Demon King: Hero, don’t run away!

After swallowing the heart of a snow leopard-like demon, she licked her lips. Cide buried the remains of the demon on the spot.

To ensure the safe completion of her transformation, she had always been extremely cautious.

There were plenty of Magic Potions in the Goblin Maze, enough for her to complete all of her transformations—if she hadn’t been discovered, she wouldn’t have had to consume demons here to supplement the energy needed for her evolution.

To this day, she couldn’t understand why she, located in the eleventh floor of the Goblin Maze, had been exposed.

If she knew who had revealed her whereabouts and who had taken the treasures she had stored, once her strength was restored, she was determined to incinerate them with the scorching Dragon Breath.

”About time to find the next target.

A couple more skin sheds, and I should be able to transform into human form.

Then I can conceal my aura.

It’ll make moving around much easier too.”

She took a step forward, but before she could take another, Cide noticed something unusual. In the distance, a discreet Detection Magic was being deployed in the air.

If it had been Cide as the Goblin Emperor, she might not have been able to detect such magic.

Now, however, her constitution was closer to that of a real giant dragon.

Such magic was simply child’s play in front of her.

Her index finger pointed to the sky, and under Cide’s command, the magic in the air quickly coalesced into a Surveillance Magic, and she discovered the caster of the magic before the Detection Magic had even spotted her.

They were six humans, and from afar, she could sense the extraordinary aura they possessed.

Adventurers.

”Here isn’t far from the Snow Mountain where Snowmen reside, filled with powerful Ice Attribute demons, and rarely frequented by people.

Even human adventurers shouldn’t be appearing here much.

Why have they come? Are they here to hunt demons for their materials?

Or...”

Swishing her tail, Cide concealed her form in the snow, and tread across it, extending her tracks toward an ice cavern.

This ice cavern was the place where Cide had teleported from the Goblin Maze.

Had it not been for these uninvited guests, she had originally planned to hide here until she transformed into a giant dragon.

Unfortunately, plans never change as fast as reality.

She chose a branch path close to the exit and released cold air, sealing herself within a block of ice.

About half an hour later, the Quasi-S Adventure Team ”Forget Sorrow Stone” stepped into the ice cavern.

”The tracks end here. It seems to have escaped into the cavern.”

”Captain Bin Luo, from here is all ice. The tracks have disappeared. Should we continue tracking?”

”This is a task personally issued by a giant dragon, with an extremely generous reward, only permitting Quasi-S Class adventurer groups to accept.

Any Quasi-S Team would have the qualifications to accept it.

If it weren’t for my relationship with the president of the adventurer’s guild, I wouldn’t have been able to take the task before others.”

Captain Bin Luo of the ”Forget Sorrow Stone” adventurer group used illumination magic to light up the pitch-black cavern, and the irregular Ice Cones instantly sparkle brilliantly, very beautiful.

Before they went further, a member let out a scream; everyone followed the direction of the member’s scream and discovered a human-shaped lizard in the ice.

The other members were also startled,

”What is this thing, it’s too disgusting!”

”Don’t be so jumpy. Who knows how long this ice cavern has existed, it’s not surprising that strange things get frozen in it occasionally.

Have a little confidence in your strength. We’ve been preparing for this day for who knows how long.”

The clue was right in front of them, how could they back down now?

The traces indicated that it had just finished its meal.

Now was the time to catch it off guard and capture it in one fell swoop!”

”Is that so... well then, Captain, I’ll follow your lead.”

”Cut the chatter, prepare for combat.”

Adventurers from the Forget Sorrow Stone took out their weapons one by one and stepped deeper into the ice cave.

But before they had gone far, Cide’s magic had permeated the ice cave, and a ”boom” rang out; a massive explosion occured at the entrance of the ice cave.

The ice that comprised the cave shattered with a ”bam,” instantly burying the doorway.

Facing opponents with Quasi-S Class strength, if they were to be surrounded, Cide would definitely suffer significantly with his current power, but trapping them with the ice cave was much easier.

”What on earth is going on! Is this a trap?”

”The task I received mentioned it was a special demon, does this special refer to having Wisdom?”

”This... this can’t be...”

”What can’t be, we need to think of a way to get out of here quickly.”

The sudden explosion caught the Forget Sorrow Stone team off guard, casting them into chaos within the ice cellar. Cide stretched out his fingers between the cracks of the broken ice,

”Goodbye, you dared to call me ugly. No one in this world will see you again.”

A light emitted from Cide’s fingertips, like a twisting serpent, piercing through the hearts of the trapped adventurer team.

And Cide just turned away as if he had only killed a few ants, glanced towards the giant dragon to the south, and then once again set off,

”It seems the giant dragon has indeed discovered my trail.

This place is no longer safe, I need to find a new location...

Should I go to the Cold Ice Palace to the North, or do the opposite and hide right under the giant dragon’s nose?”

Suddenly, a strange smile appeared on Cide’s lips, as he muttered to himself:

”I have thought of an excellent plan.”

...

...

In the forests surrounding Qinghe Volcano, dramatic battles were unfolding non-stop.

Luo Ze’s troops occupying Qinghe Volcano tried to traverse the jungles, only to encounter an ambush by Wansheng Country’s Army.

The ambush was not a mere ambush, but a tormenting attack like the pricking needles of Mrs. Rong.

The Beastmen didn’t show their faces in front of Luo Ze’s troops, instead, they harassed them with unpredictable ranged attacks that gave them no peace.

If ignored, the Beastman Army would buzz around the troops like mosquitoes, ceaselessly flying; if elite troops were sent to investigate, those elites would vanish as if they had disappeared from the mortal world, leaving no trace and unable to be contacted.

Unbeknownst to them, Luo Ze Empire’s troops were thrown off balance, falling into the Beastmen’s pace.

In a month’s time, the Luo Ze Empire had sent a total of thirty thousand troops to the vicinity of Qinghe Volcano, yet they all disappeared without a trace, as if by magic.

However, the Luo Ze Empire had not received any contact about an attack on the main cities near Qinghe Volcano.

They were slowly becoming puzzled by the Beastmen’s strategy.

The higher-ups speculated about how many troops Wansheng Country had actually deployed in the battle for Qinghe Volcano.

Eventually, they reached a unanimous decision to use the Hero as a pawn.

In the name of the Hero, they would ensure the investigation team completed the survey safely.