Chapter 25 Dungeon Core: “The Eternal Training Ground”

The floor was so large, but soon I forgot about how tedious it would be to design every aspect of the floor with rivers, mountains, and everything else. I just started to enjoy making the landscape. Since this floor was meant for the ants, I didn’t just want to make something for big creatures but design it for smaller ones.

Still, I made sure that everything I made would be acceptable for even medium-sized creatures. This is because I was going to increase the oxygen level of this floor in the hopes that the ants would naturally start evolving to be bigger.

When the rock was removed from the top layer and quite a large chunk of the bottom layer, I began by compressing dirt and filling in the empty spots on the bottom layer. Of course, there were huge cavern networks as well, essentially creating an entirely new world underground.

I suspect that some of the goblin evolutions would enjoy these tunnels, but that would be for later floors. Once this was done, I started with the water network, which would be multiple times larger than all my other floors combined. However, I made sure to leave quite a lot of islands, even in the numerous rivers that I created.

Every river and lake were connected, as I liked how the ants are learning to traverse the water better, and sometimes this mode of travel seemed to be even faster than over land. I truly wished that I had some creatures to put into the water to act as a source of food or danger. Unfortunately, I will have to hope that I will get access to them eventually.

For the land, I began to create the plants and then grew them out by infusing mana into them. This way, they will grow faster and won't take from my mana regeneration; instead, they will give me more.

It takes a longer period to get everything done like this, but I like the idea of having more mana at my disposal. For that reason, I had a completely different idea. At the start, I thought I would make the trees as I usually do, but the size of this floor made me rethink this idea, especially when I noticed that some of the ants like to live in the trees.

It took a lot to grow them to the size I wanted them to be, and I didn’t do it for the entire floor, but huge forests now tower over everything. Some of the trees are over 100 metres tall, and I made sure that the canopy is all intertwined, creating an incredibly large and spacious area for ants to live in.

It took me a little longer to dial in the weather effects, but when I was done, two years had passed. I was nearly done with my dungeon room, but I was finished. This huge floor was finally done and already filled with plenty of creatures that would pose a challenge to the ants who would come to colonise. I opened the tunnel downwards and announced to all the ants that the new age of exploration and colonisation had arrived. The news brought chaos, and I enjoyed every moment.

The first interesting interaction was between the different nations and their academies. Because the gate technology still wasn’t ready, I thoroughly enjoyed the arguments and threats made about everyone needing this technology yesterday.

Like the last time, nations tried to stop colonisers, but it seems that this time there were groups of ants ready. They were able to organise extremely quickly and even bring necessary resources with them. As they broke through the defences, some of the ants who made it down will soon began their new lives in an unexplored land.

While some might think that ants don’t have expressions, I had come to learn the opposite. I enjoyed their expressions when they saw the new land. Their sight couldn't see the wall that would indicate the size of the floor they were on. Some of the ants froze at the sight, their brains completely short-circuiting.

But when they finally recovered, their excitement was palpable. They would have so much to explore, and I was quite saddened by the fact that I would need to start my new floor soon. My dungeon rooms will soon be finished, and it won’t take me long to reach my mana requirements for another floor.

Wait, what if I still had a lot of dungeon rooms to make? That would mean I could focus mainly on observing the ants. I already know that just looking at ants would annoy my instincts quite a lot, and eventually, I would get tired of the constant noise. But this way, I should be able to watch in silence.

Fortunately, there was plenty of room for dungeon rooms. I just needed to change the direction of the tunnels a bit, and I should be golden. I wonder how many rooms I will make before I decide to break through and make my next floor.

I only talked about it for a little bit before the next ant group made it to the new floor, and I got to experience reactions similar to the last one. I don’t think I would ever get tired of this; they just look so excited. I bet if they could cry, they would.

It took a little while, but the nations got their huge gears working, and soon the new floor was flooded with ants. But this time, the environment proved to be quite a lot more dangerous. Still, the ants were as industrious as ever. In a few days, new colonies were already established, and queens started to lay eggs 24/7.

It took a lot of ant power to claim the land for inhabitation, but I had no doubt in my mind that they were going to accomplish great things. The areas that the tunnels led to were simple ones, like the ones from the rest of the floors, but I wondered how they would react when they found their way into the underground area or when they would discover what those huge towering trees actually represent.

There were also lots of wonders to be found. One I was particularly proud of was the fountain that produced extremely sugary water. It should be an incredible food source for any nation that could claim it.

POV Ace

I was at a loss as to what to do. Why had I tried to speak with the dungeon? Stupid, stupid me. It’s been almost 7 years since the last floor began, and nothing I’ve done has been able to convince the dungeon to stop making new rooms and go a floor down.

There isn’t even a reason for it to make so many rooms. Although the adventurers still like it, I feel that soon adventurers and trade partners will see the writing on the wall: this dungeon wasn’t going to advance anymore. I mean, almost 1000 rooms? There's literally no reason for it to keep making them, and not to save up for its breakthrough.

My hand touched a familiar object. It seems that somehow I had made it to the bar, and someone had put beer in front of me. After drinking half of it in one go, I felt a bit better. "Still not talking back?" I heard someone say and looked up to see the Guild Master sitting next to me, similarly drinking beer.

I grunted back, which reminded me of how the dungeon spoke to me just a few hours ago, and drank the last of my beer. " I do like it, that so many adventurers stay so long inside the dungeon. It really makes my job easier."

"Well, it doesn't make my job easier. Well, I guess it does, but it hurts business quite a lot. However, I've heard that some merchants are starting to think about opening stalls in the dungeon, so perhaps things will pick up soon," I said to the older-looking Guild Master.

There was a moment of silence that stretched on. We both had another beer and finished it before we started to talk again. "You know, you could offer something to the dungeon," the Guild Master said. I quickly looked around to ensure no one would overhear us, but the place was empty besides the barman, and he could be trusted.

"Are you serious? That's quite frowned upon," I responded, looking into his eyes, but I could never see beyond them. Eventually, he spoke back, "I'm not talking about anything drastic, just some normal animals. I think it likes them. I've never been inside the dungeon, but I can feel so much more life down there than you or anyone else has reported back. Go and try that, and we'll see what happens."

I contemplated his words, but I guessed it couldn't hurt to try it out. However, I'll leave that for tomorrow. Right now, the beer just tastes good, and it's been quite a while since I've been able to talk with the Guild Master so casually.

I wonder if the dungeon would be receptive and perhaps try to achieve its next breakthrough if it gets access to new animals. I do hope this will work because otherwise, I foresee a lot more work for myself.