Men's Anxiety About Length

The alley they had come through was completely blocked by the surging tide of Goblins!

Baron Ul and the guards held the outermost line. With every swing of his sword, his arm grew a little more numb. Sweat mixed with blood, soaking through his undershirt.

Although they had an overwhelming advantage in individual strength, and every blow could easily kill a Goblin, there was one problem... their numbers!

The difference in numbers made it clear to them that it was only a matter of time before they ran out of strength.

The guards' arms were beginning to go numb, and sweat mixed with blood soaked their clothes.

He Xi knew he could no longer hold back his magic.

He released [Earth Spike Technique] repeatedly.

The ground facing the bell tower suddenly bulged, and three stone spikes half a meter high shot up!

The moment the spikes burst through the earth, they wounded several nearby Goblins who hadn't dodged in time. Green blood ran down the spikes.

The unluckiest Goblin was suddenly thrust into the air by the spike on the far right. It lost its balance and was flung left like a ragged sack.

Its body and head struck the other two sharp spikes with pinpoint accuracy. It was pierced through in an instant, hung there twitching for a few moments, then fell silent.

[Earth Spike Technique Proficiency +1, (2/10)]

He Xi's heart stirred. "My proficiency increased? Was it because I got a kill?"

"Or was it because I wasn't casting blindly in the middle of a fight? I'll try again later..."

The thought flashed through his mind, and he immediately pushed it aside.

The bloody, shocking scene before them caused the frenzied Goblins' assault to falter.

Instinctive fear of the unknown flickered in their red eyes.

But the Shaman's frenzied spell continued to take effect.

After only a moment's pause, the Goblins surged forward even more wildly!

But He Xi's goal hadn't been to frighten them in the first place.

The three half-meter-high stone spikes were like a "fish-mouth dam" splitting a river's current. They forcibly divided the tide of Goblins flooding the narrow alley!

Their charge was blocked, and their path narrowed.

He Xi looked at Baron Ul and pointed to the gap formed by the spikes on the right.

Baron Ul understood at once!

He pointed his longsword!

The guards plunged into the gap on the right like a sharp blade.

Spears thrust, blades flashed.

The Goblins packed together were cleared out in an instant.

Seizing this precious opening, they tore a gap through the horde and advanced more than ten meters!

He Xi released [Earth Spike Technique] repeatedly again.

This time, three spikes rose vertically, obstructing the Goblins on the other side and dividing the alley in two.

They continued pushing forward and finally broke out of the narrow alley, stepping into the relatively open bell tower plaza!

The purple-red Goblin Shaman had kept a cunningly safe distance the whole time. Now it stood in the shadow of the bell tower.

Seeing He Xi and the others break through the encirclement, its face twisted beneath its bone mask, and it abruptly raised the bone staff in its hand.

Its hunched body trembled slightly. A viscous surge of magic spread out like an invisible web, dropping over everyone.

[Slow Technique]

He Xi suddenly felt his body grow heavy!

It was as though he'd been plunged into a viscous swamp. Every movement became incredibly difficult.

Raising an arm or taking a step felt like dragging a heavy load.

Baron Ul and the guards, wearing leather armor and carrying heavy weapons, moved as if in slow motion.

One guard tried to raise his spear, but the weapon that normally felt like an extension of his arm now weighed as much as a mountain. His arm trembled uncontrollably.

The bell tower was right in front of them!

The strange black-haired Mud Doll was clearly visible in the moonlight.

But the few dozen meters between them now seemed like an impassable chasm.

Just then, the Goblin Shaman grinned, revealing a mouthful of uneven yellow teeth.

He Xi's alarm bells rang wildly!

"That purple-skinned runt's up to something! It still has another trick!"

He fought against the heaviness and sluggishness of his body, concentrating with all his might to sense his surroundings.

That was when he spotted a figure almost two meters tall, towering above the short Goblins at the edge of the plaza.

It was a monster nearly two meters tall.

Its face was hideous, its lower jaw protruded, and four sharp tusks jutted from its mouth. Bloodthirsty light gleamed in its dark red eyes.

Its upper body was knotted with muscle, but its belly bulged like an enormous stomach. It dragged a tree trunk it had found somewhere.

A Giant Goblin!?

The monster instantly locked onto He Xi, who was affected by the Slow Technique!

A savage grin spread across its ugly face!

Then, like a runaway battering ram, it smashed through every ordinary Goblin in its way and charged straight at He Xi.

"Damn it! It's coming for me!"

He Xi's pupils contracted!

The shadow of death fell over him.

In that split second, He Xi held nothing back!

Earth Element surged wildly around him!

He drained every last bit of magic in his body!

A thick stone spike burst from the ground.

It didn't rise vertically.

It shot up at an angle.

It pierced the Giant Goblin's gaping maw, lined with tusks, with pinpoint accuracy.

It passed through its massive head without the slightest resistance!

Red and white matter burst from the back of its skull.

The Giant Goblin's enormous body, still charging forward, suddenly froze!

The light vanished from its dark red eyes.

The tree trunk crashed to the ground as well.

But the stone spike didn't stop.

With the Giant Goblin's impaled corpse, it continued growing upward toward the top of the bell tower, surging higher without a break!

He Xi's face was pale as paper. His body trembled violently from magic exhaustion, and he could barely stay on his feet!

He stared fixedly at the tip of the stone spike!

Faster! Come on!

A little higher!

But...

The spike's ascent visibly slowed...

At last!

It stopped dead several meters below the pointed roof of the bell tower, still several meters away from the strange Mud Doll swaying in the wind!

His magic... was depleted!

[Earth Spike Technique Proficiency +3, (5/10)]

The enormous corpse of the Giant Goblin, its eyes still staring open in death, hung from the tip of the spike, swaying slightly in the night breeze.

The target was... right within reach!

And yet completely out of reach!

He Xi stared at the few meters separating him from it, and a wave of helplessness swept over him!

Men's anxiety about length was everywhere.

"I was... just this close!"

"Of all the times for this to happen!"

Under the effects of the [Slow Technique], they moved like snails. Breaking out through the encircling sea of Goblins was a fool's dream!

Their only hope was the Mud Doll hanging from the bell tower!

But now...

A quick-thinking guard caught He Xi as he began to stagger.

Baron Ul also saw the stone spike slanting toward the bell tower.

A trace of despair flashed in his eyes.

"If we hadn't been hit by the Slow Technique, one charge might have been enough to reach that Mud Doll!"

Even so, he pointed toward the enormous stone spike.

It was their only way to survive.

With their backs to the Earth Spike, they could at least limit the number of directions they had to defend against.

They could wait... for reinforcements, who might already be dead.

The guards understood at once. Protecting He Xi, they followed Baron Ul and inched toward the enormous stone spike.

Under the effects of the [Slow Technique], every step was incredibly difficult.

Though he couldn't make a sound, Bruce kept glancing back and baring his teeth from time to time, trying to scare off the Goblins that got too close.