I'm not a goblin Frankenstein's monster.

Sure enough, the leopard let out a low, almost sighing growl, flicked its tail, turned and silently disappeared into the deep forest, abandoning this not-so-profitable hunt.

"It's good that it knows what's good for it," a guard muttered to himself, letting out a sigh of relief.

After continuing for about half an hour, the muddy swamp ahead widened into a shallow, murky pond.

The pond was not empty; a dozen or so gray, semi-solid "things" were slowly wriggling, coalescing, and separating.

They have no fixed shape, and are roughly irregularly shaped like hemispheres or strips. Their surfaces are covered with bubbles and impurities, and their color is a dirty grayish-brown, much like clumps of mud that have been repeatedly soaked and dried in sewage.

When it moves, it makes a "gurgling" sound like bubbling mud, and leaves a sticky trail behind it that shimmers with a faint acidic sheen.

"The Gray Mud Monster"

Griffin stopped, his brow furrowing slightly. "Troublesome stuff. They contain corrosive acid that's very damaging to metal weapons and armor."

Engaging in conflict with them is purely a thankless and exhausting endeavor, yielding minimal gains.

The old priest Far examined the slowly writhing pool of gray mud: "If a cluster of gray mud monsters naturally forms in an area, it often means that there is uncontrolled overflow of magical energy here, or that it has been polluted by some kind of magic for a long time."

Be careful, everyone. There might be even more troublesome magical creatures lurking around here.

Without hesitation, everyone chose to take a detour.

These slow-moving, worthless, yet troublesome monsters are certainly not worth wasting time and equipment durability on.

Aside from these two close calls, the rest of the journey was unexpectedly peaceful.

The anticipated attack by a ferocious monster similar to the chicken-snake beast did not occur. There were only occasional strange insects skimming across the water's surface, or muffled echoes of unknown meaning coming from the depths of the distant swamp.

However, the environment is constantly changing.

The trees grew taller and more twisted, their branches intertwined, blocking out the sky and the sun.

The light became dim and gloomy, as if one were in twilight even in broad daylight.

The air was so humid you could wring water out of it, carrying a chilling aura as if it came from a dark tomb.

But they didn't even see a shadow of the ghouls they were supposed to eliminate.

"Boss," a young guard whispered to Captain Ward.

"Could it be... that big orc over there looked too intimidating? It scared those things hiding in the mud away from coming out to greet us?"

Captain Ward glared at him, about to remind the team to stay alert and not let their guard down.

A sudden change has occurred!

"Splash!"

On the right, a seemingly ordinary mudflat covered with a thick layer of rotting leaves suddenly burst open!

A hunched, swift black shadow shot out like a catapult, heading straight for Ward!

The thing had a human-like outline, but its skin was a corpse-like bluish-gray, clinging tightly to its jagged bones.

His head was bald, his eye sockets were sunken, and two points of greedy red light gleamed in them.

The lips rotted and receded, revealing jagged, sharp teeth covered in blackish-yellow grime.

Its two fingers and claws were like hooks, black and sharp, emitting a strong stench of decay.

It was precisely the "target customer" they had been searching for on this mission—the ghoul!

[Serial Number: 016 - Ghoul]

Appearance: A thin, deformed humanoid shape with sickly pale or bluish-gray skin.

Its eyes were cloudy, its mouth was split open to its ears, and a long, thin purple tongue protruded from its mouth. Its claws were sharp and covered in corpse poison.

Appendix: Information on Mutant Individuals

Environmental variant subspecies: Ghouls that have been dormant in specific decaying environments (such as poisonous swamps or underground cemeteries) for a long time may undergo adaptive mutations in their necrosis characteristics or body structure.

Grave Whisperer: An enhanced individual infused with abyssal energy, more cunning and stronger, capable of emitting a foul aura that makes living beings nauseous, and able to command ordinary ghouls to act in concert.

Personality: Driven by an insatiable hunger for the flesh and blood of humanoid beings, their behavior resembles that of a ferocious and greedy pack of wild beasts. They possess almost no rationality, only the instinct to devour.

Danger Level: Single antagonist ≈ a madman wielding a sharp blade whose paralyzing claws can quickly incapacitate prey, posing a moderate threat; Groups (usually 10-15) under the command of cunning demons are extremely threatening.

Commonly found in: cemeteries, catacombs, ancient ruins, battlefield sites, sewers, and any dark corners where corpses are piled up or where the air is thick with the smell of death.

Recorder's notes:

"They are not mindless zombies, but greedy and cunning hunters."

Its paralyzing toxin is the greatest threat, and all humanoid organisms are unlikely to be immune to it.

Always remember, encountering a ghoul means there are many more eyes in the darkness.

The key to the battle is to keep moving, avoid being surrounded, and prioritize eliminating any potential, foul-smelling commanders—the demons.

"Captain, watch out!" the guards cried out in alarm.

Ward reacted quickly, parrying with his sword, but the ghoul was faster, biting hard into the chainmail sleeve of his left arm!

"Crack!" The metal ring made a screeching sound as it deformed and broke.

"Ugh—!" Ward roared in pain as the ghoul bit through his chainmail, its fangs piercing his flesh. At the same time, a powerful dragging force pulled him toward the dense, dark bushes behind him!

The incident happened so suddenly that Ward didn't even have time to say goodbye to everyone before half of his body was dragged into the shadows of the bushes.

"Whoosh!"

A short spear tore through the air and pierced the ghoul's chest with pinpoint accuracy!

The spearhead peeked out from the other side, revealing a few strands of viscous dark red.

The ghoul, who was trying to pack up the food to take away, froze, its hoarse voice abruptly stopped, and it collapsed limply.

At the critical moment, Xia Lin's thrown spear narrowly saved Ward from becoming a ghoul's breakfast.

"Quick! Protect the wounded! Treat them!"

Druid Griffin shouted, his voice steady and powerful, instantly quelling the panic among the crowd.

The old pastor strode forward, a soft, holy white light emanating from his hands, and pressed them against Ward's bleeding arm.

Under the white light, the putrid wound began to slowly stop bleeding, and the guards wrapped bandages around their captain's wound.

"Set up defensive formation! We've found their lair!" Griffin slammed his staff on the ground, and a circle of pale green natural aura spread out from him, slightly dispelling the surrounding chill and unease.

As if in response to his words, shadowy gray figures rose and crawled out one after another from the surrounding mud, behind tree roots, and in the piles of decaying leaves.

The murky red dots, like will-o'-the-wisps, lit up one by one in the darkness.

At a glance, there were more than twenty of them!

Moreover, these ghouls differ slightly from those commonly described, appearing to be more robust in size.

Its claws and teeth appeared even darker and sharper, and its movements were less stiff, exuding an enhanced ferocity.

"Guards, tighten the defensive perimeter and protect His Excellency the Priest!" Ward gritted his teeth and gave the order, enduring the excruciating pain.