The Queen of Scrolls never admits defeat

The path to the cave complex where the Nightshade Clan's territory is located is hidden and difficult to traverse. It requires crossing an underground water vein and then climbing over a nearly vertical, slippery rock wall.

Fortunately, the dangerous creatures in the area have been cleared out, and the raiders from the underground world dare not act recklessly in this vicinity.

After another two days of trekking, when the terrain began to slope downwards noticeably and the glowing plants that once filled the underground world completely disappeared, they finally reached the outer perimeter of the Nightveil Clan cave complex marked on Viola's map.

The shadow elements in the air became unusually active.

Ordinary lighting magic proved ineffective here; the light was quickly "absorbed" and "diluted" by the surrounding darkness, barely illuminating three or five steps before losing its strength.

Only dark races like the Deep Shadow Elves, who are born with extraordinary dark vision and can master the power of shadow, can move freely in such extreme environments and regard darkness as the best cover and weapon.

From the moment any creature steps into this area, it is under the surveillance of the Nightshade Clan. It must strictly follow the route on the black parchment and, when necessary, clearly state the pass code in order to safely traverse this cave maze and find the true territory of the Nightshade Clan.

Moran could clearly sense the faint gazes in the darkness, but he pretended not to notice them and strictly followed the map in his memory, heading towards the cave entrance.

After walking for about half an hour, three almost identical passages unfolded in a fan shape, with the size and shape of the entrances and even the rock textures being strikingly similar.

Moran turned slightly and stepped directly into the central passage.

After her figure disappeared into the cave entrance, the gazes that had been watching her from the depths of the passages on both sides finally withdrew.

As the journey continued, similar forks in the road became more and more frequent, and the methods of navigating them became increasingly complex.

Sometimes you simply have to choose between a seemingly solid rocky ground and a narrow bridge covered in slippery moss; sometimes there's only a rock wall in front of you, and you need to activate a hidden shadow rune according to the instructions on the black parchment to open a gap; once, there was an underground swamp full of boiling acid in front of you, and you had to step on a few specific colored pumice stones, each only the size of a foot, precisely marked on the map, to get through, or you would be reduced to ashes.

At every fork in the road, Moran could feel that someone was "watching" her.

After passing through about a dozen such forks in the road, the passage ahead suddenly opened up, turning into a relatively spacious cave hall.

At the far end of the hall was a tightly closed, heavy gate made of some kind of dark metal.

On either side of the gate, there was not nothing but two people dressed in black, their entire bodies hidden under cloaks.

They blended perfectly into the surrounding shadows, and if Moran hadn't also been familiar with the power of shadows, he wouldn't have been able to detect their presence immediately.

The two shadows shifted slightly, like drops of ink slowly spreading and taking shape in water. The next second, defying the laws of visual perception, they "appeared" three steps to her left and right, their daggers pointed directly at her neck: "Halt, intruder..."

Even though Moran came for a friendly visit, she couldn't stand having a dagger held to her neck.

She also wanted to see how skilled the elite Shadow Assassins of the Nightveil Clan were.

Her figure blurred and distorted for a moment before disappearing into the darkness.

"Hmm?" The two Shadow Assassins' daggers landed on empty air, their movements momentarily frozen, almost imperceptibly. They were somewhat surprised that their target had escaped their control, but they did not panic.

They quickly moved back to back, straining to sense the unusual presence in the surrounding darkness.

At this moment, Moran's figure emerged from a deeper shadow above their heads. Her movements were light and silent. With a flick of her wrists, two ordinary-looking short swords, whose blades gleamed with a pale blue light under the dim light, slid into her palms.

She lowered her body even further, her aura almost nonexistent, and then swiftly attacked the two shadow elves below.

The Shadow Elf quickly noticed the anomaly above, swiftly creating distance to dodge her dagger, and then rapidly closing in.

In an instant, in the dimly lit hall in front of the gate, three figures crisscrossed, chased, and dodged like ghosts.

There was no deafening clang of metal clashing, only the faint sound of clothes rustling in the air and the soft rustling of boots scraping against rocks.

Moran's figure seemed to be in constant danger under the tacit and rapid attacks of the two black-clad assassins, but he always managed to avoid the fatal blows by the slightest margin.

She did not use any powerful spells or signature abilities of other elven branches, but relied solely on her footwork, which combined the agility of a Ranger with the unpredictability of a Shadow Assassin, as well as her extraordinary reflexes and predictions, to contend with these two elites of the Nightveil Clan.

As time went on, the two shadow elves sensed something was wrong and worried that the newcomers had ill intentions. One of them subconsciously pulled out an inconspicuous bone whistle from his waist, preparing to blow it to alert the other members of his tribe and also to call for reinforcements.

Moran noticed his movements, immediately raised his hands to signal a ceasefire, and took several steps back to create a relatively safe distance. He also used the Shadow Walker level nine spell Shadow Binding Touch to control them.

"Stop! Don't be nervous, you two! I've come to pay my respects to Lord Shadowblade on the recommendation of Viola Nightshade. This is a letter of recommendation!"

As she spoke, she deftly took Viola's letter of recommendation from her bosom.

As for the fierce exchange that had just taken place, she made no mention of it, offering neither explanation nor apology.

In this perilous underground world where the strong reign supreme, especially in the presence of assassin clans like the Nightshade Clan, who are known for their killing and secrecy, strength itself is the best language and the most reliable passport.

From the moment these two Shadow Elf guards appeared, their undisguised killing intent and direct, forceful suppression techniques made it seem less like a routine security check and more like a meticulously planned test of strength.

In the underground world, especially among the Nightshade Clan, a safe identity is far from enough.

A "connected person" who lacks sufficient self-defense capabilities and cannot stand firm in a sudden conflict, even if allowed to enter the clan's territory, will most likely end up "never to return."

Now that she has proven her strength, it would be bad if they called in other Shadow Elves and things got out of hand.

When the two Shadow Elves saw her use Shadow Binding Touch, they knew she was a ruthless individual who practiced both Shadow Assassin and Shadow Walker. For a moment, they wondered which of their clan's elders had returned!

But then she said that she had been introduced by Lady Viola to visit Lord Shadowblade. (End of Chapter)