Chapter 43: What decide the value of a life?

"What are those things?!" Qin Meng eyed the creatures in the bushes with wide eyes. They weren't devils. No. Qin Meng had never seen anything like them before. They had green ugly skin, beady crimson eyes, and hairless heads with pointy ears. Other than leaves on their waists, they wore nothing. The monsters clattered their spiky, sharp teeth, and most of them couldn't even reach Qin Meng's waist. "Are they goblins?" he said.

"Yes," replied Yueyan.

Qin Meng had heard about goblins but it was the first time he had seen them. Such ugly creatures. He felt repulsion towards them from inside. "Don't take them lightly," said the princess. "You have no idea what kind of unspeakable and horrible things these creatures could commit."

The mob of goblins bolted towards them like a herd of bees. Qin Meng tightened his grip over his spear and shouted before rushing to meet their attacks. Yueyan and others also struck the creatures aggressively. No mercy.

After fighting the goblins for about five minutes, Yueyan exchanged glances with Zhong Liqiu and shouted towards Qin Meng and others, "Follow me and the princess!" Then she penetrated through the rushing mob of goblins, cutting them down as easily as cutting the vegetables; green juice spattering around. Qin Meng had no idea what they had planned, but he followed Yueyan, nonetheless. He believed her.

Behind him Yan Yunjie, Wu Hui, and Zeng Hong were following closely, and Yao Ying and Qian Jie shielded their rear, giving them time to catch up to Yueyan. Goblins weren't very powerful creatures, so they didn't pose much threat. It was their number that caused them trouble.

Qin Meng was just behind Yueyan and the princess; he didn't need to struggle much to walk out of the encirclement of the goblins. However, as he broke free from the goblins, a new enemy appeared in front of them: broader, stronger, and nastier. It was still a goblin, but it was not. It was something beyond the normal goblins, but it had the same eyes as other green-skinned creatures. Crimson. Hungry for blood. Mad. Controlled.

"It is a hobgoblin!" said Yueyan before slicing a limb of a creature, leaving it to howl in misery. The creature failed to measure the strength of its enemy.

Zhong Liqiu took the advantage of the creature's distraction and severed its other limb. The hobgoblin tumbled back, swinging its head in fury. It turned towards Zhong Liqiu, crimson eyes glittering, as it was about to dash, its head slide off its neck, green blood spraying towards the sky like a fountain. The creature's headless body slumped down, revealing Yueyan behind it, her sword dripping with monster-blood.

"Let's go," she said and peered through the bushes at the dark figure. "Found you." She dashed towards the shadow behind the thickets and launched an attack with her sword. A dark claw suddenly reached out of the brushes and blocked the sword with a clinging noise, rippling the sword.

Yueyan narrowed her eyes when she spotted the silver rune at the center of the creature. SilverRune Devil. Yueyan tumbled back. Zhong Liqiu arrived beside her and Qin Meng stood behind them.

He looked at the creature with wide eyes. He was bulkier than any other devil he had previously seen, and it was the first time he encountered devil with silver rune. Qin Meng was not even sure if he could stand more than a minute in fight against the creature. He could tell that he was strong. Stronger than him, at least.

"So this devil was controlling the goblins," said Zhong Liqiu, eyes narrowing.

"Yes," Yueyan replied. "Let's end this."

The ladies lunged at the devil. Not bothering to waste any more time.

Qin Meng had no time to stand either as the goblins had caught up with them from behind. He rushed to help his comrades. He swung the spear and puncture through the head of the creature. The spear gushing out of other side, blood rolled over the handle of his spear, reaching his hand. He kicked the monster and found another beast.

Thrill filled his body as his spear pierced the muscles of the ugly and inhuman creatures. The guilt and frustration that he felt after killing the devils, was released at once. Blood lust could be seen in his eyes as the green, warm liquid spattered over his face and on the ground. The cold wind brushed through the woods, but he felt nothing but satisfaction as his spear pierced through the muscles of goblins. He could feel the pleasure of cutting flesh. Heavenly.

The spear killed, and the fire burned them. The miserable painful cries of the goblins suddenly woke him up. The bloodlust faded from his eyes, senses returning back to him. He remembered the feeling, THAT feeling, and his stomach churned and vomited. He was horrified. What had happened to him?

He looked at the dying goblin and was stunned to see the same fear in its eyes that he had seen in the eyes of devils when they took their last breath. The same thing was happening with the goblins. Then it hit him that the goblins were also the victims of the devils.

"Puchi!" he pierced the spear through the neck of a goblin when it lunged at him. However, he felt nothing like when he killed humans-turned-into-devils. There was no guilt in his heart. He felt strange emotions for these green-skinned creatures. As if their life meant nothing. The passive emotions that he felt for the goblins troubled him. Almost terrifying him.

What decided the value of a life? What made a life precious and what made a life worthless? Above of all, what right did he have to say that their life was worth nothing?

'No no!' he argued inside his head. 'Liqiu said that they are terrible creatures. They tried to kill me and whoever is my enemy deserves to die!'

Qin Meng tried to justify his emotions. He had no answer, so he could only move forward and suppress the distracting thoughts inside his head.