As they traveled deeper, the tunnel gradually sloped downward, forming what felt like a natural staircase beneath their feet. Bit by bit, they descended into the earth. The air grew colder and damper with every step. It also grew quieter too, eerily so.
In such a narrow space, even the smallest sounds became magnified. Langtian could hear everything: his own heartbeat, the soft rasp of their boots against the stone, and somewhere deeper within the mountain, the faint trickle of underground water. Occasionally, a droplet would fall and land with a quiet plonk against the rocks, sounding much louder than it should have.
But as they went further, he began to notice something strange.
The glowing Crimson Dawnlight Crystals that had lit the upper part of the tunnel began to thin out. Fewer and fewer of them appeared along the walls, until the tunnel grew dim, the shadows stretching long and heavy around them.
Soon, the red glow faded almost entirely, and it became hard to see.
