The first floor remained the same: endless trees and a population consisting solely of goblins. However, Mark's journey had become significantly easier. Since the forest was already familiar to him and he could maintain his Blind Sense for long periods, he walked through the woods as if taking a casual stroll.
First, he wanted to warm up in a zone where goblins were found alone. Activating his Earth Sense, he focused on the vibrations coming from the ground. For now, he could only perceive the footsteps, their number, and their general direction; the exact distance remained an estimate. Still, it was enough.
He heard distinct footsteps at the 11 o'clock position and began heading that way. Finally, within the black-and-white world of his Blind Sense, he located the source of the movement. The System evaluated it as a G-rank goblin. Sensing Mark, the goblin charged with its dagger. Mark simply waited, his grip tightening on the Blind Staff. As the goblin drew near and leaped at him, Mark timed it perfectly. With a swift swing of the staff, he struck the goblin squarely in the head. The creature was sent flying, hitting the ground and never moving again—it was dead. He stowed the carcass in his inventory and continued.
As for the battle analysis, there wasn't much, except for one crucial observation: the attack patterns of G-rank goblins were nearly identical. They would rush mindlessly and strike with their daggers. However, there was a slight variation; roughly three out of ten would leap at the opponent, aiming for a finishing blow to vital areas like the head, neck, or heart. The rest simply tried to stab at the stomach or waist.
"If your opponent is taller and you don't hold the strength advantage, instead of trying to end the fight instantly, you should first strike their legs to immobilize them," Mark mused. Reactivating his Earth Sense, he detected another movement and began walking in that direction.
Yet another G-rank goblin, the same mindless charge, and the inevitable leap. This time, Mark seized the goblin's dagger-wielding wrist, swung the creature over his head, and slammed it into the ground. He then placed the base of his Blind Staff against the goblin's skull and pressed down with all his might. The distinct sound of bone splintering echoed as the skull was crushed. Filthy brain matter splattered everywhere. After a brief thought, Mark decided not to take this carcass; he would have to clean it anyway, and he had no desire to touch that brain tissue. Besides, it wasn't as if meat was scarce.
He tracked down several more goblins and dispatched them, constantly varying his techniques: a heavy punch or a kick for those leaping through the air, seizing the wrists of those trying to stab his abdomen and flipping them over, various strikes with his staff, knee strikes to the jaw, or simply a forceful stomp with the sole of his boot as they drew near.
To be honest, Mark felt as if he were bullying small children. In truth, he was simply decimation creatures that were far weaker than himself.
Mark sensed another movement through Earth Sense. But this time, something was different: shortly after the movement was detected, it suddenly stopped and went silent. The goblins here were usually hyperactive; Mark had yet to encounter a single goblin that was simply resting or sleeping. Almost all of them were constantly on the move, searching for something. Only one type could remain so still.
Mark headed toward the estimated direction. Even before Blind Sense could detect the source of movement, a faint whistling sound reached his ears. The situation became clear: Blind Sense identified an arrow flying toward him. Mark swatted the incoming arrow away with his Blind Staff. Then, pointing his hand toward the direction from which the arrow had come, he extended his index and middle fingers in a gesture resembling a handgun.
In front of his fingertips, a cone-shaped stone materialized in the air and shot forward at immense speed. A goblin's scream echoed from the distance. Upon drawing closer, Mark found an Archer Goblin wounded in the shoulder. Mark ended its life.
For now, his only offensive spell was "Stone Bullet." Because it was created through magic, Mark could maintain his Mana Sense all day long without any strain. Since the bullet itself was made of mana, Mana Sense perceived it clearly, which greatly aided his aiming. He believed that if a target were within his 35-meter sensory radius, he could aim with absolute precision. However, in this rare instance, Mark had simply fired by estimating the direction the arrow had come from. It was a gamble, but he didn't miss—the bullet hit the shoulder.
Mark was amazed by the skill of these archer goblins. The forest was dense, crowded with trees, and there were no clear vantage points on the ground. Archer goblins mostly hid among bushes or tree branches. While most would wait for Mark to get within 10-30 meters, there were plenty who could aim accurately from 40-50 meters away, as this one had. Even if he didn't know the exact facts, Mark believed that hitting a target accurately from 50 meters required a professional archer. Yet here, ordinary goblins were doing it without using any mana. Was this the power of monster evolution? Did a goblin gain such innate instincts the moment it became an archer?
Thinking about these things, Mark simply shrugged and continued his journey. This time he picked up another movement, but it felt slightly "heavier" than that of the usual goblins. As the target entered the range of his Blind Sense, he understood why, and the System's evaluation confirmed it: Goblin Swordsman.
This was another F-rank goblin. It was more muscular than the average goblin and held a blade that would be considered a short sword for a human, but was perfectly sized for its own stature. Upon sensing Mark, the goblin raised its sword and began its approach.
Mark activated his Air Sense and maintained it alongside his Blind Sense. Blind Sense divides the world into white (air) and black (solid objects) based on the difference in vibration conduction between the two mediums. While it detects movement, the image remains quite blurred, which is why he engaged Air Sense as well. This ability allows him to perceive every move of the opponent—provided it doesn't exceed his own processing speed. Its drawback is that Air Sense cannot detect stationary objects at all. However, together, Blind Sense and Air Sense complemented each other perfectly.
Mark parried the goblin's sword strike with his Blind Staff. Despite its low rank, the Goblin Swordsman possessed a degree of skill and battle IQ, and its body was remarkably tough. Thus, Mark decided to spend some time sparring with it to hone his own skills. Through Air Sense, he could feel every twitch of the goblin. He tested all the techniques he had practiced with the staff.
Occasional clean strikes landed on the Goblin Swordsman's head. Even though Mark was restraining his strength, these blows were by no means weak. Nevertheless, the goblin ignored the blood streaming down its face and pressed the attack. Sensing the fight had served its purpose, Mark used Air Repulsion to blast the goblin back, then ended its life with a Stone Bullet.
Mark pressed on with his journey, hunting mostly G-rank goblins while occasionally coming across F-rank ones. This time, there seemed to be no "snipers" among the archer goblins; none of them attacked until Mark had drawn close. There were also several more Goblin Swordsmen. Although their movements and decision-making were largely consistent, subtle differences could still be felt. Mark used them as a "whetstone" to sharpen his own skills.
However, as his mana reserves dwindled and the constant strain of maintaining Blind Sense and his other senses began to cause a throbbing headache, Mark decided it was best to return to the Safe Zone. After all, the dungeon wasn't going anywhere, and neither were the goblins...