Chapter 1577: 1577. Digging

Years went by, but the situation of Noah's group didn't change. Their constant efforts couldn't make them ignore the vastity of the Immortal Lands.

Creating a tunnel throughout an entire region took weeks, even when the three hybrids worked together. Moreover, they had to stop multiple times to check their current position and reestablish their precautions.

Noah used his breaks to improve the workshop. He had many materials and time, so his expertise with that technique steadily grew.

He even had valid blueprints already. His focus was on the fake cores now. Noah had to improve those items to finally get his hands on an endless army of rank 8 magical beasts.

The journey was uneventful. The underground area was almost uninhabited since only existences interested in the chaotic laws decided to settle there. Living under the surface would defeat that purpose.

The faint grievances that had appeared in Pearl's mind after the tragedy vanished during those years. The expert learnt to accept that Noah was completely innocent. Instead, it became even clearer that someone in her organization had betrayed her.

"We never kept your meeting a secret," Pearl explained, "But we didn't spread the information outside of our organization either. The traitor has to be one of us. I wonder who would even decide to sacrifice an entire secret base to defeat you."

"It's honestly strange," Noah said without stopping punching the rocks in front of him. "I understand that I can be a pain for many organizations, but sacrificing you all requires a deep enmity."

"Or a complete lack of care," King Elbas added. "It might even connect to fanatics and zealots, but that would require the existence of superior power. We are all divine existences. I don't understand who could turn gods into sacrificial pawns."

"This speech doesn't apply to the Crystal City," Wilfred contradicted King Elbas.

"The Crystal City is a special case," King Elbas explained. "Those fanatics idolize the human species. Their superior power is an idea."

"Do you think that a rank 9 existence is behind the attack?" Jordan asked.

"No," King Elbas promptly replied. "I don't have a real explanation. I have a few hypotheses, but their sound too unreal for now. We need more information. The Immortal Lands still hide too much."

Jordan didn't seem satisfied with that explanation. She wanted to listen to those hypotheses and see if they made any sense. Luckily for her, Noah rejoined the conversation and told her what King Elbas had in mind.

"Who is in control of the Tribulations?" Noah asked.

"Heaven and Earth," Jordan replied.

"Do you think rank 9 existences would bother to mess with Heaven and Earth to trigger a Tribulation?" Noah asked. "That's pointless since they could directly kill us with their own hands."

"Wait," Jordan exclaimed once a strange idea started to form in her mind. "You aren't suggesting that Heaven and Earth are behind the attack, right? We saw cultivators ready to kill those who managed to survive the Tribulation. They had to be the reason behind the light."

"They are suggesting that those cultivators worked with Heaven and Earth," Wilfred explained.

"But, but," Jordan stammered a bit before sorting her thoughts. "How is that even possible? Every god should theoretically be against Heaven and Earth's system. How can you suggest that some cultivators are cooperating with them?"

'Supreme Thief said that Heaven and Earth have followers,' Noah thought, but he kept that information for himself. 'Is it possible that we already met them?'

"That's why I didn't want to speak about it yet," King Elbas sighed. "The most logical explanation features a connection with Heaven and Earth, but I don't know what a god would desire from that."

That was the major flaw in his reasoning. Gods often compromised to obtain a chance to gain more power, but Heaven and Earth were clear enemies of the cultivation journey.

King Elbas couldn't explain how a cultivator could decide to bow in front of those existences. The Tribulations should be enough to scare everyone away from Heaven and Earth.

Those conversations happened often. The entire group was inside a tunnel in the end. They had to do something to kill time.

Noah threw a punch at some point, and the rocky wall crumbled, revealing an enormous crack that reached far deeper than his current position.

The fissure seemed to spread for multiple regions, and chaotic laws filled its insides. Noah had to make the tunnel crumble to keep those storms outside, but that only solved part of his problems.

"We have to go around it," Noah ordered before changing direction.

The group would dig a tunnel next to the cavity and proceed in the right direction only after they surpassed the fissure. The chaotic laws made it impossible to cross, so that was their only approach.

The troubles didn't end there since Noah soon found another immense cavity. It seemed that a battle among powerful existences had happened in that area, and the ground was still carrying its aftereffects.

Noah felt forced to turn again. His group wasted months of travel to avoid the fissures, and they soon found themselves in front of a large underground hall.

The hall didn't reach the surface, so Noah and the others didn't need to change direction again. The chaotic laws couldn't fly into that place. The group could cross the area and press forward.

Noah double-checked the area, but he didn't sense any danger. He quickly jumped in the air and led his group to the other side of the hall.

Noah and the others didn't expect anything. Their consciousness, sensors, and instincts didn't pick up any danger. Yet, an earthquake soon ran through that area, and a few rocks began to move.

Two tall columns of rocks moved to reveal a yellow reptilian eye. Noah, Jordan, and Wilfred sensed an innate suppression landing on their minds. They were in front of a superior specimen that could submit them with a single cry.

"Shut up and don't panic," Noah said while suppressing his instincts. "Don't attack. Just keep going."

The group still had King Elbas' techniques around them. In theory, their presence was nothing more than a faint whiff of air moving through the world.

Moreover, Noah had the faint sensation that the creature wouldn't attack them. They were too weak for its level.

The creature blinked a few times before deciding to move. The earthquake intensified, and boulders began to fall inside the underground hall.

A crack soon spread through the ceiling and uncovered the outside world on the other side. The fissure eventually became a proper hole due to the earthquake and revealed the entirety of the massive creature that had awakened at Noah's passage.

Noah couldn't believe his eyes. An immense dragon filled his view and stared back at him. The creature was as tall as a mountain. It had a long, scaled neck and a fat body.

Rocks covered most of its scales. It seemed that the creature had slept inside the ground for too long.

'This is a rank 9 magical beast,' Noah thought. 'I've actually managed to find an existence at that level.'

The chaotic laws began to ravage their bodies, but the dragon suddenly breathed and absorbed the storms in the whole region. It would take them a while to return to a normal state.

Then, the dragon lowered its head and inspected Noah and Jordan. It appeared clearly interested in those two experts who radiated a dragon-like aura.

"Cubs shouldn't be in these lands," A female human voice suddenly came out of the dragon and stunned the experts.