Chapter 63

Blocking, he pushed the goblin's head to the side with force, being careful not to lose his balance. Zhao Mai's right hand followed closely, plunging the two bayonets of the saber-toothed beast gun into the goblin's body.

Blood spurted from the wound, splashing onto Zhao Mai's shoulder. Since the vital points were not hit, the goblin was not dead, but fortunately, it posed no immediate threat. At the same time, another goblin pounced, aiming its sharp blade at Zhao Mai's unprotected ribs.

Reserve Grain pounced, biting the goblin's wrist, forcing it to drop its weapon. Zhao Mai turned and slashed horizontally, creating a deep gash in the attacker's neck. As the goblin was about to die, it desperately tried to grab Zhao Mai, but was tripped by Reserve Grain and fell to the ground hard.

The rope around his waist vibrated from time to time, indicating that a companion was crossing the river. The situation was urgent, and Zhao Mai had no time to look back at the river. He could only bravely block the goblin's charge. Fortunately, with an animal companion, a druid could still be quite powerful in the early stages, not much worse than a dedicated warrior. Zhao Mai also had a musket, and his confidence allowed him to remain calm.

This calmness made Lucius somewhat envious. Since the goblins had charged, he had to abandon his longbow and use a spear instead. If he had been more patient and had the cheetah defend and protect rather than charge and disrupt, a feline predator would have been enough to help him maintain distance and leverage his archery skills. He had once mocked Zhao Mai for bringing too many cumbersome items, but now he realized that each one seemed to be useful.

"Lucius, you know some spells, now is not the time to be stingy!"

The blonde finally realized his tactical mistake and immediately called the cheetah back. Taking advantage of the moment when the cheetah's pincer attack distracted the enemy, Lucius took two steps back and began to cast a spell.

Amid the sound of sand and gravel sliding, a pale red giant centipede emerged from the ground, charging at the goblins. If the centipede stood up, it would be almost as tall as Zhao Mai, and its thickness was comparable. Even two goblins stacked on top of each other would not match its size. "Damn it! Kill! Kill!" the goblins shouted, and two of them immediately ran over.

"Mike, the two women have already crossed, we need to prepare to retreat!" Lucius suddenly shouted, "I found that there seem to be more enemies in the forest!"

Zhao Mai looked up and saw that it was true; six more goblins were charging. One goblin at the back wore a ring of chicken feathers on its head and held a short staff.

"There's a spellcaster, retreat! Retreat!" Zhao Mai whistled, ordering Reserve Grain to immediately cross the river. The little dog refused the order, retreating to Zhao Mai's side, determined to share his fate.

There was no more time to hesitate! Zhao Mai swung his arm, released the grip that controlled the shield, and used his left hand to assist his right in holding the gun, aiming the black barrel at a goblin that was leaping towards him.

With a pull of his right index finger, the gunpowder exploded! The processed flat bullet shattered upon impact with the goblin, slicing through the leather armor and rolling inside the fragile body, shredding the internal organs. The goblin flew back the same way it had leaped, with blood and flesh splattering in the air.

The goblins were all shocked, their movements clearly hesitating. They had never seen such a weapon before, and the loud explosion still caused pain in their eardrums, while the immense power instilled fear in their hearts. Some goblins' eyes showed hesitation, and they might be about to run away.

At this moment, the goblins must not regain confidence. They are a pack animal, bullying the weak and fearing the strong, only capable of fighting when the wind is in their favor. If their numbers are sufficient, they would dare to attack a dragon. But if one goblin is intimidated by the dragon's presence and flees in fear, the remaining goblins will also flee without hesitation.

There was still one round in the saber-toothed beast gun. Zhao Mai adjusted the barrel, aiming at another goblin. Just as he was about to pull the trigger, a thick fog suddenly appeared, enveloping him completely.

The gun fired as usual, but it was unclear whether it hit the target. Zhao Mai immediately realized this was the druid's obscuring mist: a spell that creates a fog to block vision, making everything invisible beyond two steps, even to those with darkvision.

"Lucius, you idiot, how could you cast obscuring mist without warning?" The fog could provide cover for retreat, but it also prevented the goblins' morale from collapsing—since they couldn't see the apprentices, they also couldn't see their comrades' gruesome deaths! Moreover...

Zhao Mai exclaimed, immediately picking up Reserve Grain and running towards the river. The obscuring mist centered on the caster, moving with the caster during its duration, but it had a flaw: it could not be cast in water.

Once Lucius entered the river and was submerged, the fog would immediately dissipate. At that moment, Zhao Mai would be left alone on the riverbank, facing a group of goblins who had regained their vision, and he would have no chance of survival! Retreat was the best strategy, and Zhao Mai did not hesitate for a moment, turning and running immediately.

As he ran, a purple light ball penetrated the thick fog, curved in the air, and hit Zhao Mai with a bang. The leather armor was immediately torn, and his body was hit hard, with blood seeping from the left side of his ribs, nearly causing him to fall. "Damn goblin spellcaster, damn magic missile! It must have been aimed before the obscuring mist was cast!" Zhao Mai cursed in his heart, but fortunately, one magic missile was not enough to be fatal.

The magic missile had a certain speed, but as long as the target was seen when it was cast, it would inevitably hit. Only barrier spells could negate the damage. Some said that if the target tried to dodge and use non-lethal parts as cover, it could avoid serious injury. Without the obscuring mist, if Zhao Mai had seen the missile, he might have tried the latter method. Now, the fact that it didn't hit his face and didn't turn him from somewhat presentable to unrecognizable was already a stroke of luck.

He took a few steps and plunged into the water, re-shouldering the musket. With one hand holding Reserve Grain and the other pulling the rope, it was impossible to swim with a backpack. Zhao Mai could only rely on the people on the other side to pull him over.

The river water rose to his chest, making it difficult to walk with both feet. However, the fog had not yet dissipated, and the goblins still couldn't see him. Unless his luck was so bad that the heavens hated him, he wouldn't be hit by the goblins' random weapons. Besides, Zhao Mai used the wooden shield to cover one side of his body, as long as the rope...

He shouldn't have mentioned the rope. His hand slipped, and the rope broke. Zhao Mai panicked, choking on some water, and quickly grabbed the wooden shield as a float, drifting downstream.

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