The Heartbeat Deep Within the Great Wall

On the seventh day, Lin Yuan did not stop at the entrance to the thirteenth floor.

After passing through the passage connecting the upper and lower areas, the surrounding walls transformed into a more complex cave structure. The air became damp, and monsters spawned at a significantly faster rate than in the shallower areas.

As the first pack of Hellhound charged forward, they spewed forth large plumes of flame.

Lin Yuan raised his left hand, and the space between him and the flames folded to the side. The attack that had originally covered the entire passage swept past from both sides without touching his body.

Nameless immediately drew his sword.

Lin Yuan traversed the flames, his sword slicing through the throats of several Hellhound in succession. Just as the last monster was about to breathe fire again, the scabbard struck its jaw from below.

After the battle, he took out the magic stone and carefully kept the fang left behind by the Hellhound.

The monsters in the middle levels are stronger than those in the shallower levels, and the magic stones and drops are also more valuable. But Lin Yuan still didn't prioritize hunting today.

Spatial perception unfolds along the cave, recording each fork in the road, ramp, and distance between upper and lower levels. He leaves spatial traces at major intersections, and stops to reconfirm locations where the map does not match the actual structure.

The route between the fourteenth and fifteenth floors is more winding than before. Ordinary adventurers would need to repeatedly navigate through multiple forks in the road, but Lin Yuan was able to eliminate dead ends even through the walls.

After entering the fifteenth floor, heavy footsteps began to echo from the ground.

A Minotaur emerged from the end of the wide passage. The minotaur was several times taller than Lin Yuan, and dragged a stone axe it had obtained from the Dungeon. Upon seeing the lone human, it immediately lowered its head and charged.

The stone axe swept across, and the resulting wind pressure slammed into the rock wall.

Lin Yuan stood still, without drawing his sword. He raised his right hand, accurately grabbed the Minotaur's wrist holding the axe, and then turned around, lifting the entire monster off the ground.

The massive body crashed into the cave wall, and the stone axe fell from its grasp. Lin Yuan followed closely, striking the Minotaur in a spot other than its chest.

The sound of bones breaking echoed, and the monster slowly collapsed along the wall.

When Lin Yuan took out the magic stone, he could feel that the energy contained in it far exceeded that of shallow-level monsters. However, for him, the difference between Minotaur and a goblin was still just that it required more power.

He continued downwards.

The number of monsters on the sixteenth floor increased further. Lin Yuan did not stop to collect the magic stones one by one, but only chose to deal with the monsters blocking his way. When he arrived at the seventeenth floor, he still had more than half of the supplies in his backpack.

At the end of the seventeenth floor is a space much wider than the ordinary passageway.

The massive wall directly in front of them was a different shade of gray-white from its surroundings. There were no obvious cracks on its surface, yet spatial perception could detect the immense energy gathering inside.

That energy was incomparable to that of ordinary monsters.

It had not yet formed a complete life, but the magic stone and body were gradually taking shape deep within the walls. The entire Dungeon seemed to be giving birth to a monster far larger than the Minotaur.

Lin Yuan did not damage the wall.

After confirming the path to the eighteenth level and the return route, he left a final spatial trace at a sufficient distance from the giant wall before turning back to the ground.

In the evening, Lin Yuan exchanged magic stones at the guild and told Eina about the route he had confirmed that day.

Eina added several dead ends to the map copy, and also marked the locations where the Hellhound and Minotaur would appear. Lin Yuan completed the route confirmation for the first seventeen levels in just seven days, a speed far exceeding that of ordinary newcomers.

"I'll have the route you provided reviewed by the person in charge of map compilation." Eina put away her notes. "If it's confirmed to be correct, the guild will use this information when updating maps in the future."

Lin Yuan took back the gold he had earned and did not stay in the guild.

When they returned to the church basement, Hestia was already asleep, slumped over the table. The magic stone lamp was still on, and a reheated dinner lay beside her.

As soon as Lin Yuan put down his backpack, she looked up, staring blankly for a few seconds before fully waking up.

Why is it later today than yesterday?

"The routes after the thirteenth floor are more complicated."

Lin Yuan spread the map on the table. The markings left over the past seven days stretched from the first floor all the way to the seventeenth floor, and the main forks in the road, dead ends, and areas with high concentrations of monsters had all been recorded.

Hestia read it from beginning to end, finally stopping at the seventeenth floor.

"So you've already passed the first seventeen floors?"

"The main route has been confirmed; areas deviating from the main road will be added later."

Hestia calculated the time. It had been exactly seven days since Lin Yuan registered as an adventurer.

She was about to comment on the speed when her stomach growled first. Hestia immediately put away the map and put the now-cold dinner back on the stove.

"Eat first. The route won't change on its own."

Lin Yuan sat down at the table without refuting.

In the dead of night, a muffled tremor emanated from deep within the massive walls of the seventeenth floor.

Inside the wall, the enormous magic stone, which was not yet fully formed, began to pulsate once more.