Chapter 57: Open-Air Maze

Before a patch of blueberry bushes.

A brown-haired man in armor with a white cloak spoke coldly.

“Failed?”

Marsin knelt on one knee, fresh bandages on his nose stained with blood.

“I’m deeply sorry—the opponent had a treasure enabling rapid movement; we couldn’t intercept them.”

“Worthless! I can’t believe you idiots used such a pathetic street-level method!”

Marsin dared not speak back.

But inside, he cursed a thousand times—wasn’t this your own approval?

“Who are they?”

The brown-haired man asked.

“They came from the west; judging by their accent, they’re from Windstorm City. Their rank is indiscernible—I estimate no higher than fifth tier.”

Marsin’s eyes darted around, deliberately inflating the opponent’s rank.

A third-tier fool couldn’t sense the opponent’s spiritual accumulation, yet fancied himself above fourth tier.

The brown-haired man lifted his foot and crushed it down on Marsin’s head, pressing him into the earth.

“Did you pursue them?”

“W-well, we’ve dispatched men under the name of the Holy Flame Squad.”

Marsin hurried to reply, voice trembling with fear.

“At least you’ve got some brains—send a high-tier operative, you idiot! At least fifth tier! Even a succubus, terrible at combat, is fifth tier!”

“Yes, sir! Deputy Captain Gulum!”

“Call me Captain when no one’s around! You fool! The Lord’s been gathering demon races—stay sharp, check every person entering the city!”

Meanwhile.

Luo De and the others had arrived before this open-air maze.

“Notice the color of the soil?”

The half-dragon Xia Li pointed to the ground.

She paid no mind to the earlier turmoil; instead, she felt excited—even before arriving, she’d squealed a few times.

“Pink soil.”

Tally replied.

Without delay, all four stepped across the boundary where pink soil met ordinary brown earth.

The vast land ahead was composed entirely of pink soil.

Otherwise, it was no different from ordinary wasteland.

“Good. This is the most direct way to identify the maze—as long as the soil remains pink, you’re still inside.”

“Understood.”

“But remember—once, a fool forgot this rule and didn’t perform the ritual upon true exit; he died of a curse the next day.”

Luo De paused.

Ritual?

What ritual?

He’d never heard of this.

The Sand Whirl ritual of the Death Desert had been so overwhelming, the mere mention of “ritual” triggered him.

Gaima seemed to sense his confusion and said, “You don’t know? This open-air maze has several mandatory rules.”

Xia Li scratched her head sheepishly.

“I meant to explain everything to you tonight, but things happened suddenly—I didn’t get to mention much.”

As she spoke,

A breeze swept through, showering them with pink petals.

Luo De reached out and caught a handful.

They were ordinary petals—but this was a desert. Where did the flowers come from?

Suddenly, he found himself counting them.

“One, two, three, four… Hmm, a mental influence…”

Luo De broke free from the effect quickly.

“Wow, for a human, your mental resistance is pretty strong,” Xia Li said in surprise.

She added, “Right. Rule One: Pink petals occasionally drift down in the maze. If you start counting them, you must stop before reaching ‘thirteen’—otherwise, the outcome won’t be good.”

As she spoke, she drank a vial of magic potion—likely boosting her mental resistance.

Gaima took a metal cap with an antenna from the magic doll’s belly and immediately nullified Rule One’s effect.

As for Tally, she didn’t bother dealing with it and simply slipped into Luo De’s shadow.

Strange—Luo De remembered half-dragons had exceptionally high resistances. He’d shaken off the effect easily; why did Xia Li need a potion?

Seeing him stare at her drinking, Xia Li smiled bitterly and crushed the vial.

“My dragon blood ratio is low—my resistances are only slightly better than a human’s.”

Only then did Luo De recall:

Half-dragons were a highly dragon-blood-conscious race; the proportion of dragon blood directly determined their strength and appearance.

Take Xia Li—she wore hot pants and a leather jacket, her long, pale legs clad in tall boots, looking like a human female cowboy from Earth.

Her only draconic trait? A single horn atop her head.

This proved her dragon blood was extremely diluted.

“Sorry.”

“What’s there to apologize for? Tonight, ignore the succubus lady—just keep me company. Haihai , let’s move on to Rule Two.”

Tally poked half her head out of the shadow, glaring at her.

As they walked, they talked.

Under Xia Li’s guidance, after two hours, they left the desert terrain; ahead, trees and dilapidated houses began to appear.

Moreover, the ground now showed steam-spewing holes.

The temperature had clearly risen sharply.

“We need to find a place to rest—depart once the heat drops.”

Xia Li shed her leather jacket, revealing a white silk crop top, damp with sweat.

She stood one meter seventy, with a voluptuous figure.

Luo De was always a polite gentleman, rarely staring deliberately.

But she kept bouncing and swaying right in front of him.

Gaima sidled up, smirking, and nudged his shoulder with the magic doll.

“Not bad, right? You probably don’t know how hard it is to find a female guide for the open-air maze.”

“I reiterate—you’re the most professional guide I’ve ever met, without exception.”

But inside, she sneered.

I’ll kill you, you lecher.

They found a ruined house with half a roof and set up a simple camp.

Xia Li took first watch; Luo De would take the second half.

Tally emerged from the shadow, curled up, her small face resting on Luo De’s collarbone, her warm breath brushing his neck like a kitten’s.

The succubus, allowed only one meal per day, was even sleepier than before.

Both were highly heat-resistant; together, they felt no discomfort.

“It’s strange—I’ve never seen a succubus kept so well-behaved.”

Xia Li crept closer, her sweaty arm pressing against his.

“Really? Succubi aren’t that hard to handle,” Luo De said, gently patting Tally’s back.

“You don’t know how much trouble they cause—in my tribe, a succubus brawl once killed over a hundred.”

“That exaggerated?”

“But it’s our fault—half-dragons naturally value sensual experiences. The taste of a succubus—I doubt any race could resist. If I were male, I’d seek them out too.”

As she spoke, her eyes grew misty.

She rubbed the tip of her chest against his arm.

“.”

The saying that half-dragons inherit part of dragon nature was indeed true.

Luo De gently laid Tally down.

He took Xia Li’s damp hand and walked out of the ruin together.

(End of Chapter)