In the extradimensional space, the stone chamber doors slowly swung open.
As Zhao Xian and the others emerged, they were all struck by the scene before them.
"Brother Xu, was all of this your doing?" Kun Shao hurried forward to ask.
Xu Que nodded and said, "Let's go, make the best use of our time; soon, I'll need to train as well."
With a single glance exchanged, Kun Shao and the others understood Xu Que's intentions.
Following the path back, Xu Que and his team encountered no trace of any ghostly toads, save for the bubbling of marshy gas around them.
But as they returned to the starting point and turned towards the path on the left, spores around the stone slabs suddenly began to spread from both sides of the swamp!
"Quick, move!"
As Xu Que's command resounded, everyone sensed something was amiss.
In the still air, the floating spores seemed to stir, as though roused from slumber, drifting up in clouds.
Xu Que and the others dared not look back, nor halt; they could only press forward.
Upon reaching a massive stone platform, a vast cavernous opening lay before them.
"Hide inside for now. Soon, you will need to defend this platform; let no creature breach it!"
Following Xu Que's command, they quickly filed into the cave.
Xu Que took a step forward.
The cave stretched down an endless path that faded into darkness.
Closing his eyes to sense any nearby threats, he found no presence of hostile entities and was at ease.
Outside, yellow spores blanketed the landscape; were it not for their lethal toxicity, they would have looked like a beautiful scene of golden sprites.
"Brother Xu, how long will those spores float around out there?" Kun Shao asked.
"I'm not quite sure. Likely, they'll linger for a while." Glancing outside, Xu Que added, "Stay here. If you see any creatures, go back outside and confront them."
"Understood. You be careful too," Zhao Xian replied.
"Don't worry—I'm not going down so easily!" Xu Que waved them off and proceeded into the cavern's depths.
The deeper Xu Que ventured, the more the tunnel subtly transformed.
While the passage itself remained unaltered, gleaming lights now adorned the walls.
Seeing clusters of phosphorescent stones above, Xu Que recognized that this place was no ordinary dungeon.
"So, is this the so-called gateway to the underworld?" Xu Que's lips curled in a slight smile.
He would not believe any tales of an underworld gateway, especially since he had glimpsed the abyss himself and knew full well how terrifying it truly was!
Had he not sensed that looming catastrophe in time, he might have remained unaware of Liu Ruyan and Ji Boda's deceit.
"In this life, I'll find out exactly what lies within this so-called hell," Xu Que resolved, striding deeper within.
As the passage widened, Xu Que soon arrived at the first fork.
Closing his eyes to detect any shifts, he found no signals emanating from within and sighed in relief, affixing two charges of [Mine Tunnel Explosives] above the entryway.
"Boom!"
A massive explosion echoed from the depths, and Kun Shao and the others understood at once that Xu Que had begun!
Within the passageway, Xu Que waved away the smoke and dust. With a glance at the collapsed entry, a satisfied smile appeared.
As he continued on, fleeting shadows occasionally crossed the corridor.
The eerie "shrrr" sounds were like ghostly wails.
"This place is indeed far more sinister than a typical dungeon," Xu Que muttered cautiously as he advanced.
Though visibility was clear, he braced himself for any sudden encounters.
After all, it was the psychological dread that truly overwhelmed, far more than surface calm.
Steeling himself, Xu Que quickly reached the second fork in the tunnel.
Placing two more [Mine Tunnel Explosives], he swiftly retreated.
As another blast shook the passage, he looked back briefly.
Seeing no issues, he pressed forward, venturing deeper into the corridor.
"Why do we keep hearing explosions?" Kun Shao asked, bewildered.
"Maybe the charge didn't detonate, or perhaps there's more than one pathway down there," Huang Bo replied nonchalantly.
Zhao Xian remained silent, sensing Xu Que's departure had carried a touch of unease.
With a sequence of explosions booming from below, Kun Shao and the others grew even more perplexed, each burning with curiosity about what lay beneath.
At that moment, the spores began to settle back into the swamp, and the distant croaking of the ghostly toads echoed.
"They're coming—get ready!" Zhao Xian's eyes snapped open, his blade gripped tightly as he stared outside.
Around the stone platform, countless pairs of green eyes glowed, and a massive ghostly toad began making its way toward the cave.
Taking in the sheer number of ghostly toads, Kun Shao swallowed nervously.
"No wonder Brother Xu pushed us to B-rank—there are so many of them!" Meanwhile, deep within the cavern, Xu Que wore a look of satisfaction, seeing that he had successfully sealed off every entrance.
Peering into the dim chamber ahead, he did not rush to open the door. Instead, he sat down to swiftly absorb the surrounding spiritual energy.
As the energy coursed through him, he completed a minor cycle.
Five minutes later, Xu Que's eyes snapped open, his body enveloped in a golden aura; a distinct A-rank aura radiated from him!
"One month! In just one month, I've reclaimed my former peak!"
"What a bitter irony," he muttered, bitterness etched into his voice.
He felt no joy, only an aching resentment for the regrets of his past life!
Xu Que stood and stopped cultivating; the battle above was surely underway, and he needed to defeat that three-headed Hellhound without delay!
Closing his eyes, he sensed the node's location.
Standing before the massive doors, he took a deep breath, then pushed.
As the stone doors gave way, an intense aura washed over him.
He scanned the scene ahead, spotting a massive, black beast the size of a truck, slumbering upon a central dais.
Staring at the three-headed hellhound, Xu Que crept forward, careful to avoid making the slightest sound.
Just as he deployed his [Eye of Detection], one of the beast's heads lifted slightly.
Indeed, the senses of these creatures were unnaturally sharp—before even a trace of his scent had reached it, the beast was already alert!
[Entity Name: Hellhound Cerberus · Chromaggus (Mutated Species)]
[Rank: S-class]
[Primary Attributes: Strength: 650, Spirit: 520, Constitution: 640, Agility: 230]
[Abilities: Black Pain · Black – Upon exposure to fire or dark magic, recovers 200% of inflicted damage as health, immune to all curse magic.]
[Ability: Life Devour – When health falls below 50%, initiates indiscriminate consumption of all nearby entities, restoring 20% of current health per entity devoured, increasing maximum health by 10% per target.]
[Ability: Ignition Aura – Deals 1% fire damage per second to all entities within three meters, reducing surrounding entities' spirit by 5% for 120 seconds.]
[Skills: Frostburn, Corrosive Acid, Inferno, Devour, Gravity Slam, Mid-tier Dark Curse...]
As the enormous creature stirred, Xu Que swallowed nervously and took a cautious step forward.
Despite its formidable strength, the hellhound did not exude an aura of invincibility that deterred him.
His honed instincts assured him that he could vanquish Cerberus!
After all, he hadn't climbed to A-rank for nothing; with his previous life's battle-hardened experience, he knew they were well-matched!
Moreover, he had severed all of Cerberus's escape routes!
"Grr… Raaagh!"