Chapter 392: Never Could Have Imagined

These were short, scrawny, wrinkled green-skinned beasts, clad in incredibly filthy animal hides. They rode war wolves, roaring from above and hurling spears at the sky.

Ulalala!

Ulalala!

They roared with such fervor, as if trying to knock down the sky lanterns.

Xia Niming was terrified. A pampered modern person had never seen such a sight; it was as if a pack of grotesque figures were howling at him. He felt utterly miserable and overwhelmed!

As an ordinary person, getting stronger while relaxing was the normal, common aspiration. Those overpowered protagonists who instantly cross over, defeat enemies, and reach the pinnacle were completely unrealistic! People would die!

He quickly flew higher, escaping from this terrifying species.

After he found a safe, densely forested area, he guided his hot air balloon creatures, added more fuel to the sky lanterns, and then reconnected to the internet. He found that netizens had already formulated a plan. The prospect of a suspected technologically advanced civilization was enough to excite them, making them meticulously devise a survival guide for this "balloon player"—the optimal solution for surviving in another world.

"Don't be afraid, Balloon Bro! Everyone on our forum is practically a scientist or a wilderness survival expert. We'll definitely help you rise to power and dominate an era!"

"That mechanical arm is severely damaged, so no immediate research results can come from it. But the phone! It seems to have only lost power. Perhaps it can still communicate, but figuring out how to power it is the problem!"

"The immediate priority is to find a safe habitat and gradually understand the rules and culture of this world."

As they were discussing, the "balloon player" posted screenshots of the goblins, instantly astonishing them.

"Fantasy creatures exist too? Technology and magic coexist?"

"Goblins are an opportunity! You can completely mimic and transform to blend into the goblin species. If transforming into these creatures makes you too light, you can fill your body with straw, leaves with skeletal structures, or soft mud to make your body feel heavy!"

Across the entire forum, countless people began to analyze. They were serious! Seeking the optimal solution for survival in the other world. This was indeed the best method: mimic a goblin by filling the balloon's body with solid material, and with its chameleon-like mimetic properties, it could achieve realistic imitation and likely avoid detection.

But someone immediately spoke up: "This world is unknown. We don't know if goblins have ways to detect disguises among their kind. It's best to have one of your balloon creatures try out the disguise first, and make sure it's covered in goblin urine and body odor; that way, it probably won't be suspected."

After this wave of analysis, Xia Niming's face was as bitter as a gourd.

After some hesitation, he tried following the netizens' advice. He spent half a day searching for suitable materials to add weight, then found goblin urine. He had one of his balloon fish creatures soak itself in the urine, inflate its belly, and transform into a goblin. With its realistic skin and chameleon-like effects, it was incredibly lifelike. It even mimicked their cries. The result: it wasn't discovered.

"I actually succeeded!" He was overjoyed. With the help of countless people, he successfully impersonated a goblin and infiltrated the goblin tribe.

But that night, he witnessed an extremely terrifying scene. Goblins rode wolves during the day, and also at night, considering wolves sacred companions. The sight made Xia Niming's skin crawl. Was this their wolf culture? It was the first time he had seen such a terrifying and barbaric indigenous civilization in another world.

Meanwhile, with the help of netizens, in just half an hour of real-world time (which translated to several months in-game), he successfully started fires, built houses, and found rock formations for cooking. He earned the widespread reverence of the goblins and became the Goblin King.

The netizens were ecstatic.

"Farming-style gameplay activated! First, develop the tribe! Change their terrible habits! Make them civilized, not beasts!"

"We could even have the goblins cultivate magic!"

"Exactly! Goblin mages, goblin warriors! With the foundation of our previous extraordinary civilization, even if we develop against this technological civilization, we might not fear them!"

"Ah! They naturally possess magic cores! Everyone, quickly start researching! They have innate magical talent!"

With everyone's help, this player, combining the wisdom of the entire internet, furiously developed the civilization. He also had newborn goblins from various tribes begin learning language and arithmetic to improve their intelligence. Goblin civilization flourished rapidly! Meanwhile, individual balloon creatures were released near the tribe, monitoring everything.

Sitting on a beast-hide chair in the tribe, Xia Niming thought, "As expected, 'farming-style' development is the king's path for starting in another world. I'm like a transmigrator from a novel, with my own Earth internet connection, posting on Baidu, and getting free help from netizens."

At first, he was very nervous, but now he suddenly felt great. Although the balloon creatures were weak, with a think tank advising them, they could instantly gain a foothold in this new world.

"Perhaps soon, I'll truly be able to change my name. From 'Xia Niming' (which sounds like 'scare your life away'), I'll become 'Yao Niming' (which sounds like 'I'll take your life away')! Hehe, 'Yao Niming' even has a hint of Sichuan dialect's cursing flavor."

He smiled, but his smile gradually froze as he saw two black mechanical mechs flying in from the sky.

In the sky, inside their black mechs, two Ishdalians communicated telepathically.

"The Great Stone Wall Territory is too vast. We're here to build a satellite network and signal base stations, laying the groundwork for future front-line wars... Huh? Is that a goblin tribe?" one Ishdalian spoke.

The other man, as handsome as a celestial being, transmitted his thoughts silently, "Destroy them! These disgusting, repulsive races, like beasts, have powerful reproductive capabilities. It's said they've spread across several great territories beyond our Great Stone Wall Territory, making them a rare cross-territory intelligent species."

"Compared to these intelligent species, I prefer the Janna clan from the Azure Water Territory. Their women's beauty is no less than ours. It's just that their Naga sea hydra, a sacred beast, is at the Heavenly Emperor realm, making them very troublesome. This ancient lava land is too vast, unimaginably wide."

As they discussed, they were about to destroy the goblin tribe. The Ishdalians were very fond of beauty, passionate, and romantic, and they deeply loathed such disgusting, twisted, and ugly races.

"Wait, don't be hasty. This goblin tribe seems a bit different?"

The two Ishdalians descended and initiated a live broadcast on their central network. "Attention, everyone! Emergency announcement! We've discovered a special goblin tribe! There are also unusual balloon flights nearby! There seem to be signs of life!"

Immediately, the attention of some Ishdalians on the network converged.

"Radar scan!"

A wave of seismic energy spread out. The handsome Ishdalian's expression hardened as he gradually pinpointed an unknown life form. "Outwardly, it's a goblin, even its skin texture is similar, but it's actually a special skin balloon creature filled internally with straw and mud, and it has no magic core."

"What!?"

"This is impossible!"

"Perhaps a new type of magical beast?"

"It's mimicking itself, hiding within the goblin tribe, acting as the Goblin King?"

"No magic core, but intelligent? A mimetic creature!?"

Waves of discussion surged across the network.

At this moment, Xia Niming also watched in astonishment as two mechanical mechs descended from the sky, and two perfectly modern-looking humans emerged from them. Terrified, he frantically posted on the forum.

"Everyone! Big trouble! Quick, look! High-tech civilized humans in mechs! I'm doomed!"

Instantly, the entire forum network erupted into a storm.

"Quick, pretend you're a goblin!"

"No! Goblins might die! Pretend you're a scarecrow! Transform quickly!"

"Now, your escape skills are going to be tested! Seventy-Two Transformations!"

Countless people were frightened. They hadn't expected them to arrive so quickly; there was no time to develop. In reality, their methods were useless against such absolute power. The Ishdalians had scanning radar; their technological development was terrifying. If a mech passed by, there was no hiding place within several kilometers. The new species would certainly be detected.

The two sleek black mechs descended into the primitive tribe, opened their hatches, and stepped out. They saw a scarecrow standing silently in a field. The Ishdalian network buzzed, finding the sight incredible and unable to comprehend this behavior.

"Pretending to be a scarecrow?"

"What's going on here!?"

"Even foaming at the mouth and tilting its head? Is it playing dead?"

"What an adorable species! It disguised itself as a goblin to blend in, and now it's masquerading as a scarecrow to escape our notice."

Moreover, their scientists' network began discussing:

"This is a new species. The wavelength scan report is out: extremely elastic skin, a balloon-type organism capable of mimicry, highly malleable, and no magic core!"

"Everyone, what uses do you think it has?"

"A few days ago, Ms. Caroline mentioned the 'Human Eugenics Plan.' Our research has been stalled, but perhaps this new species is the most crucial malleable material for our Ishdalian research!"

"Are you saying...?"

"Yes! This material is light and elastic! It's perfect for contraception for us Ishdalians! Human eugenics!"

"They haven't discovered *me*," thought the scarecrow rooted to the ground, its inner turmoil raging. "Why does everyone else's 'farming-style' development go smoothly, while mine is just beginning and I'm already facing capture? I need to lay low and develop! Don't you dare touch me! Otherwise, you who shame me, insult me, and oppress me today—tomorrow, I will surely slaughter your entire family, exterminate your whole clan, to avenge today's humiliation!"

"Take it back for experiments!"

The handsome and perfect Ishdalian stretched out a hand, and a wave of psychic energy enveloped the scarecrow. The scarecrow lifted into the air, quickly grabbing other balloons, and was carried away. The mechanical mechs ascended. "The Human Eugenics Plan—this might be another huge leap forward for our Ishdalian civilization."

Months later.

My name is Xia Niming, and I never imagined that my dream would eventually come true. I did indeed get my revenge, becoming the most terrifying great demon king in history, having killed billions of Ishdalians. Perhaps I should change my name to...

...Take Your Life Three Hundred Million.