Hearing the old man's words, Ethan glanced at his level: 21. Experience: 3,661,650/3,808,000.
From memory, he calculated that leveling from 15 to 21 required roughly 5.2 million experience points. Adding in the 3.6 million already in his experience pool, he realized he'd accumulated close to 9 million experience points in total.
With his Gathering skill casting at one-second intervals, he earned 3,000 experience points per minute, or 180,000 per hour.
That meant he'd been here for at least 50 hours.
Of course, gathering wasn't a constant process; there were interruptions. The old man had said he'd been here for three days. That was probably accurate.
Which meant he hadn't logged out in three days.
"So… you're saying my body in the real world is…" Ethan hesitated, asking the question he dreaded.
"Yes," the old man confirmed.
"On Earth?" Ethan pressed.
"Uh… so what now? How do I get out?" Ethan could already imagine Lyla panicking if he'd been stuck in the game for three whole days.
"Getting worried now, are we?" the old man sneered.
"Y-yeah… Sir, please, just pull me out already!" Ethan pleaded, nodding vigorously.
"Hmph. Too late for that," the old man huffed. "The Underworld operates under its own rules. I can't break them. I'm just here to let you know, you've got four days left. After that, even if you log out, your body will be beyond saving. Not even I can bring you back then."
The old man's tone softened for a moment, as if giving a final warning. "And remember, kid, my name is Morzan. Don't forget it!"
"Uh… okay. But what am I supposed to do?" Ethan didn't dare provoke the old man further.
"Retrace your steps. Leave the Underworld through the main gate, and make your way to the Plaguelands. From there, I can pull you out…" Morzan's voice began to break up, cutting in and out. "Don't… go… forward… to the Throne Hall… just…"
His voice faded entirely.
Ethan caught the gist: retrace his steps. But that meant going past that creepy figure wielding that chain weapon. Not exactly an easy task.
As if on cue, Morzan's voice flickered back to life for one last message.
"Oh, one more thing! Don't forget… that emblem on your chest… throw it away before you leave…"
Ethan frowned. "And what if the death aura here corrupts me?"
"Such lies! Forget… Just… Never…" Morzan's voice trailed off completely this time.
Four days, huh? Ethan thought to himself, glancing at the endless field of glowing flowers he'd been harvesting. He'd barely scratched the surface of this place. Gritting his teeth, he bent down to gather more.
If Morzan had seen this, he would've flown into a rage, cursing Ethan for his priorities.
Another system notification chimed as Ethan reached Level 22. His bag was now stuffed full of Ethereal Blooms. Finally, he stood up, gazing back at the way he'd come.
Then he turned toward the distant end of the canyon. At its farthest edge, a massive curtain of water stretched from sky to ground.
He'd been gathering here for so long, he'd always wondered what lay beyond that waterfall.
Ethan's eyes flickered with indecision. Heading back without exploring further seemed like a waste.
The canyon was surrounded by towering cliffs that vanished into the sky. The only notable feature was that mysterious waterfall, which seemed to hang impossibly in mid-air.
I've got four days. Might as well take a look. It's only half a day's journey back anyway.
Shifting into Stag Form, Ethan dashed through the field of flowers, racing toward the waterfall at full speed.
As he approached, the massive water curtain grew even more imposing. Up close, its sheer size was breathtaking.
The moment he reached its base, the water unexpectedly parted, creating a narrow gap just wide enough for him to pass through.
Ethan peered beyond the gap and saw a vertical staircase of clouds leading downward.
Should I go? What if I can't come back?
Ethan hesitated, stepping back. As he retreated, the gap in the waterfall closed.
Curious, he stepped forward again, and the gap reopened, like an automatic door.
After some deliberation, he remembered Morzan's fragmented warning. "Don't go forward… Throne Hall…" Could this be an alternate exit?
If Morzan had known Ethan was interpreting his words this way, he'd have berated himself for even planting the idea. Morzan had been trying to warn Ethan. His actual words had been: "Don't go forward! If you enter the Throne Hall, you'll be thrown into the Cycle of reincarnation. You might even come out as an animal in your next life."
Ethan ignored his doubts and began descending the cloud staircase.
When he reached the bottom, he was shocked to see that the waterfall here flowed upward, defying all logic in a surreal loop.
By all reasoning, he should've been underground by now. Yet the area was brightly lit, with no discernible source of light. The entire world emitted a faint golden glow, as if the light existed naturally within the space.
Looking up, Ethan saw not soil or rock but a sky, a hazy yellow expanse, reminiscent of a sandstorm.
At the end of the path stood a massive fortress gate. The towering structure reached into the sky, its walls seemingly endless.
Inscribed on the gate were five massive words. They weren't written in English, yet Ethan understood them clearly: "The Gates of the Underworld."
The fortress was colossal, connecting the sky and the earth. Its walls extended beyond the horizon, cutting across the entire world.
As Ethan approached, he noticed the gate itself was slightly ajar. Unlike most gates, which opened outward, this one opened inward.
The iron doors, dark as midnight, were held together with massive rivets, each larger than Ethan could fathom.
Standing before the gate, Ethan realized how insignificant he was, like an ant before a mountain. Beyond the doors lay pitch-black darkness, dividing the glowing world from a void of mystery.
There were no demons or wandering spirits, just the eerie contrast between the two realms.
In the distance, Ethan noticed two figures entering the darkness, but they were too far away to make out.
'One step through the Gates of the Underworld, and the living don't return,' Ethan recalled a saying from folklore.
"Damn it, Morzan. You better not be messing with me," he thought nervously.
Morzan, in some corner of Ethereal: "Ah, this boy! Didn't you even listen properly? You'll get yourself killed with that reckless attitude!"
Ethan took a step forward—
Suddenly, he was falling.
When he finally hit the ground, he stood up and looked around in confusion.
"Wait… is this… the Gates of the Underworld?" Ethan mumbled.
Hadn't he just gone inside?
Rubbing his head, Ethan noticed something in his hand: a jet-black pendant, smooth and unadorned, resembling a piece of polished obsidian.
Where did this come from? he wondered. I just walked through the gate. How did I end up back outside?
No matter how hard he tried, Ethan couldn't recall what had happened beyond the gate. It was as if a piece of his memory had been erased.
But he did remember one thing vividly: a gentle voice telling him, You don't have enough time. You need to leave.
The warmth in that voice was unlike anything Ethan had ever experienced before.
"What… what was that?" he murmured, utterly baffled.
Yet, despite his confusion, the voice was crystal clear in his mind.
Shaking off the lingering thoughts, Ethan stepped forward again. He was determined to reenter the Gates of the Underworld and recover his missing memories.