Chapter 1263 - 620: Mutation and Unexpected Discovery

"Stop them, don’t let these green-skinned rats get through!"

Wrinkles crowded his face, his head full of white hair, a man around fifty, thin in build, stood in the middle of the dirt road marked with footprints between houses, shouting loudly.

Behind him, the hasty backs of children and the elderly could be vaguely seen rapidly retreating towards a temporary granary located in the center of the village, which housed a large cellar completed many years ago and was equipped with enough supplies and food for dozens of people to live on for half a year.

In front of him was a defensive line formed by the villagers.

There were strong men wielding inherited longswords, burly rural women tightly gripping grass forks, and even slightly further back stood a few thin, nervous-looking boys around fourteen or fifteen years old, their expressions filled with determination, without the slightest thought of retreat.

And further ahead, outside the makeshift defense line constructed of fences, haystacks, and overturned carts, was a mass exuding an ominous, nauseating dark green.

These were more than twenty goblins staring at the villagers with fierce intent!

Something seemed strange.

Under normal circumstances, these Green-skinned Goblins facing their enticing prey should already be driven by uncontrollable desires, launching a frenzied attack on the villagers.

But now, although the twisted desires churning within them could still be judged by the occasional frenzied, twisted "screeches" echoing in the air,

none of the more than twenty goblins charged forward from their group to the temporary defensive traps ahead.

In the absence of a "Bear Goblin," or "Earth Goblin" as a leader among these ordinary goblins, they strangely displayed a sense of discipline that shouldn’t be seen in them.

This peculiar behavior was, of course, observed by the roughly fifty-year-old man on the other side, presumably the village chief.

While surprised, he carefully observed every move of the opponents.

As the goblins attempted to find a path to bypass the obstacles ahead, he decisively ordered the villagers to launch an attack.

Clearly, he had rich experience in dealing with these cowardly yet frantic creatures.

With a command, women hiding at the second-floor windows of the wooden houses on either side, poured down several pots of already prepared boiling water.

The aim was generally accurate, with most of it splashing onto the open ground.

But even just the sudden surge of scalding steam in the air and the searing drops that splashed onto a few goblins, making them wail in agony, dealt a significant blow to the goblins’ morale, which was originally building up.

"Whoosh!"

A sharp arrow tore through the air, piercing into a goblin’s chest in an instant, pinning it firmly to the ground as the fletching trembled.

From the rooftop nearby, the village’s only Hunter held his wooden bow steadily, his eyes sharp.

"Aaaahhhh!"

Fully aware that even the slightest hint of fear in facing these green-skinned rats would fuel their courage.

The villagers launched attack after attack.

Using the makeshift fence ahead as cover, the strongest and bravest villagers at the forefront roared and charged at the goblins.

For a moment, the shrill screeches of the goblins, human roars, and the grating sound of metal piercing flesh echoed above the muddy ground incessantly.

After all, they were just ordinary villagers without training, with limited combat efficiency; even if well-prepared, it was hard to say they could defeat all the goblins in just one round.

Yet despite this, a total of five goblins immediately died under the villagers’ assault.

The elderly village chief held a wooden stick, his face tense, his eyes flashing with a satisfied gleam.

Such damage completely met his expectations.

From his many years of understanding the goblins, even after losing five companions, there were still more than twenty goblins.

But the large-scale death of their fellow goblins in a short time would greatly impact the morale of these weak demons, even directly leading to this goblin group’s collapse, no longer able to maintain formation, fleeing while shrieking.

If nothing unexpected happened, at most another two rounds of assault, this goblin group would be thoroughly scattered, and the crisis would be resolved.

"Screech!"

The sharp, twisted screeches pulled the village chief’s wandering thoughts back to reality.

Seeing the scene before him, he was momentarily stunned.

These green-skinned goblins, who should be in decline after the massive death of their companions,

now seemed like a different species, their instinctive timidity on their faces suddenly replaced by a distorted fervor in a very short time, facing the roaring villagers charging at them.

Some that had already thrown away their weapons, ready to flee, now shrieked as they picked up the wooden sticks on the ground and rushed at the villagers.

"Damn it!!"

The village chief didn’t know why these goblins behaved so strangely.

There was no time to ponder more in this moment, either.

This was a small village deep in the mountains, manpower was limited, and every ounce of strength was crucial in battle.

Even at fifty-three, he tightly gripped the stick in his hand and charged towards the goblins.

"Ugh ah!!"