In the darkness of the cave, a group of people pressed forward. Not one of them was weak, but no matter what, Teacher Yang was the one most suited to this kind of environment. He strode confidently in the lead, not hesitating for a moment, and didn’t worry at all about some giant monster suddenly leaping out from the shadows.
"Wizard, wizard—wait, is this cave really so echoey I can hear myself whisper?" Chainsaw Girl, usually wild and reckless, was now timid. She kept glancing around and looking up at the cave ceiling, the echoes in the darkness making her extra nervous. She sidled up to Gandalf and whispered, "No offense, I just want to ask—this Earth Devourer you mentioned, do they always move in big swarms?"
Gandalf nodded first: "If you’re asking about their habits, then yes, Earth Devourers are social creatures."
"Phew, that’s a relief…" Chainsaw Girl quickly patted her chest, and her—well, her chest shook three times. This cave was just way too intimidating.
"But, if you’re asking about the current situation, then I’m afraid not—Earth Devourers were wiped out by the gods in ancient times. Nowadays, they’re only revived thanks to the Ringwraiths, so there’s no way a whole swarm could come back. This cave was chewed out by a single one." Gandalf pressed the glowing end of his staff to his chin, his face instantly cast in eerie, creepy shadows—even his usually wise, deep eyes looked straight-up terrifying: "That’s right, this bug is extremely, absolutely, ridiculously huge."
"Yikes—" Chainsaw Girl shivered, baring her teeth, then looked at her chainsaw, looked at the grand cavern, and gulped hard. She hurried over and grabbed Yang Qi’s sleeve: "Hero, I’m serious, hero! Isn’t charging ahead like this a bit reckless? I just feel like our weapons are nothing but toothpicks against that thing! Shouldn’t we get some better gear, like… I dunno, a Star Destroyer?"
Yang Qi just smiled, not bothering to answer such nonsense. If they really had a Star Destroyer, why bother with all this? They’d just conquer the world outright.
Rachel Luo, observing the surroundings, raised a slightly more technical question: "You said they were wiped out in ancient times? So that means the dwarves in this giant cave weren’t destroyed by the bug?"
"Definitely not." Gandalf shook his head. "Earth Devourers still have a few mixed-blood descendants around, but they’re nowhere near as powerful as their ancestors. The dwarves were at their peak when they even managed to tame a bunch, using them to dig deep into the earth for minerals. Earth Devourers may be scary, but they’re noisy and easy to spot—no way a single bug could wipe out all the dwarves. There must’ve been some other deep, dark shadow that made this cave totally abandoned."
"Man, Middle-earth is wild—so many kinds of monsters!" Chainsaw Girl exclaimed, then turned to her team leader. "Rachel, why do you look so serious? Did something come to mind?"
"I've been thinking," Luo Yuxi mused, pinching her chin in a perfect imitation of Jack Young. "If what Gandalf knows is true, then maybe those monsters digging around here aren’t looking for the Earth Devourer itself. More likely, the Earth Devourer is just here to lend a hand. Sauron’s real target is probably somewhere else entirely."
"Makes sense. Sauron used to be one of the Maiar, so he’s basically immortal. He’s got experience, brains, and guts—let’s be real, if he wasn’t a genius, he wouldn’t be the world’s top supervillain." Lord Elrond explained gravely, "He probably knows more about the secrets under this shadowy earth than we do. Sauron’s always been a master schemer. We need to find a way to stop him before he gets too far ahead."
"No need to worry too much. Whatever he’s plotting, we’ve already caught him by the tail. Otherwise, why would the Earth Devourer bolt the moment Gandalf showed up?" Jack Young pointed ahead. "So, let’s move, team!"
The scouts up front pressed on, leaving torches as they went. The flames danced in the drafty tunnel, and the air was surprisingly fresh—meaning this cave must be open at both ends. Soon, the main force of elves descended to the underground. After a quick check and defensive setup, they hustled onward to catch up.
Everyone regrouped and pushed forward fast. Elves are naturally light on their feet—way lighter than humans of the same height—so they move like greased lightning. Pick anyone from this crew and they’re as nimble as a swallow. So even with nearly a thousand marching, it was dead quiet and crazy fast; in no time, they’d covered dozens of miles.
Soon enough, someone called out, "Hey, look! The rocks changed color. We’ve reached the end of the Rich Ore Vein."
Looking back, the amount of ore that had been mined was just mind-boggling. If the Earth Devourer carted off all these minerals, the Alliance of Light would be facing a fully armed Tungsten Steel army in the future. Just thinking about it made Lord Elrond and the others breathe heavier—and they picked up the pace.
No wonder that Ringwraith bolted so fast—it’s basically like running through the bad part of town with a bag full of gold bars. I’d run, too!
A little while later, someone shouted again, "Hey, look! It splits up ahead!"
Yep, this huge cave actually split into two separate tunnels.