Chapter 23: An Unchangeable Future

"Bo... Boss!"

The goblins outside the wooden hut froze when they saw their leader at the door.

They didn’t dare approach any closer and lingered outside the hut.

“Wah! Wah!”

The small goblins in their hands struggled fiercely.

Their mouths let out loud cries, sounding aggressive and unyielding.

The adult goblins held them by the necks tightly.

No matter how much they struggled, they couldn’t break free.

All they could do was angrily cry out in frustration.

Li Meng stepped aside, signaling them to proceed.

Only then did the goblins outside move forward and toss the small goblins into the hut.

The newborn goblins were still wet, their bodies covered in moisture.

The strong scent of the newborns stimulated the other small goblins inside the hut.

Their eyes glimmered with greed as they watched the newborns struggle to stand.

Although only an hour or so older, the older small goblins already saw the newborns as food.

“Behave yourselves!”

The goblin guarding the door roared.

The roar startled the small goblins, causing them to retreat to the corners in fear.

Newborn goblins couldn’t speak yet.

It would take about two weeks before they could communicate fluently with adult goblins.

That was one of the mysteries of goblins.

Language didn’t need to be taught—it came naturally with time.

Li Meng watched for a while before turning and leaving.

Returning to his wooden hut, Li Meng resumed his research on the crossbow.

“Boss, do you think this will work?”

The next morning, Gobuge entered the wooden hut carrying a beast hide bundle.

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Kneeling before Li Meng, Gobuge carefully unwrapped the bundle.

As the hide opened, three 20-centimeter-long conical spearheads were revealed inside.

Though crudely made, they were sharp after being polished.

Besides the spearheads, there were over a dozen arrowheads as well.

Li Meng picked up one of the spearheads and examined it closely.

“Not bad. Use this as a template and mass-produce spearheads from now on.”

One batch of molten iron could produce dozens of spearheads.

The production process for spearheads was relatively simple.

Pour molten iron into molds, let it cool, and perform a simple forging treatment.

Li Meng glanced around the hut, then walked to the corner.

In the corner, he found a straight branch.

The branch was from the hardwood tree.

Li Meng had named this tree "hardwood" for its properties, as he planned to use it for making crossbows.

The branches of the hardwood tree grew remarkably straight, making them ideal for spear shafts.

Li Meng returned to his seat with the branch.

Using a small knife, he trimmed off the branches and smoothed the shaft.

After some processing and sharpening, he inserted the shaft into a spear tube.

He hammered the connection until it was tight, and just like that, a spear was completed.

For goblins, who were small in stature, the ideal spear length was about two heads taller than them.

Too long would make it cumbersome and unwieldy.

Most goblins stood around 1.3 meters tall, so a 1.5-meter spear was the most suitable.

Li Meng stood up and swung the spear a few times.

The spear whistled through the air as it moved.

Gobuda, standing nearby, instinctively shrank back and quickly retreated a few steps.

After playing with it for a while, Li Meng grew bored and tossed the spear to Gobuge.

He kept the arrowheads and handed the rest back to Gobuge.

“Use this as a template to create finished products. Go now.”

Gobuda nodded repeatedly.

He grabbed the spear and the beast hide bundle and quickly left the hut.

Meanwhile, Li Meng resumed his research on the crossbow.

“System, begin Life Simulation!”

Li Meng hadn’t forgotten that he still had one chance left this month for a life simulation.

[Consuming 20 first-tier magic crystals. Life Simulation begins.]

[As a transmigrator, you used your knowledge to create the first crossbow.]

[You began to arm your tribe, and your tribe grew rapidly.]

[One of your hunting parties venturing into the Ghost Spider Forest for silk was ambushed by Lizardmen and wiped out.]

[In the east, traces of Pigmen were discovered. A Pigman tribe entered your territory.]

[With the population of your tribe surging, the pressure on food supplies forced you to wage war.]

[Please make a choice:]

[1. Seek revenge against the Lizardmen.]

[2. Exterminate the Pigman tribe that entered your territory.]

[3. Cross the river and expand your hunting grounds to the southern bank.]

The options for the first stage hadn’t changed.

Even the choices were identical.

Last time, Li Meng had chosen to take revenge on the Lizardmen.

This time, he wouldn’t repeat that choice.

“Option 2: Exterminate the Pigman tribe that entered the territory!”

[The intrusion of the Pigman tribe enraged you. You led your goblin army east to attack.]

[The Pigman tribe fled in panic, and you returned empty-handed.]

[Another hunting party sent to the Ghost Spider Forest was ambushed by the Lizardmen and wiped out.]

[The repeated ambushes angered you. You decided to take revenge on the Lizardmen.]

[One night, you led your goblin army to raid the Lizardmen’s camp.]

[Although the Lizardmen were prepared, they were no match for your goblin army. You successfully wiped out their tribe.]

[You killed all the Lizardmen’s able-bodied adults, sparing only their children and females who were shorter than goblins.]

[You discovered an albino female Lizardman who was the high priestess of the tribe.]

[She possessed the skill “Heart Speech,” allowing her to communicate with all races.]

[She conversed with you, and you found her beauty captivating, feeling the urge to mate for the first time.]

[You claimed her, and one month later, you had your first offspring with her.]

[Her name was Bai Ling. From her, you learned of the existence of the Black Scale and Gray Scale tribes within the swamp.]

[Please make a choice:]

[1. Continue advancing to destroy the Black Scale tribe.]

[2. Continue advancing to destroy the Gray Scale tribe.]

[3. Do nothing and lead your forces back to the tribe.]

It had come full circle again.

Li Meng sighed, deep in thought.

It seemed only the third option in the first stage could alter the future.

No, that might not be the case. Perhaps the overall trajectory of the future was fixed.

As long as the Lizardmen remained in the swamp, they would remain a threat.

Similarly, the Pigman tribe’s intrusion was an unavoidable event.

Whether by choice or fate, the threats posed by the Lizardmen and Pigmen were inevitable.

“Option 2: Continue advancing to destroy the Gray Scale tribe!”

The Gray Scale tribe appeared to be the Lizardmen’s scouts.

Perhaps eliminating them could prevent future incursions by the Lizardmen army.

[You chose to attack the Gray Scale tribe.]

[One night, you led your goblin army to raid the Gray Scale tribe. The tribe was annihilated.]

[You spared their children and women, sending them to the White Scale tribe.]

[The battles caused many senior goblins to evolve into Goblin Warriors. Gobuge challenged your leadership.]

[You accepted the challenge and sent Gobuge flying ten meters with a single slap. Your power subdued all the goblins.]

[Please make a choice:]

[1. Continue advancing to destroy the Black Scale tribe.]

[2. Seeing your forces severely depleted, you decided to pause the offensive.]

“Option 1: Continue advancing to destroy the Black Scale tribe!”

[You decided to continue the assault on the Black Scale tribe.]

[One night, you raided the Black Scale tribe only to find it completely deserted.]