"BOOM!"
Fax emerged from the tent, scanning the chaos around him. Soon after, the two elders arrived.
"Are these the monsters?" Elder Lee observed the green creatures riding wolves in the distance.
"These green monsters are incredibly repulsive," remarked Elder Gong.
Fax's gaze fixated on the three towering green creatures in the distance, mercilessly pummeling humans into a pulpy mess with their clubs.
"Do you two see those three colossal green creatures over there?" Fax asked with a grim expression, sensing the imminent threat they posed. He didn't even address the elders with their formal titles.
"Indeed, we can see them. Three monsters with cultivation comparable to ours... and they are formidable," the two elders narrowed their eyes.
The three hobgoblin riders also turned their attention in their direction, immediately sprinting toward them.
"Prepare for battle!" Fax shouted.
However, the two elders had already drawn their swords before Fax even finished his command.
With the agility of wolves, the hobgoblins arrived in no time. The wolves leaped into the air, and one of the hobgoblins brought his club crashing down, striking Elder Gong.
"Boom!"
Elder Gong, who attempted to block the blow with his sword, was sent flying backward, crashing into the collapsing tent.
Fax and Elder Lee stared at Elder Gong's direction, shock etched on their faces. They had managed to evade the attack unscathed, congratulating themselves for their reflexes.
"Useless bastard," Elder Lee muttered under his breath.
"Elder Gong, are you still alive?!" Fax called out.
Emerging from the rubble, Elder Gong's eyes blazed with fury. His arms tingled with numbness, and a gash adorned his chest, presumably from the wolf's attack.
He retrieved a 1-star healing pill from his bag and consumed it, having emptied his savings to acquire it. If not for this life-or-death situation, he would have hesitated to use it.
Soon after, the bleeding from his chest wound ceased, and it partially closed, though not completely. The wound was too deep for a 1-star healing pill to fully heal.
"AAAHHH! YOU WRETCHED MONSTER, I WILL KILL YOU!" Elder Gong bellowed.
The battle raged on.
"Boom!"
"Boom!"
Rubble flew through the air sporadically, and each strike from the hobgoblin left a gaping hole in the ground.
The three combatants dared not directly block the hobgoblins' attacks. The two elders did not want to meet the same fate as Elder Gong, and Elder Gong himself wished to avoid a repeat of his previous ordeal.
As for utilizing skills or launching long-range attacks, it was not possible for them. Building Base practitioners were unable to harness true essence or qi. To do so, one needed to possess at least Opening Qi cultivation.
To elaborate, the Building Base realm involved opening the meridians within one's body. Opening all the meridians would facilitate advancement to the next realm.
That realm was the Opening Qi realm, where practitioners began absorbing Qi through the opened meridians and storing it within their Dantian.