Deep Forest Emergence Returns

The six of them stepped through the Portal into a vast underground space. The light around them was dim, and farther out lay oppressive darkness.

The moment his feet touched the ground, Lin Hai spread out his senses. What they revealed put his mind at ease.

Just as expected, Kingpin had followed his instructions to the letter. The weakened Heartbind Vine seeds Lin Hai had treated were scattered evenly along the route from the elevator to the Stone Prison.

Matt sensed that he had entered a vast, quiet space, though he could not see it. Gwen, Peter, Harry, and Elektra could see, and they could not help looking around at their strange, mysterious surroundings.

Two things stood out in the empty, silent space: the enormous Stone Prison nearby, and, even more conspicuous in the gloom, the brightly lit elevator leading to the surface.

"Follow me." Lin Hai headed toward the Stone Prison first.

He stopped beside the Stone Prison at a spot that gave them a clear view of the dedicated elevator's exit.

From there, Lin Hai could see everything at the elevator entrance. Anyone stepping out would be unlikely to spot them without deliberately circling around to the side of the Stone Prison.

Apart from the grand Stone Prison at its center, the underground space held only a few artificial supports Alexandra might have added later. Kingpin had no plans to develop the place, either, so there was little lighting. Only a handful of low-powered lamps glowed in the dark.

The dimness gave them excellent natural cover. As for whether Murakami, Bakuto, and Sowande would notice anything wrong once they reached the Stone Prison...

Lin Hai no longer needed to worry about that. By then, the fighting would have started.

Once they were hidden, silence settled over the side