Silver-Ranked Trees

Lin Lei stood at the boundary between Crouching Dragon Ravine and the Gloomy Forest, with Luo Ji and his squad standing fully armed behind him.

After a month of territorial expenses, despite Lin Lei racking his brains to save money, his twenty thousand gold coins had been completely spent.

Now, he needed gold coins to maintain the territory's finances. Since the territory was in its initial stages, lacking taxes or sources of income, Lin Lei decided to take his soldiers to adventure in the Gloomy Forest.

The Gloomy Forest was sparsely populated. If he could hunt a few Silver-ranked magical beasts, it would not only improve Lin Lei's cultivation of his techniques but also bridge the fiscal deficit, allowing the territory to survive this period.

Beyond Crouching Dragon Ravine lay a lush forest, where a gentle breeze brushed against the treetops, creating a rustling sound.

The soldiers were divided into five groups of five, spreading out, while Lin Lei walked along the center toward the depths of the forest so that even if danger appeared, he could arrive in time.

"Thump!"

An unusual sound came from the bushes in front of Lin Lei, which was detected by him as he had been focusing intently on the surroundings.

Stepping lightly, Lin Lei slowly approached, and Red Fire beside him understood Lin Lei's intention, leaping into the bushes in one bound.

"Ah!"

Two scrawny goblins jumped out of the bushes in front, shouting in an unknown language, chased by the ferocious Red Fire.

"Goblins?"

Lin Lei captured the two fleeing goblins in a flash, tossed aside the wooden spears in their hands, and examined them with great interest.

Under Lin Lei's observant gaze, the two little goblins were trembling all over, their tears flowing uncontrollably due to fear.

Lin Lei was very familiar with these goblins.

In the history of the Azeroth Continent, there was once an industrial kingdom established by goblins, and the entire Azeroth Continent held goblins in high regard. However, when a vessel is full, it spills; prosperity leads to decline.

In just one hundred years, the entire goblin kingdom fell apart. The once-civilized goblins were reduced to a barbaric era like beasts. Except for a small number of goblins who had not forgotten their history and still possessed the skills to build a Goblin Airship, Goblin Shredder, Goblin Robot, telescope, etc., the others were just like a primitive society.

Looking at these skin-and-bone goblins, who didn't even have a few ounces of meat on their arms, Lin Lei knew their tribe certainly wasn't a major one with a heritage.

In human kingdoms, goblins were basically synonymous with kobolds. Because they belonged to the same humanoid species, no one would boldly attempt to eat their corpses. Except for individual towns severely harassed by them that would offer bounties for their ears, they were basically of no value to Lin Lei.

"Is this Wind Fragrance Wood?"

Lin Lei suddenly picked up the wood the goblins had been holding and sniffed it hard. Besides the stench on the goblins, the wood was mixed with a faint, elegant fragrance.

"Not bad, it is indeed it."

Lin Lei suddenly became excited. Wind Fragrance Wood, as the name suggests, had a fragrance like the wind, and its quality was very hard, not easily affected by moisture or insect damage. These traits made it the preferred material for various aristocratic furniture, and it was in short supply in the human market.

Once, when Lin Lei was browsing a furniture store in the market, a Wind Fragrance Wood cabinet the size of a single bed cost as much as three thousand gold coins, and there were many buyers pursuing it; it was bought by a butler the moment it appeared.

If it were just this, Lin Lei wouldn't be so excited, but Wind Fragrance Wood usually grew in clusters in the wild. Where there was one tree, there was a forest. The value of this patch of Wind Fragrance Wood was immeasurable. If all of it were cut down, Lin Lei's territory could at least survive its first two years of development.

Thinking of this, Lin Lei whistled to the surroundings, ordering everyone to gather by his side.

"Rustle!"

With a sound of movement through the trees, Luo Ji brought the team to Lin Lei, somewhat puzzled as to why they were gathering after having separated for only fifteen minutes.

Lin Lei explained the good news he had guessed, and all the soldiers were happy because of this news.

Under the threat of the goblins' lives, these two goblins led Lin Lei and his men to the vicinity of their village, and the Wind Fragrance Wood was growing behind their village.

"Clang!"

Luo Ji drew his battle blade, preparing to kill the now-useless goblins, which was the common way humans treated these alien races.

"What are you doing?"

Lin Lei stopped Luo Ji, who was about to strike.

"Shouldn't we kill these two goblins?"

"And then?"

"Then destroy this goblin camp, and the Wind Fragrance Wood will be ours."

Luo Ji looked at Lin Lei in confusion, not knowing why he stopped him.

"Stupid, tell me, is it better to be given ten gold coins once, or one gold coin every day?"

"Of course one gold coin every day, but what does this have to do with the goblins?"

Luo Ji was still confused, so Lin Lei patiently explained to him.

"Think about it, there is a Wind Fragrance Wood forest behind these goblins. We can build a logging camp, only cutting a few trees at a time, allowing the trees to be utilized in a cycle."

"We can make these goblins submit to me, let them be our logging camp workers, and trade food for wood with them every time. Why not?"

"Will this work? I've never heard of goblins being able to cooperate."

Luo Ji said worriedly.

Lin Lei rolled his eyes.

"Pig-headed, rotten wood cannot be carved."

Thinking this, Lin Lei didn't bother explaining further. Instead, he smiled and untied the goblins, letting them go.

The goblins, suddenly treated this way, didn't react for a moment. They stood stunned for a second before running toward the village as fast as they could, even tripping and falling face-first in their haste, covered in dirt.

Lin Lei did not take any offensive measures, standing with his men not far from the goblin gate, waiting for the goblins to appear.

"Bang!"

A commotion erupted from the Goblin camp. Dozens of green heads suddenly appeared atop the wooden walls, observing Lin Lei, while a massive wave of Goblins surged toward the entrance, their momentum fierce even from a distance.

Lin Lei narrowed his eyes to observe these Goblins. Beyond these little guys, who stood only two-thirds the height of a human, there were also some mutated Hobgoblin warriors. Hobgoblins were an evolution of the Goblin bloodline, possessing strength even greater than a bear, and they generally served as the most powerful force in any Goblin camp.

"Are those Boar Riders?"

Lin Lei looked toward their rear. Short Goblins were sitting atop massive black wild boars. Lin Lei immediately felt that he had underestimated the strength of the Goblins this time; a race capable of surviving in the Gloomy Forest certainly had some tricks up their sleeves.

"Hey, Goblins, do you speak the Common Tongue?"

Lin Lei attempted to communicate with them.

"Cunning human, I am the Goblin Elder Kusu Tonikifu. What do you lot want..."

Kusu stepped forward and spoke.

"It is an honor to meet you, Goblin Elder Kusu. I am the human Baron Lin Lei Thunder Roar."

Lin Lei replied.

"You are currently within my territory and must swear allegiance to me, otherwise I wouldn't mind adding a little color to this land."

Lin Lei said this threat with a smile on his face.

After Kusu translated for the surrounding Goblins, they began to grow restless. Two Hobgoblin leaders, as large as Lin Lei, stood beside Kusu with fierce glares, looking as if they wanted to skin and bone the man before them.

One stepped out from among the Goblins and spoke in broken Common.

"You... fight me... if you win... we... submit to you. If you win... you must give us... one thousand catties of meat."

Lin Lei laughed.

"Fine."

When it came to being fierce and ruthless, Lin Lei had never feared anyone. Let alone an enemy of his own level, he wouldn't even back down against someone of a higher rank.

"Everyone, spread out."

Lin Lei directed Luo Ji and the others to disperse, clearing a large Conti in front of the Goblin camp.

Luo Ji and his men knew Lin Lei's strength well, so they didn't worry for him; instead, they cheered him on from the sidelines.

The Hobgoblin leader was a figure of absolute authority among the Goblins, and the others shouted in their native tongue to cheer him on.

Lin Lei stood in the center of the battlefield holding the Green Dragon Crescent Blade, his ice armor crystal clear under the sunlight without a single drop of water upon it.

Lin Lei beckoned to the Hobgoblin. The standing Hobgoblin charged toward Lin Lei like a heavy truck, brandishing a massive bone club.

The Hobgoblin swung with all his might, aiming directly for the top of Lin Lei's head. Lin Lei timed it perfectly, stepping back and lifting his left foot to kick the Hobgoblin hard in the waist.

The tall Hobgoblin stumbled back several steps before steadying himself. However, he only seemed slightly unsteady and felt a bit of pain from the kick, a testament to his thick skin and sturdy flesh.

The Hobgoblin didn't give up after regaining his footing. He charged at Lin Lei again, gripping the bone club with both hands to unleash a "Whirlwind Slash." He became like a rapidly spinning top, whipping up a massive gale around him.

"My Lord!"

Luo Ji and the others felt the powerful wind even from outside the battlefield, and expressions of concern involuntarily appeared on their faces.

The Goblins, seeing their leader display such power, danced with excitement; more than a few fell off the wooden walls in their distraction.

"Heavenly Eye, open."

Lin Lei chose not to clash head-on with the Hobgoblin leader. Utilizing the creature's lack of agility while spinning, he opened the distance and attacked with the Good and Evil Ray.

"Sizzle..."

Before the ray could even touch the Hobgoblin, it was deflected by the rapidly spinning wind, failing to inflict a single drop of damage.

However, the ray did serve a purpose: it slowed the rotation speed. The Hobgoblin, having exhausted his stamina, gradually came to a halt.

After spinning so many times, even with his powerful constitution, the Hobgoblin fell into a state of weakness. Conversely, while Lin Lei had also lost some stamina from dodging, he was certainly not as overdrawn as the Hobgoblin.

"Strike while the iron is hot."

Lin Lei did not intend to take the Hobgoblin's life, but beating him into submission at this moment was crucial for the development of his territory.

Lin Lei was not riding Red Hare at this moment, but that did not hinder him from using the skills of Guan Yu. His long legs began to run, gathering momentum to slam into the Hobgoblin.

"Bang!"

The two heavyweights collided. The Hobgoblin, unable to resist in time, was sent flying like a boulder hitting a tree, snapping a trunk as thick as a man's waist in the process.

"Hoo!"

Lin Lei exhaled. In his view, the battle was over; the Hobgoblin had lost the ability to fight.

The surrounding soldiers were all cheering, but the Goblins did not show expressions of dejection.

Lin Lei felt that something was wrong.