Chapter 180: Underworld (2)
Chapter 180: Underworld (2)
“My lord, don’t go near the forest,” Aydin stepped forward and said. “In the Underdark, forests like this are home to many powerful creatures.”
“In the Underdark, many monsters hide around fluorescent mushrooms. They wait for the mushrooms to glow and attract other animals, then launch a surprise attack. Plus, many of these fluorescent mushrooms are poisonous.”
Su Lun didn’t speak. He reached out a hand and caught a fluorescent spore. It landed on his palm without any unusual effect. Su Lun gave it a gentle blow, and it floated gracefully back into the air.
“We’ll go around,” Su Lun declared. He wasn’t a fool to rush in; he saw no sense in barging headlong into this forest full of unknown dangers. Who knew what lurked inside? Though he was powerful now, the world held many unexpected threats.
They followed the cave wall, skirting the forest on either side. The Glowing Forest was utterly still, with only the drifting fluorescent spores filling the air. The entire forest emitted a soft glow, looking extraordinarily beautiful.
Just as they reached the far side of the forest, Su Lun suddenly noticed many small mushrooms and fungi growing beneath the giant ones. Looking closer, he saw that these tiny growths weren’t rooted in soil or wood, but on skeletons and the remains of other animals – corpses decayed to the bone.
The body of an underground salamander, dead not long ago, hadn’t fully rotted. But its body was covered in masses of hatched spores. Countless small mushrooms were already sprouting from its flesh. It was a sight that made one’s scalp crawl.
“Those are parasitic mushrooms,” Aydin explained, noticing Su Lun’s focus. “They grow on dead animals or humans, feeding on flesh and blood. Their growth might be bloody, but they are the key ingredient in healing and antidote potions.”
“Those others nearby are illusion-inducing mushrooms. They give off gases that cause hallucinations in creatures. Predators often use them to trap prey.”
“And those vines have a learned name: Devil Vines. Normally, they’re like normal plants, totally still. But if another creature gets close, they suddenly lash out and wrap around it. Their vines are covered in sharp barbs. When they coil, the barbs pierce the prey’s body. They inject a strong numbing agent. Once the prey can’t struggle anymore, they inject a different poison that dissolves the prey’s innards. The victim’s muscles and guts turn to liquid very fast.”
As Aydin spoke, Su Lun began to grasp the dangers of this forest. It was not surprising for an area with an adventuring level of 12. Even an ordinary forest here was perilous.
The Underworld was rich in minerals. Its deposits of metallic ores and gemstones were several times, even dozens of times, greater than any found on the surface world. If it hadn’t been so tempting, that old Dwarf Kingdom wouldn’t have stubbornly dug deep down, heedless of danger. They drilled so far they ended up unearthing an ancient fire demon from its slumber.
That greedy Dwarf Kingdom ended up completely destroyed by the fire demon. Its survivors had to flee to other areas to build a new kingdom.
Beyond mineral resources, Dragons were also plentiful here in the Underworld. Common types like Red Dragons, Shadow Dragons, White Dragons, and others could be found. Legend had it, some Drow Elf clan captured an adult Red Dragon once. They used a polymorph spell to force it into human form.
The Drow prepared huge amounts of aphrodisiacs and force-fed them to the Dragon. Then they made it have long, ‘friendly exchanges’ with their female clan members. A line of female Drow Elves queued up to collect his seed.
After that, this Drow Elf family produced a massive number of Dragonblood Sorcerers and Dragonborn Drow Elf warriors. Oh, and they also produced Dragon Blood Potions for the Dragon Blood Baptism ritual.
The Dragon Blood Baptism required dragon blood and special magic circles to strengthen the body. The effects could build up with each ritual. It was said that after reaching the fifth layer, skin coated in dragon blood became as hard as iron. Nobles had gone wild trying to get this enhancement.
Eventually, the Red Dragon broke free. Burning with fury, it slaughtered that entire Drow Elf family, blood washing through their home.
Bypassing this dangerous forest, the two men journeyed onward. After passing through two more underground caverns, Aydin finally spotted traces of humanoid activity.
“Likely Kobolds,” he observed. Their signs were too obvious. These humanoids were known for being dirty, messy, and foul-smelling. Kobolds especially loved digging through Dragon dung.
“My lord, shall we capture some informants?” Aydin asked eagerly.
Su Lun nodded. “Go. Be quick.”
It wasn’t difficult for Aydin. Soon, he returned, leading several Kobolds.
These Underworld Kobolds closely resembled their surface cousins: small, hunched figures reeking of something terrible, looking utterly panicked.
Aydin had tied a rope around the three Kobolds. He gave it a sharp tug, and they tumbled to the ground in a tangled heap.
“I’ve already questioned them, my lord,” Aydin reported. “Besides this Kobold Tribe, there’s a Gray Dwarf tribe and a Goblin Tribe nearby. They haven’t traveled further afield.”
“Please spare us!” one Kobold whimpered, trembling. “… We’re just poor Kobolds! We mean you no harm… We can trade treasure for our freedom!”
Treasure?
Su Lun’s eyes brightened slightly. Kobolds loved mining. Many Dragons enslaved Kobolds to dig gold mines for them. And this was the Underworld, famed for its mineral wealth. These Kobolds could very well have amassed gold, gems, and other riches.
“Gold! Gems! Piles like mountains of gold!” The Kobold frantically gestured, clearly terrified Su Lun might take his life if he spoke too slowly. It seemed Aydin had already impressed the need for urgency upon them.
“This gold was mined by your tribe?” Su Lun raised an eyebrow.
“Yes! Yes!” the Kobold nodded eagerly.
Su Lun gave a thoughtful nod but said nothing. Gold and gems were hard currency. If they were available, he certainly wouldn’t pass them up. However, he didn’t fully trust the Kobolds’ word.
“Let’s go take a look,” Su Lun told Aydin. Aydin agreed. He made the three Kobolds lead the way. The Kobold camp wasn’t far. After navigating one tunnel, they arrived.
Looking ahead, Su Lun saw the tribe was extremely large. As a very weak species, without strong breeding capabilities, it would likely have gone extinct. Only Goblins could probably compare.
Kobolds laid eggs, with a single clutch producing five or six young. They were born with inherent knowledge. Some Wizards speculated this stemmed from their so-called Dragon bloodline heritage. After all, Dragons were born with inherited memories. This was also one reason they claimed to be Dragonborn.
In truth, few cared whether they were truly Dragonborn or not. Some Wizards even tried capturing large numbers of Kobolds, extracting their blood in attempts to gain draconic power. It proved fruitless. One Wizard extracted blood from over a thousand Kobolds. He purified the blood again and again, refining it to its absolute limit. Still, he couldn’t find any trace of actual Dragon blood.
His calculations suggested that obtaining the bloodline even of a Lesser Dragon required extracting blood from at least a hundred thousand Kobolds. Unless Wizards and Adventurers wanted to wipe the entire species clean, it just wasn’t feasible, no matter how fast they bred.
“Is this entire cave a Kobold Tribe?” Su Lun asked, observing the large settlement within the massive cavern. He quickly estimated: thousands of Kobolds, split into more than a dozen different clans. They scattered throughout the space.
“Where’s the gold and gems hidden?” Su Lun pressed.
“… In… in the largest clan.”
Su Lun looked towards the biggest clan, positioned right in the center of the cavern. It occupied more than a quarter of the total area. The other Kobold clans were gathered around its edges. Attacking such a large clan head-on would be troublesome. Su Lun could surely kill them all, but it would take considerable time and energy. He opted for stealth instead.
He retrieved an exquisitely beautiful octagonal glass lamp from his storage space. The crystal lantern was utterly clear, a single flame within casting light several meters around. This was the Shadow Mirror Sky Lantern he’d obtained earlier. Besides providing illumination, it offered invisibility and revealed hidden things.
Moreover, this lamp granted mass invisibility. With enough energy, it could hide an entire army. Apart from hiding people, the lamp was also potent at revealing what others tried to hide. Any hidden things caught in its light lost their concealment.
“Invisibility!”
A shimmering glow radiated from the Shadow Mirror Sky Lantern. Su Lun, Aydin, and the three Kobolds were instantly enveloped. In the next moment, they, along with the lantern itself, vanished completely from sight.
“You lead the way,” Su Lun ordered the Kobolds. “And no sound. Otherwise…” He swept his sword sideways. A nearby stalagmite was instantly severed, its cut surface perfectly smooth.
“Yes! Yes!” The Kobolds nodded furiously, clamping their hands tightly over their mouths. They didn’t dare make a single peep.
“Let’s go,” Su Lun said softly before them.
The beautiful glass lantern floated mid-air. It projected a transparent light bubble, encasing the group. Guided by the three Kobolds, Su Lun and Aydin moved silently into the Kobold camp.
The camp was pure chaos. Dirty. Filthy. Disgusting. Kobolds had zero sense of sanitation. Sewage ran along the ground. Dark, stinking clumps of something unidentifiable were scattered about. Juvenile Kobolds chased and tussled wildly. Occasionally, groups huddled together playing crude group games. The scene was deeply unpleasant.