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Leaving Dunharrow, Kael flew low along an ancient road, passing through Dimholt forest and entering a deep, secluded valley.

The environment along the way was gloomy, with ancient jagged boulders on both sides and faint ruins of buildings once belonging to the mountain folk.

After passing through Dimholt, Kael finally saw the entrance to the Paths of the Dead, the Dark Door.

The Dark Door was carved into a steep stone wall. The hewn stone path along the way was already in decay and ruin. One careless step could send someone tumbling off the cliff to become pulverized meat.

Kael rode his broom directly down in front of the Dark Door, put away his broom, and held his staff in one hand and sword in the other, his expression growing grave.

The Dark Door was carved with symbols and text that emanated a terrifying aura of death.

It was as if he had arrived at the gates of hell itself. Once inside, he would face endless death and danger.

Kael didn't linger, directly stepping into the Dark Door.

Behind the Dark Door was a bottomless dark cave. The Crown of Wisdom appeared on Kael's head, its gem radiating brilliant light in the darkness, illuminating his path forward.

However, when he saw the scene inside the cave, Kael couldn't help but gasp.

The cave was littered with bones everywhere. Skulls piled like mountains. Under Kael's feet were bones of various people with not a single gap to be found. Every step produced the sound of bones being crushed underfoot.

At first Kael felt there was nowhere to step and could only walk gingerly, but after walking more, he simply gave up caring.

After all, between crushing one bone and crushing countless bones, there was only the difference between zero and infinity.

Besides the countless bones, the cave was also filled with sinister energy and deathly aura.

The temperature was extremely cold, cold enough to freeze blood and bones, with his heart feeling as if gripped tightly by an icy hand.

What made Kael vigilant was that after walking so long, apart from mountains of bones, he hadn't seen a single ghost along the way.

This situation was completely abnormal!

Finally he reached the center of the cave, where there was a stone door.

Pushing open the door revealed a huge space behind it, filled with mountains built from piled skulls.

Those hollow skull eye sockets all seemed to watch Kael with cold stares.

However, what Kael first noticed was a skeleton behind the door.

The skeleton wore magnificent armor and a golden helmet, clearly of high status.

Its finger bones were tightly clawed into the door crack, with a notched sword nearby that had once been used to hack at the stone door.

Clearly, before dying, he had tried to escape but ultimately failed.

Kael knew this skeleton's identity. He was Baldor, the eldest son of Brego, the second king of Rohan.

This was essentially a story of "if you don't seek death, you won't die":

Baldor had once accompanied his father, Brego, up the Snowbourn River, seeking refuge for the Rohirrim during times of war. They eventually discovered Dunharrow and came to the door of the Paths of the Dead.

Just as they prepared to enter, they were blocked by an extremely old man and unable to proceed.

But Baldor was obviously young and impetuous, not taking the old man's warning to heart. After drinking heavily at a feast, he rashly vowed to walk the Paths of the Dead.

Oaths in Middle-earth couldn't be made lightly, especially when sworn before the Valar.

Ultimately, this prince, who could have become the third king of Rohan, died due to his rash oath, entering the Paths of the Dead never to return.

His bones would only be discovered when Aragorn led the Grey Company into the Paths of the Dead in the future.

He could be called the first person to seek his own death.

Kael glanced at Baldor's remains but paid him no further attention.

He could now feel countless gazes falling upon him, filled with malice.

A flash of wariness crossed his eyes as his body tensed, slowly moving forward.

The next second, the mountains of skulls instantly began collapsing, forming an overwhelming torrent rushing toward Kael, seemingly intent on drowning him.

One second before the skull torrent struck, Kael used Apparition to instantly dodge, appearing on a high platform.

"Come out! Stop hiding. I know you're here!" Kael said coldly.

His voice echoed through the cave.

The cave was deathly silent.

After a while, semi-transparent ghosts finally emerged from beneath the skulls. Their forms were blurred, as if composed of mist, emanating faint ghostly light that gave an eerie, terrifying feeling.

More and more ghosts appeared, densely packed and nearly filling the entire cave, roughly estimated at no fewer than hundreds of thousands!

Such a vast number of ghosts originated from when the mountain folk broke their oath and were cursed by Isildur, unable to rest after death.

Therefore, whether the original mountain folk or their descendants, once dead their souls would wander the mountains, unable to go to the Halls of Mandos. Over time, this formed a massive ghost army.

Due to the curse, these ghosts couldn't rest after death and were filled with hatred toward the living.

Once any living being entered the Paths of the Dead, none ever returned.

This place gradually became a forbidden zone none dared enter, with only terrifying rumors circulating in southern Gondor and northern Rohan.

Among the ghosts, one wearing an ancient crown with a decayed face showing a ghastly blue-green color and hollow eyes, wielding a ghostly sword, quickly floated over.

He displayed a sinister smile, speaking in a voice seemingly from hell. "This is the realm of the dead. The living are forbidden to enter. Since you dare come here, stay forever and keep us company!"

With that, he raised his ghost sword and thrust directly at Kael.

Kael raised his Flammifer to block.

"Clang!"

The incorporeal ghost sword collided with Flammifer, actually producing the sound of metal clashing.

The King of the Dead, blocked by Flammifer, showed an expression of amazement on his face, clearly not expecting this.

"Living weapons are useless against us. What sword is this? How can it block my attack?"

Kael didn't answer, deflecting the ghost king's sword before counterattacking with his Flammifer.

The ghost king's head and body instantly separated.

But before Kael could celebrate, the ghost king's separated head and body reconnected.

The ghost king laughed triumphantly. "Your sword is indeed extraordinary, able to touch me, but I'm already undead. Can I die twice?"

With that, he again raised his ghost sword to attack Kael.

The two fought continuously. Though Kael could strike the ghost king each time, he only temporarily interrupted his attacks. Once the ghost king recovered, he would attack again.

Ghosts differed from the evil spirits and demons he'd encountered in the North Downs.

Evil spirits and demons were spiritual bodies created by dark power, restrained by light and holy forces. Once their dark power was broken, they would lose the ability to maintain their spiritual forms and completely disappear.

But these ghosts were essentially cursed undead. Though light forces could suppress them, they couldn't destroy them.

"Expecto Patronum!"

A dazzling white light shot from Kael's wand, condensing into an owl Patronus.

The Patronus charged forward, sending the ghost king flying, then quickly formed a light barrier trapping him inside.

The ghost king swung his ghostly sword trying to slash the Patronus barrier, but the thin light screen was like an iron wall. No matter how he struck, he couldn't break through.

"King of the Dead, I have no intention of being your enemy or that of other spirits. I came here only seeking a soul substance," Kael actively spoke to make peace. "Once I find it, I'll leave immediately and guarantee not to disturb your rest again."

But the ghost king clearly had no such thoughts. His ghastly blue-green decayed face was full of mockery. "Rest? Since we were cursed and bound here, we've never had a day of rest! So you're a wizard. That's why you dared come here!"

He stared directly at Kael with hollow eyes.

"I've heard rumors of wizards. They say you possess various miraculous methods. If you can lift the curse upon us, we'll not only help you find what you seek but even give you the mountain's treasures!"

Kael naturally understood the curse on these ghosts.

When Gondor was first established, Isildur met with the King of the Mountains at Erech.

The King of the Mountains, the ghost king before him, had once sworn before a mysterious black stone, pledging loyalty to Gondor and promising to aid them in times of crisis.

However, when Sauron returned to Middle-earth and planned to invade Gondor, the mountain folk refused to fulfill their promise.

So Isildur cursed the King of the Mountains beside the black stone, ensuring he and his people would never rest until they fulfilled their oath.

That mysterious black stone came from Númenor. Before Númenor's destruction, it was rescued by the Faithful Dúnedain and brought to Middle-earth, holding status equivalent to heirloom treasures like the palantíri.

Elrond had mentioned this black stone, saying it possessed powerful magic. Oaths sworn before it were unshakeable, rivaling even Kael's Unbreakable Vow.

So Kael shook his head at the ghost king. "The oath of the Stone of Erech cannot be moved. Unless you fulfill your original oath, it cannot be lifted and you cannot find rest."

The ghost king's face became even more ferocious upon hearing this, his aura growing more coldly terrifying.

"Oath! Oath... how long have we been trapped by this oath! I watched our bodies rot and be eaten by worms, our people weaken and perish generation after generation. We endure endless emptiness, our souls gradually decaying, yet cannot rest!"

Then he looked eerily at Kael with a sinister smile.

"Wizard, since you cannot lift our curse, how can we who have fallen into despair grant your wish?"

"You can trap me, but I'm not the only ghost here! You should thank Gondor's Isildur. His curse gathered my people and even descendants here, granting us greater power."

"Can you alone resist my ghost army?"

Dense masses of ghosts wielding various weapons surrounded him from all directions with clear malice.