Chapter 29: The Bustling Entrance and the Dungeon’s Shifting Depths

The dungeon was situated northwest of Wind Whisper City. Its entrance was unremarkable, merely a downward cave opening that had been artificially repaired and fitted with stone steps.

When Elara and Hilvyn arrived that morning, the area around the entrance had already transformed into a bustling marketplace.

“Fresh C-grade monster materials!”

“Wind Whisper City’s unique glow-lamps! An excellent choice for illumination!”

“Bread, jam, omelets, rice balls, dried meat…”

“Longswords, shortswords, leather armor, iron helmets! Come and take a look!”

“Potent potions, magic items, storage pouches…”

Everything imaginable was on display, creating a dazzling spectacle, with city guards weaving through the crowd to maintain order.

“It’s so lively!”

Elara, seeing this for the first time, tugged at Hilvyn’s hand. “Let’s go. We should register at the entrance first.”

“A-grade team, Black Rose. We wish you both a smooth and safe journey. The Guild stands with you.”

Following the stairs, they descended to the first underground level, the uppermost floor.

Here, a large hall had been cleared, equally bustling, where Guild staff had set up a camp.

“Good morning, you two.”

Hilvyn looked in the direction of the voice. Near a camp tent, Serene was waving at them.

“Serene! You’re here too.”

“This stall I’m minding sells magic potions. You two should hurry and explore.”

The Guild had established this camp on the first floor to treat the injured and sell various necessities.

“Then we’ll be going now.” Elara called out, taking Hilvyn’s hand and leading her away.

****

The dungeon consisted of 60 levels in total: levels 1-10 were D-grade, 11-30 were C-grade, 31-50 were B-grade, and 51-60 were A-grade.

This grading system indicated the operational area for teams of corresponding strength.

Almost every route on the first 10 levels was traversed by someone; they had been thoroughly explored.

From levels 11-30, the route Elara and Hilvyn chose still had some monsters, though they were mostly minor creatures. They barely paused.

It was only from level 31 onwards that they began to encounter routes temporarily untouched by others.

“How long has it been, Master? I think I need a rest.”

Even taking the fastest route to the lower levels, crossing 30 floors consecutively was quite tiring.

Elara glanced at her wristband.

“We’ve been walking for six hours already.”

Unconsciously, they had traveled so far.

“Let’s rest then.” Elara moved two stones, patting the dust off them.

Hilvyn shifted her stone closer, sitting snugly beside Elara.

“Hey, you’re going to push me off.”

“Master, I’m cold.”

Elara retrieved a thicker outer garment from her spatial ring.

“Good thing I came prepared.”

“Thank you, Master.”

The temperature in the dungeon had indeed dropped significantly.

Yet, even with the coat on, Hilvyn still pressed close to Elara.

Elara tilted her head back, marveling, ‘The dungeon truly is wondrous.’

Roughly every few levels, the environment changed. From the initial caves and grottoes, they had moved through verdant grasslands, and just passed a small forest.

Now, they were about to enter a cave overgrown with climbing plants.

These diverse environments naturally fostered a variety of monsters.

Guild records described that the closer one got to the lower levels, the more natural the environment became. A note added: ‘High-grade dungeons can even evolve into complete ecosystems at their lowest depths.’

The world’s power to purify was truly unimaginable.

“Let’s go, keep moving.”

Inside the cave, various glowing fungi grew. As they ventured deeper, various climbing plants and luminous fruits hung from the cave walls.

[Identification]

[Name: Starberry]

[Effect: Grows in lush caves, emits a faint glow, edible, no special effects.]

“Finally, something edible.”

All the fungi they had encountered earlier were poisonous. This was the first non-toxic product they’d found.

Hilvyn picked a handful and popped them into her mouth.

“How is it?” Elara also gathered a large bag, putting it into her spatial ring to serve as a snack later.

“It’s quite tasty.” But that was the extent of it.

The two collected some more before continuing their journey, descending a few more levels.

At this point, the magical concentration ahead surged abnormally.

“Something’s there.”

Elara extended her hand, stopping Hilvyn.

The two cautiously observed from behind a giant mushroom.

“A group of Mushroom Men.”

“Wow—”

A cluster of Mushroom Men, with four limbs, white stalks, and brown caps, had gathered in an open space.

These monsters looked like large mushrooms that had grown four smaller mushrooms. It was Hilvyn’s first time seeing them.

Mushroom Men had low aggression and weak combat abilities, but when attacked, they released poisonous spores with varying effects. It was best to deal with them from a distance.

The high magical concentration here attracted monsters, and areas with high magical concentration often contained…

Elara scanned the plants around the Mushroom Men.

Scattered among them were numerous plants with thick stems—Magic-Storing Grass, the primary raw material for magic recovery potions.

Her eyes lit up. This was no different from finding money scattered on the ground!

“Hilvyn, kill all the Mushroom Men. Be careful not to inhale the smoke they release.”

This grass contained magic, which was appealing not only to humans but also to monsters.

Elara condensed a Dark Arrow and shot dead a Mushroom Man that was gnawing on the Magic-Storing Grass.

‘How dare they spoil my property? They deserve to die!’

“Be careful not to damage the grass on the ground.”

“Understood.” Hilvyn nodded, then condensed an intermediate-grade spell, ‘Ice Spike,’ shooting them down one by one.

These Mushroom Men also had poor mobility, only able to stand there and be hit.

The startled spores they released were blown away by Hilvyn’s wind.

In a short while, the Mushroom Men in this area were all dead.

The two collected all the Magic-Storing Grass.

Roughly estimated, this haul could sell for 60 gold coins, but 30% would be deducted as tax.

The thought of taxes immediately dampened Elara’s mood. It wasn’t that she opposed paying taxes, but the process of handing over her property was simply unpleasant.

As for the corpses of the Mushroom Men, while edible, they required detoxification, and the dungeon’s toxins were particularly potent. It was too much trouble to consider.

Their true value lay in their spores, but neither of them had the means to collect them.

“Let’s continue on.” Elara stowed the Magic-Storing Grass into her spatial ring.

“Master, how much can your spatial ring hold?”

Hilvyn asked, following behind her.

“Emmm…” Elara pondered. “I don’t know either.”

It had an extremely vast space, in any case.

This was also one of Elara’s advantages. Since the dungeon opened for about 30 days, they didn’t need to frequently return to the surface to unload goods like other teams. They could go straight through, only ascending in the final days.

“Then where did it come from?”

“My family gave it to me…”

Upon hearing this, Hilvyn instinctively fell silent. She hadn’t forgotten that Elara had a very strained relationship with her family.

“I’m sorry, Master.”

“It’s fine.”

They sped along, hunting monsters and collecting materials as they went.

“Master, look, there’s a forest ahead.”

This was the entrance to the 36th level, and the environment had changed once again.

This level seemed exceptionally vast, like a grand ballroom, with huge ore deposits scattered everywhere, glowing with varying intensities. Forests and green grasslands grew on the ground.

[Identification]

[Name: Iron Magic Crystal]

[Name: Copper Magic Crystal]

[Effect: …]

These were all magic crystals containing different types of minerals, emitting light.

“Master, it’s so beautiful here.”

After walking some distance, they encountered several fruit trees with branches laden with ripe fruit.

And…

An adventurer hanging from one of the trees.

“Save… save me.”