"Indeed, it's iron ore!"
The stone was grayish-black, indicating a high iron content.
Glancing slightly to the side, Aden scanned the surrounding ground.
He noticed many similar stones in the nearby forest.
And this place was at least a mile away from the barren hills.
Aden discarded the stone in his hand and got up to continue walking forward.
Iron ore had been found, now he needed to figure out how to conceal the smoke.
Smelting iron required burning carbon, and both burning carbon and smelting iron produced a large amount of smoke.
The appearance of smoke would attract the attention of other intelligent races nearby.
In the simulated life prediction, it was certain that at least two intelligent races, lizardmen and Pigmen, existed nearby.
Attracting either intelligent race would bring disaster to the tribe.
"If only there was a cave!"
Walking through the forest, Aden thought to himself.
It would be best if it was a very deep cave with multiple exits.
A sealed cave wouldn't work; otherwise, the smoke would be a deadly poison.
Although the smoke would eventually be vented out, it wouldn't be so noticeable after being diluted by the cave.
But Aden also knew how difficult it would be to find a cave.
In the following days, Aden traversed mountains and ridges, searching for a place to smelt iron.
This search lasted for three days.
During these three days, Aden searched all the nearby mountainous areas.
"Boss, I found it, there's a cave ahead!"
On the afternoon of the third day, a Goblin trotted up to Aden.
Unconsciously, Aden and his Goblin minions had already arrived at the foot of the mountain.
The steep cliff rose almost vertically upward, with a height of several hundred meters.
Aden's eyes brightened, and his face showed a look of joy.
"Lead the way!"
Guided by the Goblin, a group of Goblins hurriedly moved forward.
After walking about two hundred meters, a steep cliff appeared in Aden's sight.
At the base of the cliff, there was a cave entrance on the rock wall.
The shape of the crack seemed to be naturally formed.
About three meters wide, it was pitch black inside.
Outside the cave was a barren black land.
The soil was somewhat damp, and there were huge footprints visible on it.
"What a strange smell, I've never smelled it before!"
"Me neither!"
The Goblin minions outside the cave were discussing.
They smelled an unfamiliar odor from the cave.
Since it was an odor they had never smelled before, they didn't know what it was.
Aden also smelled a foul stench.
It was the smell of feces, mixed with some other unpleasant odors.
"Could it be an Ogre?"
Aden thought of the simulated life prediction.
In the simulated life prediction, he would encounter an Ogre.
"Boss, there's movement!"
At this moment, there was movement in the cave.
It was a "thud thud" sound, the sound of heavy footsteps.
"Hide, quickly!"
As if realizing something, Aden's face slightly changed.
He turned around and ran towards the depths of the forest.
Seeing their boss run, the other Goblins also followed, running towards the depths of the forest.
Back in the forest, Aden did not stray far from the cave.
Instead, he hid in a bush outside the cave.
The other Goblins did the same, hiding in various secretive vegetation.
The movements inside the cave grew louder and louder.
After a moment, a huge shadow suddenly appeared at the cave entrance.
In the terrified gaze of the Goblins, a colossal creature emerged from the cave.
It had gray skin and a bald head.
Its physique was incredibly robust, nearly five meters tall, larger than the Goblin chief.
The massive body appeared round, with extraordinarily thick limbs.
Its bowl-sized eyes were spinning, looking somewhat foolish.
[Cave Ogre]
[Level: 71]
[Strength: 317]
[Defense: 614]
[Agility: 151]
[Magic: 36]
[Reinforced Skeleton: LV3 (Defense +300)]
[Regeneration: LV1 (Increased physical healing speed)]
"My goodness!"
The terrifying attributes of the Cave Ogre startled Aden greatly.
How could he capture such a powerful monster?
With traps?
Traps were not omnipotent.
How deep a trap would be needed to hold this monster?
And even if it was trapped, how could he capture it?
The Cave Ogre outside the cave flared its large nose.
It seemed to have smelled a very unfamiliar scent.
But its not-so-sharp sense of smell could not detect the Goblins hiding in the forest at all.
Soon, it began to stride step by step towards the forest.
The Cave Ogre entering the forest was a giant.
Wherever it passed, the low branches were forcibly broken by it.
"Follow it!"
With the cover of vegetation, Aden cautiously followed it.
Although the other Goblins were very frightened, they still followed their leader.
Soon, the Cave Ogre stopped in front of a huge fruit tree.
It grabbed the trunk with both hands and shook it hard.
Fist-sized purple fruits from the tree rained down to the ground.
After doing all this, it sat down under the big tree.
With skilled hands, it picked up the purple fruits from the ground and began to eat.
"Is Ogre a vegetarian?"
This scene made Aden, who was hiding in the forest, mutter to himself.
Such a large frame, and named Ogre, he didn't expect it to be vegetarian.
Of course, it could also be an omnivore.
After all, most humanoid creatures are omnivores.
Unlike Goblins, they are pure carnivores.
Time was passing bit by bit, and the Ogre under the tree kept eating fruits.
It took a full two hours before it stopped.
Just as Aden thought the Ogre was about to return to the cave, the Ogre fell asleep under the tree.
A strange smell came towards Aden, making him wrinkle his nose.
"Is this... the smell of fermentation?"
Looking at the sleeping Ogre, Aden's eyes brightened.
Could it be that the Ogre is drunk?
The fruits on the tree were obviously overripe and rotting.
Rotten fruits ferment, which could make the Ogre drunk.
"With such high defense, it's probably not possible to kill it!"
Compared to making it submit, Aden would prefer to kill it and gain its skills.
Either of the two skills would greatly increase his strength.
But killing it would be too much of a pity.
Such a large frame is the best labor force.
"Gobge, you take all the Goblins to make bark rope!"
Aden instructed the Goblin next to him.
It nodded, turned around, and scrambled away.
It called all the Goblins and ran deep into the forest.
Looking at the sleeping Ogre, Aden looked thoughtful.
The simulated life prediction could only be used as a reference.
The current situation didn't require making traps at all.
If the Ogre was really drunk, it wouldn't wake up easily.
This was his chance, the chance to capture the Ogre.
About five hours later, Gobge came back with the Goblins.
Each Goblin was holding a bundle of bark rope.
"Come on, follow me!"
Aden boldly left the bush and walked towards the Ogre under the fruit tree.
Although the Goblins were very scared, they still mustered the courage to follow their leader.
Aden led his Goblin minions to the side of the Ogre.
Aden gestured with his hand.
A Goblin minion quickly offered the bark rope.
Aden took the bark rope and carefully tied it around the Ogre's foot.
Although it might not be useful, it was better than nothing.