had been completely lifted, he willed the enormous ancient bone dragon behind him to return to his soul graveyard.

As Tiamant’s figure disappeared, the stone doors that had already opened showed no signs of closing. Instead, they remained firmly in place.

It seemed that royal blood was only required to activate the seal and was not necessary to maintain it afterward.

This saved Zich quite a bit of trouble.

After all, maintaining Tiamant’s summon also consumed mana. Since he had no immediate need for her, there was naturally no reason to waste it.

"Let’s go."

After confirming that there was nothing unusual about the entrance, Nadia took the lead and stepped onto the broad stone staircase behind the doors. Zich tightened his grip on Frostgrave and followed closely beside her.

As the two continued deeper underground, the light filtering in from the entrance gradually weakened. In its place, more and more patches of luminous moss appeared along the stone walls.

The moss emitted a faint, ghostly green glow, illuminating the wide passage descending into the depths and giving the entire place an eerie atmosphere.

A damp, earthy smell permeated the air.

However, after walking a little farther, Zich suddenly detected an unusual scent.

It seemed to be the smell of some kind of meat being charred over a fire.

"Hmm?"

Zich paused slightly.

"Do you smell that?"

"I do."

Nadia nodded, a trace of confusion appearing on her face.

This ancient tomb had been sealed for an unknown number of years. Logically speaking, even if undead creatures existed inside, there shouldn’t be such an obvious smell associated with living beings.

With that thought, she raised her right hand.

Buzz!

Accompanied by a faint fluctuation of soul energy, an enormous snow white tiger suddenly appeared beside her.

It was none other than the Nether Eye White Tiger, which had previously demonstrated its ability to detect souls.

The third eye in the center of the tiger’s forehead slowly opened, and an invisible wave of perception rapidly spread into the depths of the passage.

A moment later, its gaze suddenly locked onto a fork in the path ahead.

At the same time!

Tap! Tap! Tap!

A series of disorderly footsteps suddenly came from the depths of the branching passage.

Zich and Nadia raised their heads simultaneously.

The next moment, several short figures appeared in their field of vision.

These creatures were generally less than one and a half meters tall. Their bodies were covered in rough green skin, with long pointed ears, flattened noses, and two yellowish fangs protruding from the corners of their mouths.

Although they wore ragged leather armor, the short axes and spears in their hands unexpectedly gleamed with sharp, cold light.

Behind the group, two equally short monsters were dragging the corpse of an underground magical beast together.

Blood flowed along the stone bricks, leaving a long, dark red trail across the ground.

As for the creature bringing up the rear, it was a goblin draped in animal skins and holding a bone staff.

It continuously struck the ground with its staff while letting out sharp cries toward its companions, seemingly urging them to move faster.

"Goblins?" Zich raised an eyebrow.

Almost the moment he recognized the monsters, several system notifications appeared before his eyes.

[Name: Goblin Warrior]

[Level: 26]

[Name: Goblin Shaman]

[Level: 29]

[Rank: Elite]

"Level 26 Goblin Warriors, and a Level 29 Elite Shaman..."

Zich glanced at the magical beast corpse being dragged across the ground, and a thoughtful look flashed through his eyes.

Judging from the bloodstains on these goblins and the prey they were dragging, this was clearly a hunting party that had just finished its hunt and was preparing to return to its lair.

In other words, there were probably far more goblins inside this ancient tomb than just these few.

While he was thinking, the Goblin Warrior at the front finally noticed them.

It’s gaze quickly swept over Frostgrave in Zich’s hand and the exquisite equipment Nadia was wearing.

Its previously muddy eyes immediately lit up.

"Gah!!"

With an excited shriek, it suddenly raised its short axe!

The other goblins turned their heads upon hearing the cry.

When they saw the two humans who had suddenly appeared in the passage, not only did they show little fear, but their eyes also revealed undisguised greed.

"What a bunch of creatures with a death wish." Zich shook his head lightly.

Meanwhile, Nadia fixed her gaze on the Goblin Shaman at the rear of the group.

"Take out that shaman first. Don’t let it raise an alarm."

"Leave it to me."

As soon as his words fell!

Whoosh!

Zich’s figure suddenly disappeared from the spot!

Shadow Blink!

Almost at the same instant, the Goblin Shaman seemed to sense the danger.

It hurriedly raised its bone staff, preparing to release some kind of magic.

Unfortunately, its movements were still a step too slow.

A cold flash of light suddenly swept in from the side!

Crack!

The green magical barrier covering the shaman’s chest shattered instantly beneath Frostgrave’s sharp blade.

Immediately afterward, the scythe continued forward without losing momentum, slashing diagonally across its short body!

Splurt!

Blood sprayed everywhere! The Goblin Shaman didn’t even have time to complete its incantation before the tremendous force sent it flying backward.

It crashed heavily into the stone wall behind it before sliding limply to the ground.

"Gah! Gah!!"

Seeing this, the remaining goblins immediately let out frightened and furious shrieks.

Several warriors standing nearby brandished their weapons and charged directly toward Zich.

However, Zich showed no intention of retreating. He merely withdrew Frostgrave, swept his gaze across the charging goblins, and raised the corners of his mouth slightly.

"Blood Arc!"

Buzz!

A crimson glow instantly spread along the scythe’s blade as a blood colored crescent wrapped in faint Spirit Flame erupted from his sweeping strike!

Whoosh!

Within the narrow passage, the crimson arc flashed past!

Splurt! Splurt!

The four goblins charging at the front froze almost simultaneously.

The next moment, the leather armor covering their chests split apart one after another.

Blood gushed out as their short bodies collapsed to the ground, and the axes and spears in their hands scattered across the stone floor.

Meanwhile, on the other side, the Nether Eye White Tiger had already transformed into a snow white blur and pounced into the remaining goblins!

Boom!

Its enormous paw slammed down viciously.

One Goblin Warrior was knocked directly to the ground before it could even scream.

Nadia appeared beside the white tiger immediately afterward, her silver dagger flashing repeatedly as she intercepted the goblins attempting to flee toward the branching passage.

A short while later, the final scream faded away.

The goblin hunting party that had been making such a racket moments earlier had been reduced to corpses scattered across the ground.

[Ding!]

[You have successfully killed a Goblin Shaman!]

[Ding!]

[You have successfully killed a Goblin Warrior!]

System notifications sounded one after another in Zich’s ears.

At the same time, five faintly glowing soul orbs slowly rose from the corpses of the goblins he had personally killed.

They subsequently entered his body and condensed into five new tombstones within his soul graveyard.

His experience points also increased accordingly.

"Not bad." Zich nodded in satisfaction.

Although these goblins weren’t particularly high leveled, their numbers were considerable, and killing them hadn’t been difficult.

Not only could he obtain experience points, but he could also replenish the resources within his soul graveyard.

It was certainly a worthwhile harvest. However, compared to these gains, something else had clearly caught his attention.

Zich bent down and picked up a short axe used by one of the goblins.

He then extended his thumb and gently wiped away the dirt covering its blade.

The next moment, a faint pattern appeared before his eyes.