Far in the northeast direction of the mining area, within the swamp fortress, the second trial of the "Goblin Ripper" was underway.
Chen Yu's main body stood in the center of the temporarily cleared area, his form slightly undulating as he compared the new formation diagram to the ground, appearing exceptionally focused.
Standing guard like a rock nearby was Arthur, who had just returned from the dryad territory, his eye sockets' soulfire flickering as he quietly observed everything.
Even at night, the territory was bustling with activity, and soon many curious onlookers had gathered.
"Yoohoo, I hope this Count hasn't missed this grand experiment."
Count Bran fluttered his wings, habitually landing on Arthur's cold, hard shoulder armor, seemingly having already forgotten his vow to "never pay him any mind."
At the entrance of the tree hall, Slime Mother led a group of little slimes quietly poking out their round bodies, squeezing together as they curiously watched.
Among them, Little Flower was the most interested, because she had seen this constellation in the starry sky before.
Peachy, Beet... almost everyone had gathered, only the unlucky Yano couldn't make it to this grand experiment.
Completely different from the previous Big Dipper formation foundation, the new formation was larger in scale, with ten Gray Gravel Crystals serving as formation foundations precisely buried according to the star chart positions of the Jelov Ten-Star Silver Seat.
The winding talismans on the ground had also become more complex, with several additional talismans connecting various points.
Arthur assisted nearby, embedding each Gray Gravel Crystal into predetermined positions according to the formation diagram, then carefully attaching talismans to the endpoints of the mud lines, the entire process meticulous as if performing a sacred ritual.
After burying the Formation Pivot Jade Talisman in its designated position, Arthur carefully carried His Majesty away from the formation.
"Here it comes."
Chen Yu channeled spiritual energy, activating the crystal catalyst in his hand.
Hum—!
The ten Gray Gravel Crystals instantly lit up, no longer chaotic like last time, but following the trajectory of the "Jelov Ten-Star Silver Seat," they connected stably and brilliantly into a mysterious and majestic star chart.
Tremendous energy surged along the talismans, emitting a deep and powerful roar, finally transforming into a rushing silver torrent that precisely poured into the Formation Pivot Jade Talisman.
The jade talisman suddenly erupted with intense silver light too bright to look at directly, as if pulling down a small piece of the starry sky.
Under everyone's gaze, a condensed, substantial silver light beam abruptly burst forth from the jade talisman.
BOOM!!
A explosive roar sounded.
The ground noticeably shook.
Dust and broken grass leaves rose and fell, revealing that the pile of clay pots and wooden stakes serving as targets had been completely shattered, leaving behind a washbasin-sized deep pit with scorched, smoking soil at the bottom.
Success!
Chen Yu happily bounced in Arthur's palm.
Count Bran's eyes also lit up.
"This thing packs a punch, harder than an enraged bugbear swinging a spiked club with full force. One blast could blow away a whole group of goblins."
"If we could line the fortress walls with a row of these, when the Magical Tides come, those imps and goblins crowded together would be dead no matter how many show up."
Exactly.
The most terrifying aspect of the Goblin Ripper-Type I wasn't its power, but its replicability.
Imagine such formation artillery towers spread all around the fortress—how spectacular that scene would be.
However, building Goblin Rippers required Gray Gravel Crystals, more Gray Gravel Crystals, and they were still far from having enough.
Chen Yu's thoughts turned again to the Goblin Army's ore.
...
Obsidian Mining Area.
The scar-faced man called Kane rested leaning against the cold rock wall. Even after being imprisoned in this damned mine for years, he still retained the alertness honed from his former mercenary career, sleeping very lightly like a lurking leopard.
"Kane, wake up."
A heavily suppressed voice came from outside the shack.
Kane's eyes instantly opened as he slipped into the shadows, one hand gripping the noisy leg irons, silently emerging.
He saw Anvil crouching nervously by the wooden wall of the shack, like a plump groundhog.
"Anvil?"
Kane's voice was low and hoarse, carrying confusion. "It's so late, what's wrong?"
Anvil cautiously looked around, then shoved a cloth bundle still emitting faint warmth into Kane's hands, along with a leather water bag.
"Listen, there's food inside. The water bag contains clean water, enough for everyone to ease their hunger. Move quietly, don't make any noise."
Kane took the warm ragged cloth, smelling the faint aroma, his pupils involuntarily contracting.
He sharply looked up, staring at Anvil, his voice dropping even lower.
"Where did you get this?!"
This was too unusual, practically like conjuring gold out of thin air in the Obsidian Mining Area.
"Distribute it first, I'll explain in detail when you return."
Kane took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the surging shock and countless questions.
He gave Anvil a deep look, nodded, quickly retreated into the shack, then woke his sleeping companions one by one, using glances and gestures to signal them to remain quiet.
When the bundle opened and the food's aroma spread, everyone awake in the shack instantly widened their eyes, gasps rising one after another, saliva uncontrollably flooding their mouths.
"This is... food?!"
"Boss, this... where did you..."
"Shh! This is Morgul's blessing, don't spread it. Be careful, don't make noise."
Upon hearing this, everyone immediately fell silent, understanding expressions appearing on their faces as they silently prayed thanks to Morgul in their hearts, then carefully began sharing this hard-won blessing.
After everyone had barely filled their stomachs and some vitality returned to their faces, Kane once again silently slipped into Anvil's narrow shack.
"Anvil, you can explain now. What exactly is going on?"
Anvil gestured for him to look at Little John sleeping soundly in the corner, then handed him reserved food and water.
"The little one ate his fill and fell asleep. Don't worry, eat first while I explain."
After Kane began eating silently, Anvil leaned closer, lowering his voice. "Remember the 'divine grace' I mentioned yesterday?"
"Someone is deliberately spreading it?" Kane asked calmly, as if he had anticipated this.
"Which faction?"
"A faction from the Eastern Swamp that's hostile to the Goblin Army..."
Anvil carefully chose his words, ultimately not saying "Slime Kingdom" aloud. It wasn't about hiding it, he just worried Kane wouldn't believe him.
"They're secretly supporting us. The Magical Tides in three days is our opportunity."
"Kane, I want you to take Little John and escape this damned place during the chaos. You still retain your Stealth skills, there's a chance."
"What about you?"
Kane instinctively asked, but as the words left his mouth, he knew the answer and fell silent, just chewing the food in his mouth more forcefully.
Anvil shook his head. "Someone has to stay behind, Kane."
"Resistance isn't child's play. It requires paying a price, someone needs to attract attention, needs... sacrifice. You're still young, Little John is even younger. You should survive."
The shack fell into prolonged silence, only the heavy breathing of the two men audible.
Finally, Kane swallowed his last bite of food, looked up, and asked a very practical question.
"Can that mysterious faction... also deliver food to believers in other camps?"
"Yes." Anvil nodded firmly. "But you need to contact them in advance, tell them the receiving method and signals."
"I understand."
Kane stood up, without saying any more emotional words, just firmly patted Anvil's shoulder. "Regardless... thank them for me."
After speaking, he left, burdened with heavy thoughts.
...
As time passed, the night gradually faded.
Sunlight filtered down through the giant crystals penetrating the ground and the dungeon, bringing some pale illumination to the gloomy Obsidian Mining Area.
Kane led his companions, following the numb procession heading to the mine pits.
Compared to other lifeless slaves with only despair in their eyes, his group, though equally ragged, appeared to be in much better mental condition.
Indeed, having eaten their fill made all the difference—even thinking about facing the hard labor, their inner complaints had diminished.
Anvil remained in the camp pretending to be severely injured and not yet recovered, cared for by Little John, not drawing excessive attention from other slaves.
Kane returned to yesterday's mining level, picked up his iron pick, and mechanically swung at the hard ore wall like other slaves.
But whenever the patrolling Goblin Overseer turned his back, he would quickly use extremely covert hand signals to communicate silently with several other seemingly ordinary slaves in distant mine tunnels.
This vast mining area enslaved nearly five hundred slaves, including many Corrupted believers captured from various hidden corners of the Corrupted Miasma Mountains, scattered across different camps, totaling about forty-two people.
Kane had spent years, like weaving an invisible net, secretly consolidating this force, waiting for a slim opportunity.
And now that opportunity had finally arrived.
After cautiously passing on the messages about "food" and "the trial," even across the great distance and dim light, he could sense the instant ignition of shock and ecstatic fire in the eyes of the believers who received the information.
Doubt still existed, but once night fell and tangible food miraculously appeared in their hands, all skepticism would be completely shattered.
Having accomplished all this, Kane just breathed a secret sigh of relief.
Crack!
A vicious whip shadow suddenly lashed across his back, the searing pain making him stagger and nearly fall.
Kane's heart sank sharply.
Had he been discovered?!
While his mind raced with wild thoughts, he heard the Goblin Overseer's shrill cursing.
"Idiot! Can't you see Lord Hammerbone is coming? Kneel, all of you lower your heads!"
"Yes, yes..."
Kane put on a cowardly, submissive expression, quickly kneeling on the scaffolding with the other slaves.
He cautiously lifted his eyelids, his gaze directed downward, his heart covered with a thick layer of gloom.
What's going on?
Why would Hammerbone suddenly come to these bottom-level mine pits?
His internal alarm bells rang loudly, worried the plan would encounter complications.
Then he heard the Goblin Shaman's voice from below.
"Lord Hammerbone, you've finally returned."
"After that Dogtooth fellow left riding that wild boar, he never came back. He must have been killed by the Eastern Swamp faction."
"Lord Hammerbone, this is practically a provocation against us goblins. You can't ignore this."
Hammerbone irritably waved his hand, driving away approaching mosquitoes. "Useless, can't even handle such a small matter properly."
"How many days until the Magical Tides?"
"Three days. Three days later. The information came from those humans, absolutely correct."
Hammerbone shouldered his morning star and left. "Good. In three days, you come with me. We'll crush these annoying pests, so they stop buzzing around me every day."
"Excellent! With you taking action, it's doomsday for those undead!" The Goblin Shaman flattered as he followed Hammerbone disappearing deep into the fortress.
"Eastern Swamp?"
Kane's heart sank.
That faction supporting them from behind?
This is bad, trouble is coming.
When the day's hard labor ended, Kane received his pitiful "green soup" and hard bread, returned to the slave camp, immediately found Anvil, and with a grave expression, fully revealed this bad news.
After the two talked for a while, when Kane left with an uneasy expression, Nanny Brother popped out from the shadows behind Anvil.
"Envoy, this won't lead to trouble, will it?"
"Hammerbone, that bugbear is quite terrifying. He once single-handedly wiped out several Official Professionals squads." Anvil couldn't help but worry.
Nanny Brother swayed slightly, puffing out his little belly, calmly saying, "Relax, the secret weapon has already been installed."
Dare to provoke him?
It seems these goblins want to taste some cannon fire.