Fargodeep Massacre

After resting for a while, his head no longer hurt as badly, and he finally got to his feet. Goldtooth was indeed formidable. Relying on his agility, he had managed to hold out against the Clay Golem and Skeleton Warrior's assault, though he no longer had the strength to use his shortsword to wound the golem. Li Shaolin pointed at the corpse of a Kobold Diviner on the ground and began chanting. Amid the creaking of bones, a brand-new Skeleton Warrior rose to its feet. At his command to attack, it also rushed toward Goldtooth.

With the Clay Golem and two Skeleton Warriors attacking him, Goldtooth was immediately plunged into a difficult situation. As he parried left and right, he was clearly about to be unable to hold on. Li Shaolin seized the moment and pointed a finger. Two teeth spiraled toward Goldtooth.

With two sharp shk sounds, one of Goldtooth's arms immediately went limp and hung at his side.

With a piercing howl, Goldtooth leaped into the air, barely breaking free of the encirclement as he pounced toward Li Shaolin outside the battlefield. Even a Kobold with little intelligence understood by now that the frail human behind those three terrifying creatures was the one calling the shots. Only by killing him first would Goldtooth have any chance of escape.

"Fuck!" Li Shaolin had never expected Goldtooth to pounce at him. It was already too late to dodge, and Goldtooth's shortsword was upon him! In a panic, he threw himself to the ground and rolled aside. Though he avoided a fatal blow, the shortsword carved a huge gash across his right hand, and blood gushed out.

Goldtooth had exhausted all his strength in that pounce. Before his old momentum had faded and new strength could rise, there was a loud bang as the Clay Golem arrived first, both fists slamming into Goldtooth's back!

With a wet splat, green blood sprayed across the ground. Then two white flashes streaked past, and a Kobold head flew into the air!

"Finally dead! That bastard was really hard to deal with!" Li Shaolin let out a long breath, only for another wave of pain to surge through his head. He hurriedly sat down, tore off half a sleeve, and wrapped his wound. At the same time, he ordered the Clay Golem to purify Goldtooth's corpse.

The Clay Golem slowly circled the body once, leaving the ground completely bare. Yet a shortsword, a gold tooth, and a necklace glittered on the ground! "Isn't this the necklace quest Jack and the others took from Bonis Stonefield's aunt?" He quickly picked it up. "This thing isn't fake, is it?" Light flowed through the gold tooth. There was probably a seventy percent chance it was real.

The shortsword looked slightly better than his Infantry Sword, so he replaced it. At that moment, a huge wooden chest behind him caught Li Shaolin's attention.

"Goldtooth's treasure chest?" He walked over and lifted the lid lightly, immediately opening the chest.

Some cheese, bread, and several pieces of linen lay quietly inside.

At the sight of the bread, his stomach immediately growled again. "Can Kobold food even be eaten?" he said, but waves of hunger surged through his belly. "Forget it. Gross is better than starving to death!" Gritting his teeth, Li Shaolin picked up the bread from the chest and began wolfing it down.

After two loaves of bread, he felt much better. Though the bread carried the distinctive fishy smell of Kobolds, it actually tasted quite good after he tore away the crust. As he rummaged through the chest, a green flash flickered from a corner!

He shook out the pieces of linen, revealing two green gemstones reflecting the faint firelight. For a moment, they practically turned Li Shaolin's eyes green!

"Could these be the legendary Malachite from World of Warcraft?" There were only a few kinds of low-grade gems. Though he had never seen real Malachite before, these looked exactly like the ones in the game. I'm rich, hahaha!

Overjoyed, he immediately threw away the copper coins in his pocket and put away the two pieces of Malachite.

After resting for a while, he directed the golem and the two Skeleton Warriors onward.

They wound through the cave for ages without seeing a single Kobold. Yet they went deeper and deeper, until everything gradually became pitch-black.

In the darkness, only the slap, slap of Li Shaolin's footsteps echoed through the vast cavern. The farther he walked, the more uneasy he became. The air was oppressively heavy, and it seemed as if countless breathing sounds were coming from all around him!

"Buddha, Bodhisattva, please protect me!" He wiped the sweat from his forehead and muttered under his breath.

A faint flicker of fire appeared, glaringly conspicuous in the dark, damp mine.

Li Shaolin's heart leaped. It looked like someone was ahead!

He hurriedly jogged forward. Before he could reach the firelight, a loud sizzling sound suddenly erupted. One torch after another lit up in the darkness, and in an instant, dim yellow light filled the mine!

He had arrived in a massive mining hall. Kobold Diviners held torches in their hands, and at a glance, they were packed together as far as the eye could see—all Kobolds! Their squinting eyes, accustomed to life underground, shone with hungry, bloodthirsty light! There had to be several thousand of them!

Li Shaolin's scalp went numb, and he could only force a bitter smile. Buddha, isn't this joke a little too much?

"Uh, wrong way, wrong way. You guys carry on. This was totally an accident!" he said as he slowly began backing away.

With a long howl, a figure appeared. He wore full iron armor, stood four meters tall, and carried a massive battle-axe in his enormous claws. His waist was slightly hunched, black bristles stood on end all over his body, and two fangs protruded from his wolfish head, gleaming bright white in the torchlight! Above his head floated two pale golden words: Hogger!

Wasn't Hogger a Gnoll? What did he have to do with Kobolds? And wasn't this guy supposed to rule the southwestern corner of Elwynn Forest? Why was he in this godforsaken place? Before Li Shaolin could sort through his mounting doubts, Hogger swung his great axe. The Kobolds in the cave shrieked as one and surged toward Li Shaolin!

The level-seven Skeleton Warrior swung his Bone Blade and chopped down heavily. A Kobold that had just reached him had its head split in two, blood spraying everywhere! The short, sturdy Clay Golem shoved forward, blocking several Kobolds. Its fists smashed down, crushing one head like a watermelon! The newly summoned Skeleton Warrior also moved to the golem's side and slashed at the Kobolds it had blocked.

Fortunately, his pets were reliable, but with this many enemies, even an iron bar would get ground down into a needle. Before he could finish lamenting, the huge Hogger let out a roar and leaped into the air, descending upon them!

That leap whipped up fierce winds that blasted into his face. Li Shaolin could barely keep his footing and staggered back several steps in a row!

With a whoosh, the glowing great axe came down. In a single strike, crack, crack, crack, the two Skeleton Warriors fell apart, while the Clay Golem was smashed to pieces!

"So brutal!" Li Shaolin was stunned senseless for a moment. This damned Gnoll was way too terrifying! Then a bone-piercing headache struck him, as if his brain were about to burst. Agonizing pain flooded his head—the backlash from his summons being killed had erupted! His legs gave way, and Li Shaolin fell to the ground clutching his head. Through his blurred vision, he saw the Kobolds swarm toward him!

A howl like something from hell rang out! Amid swirling black mist, a man clad entirely in black armor appeared before Li Shaolin, holding a pitch-black greatsword as he blocked the horde of Kobolds.

"Hogger, long time no see!" His deep voice seemed to rise from a thousand layers of hell, stirring echoes throughout the cavern. The man pointed with his greatsword, and a black ripple spread outward! As wave after wave of darkness washed over them, thousands of Kobolds collapsed backward as though their souls had been drained away. Hogger swung his great axe, leaped into the air, and chopped at the man with a thunderous shout!

In his dazed state, Li Shaolin felt that the man's voice was strangely familiar, and his armor was even more familiar. Wasn't that the Frozen Throne armor of the Death Knight Arthas from World of Warcraft? But this man definitely was not Arthas. The reason was simple: the pitch-black greatsword in his hand could never be Frostmourne. Seeing the man kill thousands of Kobolds with a single move, Li Shaolin felt chills run through his heart. He was terrifyingly strong!

Sword and axe collided with a deafening clang. Amid the lingering echoes, Hogger staggered back several steps, blood already spilling from his mouth. Before he could react, the man waved a hand. A green skull wreathed in mist shrieked sharply and slammed into Hogger's chest!

With a bang, Hogger's chest seemed to have been savaged by some beast. Along with the iron armor protecting it, it corroded into a massive wound. A red heart could be seen beating inside as Hogger fell backward toward the sky!

At the sight of Hogger falling, Li Shaolin could no longer hold on. His head drooped, and he lost consciousness.

"Someday, I look forward to fighting your true body!" the deep voice said to the fallen Hogger. The man turned to glance at Li Shaolin, then pushed his hand forward. Waves of dark power spread out, and a huge spatial gate topped by a black skull appeared: the Ebon Gate! He then raised his greatsword toward the sky. Black deathly energy streamed from his body and dispersed among the thousands of Kobolds. As if tainted by hell, Ghouls crawled out of the Kobolds one after another, filling the mine in an instant! It was the Death Knight's signature skill: Army of the Dead!

"Take care," he said to Li Shaolin before turning and entering the Ebon Gate. Under his command, the thousands of Ghouls rampaged toward the mine exit! In the blink of an eye, Kobolds that were hiding or sleeping were slaughtered by the frenzied Ghouls, and blood flowed like a river!

As for who that man was, why he possessed Death Knight skills, and why he had helped Li Shaolin, no one knew. This great massacre at Fargodeep Mine exterminated all ten thousand Kobolds within the mine, leaving no survivors. It also caused the deaths of nearly a hundred adventurers in the surrounding area. The reason behind it became an unsolved mystery in later history, unknown to all. Perhaps even Hogger's so-called true body was utterly baffled!