After leaving the black-tier soldiers under Jack's command to guard the territory, Arthur led the bronze rank tier-1 wolf knight soldiers toward the monster-infested areas in the nearby forest. Previously, these regions were too dangerous for his weaker forces—teeming with black rank tier-2 monsters that easily overwhelmed ordinary troops. But now, Arthur had a formidable new edge.
The bronze-tier soldiers radiated a fierce and intimidating presence. Their superior rank and training made them vastly more capable than the black-tier troops. With these warriors by his side, Arthur finally had the power to challenge the monsters lurking ahead.
Arthur led from the front, his sharp gaze scanning the woods. "Stay alert," he murmured to the soldiers flanking him. "We're close to the monster gathering zone. The enemies are black rank tier-2 humanoid monsters. Prepare yourselves."
The tension in the air thickened. The soldiers tightened their grips on their weapons, their eyes sharp and focused. They moved silently, stepping over branches and fallen leaves, their bodies taut like drawn bows.
When they finally reached the edge of the monster zone, Arthur held up his hand to signal a halt.
In the clearing ahead stood a group of grotesque creatures—monstrous beings with pale blue skin. They resembled goblins, yet clearly weren't the usual kind. Their skin glistened with a thin layer of frost, and their breath misted in the chilly air.
Arthur narrowed his eyes. *Are these… snow goblins?* He tried to inspect one of the creatures, half expecting nothing to happen. But to his surprise, a familiar system prompt appeared in front of his eyes:
**"Dear Lord, do you want to view the stats of the snow goblin?"**
Arthur blinked in shock, then quickly accepted. The information filled his vision:
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**Name:** Snow Goblin
**Class:** Goblin-type
**Category:** Normal Monster
**Cultivation:** Black Rank Tier-2 (Level 0)
**EXP:** 200 / 1000
**Skills:** Slash, Roar, Blunt Attack, Freeze
**Talent:** None
**Health:** 300
**Strength:** 8
**Agility:** 8
**Intelligence:** 8
**Mana:** 8
---
Arthur nodded to himself. *As I thought... these monsters thrive in colder regions. I must be near a boundary between a forest and an ice region.*
Curious, Arthur turned his attention to one of his soldiers. *If I can view monster stats, maybe I can see my soldiers' too.*
Sure enough, another system window appeared:
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**Name:** Richard
**Class:** Human
**Occupation:** Wolf Soldier
**Cultivation:** Bronze Rank Tier-1 (Level 0)
**EXP:** 0 / 500
**Skills:** Sword Slash, Shield, Wolf Formation, Charge, Ferocious Aura
**Talent:** None
**Health:** 400
**Strength:** 10
**Agility:** 10
**Intelligence:** 10
**Mana:** 10
---
Arthur's eyes flicked to two particular skills—**Wolf Formation** and **Ferocious Aura**. He tapped on "Wolf Formation."
> **Wolf Formation:** Can be activated by wolf soldiers. When triggered, it channels mana from surrounding soldiers to form a spectral wolf. The wolf's strength is determined by the mana and physical power of the contributing soldiers. *(Can form a Tier-4 Mana Wolf)*
He checked the second skill.
> **Ferocious Aura (Passive):** An oppressive aura surrounds the soldiers, lowering the morale of enemy units in range.
Arthur grinned. *Perfect. My men are more than capable of taking down those snow goblins.*
He leaned forward slightly. "We'll ambush them. Quietly, follow me closer."
The soldiers nodded and crept forward. When they were just meters away from the goblins, one of the soldiers dashed out with lightning speed and cleaved a goblin in half with a single stroke.
The goblins roared in surprise and rage, chaos erupting instantly.
"Hu…mans! We… will… kill you!" one of the goblins stammered with broken words, fury burning in its icy eyes.
Although Arthur's troops had superior strength, the goblins still had one advantage—numbers. Nearly forty of the creatures charged forward, snarling like beasts.
Arthur clenched his fist. *Raw strength isn't enough... it's time to show them real power.*
"Soldiers! Activate Wolf Formation!"
At his command, the wolf soldiers gathered and poured their mana into a single point. A surge of magical energy took shape—twisting, roaring—and from it emerged a massive spectral wolf nearly four meters tall. Its body shimmered with bluish mana, its eyes glowing with savage intent.
The summoned wolf lunged forward, slashing through goblins with ease. Each swipe of its claws tore through flesh and armor alike. The sheer force sent goblins flying or left them lifeless on the ground.
The soldiers joined the assault, hacking down the scattered enemies alongside their summoned beast. Within an hour, the battle was over. The last snow goblin let out a final cry before collapsing to the ground.
A new system prompt blinked in front of Arthur.
**"Congratulations, Lord. You have cleared the Mini Monster Gathering Area. You have gained 6000 EXP."**
**LEVEL UP!**
**LEVEL UP!**
**"Your soldiers have leveled up to Bronze Rank Tier-1 (Level 3)."**
Arthur laughed in satisfaction. *Two level-ups in one go—not bad at all.*
He opened his system panel:
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**Name:** Arthur
**Gender:** Male
**Species:** Human
**Occupation:** Lord
**Cultivation:** Rank 1 (Level 4)
**EXP:** 1000 / 4000
**Skills:** Berserk (click to know more)
**Talent:** Luck (click to know more)
**Strength:** 6 + 2
**Health:** 120 + 40
**Agility:** 5 + 2
**Intelligence:** 11 + 2
---
His stats were steadily growing.
He glanced at the updated stats of his soldiers:
**Health:** 400 + 80
**Strength:** 10 + 4
**Agility:** 10 + 4
**Intelligence:** 10 + 4
**Mana:** 10 + 4
Arthur chuckled. *They really gain more from leveling than I do… but they're my troops. Their strength is mine to wield.*
He turned toward his soldiers. "Excellent work. Two of you, come with me. The rest of you, remain here and guard the area."
Before leaving, Arthur stored the corpses of the snow goblins into his inventory. He planned to extract all the materials later. Then he turned toward the cave the goblins had occupied.
The interior was dark and grim. The ground was littered with bones, broken weapons, and other unclean things. Arthur grimaced. "These goblins clearly don't understand hygiene…"
He ventured deeper into the cave until something caught his eye—a pitch-black treasure chest sitting at the center.
Arthur's heart skipped a beat. "A treasure chest?" he muttered. "Let's see what I've earned."
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