Edge of the Apocalypse

Chapter 1055: Mysterious Mine

The flowers in the pipe flashed, and Ian spat out rings of smoke from his mouth. The old man rode on his skinny horse and knocked on the ashes in his pipe. "I've been to that damn place in the Land of Shadows three times," he said to Alan, who was beside him. Even in broad daylight, it was as quiet as a grave. Back then, when my teacher took me on the first trip, I was not afraid of being laughed at by adults. I almost wet my pants. "I didn't feel anything about doing that in bed with a woman after I came back. It took me more than a month to recover …"

"Because on that trip, I saw the Shadow Demons, the Abyss Devils that appeared in the darkness and shadows and easily ripped open the stomach of the horse with their sharp claws …"

No one had ever counted exactly how large the Frost Ridge Mountain Range was. However, the depth of this mountain range was widely acknowledged, and it was also the largest mountain range after entering the Northern Region. Frost Wind City's guide usually followed a spiraling staircase after entering the mountain range. It was a continuous mountain path that circled around the mountain range. After descending the spiraling stairs, you will enter the graystone canyon, where the terrain is relatively flat. After passing through the canyon, he could leave the mountain range in two days.

As for the Land of Shadows, it was located in another valley on the spiraling stairs. The road was spacious, but because it was located in the shadows of the mountains, this valley was gloomy and terrifying all year round. There was no sunshine even during the day, and as Ian had said, the valley was like a huge grave. Shadow Demons were a specialty of the Land of Shadows. Those humanoids that had long hands and feet and were good at climbing mountains did not like the sunlight and hid in the Land of Shadows all year round. Occasionally, they would migrate to other areas just to hunt for prey. Shadow Devils would only appear at sunset. Of course, in the Land of Shadows, they might even encounter them during the day.

The route Ian provided could be said to be an alternative route for the Frost Wind City Guides. If there was no need, they would not want to go to the Shadow Land, let alone pass through the Acapi Corridor. It was a narrow rift valley, and Acapi was the legendary god of death in Frost Wind City. Akabi was in charge of death, so the rift valley was named after him and had the nickname Valley of Death.

Every few years, a large number of animals in the mountains die in the acabi corridor for some unknown reason. There were also people who had witnessed large numbers of mountain black sheep jumping into the rift valley in a suicidal manner. This phenomenon was known as the sacrifice of the god of death in Frost Wind City. People believed that even if they entered the Akhabi Corridor, they would still be beset with bad luck.

When mentioning the Akabi Corridor, one had to mention the underground tunnel. It was another ancient legend in Frost Wind City. It was said that the Frost Wind City ancestors accidentally entered a cave in the Acapi Corridor and knocked on the underground door. They entered a magnificent underground world. It was located underground in the Frost Ridge Mountain Range, with an ancient and magnificent city. The underground city was long and narrow. The other end of the city was far away from the mountain range and could enter the other end of the northern land.

It is worth mentioning that there are some ugly burrowing creatures in that underground city. They occupy this underground tunnel and occasionally appear in the Acapi Corridor through the passageway connected to the ground. However, no one has really seen them for nearly a hundred years.

"We call those things Neanderthals" Father Ian switched to a new pack of tobacco leaves and said, "That's what our ancestors described on the walls of the Temple. These ugly and dirty things walked like humans, with twisted features and sparse hair, eating corpses and everything that was alive. They even gnawed on themselves. We have to rejoice that these terrifying creatures are dwindling, but God knows how many of them there are. "

"They linger in the tunnels, singing with the shadows over the flesh and blood. They guard the tunnels and reject all visitors …"

'"My lord, there are even more terrifying Abyss Devils in the great underground tunnels. They are the owners of the Neanderthals. These are guarding the city. I hope we don't run into them when we pass through the Arkabi Corridor." Ian said in a poetic tone.

Alan quickly exchanged glances with Lucy in the carriage. From Lucy's expression, it could be seen that Her Highness the Empress was thinking the same thing as him. If what the ancestors of Frost Wind City had said was true, then the so-called underground tunnel might very well be a remnant, a remnant similar to the King Snake's land or the Blood King's tomb. However, it was hidden even deeper and has not been discovered yet.

As time passed, Alan found that the light above his head was getting dimmer and dimmer. The mountain peaks on both sides gradually rose, and the sun began to fail to shine on the ground. The road ahead was shrouded in dim light, and it was as dim as dusk. The temperature dropped significantly, and the atmosphere became more and more oppressive. At this moment, the group only moved forward silently. No one spoke. Only the sound of wheels rolling across the ground could be heard.

They had already entered the Land of Shadows.

There were many forks in the Shadow Land, and there were no obvious changes in the environment. In addition, the light in this area was dim, so it was easy to get lost. However, the guide of Frost Wind City did not rely on the geographical environment to find their way in the Land of Shadows. Instead, they relied on the direction of the water veins. Ian stopped from time to time to dig up the dirt, smell it or taste it. The residents of Frost Wind City weren't natural guides. An experienced guide like Ian would take in some students before retirement to pass on their experience and knowledge.

Ian's knowledge of how to distinguish the flow of the water veins was also taught by his teacher. Regardless of whether it was searching for water, or in a place with a complicated environment like the Shadow Land, as long as one could grasp the direction of the water veins, they would basically not get lost. Ian didn't go to the Shadow Land many times, but he could find the exit by following the water veins. Father was quite confident in this.

However, in the evening, Ian stopped more and more times, and an anxious expression appeared on his face.

"What's wrong, Father Ian?" Alan stopped the team and walked to the old man's side.

Ian was cutting open a patch of dirt. He lay on the ground like a pilgrim and tasted the humidity of the dirt. Then he stood up and said in a heavy tone, "I'm not sure, my lord. I seem to have lost my way, and it seems like the water veins have changed its course. Although I haven't been here for a long time, I still remember the general direction of the exit. But now, the water veins I've been searching for no longer flow to places I know. It's heading elsewhere."

Alan was stunned and asked, "Will the water veins change directions?"

'"Yes, but this process is very slow. It won't be possible without a hundred years of effort. And the last time I came to the Shadow Land was only ten years ago. In such a short period of time, the water veins shouldn't have changed unless …"

Edward came to the two and whispered to Alan, "There's something strange. We found a mine in front of us."

"A mine?" Ian almost jumped up, "Impossible. There's nothing worth mining here, except stones!"

Edward shrugged his shoulders, not wanting to explain further. Alan patted him on the shoulder and said, "Let's go, let's see."

Sure enough, they didn't go far. When the team turned a corner, they could see a mine in front of them.

At this time, it was finally dark.

From the corner, one could see a mine submerged in dim light. Facing the bend was the entrance to the mine. One side of the entrance was still fixed to a wooden bolt, while the other side was scattered on the ground, covered in thick ash and gravel. An iron plate on the door was constantly shaking in the wind, and the words on it were so smoked that they could not be seen clearly. On both sides was a two-meter-tall wooden wall. Some parts of the wooden wall had already collapsed, and it seemed as if they had been hit by an external force.

Behind the wall was a tall wooden building that looked like a sentry tower or something. The roof of the wooden building collapsed to one side, and there was a flag on it that was only half burned.

Passing through the gate, one could see a reservoir of water. The pond overflowed and a diversion canal winded up the hillside. Then Allen saw the manger and the bars behind it, the wooden houses, a warehouse with half of it collapsed, the carts scattered about, the simple tracks, and so on.

The caravan followed him into the mine. Looking at the abandoned mine, Ian opened his mouth wide, as if he couldn't believe his eyes. The procession stopped in front of the wooden hut. The wooden hut looked simple and crude. Some of the houses had collapsed, but most of them were still intact. The room was not comfortable, but one night was enough. Alan planned to let the caravan spend the night here tonight, and Fares began to arrange the night watchmen.

Alan called for Regis and the others to bring a dozen or so warriors to inspect the other parts of the mine. The mine seemed to have just been abandoned, and from the traces of the buildings, it seemed to have been attacked by something. There were traces of sharp objects on the outer walls of many buildings, traces of burning in many places, and scattered firearms and bullets. Of course, there were also quite a few bloodstains. Most of them had already turned into dark patches. Some of them were even mixed with lime. If one didn't look carefully, it would be very difficult to distinguish them.

As for the few mines, their interior had long since collapsed and was blocked by falling rocks. A few scattered tools could be seen among the rocks, but not a single corpse could be seen. The mine looked exceptionally "clean", but it was still deathly lifeless.

"What exactly is being mined here …"

Allen and the others walked out of a wooden building. The wooden building looked like the place where the foreman lived, but they couldn't find any records of the mine. He didn't know if he was taken away or destroyed. Back at the wooden house, Ian said worriedly, "Sir, we shouldn't be staying here. This place makes me very uneasy. Perhaps we can find another place for the night camp."

"Father Ian, you can see that everyone is very tired. Moreover, the night in the Land of Shadows is so dark. I don't think it's a good idea to go out in the dark at this time." Alan shook his head and said, "Let's spend the night here tonight. I'll send more men in case anything happens. You can rest assured." josei

Hearing Alan's words, Ian stopped insisting. He only glanced at the mine and smiled bitterly, "I can't sleep under the line of sight of the Shadow Demon."