Swamp Filth

The Swamp Goblin opened its mouth and spat its poisonous vomit towards Huan Wei. The young man was ready for it, thanks to his Oozing Soul. Stepping aside, he avoided this attack and pointed his free hand at it.

"Mouth of Flame!"

Qi ignited and flew forward, burning. It felt very powerful for a C-class technique.

Still, the Swamp Goblin was an agile creature. When it saw the incoming attack, it leaped into the air and ran over it. Continuing on its path, the fire technique hit the ground and exploded violently, sending chunks of wet mud flying everywhere.

The goblin plucked another mushroom from its back. By this time a new one was already growing in its place.

It threw the mushroom towards Huan Wei. Huan Wei, unable to imagine what would happen if he inhaled the gas that hurt even Oozing Soul, sent another fire wolf.

When the gas from the mushroom that shattered in midair came into touch with the fire wolf, it suddenly ignited and threw both the goblin and Huan Wei back with a small explosion.

Huan Wei was able to stop himself before he hit the ground, dragging a little on the muddy ground. The goblin was covered in mud, but it didn't seem to care. It opened its mouth, which had only a few teeth in it, purple vomit oozing out of the corner, and made angry, ugly noises.

Huan Wei wanted to deliver a critical blow, yet it was dangerous to get close. If the goblin spewed that gas one more time, he might not be able to retreat in time. A plan was needed.

"The gas is flammable," he thought. He could use this.

The young man held out his hand. "Mouth of Flame!" This time he aimed not at the goblin, but where it was standing. As the mud-covered creature leapt up to escape, the resulting explosion threw it even higher. Screaming, it fell meters to the ground and sank into the mud.

Huan Wei gripped his dagger tightly and rushed towards it. The ground was covered in mud, so he couldn't move easily. Still, he had a good chance.

Although the Mouth of Flame had reached the Mastery level, Huan Wei was still in the early phase. The intensity of his Qi would not be strong enough to deal a killing blow to this creature. For metal, things were different.

As Huan Wei approached it, the goblin freed itself from the mud and plucked another mushroom from its back. The young man stopped advancing. He knew the creature would throw him at him.

But it was not as he thought. Instead of throwing the mushroom, the goblin bit into it. With each bite, purple gas came out of its mouth.

"Mouth of Flame!" Huan Wei attacked without waiting for it to finish. The goblin couldn't defend itself this time and took the Mouth of Flame in the face. The mushroom in its hand exploded and it flew backwards as all the grass around it burned and scattered.

It crashed into a tree and landed in the mud. Huan Wei saw the purple veins in the creature's arms as it walked towards him. He didn't know they could do such a thing.

When the goblin got to its feet, burn wounds were visible on its face and chest. Although the explosion was not enough to kill it, it had clearly done a good deal of damage. But the creature's eyes glowed purple. Its body was covered in veins the same color as its eyes. Using all its speed, it ran towards Huan Wei. Its long nails moved easily in the mud.

The young man held his dagger tighter and prepared. It was clear that the creature was going to engage in close combat. Huan Wei planned to somehow force it to release the gas and explode it. This would give him the opportunity he needed to kill the monster.

The goblin opened its venom-filled mouth and attacked the young man, screaming in rage. Its long nails were not very sharp, yet they were covered in purple liquid. Huan Wei did not want to take a blow from them.

The young man plunged his dagger into the creature's face. Perhaps he could have finished the job sooner than he thought.

But the goblin dodged the attack by pulling its head away and tried to bite Huan Wei's leg.

The young man immediately pulled his leg back. Then he used all his strength to deliver a knee strike to the creature's face.

The Swamp Goblin had never been a creature known for its physical strength. Its real power came from its venom. Yet when he consumed it itself, its physical strength was enough to take on the Oak Body. Its agility was already strong.

Yet there was something the creature did not know. Huan Wei was no ordinary Oak Body.

His increased physical strength caused Huan Wei to break the creature's long and crooked nose in one blow. While the goblin held its nose with both hands, Huan Wei jumped up and stomped forcefully on its chest with both feet.

A miserable groan came from the goblin. But the young man did not stop there. He raised his foot again and prepared to crush the goblin's head.

Just then, the poisonous gas spewing from the mushrooms forced Huan Wei to retreat. It was a close call. He was glad he had given those two points to the agility attribute.

"Mouth of Flame!"

His Fire Qi unleashed with all its might, causing a violent explosion the moment it made contact with the gas. The shockwave knocked Huan Wei back as well. The goblin let out a scream of pain.

Huan Wei hardly stopped as he slipped on the mud. Immediately afterwards, he hurried towards the goblin. He was sure it was not dead.

Indeed, it was as he thought. Although the goblin was badly injured, it was not dead. The young man's Qi had not been strong enough to inflict lethal damage. The gas explosion didn't seem to be enough either.

When Huan Wei reached it, he raised his dagger. But he noticed another mushroom coming towards his face. Jumping back quickly, the Swamp Goblin was once again engulfed in purple gas.

"Mouth of Flame!"

Huan Wei looked where the last mushroom had come from as he exploded the gas again. It seemed that the repeated explosions had attracted attention. Other swamp goblins from the surrounding area had also arrived. Huan Wei could see four more of them.

"This doesn't look good."

When he looked at the goblin in the exploding gas, he saw that this time it was dead.

[Swamp Goblin has been killed. You have gained 250 xp. This is the first time you have killed a monster of a higher phase than you. You are rewarded with 2 stat points].

"Give them both to agility. I'll need it."

The goblins attacked at the same time. Huan Wei held out his hand and shouted, "Mouth of Flame!"

They all ran around and dodged the blast. The tree Huan Wei struck with his Fire Qi shattered and fell into the mud.

One of the goblins made a move for his leg. Huan Wei swung his dagger as he pulled his leg back, but when he saw another goblin jumping, he stopped his attack and avoided it. Meanwhile, the Swamp Goblins in the background were eating mushrooms.

One of the nearby goblins took a deep breath and spewed poisonous vomit. Huan Wei could barely dodge it with his speed. However, a drop landed on his hand and burned his skin a little. Whatever this vomit was, it was not something that could be easily endured with the Oak Body. Moreover, he couldn't use the Mouth of Flame because they were standing too close to him. He couldn't use it without blowing himself up.

The young man looked around. He chose a nearby tree and jumped up, running into the mud. He managed to reach the branch. He immediately pulled himself up. He stepped more firmly so that his mud-covered feet would not slip.

"Mouth of Flame!"

He attacked the Swamp Goblin, which vomited at him. Meanwhile, the goblins, their bodies covered in purple veins, began to climb the tree. Those on the ground fled again before the explosion.

Huan Wei held his dagger in both hands and jumped down. With the force of gravity, he stabbed one of the tree climbers in the brain. The creature suddenly let go of the tree and fell to the ground with Huan Wei.

[Swamp Goblin killed. You gain 250 xp].

As soon as he landed on the ground, he pulled out his dagger and stabbed the goblin that had jumped on top of him. Its tough skin was pierced, unable to withstand Huan Wei's strength, yet it didn't die. Instead, it took a deep breath.

Seeing this, Huan Wei immediately threw it away from him. He didn't want to be hit again with poisonous vomit. The top of his hand still ached.

At this moment, a mushroom fell at his feet and exploded, releasing poisonous gas. Huan Wei held his breath but could not stop his eyes from burning. When he jumped to a clear area, his eyes were red. He could no longer see well. His eyes kept wetting.

He wiped his eyes with the back of his sleeve. Meanwhile he could see silhouettes approaching him. Things were not going as he had planned.