Chapter 043: The Skeleton's Bow and Arrow

As for the matter of corpses, Kairen had always kept it close to his heart, just like the issue of territorial energy. He was well aware that the two key factors for the development of his domain were energy and corpses. He had racked his brains over the problem of system energy, and likewise, he could not ignore the issue of corpses.

From the very start, Kairen had prepared two possible solutions: one was to collect the corpses of magical beasts or wild animals. Through the “Thick-skinned Boar,” Kairen clearly understood that magical beasts could be transformed into undead. By extension, wild animals should be suitable as well. If Kairen could amass a large quantity of wild or magical beast corpses, he could rapidly cultivate an army of undead beasts.

However, although this idea sounded promising, in practice it was extremely difficult to achieve. Kairen was now at the outskirts of the Goblin Forest—or rather, to be precise, whether on the outskirts or deep within, magical beasts were rarely seen in the Goblin Forest. The last time he encountered the “Thick-skinned Boar” had been an exception. After all, tens of thousands of goblins lived within the forest, making them the absolute rulers. Any magical or wild beasts that might threaten their existence had essentially been eliminated.

Moreover, magical and wild beasts would hardly have any collective burial grounds. Even if they did, it would be troublesome for Kairen to find them. Therefore, rather than focusing on magical beasts, Kairen found the goblins themselves a more promising target.

Though in the past two months he had only seen a living goblin aside from Greencap, Kairen had been dedicated to gathering information on goblins. In addition to what he initially learned from Greencap, he had also acquired a great deal from Old Jack over the past two months.

Kairen was so invested in this because his territory was established right here, within the Goblin Forest. In fact, ever since he set his domain in the Goblin Forest, his relationship with the goblins had been fundamentally antagonistic—much like the relationship with the soon-to-be-established Dole Village market: one of opposition.

For the development of his territory, Kairen would sooner or later have to confront the goblin tribes. That was why he began gathering information on them early on, focusing especially on the tribe that had originally been home to his neighbor, Greencap. Now, his sights were set on this particular tribe.

On one hand, Kairen had obtained firsthand information about the tribe directly from Greencap; he knew clearly the tribe’s population, strength, and environment. That goblin tribe currently numbered around a thousand, with at least thirty percent being above the first rank, and even several second-rank individuals among them. Such was the strength of that tribe.

No wonder humans so feared goblins—their power truly exceeded that of humans by a wide margin. A single tribe possessed such strength; if all the tribes in the Goblin Forest were combined, even Moon Worship City might find itself hard-pressed to withstand them. Now, Kairen had set his sights on the goblin tribe.

It wasn’t that Kairen was being reckless—he was simply forced by circumstance. He had no choice: without corpses, he couldn't increase his power, and if his strength didn't grow, once the Ghost Thieves were dealt with, he would be at the mercy of others.

Of course, though he now had his eye on the goblin tribe, Kairen was not so foolhardy as to think he could annihilate them. He was well aware that, with his current strength, he was no match for them—not even for a single tribe. If he went up against them directly, he would exhaust all his resources and still come up short.

The truth was, Kairen’s real target was not the tribe itself, but its burial grounds. A goblin tribe of a thousand, existing for decades or even centuries, was bound to possess a massive cemetery. If Kairen could locate this burial ground, he would strike it rich, for an undead lord like him, a cemetery was tantamount to a treasure trove!

If only he could find it, he would have all the corpses and energy he needed! Of course, Kairen couldn’t afford to act rashly; after all, he was dealing with a tribe far stronger than himself. He needed to proceed with utmost caution, ideally boosting his own strength as much as possible before making a move.

So, Kairen turned his attention to the “Territory Shop,” intending to spend all his remaining territorial energy to enhance his power. After constructing the “Small Crypt,” Kairen opened the shop’s attribute panel and, without hesitation, spent 500 territorial energy to randomize a “Product Catalog.”

“Ding! You have spent 500 territorial energy. The Territory Shop has randomly added one item to its catalog!”

With this system prompt, a new product appeared in Kairen’s shop inventory.

Bone Bow
Item Grade: Common
Price: 100 territorial energy
Description: A special undead weapon. Possessing it grants the user an archery skill.
Note: For undead use only!

Kairen stared at the item, momentarily stunned. As far as quality went, it was indeed a fine item, but for Kairen at his present stage, it was simply impractical—especially since he was nearly broke.

Reluctantly, Kairen took one last look at the item’s attributes, then gritted his teeth and spent all his remaining territorial energy on the lottery!

“Ding! You have spent 450 territorial energy. Initiating 9 basic draws!”

“Ding! Congratulations, you have drawn ‘Thank you for participating’!”

“Ding! Congratulations, you have drawn ‘Thank you for participating’!”

...

“Ding! Congratulations, you have drawn a Skill Book!”

“Ding! Congratulations, you have drawn a packet of ‘Whispers of the Dead’ seeds!”

“Ding! Congratulations, you have drawn a copy of ‘Planting and Care of Flora’!”

...

Five hundred points spent on the shop catalog, four hundred and fifty on the lottery—after spending it all, Kairen had just thirty-one points of territorial energy left. Still, it had been well worth it.

Especially the lottery: though Kairen only obtained the Skill Book, the “Whispers of the Dead” seeds, and “Planting and Care of Flora,” each of these was exactly what he had hoped for.

The latter two were self-explanatory—they were directly related to establishing a stable source of territorial energy for Kairen’s domain. With these two in hand, Kairen could barely suppress his delight. As for the Skill Book, its appearance filled Kairen with even more surprise.

With this Skill Book, Kairen now felt fully confident about his plan to steal from the goblin tribe’s burial ground!