The underground was home to too many cold-blooded, terrifying creatures, with deadly dangers lurking everywhere.
The site where the Slu Tribe had battled the Bone Lizards was soon cleared out. Even the blood seeped into the rocky ground was sucked dry by some kind of mobile plant.
The countless corpses and traces left nothing behind, as if nothing had ever happened there.
…
The underground caves seemed carved out by an endless torrent of water, with terrain that was utterly unpredictable.
One moment it was flat as ground, the next like a roller coaster.
Ahead might be hanging stalactite spikes, while behind could be needle-like rock formations rising from the ground.
Along the way, they saw bizarre rocks that looked splashed with sulfuric acid and others gnawed beyond recognition as if by teeth.
Finally, following the Slu Tribe, they arrived before a massive amber-colored giant rock… the Slu Tribe's settlement, or more accurately, inside the rock.
It was a trapezoidal boulder embedded into the cave wall, with only the slanted side exposed to the air.
The terrain around the trapezoidal boulder was flat, with almost no strange rocks ahead and no suitable cover… a terrain perfectly suited for a charge.
The beam of the flashlight pierced the darkness, landing on the slanted surface of the boulder. The amber rock surface was covered in shallow pits. According to Slufin, those pits were left behind by underground creatures charging at it.
At the base of the boulder were two doors: one relatively low, allowing the Slu Tribe to pass through, and the other several times larger, through which the White Silkworms could easily move.
Approaching the stone door, behind the hollow stone grating, several figures hidden in the darkness could be seen… the gatekeepers.
As Slufin neared the entrance, the grated stone door swung open. The Slu Tribe's members guarding inside hurried out, giving Slufin's group deep hugs.
A trace of sadness as gentle as a breeze passed across their faces and quickly disappeared without a trace.
Around four hundred and fifty companions had set out, but only thirty-plus returned.
The gatekeepers looked at the abundant meat on the White Silkworms, feeling fortunate that those sacrifices had value.
Law's group lingered behind, quietly watching Slufin and the gatekeepers chatter about something.
During the conversation, the gatekeepers frequently glanced toward Law and the others with looks of surprise and gratitude.
After more than ten seconds, the gatekeepers stepped aside.
Slufin waved to Law, and everyone lined up to enter through the larger stone door.
The passage was short, less than three meters long.
Walking through the passage, starlight poured down from above, filling the narrow space with faint light spirits.
Looking up, the cave ceiling was dotted with stars… countable, around fifty or so.
Based on the light, the height from the ground to the ceiling was surprisingly less than three meters.
The starlight wasn't bright enough for illumination, it was mostly decorative. After all, the Slu Tribe had night vision and didn't need things like lamps even in their own homes.
Law felt it would be impolite to sweep a flashlight around in someone else's home, so he put it away, slowly adapting to the faint light. At least he could barely see.
Biscuit had the same consideration and silently put away her flashlight. Only Tonpa, careless and thoughtless, wanted to get a good look at the current state of this human settlement to see if they could stay for a while.
He swept his flashlight around. Although the Slu Tribe wasn't sensitive to bright light, it still made them somewhat uncomfortable.
Rustling sounds came from the darkness. Law looked up and saw three small black figures moving along the uneven stone wall from the side.
Realizing they intended to teach Tonpa a lesson, Law instinctively glanced at Tonpa, then calmly looked away, pretending not to notice.
Since they had entered the settlement, Tonpa had retracted his Nen Ability, completely unaware that three little ones were charging toward him. He was still using his flashlight to examine the narrow dwelling carved right out of the rock.
Just then, a sudden gust of wind blew.
The three little ones flexed their sturdy thighs, pushed off from the rock wall, and dove down from above at an angle, each holding white silk threads.
Before Tonpa could react, the three crossed paths, wrapping the white silk around Tonpa's body and skillfully hoisting him upside down.
It wasn't until he was lifted into the air that Tonpa realized what was happening and let out a sharp scream.
Then, he was dangling mid-air, only two meters off the ground.
The Slu Tribe's dwelling was extremely cramped, with very limited space. There were no houses, but it wasn't exactly crowded either.
Tonpa's scream echoed throughout the stone space, drawing even more attention than the flashlight's beam had moments earlier.
Immediately, it caught the notice of everyone in the Slu Tribe.
The three little ones stood beneath Tonpa, clutching their stomachs and laughing mockingly.
Law and Biscuit shook their heads slightly. At that moment, Slufin, who had just arranged for the spine meat to be stored, hurried over. He frowned, scolded the three youngsters, and then lowered Tonpa to the ground.
Tonpa rubbed his chest, where his heart was still racing, and glared fiercely at the three little ones hiding behind a wall and snickering.
"Please follow me."
With Bruna's tentacle reconnected, Slufin spoke and then led the way ahead.
The Slu Tribe's 'houses' were at most a few walls serving as cover, supplemented with some animal hides. None of the dwellings had roofs, and there were no furniture like tables, chairs, or beds… just animal pelts spread on the ground.
"The Chief is still hibernating and might not wake for about three days. Once the Chief awakens, I'll take you to see him." Slufin said, glancing at Law. He knew Law had many questions, and those questions might only be answerable by the Chief.
Law nodded.
The paths inside the dwelling were difficult to navigate, as the ground was uneven, and it was easy to trip. Sometimes, they had to climb up and down.
This massive amber-colored rock was called Vein Stone, with astonishing hardness… a unique type of stone that underground creatures couldn't bite into.
The Slu Tribe had invested unknown amounts of effort and lives to carve out this narrow dwelling inside the Vein Stone.
The Vein Stone's high hardness made carving extremely challenging, which was why the layout inside the dwelling seemed messy.
After all, it wasn't tofu that could be carved however one pleased.
Under Slufin's guidance, they arrived at a dwelling… no roof, just three crooked walls forming a crude open-air structure.
Everyone entered the dwelling and could only sit on the ground.
Slufin untied a piece of spine meat from his waist and laid it on an oval-shaped stone slab.
Law's group quietly watched Slufin's actions, understanding that he was preparing to cook the spine meat to serve them.
Then, their expressions gradually changed.
They saw Slufin stand up, barefoot, and step onto the spine meat. Their faces instantly turned strange.
Slufin's sturdy thighs showed faintly bulging veins, and his feet emitted a weak red glow, seemingly carrying heat that sizzled against the spine meat.
Slufin appeared completely unaware of the odd looks from Law, Biscuit, and Tonpa. Calm and composed, he gave the spine meat a foot massage, walking back and forth rhythmically as he stepped on the meat.
Watching from the side, Law's face twitched. He almost couldn't resist taking out his phone to play some disco music for Slufin.
'Was this even a thing?'