My Love Debts Are Everywhere!-Chapter 701: Getting to the Bottom of Mount Durnhak Crater - Part 2

Chapter 701: Getting to the Bottom of Mount Durnhak Crater - Part 2

"This cave is quite spacious," Leon muttered as he looked around at the dark, silent surroundings.

With light only reaching from the mouth of the cave, the deeper parts were naturally much darker and difficult to see.

Fortunately, Leon had a hero technique that allowed him to see clearly even in complete darkness.

The cavern stretched wide, its path broad enough for several people to walk side by side.

The ground was dry and littered with small, sharp rocks—enough to injure your feet if you weren’t careful.

Weeds and wild plants grew along both sides, accompanied by repulsive insects with disturbingly creepy appearances.

Leon had never seen these creatures before, so he had no idea what they were or what they were called.

The cave was eerily silent, and a sharp, burnt smell lingered in the air, heightening his unease.

"How deep does this cave go?" Leon muttered, a hint of curiosity in his voice.

It felt like he had been walking for quite a while, yet there was still no sign of an exit.

"Did Morgrim lie to me?" The thought flickered in his mind, but he quickly dismissed it.

He could sense hidden evil intent, and just moments ago, he hadn’t felt anything suspicious from Morgrim—so it seemed unlikely.

He wasn’t sure how long he had been walking when, at last, a faint red light appeared in the distance.

His eyes lit up, and he immediately picked up his pace.

But in an instant, the excitement on his face disappeared—replaced by clear wariness.

"This..." He stopped in his tracks, staring down at the vast, terrifying sea of magma below.

Yes—it truly was a sea of magma, stretching endlessly in every direction.

He couldn’t tell how large it was, only that it extended as far as the eye could see.

Massive pillars rose from the molten ground, supporting the cave ceiling above and preventing it from collapsing.

Those weren’t the work of dwarves, but natural formations of hardened rock and soil.

Leon scanned the lower right side and spotted several solid-looking mounds of earth.

Not just one—there were ten of them, all connected by a brown, earthen walkway.

Without hesitation, Leon leapt toward one of the mounds and landed safely.

The mound sat about twenty meters lower than his original position. If an ordinary person had jumped from that height, they would’ve died on impact.

"Damn... it’s so hot." Leon furrowed his brow, sweat dripping down his neck and forehead.

He couldn’t tell the exact temperature, but it was clearly well above a hundred degrees Celsius.

Without the holy power shielding his body, he would’ve been incinerated the moment he entered.

At this level of heat, grilling chicken—or even horse meat—would probably take less than a minute. ƒreewebηoveℓ.com

"Huft..." He let out a deep breath, trying to steady himself before shifting his focus to the still, quiet surroundings.

"I need to find that monster... or whoever’s pretending to be the Dwarf King."

With his objective clear, Leon started moving through the area.

There were multiple mounds ahead, and he would need to cross each one, one by one, to reach the far end and uncover the monster’s whereabouts.

***

Meanwhile, in a silent and messy hall, a dwarf stood before a massive black egg.

It stood nearly forty meters tall. Although it appeared motionless, its surface pulsed faintly—a clear sign that the creature inside was still alive.

The dwarf smiled faintly, gazing at the egg with satisfaction.

"In half an hour, the monster inside this egg will awaken. And when it does, this world will be reduced to ruin... just like seven thousand years ago! Hahaha!"

He burst into laughter, his face twisted with madness. Then his eyes shifted to a pile of black stones with glowing red patterns stacked beside him.

Had Leon been there, he would have been shocked—those stones were Garlites, the currency used by the Dwarven race for all transactions.

Without hesitation, the dwarf grabbed one of the stones and hurled it at the egg.

Surprisingly, the stone vanished on contact, as if it had been absorbed by the egg.

One by one, he kept throwing the stones until the entire pile had disappeared.

Suddenly, the pulsing on the egg’s surface grew stronger, and thin cracks began to spread across its shell.

"Hahaha! It’s working—the process is accelerating!" The dwarf shouted with a crazed grin, the madness in his sunken eyes impossible to miss. "Prepare to suffer, world! And you dwarves... you’ll be the first to feel the pain! Hahahaha!"

***

"Damn, how big is this place really?" Leon muttered under his breath.

At first, he had assumed there were only ten mounds of earth—but he was wrong. There were more than a hundred.

Each mound was connected by neatly arranged earthen paths.

This shattered his earlier assumption. He had believed everything had formed naturally, but now it was clear the dwarves had once intervened here.

Leon closed his eyes, touched his right temple, and called out, "Miranda, are you there?"

A few seconds passed before Miranda’s voice echoed in his mind.

"Is there anything I can assist you with, Master?"

Leon let out a small sigh of relief. "Can you track where the monster is heading? I’m lost and have no idea where to go."

"Of course, Master. I will guide you," Miranda replied gently.

"Good," Leon said, smiling in satisfaction.

With Miranda’s guidance, he began moving in the right direction.

Fifteen minutes later, he stopped at a rocky bend, where a massive iron door stood before him.

It rose ten meters high, its dark brown surface blending effortlessly into the surrounding stone walls.

"Is this really the place? But why would there be an iron door here?" Leon murmured, his voice laced with confusion.

"I’m not sure either, Master," Miranda replied. "Seven thousand years have passed. It’s possible that the Dwarf King at that time deliberately created this iron door to imprison the corpse of the Evil God’s mount—hoping that even if it somehow came back to life, it would remain trapped inside forever."

Although it sounded far-fetched, Miranda’s explanation wasn’t entirely unreasonable.

Given that the Evil God’s mount originated from Heaven rather than this world, it wasn’t impossible that it retained some residual consciousness even after seven thousand years—enough to rise again in the present era.

After all, a creature born in the same realm as the gods would possess a uniqueness and power beyond mortal understanding.

"By the way, did you find a way to get through this gate?" Leon asked.

As he approached, he ran his hand across the surface of the iron door. It still felt solid and sturdy, seemingly untouched by time.

"I did, Master. Look to your left—beside those rocks. There’s a small opening, just big enough for you to get through."

Leon turned to where Miranda pointed, and sure enough, a small gap was visible among the rocks.

He would have to crouch to fit through.

Without hesitation, he walked over, bent down, and slipped into the narrow passage.

At first, he thought the gap would lead him directly to the other side of the metal door—but he was wrong.

The passage was longer than expected—it took him nearly a full minute to make it through.

When he finally emerged on the other side and saw what lay beyond the metal door, his eyes widened in shock.

"A palace? How is that possible?"

Although smaller than the grand Dwarven palace in Valgrund City, it still rightfully deserved to be called a palace.

Its condition, however, was far from glorious. The structure was clearly abandoned—parts of it had already begun to crumble, worn down by time.

Suddenly, Leon felt a sinister presence emanating from within, like a sharp, cold gaze piercing straight through him.

His expression hardened as he instinctively gathered holy power within his body.

But just as quickly as it had come, the sensation vanished—leaving no trace behind.

Leon frowned, puzzled, but stayed alert. "I need to stay sharp. Whatever that was... it felt really unsettling."

After taking a moment to steady himself, he cautiously stepped inside.

***

Just as it appeared from the outside, the interior of the palace was in disarray—overrun by strange, red-colored plants.

They might have once been ordinary roots or weeds, now twisted and mutated to survive in the harsh, arid environment.

"Master, be careful. I sense something powerful up ahead," Miranda warned, her voice tight with tension.

Leon gave a small nod. "Thanks for the warning. I can feel it too."

Whatever awaited them was likely the creature spoken of in Dwarven legend.

Whether it was the Evil God’s mount or something else entirely remained to be seen.

Leon moved forward, eventually arriving at a dry, silent hall that radiated an eerie stillness.

His eyes locked onto the center of the room, and in an instant, his expression froze.

"An... egg?"

-----

A/N: Only one Chapter today—sorry about that! I’ve got a lot of work to handle in real life. But don’t worry, updates will return to normal tomorrow.

Thank you for your support, and don’t forget to keep cheering me on!

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