Chapter 61—Entering
"So they gave her na to the new calendar to cover up what they did and stop demons from rampaging?" Elder Sli muttered, feeling it was a clever move by humans and other races.
Even without a demon king, demons could still cause trendous problems thanks to their superior combat power.
"Yes," both won answered, nodding at Old Sli’s words.
"Very well... I’ll let you all go," Elder Sli said, and his words filled them with relief.
"Before you leave, tell —this Ruins City Lunxia...is it a popular place?" he asked, glancing at the broken fortress, "Do adventurers swarm this place for treasure and such?"
They both replied instantly, "No."
The white‑robed woman continued bitterly, "All the treasures were already taken long ago. We only ca here to research, but we didn’t expect..." She trailed off and glanced at the red sli.
That was enough for Elder Sli to understand.
"Let them go," he said, turning to Red Sli, who was ditating to recover his mana reserves.
"Okay," Sli#47 agreed, still doubtful—but he released Fire Chains, letting the bindings vanish as he followed Elder Sli’s decision.
"I’ll try to investigate and save the followers of those two churches—and also check the other churches along the way," the white‑robed woman said as she stood. She understood why they’d been spared—old sli wanted them to investigate further.
’They might be useful in the future,’ he thought, watching them.
"Heal," the white‑robed woman chanted. A light‑green magic rune flared above her palm as she aid it at herself.
A wave of soft green light spread, and her cuts and surface injuries vanished.
"That’s better," she muttered, feeling her fatigue fade.
"Heal. Heal."
She then cast the spell twice more, healing the blue‑haired woman, then the young lad and the middle‑aged man.
Those two wouldn’t have survived without her help; it was a matter of ti before they succumbed to injuries.
She’d saved their lives with her spell, though the deep burn scars remained. Those marks would not vanish unless healed by soone far stronger than her.
They all stood and looked deeply at Red Sli and Elder Sli before leaving. The middle‑aged man clenched his fists, feeling a mix of powerlessness and rage.
The young lad walked with trembling legs, still shaken after coming so close to death.
"Why did you let them go, Elder?" Sli#47 asked, suspicious. He had already noticed the man holding his wrath in check—but it didn’t matter; Sli#47 could kill him in an instant if needed.
"They’ll be useful later," Elder Sli replied plainly.
"By the way, what did you ask them? They were so shocked... even you looked like you couldn’t believe it," Red Sli pressed, wanting details.
"I’ll tell you later," Elder Sli dismissed, then added after a pause, seeing Young Sli’s body twitch with curiosity, "For now—there are no humans in the fortress. We can enter."
Hearing there were no humans inside made Young Sli grin. He turned to the slis gathered behind him and the cattle resting around them as he announced, "Let’s go."
----
"It’s... so big!" Little Sli yelled, bouncing all over the place—wob!
"So, where’s the teleportation room?" Red Sli asked as Elder Sli stared at the fortress with nostalgia.
Hearing the question, Old Sli just grinned.
Wob!All the slis and—Thud!—the cattle entered as well. They all could fit in as it was quite large.
"Incredible... this was once a city ruled by demons," Bull#1 said with a smirk, blowing air through his nostrils.
"How do you know it was ruled by demons?" Cow#1 asked, surprised he rembered anything like that.
"Hmph, I’ve talked a lot with Elder Sli... he knows quite a bit," he retorted, annoyed she seed to underestimate him. ’Who would forget sothing like that?’ he thought.
’I feel like I’ve been here before...’ Mama Sli felt a strange déjà vu as she scrutinized the fortress.
They Wob!—Thud!—walked toward the large door of the first floor.
Bam!
Red Sli shoved it open with force; the hinges resisted and then gave, dust and smoke falling as the door scraped aside.
A huge hall lay beyond, its once grand carpet rotten and moldy.
The walls that used to hold trinkets and paintings were torn, heavy with dust, and streaked with mold.
The furniture had decayed into warped, broken shapes.
Rusted brown chandeliers still hung from the ceiling, clinging on.
"Whoaa!" Little Sli exclaid, staring at the hall.
At the far end of the hall stood a staircase.
’There are lower floors...as if it wasn’t already huge enough,’ Sli#47 noted, eyeing the stairway descending below as well as the steps climbing up.
"Careful, everyone," he warned. Cracks marred the stairs, so steps fully broken. A dusty carpet lay thrown over them, hiding most of the damage and blocking a clear view.
"We need to reach the top floor," Elder Sli said, leading them toward the stairs.
"Wait," Red Sli stopped them. "Elder and I will scout ahead first. We’ll co back for you later."
"Okay," Mama Sli agreed, still uneasy from that strange sense of familiarity.
"No, I’m coming too!" Little Sli protested, Wob!—jumping toward them.
Smack! Elder Sli slapped him down. "No, child. You’re not," he scolded.
Little Sli sulked as he landed back on the ground.
----
Wob!
They climbed the stairs by bouncing, leaping over the gaps.
Falling from a few floors would barely scratch Red Sli; he was far too tough to be hurt by simple drops. But Elder Sli was different. Even a one‑floor fall could injure him.
On the fifth floor—Crack!—the stairs suddenly gave way, widening into a large hole under Old Sli’s body. He dropped.
"Mana Chain!" He quickly cast his spell to protect himself.
He shot the chains toward the handrail.
Click!
Clink!
The chain wrapped around the rail and coiled tight.
Red Sli watched calmly.
’Looks like I worried too much... He really is an old monster,’ he thought dryly.
Using the chains, he climbed back.
Soon, they bounced to the thirty-fourth floor. The design and appearance weren’t any different from the first floor’s hall with rotten carpet, dusty walls, cracked paintings, trinkets, and rusted chandeliers hanging on the ceiling.
Many rooms’ doors were broken, making the dusty area inside visible.
The floor was cracked with holes, leading to the previous floor, but so craters ford in a sequence, making a long fall over multiple floors.
’This is it,’ Elder Sli mused, feeling excited; he could finally enter the central land of demons.
But his joy didn’t last long as "Roar!" monsters howled from the central room at the end of the hall; it was the only room with a unbroken door, and it had glowing light violet magic seals all over it.
End of the Chapter.
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