Chapter 296: Deep down, under the ground
“Oh come on, it’s not that bad,” Zhen Liu half-heartedly defended, “besides, it’s…more convenient than stairs.”
The means of which Zhen Liu and his kaijin were to travel down to the bottom of Insect Hell was a surprisingly modern method: an elevator.
Granted this elevator was done in medieval lift style, consisting of a giant wheel, an iron chain about as thick as an arm and a rather cagey looking platform, literally. It was better than nothing though. Plus, when Zhen Liu stared closer at the chains and platform, it looked as if it had been used recently, meaning that it was still operational and cared for… probably.
“Ya know…I think we can all fit on this platform thing without you guys having to enter carry mode,” Zhen Liu stated as he got closer to the platform and opened the knee high door barrier and about to take a step.
Before he could however, Nepherage pulled him back by the shoulder.
“Milord. Let me go first.”
“Huh? Oh…okay.”
Zhen Liu was initially going to protest, but he felt genuine anxiety from the bond between him and Nepherage when he was about to take a step onto the platform, so he figured he would relent.
Nepherage entered the platform with a surprisingly cautious attitude, lightly stepping on it to make sure no traps would go off and that the chain held firm. She proceeded to lightly stomp a few times before giving a thumbs up to the group.
“Alright…we’re good.”
“Cool.”
With the okay given by Nepherage, Zhen Liu entered the platform cage without any hesitation, with Frosttusk and Hurricroak following after…who he could still sense having some hesitation from for some reason…
Regardless, once everyone was aboard, Zhen Liu proceeded to pull the lever that held the platform in place, allowing themselves to slowly descend down the shaft.
‘Huh…why are a bunch of monstrous kaijin that would normally be the stuff of nightmares for the people of this world spooked by an elevator of all things?,’ Zhen Liu wondered as the group travelled downwards.
He would never learn the answer to this question, but it definitely wouldn’t surprise him that it involved Pathos.
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Several days prior to this excursion into Insect Hell…
A standard day in the life of Zhen Liu and the kaijin consisted of them training in the quarry, going out with Jin Fang, and then eating and sleeping as is required for a healthy human body.
However, since the kaijin didn’t really need to do either of those latter two, whenever Zhen Liu had to sleep, the kaijin would get up to…some mischief.
Namely, abuse the fact that they have a connection to the Library of Nowhere and make use of the recently established “pop culture” section to indulge in what Pathos called “marathons”.
Watching one horror movie about elevators wouldn’t do much to one’s mental state…watching ten in a row with barely any pauses might do something.
Regardless, Zhen Liu rarely interacted with anything involving elevators anyways in his day to day life, so what did it matter if they did develop some misgivings about the platform?
Oh the curse of hindsight.
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“Y’all know if this is too much to handle, you could just enter carry mode until we get to the bottom, right? I mean that’s what Razor Maiden and Spring Brawler do most days,” Zhen Liu suggested while gesturing to the pockets carrying the tiny dolls that Razor and Spring were currently pretending to be. That didn’t stop them from sassing.
[I have giant swords for legs which I would rather not get dirty or chipped, thank you very much. I don’t even think they make sheaths in my size.]
[I am. Just lazy.]
“Fuck that,” Hurricroak protested, “we need to be ready at a moment’s notice if shit goes sideways…even if it’s inside a longass death trap in which the devil can come take our souls… We can’t do that if we’re acting like accessories belonging to a Shinjuku pretty boy with red soled shoes.”
Zhen Liu was flabbergasted at the comparison, until he managed to parse out that last statement.
“Shinjuku-Pathos!”
=I’ve tried for centuries.=
This particular bantering went on for almost the entire trip down the elevator shaft, providing some form of levity in contrast to the horrors they were about to expose themselves to.
That being said, not everything in the jungle was terrible.
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Like the rainforests of a certain blue planet, the Insect Hell Sinkhole Jungle could also be divided into several distinct layers, just a touch bigger and more violent.
The very first layer is known as the “Dead Air” Layer due to having little greenery, but have plenty of empty airspace in which flying insects and spiders can stretch out their limbs and deal with any intruders foolish enough to exit or enter the pit via the obvious entrance.
Next is the treetop layer, or the “Misty Paradise” layer.
A majority of sunlight hits this specific part of the jungle, with a lot of the moisture accumulating here in the form of clouds and mist. Fruits and flowers grow aplenty here, as the hives and tree dwelling type insects live here as well, basking in the fruit and enjoying the warm rays of the sun.
Finally, underneath both of these layers, is the true Insect Hell, the “Green Scavenger” Layer.
What comes up must come down, especially in death, and it’s on the jungle floor does one find both life and death intertwined with another.
As dead leaves, rotten fruit and chunks of uneaten insect flesh fall from the layers above and onto the ground, detrivores, scavengers and all sorts of fungi and plant life thrive upon these untouched and spoiled morsels. And of course, there are those who thrive on those scavengers…
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CRASH!
CRACK, CRACK!
BOOM!
“Kii…”
Crashing through the canopy, the poisoned corpse of a Razorwing Dragonfly of the second tier, fell to the ground and curled up dead as the last vestiges of life in it’s eyes faded away.
As it lay there, still as stone, the undergrowth around the body began to stir.
“Gurgle…”
The first to investigate the corpse was a grub beast as big as a boar, that a scholar could identity as being the larvae form of a creature known as Skull-Face Wasp, a solitary predator that can reach the fourth tier straight out of infancy and reaching the seventh in a short few years. Granted, the larvae have to live that long in the first place.
Detecting the nutrients and energy locked in the dragonfly’s corpse, the Skull-Face Wasp larvae began to gorge itself greedily, the poison coursing through the body being nothing more than delicious seasoning to the corpse eating insect. Moments later, several other larvae of similar build but of different species came to feast upon the remains. There was plenty to go around
However, so engrossed the larvae were in their feast, it failed to notice that lingering above was a creature interested in devouring them as well.
“HISS!”
“GRRK!”
In a flash, a third tier Silverfanged Centipede struck down from a hanging tree branch like a lightning bolt of flesh and fury and rapidly decapitated three of the larvae, sending the rest of the larvae running for their lives.
Now the story of predator and prey would normally end here, the apex of the undergrowth feasting on its prey and being in on it’s merry way…but the Silverfanged Centipede wasn’t the apex predator.
That honor went to the human figure hiding in the shadows above it.
‘One takes three…one takes four,’ the hunter thought to themselves as they readied for the hunt.
This hunter in question looked very out of place for a location like Insect Hell, what with not being an insect aether beast, but they also looked to be someone who lived and thrived in this place.
Covered from head to toe, the figure wore a suit of flexible chitin armor that looked to be stitched together from a mix of molted insect shells from a variety of species, held together by thick sticky strings of spider silk and dried out vines. Even the face covering helmet looked to a be a mix of species, lashed together into a humanoid shape.
‘One shot…one kill…’
The hunter had in their hands a strange looking bow that appeared to be a curved singular chunk of chitin carved and bent into shape. On their back a quiver of arrows, carved from jungle wood and tipped with the stingers of giant hornets, bees and wasps alike, the venom still dripping from them.
From head to toe, the hunter looked to be the perfect example of an Insect Hell native…minus one particular piece of equipment they kept on their side: a saber made of metal.
With a steady, well-trained hand and aether surging, the hunter notched one of the arrows and aimed at a small spot on the centipede’s back, where the armor plates met but didn’t fully lock.
The hunter waited until the centipede thought it was safe enough for it to eat it’s kill and then…
*FWISH!*
“HISSsss…”
Where once was a mighty predator and three kills, was now four kills and one clever hunter.
“Sharp fangs…good blades…”
