Chapter 821: Alchemy Furnace
The mouth of the dark well was chillingly cold. Li Xiaofei stood at the edge of the well and hesitated for a moment. After some thought, he deployed a micro-drone into the darkness.
It was a purely electronic device. Since it carried no natural energy, it typically wouldn't trigger any formations or restrictions. Soon, based on the information transmitted by the micro-drone, it was determined that there were no formations or traps inside the well.
Li Xiaofei leaped down with the mute girl and the Black Emperor. Chu Xiang and Hua Dongcheng, understanding the situation, sensibly chose not to follow. However, they didn’t dare stray far. They remained close to the well’s mouth, ready to jump in at the first sign of danger.
***
Underground.
The space below turned out to be unexpectedly vast. It was a classic gourd-shaped deep well. It was narrow at the top, but widened as it descended. At its deepest point, it stretched nearly a kilometer below the surface, with a diameter of nearly a hundred meters.
The upper section of the well walls was constructed from green bricks, but around two hundred meters down, the structure transitioned into natural rock layers. Perhaps there had once been water within the well, but it was completely dry now. The floor of the well was uneven and rough.
At its center was a fist-sized hole, leading deep into the earth. A faint trace of moisture lingered in the air, it was likely the former spring that had fed the well.
“Woof! Woof!” The Black Emperor had discovered something and began barking at a spot nearby.
Li Xiaofei approached with the mute girl in tow. They saw that a section of the well wall had crumbled, revealing a narrow opening less than a meter in diameter. It was well concealed, tucked behind the broken bricks.
The Black Emperor squeezed through the hole without hesitation and barked again from within. Li Xiaofei listened, then crouched and followed him inside.
The small tunnel extended five to six meters into a tiny chamber, roughly twenty square meters in area. It had a shattered alchemy furnace. Beneath it rested the skeletal remains of a child, leaning against the furnace, long dead.