Hello, is this a letter addressed to Demon Fortress?

Lin Gui piloted the flying boat, slowly flying towards the nearest ventilation window.

Looking at the faint outline of the post office below, Shia couldn't help but ask:

"Eve is still down there, and so is our wooden crate..."

Lin Gui didn't even turn his head:

"No rush, let me confirm something first."

The airship hovered in front of the heavy iron window.

The windows were welded with dense steel bars, as thick as a child's arm.

Lin Gui drew a dagger from his waist and handed it to Xia.

Shea took it and jumped off the airship.

She landed lightly on the bow of the boat, and using the momentum, leaped up again.

They crouched steadily on the edge of the iron bars.

He took a deep breath and channeled his energy into the dagger.

"Snap!"

The dagger struck the steel reinforcement.

A sharp metallic clang exploded!

Sparks flew.

Xia felt a violent tremor in her hand, and her entire arm went numb.

Upon closer inspection, only a shallow white cut mark remained on the steel bar.

It didn't even cut in half.

Her eyes sharpened.

A dark red tinge appeared deep within his pupils, like blood dripping into an inkwell.

The silver hair moved without wind, and a few wisps of black mist seeped from the ends of the hair, swirling and fluttering.

The demonic energy surged into the dagger from his fingertips.

The blade vibrated and hummed, revealing ominous dark red patterns, like pulsating blood vessels.

This is her at this moment.

His eyes and brows exuded the tyrannical and ferocious aura of the demon race.

Furthermore, her stunning beauty exuded a dangerous and heart-stopping allure.

"break!"

The dagger strikes again!

This time, it happened without a sound.

The blade, imbued with demonic energy, cut through tofu with ease.

It glides silently over the steel bars.

The cross-section is as smooth as a mirror, gleaming with a cold light.

One, two, three...

All the steel pillars were cut down and fell to the ground with a thud.

Shia sheathed the dagger and tucked it back into her waistband.

She leaned out the window.

"Thump!"

Even though there was nothing there, it crashed into a hard wall.

She rubbed the little head, then paused, pressing her palm forward.

It feels cool and solid to the touch, like touching ancient ice.

A completely transparent wall sealed off the entire window.

Her eyes turned cold, and demonic energy surged once more, with a faint black mist rising around her.

The dagger was drawn, its dark red patterns gleaming brightly, and the buzzing intensified.

Pierce the transparent barrier with all your might!

"clang--!!!"

A deafening clang of metal clashing resounded and echoed through the passageway.

The dagger snapped in two!

The tip of the blade spun and shot out, leaving a trail of cold light.

With a "clang," it struck the distant rock face, vibrating and humming.

Shia gripped the broken handle, frozen in place.

His hand was split open, and blood trickled down between his fingers, dripping onto the windowsill.

She stared blankly at what was in front of her.

A transparent barrier that is empty yet indestructible.

"It's a barrier."

Shea turned around, her expression a mixture of strangeness and frustration.

Lin Gui helplessly rubbed his forehead.

His lips moved, but he couldn't help but mutter a complaint under his breath:

"Is it really necessary...?"

He really wanted to ask the fortress lord a question in person.

Just to trap those three "newbies",

They actually activated a protective barrier that could cover the entire Shield City?

Is this really necessary?!

Kill a chicken with a knife?

No, this is like using a strategic nuclear weapon to kill a mosquito!

Now, no matter how superb his levitation skills are,

No matter how powerful and exquisite the Night Gauze Robe is

It is also impossible to escape from a completely enclosed cage.

As for destroying the barrier stone that maintains the barrier?

Lin Gui hasn't lived enough yet.

The value and strategic significance of that thing are not something you can touch casually.

If you move, you'll probably get smashed into mincemeat by the enraged fortress lord.

A moment of silence.

Lin Gui sighed softly and turned the flying boat around.

"Let's go."

"Go back and talk to that fortress lord who's using a cannon to kill a mosquito."

"Let's have a good talk."

Inside the forging workshop.

Seeing the airship return, Bahrain laughed triumphantly.

"See! I told you I didn't need to stop you!"

Lin Gui jumped off the flying boat.

He glanced speechlessly at this unpretentious, powerful figure, and asked directly:

"What will it take for you to let us go?"

Bahrain stood with his hands on his hips, his beard slightly twitching.

"As long as you don't go to the Wailing Wall."

Lin Gui nodded, his face serious:

"Fine, I won't go."

Then, he raised his right hand with a solemn expression.

"I swear by my most revered god, Gruluru."

Bahrain quickly added, a shrewd glint in his eyes:

"I will send a legendary dwarf to accompany you and supervise you throughout the entire process."

Lin Gui silently lowered his hand.

Shia leaned closer curiously, blinking her eyes:

"What kind of god is Guru Guru? I've never heard of him before?"

Lin Gui said calmly:

"I made that up."

Bahrain, Grom, and Shia all twitched at the corners of their mouths and froze.

"..."

Fine.

Left with no other option, Lin Gui had to resort to his final, ultimate move.

"If you let us go."

"I can give this to you."

Bahrain chuckled, his face full of disbelief, and crossed his arms.

"Things? Kid, even if you slap a divine artifact in my face!"

"I don't know how..."

The words came to an abrupt halt.

His eyes widened, his mouth slightly open, and his expression froze.

He stared intently at what Lin Gui took out of his bag.

It was a dusty, gray stone, about the size of a fist.

Its surface shimmers with subtle runic luster, concealing hidden energy within.

"A... a barrier stone?!"

Bahrain's voice suddenly rose, cracked, and was filled with disbelief.

Grom, who was standing to the side, also suddenly started breathing heavily and stared blankly.

Their eyes immediately reddened.

The redness was physical; the blood vessels were visible.

They snatched the stone and examined it thoroughly.

The fingertips caressed the patterns, magic probed into the senses, and the movements were urgent.

"It's true... the fluctuations are very stable..." Grom's voice trembled with excitement.

Balin turned around abruptly and rushed to Lin Gui in a few steps.

He grabbed Lin Gui's shoulders, so excited he was incoherent, spitting as he spoke:

"Oh! Lin the devil! No—my dear human friend!"

"Sell this to me no matter what!"

"Name your price! A semi-divine artifact? A wind pressure cannon? A divine forge?"

"I can get you anything you want!"

Unlike other ordinary city-states.

The barrier stone is of paramount importance to Shield City, as it relates to strategic autonomy.

Although there is a much larger protective barrier in the city.

But it doesn't entirely belong to them; they are subject to others.

And this barrier stone...

The plan in Bahrain's mind can play a key role and is the key to breaking the deadlock.

After he finished speaking, he rushed into the warehouse and started searching.

He took the Wind Whisperer's Scepter out and put it back in Lin Gui's hand.

"Here you go! See if there's anything else you want?!"

"I can give you anything!"

Lin Gui took the scepter, didn't even look at it, and casually tossed it behind him.

The scepter traced an arc in the air before landing with a "thud" inside the airship.

Shia's eyelids twitched violently, and her heart clenched.

She leaped onto the flying boat, carefully picked up the scepter, and meticulously examined the runes on the scepter.

Seeing that it wasn't damaged, he breathed a sigh of relief and gently stroked it.

He then stared at Lin Gui speechlessly.

How can this person treat a semi-divine artifact so casually?! Like throwing firewood!

Lin Gui looked at Balin, his tone calm and unwavering:

"All I want is for you to let us out."

"I don't want anything else."

Bahrain's excitement froze instantly, his smile stiffening.

He was silent.

The hand gripping the barrier stone had slightly white knuckles and was trembling with force.

The only sound in the workshop was the crackling of the furnace burning, and the air seemed to freeze.

After a long while, Bahrain let out a heavy sigh, his shoulders slumping slightly.

He raised his eyes, looking at Lin Gui with a complex expression, his struggles churning within them.

"Kid..."

"Do you know what this stone means to us?"

"Do you even know what the Wailing Wall means to you?"

He did not say "no".

But he didn't say "okay" either.

In those rugged eyes.

The struggle and the desire clashed fiercely, like two streams of lava colliding.