Chapter 540: A Conflict of Interests
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
"I’m an Adventurer from the White Jade Castle, and my name is Zhan Yu!" Zhang Yang hopped off the Thunderhawk and gestured courteously, "I came across an Orc by the name of Aldo. Even at death’s door, he was beseeching for me to pass this message to your Orc Chieftain Roger Kluge. Hellscream!"
"Aldo... is dead?"
"Sod this! How dare those bloody goblins to spill the blood of our kin! To arms! Show these litter critters the meaning of death! Kill them all!"
The Red-Skinned Orcs started to roar in rage. The ultimate act of evil had been committed to one of their kind! They would not let this pass!
The leader calmed the Orcs down and said, "Human, follow me!"
Zhang Yang followed the Orc into the campsite. He saw that the Orcs here were all red-skinned. All sorts of Orcs were there, male and female, young and old. They all looked at Zhang Yang, especially the Orcs children as if they were laying eyes upon an alien visitor for the first time. All of them were curious to see Zhang Yang’s arrival.
After walking continuously for more than 10 minutes, the Orc finally led Zhang Yang to the front of a large building. After a series of security checks, Zhang Yang finally met the Chieftain of the campsite.
[Roger Kluge. Hellscream] (Mythical, Humanoid)
Level: 125
HP: 37.500,000
Defense: 5,200
Melee Attack: 33,207 - 39,207
Skills:
[Wind Walk]: Enters an invisible state and increases movement speed by 100%. Increases the damage of the next Skill by 200%. The effect would only last for 1 minute, or it would fade if the user does any additional actions other than moving around.
[Storm Blades]: Swing your weapon around and inflict every single target within your melee attack range with the Attack of your weapon!
[Jumping Slash]: Melee Attack will have a 20% rate of triggering a Critical Attack.
Note: The Chieftain of the Red-Skinned Orcs, he is as wise as he is brave!
As Chieftain of the Red-Skinned Orcs, he was also red in color. The difference was that he was in a much deeper tone, that you would have thought that he had dipped himself in a pool of blood. Although he was middle-aged, this Chieftain did not look like his age. He had an intimidating aura around him, even though he appeared to be calm for the moment. A long sword was slung over his back. Although he was not particularly large, nor did his muscles ripple, but he gave the impression that he could just tug that sword from its scabbard and turn his enemies into mincemeat, all in a single motion!
"Human, the message, please!" Roger Kluge spoke in a deep rumble that was clouded with sorrow.
Zhang Yang took the out ‘Message’ from his inventory and passed it over to Roger Kluge, then he said, "My respected Chieftain, what sort of enemies are you up against? I have friends that are Orcs as well. Although they are not of your clan, I am willing to provide aid in such regards!"
A hint of surprise and respect came across the noble Orc’s face for a brief moment. He nodded at Zhang Yang in acknowledgment and began to read the ‘Message’ as he unfurled the scroll. The more he read, the more intense his expression grew, and the more his fists clenched and quivered. Zhang Yang could see that the Chieftain was on the verge of popping a vein!
The old Orc sat down in his chair and gathered his thoughts for a moment before he started speaking again, "Close to our territory, there is a mining cave. You can mine for some sort of ore they call the [Light of Miracle]. These ores are extremely fantastic and unique. They contain powerful magic, and can be used as the power source for magic staffs! This canyon is named The ‘Radiant Canyon’ because there is no difference here during day and night. Every single rock and stone in this place produces the ‘light of miracle’. After all, the normal rocks and stones in the normal mountains and valleys do not have the [Light of Miracle], so they are not suitable for us!"
Therefore, it appeared that this [Light of Miracle] was a type of mining ore. If Zhang Yang had known this before getting himself into all these troubles, he would have gone to mine the item himself!
At least, that was what Zhang Yang told himself. Of course, he also knew that the system would never make things so convenient, or any other player in the entire game would have been able to acquire quest items without the need of going through any quests, or even slaying bosses! Also, only players in the mining profession would be able to mine ores! So, if he doesn’t complete this quest, then he will be unable to mine for the [Light of Miracle] even if he really stumbles across it. He could only stare at them.
Roger Kluge continued to talk, "Mining the [Light of Miracle] requires a very specific type of Magic Equipment. We don’t have enough finances to go around purchasing those equipment yet. Therefore, we have been sending men to guard the entrance of the mining cave all this while. Also, we’ve been able to gather some of those loose pieces of [Light of Miracles] lying around the cave"
Then, why was there a dead orc, now?
Roger Kluge did not intend to tantalize Zhang Yang at all. As such he quickly spoke, "However, just beyond the land of Radiant Canyon, there is also another tribe of Orcs. They are the Blue-Skinned Orcs, and they have been ambushing my people at the mining cave, even as we speak! Although they are much larger in number and much stronger than us, they are not capable of wiping us out yet. If we really were to engage them, we would suffer great losses, and so will they! When they are weakened, other Orcs from different tribes will surely try to take their place as the most powerful tribe! It would be all over for them!"
Bam! The old Orc slapped the surface of the table hard, as teapots and cups jumped up for a split second before returning to the surface of the table, and said, "Those Blue-Skinned Orcs know that very well! Therefore, they did not attack us directly. Instead, they decided to coerce a bunch of goblins into snatching the mining cave of the [Light of Miracle] from us! Pui! The campsite of these goblins are very close to the mining cave. However, all Orcs know very well that the mining cave belongs to us, the Red-Skinned Orcs! If those filthy, weak little creatures did not have the support of the Blue-Skinned Orcs, they would not have had the guts to do such a thing!"
Zhang Yang finally got his chance to say something, so he asked, "Why would the Blue-Skinned Orcs be doing this? Aren’t they afraid to go head-to-head against your tribe? Although goblins are known to be a filthy greedy tribe, everyone knows that the goblins have almost 0 power in battle. Even if Blue-Skinned Orcs really form an alliance with the Goblins, their battle power will not even change by a bit! The outcome would be the same!"
Roger Kluge shook his head, then he said, "Human, you have no idea how Orc ‘Politics’ works!" He then let out a breath of sigh as he continued to explain, "The number of Orc tribes that dare to ambush the mining cave is extremely low. Well, most of the Orc tribes come up with excuses so that they do not have to send their troops and join the Blue-Skinned Orcs in their ambush! Meanwhile, although we Red-Skinned Orcs are a little weaker than the Blue-Skinned Orc, but among all the Orcs, we are good enough to rank fifth! No other tribe will have an easy time taking us out! At worst, both sides will suffer heavy losses, and lose their respective standings! However, with the Goblins at the front line, they would have a reason to form an alliance to go up against us!"
The situation was pretty complicated!
Zhang Yang frowned as he had never been good in any form of politics, and he said, "My respected Chieftain, what do you plan to do, then?"
Roger Kluge began to drum his fingers on the surface of the table as he continued to speak, "I have sent a messenger over to the campsite of the Goblins to express our rage and to once again reiterate, strongly, to everyone else that the Miracle Mining Cave belongs to us, the Red-Skinned Orcs. The goblins should know that if they are playing with fire, they will get burned!"
What a familiar line!
"But Aldo is dead!" Zhang Yang said.
"That’s right, Aldo is dead!" Roger Kluge suddenly had a murderous look in his eyes, "So those goblins must believe that the Blue-Skinned Orcs are supporting them now! Do they believe that we will not lay a hand on them? Human, since that you are willing to aid us, then I gratefully accept! I shall give you a quest! Get over to the Miracle Mining Cave and wipe all the goblins trespassing the area. That should teach them a lesson!"
‘Ding! Roger Kluge has given you a quest, Teach the Goblins a Lesson, accept or decline?’
Accept.
Zhang Yang walked out of the tent. Then, he summoned the Thunderhawk out. At the speed of light, Zhang Yang lunged into the sky and began his journey over to the quest location. Of course, he had that greedy thought of even getting his hands on a [Light of Miracle] the moment he lands there. If that is the case, he would be able to fly back to hand in the previous quest and get over with it.
Less than ten minutes after soaring through the sky, Zhang Yang arrived at the entrance of the mining cave.
This location could be easily marked and recognized, as there was a large number of goblins all around the entrance of the mining cave. The goblins had no hair at all in the middle of their heads, and they were even shorter than the dwarfs. They were also much smaller in size. These goblins were just a bunch of little creatures, as skinny as twigs. Their arms and legs were so thin that they looked very fragile! Judging from their appearance and the appearance of the Orcs, they were just like a bunch of ‘looney-toon’ creatures with only 5 Attack power!
At the other side of the mining cave, there were over 100 Red-Skinned Orcs standing off against them. The two sides were staring at each other as if they were about to clash! Although the goblins were not exactly outnumbered, if these two troops really clash into each other, the Orcs would crush those goblins like crispy crackers within 5 minutes!
Well, it seems that this Roger Kluge is really a patient Chieftain!
Zhang Yang could not help but to shake his head over and over again. He understood that a Chieftain had many things to take into consideration before making a move. No matter which side he decides to slaughter, there will be consequences. So, he cannot act according to his own will. The quest only required Zhang Yang to slay 24 goblins, however, Roger Kluge did mention that the more goblins Zhang Yang slays, the happier Roger Kluge would be.
Let’s make us a happy Chieftan. Zhang Yang decided to wipe out ever goblin in sight!
He patted on Thunderhawk as they charged towards the goblins’ side. He picked his first target.
[Philpines Goblin]
Level: 115
HP: 1,150,000
Defense: 1,200
Melee Attack: 7,623 - 9,623
Skills:
[Goblin Mortar Strike]: Mortars crafted from the technology of the Goblins, inflicts 20,000 Fire damage to targets. Instant activation. Range: 30 meters.
[Goblin Defibrillator]: Attempts to revive one of their fallen comrades.
[Goblin Pulse Rifle]: Launches a shot at the target, inflicting 20,000 Nature Damage, and stuns the target for 10 seconds. Casting time: 1 second. Range: 30 meters.
Note: Philpines Goblins had inherited all attributes of the goblins. They prefer the soft way rather than the hard way. They greed for gold. However, they will not stay and fight to their deaths when they face danger, instead, they will just run away like cowards! Because they are naturally born weak in combat, they have invented a type of ‘Supporting Attack’ called ‘Technology’ to support them in battle.
They prefer the soft way rather than the hard way, they say? Hehe, then let’s show they how hard this [Heaven Shaker] hits!
Zhang Yang let out a shout as he threw his {Spear of Obliteration} over to one of the Philpines Goblins
‘-27,822!’
The shadow of a spear stabbed straight through the body of the goblin and red blood spilled from the greenish body of the monster to all over the place as it shrieked in pain. It jumped 3 meters high, as if something had seared its buttocks. After that, the goblin quickly raised up its spear and charged at Zhang Yang.
"You filthy human! How dare to show your disrespect by attacking a Goblin of the great Philpines!" This goblin was charging towards Zhang Yang. The money-minded Goblin snarled, "You must compensate me for this! Hand over at least 100 gold pieces, and I shall consider not killing you!"
Pak! Pak!
Felice and the Thunderhawk completed their casting almost at the same time as they shot out their attacks.
"Argh! Another two! Human! You are not going to get away with just 100 gold pieces!"