I Never Team Up with Anyone

When a stranger had followed him and, the moment he caught up, said he wanted to team up with him...

Who would believe that?

Besides, although Hermes was taking the Demon Assessment for the first time, he knew how things worked.

Team up?

The Demon Assessment had always been every man for himself. Who would team up with you unless you were sworn brothers?

Were they not afraid of dying faster?

If he remembered correctly,

the tokens for the Demon Assessment could be seized from one another by force.

Hell was a place where people of the same faction killing each other was perfectly normal.

"I never team up with anyone!"

Hermes smiled. He had no intention of getting further entangled with Conrad.

"Everyone has their secrets, Conrad, and you're no exception. But I suggest you don't meddle too much in my affairs."

Hermes thought it over. In the short month since he'd come to Yilan City, the only person he'd offended was Saba, the "Skeleton Man."

Though he'd been forced into it, the situation was beyond Hermes's control.

All he'd wanted was to get a Demon Medal so he could move around more easily, yet somehow he'd still ended up in a mess.

"Was it Saba?"

Hermes suddenly asked.

Conrad said nothing, his expression wooden.

That moment's hesitation was all it took for Hermes to figure it out.

"Don't mess with me!"

Hermes said calmly.

"And go tell Saba that I don't care what he's planning. Just tell him not to mess with me!"

With that, he went straight back to the small courtyard he'd rented at the hotel and waited in earnest for the upcoming Demon Assessment.

Who cared?

"Anyway, if anyone dies, it won't be my fault. There are always idiots who go looking for trouble, and coming into the city doesn't change that!"

Back in the courtyard, Hermes didn't waste any time. He began organizing his equipment and supplies.

He made sure he'd be ready to handle any unexpected situation during the assessment.

He checked his weapons. Hermes didn't use weapons, but it was obvious someone was planning to ambush him during this Demon Assessment.

He couldn't afford to be careless.

When he was done, he had a divine armor and a heavy two-handed greatsword.

Both were Midgod Artifacts.

They suited his Middle God strength.

They wouldn't raise any suspicions or look out of place.

"Come on, then! The moment you assume I'm a Middle God, you've already lost."

Hermes thought maliciously.

"Since you're so eager to give me money and equipment, I'd be rude to refuse, wouldn't I?"

He also sorted through the medicines and magic scrolls in his spatial ring. They were lifesavers he could use at a critical moment.

Especially the Teleportation Scrolls.

As it turned out, the Demon Horn Merchant really was a swindler.

The Teleportation Scrolls could only transport him within a hundred meters, and they took ages to activate. They were basically meant for standing still.

After he tore one, it took at least a second to activate.

In that time, a person could die three or four times over.

But Hermes didn't think it was a waste. The Teleportation Scrolls were a rip-off, but they could still be useful if used well.

At the very least,

the Demon Horn Merchant had miniaturized a large-scale teleportation Magic Array.

That was no easy feat.

There were plenty of people studying Magic Arrays in the Supreme Plane and the God Plane.

These days, Magic Arrays were gradually evolving toward larger and more complex designs.

If later generations wanted to surpass the achievements of their predecessors, they could only build upon existing arrays and add their own understanding.

The Demon Horn Merchant had taken a different path and started simplifying Magic Arrays instead.

It was a promising direction.

At least, Hermes was very interested.

Truthfully, he wasn't sure the Demon Horn Merchant had made it himself.

But he'd memorized the merchant's soul aura, and sooner or later, they'd meet again.

People who studied Magic Arrays were hardly nobodies.

If only his ambitions lay elsewhere!

And since Hermes appeared to be only a Middle God, he couldn't help wishing he could meet this Magic Array Master.

Night fell.

The endless lights of Yilan City gradually came on. Hermes stood in the courtyard, gazing up at the stars, his heart filled with boundless hope for the future.

He felt lucky to have been reborn in this world.

The Coiling Dragon World was the fantastical, ethereal world he'd yearned for most. Who could have imagined that one day, it would all become real?

The road ahead was arduous, but it would lead to glory.

And it all began with every step he took now.

"Maybe I traded countless midnight dreams for a second life."

He spent another night in light cultivation.

He didn't dare enter deep meditation, afraid he might miss the Demon Assessment.

Another morning arrived.

"Bang, bang, bang!"

A hurried knocking sounded.

A Magic Array over the courtyard where Hermes was staying prevented flight, so anyone looking for him had to use the front gate.

"Coming!"

With a flash of his signature skill, Mist Shadow Heavy, Hermes was at the door.

Creak! The heavy gate, reinforced with a divine power ward, swung open, revealing a young man in black at the entrance.

There was a reason the hotels in this city were so expensive.

Even setting up a gate ward that could withstand High-level God Power was beyond what an ordinary person could do.

"Are you taking the Demon Assessment?"

"Yes."

Hermes replied, "Did the Demon Castle send you to notify me?"

"That's right. Please show me your Demon Emblem. Don't be alarmed; it's just a formality."

The young man in black was very polite.

He knew candidates would be highly wary, and could anticipate their suspicions.

Clearly, this young man in black often handled notifications.

The procedure was remarkably efficient.

"No problem."

With a flip of his hand, the Demon Emblem appeared in Hermes's palm.

Magic elements flowed faintly across it. Clearly, it was an alchemical item as well.

"All right!"

The young man in black nodded.

"Come to the north gate of Yilan City tomorrow morning. Someone from the Demon Castle will be there to receive you."

Hermes nodded. "Tomorrow morning. Got it."

Since he already knew the general procedure for the Demon Assessment, he had few questions. The young man in black was glad to be spared the trouble.

He smiled and turned to leave.

"It's taken a long time for this Demon Assessment to come around. Did too many of the previous candidates die?"

Hermes couldn't be blamed for thinking that.

Given Yilan City's population and the vast lands surrounding it,

holding one assessment a day wouldn't work!

But holding one every few days should have been possible. Why had he had to wait more than half a month?

The next day.

As the first light of dawn appeared, the north gate of Yilan City slowly opened. Hermes arrived at the meeting place early, all by himself.

In the distance, a gigantic Metal Life was moored.

"It really is huge! But with something this big, can it fly fast enough?"

Hermes muttered as he looked at the large Metal Life hovering in midair, its surface marked with the emblem of a demon.

"Looks like I'm not that early after all!"

His gaze swept across the Metal Life. Through its transparent windows, he could see that quite a few people had already gathered inside.

"Hermes, come with me!"

A cold voice came from nearby. Saba appeared, his eyes full of contempt.

Yet his tone was gentle.

Conrad followed close behind, his expression still wooden, as if he were a soulless walking corpse.

"Who the hell are you?"

Hermes glanced up at Saba, the "Skeleton Man," and didn't even bother to respond.

"Hermes, right? I advise you not to be so ungrateful."

Saba's voice was sinister.

His eyes fixed on Hermes like those of a black mamba.

"Hah!"

Hermes ignored him, answering with a derisive snort.

"Conrad, let's go!"

More and more candidates for the Demon Assessment were gathering at the north gate. Saba and Conrad, apparently unwilling to invite further humiliation, flew straight toward the Metal Life.