The Stone Castle Dungeon is merely a name the tribe gave it; its true name is lost to history.

Unlike the six newly created and well-functioning dungeons from 300 years ago, the history of the Stone Castle Dungeon is difficult to trace; it's known to be at least a thousand years old.

The dungeon structure is rough, divided into only three layers: upper, middle, and lower.

When the tribe first settled here three hundred years ago, the dungeon's difficulty increased gradually from top to bottom.

However, this situation changed in the past thirty years.

On one hand, the dungeon gradually deteriorated over time, and this ancient fortress is heading towards its twilight end.

On the other hand, it's due to the emergence of the "Chis."

With suffocating speed, it consumed the middle layer, cut off the upper and lower layers, and successfully made the middle layer the most dangerous tier.

Invisible Six Claw predators roam there, eye worms lurk at the ceiling, not to mention it also controls several formidable beasts.

Even knowing that carefully crossing to the lower layer could yield substantial hunts, most of the Demon Race still only dare to seek prey in the increasingly barren upper layer.

"Hunt..." Qiong's voice carried a hint of disbelief as he followed closely behind Shou, "Are we... really going to hunt the Chis?"

That's the Chis after all!

Endless individual units, a unified will acting with seamless coordination, terrifying combat strength, and pervasive surveillance... even if they somehow found its "brain," did they truly have the strength to destroy it?

"It's expected, given the current situation. If we don't eliminate the Chis, we'll have to consider moving south. But the elders clearly don't want us to contact the Empire." Shou's voice was steady, his footsteps never faltering.

"If you ask me," Qiong mumbled involuntarily, "if the Empire is really so good, why not make contact? Besides, Lord Demon King already..."

Before he could finish, Shou suddenly turned, clamping Qiong's mouth shut with his palm!

"Do you want to end up on the punishment post taking lashes?"

Faced with Shou's stern gaze, Qiong wide-eyed in panic, desperately shook his head.

"Then don't speak recklessly!" Shou released his hand, his voice cold and hard, "Go back, prepare your weapons and leather armor, and don't overthink anything."

Watching Qiong retreat like a frightened snow rabbit, his back full of regret, Shou harbored little blame in his heart.

In fact, being the new generation who never bathed in the glory of the Demon King, how much loyalty could they have towards that legendary master?

Regarding the Empire, the harsh cold of the Far North isolated them from interaction, and the hatred passed down from the elders' tales was too vague for them.

Even Shou himself was like this, just well aware that the tribe still followed the elders' decisions for now.

In reality, even among the old generation, how many have grown weary of life here and longed for the "hot lands" of the continent's middle is hard to say.

Were those advocating for migration south truly uninterested in contacting the Empire?

Shou didn't know; he was merely going with the flow.

…

Two days later, the subjugation team was ready to set out.

The alchemist, with bloodshot eyes, distributed the hastily prepared potions to every warrior.

This time, the tribe nearly staked all its chips.

Only one upper-level warrior stayed to guard the tribe, while the remaining five participated.

In addition, more than thirty tribe members assisted, so much that calling it a full mobilization wouldn't be an exaggeration.

After all, the opponent was the Chis. Even in a surprise attack, they had to go all out!

The team crossed the ice plain, only to be halted mid-way by an Ice Giant standing three meters tall.

Warriors frequently visiting the dungeon weren't unfamiliar with this; Huo Yan at the front shattered it with a single hammer blow.

Yet, everyone knew these Cold Spirits were near impossible to kill without special methods; next pass through, its reformed body would need to be fought again.

Fortunately, Cold Spirits sparsely scattered across the vast frozen ground posed no actual threat to the tribe.

The entrance to the Stone Castle Dungeon wasn't a grand gate; instead, it was a canyon deeply embedded at the base of the ice cliff, eroded by the ages, only allowing a few people to walk side by side.

But upon entering, a distinct warmth could be felt...

The dungeon was self-contained, shutting out the harsh glacial cold, with internal temperatures significantly warmer than outside.

This scant heat once nourished Slimes, Fat Beasts, and other demons, forming the fragile ecosystem the tribe depended on for survival.

But as the dungeon declined, these creatures were rarely seen, and even the temperature increasingly matched the outside.

At the end of the first layer stood a grand ancient castle spanning the canyon's center, thus was the reason it was called the Stone Castle Dungeon.

Unlike the distinctly layered Purple Crystal, here, stepping into the castle already meant entering the middle layer. The castle was merely an exterior; inside, its space was far larger than it seemed, essentially a three-dimensional maze structure.

"Are we really... going inside?" Qiong asked softly, gripping his wooden staff, speaking to Shou.

Though they had come this far, asking such a question was somewhat foolish, but Shou knew he was just a bit scared.

"Stay by my side; I will protect you!"

They didn't enter through the main gate; that would be akin to delivering themselves to the Chis.

Huo Yan led everyone to an outward-facing window, climbing through one by one.

They landed in a dim corridor, where no reproductive pods or fleshy growths adhered to the structures they encountered upfront.

There was no noise in the ears either; several warriors skilled in reconnaissance exchanged glances, shaking their heads upon confirming no Chis presence.

Clearly, Huo Yan wasn't leading everyone aimlessly but had indeed found a viable route.

The team traversed through the castle's twisted pathways—corridors, staircases, and numerous branches. In the pressing silence, only the sound of repressed breaths could be heard.

After what felt like an eternity, Huo Yan finally stopped at a lonely tower on the castle's edge.

Where a grotesque hole had torn open on the tower's bottom floor, revealing the dark, deep structure of primitive caves below.

Moving forward into the cave's end, they lay against the passage edge, finally setting eyes on the legendary "brain!"

A massive, pulsating dark red mass, suspended like a heart on the rock wall, with masses of Chis guards surrounding it, and several eye worms flew through the air on patrol.

If not for the tool given to Huo Yan by the elder, they would have been discovered long ago.

"So it hid beneath the Stone Castle all along; no wonder it hasn't been found all these years!" someone uttered, gritting teeth, clearly having suffered under the Chis before.

Huo Yan turned to the group, stating, "Cover me rushing over! I can destroy it in one stroke! Once it loses command, the remaining Chis will just be a disorganized mess; we can easily retreat amidst the chaos!"

No one objected, even Shou tightened his grip on his weapon.

When the group suddenly leaped out, they caught the Chis off guard.

The upper warriors cleared away all interfering Chis ahead, while those behind provided long-range support or used spells to disrupt Chis' invisibility means.

Qiong shut his eyes tight, beads of sweat emerging on his brow, ripples of faint cyan visible between his hands, silently boosting morale around with rare Spiritual Magic.

As Huo Yan let out a roar, hurling the long spear in hand with a piercing effect at the "brain," everyone's hearts were in their throats!

The spear passed through the throbbing mass unhindered, causing the flesh to twitch sharply, its surface luster fading instantly, deflating and withering like a punctured balloon.

However, before any cheers could escape, cold reality seized everyone's throats—Chis's actions were unaffected!

Countless Chis orderly emerged around, neither using invisibility nor rushing to attack but emitted a "hissing" noise as if laughing at them.

As two Evil Eyes exuding powerful auras silently drifted into the cavern, the air seemed to freeze.

Expressions on Huo Yan's face underwent drastic change in that instant: from the joy of succeeding in an attack to disbelief, realizing the deception in great humiliation, finally settling into an almost desperate icy resolve.

He spoke: "Shou, take the younger ones and run! Those remaining, hold onto the Chis with me!"

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