Chapter 953 – The Underground Waterway

Mo Lan and the others followed the trail all the way to Stardrop Falls.

An enormous curtain of water hung like an inverted Milky Way, thundering down from the top of the cliff and carving out a bottomless lake below.

On either side rose sheer cliffs, towering thousands of feet high as if hewn by blade and axe. The rock faces were slick with moisture and covered in moss, stretching on in undulating ridges as far as the eye could see.

The roar of the waterfall was deafening, and spray struck their faces in relentless waves.

Having tracked their quarry here, every trace vanished completely on the barren, rocky shore beside the waterfall pool—a stretch of scattered boulders where sparse vegetation struggled under the perpetual blanket of mist.

Kelly reverted to his Elf form and surveyed the surroundings with a grim expression.

He carefully inspected the nearest cliff face, paying special attention to the moss-covered areas. “The moss on the cliff walls is perfectly intact—no signs of climbing, trampling, or hasty magical regrowth to cover damage. It would be nearly impossible to scale these cliffs in a short time. That means they could only have escaped along the base of the cliffs!”

“But which direction?” Lila had also returned to her humanoid form. Brow furrowed, she paced across the rocky shore, trying to find some trace, however small.

Mo Lan’s expression was equally grave. Even her Origin-Tracing Spell struggled to yield useful information here.

The rocky shore was utterly devoid of weeds—nothing but ubiquitous moss.

Though moss was technically a living lower plant, the memory fragments it could offer were extraordinarily brief and fragmented, as if viewed through a thick veil of mist. She couldn’t make out any distinct figures or directions.

All she could manage was to confirm from the memories of trees surrounding the rocky shore that the group had entered this area and never left.

Mo Lan then employed her Fortune-Telling Spell to determine the best direction to continue tracking.

The result pointed toward the lake beneath the waterfall.

They went underwater?

The result was unexpected, yet upon reflection, it made perfect sense.

Mo Lan hesitated no longer. She turned to Lila and Kelly and said quickly, “There’s nothing to be found on the ground or the cliff walls here. I’ll check the lake. If there’s nothing underwater either, we’ll try tracking along both sides.”

“Underwater?” Lila and Kelly were both startled, but it was true—they couldn’t afford to overlook the water.

Lila produced a vial of gill-sac potion and handed it to her. “Be careful! The water near the waterfall’s impact zone is turbulent and chaotic—there may be undercurrents! The potion only lasts one hour. Don’t dive too deep, and come back immediately if you find anything!”

“Understood!” Mo Lan downed the potion in one gulp. Fish-like gill sacs sprouted along her cheeks, and she leaped into the water with a single bound.

She avoided the terrifying undercurrents and whirlpools directly beneath the waterfall, instead searching carefully along the lake’s edges and the areas near the cliff walls.

The lake water was clear with reasonable visibility. She could see swaying aquatic plants, darting fish, and pebbles heaped along the lake bed.

At first, she found nothing. But when she swam to a section of the lakebed near the base of the right-side cliff, shrouded in the shadow of a massive protruding rock, her gaze froze. The aquatic plants there showed signs of having been disturbed on a large scale. On the fine sand and silt of the lake bottom, several wide drag marks were clearly visible—marks that were obviously not natural.

Mo Lan immediately swam closer. As she drew near, she discovered behind the dense aquatic vegetation a dark, irregularly shaped opening roughly two meters in diameter!

She approached cautiously while casting her Origin-Tracing Spell again, this time targeting several small fish swimming near the opening and the swaying aquatic plants.

Clearer image fragments flooded into her perception.

Not long ago, the slave-catching party had brought the unconscious Polly and Celine through this very opening!

Just as she’d suspected—this was the place!

The conditions inside the tunnel were unknown. Mo Lan examined every traceable target she could find nearby, and only then did she learn that this opening was actually an underground waterway running through the entire mountain range.

The slave-catching party had excavated numerous caverns within the mountain’s interior. It appeared to be a small outpost.

Mo Lan did not rush blindly into the opening. Instead, she turned swiftly and swam upward, returning to the rocky shore.

“What did you find?” Lila and Kelly crowded around her at once.

Mo Lan wiped the water from her face and spoke quickly and clearly. “At the base of the right-side cliff beneath the lake, I found a concealed underwater opening! There are numerous traces left in the aquatic plants around the entrance. They must have taken Polly and Celine inside. Based on the characteristics and scale of the water flow near the opening, it’s very likely an underground waterway leading into the mountain’s interior—and it may be quite long.”

“An underground waterway?” Lila and Kelly drew sharp breaths, their expressions turning gravely serious in an instant.

This perfectly explained why the enemy had gone to such elaborate lengths—sparing no cost—to conceal the trail leading here.

A secret waterway beneath Stardrop Falls, unknown to anyone, was a shortcut that bypassed the forest’s regular paths—a swift, hidden route out of Emerald Forest’s territory!

“These people must have discovered that there’s a shortcut through the lake to leave the forest. That’s why they went to all this trouble to flee toward Stardrop Falls. If the waterway is clear and they have enough underwater breathing potions or magical items, they could pass through the mountain’s belly and reach the other side of the forest—or even cross directly into human lands! We have to go after them immediately!” Kelly urged.

“Wait!” Lila was more composed. “Their group includes a high-ranking mage who may well have set up alarms or traps inside the waterway. We know nothing about the conditions in there—charging in blindly is too dangerous. Elder Rhindor and the main force should be close by now, based on timing. Going in ahead of them is too risky. We should conceal ourselves here, wait to regroup, and enter with our combined strength—that gives us a much better chance.”

Mo Lan spoke up as well. “Lady Lila is right…”

She chose her words carefully, weaving the insights from her Fortune-Telling Spell and the outpost discovered through her Origin-Tracing Spell into a reasonable deduction:

“After they entered the waterway, they seem to have let their guard down and stopped concealing their movements. That suggests they probably believe they’re safe once inside the waterway.

“Emerald Forest is home to many nature-aligned humanoid tribal communities, who may also be targets for the slave-catching party.

“This underground waterway is extremely well-hidden. If it truly runs through the mountain and connects directly to lands beyond the forest, they’ve very likely stationed guards there.

“If we rush in now, we might actually alert them and ruin our element of surprise. Better to wait for Elder Rhindor and the others to arrive. Once we have sufficient strength, we can figure out a way to infiltrate. Our chances of rescuing Polly and Celine will be much greater then.”

The Fortune-Telling Spell also indicated that waiting would lead to a better outcome.

“Agreed!” Kelly was convinced as well and decided to wait. “I’ll head back to the fork in the forest trail and modify the markers so they all come this way!”

After Kelly left, Mo Lan found a crevice among the rocks near the shore—a spot that offered a clear view of the lake while remaining well concealed. She tucked herself inside and began helping Lila prepare more gill-sac potions while anxiously awaiting the arrival of reinforcements.