Train Survival: Can I get a treasure chest by touching my goddess?

At Shen Wen's command, the five continued on their journey.

Selena was protected by her sister in the middle. Her steps were still a little unsteady, but she gritted her teeth and didn't fall behind.

The raindrops pounded on Celia's invisible umbrella, sliding to both sides and splashing fine droplets on the ground.

Jiang Youchu walked at the back of the group, glancing back every now and then at the path they had come from, an ice arrow condensing at her fingertips, ready to be shot at any moment.

After walking for about twenty minutes, the rain finally subsided a bit.

The downpour turned into a drizzle, and the thunder faded into the distance, with only a muffled rumble occasionally rolling across the sky.

But the light in the forest was even dimmer, as the thick layer of moisture in the tree canopy completely blocked out the already faint sunlight.

Shen Wen stopped in his tracks.

A hundred meters ahead, the forest suddenly opened up. A large area of ​​trees had been cut down, leaving bare stumps and muddy clearings.

In the center of the open space, a huge wooden stockade wall rose from the ground.

The wall was more than twice as high as the fence of the previous village, reaching a full four meters, with sharpened wooden stakes at the top so densely packed they resembled rows of teeth.

There is a watchtower every ten meters on the wall, where you can see goblins moving around.

The village gate consisted of two massive log doors that opened outwards, with iron bars nailed to the doors. A string of skulls of some unknown creature hung above the lintel, their faces whitened by the rain.

Through the open gate, you can see the densely packed buildings inside, stretching from the entrance to the horizon.

It wasn't the crooked shacks of the past, but sturdy houses built of stones and wood, and even roads paved with gravel.

Shen Wen stared at the village, his brows furrowing.

Its size is comparable to that of a town.

"This..." Celia's voice came from behind, tinged with obvious nervousness, "When I came here last time, this place wasn't this big."

Shen Wen didn't turn around: "When was the last time?"

"Six months ago," Celia swallowed, "there were only about a hundred goblins here, and the walls were only about a person's height. Now..."

She didn't continue.

But the meaning is already quite clear.

In just six months, the number of goblins more than doubled, the walls of the stronghold tripled in height, and even the buildings were upgraded.

Is this a goblin?

Su Qingxuan walked to Shen Wen's side, her gaze sweeping over the sentries on the stockade wall, and lowered her voice: "Should we charge in?"

The unspoken meaning behind her words was quite clear.

This village is much bigger than the previous one. There are at least thirty or forty goblins that can be seen, and who knows how many more are hiding in the shadows.

If things go wrong, you could really get trapped.

Shen Wen didn't answer, but turned to Su Qingxuan: "Have Xiaoqian go and check if anyone is around."

He paused, then added, "If Zhang Yang wants to complete his mission, he would probably choose to come here as well."

Su Qingxuan nodded, and with a flick of her wrist, the ebony coffin appeared in her palm.

The coffin lid popped open, and a wisp of white mist drifted out, solidifying into form.

Xiaoqian floated in mid-air, her white dress restored to its original state, and there were no traces of the injury caused by Yu Xiu's prayer beads.

She has been resting in the coffin for a while now, and her spirits are much better than before.

"Go and look around, see if anyone else is hiding."

Su Qingxuan instructed, "Don't get too close. Come back as soon as you see them."

Xiaoqian nodded, her figure gliding away like a wisp of white mist, skimming the ground and disappearing into the bushes in the blink of an eye.

In less than three minutes, the white mist drifted back and solidified.

Xiaoqian looked a little nervous and lowered her voice: "There are people all around, a lot of people, they're all hiding."

She pointed in several directions: "Over there, over there, and over there."

There were at least seven or eight on each side, hiding behind trees or in bushes, motionless and silent.

Shen Wen raised an eyebrow.

Seven or eight?

There were more than twenty people from the three directions combined. Including their train, there were at least four or five trains' worth of people gathered nearby.

He glanced in those directions, but couldn't see anything through the rain and the obstruction of the branches.

Those people are hiding in the shadows, and it's not hard to guess what they're up to.

This village is so big, a single train simply can't handle it all.

Even if they manage to break through, they will have to pay a considerable price.

If someone is waiting behind you, it won't be about getting a bargain; it'll be about chewing up bones and swallowing them whole.

"So what do we do now?" Su Mu gripped his spear tighter, his gaze sweeping across the directions. "Go around them?"

Shen Wen stared at the sentries on the stockade wall for a few seconds, several thoughts racing through his mind, before speaking calmly: "No way. We'll alert them."

The three women looked at him at the same time.

Shen Wen continued, "These people are hiding and not moving because they want to wait for others to go in first, and then they will come out to reap the rewards."

Then we'll make sure they can't hide anymore.

He turned to Xiaoqian and said, "We'll kill a goblin later and make a commotion."

"Then you deliberately let them see you, and then fly in the direction where those people are hiding."

Xiaoqian paused for a moment, then blinked: "Lead them over there?"

"Yes." Shen Wen nodded, "Make those goblins think you're one of their accomplices, and they'll chase after you."

They don't care who you are; they'll just chase after anything they can see and chop it down.

They don't care who you are; they'll just chase after anything they can see and chop it down.

A cold smile curled at the corner of his lips: "Those people want to hide and be the hunters, don't they? Then let them be the prey first."

Su Qingxuan's eyes lit up: "That's a great idea. It can both test the strength of those people and see which ones are in cahoots."

"And it didn't cost us a single shot," Jiang Youchu grinned. "Brilliant!"

Shen Wen didn't waste any more words. He drew the curved knife from his waist, walked to the edge of the bushes, and chose a spot where he could clearly see the gate of the stockade.

Four goblin sentries stood at the entrance of the stronghold, holding spears, their necks hunched in the rain, glancing inside every now and then, clearly also hating this awful weather.

Shen Wen tucked the scimitar back into his waistband, took the SKS rifle from behind his back, shouldered the stock, and placed the sights on the chest of the outermost goblin.

Su Mu stood next to him, also raising his gun and aiming at the other one.

"I'll shoot the two on the left," Shen Wen said in a low voice. "You shoot the two on the right."

Su Mu nodded.

"three."

"two."

"one."

Two gunshots rang out almost simultaneously, blending into the sound of rain; they weren't too piercing, but clear enough.

Shen Wen's shot pierced the chest of the first goblin on the left. The bullet entered through the front of the chest and blew a bowl-sized hole in its back.

The goblin didn't even have time to cry out before it fell forward, its face slamming into the mud.

Su Mu's gun shot the first one on the right in the neck, and blood spurted out. It clutched its throat, staggered a couple of steps, and knelt on the ground.

The remaining two goblins paused for a second, then let out a sharp screech and turned to run back into the village.

Shen Wen did not pursue him.

He put down his gun and gave Xiaoqian a wink.

Xiaoqian understood and floated out from behind the bushes, her white dress standing out against the rain.

She deliberately slowed down, circled around the entrance of the village, and even patted the door panel.