Hello, is this a letter addressed to Demon Fortress?

The assassin stood still, his chest heaving violently.

His back was soaked with cold sweat, and he swallowed hard.

The sensation of hundreds of wind blades aimed at him just now still lingers on his skin, like being pricked by needles.

What he feared was not the power of the wind blade.

It's just a mid-level wind blade; no matter how many there are, they can't break through his protective aura.

What he feared was the ability to conceal these hundreds of wind blades so completely that they were undetectable.

Is this the power of a legend?

The assassin had some doubts. He thought of the powerful figure who was equally skilled in stealth and had easily led so many of them into the desolate wasteland.

He was a powerful mage who moved through the land as if it were his own.

Why didn't his ability to conceal himself give him this kind of absolute pressure...?

He slowly loosened his grip on the short blade, turned the dagger in his palm so the tip was facing down, and reversed his grip.

Then he raised his hands to indicate that he posed no threat.

He slowly stood up and tossed the short blade aside.

The dagger fell to the ground with a dull thud, bounced twice, and rolled into a pile of dead leaves.

He looked down at Elvia, who was kneeling on the ground in front of him, then raised his head and looked past her at the black-haired mage.

Or rather, look at the empty space behind that black-haired mage.

That place he thought was hiding a legendary mage.

"I've done everything you asked me to do."

His voice was hoarse, filled with suppressed gasps.

He paused for a moment, then his gaze returned to Elvia.

"She...is good."

"Among the high-ranking members, I've never seen anyone else fight me to this extent."

His tone was calm, but it carried a hint of genuine admiration.

Born into the orthodox Assassin's Court, he had seen countless knights.

Knights have always been the exclusive class of nobles.

Those young masters and ladies who relied on their family resources to get ahead couldn't last more than three moves against him.

This woman, however, showed no signs of being delicate; she was ruthless and quick-witted.

Despite being of a high-ranking position, he managed to hold his own against this extraordinary assassin for so long.

What struck him as even stranger was her attack pattern.

On the surface, it appears to be a grand and sweeping knightly swordsmanship.

In reality, he seized every opportunity, with each sword strike concealing a hidden counter-strategy.

She was especially adept at using the dagger in her left hand, even more so than the knight's sword in her right.

That feeling is more like... an assassin.

Moreover, the technique seemed somewhat familiar to him.

He suppressed his doubts and said nothing more.

Elvia failed to detect the admiration in his tone.

She got up from the ground, brushed the dirt and dead leaves off her skirt armor, and snorted coldly.

"Once I break through to the extraordinary realm, I will definitely be able to defeat you."

His tone was firm, carrying an unyielding stubbornness.

She picked up the rapier from the ground, sheathed it at her waist, and returned to Lin Gui's side.

The atmosphere reached a stalemate.

Lin Gui didn't rush to speak.

He raised his hand, his fingertips twitching slightly.

The magical rings scattered among the dead wood, fallen leaves, and branches began to dissipate one by one.

The pale blue light dimmed in concentric circles, spreading outwards like ripples, and finally disappeared completely into the air.

The assassin watched the rings disappear, and his tense shoulders relaxed slightly.

He turned around, ready to leave.

"etc."

Lin Gui's voice came from behind.

The assassin paused in his steps.

He turned around and gave a cold laugh.

"What? You want to back out?"

His body slumped slightly, lowering his center of gravity, and his right fingertips had already touched the spare dagger at his waist.

They adopted a do-or-die attitude.

Lin Gui shook his head.

"Don't worry, I just want you to pass on a message."

He took a map out of his pocket and unfolded it.

That was the golden roadmap that Dalton gave him.

Lin Gui glanced at it quickly.

The parchment had a dark yellow sheen and was covered with dense markings of various routes, demon lairs, and dangerous areas.

Lin Gui originally thought that the map only marked the demons that needed to be watched out for along the route.

But upon closer inspection, it's not just the barren wasteland on the west side.

Even the dangerous demon lairs in a part of the eastern area were clearly marked.

Including that grove of dead trees we just saw.

Dalton's notes are very detailed:

Dead, ancient trees.

Rank: Lower Transcendent to Upper Transcendent.

Appearance: A giant dead tree, over ten meters tall, with an old man's face emerging from the trunk, and roots extending dozens of meters into the ground.

Habits: One of the oldest things in the barren wasteland.

Attack method: Root strangulation, traps and corrosive poisonous mist within a radius of 500 meters, causing continuous damage over a large area.

The location of this demon horde is somewhat off.

But several years have passed, and even a tree-type demon cannot stay in one place without moving forever.

The only beings who can remain motionless and sleep soundly at home for extended periods are those powerful enough to consider forbidden areas their home... epic demon lords.

Lin Gui's finger moved across the map, eventually stopping on the north side.

A striking red label was placed on it.

A line of text was written next to it, the handwriting was messy, but every stroke conveyed a warning.

Throat of the Wasteland - Satoguya.

Rank: Epic Upper Rank.

The true ruler of the barren wasteland.

Lin Gui stared at the name and remained silent for a moment.

When he and Elvia were traversing the barren wasteland, they encountered two epic demons fighting.

Even though they were dozens of kilometers apart, the aftershocks of the battle between the two demons almost swept them up, and the airship was flipped over several times.

If the Dalton family's description of this sovereign is true,

Then the aftershocks of the battle caused by those two demons are nothing compared to this one.

At the location marked in red, Dalton specifically used a light red circle to mark the opponent's attack range.

Judging from the size of the map, it's at least 20 kilometers away...

In other words, once this person awakens and goes berserk, a radius of 20 kilometers will become a no-go zone for life.

And that doesn't even include the rampage of surrounding demons triggered by the epic demon rampage.

Lin Gui looked at the location of Satogua on the map, then looked up at the almost transparent perception veil in the sky.

A gray-white magical curtain slowly swirls in the sky, its edges shimmering with a faint halo, like a giant spider web spread out.

The northern edge of that net was only a few kilometers from Satoguya's lair.

He glanced again at the dark red mark on the map.

Lin Gui chuckled softly.

He then put away the map, looked up, and stared at the assassin.

"Please convey to Lord Edwin, the master of the Hidden Magic Tower who orchestrated this hunt, that he should bring his two legendary mid-rank assassin subordinates and that young man named Arthur to the Ross family's gathering place in two hours."

His tone was flat, as if he were talking about something insignificant.

"otherwise……"

His gray eyes narrowed slightly, and his voice remained calm.

"My legendary high-ranking half-mage from the Wailing Wall will soon be testing his new magic atop Satogua."