Chirp~
Chatter~ Chatter~
Above the dense jungle, several birds flew over the treetops, while faint insect cries rose from all directions from time to time.
Tang Zheng hid behind a thick tree trunk and bushes, calmly studying this small Goblin tribe.
There were no "old" Goblins, which was fairly normal.
After all, Goblins were omnivores. When food was scarce, crippled or elderly Goblins could easily be kept as backup food.
But the absence of young Goblins was rather strange.
Tang Zheng might not have known much about Goblins, but he had indeed learned quite a bit about the habits of these monsters from the Rock team.
June and July were when Goblins were at their most active.
Because this was the season when Goblins reproduced in great numbers, they would not only hunt monsters and wild beasts in the forest in large quantities, but even leave the Great Forest of Tob to prey on nearby villagers.
Within the small Goblin settlement.
As the Goblins returned carrying five human corpses, the few Goblins left behind in the tribe immediately let out excited cries of "Wah wah!"
The Goblins at the back, panting as they carried the corpses, did not set them down right away. Instead, they continued carrying them all the way to a low, crudely built straw hut at the center.
They placed the five human corpses before the entrance of the low straw hut.
Then the Goblins hurriedly retreated some distance, looking at the hut with both anticipation and fear.
Tang Zheng's eyelid twitched at the sight.
Bang—
A tremor came from inside the low straw hut, like the growl of a beast.
The next moment!
A massive, heavyset figure over two meters tall, with dark yellow skin, crawled unsteadily out of the low straw hut.
A Troll!
Realization flashed through Tang Zheng's eyes.
This was the Troll that had nearly wiped out the Rock team. There was no way he could forget it.
"Hungry... hungry..."
While letting out indistinct groans, the Troll braced its two thick arms against the ground and rose to its feet.
Its hairless head was covered in flesh-colored lumps of varying sizes. One glance was enough to make one's skin crawl.
As it raised its head.
A small Goblin was clenched between the Troll's jagged teeth.
The small Goblin made no sound, dangling limply from its mouth. It had clearly been dead for quite some time.
The next moment.
Screech—
A palm-sized tongue shot out, curling the half-bitten Goblin into its mouth in a single gulp as it began chewing with crunching sounds.
Pale green blood splattered from the Troll's open mouth!
All the surrounding Goblins trembled where they stood, even breathing more quietly.
Seeing such a savage and brutal scene.
Tang Zheng frowned deeply, nausea rising within him.
Now he finally understood why there were no young Goblins in this small Goblin tribe.
This Troll was injured!
Even from a distance, Tang Zheng could clearly see a huge wound on the Troll's chest, larger than a washbasin.
Swarms of flies buzzed around the wound!
No wonder the Troll had moved so slowly when crawling out of the straw hut and getting to its feet.
For a monster like a Troll, consuming massive amounts of food was the best way to recover from injuries!
"Food!"
The Troll's vicious gaze fell upon the five human corpses on the ground. An excited expression appeared on its face as it roared.
Then it immediately raised a hand, grabbed one corpse, and began devouring it in huge bites.
The hard bones of the human body crunched like cartilage in the Troll's mouth.
Seeing this, Tang Zheng withdrew his gaze and took a deep breath.
"What a hell of a welcome gift from the New World," Tang Zheng muttered softly. When he opened his eyes again, they were filled with icy coldness.
In his previous life's world, humans had been the undisputed masters of nature. All other creatures could be divided into only two categories: edible and inedible.
But in this New World.
Humans seemed to have become part of the food chain once more, hunted as prey. The sight gave Tang Zheng an indescribable shock deep in his soul!
At that moment!
Besides disgust, an indescribable fury rose within Tang Zheng.
That anger did not come from the Troll devouring human corpses before him.
It came from the Wildness rooted in the depths of his soul from his previous life—the primal instinct of humanity, which had clawed its way from eating raw flesh and drinking blood to the very top of the food chain!
Swish!
The iron sword rose, held horizontally before his chest.
Tang Zheng's gaze was cold as he carefully observed the Troll in the distance. It was somewhat larger than the Troll that had attacked the Rock team.
Other than this Troll, the Goblins were no problem.
The Troll was injured. This was undoubtedly the best chance to deal with it!
However.
Tang Zheng did not charge in immediately. Instead, he quietly waited for an opportunity.
After any creature had eaten its fill, its reaction speed and physical coordination would be somewhat worse than when it was hungry.
It was not that Tang Zheng was being overly cautious. He simply had no choice but to be careful.
Without any detection methods, Tang Zheng naturally could not determine this Troll's exact level. He could only rely on the wilderness survival experience adventurers in this world had mentioned.
And Tang Zheng happened to have no experience at all in distinguishing monsters.
After all, he only had one life. Tang Zheng did not want to lose it because of carelessness or negligence!
For monsters of this Demi-Human Species, with their enormous size and strength far beyond humans of the same level, it was generally safer to judge them as being two or three levels higher.
Tang Zheng recalled the racial information about Trolls.
Trolls had a rather unusual racial trait. Due to their species' habits, most Trolls stayed with Goblins.
The Trolls were responsible for fighting, while the Goblins provided food, forming a mutually beneficial relationship.
In this forest, most Goblin settlements probably had Trolls, and the more Goblins there were in a settlement, the more Trolls it should possess.
Hmm!
Tang Zheng noticed that the Troll only stopped eating after devouring three corpses in one go.
Its gradually swelling belly and the hint of laziness on its vicious face both showed that the Troll was full.
Tang Zheng expressionlessly lifted his iron sword and swiftly approached the small Goblin settlement with light, quiet steps!
Now that the Troll had finished eating, the other Goblins finally began cheering one after another, eating tree fruits, the rotting corpses of small animals, and even leaves.
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