The night in the Obsidian Mining Area was deathly silent, with only the crackling sound of torches audible.
In the other slave camps, those Corrupted believers secretly contacted by Kane were currently waiting with anxious hearts.
They curled up in their cold shacks, enduring the hunger in their bellies, their eyes filled with longing for a vague hope.
"Is what Kane said... really true?" a man so thin he looked skeletal asked his companion in a breathy voice.
Because of hunger, his voice sounded somewhat weak.
As one of the oldest slaves in this mining area, he had watched countless people die, but unless something unexpected happened, he probably wouldn't make it through this year, maybe not even through this summer.
Maybe it would be better to just die like this... but then Kane, their nominal Corrupted leader, had brought them hope, brought news of food.
But this also made tonight even more agonizing.
"I don't know... Even if it's false, what do we have to lose?"
They recalled the secret information Kane had passed along, clumsily and cautiously moving their bodies as he instructed, assuming the posture said to obtain food—facing the shack entrance, one hand pressed against their heart.
Then came the long, anxious wait.
Time passed bit by bit, the mine pit completely falling into dead silence, with only the occasional roar of Magical Creatures from afar and the heavy breathing of their companions.
The expected "miracle" didn't appear immediately, the cold reality like water poured over their heads gradually extinguishing the flame of hope that had just ignited in their eyes.
Sleepiness and disappointment struck together, some people beginning to falter, their heads nodding, almost sinking into despairing sleep.
"Hey."
Suddenly, one believer very lightly pushed his companion beside him, his voice trembling slightly from extreme tension, "You... did you hear something?"
The awakened person jolted alert, holding his breath and listening intently.
At first, there was complete silence.
But soon, a faint "rustling" sound, as if coming from outside the camp or moving through the shack, drifted faintly into their ears.
It wasn't an illusion!
Both instantly lost all sleepiness, their eyes wide open, staring fixedly at the darkness outside, their hearts pounding so hard they felt like they might burst from their chests.
"Seems like there really is."
"Is it... from over there?"
Their voices were extremely low, filled with disbelief and suspicion.
Just then, strange black shadows appeared outside the shack, several dark Beetles carrying heavy objects walking over dazedly.
When they saw their strange posture, they unhesitatingly crawled over, carefully pushing out several bundles wrapped in clean leaves, along with two leather water bags, gently dropping them onto the ground before them.
The Beetles that completed the task didn't linger at all, quickly departing.
Leaving only the two believers staring blankly at the undeniably real food and water at their feet, their nostrils filled with the charred aroma of food, shock and ecstasy instantly flooding over them like a tide.
They reached out trembling hands, touching the warm bundles, confirming this wasn't a hallucination before death.
"Morgul above..."
One of them grabbed a charred, fragrant tuber, stuffed it into his mouth and bit down hard, the hot starchy paste instantly filling his mouth, almost making him cry.
"It's true... it's real, Kane didn't lie to us."
All remaining doubts were completely shattered at this moment, replaced by a near-frantic piety.
The god had finally heard their prayers!
...
The next day, pale light once again seeped into the mine pit.
On the scaffolding of the mining area, Kane's heart felt like it was weighed down by a massive rock, restless and uneasy. He mechanically swung his pickaxe, but his gaze kept glancing toward figures in other mine tunnels in the distance.
He couldn't be sure if yesterday's message had accurately reached those believers, and even less sure if the food had reached their hands.
Just as he was unsettled, a believer working in the distance, seemingly stumbling after being whipped by an overseer, took the opportunity to make an extremely subtle gesture toward him.
Wait.
This meant "received," "thank you"!
Success!
Kane's heart suddenly relaxed, an indescribable feeling of excitement dispelling the fatigue and anxiety of recent days.
This force from the Eastern Swamp could actually transport food to every Corrupted believer under the Goblin's heavy surveillance.
It felt too mysterious and reliable, perhaps as those Goblins said, the one controlling the Eastern Swamp was a mysterious and powerful Undead mage.
This gave him some additional confidence in the upcoming rebellion movement.
However, this excitement didn't last long.
He noticed that the Goblin patrols in the mine pit today seemed more hurried than usual.
Squads of Goblin Soldiers moved with quick steps, jogging past, their faces showing irritation and impatience, weapons clanking noisily.
"Damn it all!"
A squad of Goblins ran cursing beneath Kane, their voices faintly audible, "How did a mana anomaly suddenly appear deep in the fortress? The monitoring crystals are flashing like crazy."
"And it attracted all those annoying cave spiders and rock bats from nearby caves, it's a complete mess."
"Shut up, hurry to assemble, Hammerbone is furious, says we need to investigate what's going on..."
Mana anomaly?
Kane froze, his pickaxe swinging slowing for a beat.
This sudden development—he couldn't tell if it was good or bad.
The appearance of mana anomalies often came with unpredictable dangers, either the arrival of high-level Magical Creatures, or even the precursor to some large-scale spell getting out of control...
Happening at this critical moment, in the core area of the Goblin fortress, who knew what impact it would have on the plan.
After enduring the day's torment.
Kane dragged his shackles back to Anvil's shack, telling him all about today's observations and worries.
Anvil listened, his thick eyebrows tightly knitted into knots, his hand unconsciously rubbing his knee as if trying to smooth away the unease in his heart.
Mana Turbulence was no small matter.
Who knew what would happen.
After sending off the solemn-faced Kane, Anvil sat silently on the dry grass, his gaze involuntarily turning toward the rock wall that gave them hope.
Even someone as steady as him couldn't help feeling worried facing this sudden turn of events, hoping only that the envoy from the Slime Kingdom could give him a reassuring answer.
Night fell as scheduled, the reassuring "rustling" sound once again arriving punctually.
This time, Nanny Brother not only brought food and water, but also several small containers carefully sealed with hollow thin wooden stems, inside which shimmered with glowing green liquid emitting an invigorating life energy.
"This is... healing potion?" Anvil's deep voice carried obvious surprise and excitement.
"Correct, I made these myself." Nanny Brother said proudly.
With "Life Drain," as long as he absorbed enough from Magical Creatures, secreting a few life potions wasn't a problem.
Anvil carefully accepted them, examining them closely in the faint light, then as if holding some fragile treasure, very solemnly hid them in the safest place inside his clothing.
"Envoy, thank you so much."
After hiding this unexpected precious gift, he told the Slime envoy about the "mana anomaly" matter Kane mentioned.
After listening, Nanny Brother's soft, bouncy body swayed thoughtfully, conveying an "understood" intention, his tone trying hard to sound profound and mysterious.
"Hmm... understood, the King says don't worry, proceed according to the original plan."
"Additionally, we brought you something that might help you."
Two Beetles grunted as they together carried something out.
The thing was a common Gray Gravel Crystal from the mining area, but its surface was carved with complex patterns that Anvil couldn't understand but felt were very impressive.
Being a Dwarf, he had a natural keen intuition for ores and energy. Although he completely couldn't understand the workings of this thing, the strange aura contained within couldn't be faked.
He lowered his voice and asked, "Envoy, what is this?"
"It's good stuff!"
Nanny Brother puffed out his chest, summarizing succinctly, "Well, it's like a magic crystal cannon, very effective against Goblins."
"Oh right, along with it are some Magic Paper and Gray Gravel Crystals. Arrange them according to the diagram I give you on the day of the Magical Tides. It can save your lives at critical moments."
Anvil took the diagram handed to him by the Beetles, looked at it, and found he completely couldn't understand it.
This thing is a cannon?
He had never seen a cannon of this style before.
"Good! I understand."
Anvil hid his confusion, didn't ask further, just pounded his fist against his chest—this was a Dwarf gesture indicating commitment and trust.