Goblin Heavy Dependence

Chapter 366 Surprise Attack! Battle!
The light barrier that stood like an iron wall at the edge of the orange grove left Xia Nan and the others helpless.

He could sense the strength of the wall, which was made of pure energy.

From a purely physical standpoint, with our current attack capabilities, we are absolutely incapable of breaking through their defenses.

The force field energy of [Gravity Etching] might be somewhat useful, but compared to the massive light shield enveloping the entire town, with [Gravity Etching] at level 3 and only two remaining uses, trying to blast a breach in it is undoubtedly a pipe dream.

Considering the special ability of the [Dream Corridor] to absorb the energy of pastel gems, Xia Nan, after confirming that it was safe, also tried to touch the light shield itself with his right hand, which was wearing a ring.

Strangely, although the [Dream Corridor] produced the same commotion as when it absorbed energy before, the silver-white ring on my ring finger trembled slightly.

However, Xia Nan did not hear the mechanical voice indicating the charging progress in his mind.

His feeling was that the energy density of the light shield itself was too low, like a thin mist in the air or clear water rippling in a bowl compared to the pink gemstone.

It cannot be absorbed at all.

"damn it!"

Soldin gripped his prism hammer and slammed it against the light shield in a fit of rage.

As the braid on her chest swayed, the ornaments on it rubbed and collided, producing a crisp sound.

"What the hell is this?"

"It was just a normal escort mission, so why is this strange happening?"

The murmur reached his ears, but Xia Nan remained expressionless, as if he hadn't heard it, and simply looked at the pink light wall in front of him.

Margaret offered a few words of comfort, which slightly eased the other person's emotions.

In fact, the dwarf didn't have much of a complaint. As an experienced adventurer, it was perfectly normal to encounter unexpected situations during a mission.

We're just stuck in Giethoorn, not in some hopeless situation.

At most, he might vent a few words because of his personality, but his inner state of mind is actually very calm.

Without needing any consolation from others, after confirming that they could not break through the light barrier with their own strength, Soldin once again raised his round shield and placed it at the forefront of the group.

"So, what's our plan next?"

Upon hearing this, Margaret glanced at Xia Nan, and seeing that he didn't seem inclined to offer an opinion, she took the initiative to speak, analyzing the situation:
"With this barrier of light blocking our way, we probably won't be able to leave Giethoorn anytime soon."

"But to give up like this would be tantamount to handing over the initiative to the enemy hiding in the shadows, putting us in an overly passive situation... which is not a good thing."

"Besides, with such a large-scale operation, who knows if the other side is holding some kind of special ritual? If it's the 'sacrifice' type, if we let them continue, we never know when we'll be sacrificed as offerings."

"We must take the initiative!"

"At the very least... we need to find out who's behind this."

……

For Xia Nan and his two companions, the first two plans had both failed—the townspeople they had searched were able to break free from the allure of the gems, but because the influence was too deep, it was difficult to achieve effective communication in a short period of time, and the light barrier surrounding Yangjiao Town could not be broken with their current strength.

Aside from passively defending the spot, hoping the light shield would dissipate on its own, or waiting for reinforcements that might arrive at any time, the only remaining option is to head to the town center, the location where the pillar of light connecting heaven and earth rises.

It is foreseeable that the group will likely gain something from there.

However, the level of danger will also increase dramatically.

However, no one in the team had any objections.

It must be admitted that even though no one said it outright, when they stepped out of the hotel and looked up at the sky, they saw a beam of light that was even more dazzling than the moon.

Everyone had already silently made preparations in their hearts.

The journey was smooth.

From the orange groves on the outskirts of the town, back to the main street, the group encountered no danger.

The once crowded street seemed exceptionally spacious because it was deserted. Standing at one end, you could see the far end and corner at a glance.

The townspeople in the houses on both sides of the street showed no sign of appearing. It was estimated that, like the ones they had dragged out of the houses earlier, they had all completely lost their minds under the control of the pink gem.

It's worth mentioning that, just to be on the safe side, the three of them stopped back at the Cashmere Rust Stud Hotel when they passed by.

Horak, Afu, and the rest of the caravan were in a tense and serious mood, but fortunately they were not attacked. The high-pressure atmosphere also calmed down some of the caravan members who were initially panicked. Under the leadership of the two leaders, they did what they could to move supplies or help build defensive structures.

Unfortunately, the townspeople who had been freed from the charm of the gemstones with Xia Nan's help were still unable to regain their ability to communicate normally, and were just tied up and huddled in a corner, trembling with fear.

After briefly discussing the follow-up plans with Horak and the others, the group continued on their way and soon arrived at the street where Horak had argued with the blacksmith that day.

"I remember when Horak had his argument with that blacksmith, he mentioned that the group of adventurers who sold him the pastel gems seemed to have gotten them through the blacksmith's connections, right?"

Holding the [Emberfall] straight sword, Xia Nan's senses spread outwards, alerting him to the dangers around him. He couldn't help but recall the scene he had witnessed that day, and whispered to the two people beside him:

"But judging from the attitude of the townspeople towards us... they don't seem like they would be willing to hand over the gems to outsiders."

Upon hearing this, Margaret pondered for a moment, her dark golden braid swaying gently, offering her conjecture:

"Perhaps when that adventurer party arrived in Giraffe Town, the blacksmith hadn't been so deeply affected by the pastel gems?"

"After all, look at Horac. Although he was also captivated by the gems and came all the way from the distant city of Newm to this small place with the caravan, he was not nearly as extreme in his behavior. He even took out the gems to show them off when they camped along the way, so he was clearly less affected."

"After you helped him break free from the mind control, he quickly returned to normal, unlike those townspeople who couldn't even speak clearly."

"Therefore... the mind control exerted by pastel gemstones is clearly a gradual process."

"Only after it has completely taken root in one's mind will one become a fanatical believer."

After hearing what she said, Soldin, who was holding the shield at the front of the group, also gave his thoughts.

"Actually, it might not be that complicated."

"It's just that the adventurer team was the first to discover the secret of Goat Horn Town, and then, relying on their own abilities as professionals, they secretly sneaked into a town resident's room and stole or forcibly plundered the resident's gems."

"After all, no matter how much we dislike and resist them, they are still just ordinary people who haven't mastered combat skills. In terms of strength and combat experience, how could they possibly compare to those veteran adventurers?"

Xia Nan felt that both of them made a lot of sense.

He nodded slightly, intending to ask the two for their opinions on pastel gemstones, but his body suddenly paused.

His perception attribute, reaching a high of 11 points, allowed him to instinctively sense danger almost the instant it arose. "Watch out!"

As he shouted, the snake-scale arm shield he raised to protect himself instantly turned towards the direction from which he sensed danger.

Margaret and Salding reacted much slower. Only after Xia Nan's voice reached their ears and instantly translated into a meaning they understood did they instinctively turn around out of trust.

By doing this, a time difference of one breath has already been created.

That's why, when Xia Nan turned around, he saw a burly figure hidden deep in the darkness of the blacksmith's shop, his arm raised high, as if he were holding something in his palm.

When the two members of the Kuroki squad turned around at his prompting, what they saw was a burly figure in a throwing stance, and a sharp object whistling through the air, hurtling towards them at an extremely fast speed.

Chi la——

A sharp, piercing whistling sound suddenly erupted from the empty street.

A flat, sharp object gleaming with silver light could be vaguely seen, refracting moonlight and flashing through the air at a speed far beyond what an ordinary person could react to.

Because the attack came suddenly from the side and rear of the group, Xia Nan, who was originally two steps behind the dwarves, became the target of the attack.

Without the slightest panic, he was extremely calm at this moment.

First, my immediate reaction was to send a wisp of my mental energy to touch the "Death Line" ring on my right index finger.

However, it does not directly trigger the [Deflection Field] enchanted on the equipment itself, since there is a cooldown time, so it can be considered a trump card.

For now, it should only be considered as a backup option in the worst-case scenario.

Then, almost simultaneously, his left forearm thrust forward slightly, and the dark, cold, jade-like arm shield seemed to blend into the night, while the air around its surface subtly distorted and fluctuated.

[Gravity Control] Works silently.

Although Xia Nan has almost integrated the training of this combat skill into his daily life, he is still significantly lacking in both the precision of his control and the scope of its application due to his level 1 proficiency.

Therefore, it is impossible to lock onto a speeding sharp object in advance, create a gravitational singularity in the air, and cause it to change direction prematurely.

However, simply fixing the gravitational vortex to the arm shield would not be difficult for him.

Thoughts flashed through my mind in an instant.

In an instant, a shrill whistle, accompanied by a strong wind, rushed towards us.

He raised his right hand, the black-gray straight sword serving as a safety measure between his arm shield and the Death Line Ring, and held it to his chest.

As it turned out, Xia Nan had been overly cautious.

The sharp object that tore through the air seemed to have a great impact, but it was actually just an illusion created by the sudden attack against the backdrop of the deathly quiet street.

Neither the force nor the angle was as difficult to deal with as he had imagined.

There was a crisp "ding" sound.

A few sparks flew across the surface of the arm shield, caused by the violent collision.

The sharp object that was flying towards him was deflected.

Not a single scratch was left on the surface of the arm shield, and with this blue-quality defensive equipment acting as a buffer, the remaining force felt like a push to Xia Nan's left arm, which he easily withstood.

"Ding-dong..."

It was far less durable, and the sharp object, twisted by the impact, rolled to the ground.

Upon closer inspection, it was a broken piece of iron that had been removed from somewhere.

It was only then that Xia Nan had the opportunity to turn his attention to the blacksmith shop further back.

There, the tall, muscular figure of the attacker stood in the shadows beneath the eaves.

Through his smooth head and the robust physique honed through countless hammer blows beside the anvil, one could vaguely discern the identity of this figure:

—It was the bald blacksmith who had argued with Horak about the gemstone!

But at this moment, his state was completely different from that during the day.

Unlike the other residents of the town, the blacksmith, like the innkeeper, still retains the ability to act independently, even though he is deeply enchanted by the gems.

His upper body was bare, revealing his bulging muscles, and in the center of his chest, a pastel gem the size of an adult's fist was deeply embedded in his flesh.

The eerie, sweet pink glow seemed to flicker within it like breath, making it stand out conspicuously in the night.

The impact seems to be more profound than that of the people Xia Nan and his group had encountered before.

Centered on the gem on the blacksmith's chest, the grotesque veins spread outwards like tree roots, and pink light could be seen flowing through them, supplying energy to the body as the gem pulsated.

In his calloused, thick hands, he gripped a heavy forging hammer that gleamed with metallic luster.

"Roar!!!"

The shouts came from behind.

Quite reliable, his reaction speed might be a bit slower than Xia Nan's due to his perception ability, but as a level 4 [Shield Warrior], Soldin took on the responsibility he should bear almost the moment he realized that everyone was under attack.

Like a steel ball rolling past him, the dwarf's skin shimmered with a silvery-white hue. He gripped a prism in one hand and a round shield in the other, and with a few steps, he had Xia Nan protected behind him.

Thanks to the average height of his race, even if the other party was standing right in front of him, Xia Nan, who was nearly 1.9 meters tall, still had a wide field of vision and there was no possibility of his vision being blocked.

Meanwhile, Margaret had already circled around to the flank of the battlefield.

Both being level 4 professions, the Swordsman class, compared to the pre-mutation Warrior class, sacrifices some defensive capabilities but gains burst damage in return.

His fighting style is somewhat similar to Xia Nan's.

The three hadn't known each other for long and hadn't fought many battles together, but at this moment they displayed impressive teamwork using the most basic tactics.

Without the slightest hesitation, the instinctive fear and panic in his heart had long since vanished amidst the surging heat of his blood and his fervent fighting spirit.

The hammer pounded against the round shield, and Soldin, his eyes wide, roared as he charged straight at the blacksmith in the distance.

(End of this chapter)