On the lava lake shrouded in thick smoke, a fire-resistant boat sailed through the haze.
Currently, several fire-resistant boats were exploring the lava lake, most of them crowded with entire adventurer teams. However, this particular boat carried only two people.
One of them was a monster—the purple-skinned blacksmith, Purple Copper.
In the current adventurer teams, there was only one person collaborating with a monster for exploration: Brock, who had already advanced to a second-rank mage.
With his vast mana reserves, Brock didn't hesitate to expend mana, using wind magic continuously to pilot the fire-resistant boat.
Compared to the other exploration teams, Brock’s efficiency was remarkably high.
He had already explored two stone pillars and obtained two map fragments.
There was still some distance to go before collecting all the map fragments to find the Sub-dragon Wyvern on the hidden eleventh giant pillar.
Although the lava lake wasn't excessively large—certainly not comparable to a sea—it was blanketed in thick smoke that blocked all sense of direction, making it impossible for adventurers to navigate.
In such conditions, adventurers often didn't even realize they were going in circles.
The two map fragments in Brock's hands couldn't be joined yet.
The two chests he had found didn't contain any magical artifacts.
Aside from the two map fragments and dungeon coins, there were only two badge fragments.
Brock wasn't sure what the badge was for, but based on his experience in the Well of Eternal Imprisonment, it was likely a special item for a future floor.
In the Dark Palace on the tenth floor, there were special chests that required items from upper floors to open.
The badge felt metallic but was very light, similar to pumice.
It was pale purple, and the badge fragments only formed half of the badge.
Brock guessed he needed two more fragments to complete it.
He held some hope that the remaining pieces might be on the other stone pillars.
However...
Whether it was maps or badges, collecting them all would be extremely difficult. Brock wasn't the only one exploring this lava lake.
Other adventurer teams would find stone pillars and map fragments too.
Even with his efforts, to get the full map, he would have to find a way to obtain map fragments from other adventurer teams.
Exchange? He had nothing to offer. This was a lead on a hidden boss.
A hidden boss would disappear forever once killed, and its drops were incredibly precious, potentially containing vital clues.
But Brock couldn't give up. The dragon flame of the Sub-dragon Wyvern was his only hope for forging a Forbidden Fire Container and surviving.
“Maybe the only way is to cooperate with other adventurer teams and get the dragon flame from the Sub-dragon Wyvern that way?”
Brock realized that being a lone wolf might make his goal impossible.
...
“Are they all here?”
Deep within the Well of Eternal Imprisonment, Dalun Li looked at the projection of the lava lake.
His chosen targets were in place. Next, the melee would begin.
The struggle for Forbidden Fire would be far more brutal than this.
Dalun Li turned his gaze to another projection from Tongmu.
The projection marked three factions located in three different spots in Eternal Imprisonment Town outside the dungeon.
Every presence radiated the strength of a fourth-rank extraordinary being.
The exploration of the Gray Mist Valley in Gray City was nearing its end.
The Adventurer Association, the City Lord of Gray City, and the Grey family could now spare a portion of their forces.
And all three had directed these forces toward the Well of Eternal Imprisonment.
An adventurer team consisting of three fourth-ranks and two third-ranks belonged to the adventurer faction.
The Grey family sent a knight order led by four fourth-ranks, with many third and second-ranks—a total of 27 people divided into four exploration teams.
And then there was a team likely belonging to Prince William, consisting of two fifth-ranks and two third-ranks. The two fifth-ranks were using magical artifacts to mask their mana, disguising themselves as a fourth-rank and a third-rank.
All three factions were putting their full strength into exploration.
It seemed they intended to conquer the Well of Eternal Imprisonment in one go.
In their eyes, the dungeon was now a very special small-scale dungeon that was close to becoming a medium-scale dungeon—a highly valuable strategic asset.
Thus, while the final competition for non-renewable resources was happening in Gray Mist Valley, they had mutually agreed to spare forces to seize the Well of Eternal Imprisonment.
Despite their efforts to hide, Dalun Li could still sense several hidden mana signatures through Tongmu's vision.
These people brought many magical artifacts.
The adventurer team sent by the Adventurer Association carried a particularly special item.
Their team had five members: three fourth-ranks (swordsman, heavy warrior, mage) and two third-ranks (Holy Light priest and Foundry priest).
Yes, a Foundry priest who worshipped the God of the Foundry!
The orthodox faith in the Lanxi Kingdom and Geri Kingdom was the Goddess of Light. Followers of the Foundry Church were rare, and Foundry priests were even rarer.
The Foundry priest in the team didn't look like a priest at all, completely unlike the pure and sacred little nun beside him. He was tall, his muscles bulging under his priest robes, and he carried a massive hammer—a weapon entirely unfitting for his class.
His skin was dark with a bronze sheen. A unique mane of red hair draped over his shoulders, and his eyebrows and eyes were deep red.
Besides the hammer, he carried a large pack and four steel rods as tall as a man, engraved with runes.
“So, they’re finally coming.”
Dalun Li recognized what the Foundry priest was carrying.
Teleportation pillars.
Special items developed by humans for dungeon exploration.
As dungeons grew deeper, traveling back and forth became increasingly inconvenient. For instance, the Well of Eternal Imprisonment had been explored down to the twelfth floor. Traveling from the first to the twelfth and back would take over half a month.
Deeper floors were also much larger. In a super-large-scale dungeon like the Root of the World Tree, traveling between the deepest and surface layers could take years.
In such cases, exploration was impossible. Teleportation pillars were created specifically for this reason.
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