Published at 18th of October 2026 8:23 am

Chapter 2118: Crossroads

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One by one, as Stroud and his adventurers were lowered into the Hole, the light slowly disappeared above them.

The voices of those at the surface grew fainter until only the creaking of the rope remained.

Then came the darkness.

The first level of the Mountain Down Under greeted them with cold stone, stale air, and the distant sound of dripping water. Their footsteps echoed through abandoned tunnels and crumbling chambers. Here and there, they found signs of previous travelers—old footprints, broken crates, and the occasional discarded weapon.

This was the shallowest region beneath Davos. This level consisted mostly of natural caverns, abandoned mines, old tunnels, and collapsed ruins. There were numerous passages leading back toward the surface.

Goblins, kobolds, and other Mana Core-level beasts inhabited this area. The adventurers made quick work of the monsters on this level. The deeper they went, the quieter it became.

Then eventually they reached the second level. The air was warmer and damp. Strange fungal growth covered the walls, glowing faintly in the darkness. Massive mushrooms rose from the ground like twisted trees, their light barely illuminating the surrounding tunnels.

It reminded Adam of the mushroom forest in the Soaring River Secret Plane back on Tron.

Some mushrooms were taller than houses. Thick fungal forests made navigation difficult. Giant insects, poisonous creatures, and fungal monsters inhabited the region.

There were mushrooms that released spores capable of causing hallucinations, sleep, or temporary paralysis. Adam’s antidotes came in handy. Thanks to Hannibal, he had already thoroughly studied the first three levels of the Mountain Down Under. Suffice to say, he was prepared.

At last, they stepped into the third level.

"We’re finally here," Stroud said solemnly. "The great crossroads of the world above and the world below."

A vast cavern stretched before them, disappearing into darkness. Numerous tunnels branched wide enough for wagons, while others were barely large enough for a person to squeeze through.

Somewhere within this enormous underground maze lay Dark Port. But its entrance was not obvious. The hidden city lay in a secluded and rarely traveled part of the third level, concealed far from the main passages.

Adam looked around in awe. Stroud was right when he claimed that the third level of the Mountain Down Under was a crossroads.

If they descended one more level, they would reach the outer fringes of the subterranean world known as the Great Below.

Beyond that threshold lay an entire world beneath the surface!

The Great Below stretched through endless tunnels, enormous caverns, underground seas, and ancient ruins. There was no sunlight here. Only the faint glow of fungi, crystals, magical plants, and strange creatures illuminated the darkness.

Adam could hardly take his eyes away. It was like discovering an entirely different world hidden beneath the one he had lived on for the past decade. And it truly was an entirely different world.

Somewhere in those endless depths lived dark elves, dark dwarves, underground gnomes, bizarre monsters, and countless other subterranean races. Entire cities and civilizations existed beneath the earth, hidden from the surface world.

The sheer scale of it fascinated him.

Hannibal had said to him that levels four through nine of the Mountain Down Under occupied only a fraction of the area of the Great Below.

It was like a drop in the ocean.

The thought alone was difficult for Adam to comprehend.

If Dark Port was the shadow of Davos, then the Great Below was the shadow of Centerra.

Centerra was the world above. The Great Below was the world beneath it.

Two sides of the same coin.

Yet unlike the world above, the world beneath had remained hidden for countless generations. It stretched across the entire supercontinent. Somewhere down there, entire civilizations had risen and fallen without ever seeing the sun.

The more Adam thought about it, the more awe-inspiring it became. The world he had lived on ever since arriving on this planet was only half the picture.

There had always been another world beneath his feet. A world so vast that the Mountain Down Under itself was barely a speck within it.

"Amazing, isn’t it?" Luca stood beside him, staring at the endless cavern.

"Stop gaping, lads!" Stroud slapped their backs. "Make camp. We rest for six hours. Then we head to our destination."

"Yes, boss." Adam nodded respectfully.

Stroud was the strongest in the party. Hence, he was the leader. As such, he held seniority. So the rest did as he instructed.

Adam asked around and learned that this was the first time that even Aurora and Barrett had ventured into the third level. So he couldn’t glean much information from them.

After setting camp, he found Stroud and learned from him what their plan of action was going to be.

"After we clear the arachnid’s lair, we will head to Dark Port," the towering Paladin said with an ugly grin.

"You wish to sell booty there?" Adam guessed.

"Indeed," Stroud explained. "Although it is an illegal underground city and has no legitimate government recognized by Davos, it has still become an important hub for us adventurers operating deep within the Mountain Down Under.

"It’s illegal, sure, but that doesn’t make it useless. Goods can be bought and sold there with far fewer questions asked. We can repair our equipment, restock supplies, find guides, and gather information about the deeper levels."

He paused, looking toward the darkness above with a wry smile.

"We’re still several kilometers from the surface," he said. "Do you think it makes sense for adventurers like us to travel all the way back to Davos every time we need food, equipment, and other supplies? Dark Port exists because adventurers need somewhere to operate from down here."

This was the reason why the Lords of Davos turned a blind eye to the existence of Dark Port.

The shadow city had become an indispensable part of the adventurer economy. Countless adventurers passed through its streets, spending money on food, equipment, repairs, lodging, information, and countless other services before venturing deeper into the Mountain Down Under.

And much of that wealth ultimately flowed back toward Davos.

The Lords understood that shutting down Dark Port would not eliminate its economy. It would merely drive that wealth elsewhere and make it far more difficult for adventurers to operate.

For the Free City of Davos, the benefits of having the shadow city far outweighed the inconvenience of officially acknowledging it.

The band of adventurers rested for six hours. Then, under Stroud’s guidance, they ventured deep into the third level.

Not long after, they arrived at the arachnid monster’s lair.

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