Cultivation of Goblin

Scene One – A New Tremor

Days blurred into weeks. His goblin tribe, under the unwavering mental leash of [Goblinoid Command (D)], had transformed. They were still crude, but they were no longer useless. They were his. They hunted with greater success, learned to maintain their traps, and even began to absorb minuscule amounts of Earth Essence, their collective efforts adding fractional EXP to his own System.

His own cultivation surged. The constant influx of Earth Essence from the cavern's rich patches, combined with the Mana Moths and the trickle of EXP from his goblins, pushed him steadily forward. He felt the familiar building pressure of an impending breakthrough.

But a new sensation had begun to dominate his [Earth Sense (F)]. The faint tremor Grub had reported intensified. It wasn't a living creature, not exactly. It was a slow, deliberate movement, a vast presence radiating raw Earth Essence from the deep passages below his cavern.

> "Master," Grub rasped one 'morning,' his beady eyes wide with primal fear. "The ground... it groans."

>

He felt it too. A deep, resonant hum, unlike anything he'd encountered.

Scene Two – Into the Abyss

His curiosity, always a driving force, overcame caution. This wasn't just a powerful entity; it was a source of immense Earth Essence. It was a challenge, and a potential prize.

> "Grub," he commanded, his voice firm, "stay here. Guard the cave. No one enters."

>

He left his growing tribe in their secure, but still rudimentary, stronghold. Alone, armed with his flint knife and his formidable cunning, he descended. He followed the strongest vibrations, the very earth guiding him deeper than he had ever gone.

The tunnels became tighter, the air heavier, thicker with the scent of damp stone and ancient power. The blue glow of Mana Moths faded, replaced by an oppressive darkness.

Then, the passage opened into a vast, unlit chasm. His [Perception] screamed warnings. This place was different. It felt primal.

He activated [Earth Sense (F)], pushing his Mana to the limit. The chasm pulsed with an incredible concentration of Earth Essence, so dense it felt almost tangible.

Scene Three – The Golem's Awakening

In the center of the chasm, almost indistinguishable from the surrounding rock, sat a colossal figure. It was an amalgamation of rough-hewn stone, crude and massive, radiating an aura of ancient power. Its form was vaguely humanoid, but its features were just unworked rock.

[Creature Detected]: Earth Elemental (Mortal Realm, Mid-Grade)

[Threat Level]: High (for current Host strength)

A Mid-Grade Elemental. The same realm as him, but its sheer size and raw power made it terrifying. It was dormant, its essence a deep, rumbling presence. It was essentially a living, breathing Earth Essence mine.

He considered his options. Retreat? No. Not when such a source of power lay before him. Direct combat? Madness. He was strong, but not that strong.

He could try his trick again. Agitate it. Drive it away. But an elemental was different from a simple boar. It was made of the very essence he commanded.

Scene Four – The Calculated Risk

He noticed something. Small cracks snaked across the elemental's stony surface. Faint lines where its massive power was contained. And he saw tiny, glowing nodes within the chasm walls, places where the Earth Essence was even denser.

A plan formed, daring and dangerous. He would not attack the elemental directly. He would exploit its nature.

He channeled his [Minor Earth Manipulation (E)]. His target wasn't the elemental, but one of the glowing essence nodes nearest to it. With a surge of Mana, he began to draw from it, siphoning its energy directly.

The elemental stirred. A deep, guttural rumble vibrated through the chasm. Its stony head slowly tilted. It sensed the disruption, the theft of its world's essence.

His heart hammered. This was it. The true test of his cunning and his growing power. He continued to draw essence, a tiny siphon against a mountain of power. He knew he had to push it. He had to draw its attention, provoke it just enough, without triggering its full, destructive wrath. The vast, raw power of the elemental washed over him, threatening to crush his fragile goblin will. He held firm.