Larry's tragic state made Leo even more terrified. Ignoring his injured thigh, he struggled to stand up and staggered forward.
The Mutated Goblin behind him was in no hurry. It smashed down its club once more, thoroughly enjoying the sight of Larry's twisted face. Only when Larry passed out did it hoist the bloody Wolf Fang Club back onto its shoulder and stride toward Leo. The farce was supposed to end; next, it would have a hearty meal and continue its reproductive tasks.
The injured Leo couldn't run far at all. The creature didn't even need to run; it merely strolled over as if taking a walk and soon arrived right behind him. Leo could feel the heavy footsteps, but he neither dared nor wanted to look back. It was as if as long as he didn't look, the inevitable wouldn't happen.
However, deceiving himself was ultimately nothing more than a ridiculous psychological comfort. The heavy club that had just smashed into Larry finally fell upon him, effortlessly crushing his head.
At that exact moment, a blade suddenly flew out from the side. Right when the Mutated Goblin Zadon was at its most triumphant and relaxed, the blade pierced precisely into its eye socket.
"ROAR!"
It bellowed and instinctively covered its wound. A figure flashed past the peripheral vision of its remaining intact right eye.
"Slashing!"
Lin Mo, who had been lying in wait in the shadows for a long time, finally seized the perfect opportunity. The instant he threw Rhein's broken blade, he charged forward at top speed. Before the Mutated Goblin could even react, he struck out with his sword. The fierce Slashing precisely struck the eye that was wide open in pain and anger, cleaving it cleanly in half!
Using his forward momentum, Lin Mo rolled on the ground to dodge the monster's reactive counterattack. He then quickly retreated over ten meters away, panting heavily, his entire back drenched in cold sweat.
The seemingly fluid attack had actually undergone countless mental rehearsals and inner struggles. Only after confirming that the opponent's Agility was lower than his own, that the probability of success was extremely high, and that he would likely be able to escape even if he failed, did he finally muster the courage to strike decisively at the best possible moment.
Facts proved that he had won the gamble.
Everything went exactly as he had rehearsed. The monster before him had lost both eyes and was now completely blind. Watching the Mutated Goblin Zadon constantly roaring, darting around blindly, and flying into an impotent rage, a smile finally appeared on Lin Mo's face. Now, the roles of attacker and defender were reversed!
For the vast majority of creatures, vision was incredibly important. Especially in combat, without sight, it was difficult to determine the enemy's position. Both offense and defense became unsustainable. Most importantly, the inability to assess the surroundings would impose a massive psychological burden.
The Zadon before him was currently in this exact state. Lin Mo didn't need to do anything; the creature would grow paranoid on its own, constantly swinging its weapon and wasting its Physical Strength.
Lin Mo slowly calmed his breathing. Watching Zadon swing wildly and begin to pant, he casually picked up a stone and tossed it. Hearing the projectile SWISH through the air from the side, Zadon hastily swung its club, once again battling against thin air. Lin Mo repeated the trick, continuing to use the same method. Every single time, he managed to trigger a reaction from the hulking beast. Before long, it was so exhausted it could barely lift its arms.
"Damn... little bug, I'm going to... kill you..."
Due to its excessive Physical Consumption, Zadon barely had the energy to spout threats. Ultimately, it simply sat down on the ground, refusing to be fooled any longer, and allowed Lin Mo to pelt it with stones.
One hit, two hits, three hits...
A sharp glint flashed through Lin Mo's eyes. The next moment, the sword in his hand thrust toward the Mutated Goblin's chest. Zadon remained seated in place, seemingly completely unaware.
"ROAR!"
However, right before the blade was about to hit, it suddenly let out a furious roar and sprang up in a flash. It knocked the incoming blade away and swung its Wolf Fang Club, smashing it heavily against... the empty air before it.
Lin Mo sneered. He wasn't stupid enough to risk getting close. Just now, he had merely picked up Larry's weapon and thrown it.
"Damn you... You deserve to die!" In its fury, Zadon's speech even became a bit more fluent. It wished nothing more than to crush Lin Mo's head with a single strike.
But no matter how enraged it was, it couldn't even touch a hair on Lin Mo's head.
Lin Mo then picked up Leo's weapon and hurled it over. Zadon naively fell for it once again, smashing the tree trunk in front of it to splinters. Taking advantage of the opening, Lin Mo circled around and retrieved Larry's weapon that he had just thrown. He even took a running start and hurled it forcefully like a javelin.
"SCHLICK!"
This time, the blade finally struck Zadon's back. Although it didn't hit a vital spot, it buried itself solidly into its abdominal cavity. Blood immediately gushed from the wound.
The pain made Zadon increasingly anxious. It knew that if it couldn't catch that little bug who only knew how to launch sneak attacks, it would soon bleed to death. But Lin Mo simply refused to give it any chances. He consistently maintained a safe distance, even entering Stealth to constantly harass the monster. Seizing another opportunity, he picked up Leo's weapon and sent it plunging into Zadon's chest cavity as well.
Zadon had lost all its strength. The once impossibly arrogant Mutated Goblin was now covered in blood, leaning miserably against a tree, its breathing growing exceedingly weak. It couldn't even lift its own weapon anymore. Excessive blood loss caused its consciousness to blur. Yet even so, that damn little bug still didn't come forward to give it a quick death, opting instead to continually pick up stones from the ground and pelt them against its forehead.
It wasn't until Zadon's head had been brutally battered into a swollen mess, and it was entirely certain that the monster had no possibility of fighting back, that Lin Mo finally tightened his grip on his sword. He stepped forward quickly and executed a single strike, lopping off the Mutated Goblin's head.
[Slashing] Skill Level +5
[Stealth] Skill Level +5
Five points of Skill Level? Lin Mo was taken aback for a moment. It seemed that killing different Demons yielded different amounts of Skill Level. This also made logical sense—challenging stronger opponents resulted in higher rewards. In comparison, however, he was much more willing to deal with those non-threatening Goblins and use them to grind out his Skills' Skill Level.
A thrilling battle had finally drawn to a close, with Lin Mo securing the ultimate victory. But of the original five-man squad, he was now the only one left.
He glanced at Leo's corpse, then at Larry, who had been unconscious for a long time and had likely already breathed his last. Finally, he turned his gaze toward a tree not too far away, where Rhein's body lay silently. Beside him was the girl, covered in wounds.
Lin Mo slowly walked over and crouched down in front of her, looking at the dried tear tracks on her face and her hollow eyes.
"Thank you."
The girl spoke softly. She had watched with her own eyes as that damned monster fell, witnessing its desperate struggles before death. It was just like her parents, who had been abducted here with her, spending two unimaginably agonizing days in a pitch-black cave. They had watched helplessly as she was brutalized by those Goblins, only to be brutally murdered right in front of her yesterday evening...
Yet, her heart held no joy of avenging a great grudge. She couldn't even feel sorrow anymore; all that remained was a tranquility as still as stagnant water.
Lin Mo reached his hand out to the girl. She gently shook her head, breathing quietly and evenly.
As the blood-scented air filled her lungs, carrying a faint trace of fresh grass, she greedily took a deep breath. At that moment, her expression froze.
She had drawn the dagger strapped to Rhein's boot and, slowly but resolutely, plunged it into her own chest.
The moment the pain hit, a hint of relief seemed to flash through her eyes. Using the last of her strength, the girl embraced her family member beside her. Leaning against Rhein's shoulder, she gazed at the warm sun on the horizon.
The glaring sunlight made her half-squint. Sporadic birdsong drifted through the woods, and a gentle breeze brushed past her cheeks, just like that afternoon under the shade of the trees years ago, when they had snuggled against each other, dreaming of the future...