Chaotic footsteps pounded like a torrential storm. The eerie laughter of the Little Inferior Demons was thick with mockery and malice. The frantic barking of startled dogs was filled with panic and chaos.

All these sounds intertwined to form a symphony of war, causing the blood of the young Undead Mage Apprentice to boil. Fang Zhou gripped the Undead Magic Ball tightly, feeling its cold touch and the Power of Death contained within. He sent a resolute command to the skeletal army under his control.

"The demons are ahead! All units, attack!"

It was midnight, and the Shelter was engulfed in roaring flames. The fire devoured everything, crackling as it spread.

Though this was just a Shelter Defense Battle on a simple difficulty, the number of attacking demons was not large. There were only about thirty or forty of them, mainly Little Inferior Demons and Demon Children. These Apprentice-level demons were mostly Middle Rank, with only about a third qualifying as Upper-Rank elites.

However, besides these lesser demons, the Abyssal Demon army also included three Upper-Rank Apprentices: two Horned Demons and one Dog Demon. The presence of these high-level demons made the otherwise simple battle exceptionally challenging.

Dog Demons were tall, muscular creatures with an intimidating appearance. Their skin was dark purple and covered with a layer of rough scales. Their snouts were elongated, revealing sharp fangs, while their strong limbs allowed them to move swiftly across the battlefield, almost gliding over the ground.

The Dog Demons' fighting style was ferocious. They excelled in melee combat, using sharp claws and fangs to tear their enemies apart. Additionally, some elite Dog Demons could spew high-temperature flames, easily incinerating their opponents.

Although these Horned Demons and Dog Demons were not as well-equipped as the fully armored, Heavy-Armored Axe-Wielding Horned Demon Boss from the Abyss Difficulty Horned Demon Outpost instance, their powerful racial Combat Power Coefficient, which far surpassed that of Little Inferior Demons and Demon Children, still allowed them to put tremendous pressure on the Trial Students in the Simulation Battlefield.

Fortunately, this Shelter Defense Battle was not a frontal assault. The burning human Shelter before him had relatively complete defensive measures.

The fire danced wildly under the night sky, dyeing the surrounding mist a crimson color. Fang Zhou gazed toward the firelight and, through the swirling mist, could faintly make out the outlines of low buildings. Most of these houses were temporarily constructed from mud and straw—simple and rough, yet exuding a rustic beauty. The straw on the roofs rustled in the wind.

In the center of this cluster of buildings, a few sturdier houses stood out. These were built from thick timber harvested from the nearby forest. They were not only more stable but could also withstand a certain degree of attack.

In the dark, early years of the Era of Myth, Abyssal Demons surged onto Blue Star like a tide, turning city jungles into their hunting grounds. Humanity, once the master of the world—the spirit of all things—became a delicacy for these monsters. Demons with exceptionally keen senses of smell, like the Dog Demons, could easily track human gatherings, forcing people to scatter and flee. A Dog Demon's nose could capture the faintest human scent from a great distance, making them one of the most terrifying trackers.

To survive, countless displaced refugees established small, hidden Shelters in the wilderness, attempting to trade concealment for time. During those bloodiest and darkest years, hundreds of such small Shelters quietly emerged in every corner of Blue Star. They were mostly hidden in remote valleys, dense forests, or abandoned structures, staying as far from the demons' sight as possible.

However, countless other small, unrecorded Shelters were crushed under the iron hooves of the Abyssal Demons, leaving behind only endless sorrow and despair. The Shelter on this Simulation Battlefield was constructed based on the setting of that special historical period. Here, Fang Zhou would face not only the threat of fire and enemies but also a profound lesson in human resilience.

In this tragic history, humanity endured its darkest period. People at that time were like lambs to the slaughter, powerless against unknown and terrifying forces. Demons and various evil creatures rampaged freely, shrouding the land like a shadow and nearly destroying human civilization. Villages turned to ruins and cities to wastelands. Survivors could only flee, searching for any temporary haven to escape the disaster.

However, even in that desperate era, humanity never lost hope. With the Awakening of the first Professionals, humanity finally began to gain the power to resist these evil forces. Subsequently, a new generation of high-level Professionals emerged, led by the Golden Tier General Ning Feihu, who gradually established an army capable of contending with the demons. This was a period described in rich detail within the Hall of Glory at the Sea City Military Academy. All students of the academy were familiar with this history.

Therefore, Fang Zhou was not surprised by the sight of the simple Shelter before him.

Though the living conditions in this settlement were harsh, its outer defenses appeared extraordinarily solid. The wooden walls were constructed from thick logs, each sharpened to a point like a sword aimed at the sky, forming a dense palisade of spikes. The gate in the wall was extraordinarily heavy, secured by five thick ropes. Even the strongest Apprentice-level Combat Professionals would need five or six people working together to open it.

Fang Zhou's gaze swept over the Shelter, his eyes landing on a watchtower. A group of guards was frantically climbing up, preparing for the impending crisis. The weapons in their hands were a motley collection; some held crude wooden clubs, others wielded rusty swords, and some even used farming tools. Their attire was just as varied. A few were barely clad in worn-out Leather Armor or rusty Chain Armor, but most wore ordinary peasant clothing.

Seeing this, Fang Zhou could not help but shake his head. With only its own guards, the Shelter stood almost no chance of withstanding the attack from the Demon Battle Group before it.

Two Horned Demons, one Dog Demon, plus dozens of Little Inferior Demons and Demon Children. For a Shelter with basic defenses, this threat was not necessarily overwhelming. What truly crushed their hope, however, was the leader at the center of the Demon Battle Group: a Rare Demon.

The stature of this Rare Demon was not imposing like the others; instead, it appeared somewhat lean. A long tail, covered in small, sharp spines, trailed behind it. Its body was covered with intertwined red and black Demon Patterns, which were complex and exquisite. The patterns were particularly dense on its hands, covering nearly its entire palms, as if they were a source of Magic Energy.

It toyed with a fiery red orb of light that shone like a blazing sun. Under its control, the fire tumbled and leaped through the air like a child playing with a favorite toy.

However, this seemingly simple game was a deadly threat. This type of Rare Demon was a terrifying Caster, capable of unleashing an extremely dreadful spell: the Fireball Skill. When this spell exploded, its blast radius could reach ten meters, sufficient to reduce all life within to ash and set anything flammable ablaze.

Even rigorously trained elite Warriors struggled to retreat unscathed when facing this Rare Demon, known as a Fiery Demon.

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