Hello, is this a letter addressed to Demon Fortress?

After preparing everything, Lin Gui took Claudia's glass bead and headed into the depths of the Gloomy Forest.

Passing through the intertwined glowing vines on the outside, the real fairy town gradually comes into view.

The treehouse is built by spiraling around a huge, glowing ancient tree.

The vine bridges connect various places like a spider web, appearing and disappearing in the hazy green light.

The streets are narrow and exquisite, paved with polished purple flagstones.

Nowadays, wild grass has sprouted from the cracks in the stone slabs, and many of the vine bridges are broken.

A silence.

Lin Gui walked slowly, his gaze sweeping over the empty treehouse windows on both sides.

"Many tribes used to live here."

Clotina's voice echoed softly in his mind, carrying with it waves of memories.

"The Moonshadow tribe is skilled in astronomy and lives in the highest watchtower."

"The Thorn Tribe are warriors, and their houses are always decorated with weapon emblems."

"I belong to the Shadow Clan... Our treehouses are usually hidden behind the densest foliage."

She paused, her soul light dimming slightly.

"My home used to be here."

"Later... because of what happened with Shadow Blade Lin."

"Most of the Shadow Clan members have migrated to Deepwood Outpost and Shadowmoon City."

"There are no more Shadow Clan members here."

Lin Gui walked on in silence.

Occasionally, one or two faint glimmers of soul light can be seen in the corner.

Those were the remaining elven inhabitants.

But as soon as they sensed Lin Gui approaching, they quickly hid.

Like a startled firefly.

The entire town was so quiet that you could only hear your own footsteps.

The gentle breeze whistled softly as it passed through the empty house.

Lin Gui's arrival did not cause any obvious disturbance.

But the feeling of being watched became clearer and clearer as Lin Gui speculated.

From unseen corners, countless gazes were quietly cast upon them.

It landed on Lin Gui, on the fake pointed ears beside his ears.

It also landed on the glass beads of Clotina that were floating around him.

A living "elf".

A spirited soul.

Such a combination, in the long-silent, dimly lit forest...

Too conspicuous.

In corners unseen by the forest ghost, the number of observers is increasing.

In the shadow of the treehouse, behind the corner of the broken bridge, and even among the intertwined vines overhead.

Silent, yet dense.

No sound was heard.

The entire city-state maintained an eerie, tense silence.

Just then.

Clotina's voice echoed in his mind.

It is a mid-level soul magic, soul transmission.

However, it is a very obscure and difficult-to-understand form of magic in the magic world.

For the soul, it becomes almost instinctive.

Blackwater City, and some idle spirits from other city-states.

This is often used to prank those unlucky bounty hunters.

"To the left front, the third treehouse, two stories high."

"A warrior from the Thorn Tribe is watching you."

"At the broken point of the vine bridge on the right... three elders of the Shadow Tribe are floating."

"They are very vigilant."

"On top of the head... there are too. At least five."

Her whispers painted an intangible picture for Lin Gui.

The location, number, and even the tribe to which those hidden souls belong...

Clearly presented.

Lin Gui did not activate the Netherworld Eye.

He knew the soul-shaking pressure those eyes brought...

It will scare away these already fragile spirits.

He maintained a calm expression.

Their steps did not stop.

They led Clotina deeper into this desolate elven town.

I don't know how long we walked, until we arrived at the square in the center of the Dark Forest.

A very soft, faint sound drifted from behind the collapsed treehouse ruins on the right:

"Clautina...Shadow?"

"Is it...you?"

Clotina's spirit trembled slightly.

She turned toward the source of the sound.

Through the broken wooden fence, she saw the spirit of an elf boy who was about her age.

It had a pale purple soul light, pointed ears, and a face that still retained a touch of childishness.

Immediately afterwards, more tiny soul shadows drifted out from all directions.

Behind the tree hollow, among the vines, and even in a dried-up spring well.

They were all elven boys and girls around the same age as Clotina.

They cautiously gathered together, their soul lights flickering faintly.

Claudia was stunned for a long time.

They didn't seem to recognize them immediately.

Until a girl's spirit with two braids whispered:

"I am Lia... from the Moonshadow tribe."

"We used to catch silverfish together by the Firefly River..."

Another tall, thin boy spoke:

"I am Kaelan, from the Thorn tribe."

"The time you stole the offering fruit from the World Tree altar... I was the one who kept watch for you."

Memories flooded back like a tide.

Clotina's soul trembled slightly.

"Lia...Kairan..."

She called out each familiar yet unfamiliar name.

Each sound made the eyes of the gathered little spirits shine even brighter.

Soon, waves of joy spread.

"You're alive! No, I mean... you're still 'existing'!"

"We thought the entire outpost area was gone..."

"Where have you been for the past ten years or so?"

They surrounded Clotina, chattering amongst themselves.

The voice was soft, yet it brimmed with the vibrancy of a long-awaited reunion.

The topic quickly shifted back to the past.

"Remember when we played 'Hide and Seek with the Light'? You always hid in the brightest patch of moss, and I could catch you every time."

"And there's the 'Moon Shadow Riddle,' an ancient proverb of the night elves that you can never guess correctly."

"During the World Tree Festival, we secretly replaced the priest's scepter with a tree branch, causing him to be laughed at by the Moonlight Royal Family's envoys..."

Lin Gui stood silently to the side, listening to the young elves reminisce about the past.

The names, rules, and even the cultural metaphors behind those games...

To him, it all had a unique, elegant quality characteristic of elves.

But it was tainted with the childish, sometimes funny, and sometimes sad playfulness of children.

It's a bit...

It's like an elegant piano playing a strange tune played by a little kid in open-crotch pants, sniffing the air.

The children's excited reunion was like pebbles thrown into stagnant water.

The ripples of joy spread outwards in concentric circles.

In this quiet little town of elves, which had been silent for sixteen years.

This vibrant reunion is all the more precious.

It's also exceptionally...beautiful.

The faint glow of the fluorescent moss gently enveloped them.

The translucent souls of the boys and girls gathered together, intertwined with pale blue halos.

Soft laughter, suppressed cheers, and the glint in their eyes as they reminisce.

Like an old painting that has faded with time, suddenly brightened up again.

Gradually.

More spirits were drawn to the commotion.

From hiding in tree hollows, behind vines, through broken window frames...

It quietly drifted out.

They come in various shapes and sizes.

There were elderly elves, their souls possessing a steady outline, their eyes carrying a calm composure born of long experience.

Some of the soldiers were middle-aged, their spirits still solidified, and their demeanor retained the vigilance and uprightness they had shown in life.

There were also many more young soul shadows, curiously looking around, slowly gathering together.

They surrounded the children.

We didn't get too close.

Just quietly watch that small, warm, joyful mass in the center.

Watching Claudia and her friends call out each other's names.

Watching them burst into laughter over some childish memory.

Looking at those games and celebrations that have long been buried by time...

In the words of the teenagers, it came back to life.

On the faces of the spirits, a faint, almost imperceptible expression gradually appeared...

A smile.

The smile was very faint.

But it was like the first ray of light piercing through the mist at dawn.

It illuminated the corners of this dead city that had been dark for too long.