The Foundry smelled like burnt sugar and ozone.
For the last six hours, the hammer had been ringing against the anvil. Elian stood shirtless in front of the Blast Furnace, sweating profusely. The green mana-fire cast long, dancing shadows across the factory floor.
He held a chunk of the dried Sludge Resin with tongs. It was ugly material—lumpy and neon green—but under the heat of the Leyline, it became malleable.
[Class Skill: Material Synthesis][Base: Steel Axe Head][Additive: Hardened Sludge Resin][Catalyst: Acidic Mana]
Elian brought the hammer down.
CLANG.
The resin didn't coat the steel; it fused with it. The metal turned a dark, oily green. The edge of the blade began to drip, not with liquid, but with a faint, corrosive mist.
"Done," Elian wiped his forehead. He dunked the axe into a bucket of water. Steam hissed up, smelling like vinegar.
He tossed the weapon to Goran.
The Berserker caught it. The handle was reinforced with leather grip tape Elian had scavenged. The head was heavy, balanced, and looked distinctively evil.
[Item: Corroded Greataxe][Grade: Rare][Effect: Acid Burn (Deals continuous damage to armor).][Durability: High]
Goran swung it. The air whistled. "It's ugly," Goran grunted, inspecting the green edge. "I love it."
"Kara, you're next," Elian pointed to the workbench.
Kara's daggers were simpler. Elian hadn't reforged them; he had etched them. He used [Edit Mode] to carve microscopic channels into the blades, then filled them with liquefied resin.
"Don't cut yourself," Elian warned, handing them back. "The poison isn't lethal, but it paralyzes. One nick and your hand goes numb for an hour."
Kara spun the daggers. They left faint green trails in the air. "Nasty. I'll take two."
Silas watched from a safe distance, eating a can of peaches. "And for me? A suit of gold armor? A magic ring?"
"For you," Elian threw a heavy canvas bag at him. "A backpack. Reinforced stitching. Acid-proof. So you don't melt your loot next time."
Silas caught the bag. He looked disappointed, then checked the pockets. "Double-lined? Hmm. Acceptable."
Elian put his shirt back on. He felt drained, but satisfied. His team wasn't wearing trash anymore. They looked like a unit. A dangerous, ragtag unit.
"Gear up," Elian ordered. "The basement is drained. It's time to see what Vane was trying to hide."
The basement was different now.
The toxic water was gone, leaving behind a crust of dried green slime that crunched under their boots. The air was cleaner, thanks to the ventilation fans Elian had repaired.
They walked past the central Leyline chamber, deeper into the facility.
Elian led them to the far wall. Previously, this area had been submerged. Now, revealed by the receding sludge, stood a massive circular door.
It was ten meters tall, made of a dark, unknown metal that absorbed the light of their flashlights. There were no hinges. No handle. Just four massive wheel-locks positioned at the cardinal points: North, South, East, West.
[Object: Gate of the Deep Roads][Status: Sealed][Lock Type: Synchronized Mana-Key]
"Whoa," Kara whispered, shining her light up the massive door. "This wasn't on the blueprints."
"This predates the blueprints," Elian said, touching the cold metal. "This predates the city."
The Deep Roads.
In Kaelen's timeline, these were a myth until Year 5. They were a subterranean highway system connecting the world's Dungeons. The Guilds used them to transport troops and resources secretly.
If Vanguard controlled an entrance, they controlled the flow of the underworld.
"How do we open it?" Goran asked, tapping the metal with his new axe. "Smash it?"
"It's made of Adamantine," Elian shook his head. "You'd break your axe. It's a puzzle."
He pointed to the four wheels.
"It requires four operators. Simultaneous activation. That's why I needed a team."
"Four?" Silas counted them. "One, two, three, four. Math checks out. But I have weak wrists."
"Get to the West wheel, Silas," Elian commanded. "Goran, North. Kara, South. I'll take East."
They took their positions. The wheels were taller than they were.
"On my mark," Elian shouted across the chamber. "Turn clockwise. Slowly. Match my pace."
"Ready!" Goran yelled. "Ready," Kara echoed. "I'm going to pull a muscle," Silas whined.
"Three. Two. One. Turn!"
They pushed.
GRIND.
The massive wheels resisted, heavy with centuries of rust and mana-pressure. Goran grunted, his muscles straining. Even Kara had to use her full body weight to hang off the spokes.
"Keep it steady!" Elian watched the glowing runes on the door. "If we fall out of sync, the defense mechanism activates!"
"Defense mechanism?!" Silas shrieked, pushing harder. "You didn't mention a defense mechanism!"
"Focus!"
The runes turned from red to amber. Then to green.
CLICK.
A sound like a gunshot echoed through the chamber. The four wheels locked into place.
HISS.
Steam vented from the rim of the door. The ground shook as the massive circular slab split into four sections and retracted into the walls.
Darkness poured out. Cold, ancient air that smelled of wet stone and ozone.
Elian stepped through the opening first, his [Blueprint Sight] flaring to life.
"Light."
He threw a Flash-Frag—not to detonate, but to illuminate. He adjusted the timer to a slow burn.
The orb floated into the tunnel, casting a brilliant white glow.
They weren't looking at a cave. They were looking at a highway.
The tunnel was fifty meters wide, paved with smooth, seamless stone blocks. The ceiling arched high above, covered in patches of bio-luminescent moss that glowed like constellations.
Running down the center of the road were two tracks—wide, metal grooves meant for massive vehicles or carts.
"It goes on forever," Kara breathed, her voice echoing into the distance.
Elian checked his map. It was blank. The Deep Roads were an Uncharted Zone.
[Zone Discovered: The Deep Roads (Sector 4 Branch)][Danger Level: Variable]
"This connects everything," Elian explained, his voice hushed. "Sector 1. The Wastelands. The Spider Nest. Even New York."
"So we can walk to Sector 1?" Goran asked. "Bypass the gates?"
"We could," Elian nodded. "But we're not the only things down here."
He pointed to the ground near the entrance. There were tracks in the dust. Fresh tracks. They weren't human. They looked like claw marks, but organized. Military precision.
[Trace Analysis: Mecha-Hound (Patrol Unit)]
"Vane knows about this place," Elian realized. "He's using it to move his prototypes."
"Prototypes?" Silas asked nervously.
"We need to secure this entrance," Elian turned to them. "If we leave this open, whatever is down there comes up into our base."
He looked at the massive archway of the door.
[Edit Mode: Construct]
"Goran, bring me the loose rubble. Kara, scout ahead fifty meters, but don't engage. Silas... hold the flashlight."
"I'm good at holding things," Silas nodded.
Elian began to build. He didn't just close the door; he built a checkpoint. He raised a waist-high wall of reinforced concrete across the tunnel mouth. He created firing slits. He set up tripwires using the last of his Mana Thread.
"This is our front line," Elian said, fusing a steel plate to the wall.
Kara ran back, looking pale.
"Elian," she whispered. "You need to see this."
"What?"
"Fifty meters down. There's a... a station."
Elian grabbed his weapon. "Show me."
They walked down the dark highway. Just as Kara said, the tunnel widened into a loading dock.
There were rusted cranes, empty crates, and a small control booth.
But in the center of the station sat a train.
It wasn't a modern mag-lev train. It was an armored locomotive, black iron and brass, with a cowcatcher covered in spikes. It looked like a demon engine.
[Object: Void-Train (Derelict)][Engine Status: Offline][Fuel Source: Unknown]
"A train?" Goran scratched his head. "Underground?"
"It's a transport," Elian walked up to the massive engine. He ran his hand along the cold rivets. "The Ancients used these to move resources between Dungeons safe from surface monsters."
He climbed up the ladder to the conductor's cab. The controls were complex levers and dials. The fuel gauge was empty.
But on the dashboard, there was a manifest. A clipboard, preserved by the dry air.
Elian picked it up. The paper was brittle.
[Manifest: 404][Cargo: Mana-Bombs][Destination: New York - Gate 3][Date: 10 Years Ago]
Elian froze. This train was supposed to deliver the payload to stop the First Wave ten years ago. It never arrived.
"The tracks were cut," Elian whispered. "That's why the Towers fell. The supply line was sabotaged."
"Elian?" Kara called from below. "What is it?"
Elian looked at the train. If he could fix this... if he could get it running... Vanguard wouldn't just be a stationary fortress. They would be mobile. They could raid any dungeon in the network.
"Change of plans," Elian said, leaning out of the cab. A wild grin spread across his face.
"We're not just guarding the door."
He slapped the side of the iron beast.
"We're going to fix the train."