"Are you going to be the king of the hill?"

"No, I just think that we could claim the forest, don't you agree? If our summoned beasts become powerful enough, they would be able to help us carve out a territory in the forest, and we could block off the entire area, selling food and fruits to others from the city. We don't have to worry about not making sales since they would definitely need to eat."

Chen Yining was quite amused. "You're imaginative, kid. Why didn't you say that yesterday when we found that lake? Selling the water from it alone would be much profitable than selling fruits."

"That works too." Chen Jing nodded somberly and feigned a pensive look.

Chen Yining then shook his head in irritation. "Alright, quit daydreaming. Wait until you fill the pages of your Summoner's Grimoire."

"I'm being prudent here. There's no way I could pick on a whim since each page must be used carefully," Chen Jing said quietly, but acted nonchalant when Chen Yining turned toward him. "Oh, what was I saying?"

Chen Yining shook his head feebly.

Locking the door, they returned to the suburbs with their summoned beast.

Green Skin's previous simple equipment no longer fit after its size had changed, and it would look as ridiculous as a child wearing an adult's clothes when it put those ones on. That was why the gnome woke up early to make adjustments to Green Skin's equipment, sewing here and there like a good housewife, although both the gnome and Green Skin were male…

But this time, the brothers stopped after arriving at the suburbs.

The road ahead was a scene of carnage.

Shards of glass was mixed with dried blood stains, and several cars parked on the road had their windows smashed through and the doors dented inwards.

The roadside trash cans were knocked over, and there were signs that the contents were rummaged.

However, the road was empty with no one to be seen.

The anti-theft net of a nearby house was ringing then—someone was peeking at Chen Yining and the others from behind a window.

"Chip~ Chirp~" A bird of unknown species flew through the houses.

Chen Yining found the suburbs unfamiliar right now.

They then turned at a junction to find someone wearing a black shirt and white pants lying in a pool of blood that dyed his pants red.

"A corpse left lying in the middle of the road? Is nobody going to clean this up?" Chen Jing felt a numbness on his scalp at the sight.

Chen Yining was the first to withdraw his gaze, having felt an inward chill at the sight of the corpse lying out in the distance.

After all, a corpse was the state of a person after their death.

And it was frightening to see the death of a fellow human being.

Staying silent for a while, Chen Yining then turned away when the sound of a trash can being knocked over could be heard from a nearby alley.

Frowning, Chen Yining barked, "Who is it?"

There was no answer.

The alley was eerily silent.

Chen Yining approached it carefully, keeping a safe distance between himself from the alley.

As he drew level with the alley, Chen Yining could see a goblin far inside the alley. It was crouching before a huge blue trash can that has been knocked over, and was rummaging through it while keeping its own back towards Chen Yining.

It appeared to be a wild one since there was no one else nearby.

Nonetheless, the goblin then turned around upon hearing the footsteps behind it, revealing its green face that was caked in red blood.

Its scarlet eyes were filled with bloodlust.

However, while the goblin appeared fierce when it first saw Chen Yining, it did a double take when it noticed that Chen Yining was with his brother. Wariness showed in its eyes, and it took two careful steps backward.

It seems to be alert about being outnumbered and was ready to run.

Then, when Chen Yining summoned his hobgoblin, the other goblin shrieked upon seeing Green Skin, its pupils contracting as it promptly turned to run.

Green Skin gave chase, covering ten paces with each stride, its long legs easily crossing over the trash can while it raised its rebar, aiming true at the fleeing goblin before throwing it.

It pierced the goblin through the chest like a lightning bolt.

The dead goblin then disappeared into white light.

An ethereal page then appeared over Chen Yining's Summoner's Grimoire, and he gently dragged it over to Green Skin's page.

With a flash of light, the [1/2] sign instantly changed to [2/2].

At the same time, Green Skin's caricature changed as well.

[Hobgoblin→Goblin Warrior]

Green Skin had evolved again.

Its form was even larger and more fearsome, with clearly lined muscle, long thin ears, long narrow eyes, and sharp canine teeth revealed unwittingly.

At the same time, it was now two meters tall, throwing a dark shadow underneath itself as it stood, just like a tiny titan.

Moreover, how Green Skin changed on the page was reflected in reality as well.

It was quite obvious even to the naked eye, as Green Skin was still in the alley that was surrounded by tall walls on both sides, and no one aside from Chen Yining and Chen Jing could see it.

[Beast Name: Goblin Warrior (Third Phase (0/8), (0/1))]

[Current Level: 1 (34/100)]

[Rank: Normal ⭐⭐⭐]

[Race: Goblin]

[Introduction: Goblin]

[Race Talent: Goblins are extremely cowardly but cruel omnivores. They enjoy wild parties, bullying the weak but fearing the strong.]

[Bond (Goblin):]

[(1) Increase in strength by 10% when there are more than 3 goblins.]

[(2) Increase in strength by 20% when there are more than 6 goblins.]

[(3) Increase in strength by 30% when there are more than 10 goblins.]

[Summary: Let's party, runt!]

Having evolved from hobgoblin to goblin warrior, Green Skin claimed that it now counted as a big shot even in its previous tribe, as rarely any goblins among them could become a goblin warrior.

"Those goblins must have come out of the forest," Chen Yining said.

"Yeah, but their sticks wouldn't have broken through the anti-theft net and doors, so most people are hiding in their homes." Chen Jing said.

Just as he spoke, there was a major commotion nearby as a group of over ten people was leading dozens of summon beasts boisterously out from a corner.

They were carrying things like clothes-drying poles or mop handles tied with blades on one end, and had wrapped themselves tightly like dumplings.

Of course, neither Chen Yining nor Chen Jing were any better… it would only be like the pot calling the kettle black.

The group's summoned beasts that flanked them had a variety of equipment as well, such as slimes that were plastered with cardboard armor, gnomes holding bricks, and goblins armed with pan covers as shields and cleavers for weapons.

They had armed all their summoned beasts imaginatively.

Then, when they saw Chen Yining, their eyes lit up and they quickly ran up to him.

Chen Yining's heart skipped a beat. There was no telling what those people were going to do, so he ran when he saw them run toward him.

And when they saw Chen Yining run as well, they quickly shouted from behind, "Don't run, bro!"

"Then why are you chasing me?!" Chen Yining shot back.

"We just wanted to invite you into our group, and we could kill monsters together!" one of them stopped and yelled.

"We know a spot with a lot of goblins, and there's safety in numbers."

Chen Yining paused and turned toward the other group hesitantly.

With over ten humans and more than twenty summoned beasts, the group numbered over forty.

A lone lion could not win against a pack of hyenas—there was no assurance that Green Skin could win against the entire group even after evolving twice.

"What do you think?" Chen Yining turned toward his younger brother, asking for his input.

Chen Jing shook his head. "We don't know them or the forest we're heading inside, and there's no telling what they have in mind. We'll stick as a pair for killing monsters."

Chen Yining though so as well, and refused the other's invitation.

Moreover, he did not want the others to find out about his secret.

Judging from all the signs that he had thus far, everyone else's Summoner's Grimoire did not have his fusion function.