He had waited for this day for far too long.
Now, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity had finally arrived.
This man was none other than the First Assassin of the Beast Race, Pei Qinhu — a name that struck terror across the entire Continent.
He was bloodthirsty, his strikes were ruthless, and his movements were ghostly.
Countless high-ranking officials had met their ends at his hands, making him a disaster that everyone spoke of with trembling voices.
Normally, even if he were given the courage of a hundred men, he would never dare to interfere in matters concerning the survival of a nation.
After all, no matter how strong an individual was, they were nothing more than an ant trying to stop a carriage when faced with the massive machinery of a state.
But just 1 week ago, something occurred that left him both flattered and incredulous…
The high and mighty, unreachable Goddess had personally descended.
She commissioned him to sneak into the Dragon Castle and assassinate the prisoner held in the dungeon.
It was truly a once-in-a-lifetime event!
To have a Deity personally seek him out for a mission meant that Pei Qinhu had finally brought honor to his ancestors and made something of himself.
Furthermore, the reward offered by the Goddess was so staggering that it was impossible to refuse.
Pei Qinhu could not help but lick his lips, a glimmer of greed flashing in his tiger-like eyes.
After staking out this place for several days and nights without rest, he had finally outlasted that incredibly reclusive Dragon Queen and watched her leave.
He did not dare to delay.
He immediately executed his ghostly Movement Technique, leaping rapidly between treetops and rooftops.
Then, donning the Invisibility Cloak personally bestowed upon him by the Goddess, his entire presence seemed to vanish into thin air as he silently slipped into the Castle.
‘Finding it was easy after all my hard work.’
Inside the Castle, the guards were pathetically sparse.
Most of the soldiers had been sent out to search for the Hero, leaving the interior empty and the defenses lax.
Pei Qinhu felt a surge of joy, a smug, cold sneer curling his lips.
“Heh, Heaven is helping me!”
Suddenly, a massive Magic Circle was triggered without warning!
The moment he stepped into the main gate of the Castle, the ground beneath his feet erupted in brilliant light, and runes began to flicker.
“What’s going on?! Who sets traps all over their own home?!”
Pei Qinhu was scared out of his wits and began to cursed loudly.
How could he have known that this Magic Circle was a masterpiece meticulously modified by Longjiu?
It was designed to trigger only for those who were not of the Dragon Race.
*Boom!*
The Magic Circle exploded with terrifying power.
Pei Qinhu was sent flying, crashing heavily onto the ground in a pathetic heap.
As the saying goes, a cat has nine lives.
Since a tiger is a feline, he was naturally no exception.
Pei Qinhu looked pained — that single blast had cost him one of his lives.
“Damn it! This cursed place… I just got here and I’ve already lost one life…”
He bared his teeth in pain and grumbled.
However, there was no turning back now.
For the sake of the massive reward, he could only steel himself and continue forward.
Along the way, although soldiers were few, the traps and Magic Circles laid out by Longjiu were endless and unpredictable.
Pei Qinhu stumbled along, wailing in misery.
He triggered trap after trap, losing several more lives in quick succession.
By the time he finally crawled his way to the dungeon entrance, he was covered in soot and grime, looking utterly wretched.
‘My original nine lives… In just this short amount of time, I’ve already lost four… Damn it, this place isn’t fit for living!’
Pei Qinhu wanted to cry but had no tears left; his heart ached beyond measure.
He barged into the dungeon while cursing, his eyes wide as he searched everywhere.
In the next moment, he froze.
“…Where was the person?”
The Goddess had clearly and solemnly told him that there was a prisoner tied up tightly with iron chains in the dungeon.
As long as he killed that person, the mission would be complete.
But now, the dungeon was empty.
There wasn’t even a stray hair to be found.
Pei Qinhu’s gaze sharpened as he noticed the pile of neatly severed iron chains on the floor.
Combined with the lack of troops in the Castle and the sight of the Dragon Queen rushing out earlier, he instantly understood what had happened.
It was over. For this cursed mission, he had staked out for 1 week and lost four lives, only to end up looking like a complete clown.
The person had been rescued long ago!
Standing in the empty dungeon, Pei Qinhu felt the world spinning.
He wanted to weep but had no tears; his mental state had completely collapsed.
He cursed a few more times with a look of utter despair before finally turning to leave in dejection.
Shortly after Pei Qinhu departed…
“Uuu… uuu…”
A familiar and desperate sound of sobbing echoed faintly through the dungeon once more.
It was the Hero’s voice.
Yet, strangely, the dungeon remained empty.
This was because —
The sound was actually drifting up from beneath the dungeon floor.
Who could have imagined that beneath the dungeon Longjiu defended so strictly, someone had secretly dug a hidden passage?
The solution was right under everyone’s noses the whole time.
The Black-clad Man and the Hero had never actually left the dungeon from the very beginning.
“Even the Continent’s Number One Assassin was lured here. Oh, Hero, the Goddess is truly being ruthless and trying to drive you to a dead end…”
A sweet, gentle female voice that sounded like heavenly music rang out softly in the darkness.
The Black-clad Man looked at the Hero beside him, who was bound tightly by countless thick vines and unable to move.
His tone was gentle, yet it carried a hint of chilling amusement.
“Shh…”
He lightly made a gesture for the Hero to be quiet.
In the next second, countless thick roots beneath the ground began to grow and spread wildly, bursting through the surrounding soil.
The Black-clad Man controlled the vines, carrying the Hero away through the hidden passage, vanishing without a trace.
Meanwhile, high in the sky, Longjiu was still searching aimlessly, completely unaware of what had happened.
This search was destined to be a futile effort.
***
The scene shifted to the charming and dreamlike Dream Demon Kingdom.
A seemingly calm and peaceful “father-daughter daily life” was taking place: they lived in separate rooms, ate their meals individually, and spent their days busy with their own affairs without disturbing each other.
Occasionally, when they met on the path, they would exchange casual greetings and pleasantries.
On the surface, it was a picture of a devoted father and a filial daughter, warm and harmonious.
But only Bai Li knew in his heart that beneath this calm, a storm was brewing.
He had been silently subjecting Ziya to a form of quiet emotional distance.
This was because his heart was constantly worried about the Vampires.
His suspicions were like countless tiny needles, pricking his heart day and night, making it impossible for him to sit or sleep in peace.
Yet, as he was now, he was powerless to act.
The side effects left behind by the Dream Demon Transformation Secret Law meant he could not use his Magic Power at will.
He also lacked his own intelligence network and could not obtain any news from the outside world.
The only thing he could do was go out to the streets every day to secretly observe the expressions and behavior of the Succubus soldiers, then try to piece together clues from Ziya’s daily words and actions to make a rough guess.
And Ziya, though innocent and simple, was also meticulous and highly intelligent.
She vaguely sensed that Father had already realized something.
He was hiding things from her and was even becoming distantly cold.
Therefore, Ziya also had to keep her nerves taut at all times.
She carefully managed her expressions and restrained her emotions, doing her best not to let any trace of her secrets show in front of Bai Li.
What appeared to be a dull and warm daily routine was, in reality, a hidden contest between two people.