I am the Demon King of the Dungeon!

The Oracle Squad passed through the teleportation array in the safe zone and entered the twenty-second level of Dark Hemcas.

Before the five people was an archway carved from a single block of obsidian, with two broken giant axes hanging crossed above the lintel, their blades covered with cuts of varying depths.

The two sides of the door frame are engraved with tribal war patterns, crossed bull horns, and battle scars cleaved by sharp axes. The rough lines gleam with a cold, eerie light under the dark red glow of the lava.

"Mouthman..." Alicia looked up at the bottom of the archway, where a stone tablet about half a person's height stood.

Several lines of large characters in common language were inscribed on the surface of the monument:

"Welcome to the Bloodhoof Arena."

"Bloodhoof?!" Logan looked up at the crossed giant axes. "Could it be that battle maniac?"

"Do you know who it is?" Sylvia turned to look at Logan. "I didn't expect you to know a minotaur."

"It was once the overlord of the monster arena." Alicia drew her longsword, the holy light on its blade shining in the dim canyon, making her profile appear like a marble statue. "There's a special area outside the capital with an arena specifically for the entertainment of nobles, and Bloodhoof was once a legend, undefeated in a thousand battles. I never expected it to come to this dungeon; it seems the demon lord here defeated it."

"The arena's undisputed champion," Logan grinned. "I saw how it fought when I was young."

"A clumsy bull dealing pure physical damage." Richie twirled his staff. "Magic will punish it."

"Don't underestimate them." Alicia stepped through the archway first. "Remember what the captain said? If you can't beat them, use the Return Stone. Intelligence is more important."

Avira followed quietly behind the others.

The five people stepped into the canyon, and the scenery suddenly opened up.

The canyon is flanked by towering obsidian walls that stretch upwards until they disappear into the darkness overhead. Their height is unknown, and at intervals along the walls, battle flags are planted, fluttering in the hot wind.

Not far away, a towering platform can be seen, a rocky platform suspended in mid-air, blocking out the sun.

The ground was cracked, reddish-brown soil, scattered with various broken weapons and the remains of extinguished campfires.

In the middle of the canyon, several tents built of animal bones and obsidian are scattered around, with wooden fences and chevaux-de-frise forming a simple defensive line between them.

Behind the tents, a small shamanic altar was embedded in the rock wall, where the totem of the Minotaur ancestors was enshrined.

A giant bone pillar wrapped in iron chains and feathers, with an ever-burning eerie green flame at its top.

Between the tents, minotaurs could be seen everywhere, forming what appeared to be a small settlement.

"Formation."

Alicia lowered her voice, holding her longsword horizontally in front of her.

Logan stepped forward, the giant hammer falling from his shoulder, its head slamming into the ground, blocking Alicia's path half a step.

Sylvia leaped back a few feet, landing on a slightly raised mound of earth, her silver bow half-drawn.

Richie's staff tapped lightly on the ground, and a thin layer of frost spread from the end of the staff, creating an ice ring several steps in diameter beneath his feet.

"There are quite a few."

Sylvia's gaze swept across the area ahead, using her "Eagle Eye" skill to give her a clear view.

"There are about twenty Crack Axe Warriors, four Burning Hoof Shamans, and two Totem Guardians, mixed together in the camp area. The closest group is thirty paces ahead, consisting of three Crack Axe Warriors and one Burning Hoof Shaman, surrounding the camp."

"There's another overlord," Richie said, adjusting his monocle. "It's in front of the largest tent in the very center of the camp. It's a size bigger than a regular minotaur, and it's wielding a warhammer. Judging from its position, its furious roar should be able to cover all the smaller monsters in the entire camp area."

"We have to pull it out first." Alicia quickly assessed the situation. "The Shaman's Bloodlust and the Warlord's War Cry, with their two buffs stacked together, will make the mobs even harder to deal with. Sylvia, can you kill the Shaman first?"

"Of course." Sylvia moved the tip of her arrow slightly, aiming at the Burning Hoof Shaman behind the tent who was throwing herbs into the campfire.

Its totem staff is adorned with glowing crystals that flicker and flash with the incantation.

"My first arrow pierced its shield, the second its throat. But the axe-breakers around it will charge at me after it dies, and Logan will have to hold them off."

"Don't worry." Logan cracked his knuckles as he stretched his shoulders. "They're just a few calves. We'll take as many as they come."

"Rich, start by using Ice Wall to block the right side, cutting off the charge route of those two Crack Axe Warriors on the right, and preventing them from getting around to Sylvia's side."

Alicia stepped forward, sword in hand. "Clear the first group in thirty seconds. Everyone, save your movement skills. Once the Warlord uses Berserker Roar, Logan immediately uses Charge to block the camp area. Avira, focus on healing. The rest of you, clear the smaller mobs first."

"no problem."

"clear."

"receive."

"it is good."

The four responses sounded almost simultaneously.

Three breaths later.

Sylvia's bowstring snapped open.

The silver arrow streaked across the dim canyon like a shooting star, precisely embedding itself in the Burning Hoof Shaman's shield. The holy silver coating on the arrowhead exploded with a blinding silver light the moment it came into contact with magic, and the shield shattered instantly.

The second arrow followed immediately, piercing the throat and protruding from the back of the neck, bringing with it a dark green mist of blood.

Before the Burning Hoof Shaman could even scream, its body slumped to the side and it fell beside the campfire. The totem staff rolled out of its hand and into the fire, sending sparks flying.

The three axe-cutter warriors turned their heads at the same time. Their reaction was extremely fast. The moment the shaman fell, the one in front had already picked up its battle axe, put on all threes, and pounced on Sylvia in an almost beast-like manner.

The minotaurs' charge was not as uniform as that of human knights; it was more like a pure burst of muscle, leaving heavy hoofprints on the ground and their battle axes drawing cold arcs.

"Here it comes!" Sylvia did not retreat; the third arrow was already nocked.

Logan cut in from the side, swinging his massive hammer horizontally. The hammerhead slammed into the first Crack Axe Warrior's battle axe, and sparks flew through the canyon as the metal clashed.

The axe-wielding warrior was jolted by the hammer blow, its axe blade deflecting and cleaving into the ground beside it.

Logan used the momentum to turn around, sweeping his hammer handle to force the second Crack Axe Warrior back half a step, while simultaneously slamming his left fist into the chest of the third Crack Axe Warrior.

The minotaur grunted and staggered backward.

Just then, a dull thud came from the right.

Richie's ice wall rose precisely on time, blocking two Crack Axe Warriors who were trying to flank from the side. They angrily swung their battle axes at the ice wall, sending ice shards flying, but the wall could hold up for the time being.

"Alicia!" Logan shouted.

Alicia's figure flashed out from behind, her longsword trailing a golden flame as its tip precisely pierced the throat of the first Crack Axe Warrior.

Sylvia's fourth arrow pierced the eye socket of the second Cracked Axe Warrior; Logan followed up with a hammer blow, smashing the third one's sternum and spine together.

The first group was successfully cleared.

But Alicia didn't pause for a moment; her gaze swept across the tents and fixed on the largest one.

The warlord had already noticed the commotion. Its massive body rose from beside the campfire, its right hand gripping a giant warhammer that dragged a deep furrow in the ground, and a deafening roar came from deep within its throat.

"War Roar!"

The warlord's roar was like a tangible shockwave, spreading outwards in all directions from its center.

All the minotaurs in the camp raised their heads at the same time, a blood-red light shining from their pupils, their battle axes trembling in their hands, emitting a bloodthirsty hum.

Six Crack Axe Warriors rushed out of the tent, three Burning Hoof Shamans began chanting Bloodlust, and two Totem Guards raised their double-edged long axes, steadily approaching Alicia. Their steps were slow, and their heavy armor made a dull metallic clanging sound as they moved.

"Logan, hold off the overseer!" Alicia raised her sword to meet the oncoming axe warrior, and a holy light shield materialized on her left arm.

Logan took a deep breath and charged toward the warlord, leaving a blurry afterimage in his wake.

The warlord noticed the approaching humans, roared, raised his warhammer, and brought it down on Logan's head.

Before the hammer even struck, the wind from it had already scattered the rubble.

Logan dodged to the side, the hammer grazing his shoulder as it slammed into the ground, creating a deep crater in the dry, cracked red soil.

He took advantage of the situation to circle around behind the warlord, and swung his giant hammer from bottom to top, striking the warlord on the back of the knee, which was one of the few parts of the minotaur's body not covered by iron armor.

The warlord grunted and knelt on one knee, but he did not fall. He swung his hammer back and forced Logan back.

"We've drawn aggro!" Logan shouted as he backed away.

"Sylvia, Shaman!" Alicia cleaved the last axe-wielding warrior in front of her with a single sword strike.

"Received." Sylvia's arrow was released.

The silver arrow, trailing a white tail, struck precisely the first Burning Hoof Shaman who was chanting the Bloodlust spell, piercing its chest and pinning it to a wooden post in the tent.

The second arrow followed closely, piercing the second shaman's knee and causing it to kneel, forcibly interrupting the incantation of Bloodlust; the third shaman completed the incantation of Bloodlust at the last moment, but only the Overseer remained on the field.

Richie waved his staff, and frost spread from the Overseer's feet, freezing its hooves in place.

The warlord angrily pounded the ice.

Logan leaped high into the air, raising his giant hammer overhead. Using the force of his fall and the momentum of his charge, he slammed the hammerhead down on the Overseer's head. Alicia's longsword pierced the seam between the Overseer's breastplate and shoulder armor from the side, and holy light exploded at the tip of the sword, pouring into his chest cavity.

The warlord's massive body swayed, then crashed to the ground, his warhammer rolling to the floor.

It took the five men ten minutes to clear out the remaining soldiers.

Sylvia crouched on the ground, retrieving usable arrows from the corpses with light and focused movements, like a silver eagle hunting for prey on the battlefield.

Alicia walked towards the end of the canyon. Not far ahead, there was an iron suspension bridge spanning between the canyon and the floating rock platform. On the bridge, four tall figures clad in black iron armor could be vaguely seen.

The five people gathered at the bridge.

Logan shielded his eyes from the sunlight and looked up at the rocky platform. "Looks like the boss room is up there."