I reign supreme in the Western fantasy world for eternity.

Ji Tian walked along the path leading deeper into the maze, pondering the contents of the last mural.

It's not surprising that the Demon God, as the initiator of the game, would allow the Demon King to master the method of summoning heroes, seize the initiative to summon the first hero, and let him win by drawing the holy sword and rebelling.

The strange thing is the hero himself.

Since he was able to draw the holy sword, it means he truly possesses the aptitude for "protection".

That hero had gone through so much, overcoming countless obstacles, from the human capital to the elven court. He should have finally seen the error of his ways and unleashed a devastating attack in the Demon King's palace, piercing the Demon King's chest with the holy sword, thus fulfilling the fairy tale of "the righteous hero defeating the evil demon king," a story that has been anticipated and performed countless times by the world.

However, the mural reads, "The hero chose the Demon King's castle."

The wording is so subtle that it makes one think twice.

Surely it couldn't be that the hero and the demon king were together and "sealed" the demon king in this way, could it?

It was the Demon King who found a way to send the hero home. The hero realized that the so-called "hero versus demon king" was nothing more than a game played by the gods, and chose to go home over defeating the Demon King.

Just as they were thinking this, the group passed through the last path and their view suddenly opened up.

Before us lies an underground lake.

The lake surface is like a mirror, reflecting the rock wall above that is inlaid with silver-blue luminous crystals, as if the water and sky meet, and the lake water shimmers with a faint glow.

On an island in the middle of the lake grows a giant tree that is half dead and half alive, with its roots twisting and turning into the lake and its branches stretching upwards.

A hammock made of countless emerald green vines stretches across the lake and between the giant tree. These vines are not inanimate objects; they are slowly unfolding in a rhythmic manner, adorned with tiny white flowers that emit a soft glow.

An elf was reclining in the hammock.

She had the same face as the female elf in the mural: long hair cascaded down like a waterfall, some of it scattered among the vines, and the rest falling into the lake. The moment the ends of her hair touched the water, it stirred up ripples. She was dressed in a simple white robe.

She was covering her mouth and chuckling softly.

The laughter was initially restrained, with her shoulders trembling slightly and her fingertips touching her lips. Gradually, the laughter became more and more unrestrained and unrestrained. In the end, she even had to prop herself up, one hand on the vines and the other covering her abdomen, her long hair falling down with her movements.

She laughed so hard she almost lost control, so hard that even the pale golden little ball tilted its head in confusion and let out a puzzled "gurgle".

Several figures were on the platform below the hammock.

Shadow Fiend.

The demons, who usually move freely in the shadows and whose main profession is assassination and lurking, are now in a state of near-comical disarray.

Their smoky bodies no longer solidified, and black mist continued to escape from their edges, making a "hissing" sound when it came into contact with the silver-blue light spots on the lake surface.

Most of the Shadow Fiends had half of their bodies that appeared eerily transparent, as if they might disappear at any moment; the leader's "head" was missing a corner, and there were still charred marks on the edge of the missing piece.

They bowed their heads, their posture humble, and their limbs, formed from black mist, occasionally made movements similar to humans wiping sweat.

The elf finally stopped laughing, but was still slightly out of breath, with tears glistening in the corners of her eyes. "So, your demon king sent you through all this trouble to come here, just to tell me..."

She laughed again, this time a short, light laugh, like a child who had just heard a joke.

"...Just to tell me that the pedantic priest is long dead? And that even his relics retain the instinct to reject all other races?"

The Shadow Demon leader, missing a horn, cautiously raised its head: "My lord, His relics are in the Western Cathedral. His Majesty the Demon King sent us here, hoping that you could..."

"What can you say?" The elf, who was laughing heartily just a second ago, immediately changed her expression. She slowly sat up straight and adopted a posture of listening attentively.

The Shadow Fiends instinctively lowered their heads, not daring to utter a word.

"Reclaim his 'legacy'? You demon kings certainly have a good plan... We have guests."

The Shadow Demons also noticed the commotion behind them.

They turned around abruptly, and when their gazes fell on the holy sword on Ji Tian's shoulder, which was as dazzling as the blazing sun to them, their smoky bodies shrank back in unison.

The elf stood up from the hammock.

Her movements carried an almost languid elegance; barefoot, her toes lightly touching the vines, she floated down onto the platform.

"Tell your Demon King, I know."

After saying that, she raised her hand and gently clenched it in the air.

The air around the Shadow Demons suddenly distorted, as if an invisible hand was grasping them in its palm.

Before the Shadow Demons could even cry out in alarm, their black mist bodies were torn and folded by the distorted space, eventually turning into several thin black lines that disappeared into the air.

They were teleported away.

The elf clapped his hands and turned to face the lake shore.

She tilted her head slightly, her gaze passing over the lake and landing on the holy sword on Ji Tian's shoulder. The corners of her lips slowly turned up, as if they were reunited after a long separation, or as if she had witnessed some kind of destiny's cycle.

She stood barefoot on the edge of the platform, her toes almost touching the lake surface. After a moment's thought, she pulled her foot back. "You are... the current hero?"

The group of "gurgling" little beasts stopped their commotion, each raising its head, its black bean-like eyes reflecting the image of its master staring at the two-legged creature carrying the holy sword.

The pale golden creature rolled out from under Ji Tian's feet and chirped.

The elf glanced at it, its smile deepening: "Little fellow, you did well."

She looked at Ji Tian again, her gaze lingering on his face for a moment before shifting to the crowd behind him.

"Come on over. Now that we've come this far, as the senior member of the Hero Squad, I can't let you go back empty-handed."

Ji Tian drew his Holy Sword in preparation for a sudden attack, and went straight to the point: "You are the 'Sleeper,' right? Our purpose in coming here is to stop the Shadow Demon's plan."

The elf blinked, her expression somewhat playful: "This title... isn't entirely wrong."

She tilted her head and thought for a moment, then decided to stop worrying about her image. She lightly touched the lake surface with her toes, and her whole body floated up like a feather, crossing the shimmering water and landing a few steps away from Ji Tian.

She leaned slightly forward, her long hair almost touching Ji Tian's hand, her eyes, identical to those in the mural, brimming with laughter. "However, I prefer to be called by my own name..."

Ji Tian couldn't let the other party overwhelm him in terms of aura and style, so he replied, "Elune, right?"

Upon hearing this, the demigod pursed his lips almost imperceptibly, then raised his head in praise: "Indeed, I think we can talk about what you just heard."

The hammocks on the lake slowly unfolded and then rearranged, soon transforming into a house suspended in mid-air to welcome guests from afar.