Chapter 65: Terrifying Reproductive Speed
However, it is possible to estimate based on the number of female Lizardmen.
There are a total of 253 female Lizardmen.
More than half a year has passed, and now the pregnant female Lizardmen are on their fourth litter.
Each litter of Goblins numbers no less than ten.
Even if it's slightly fewer, the difference isn't significant.
With 253 female Lizardmen, each litter can produce over two thousand baby Goblins.
Four litters mean nearly ten thousand.
Therefore, the population of the tribe is around ten thousand.
Even if it's not exactly ten thousand, it's not far off.
"Are there really ten thousand Goblins?"
Li Meng did a quick calculation in his head.
The resulting number gave him a big fright.
How is so much food being managed for this many Goblins?
It's important to know that Goblins are pure carnivores.
How many lives have to be slaughtered to fill the stomachs of the Goblins?
Where does so much food come from in the nearby forest?
"Gobu Qiang, has it become more difficult to acquire food recently?"
Gobu Qiang didn't quite understand what the leader meant.
It shook its head and scratched its head.
"No, hunting has become easier since we got crossbows."
"Have you started hunting in very faraway places?"
Hearing this, Gobu Qiang nodded hard.
"Leader, there are too many hunting teams around the area. We can only find more prey in farther places."
Gobu Qiang's response confirmed what Li Meng had suspected.
No wonder Gobu Di and Gobu Shi waited in the tribe for five full days before leaving.
Now, hunting teams need to go farther away to bring back food.
No wonder he found signs of Goblin activity near the Pigmen tribe's forest.
The hunting range of the tribe has expanded to over seventy kilometers eastward.
"That's enough. You're dismissed. Go play on your own."
Waving Gobu Qiang away, Li Meng turned and left.
Li Meng didn't impose too many restrictions on his Goblin subordinates.
As long as they brought back food, they could do whatever they wanted.
If they wanted to laze around in the tribe for a few days, he didn't stop them.
After all, each of them had their own underlings.
They could have their underlings work while they played.
As for whether the underlings would rebel, that was none of his concern.
When Li Meng returned to the throne cave, night had begun to fall.
Bai Ling and her group of female Lizardmen had already returned to the tribe.
Looking at the spot outside where Benben used to sleep, Li Meng frowned slightly.
He didn't know where Benben had gone.
It had been more than a month without any trace of him.
Sighing softly, Li Meng pushed open the door and entered.
Before long, the sounds of "humming" echoed from the wooden house.
Time ticked by, and the night grew deeper.
In the following days, Li Meng began to tally the tribe's population and weaponry.
There was only one thing to do every day.
That was to wait for the return of the hunting teams.
Half a month later, on a certain morning.
In the tribe, inside the throne cave.
"All your underlings have returned?"
The five Great Goblins in the room hurriedly nodded.
"Leader, they've all come back!"
Gobu Mo, Gobu Gao, Gobu Yi, Gobu Zhang, and Gobu Sheng.
These five Great Goblins were Li Meng's bloodline descendants.
Their names were all given by Li Meng.
They were the first batch of Goblins born.
In just half a year, they had evolved into Great Goblins.
Each one was nearly 1.8 meters tall.
They were only one step away from evolving into Goblin Warriors.
Li Meng waved his hand slightly, dismissing the five Great Goblins.
"Go on!"
Although they were his children, Goblins had no concept of familial bonds.
To them, he was merely a strong figure in the Goblin tribe.
Bloodline connection only enhanced their loyalty to their father.
Li Meng didn't view them as his children.
The Goblin barbarian race was far too weak.
In the future, even Goblin leaders would only serve as cannon fodder.
All green-skinned Goblins were disposable.
The female Lizardmen in the room silently watched the departing Great Goblins.
To them, all Goblins looked the same.
They couldn't distinguish whether any of the five Great Goblins were their offspring.
Even if they could, they wouldn't show motherly love toward those Goblins.
The mere thought of what Goblin newborns looked like made them shudder.
Those tiny Goblin infants, only about the size of a fist.
The moment they were born, they could scurry around looking for food.
If they couldn't find food, they would attack their mothers.
Many female Lizardmen had sustained injuries for failing to separate from the Goblin infants in time.
Watching the backs of the departing Great Goblins, Li Meng appeared deep in thought.
After half a month of tallying, the population and weaponry data were finally ready.
Though it wasn't possible to get an exact figure, the margin of error wouldn't exceed two digits.
The tribe's population was around 9,000 Goblins.
Excluding the juveniles, there were over 7,000 mature Goblins.
This was the terrifying part of Goblins.
From a population of a few hundred to nearly ten thousand in under a year.
Among the mature Goblins, only 5,000 were equipped with spears and crossbows.
There was still a weaponry shortage of about 2,000.
"Bai Ling, come with me!"
With that, Li Meng walked out.
Calculating the time, it was still more than three months until the rotation period.
Unknowingly, nine months had passed since the swamp's domination.
White Scales Bai Ling, who was sitting on the bedding, stood up.
She walked forward and quietly followed behind Li Meng.
"Master, where are we going?"
In the dim forest, the two walked one behind the other.
Bai Ling's belly had grown bigger again, though not significantly.
"To the Iron Cavern!"
About half an hour later, the two appeared in the forest outside the Iron Cavern.
Following behind Li Meng, Bai Ling looked at the cave entrance not far ahead.
She had come here often and was already very familiar with this place.
"High Priest Bai Ling?"
At that moment, a team of male Lizardmen carrying several round logs emerged from the eastern forest.
They saw Bai Ling and Li Meng outside the cave entrance.
When they spotted Li Meng, all the male Lizardmen's faces changed drastically.
They hurriedly lowered their heads and dared not speak further.
Quickly, they carried the logs into the cavern.
Although they drank milk every day, the male Lizardmen still appeared somewhat emaciated.
"Bai Ling, do you swamp Lizardmen need to eat fish to maintain strong bodies?"
The tribe's food supply for the male Lizardmen was sufficient.
Even if they couldn't eat their fill, they would not be starved.
The Iron Cavern had an underground river, and an hour of free bathing time was granted before resting.
Yet even so, the male Lizardmen's bodies continued to visibly thin.
If there were no rotation period, those male Lizardmen would likely exhaust themselves to death within two years.
"Fish from the water is indeed our staple food. We also eat other magical beasts' meat but not in large amounts."
Bai Ling's response confirmed Li Meng's hypothesis.
"Let's go. We'll head inside."
Li Meng noted the issue in his mind.
It was a problem he would address eventually, but not now.
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