Li Xizheng was anticipating the next move of this group. He saw a large number of bear goblins, not inferior in height to Nuo Han, their bodies covered in coarse black fur, push through the bushes, wielding massive bone clubs.
Bear goblins were an anomaly among goblins, an elite, a ruling class. Ordinary goblins were less than 1.3 meters tall and weighed no more than sixty pounds, inherently timid, only daring to attack larger creatures when moving in groups.
Bear goblins, however, were generally 2.2 meters tall and weighed 550 pounds. They didn't resemble goblins at all, looking more like wild bears with sharp teeth and strong bodies. Their bodies jiggled with fat as they walked, hence the name bear goblin. Upon reaching adulthood, they possessed the strength of a Level 3 warrior, were inherently ferocious, and dared to attack enemies alone. They particularly enjoyed crushing enemies' skulls, though they usually chose opponents weaker than themselves.
Now, no less than fifty bear goblins were charging from the depths of the forest. The large leg bones they wielded, from some unknown creature, were stained with indelible red blood. It was clear this group of bear goblins was the fighting elite of the goblin race.
Unfortunately for them, they were facing Li Xi, a crosser who was even more unreasonable.
Li Xi clapped his hands together.
"Water Style: Water Release Wave"
The moment the high-speed, high-pressure water jet sprayed from Li Xi's mouth, it transformed into the scythe of the grim reaper, an invitation from the king of hell. These bear goblins, with brains no larger than a fist, faced this attack not by dodging, but by roaring defiantly at Li Xi with their unbrushed mouths.
Whether it was ignorance that made them arrogant, or their strong bodies that made them disdain everything, Li Xi's single horizontal sweep left half the bear goblins with legs forever severed. Their upper bodies were also significantly shortened, falling to the ground and making them shorter than their direct relatives, the ordinary goblins.
Under the assault of such ninjutsu, no matter how strong their bodies, they could not escape the limitations of flesh and blood.
Perhaps the tragic fate of their brethren in front made the remaining bear goblins a little clearer-headed, and they began to hesitate.
The gushing blood splattered their faces like a geyser, hot intestines and organs spilled out, and some bear goblins, though not dead yet, were beyond saving, digging at the dirt with their fingers and screaming in agony. Others found their severed lower halves and tried to reattach them to their brothers, while some reached out for help from their un-dismembered friends. Such sights frantically stimulated their optic nerves. No matter how much they resembled bears, it couldn't change their inherent goblin nature, and the ancient instinct to flee from unbeatable enemies continued to influence them.
Li Xi's sneer made the remaining bear goblins see the ferocity of a devil. Without another word, they turned and fled. Their previous imposing demeanor was now replaced by a desperate wish to tuck their tails even smaller, hoping not to attract Li Xi's attention.
Li Xi was speechless. A single ninjutsu had stopped the attack and left behind twenty-five corpses groaning weaker and weaker. No wonder bear goblins could never amount to anything; they were a bunch of brainless fools.
"Mr. Li Xi, well done." Feilin and Zuolin had seen the entire situation. While they hadn't taken the fifty bear goblins seriously, Li Xi's effortless repulsion and the elimination of fifty percent of their forces, using such a peculiar attack, couldn't help but earn their praise. His ability to handle things with such ease was like an art form; even killing was pleasing to the eye.
"Gentlemen, could you tell me who these people are? From their appearance, they seem to know you well." Li Xi's peculiar eyes scanned the surroundings. The temporary lull in the attack gave Li Xi time to gather information from Feilin and Zuolin.
"We dare not deceive you, Mr. Li Xi. We only know they are called the Hunter Squad. They are very strong and specialize in assassination missions..."
As Feilin was explaining the situation to Li Xi, not far away at the foot of a mountain, the archer who had escaped Li Xi's arrows stood beside a figure in a black robe, head bowed, clearly being reprimanded for his failure.
Just then, a slender beauty wielding a barbed whip jumped down from a tree. The whip still carried some bloodied black fur. Upon her appearance, the beauty lowered her head. "Boss, my subordinates were halved the moment they engaged. They were so scared they all fled and are no longer willing to attack."
The black-robed boss looked at the beauty and the archer with emotionless eyes, remaining silent. The atmosphere became extremely oppressive. In the cold weather, the archer and the beauty even broke out in cold sweat, their bodies frozen and not daring to move.
Perhaps it was because the appearance of Li Xi had disrupted their plans, but the black-robed boss didn't reprimand them further. Instead, he lightly tapped the ground with his toe.
"Go with Second. You have one more chance. If you fail again, don't expect to return intact."
"Thank you, Boss." The archer and the beauty immediately agreed, as if afraid that a second's delay would result in being ordered to commit suicide as atonement.
In the shadows cast by the moonlight on the ground, a slender figure slowly rose from the darkness. Before his lower body had fully emerged, he nodded to the black robe. With eyes colder than a dead person's, he looked at the archer and the beauty before sinking back into the shadows.
The two dared not argue. Compared to the boss, Second's methods were even more cruel. After quickly bowing to the black-robed boss, they hurried back towards the caravan.
.........
Having understood the situation, Li Xi let out an "oh." These were people similar to the Assassin's Guild, sent by Feilin's enemies to assassinate them. Moreover, such assassinations would not be a one-off. As long as they hadn't reached the territory of Aichinger, the assassinations would be continuous. Therefore, Li Xi's mission wouldn't end in the first half but would continue throughout.
Feilin was quite sincere. Apart from not revealing his own identity, he told Li Xi everything else truthfully.
In fact, Feilin and his companions were not particularly familiar with the Hunter Squad, only knowing the general outline. They knew there were six core members, with the rest being peripheral members. Those who were tying up Nuo Han and the other warriors were peripheral members. Lacking the strength to become official members, they were relegated to the most difficult and tiring tasks.
As for the specific professions within the Hunter Squad, they only knew those who had appeared so far, such as the puppeteer behind them, the mage entangled by the shadow clones, the archer who was scared away by Li Xi's arrows, and a slave owner who could command bear goblins. As for the last two, Feilin and the others knew nothing, for legend had it that anyone who had seen them in action was already dead.
Therefore, Li Xi now had to be extremely vigilant against the last two. Those who had appeared earlier had already proven to be no match for Li Xi in actual combat.
The sound of numerous footsteps approaching from a distance interrupted Li Xi's conversation with Feilin. The bear goblins who had fled earlier had returned, but clear bloodstains could be seen on their bodies, with blood constantly dripping. These injuries made them face Li Xi again, and even though they were terrified and hesitant, they had to advance. Li Xi could kill them, but if they didn't advance, the slave owner would torture them to death upon their return. Faced with immediate death or torture to death, these bear goblins chose the quicker option.
The bear goblins had become smarter and no longer gathered together, but began to attack in a widely dispersed manner. Li Xi clasped his hands together, about to use "Water Style: Water Release Wave" again, but an iron arrow, carrying the power to pierce metal and shatter stone, tore through the air and appeared before Li Xi, interrupting his prepared ninjutsu.
As the bear goblins pressed forward rapidly, a slender beauty riding a Thunderous Bear emerged from the darkness of the forest. The Thunderous Bear was a Level 5 magical beast, standing four meters tall, with a tuft of yellow lightning marks on its chest, a rare magical beast with a lightning affinity. The aura of the young woman on its back also seemed to be around Level 4. She was likely the slave owner Feilin had mentioned. Coupled with the archer hidden in the distance, constantly watching Li Xi, Li Xi and the three carriages behind him were soon surrounded.
Add to that the last two, who were rumored to kill anyone who saw them, and the situation had reached its worst point. Zuolin emerged from the carriages again. Even Feilin, who had been calmly observing, couldn't help but come out, holding a pure white staff. It turned out this woman was also a cleric.
Clerics were similar to priestesses but had differences. Clerics leaned more towards support, with no offensive power. If using a staff as a hammer to kill a goblin could be considered offense, then a cleric's offensive power was equivalent to three goblins.
Priestesses possessed both support magic and offensive divine arts, though support magic constituted a larger portion.
Upon facing each other, there were no attempts at surrender or probing verbal exchanges. The slave owner beauty flicked her whip, and with a crisp crack, the bear goblins shivered in unison, then gritted their teeth and launched a suicidal charge at Li Xi.
After directing all the bear goblins, the beautiful slave owner did not stop. She squeezed her slender legs, and the Thunderous Bear beneath her opened its maw, larger than a rural cooking pot. Crackling currents began to gather in its mouth, appearing as if it were about to unleash a laser cannon to flatten Li Xi.
The archer hiding in the darkness had grasped the essence of sniping, firing an arrow and then changing position, always shooting at the most inconvenient moment for Li Xi.
Sensing danger, Zuolin took out a scroll from his spatial ring and was about to tear it open to gain an advantage. Feilin was even more extravagant, taking out a handful of magic crystals. Judging by their different luminosity and contained magic, these crystals had clearly been infused with magic. They were indeed wealthy. Both the scroll in Zuolin's hand and the handful of magic crystals in Feilin's hand were worth at least ten thousand gold. Even Li Xi's current fortune would only allow him to dabble in low-level ones. To acquire items like these, they would need to earn for several more years.
Li Xi smiled slightly, reached out, and caught an iron arrow, then casually threw it at the fastest charging bear goblin. The iron arrow pierced directly through its eye socket and shot out from the back of its head, blasting all the brain matter. The bear goblin fell to the ground without a sound, its back of the head resembling that of a wild boar that had its skull split open.
"Gentlemen, please calm down. This level of strength is not something I fear. Please keep an eye out for sneak attacks from those two, and leave these despicable people who dare to rob my protected caravan to me."
With that said, Li Xi unexpectedly stomped heavily on the ground. No one expected Li Xi to suddenly lower his body, causing the archer's arrow to miss.
"Earth Style: Earth Wall"
The Earth Wall wasn't drawn by Li Xi, but by a shadow clone that obtained it through a mission. This was Li Xi's first time using it.
A wall of earth, half a meter thick and three meters high, rose from the ground, forming a semi-circle that enclosed Li Xi and the three carriages. This height meant that apart from the Thunderous Bear standing up, no one could see the shadows of Li Xi and the carriages behind him.