"Hoo..."

"There's truly a secret world beneath us."

After leaving the somewhat oppressive water, Ronald seated himself on a protrusion at the edge of the cave and caught his breath a bit.

Upon arriving here, the first thing Ronald did was to survey his surroundings.

Confirming there was nothing else around, Ronald did not rush to explore the situation further but instead sat by the water's edge, softly chanting the spell's incantation.

The purpose of this action was to cleanse his body.

Although Ronald could move smoothly in the water before, the spell from "Origin of Species" couldn't dry his clothes. After such a long swim, his clothes were inevitably thoroughly soaked.

Having sticky clothes clinging to one's body is definitely not a comfortable experience.

"..."

Soon, the not so long incantation came to a gentle end.

The moisture in Ronald's clothes was quickly extracted, restoring him from a sticky state to a refreshing one.

"That feels much better."

Ronald quietly appreciated this comfortable state.

Then he stood up again by the water and continued deeper into the tunnel.

This underground fissure caused by the earthquake was long and winding, providing ample space, and it also created a more convenient environment for Ronald's progress.

Continuing down the tunnel with a slope of about thirty degrees.

As Ronald calmly moved forward, the [Astrolabe] spell constantly continued recording the surrounding terrain.

Compared to the exploration journey on the ice sheet above, this stretch of road seemed more monotonous. Aside from the structure itself, which piqued Ronald's curiosity a bit, everything else was uniformly plain.

In the terrain recordings of the [Astrolabe] spell.

Apart from the calm and unchanged passage around him, everything behind unseen walls was filled with soil and solid ice. It was as if the tunnel Ronald was advancing through was the only road leading downward in the entire underground world.

"..."

Yet, faced with the monotonous recordings of the [Astrolabe] spell, Ronald was instead somewhat pleased.

A solitary passage meant it was the only choice.

With this situation, the probability of the downward-slanting fissure Ronald discovered in the volcano vent being the correct path continued to rise.

After a few more minutes passed.

Finally, at the end of the never-ending fissure, Ronald noticed a change in the terrain.

At this point, he was already at a considerable depth beneath the ice cap.

The ground beneath his feet was the true surface of the Arctic continent, covered by ice and snow, while above and around was the polar ice and snow that enveloped it.

According to common sense, the foreground environment should also remain consistent with this, without any significant changes.

However, if one were to compare from a horizontal perspective.

Ronald, having traveled this far, had actually reached a vertical position close to the previous flat and monotonous ice sheet.

Just ahead, the map recorded by the [Star Map] confirmed this.

The slender tubes reappeared, extending from the solid ice above down to where they touched the ground, each tube directly reaching the true soil surface of the Arctic continent.

As for the soil.

It was different from the ground Ronald was currently walking on.

Some regularly distributed spiral pits suddenly appeared on the ground, extending further downward to deeper levels. Meanwhile, some pits below intertwined with each other, forming a connected, strange, and unique underground labyrinth.

Such a terrain.

Is beyond what words like ingeniously crafted could describe!

If one were to compare Ronald's previous experience in the labyrinth of Crete with this place, the gulf between the two would be equally unbridgeable.

Anyone who enters such a place...

Unless equipped with a spell or ability like Ronald's [Astrolabe] to record the terrain or find the way, once stepped in, this dark underground world becomes their tomb with no escape possible.

Noticing these phenomena, Ronald quickened his pace.

He mused to himself:

"I originally thought in this world, only the Casters liked to build their bases underground."

"Turns out these Dust Beasts love burrowing underground even more than humans?"

This was a realization Ronald had experienced firsthand.

If on the mystical side, occasionally schools of thought would set up their locations in above-ground structures, the three Dust Beasts Ronald personally encountered all buried themselves below the surface.

The comparison of probabilities between the two was almost clear and distinct!

Facing such a new development, Ronald's choice was straightforward—continue downward!

He had already traced his way from Entrode all the way to the Arctic continent.

At this point, a labyrinth that looked somewhat troublesome certainly couldn't stop him from proceeding further downward, could it?

Soon, Ronald reached the location recorded by the [Astrolabe] spell.

Being at this place in person, observing the details of the spiral tunnels.

Everything before him left him in awe.

These tunnels continuing downward were all embedded in the soil, but the tunnel walls were extremely smooth, as if crafted by fine artisans and carefully polished.

For such a discovery.

Ronald had a very clear judgment in his heart.

This state could only be maintained under frequent external erosion.

Otherwise, regardless of the underground environment or with the passage of time, even if these tunnel walls initially were smooth, they would progressively become rougher.

The only explanation was Ling Guang Mountain, which appeared and disappeared every few months.

These underground passages should have something passing through them during this period, polishing them continuously, keeping the walls smooth.

Such experiences alone.

Could ensure their consistent state over extended periods.

At the same time, there was an evident point before Ronald—that something exciting must surely await him below.

Even if he bet on the smallest probability that what was hidden wasn't a Dust Beast,

There should still be something truly miraculous.

"Hope to find it soon..."

Thinking this, Ronald leapt, deftly jumping into the nearest spiral tunnel before him.

With smoothly walled pipes, the downwards spiral.

Entrusting his body to such a tunnel, after relinquishing balance, it effectively became a natural amusement park slide.

Adjusting the downward direction constantly through the [Astrolabe] map.

Ronald seemed like a kid in an amusement park, sliding all the way to the deeper underground...

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