Chương 2: The Struggle

"Grass-eater! What is that in your hand? It smells so good, give it to me, now!!" A goblin pup stepped forward to lead the group. Standing at 0. 8 meters tall, he was nearly an adult and clearly the strongest one present. Li Qinwu's brows furrowed slightly. He gripped his spear tighter and silently took a step back. There were eight goblins in total. Although they were all pups, Li Qinwu, armed only with a crude spear, wasn't much stronger than them. The odds were not in his favor.

As for the name "Grass-eater," it was because they had seen him huddled in the weeds every day gnawing on grass. Goblins named each other with such careless simplicity—there were others named Dirt-eater, Shit-eater, Big Gob, Skinny Gob, and so on. As Li Qinwu took a small step back, the goblins took a step forward, closing the circle. Seeing the greed in their eyes, Li Qinwu knew escaping was impossible. Yet, he was unwilling to simply hand over the pig bone; he had no desire to return to a life of eating grass.

His mind raced, and he made a desperate decision.

"Fine, you can have it." With a fake smile on his face, Li Qinwu tossed the femur forward, landing it right in front of the cluster of pups.

"We're all brothers here. Good things should be shared!" The bone hit the ground, spilling a small amount of roasted marrow. The aroma of scorched fat and protein instantly vaporized what little rationality the goblins possessed. They lunged forward like madmen, scrambling to seize the bone. Now! While the goblins were distracted by the fight for the bone, Li Qinwu charged, a stone in his left hand and his homemade spear in his right.

He hurled the stone with all his might, striking one goblin directly in the back of the head. The creature let out a sharp shriek and collapsed, its fate unknown. Li Qinwu closed the distance rapidly, a cold glint in his eyes. He lunged forward with his spear, driving it straight into the abdomen of another pup.

"Aeee-agh!!" The pup howled in agony and slumped to its knees, unable to stand. Li Qinwu yanked the spear out and, without a moment's hesitation, thrust it into the next goblin. Another pained shriek followed as a third pup was bowled over. Only then did the remaining goblins realize what was happening. They scrambled away in a panic. Li Qinwu seized the opportunity, kicking over one that was slow to react. He pinned the creature down with his foot and delivered another thrust into its back.

Ignoring whether the goblin was dead or alive, he quickly retreated several paces to open up the distance. Stolen novel; please report. The two sides were now separated. Li Qinwu's body swayed as dizziness washed over him again. If he hadn't sucked down half of that marrow earlier to get some grease into his system, he would have collapsed right there. There were four opponents left. Even with a spear, being surrounded would be extremely dangerous.

Li Qinwu adjusted his breathing quickly to counteract the vertigo from the intense combat. He kept his eyes locked on the four remaining goblins, observing their state. The four goblins stared at him with terror. Li Qinwu had taken down half their number in an instant, nearly triggering the goblin instinct to submit to the strong. However, the pig bone on the ground, still wafting its fatty scent, suppressed that instinct. In the face of starvation, everything else took a backseat.

Before long, the four goblins couldn't resist any longer. They began to shuffle toward the bone again, picking up suitable sticks and stones from the ground while keeping a wary eye on Li Qinwu. Seeing the others arm themselves, Li Qinwu's expression soured. The risk of killing them had just skyrocketed, and there was a chance he could lose the fight. Was it worth risking his life against four others just for one bone? Should he just retreat for now?

As he hesitated, three system notifications suddenly rang in his ear. [You have killed a Goblin Pup. XP +1] [You have killed a Goblin Pup. XP +1] [You have killed a Goblin Pup. XP +1] The three prompts stunned Li Qinwu. He opened the Mount & Blade II character panel with his mind. Name: Li Qinwu Race: Goblin (Pup) Title: Grass-eater. (Because you survived by eating grass, attracting widespread attention in the tribe. You have earned the title 'Grass-eater'.) Title Effect: You possess a powerful stomach capable of consuming foliage and extracting minor nutrients. However, this is a derogatory term—how can a goblin eat grass? Your Charisma with Goblins -10.

Level: 0 Experience: 3/7 Mana: 0 Affinity: Dark Faith: Primal Faith (Goblin God) Attributes: Vigor: 3 (One-Handed: 0, Two-Handed: 0, Polearm: 2) Control: 0 (Bow: 0, Crossbow: 0, Throwing: 1) Endurance: 0 (Riding: 0, Athletics: 18, Smithing: 2) Cunning: 0 (Scouting: 11, Tactics: 0, Roguery: 0) Social: 0 (Charm: 0, Leadership: 0, Trade: 0, Prayer: 0) Intelligence: 0 (Steward: 0, Medicine: 0, Engineering: 0, Magic: 0) Unallocated Attribute Points: 0 | Unallocated Focus Points: 0 Li Qinwu saw his experience had jumped from 0/7 to 3/7.

Looking at the four goblins he had dropped—one was unconscious, and three had bled out. That was the source of his XP. This meant if he finished off the remaining four, he could level up! In the Mount & Blade system, leveling up granted Attribute Points and Focus Points. Attribute Points like Vigor would make him stronger, providing more power and vitality. Attributes also governed several skills that could be bolstered with Focus Points.

For instance, the Polearm skill under Vigor now had a proficiency of 2 (rising to 3 after his latest actions) because he had stabbed three goblins. The higher the proficiency, the faster he could swing his weapon and unlock specific perks for that weapon type.

"God knows what other dangers are in this world. I have to seize every chance to get stronger!" He looked at the four goblins in the distance, a cruel smile flashing across his face. Conveniently, four targets meant four more points, exactly enough for a level up. These goblins had already found their path to death!