Interweaving Reality and Illusion

From the entrance downward, there was initially a narrow, low slope. The rough marks of artificial excavation were clearly visible on the surrounding rock walls, but after they had gone forward a dozen meters or so, the passage ahead began to widen, and the incline grew gentler.

Eerie green fire spread among the rocks, casting its glow over the path ahead. Duncan looked at the corridor stretching endlessly into the darkness, his brow gradually furrowing.

"Did those cultists dig all this within just a few days after Sun Extinction?" He could not help looking at Shirley. "They dug such a deep passage in such a short time?"

"No. They only dug through the entrance to this passage, and then through the rocks at the very bottom," Shirley said, shaking her head. "This stretch beneath our feet seems to have already existed..."

"A passage that originally existed deep beneath Holy Land Island?" Morris immediately frowned slightly. He went to the rock wall ahead and carefully examined the surrounding stones and the ground beneath his feet. Then, thoughtfully, he said, "That means someone had been digging here before those cultists found this place..."

He suddenly stopped, frowning in confusion. Only after a moment did he slowly raise his head and look toward the path ahead, illuminated by the dim green fire.

"No, this does not look like artificial excavation... This 'passage that already existed' was made by something else..."

Duncan stepped forward when he heard this. "What did you find?"

"Look at the marks on these rock layers," Morris said, raising a hand to point at the surrounding walls. "These smooth, undulating fault lines and regularly distributed ring patterns... they do not look man-made."

Duncan immediately noticed the unusual marks on the surrounding rock walls that Morris had mentioned.

The rock walls