Gatekeeper

"Exactly, exactly!"

Since they could rally around Frederi, they naturally had to show their stance.

"Let's see how he dies?"

The man with the hooked nose said maliciously.

This was actually quite normal; participating in the Demon Assessment was a matter of life and death, wasn't it?

"Swish~!"

Hermes flew past them.

Towards the malicious or curious gazes of others, He was completely indifferent; they were just a bunch of dead people anyway.

Hermes had only one goal in his heart, and that was the Blocking Gold Saber.

"Wuwuwu~!"

A black wind suddenly swept across the desert, and the Blocking Castle in the distance was suddenly obscured by the swirling sandstorm.

As he got closer to the ancient castle, Hermes felt a powerful aura.

"Could the owner of the Blocking Castle have predicted we'd come?"

He couldn't help but mutter in his heart.

The Demon Castle was indeed the most powerful organization in the Hell Plane, but that didn't mean every castle in Hell was powerful.

Whether a Demon Castle was strong or not often depended on the influence of the current castle lord or city lord.

"Wuwuwu~!"

The wind howled!

The aura emanating faintly from the Blocking Castle in the distance made Hermes feel uncomfortable.

"Why do I feel… this aura is somewhat similar to the one on 'Skeleton Man' Saba?"

The closer he got to the Blocking Castle, the more pressure that aura exerted on him.

But Hermes had no intention of backing down; instead, his resolve grew stronger.

He knew that this aura was likely emanating from the many guardians within the ancient castle.

"Could the owner of the ancient castle also cultivate the Death Law?"

In the Coiling Dragon World, elemental laws could be traced, but the four great laws had always been symbols of ancient mystery.

Even in Hell, this Destruction Supreme Plane, far more people cultivated elemental laws than laws.

The base numbers were incomparable!

"Whoosh~!"

Flying at high speed, the wind whistled past his ears, urgent and fierce.

But no matter how long the road, it always had an end.

Finally, Hermes and the other Demon Assessment candidates all arrived at the outer perimeter of the ancient castle.

They hovered before the gate of the Blocking Castle, gazing at the heavy, opened door.

The thick door was covered in complex and incomprehensible yellow runes, emitting a mysterious and ancient aura.

"Did they charge in?"

After a moment of stunned silence, over a thousand Demon Assessment candidates swarmed forward.

"Swoosh swoosh swoosh~!"

Hermes didn't swarm forward; he went straight in.

Because he didn't even have that moment of stunned silence, seeing the door open, he flew directly inside.

"Rumble~!"

As Hermes and the over a thousand Demon Assessment candidates who followed closely flew into the ancient castle.

The ancient castle gate slammed shut.

The yellow sand in the desert and the black mist simultaneously began to surge restlessly.

A gust of wind blew, leaving nothing behind.

The ancient castle, the Demon Assessment candidates, all disappeared.

As soon as Hermes entered the ancient castle, he felt an atmosphere completely different from the outside.

There was no desert wind or scorching sun here; instead, there was a chill and oppression.

The interior of the ancient castle was dim, with only occasional torches casting flickering shadows on the walls.

He cautiously surveyed his surroundings, finding the internal structure of the ancient castle to be complex and intricate, with corridors and rooms seemingly distributed without any pattern.

Hermes knew this might be a maze specifically designed by the castle's owner for defense.

"Where exactly is the Blocking Gold Saber hidden?"

Hermes thought to himself, "What about the promised sand bandits, where the hell is the promised Blocking Gold Saber?"

"Damn it, maybe this Demon Assessment is another trap!"

He was speechless.

Sometimes, Hermes couldn't help but wonder if he had some hidden constitution for disaster?

Everywhere he went was a pitfall!

The encounter in the Bis Volcano Group was the most peaceful one.

But if Salasis wasn't a physical combat fanatic, and if the Volcanic Giant didn't like strong men like him.

It probably would have been a bloodbath again.

"I'll worry about that later. I need to do my best to complete this assessment mission."

He had to find the target as soon as possible, otherwise, if other Demon Assessors found clues, the competition would become even fiercer.

Since the intelligence was flawed, Hermes had to consider the worst-case scenario.

Hundreds of sand bandits? Thinking pessimistically, maybe there were only a few.

"No more thinking, charge!"

Just as he was about to break through the earthen wall of the Blocking Castle, a low chuckle echoed through the ancient castle, as if something was lurking in the shadows, watching Hermes and the others.

Hermes's intuition told him that the owner of this laugh was definitely not simple.

Perhaps even the owner of the entire Blocking Castle.

And the most terrifying one.

"Swish swish swish~!"

Dozens of figures appeared, it was the group of Demon Assessors.

With over a thousand people, and the total number of Star Demons exceeding a thousand, it was inevitable that they would meet in the Blocking Castle.

"Welcome to the Blocking Castle, brave Demon Assessors."

A hoarse voice suddenly rang out, "I am the Gatekeeper here. If you want to obtain the Blocking Gold Saber, you must first pass my trial."

"Holy crap! There really is a problem! This damned Gatekeeper, how does he know the quest item is the Blocking Gold Saber?"

"Is there a spy in the Demon Castle, or is there a spy among these Demon Assessors?"

Hermes was startled.

His first reaction was naturally to blame the others.

The people from the Demon Castle, and those participating in the Demon Assessment.

"Don't move, everyone, don't get close to each other. I have reason to suspect that there is a spy among you."

Someone shouted loudly.

This also represented the thoughts of most of the Demon Assessors.

Hermes and the other Demon Assessors exchanged glances, seeing the wariness and determination in each other's eyes.

They knew this would be a life-and-death struggle, and only the strongest would survive.

The Gatekeeper's figure gradually emerged from the darkness. He was wearing a tattered black and gray robe.

He wore a ferocious mask on his face and held a scepter in his hand.

If one didn't know better, they might think they had stumbled into a medieval wizarding world. Was this guy cosplaying?

"Come on, let me see your strength." The Gatekeeper's voice carried a hint of mockery.

Hermes clenched his fists.

He could feel the souls of the other Demon Assessors fluctuating.

Clearly, they were all a bit depressed by this bizarre turn of events.

But Hermes knew this was just the beginning.

This Blocking Castle might hold even more dangers waiting for them.

"Then let's begin!"

Hermes said in a deep voice.

His figure suddenly accelerated, charging towards the so-called Gatekeeper.

The other Demon Assessors were not to be outdone, unleashing their ultimate moves and launching attacks at the Gatekeeper.

Blocking Gold Saber!

No matter how bizarre the mission unfolded, the token of the Demon Assessment was the Blocking Gold Saber.

Only by obtaining the Blocking Gold Saber would the assessment mission be considered complete.

Otherwise, forget about it.

"Rumble~!"

Yellow sand filled the sky and suddenly permeated the entire Blocking Castle, instantly obscuring Hermes' vision.

At the same time, a faint black mist also spread out.

The battle hadn't even begun, but the castle was already echoing with intense clashes and energy fluctuations.