"What is that?"
Garros stepped closer and looked intently.
It was a square stone with simple runes carved in the middle. It wasn't reflecting light; rather, the runes in the center were emitting a faint glow.
It was a Communication Stone.
Garros recognized it.
—This was one of the most common and universal alchemy items on Planet Bernardo. Its effect was exactly as the name suggested: it could transmit messages.
The runes on the surface of the Communication Stone were glowing, but they were gradually dimming and going out.
Clearly, it had just been used.
"This goblin used the Communication Stone before dying; he likely sent some kind of message to the tribe behind him."
"It must be related to me and the Hemlock territory."
Garros's draconic brow furrowed slightly.
Goblins were very vengeful. According to Samantha's description, this Rock-Gnawing Tribe had quite a few alchemy items. However, aside from those items, the individual life Ranks were not high, and the tribe's scale was medium-sized.
"Once the Goblin Tribe receives the message, they certainly won't let it go."
"Since they dared to hunt Samantha, it means they aren't afraid of young dragons—they might even see them as prey."
Garros paced on the spot, lost in thought.
"Should I give up the Hemlock Hills? Although the resources here are mediocre, it's just enough for me to live and survive for now. The wilderness is dangerous; finding another suitable territory won't be easy, and a wandering life isn't suitable for my growth."
But if he didn't give up the territory...
Being besieged and ambushed by a prepared Goblin Tribe could be very dangerous.
"I don't want to give up my territory, and I don't want to die in an ambush."
"I'll go scout first to determine the situation of the Goblin Tribe."
"If they are very weak, I can just ignore them. If they are too strong, I'll have no choice but to abandon Hemlock Hills."
"If they are somewhere in between—not a major threat in a direct confrontation but dangerous in a potential ambush—I'll take the initiative and deal with them first!"
Under the sun, the Red-Iron Young Dragon's eyes narrowed slightly, flashing with a hint of ferocity.
Once his own life was involved and he felt danger, Garros would become extremely vigilant, guarded, cautious, and... full of killing intent.
When facing a potential threat,
Garros's style was to nip it in the bud as much as possible.
For example, during the attack on the Goblin Wolf Cavalry just now.
To prevent any news from leaking, the moment he decided to strike, Garros was psychologically prepared to let no goblin escape. Unfortunately, information was still sent out via the Communication Stone, which might bring him danger.
Turning his head to Samantha,
Garros asked, "What is the overall strength of this Goblin Tribe that was hunting you? Describe everything you know to me in as much detail as possible. Do not leave anything out."
Samantha was a bit dazed, not knowing what Garros intended to do.
She thought back and told Garros everything she knew truthfully.
Gradually, after listening to Samantha's account, Garros became thoughtful.
"In terms of life Rank, the strongest goblin is only Rank 6."
"But their tribe has many alchemy items, including an Alchemy Golem that made Samantha feel a huge threat."
Alchemy Golems were a very successful product born from the development of alchemy items.
They were recorded in the dragon heritage, which paid them special attention.
For instance...
Holy Flame Arbiter Ignis.
It was one of the top-tier golems of the human Holden Empire, created through the cooperation of countless Alchemists and the Church of Dawn. It was forged using the skeleton of an Ancient Red Dragon combined with many rare and expensive metals, with its interior and exterior covered in the holy runes of the Church of Dawn, possessing numerous attributes.
Because the Holy Flame Arbiter used the remains of an Ancient Red Dragon as material,
the Dragon Clan saw this as a great desecration.
Even the Metallic Dragons, who were enemies of the Evil Dragons, could not tolerate it.
Once, a group of Legendary Metallic Dragons came to the door demanding the destruction of the Holy Flame Arbiter, but they were refused by the Holden Empire and the Church of Dawn working together.
Metallic Dragons were, after all, lawful creatures; they had scruples and were unwilling to start a war over the remains of an Evil Dragon.
Furthermore, the Holden Empire was tactful enough to provide many alchemy items to appease the Metallic Dragons' wrath. After long negotiations, the matter was finally dropped.
As for Evil Dragons—solitary, lone Evil Dragons, even Ancient Dragons, could not contend with an Empire.
The Holy Flame Arbiter was now used to guard an Abyssal Rift within the Holden Empire. It had slain countless demons and was extremely powerful and famous on Planet Bernardo.
And top-tier Alchemy Golems like the Holy Flame Arbiter, capable of slaying an Ancient Dragon,
were far from being the only ones in existence.
Back to the point.
The level of the Alchemy Golem in the Goblin Tribe would certainly not be high. It was most likely a mass-produced model, perhaps even one used for mining or transport rather than combat. Such Alchemy Golems could be purchased directly through many channels.
"I don't need to be too nervous."
"Thinking about it, if this Goblin Tribe were powerful enough, Samantha wouldn't have been able to escape their capture in the first place."
Garros's mind relaxed a lot, and the ferocity in his eyes gradually faded.
"I want to eat. I haven't eaten meat in so long."
Samantha was currently staring at the bulls, her eyes fixed and unblinking, unable to look away.
If her awe of Garros hadn't reached its Peak by now, she would have surely pounced on them.
Gurgle gurgle!
Her stomach suddenly made a sound like rolling thunder, drawing a sideways glance from Garros.
Samantha was instantly embarrassed, her dragon face heating up and her tail swishing back and forth. But she truly couldn't withstand the torment of hunger and pleaded with Garros, "My dear brother, can I have a little beef? Just a little, a little bit is fine."
It would have been better if she had just said so earlier.
Garros tore off an entire hind leg with his claws and threw it to Samantha.
Samantha caught the hind leg and began to devour it ravenously, even crunching and eating the bones, wasting nothing.
"Mobel, drive these gray wolves to the hills and pen them up as reserve food."
Garros began to eat as well, giving orders at the same time.
"You got it!"
The Earth Storm Bear nodded heavily and set off with large strides to drive the surviving gray wolves.
Time passed slowly.
The sun dipped and disappeared, and night descended silently.
The Rock-Gnawing Tribe—the Goblin Tribe that had been hunting Samantha.
Its base was located at the foot of a heavily weathered, reddish-brown low mountain. The mountain's surface was covered in honeycomb-like natural caves, looking like rotten wood hollowed out by insects.
The goblins used rusted iron nails to fix wooden boards, animal bones, and broken ceramic pots over the cave entrances, piecing together crooked walls.
Rather than defensive fortifications, they looked more like warning signs made of piled trash.
The outer perimeter was a fence woven from inverted flint spikes and man-eating vines.
Dried lizard skulls hung on the vines; in goblin culture, they believed hanging the skulls of prey could bring good luck to the tribe.
Despite its small scale, it was a case of 'the sparrow may be small, but it has all its vital organs.'
In the iron pits, goblins used claws blackened by sulfur to pick out iron Ore, which was then sent to the smelting workshops to be forged into barbed arrowheads, swords, and other weapons. These were then further enhanced and strengthened by the tribe's Alchemists.
The Serel Wilderness was rich in various Ores.
Ordinary iron Ore was almost everywhere; even the smallest tribes did not lack it. As for magical precious metal Ores, those were not something they could get their hands on.