Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic-Chapter 1743 - 1742: Maze Demon - Yalu

The Ring of Fate spun rapidly, driving the invisible wind even more fiercely. The book transformed into a golden and silver bow, drawn by Megan and aimed at the sky shrouded in clouds, with each sky-blue gemstone on the bow gleaming brightly.

White mist surged from the [Demon Hunting Seal], materializing into a complete arrow. As the bow stretched to its fullest, the crimson ritual circle Shard had seen in the book appeared in its entirety beneath Megan’s feet.

She shouted the name of the Arcane Technique into the sky in ancient language:

"Margaret’s Exorcism - Evil Breaker!"

The arrow of white mist shot into the sky, transforming into a golden pillar of light, piercing through the cloud-covered sky with a sound of shattering glass, revealing a large black hole that seemed to be a crack in a mirror.

In the dark abyss of the sky, a man tossing a black cube in his hand descended toward the ground, as if invisible steps were underfoot. This scene was unmistakably similar to how Stone Mirror Demon: Goethe, disguised as Ston Osenfort, appeared.

Sounds of shattering glass continuously extended from the sky into the distance, as the island maze was collapsing, and the demon finally appeared, walking toward the two of them.

An exhausted Megan moved behind Shard, who solemnly reached into the void with his right hand to retrieve the lavish silver [Moonlight Greatsword], while his left hand groped for the black suitcase given by Priest Augustus, after quite some time. 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

"Help me take out the one that’s golden."

He tossed the suitcase to the witch behind him, who swiftly opened it, only to be stunned by the array of magic potions, most of which she couldn’t even identify.

These magic potions were undoubtedly meant to combat demons and the undead:

"And you said you’re not a demon hunter?"

She said as she handed Shard the one and only bottle of [Golden Potion]. Shard popped the bottle open with a ’pop,’ but as he looked at the man on the ground tossing the black cube, he suddenly frowned:

"I thought you were more capable than this. Why not meet us with your true form, Maze Demon - Yalu!"

The perspective of the Arcane Technique [Demon Vision] did not reveal the demon’s true form, only an invisible black fog. Dr. Schneider had made it clear that the Maze Demon - Yalu’s true form was a glowing black metal cube. Even if his Arcane Technique couldn’t discern the demon’s true form, it couldn’t mistake the cube for a black fog.

"Oh, you know me?"

As he tossed the black cube, the bald man asked with a Delarion accent resembling that of the Green Lake Region:

"Demon Hunting Seal, and that very dangerous golden potion in your hand, it seems you indeed came prepared. I never expected to encounter the inheritors of those demon hunters in the Sixth Era. Do you have anything else to show?"

Shard’s peripheral vision scanned the surroundings. After the sky cracked, it turned into vast, impenetrable areas of terrifying darkness, yet the demon’s true form never appeared:

"Facing an existence like yours, one can’t be too cautious. I just didn’t expect you’d be willing to cooperate with humans."

"Why not? From the Third Era onwards, we’ve never stopped collaborating with humans. The human heart is the most intricate maze. I enjoy the process of collaborating with those complicated humans; it gives me a lot of pleasure."

It grinned, spreading black fog from its body to engulf the white fog on the island. Tossing the cube, it looked at Megan behind Shard:

"This lady with the peculiar soul is a descendant of Edwards. I will honor the contract and allow her to leave. But you cannot; having seen that door, you cannot leave. The labyrinth has just begun, so please enjoy the pleasures to come."

"I will not leave."

Megan grasped Shard’s arm from behind:

"No matter the relationship between my ancestors and you, I will never accept his favor."

Her golden eyes were filled with determination, and the demon shook its head with a smile:

"Your words make me feel like I’m back in the good old days of the Third Era, when the world was full of people like you and stories just like this. I do miss the Third Era, where delicious souls were everywhere... However, Miss Edwards, you needn’t be so cautious. I am speaking the truth, at least what I just said is true. My relationship with your ancestor is straightforward; I am the guardian. On the path to truth, I construct mazes to filter out those who shouldn’t progress further, just that simple."

The black metal cube was tossed into the air, and as it fell again, it was not caught:

"Miss Edwards, since you are unwilling to leave, I certainly won’t force you. In that case, I will create a maze with only one exit. If you can find your way out, this time, I’ll let you go."

It bowed slightly and respectfully in Megan’s direction:

"In this way, it doesn’t breach the contract with Mr. Laplace Klein Howard. But this is only a single opportunity; if you dare bring a non-family member here again, I definitely won’t allow them to leave."

It crushed the black cube with its bare hands, and in that instant, the entire world turned completely dark. Knowing that the demon before them was not in its true form, crushing the cube was merely an Illusion Technique, so neither Shard nor Megan attempted to stop it.

In that darkness, first, silver moonlight appeared on Shard, just like every time before, and then the Angel-Level Relic in Megan’s hand also emitted a faint glow, illuminating the surroundings for them.

The darkness, endless darkness, that is the environment they are currently in. The Enhanced Spatial Awareness detected that the nearby terrain was completely open and vast.

[Outlander, you have entered the Demon Maze. Note, flying and Spatial Movement are prohibited in this area.]

This was no longer the island, nor anywhere familiar to the two. Megan pursed her lips and continued to hold Shard’s arm, whispering:

"I’m really sorry, it seems every time I lead you into various dangers."

"Why are you apologizing to me? We should try to get out as soon as possible."

Although there were anomalies in space, time was still entirely normal:

"We’ve lingered on that lake with no exit for too long, and now it’s close to six o’clock. Night is about to fall, and my Diviner friend said that the lunar eclipse is between ten and eleven tonight... Let’s hurry."

"This is the maze constructed by the demon."

Megan softly reminded:

"I can feel my spiritual power rapidly depleting. If we can’t leave soon, I’m afraid we’ll have big trouble."

Shard nodded:

"Since it’s a maze, I have a way. Don’t cast any spells."

Saying this, he first packed away the box of Magic Potions from Priest Augustus, then carefully took out a wooden box. He opened the box, revealing a smoothly rounded yellow Treasure Bead lying on a red velvet lining.

The flawless and perfect bead reflected in Megan’s eyes, the pure yellow glow directly touched her soul. She felt like she saw the moon, but before the chaotic power further invaded her soul, she proactively looked away.

This also meant that Shard’s "healing" last time was indeed effective, greatly enhancing her Psychic Resistance.

"What is this?"

The Witch asked curiously, then saw the Treasure Bead floating above Shard’s head, pointing the way forward. She thought for a moment and understood:

"Sage-Level Relic [Source of Chaos]? It’s actually in your hands?"

"You know this relic? Yes, it’s it."

Shard nodded.

[Source of Chaos] as one of the symbols of the Yellow Moon, has many traits, including "guidance in mazes." This relates to the intention of the "Yellow Moon" itself in March, which can just come into play in such an environment.

Of course, Shard doesn’t frequently carry this relic with him, as it is quite dangerous with many traits, easily turning out a large number of madmen if not handled carefully.

The reason why he brought out the [Source of Chaos] today is not that he anticipated encountering the Maze Demon, but because he considered the lunar eclipse tonight. He was unsure what kind of impact the lunar eclipse might have on him, but he remembered that in the "Book of the Fool," which he gave to Luviya as a Year-End Festival gift, the description of [Source of Chaos] mentioned:

This item, in any scenario, can be considered the Yellow Moon.

Thus, his plan was if the lunar eclipse affects him, he would throw out this Treasure Bead to temporarily serve as the moon. And now, although the lunar eclipse hadn’t arrived yet, this relic had already shown great function.

Shard and Megan held hands, continuously moving forward guided by the yellow moonlight. Despite the absence of any obstacles in the darkness, the relic guided the two to keep turning, walking back, or even spinning in place.

They were Circle Sorcerers with excellent Spatial Talent, soon detecting the peculiar nature of this Dark Maze. Every time they walked about 5 meters, the spatial state would undergo subtle changes. Without the help of [Source of Chaos] or Arcane Technique, to walk out of the maze requires carefully experiencing this change and finding the direction leading to the exit through repeated trial and error.

But with the Source of Chaos, there’s no need to consider these complex matters. The moonlight symbolizing the moon’s "guidance" trait leads them forward; just believing in the moon allows continuous progress.

In this darkness, the demon surprisingly had not placed any enemies nor temptations leading the two to "forks."

After more than two hours, they finally saw the light in the darkness. Following the yellow moonlight around a big circle, they finally touched that light.

Then the darkness shattered, and they were once again surrounded by the island’s thick fog.

Looking around, they were clearly still on the street outside the dream bedroom.