The members stared at themselves, and a girl answered suddenly without hesitation, "C'mon, let's get things going fast, Commander. I need this money."
Meanwhile, a group of guys chuckled low in a whisper, "Just as I expected... hah! Her boyfriend's dating another."
Soon her gaze landed on them, and she gave a quick, mocking grin. "Shut up! I heard you. And who the fuck says I need a boyfriend, huh? Perhaps a good life will be better for a girl having her own money without shitty rats like you two. Tsks, scums!" She turned in a furious flare, crossed her arms beneath her chest, closed her eyes, and scoffed.
"Alright! Alright, calm down, all of you! You see why I said we should complete this mission today. I guess you understand. Now, let's get back to work. We need to evacuate this chamber as soon as possible."
Meanwhile, Lu Hang turned directly to Kenji at his side.
Soon the clacking of iron filled the air again as their tools struck Crystals, ice, and essence.
Lu Hang placed his hand lightly on Kenji.
"Hm, perhaps a good gesture or mere luck." He stared directly into Kenji's eyes... sharp and commanding, making Kenji fidget and flinch, stiffened by the weight of his words.
"Now roll that map up. Your work is needed. I need to carry my duties along with the members to haul as many more crystals as we can get today."
Kenji nodded numbly, folding the laminated sheet carefully. The fleeting moments of light conversation and mockery had ended; the chilling focus of the Commander's greed had returned.
The Commander activated his Essence. A faint, shimmering red aura enveloped his axe and shoulders, a low-grade protective coat ready for confrontation. He stepped first into the narrow, muddy fissure... the entrance to the inner cave.
The rest of the party, now energized by the promise of double pay and the temporary relief of Lyhan's departure, followed eagerly.
Kenji moved last, sticking close to Lu Hang's flank. The F-ranker felt small and exposed, a mere shadow trailing the C-class authority figure.
The air grew heavy and damp, the scent of fresh earth and something metallic, something that smelled like raw, unrefined power replacing the stale cavern air.
After fifteen minutes of cramped walking, forcing them to move sideways, the tunnel widened suddenly into a vast, unsettlingly smooth chamber.
It was silent. Too silent.
"What is this place?" the bearded man muttered, his confidence draining away. "There are no signs of wolves, no tracks at all."
Lu Hang, unnerved by the lack of natural cave roughness, lowered his stance. "Kenji! Where does your map say the concentration is?"
Kenji was already scrambling on his knees, tracing the coordinates. The path forward wasn't dirt; it was a floor of perfectly flat, uniform stone that felt unnatural. He placed the tattered map down flat on the chamber floor to get a clearer reading, but the material beneath his hand was not rock or even the mineral-rich ore they usually mined. It was cool, polished marble.
Clang!
The faint, sharp sound of the map hitting the hard surface made everyone jump. Kenji stared, instinctively yanking his hand back from the ground near where he had placed the map.
Embedded in the center of the chamber floor, half-hidden by a thin layer of fine sediment, was a giant, perfectly smooth marble-carved stone. its surface was covered in deep, interlocking runes that seemed to drink the light, ancient symbols that stirred a deep, uncomfortable memory within Kenji—a vague, terrifying link to the tales of the Cataclysm.
He frowned. "Commander... this wasn't on the map. My readings..." Kenji lifted the map and tentatively placed it back on the carved stone, trying to recalibrate his coordinates against the unknown object.
The moment the old parchment touched the carved surface, a deep, resonating thrum filled the chamber, vibrating through Kenji's bones.
The air pressure dropped instantly, squeezing Kenji's chest. The runes on the marble stone began to glow a sickly, toxic green, pulsing faster and faster, like a failing heartbeat.
"What did you do, you idiot!?" Lu Hang shrieked, whirling around. His face went white with terror, eclipsing his previous greed. "Move away from that thing!"
Before they could think twice, the ground shuddered violently, throwing Kenji backward onto the group members.
A deafening rumbling sound filled the air, followed by tiny fragments of blue light that covered the atmosphere like smoke.
Cracks split across the rune-covered surface, and the stone peeled back in giant, sickening fragments. The immense aura and pressure that followed was so terrifying that the group members felt a scraping vibration through their bones.
"Eh, Co-Commander? Let's quickly head back." A guy replied in a trembling voice. His light energy, which had been ready to follow the Commander's lead, was instantly snuffed out by the terrifying pressure.
Kenji could tell the fear and terror that washed through the members. It was something different; he had least expected them to suddenly act numb, just as he was. All members were D-rank, apart from their C-rank Commander, which meant each had different abilities
But the aura and energy that once swirled up from the group members a moment ago were gradually turning off, one after the other, because of fear.
Kenji had no ability, magic, or signs to begin with; he was the least among them, an F-rank. But the sight of all he was seeing left him devastated. If the rest of the members could feel such fear like this, then how much more me? W-what is this I'm feeling at the moment? He cursed himself through gritted teeth, his eyes wide.
Squirch!!
A man, a sack filled with raw Essence and Crystals slung across his back, suddenly dropped it in a state of fright, not even realizing. He clutched his axe tightly to his side and took a few steps back, unsure of the terrifying sensation.
Meanwhile, Commander Lu Hang scanned the environment. This was no ordinary cave... not one he knew, given his years working with the association before gaining his current rank as a party leader.