Chapter 7

Wow, digging a hole on the 0th floor turned out to be a total jackpot... (Part 2)

Should I absorb this Rune Stone? Yes, keep, or leave it?

I was only level 3, so I absorbed it and applied its effects right away. Every meter I dig gives me ability points, and every level-up I get more. This is insane! I immediately absorbed it. *Whew...*

The obsidian Rune Stone glowed brightly, and the vaporized stone sank into my palm.

Then my eyes caught something strange hanging from the spiderweb below. What is that? I dropped further and picked it up. It was the same kind of climbing harness I was wearing.

The moment I saw it, my head spun. This hunter must have discovered the cave extending downward and come down carefully with the same gear I have... But why did he die?

I checked the spot where I recovered the Rune Stone. There was a jutting rock. If he hit his head falling, a concussion would have been enough to kill him. 'But Mr. No said he was digging and suddenly screamed and fell, right? Why did Mr. No lie to me?'

Suddenly, I felt my body release from the force keeping me suspended against gravity. I was floating in the air. Instinctively I knew... *Shit, the rope is about to snap!*

At the same time, I grabbed the jutting rock and poured every ounce of strength I had into it. My body weight transferred completely to my biceps and forearms. At the same time, I kicked my legs to find somewhere stable to plant my feet.

There was no stable surface, so I curled my toes as much as possible on the slippery flat area to create maximum friction. This instinctive move would have been impossible without the **Rune Stone: Climbing on Tower Walls Even If Dead**.

At that moment, the rope, now with acceleration, whistled past and smacked my hard hat.

'Mr. No, you bastard! You cut the rope? Why?'

I finally understood why the dead hunter died there and why Mr. No lied to me. He cut the rope from above while the hunter was descending with gear, just like he did to me. The hunter hit his head on the rock and died instantly. The heavy equipment of the dead hunter would have fallen through the spiderweb section, while the Rune Stone, unaffected by gravity, stayed behind.

But right now, that wasn’t the urgent problem. I immediately let go of my right hand slightly. I could hold on for a while, but not long. My mind went completely white. There’s no drill here, so no anchoring. If I can’t anchor, I have to free-climb... The wall is slippery with not much to grab. Only a top master could do it, but not with my ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠ basic skill.

Honestly, I wanted to scream at Mr. No for help. I didn’t know why he cut the rope, but... if I beg? If I offer 500 million? No. He already committed a crime as low as this. He won’t save me. The stone slab is closed, so my screams won’t be heard anyway.

'Hwang Geumpa, snap out of it! Don’t run, focus on the crisis right in front of you. Think.'

Yes, I confirmed the spiderweb section counts as digging through the ground. And I just absorbed the jackpot **Rune Stone: Self-Developed Shoveling**.

What now? Just back against the wall and descend? If I can dramatically increase strength and stamina... free-climbing would be possible too.

Fortunately, there are three good things about this cave. First, it slopes a little, so I can descend. Second, the surface is smooth, so there is no big injury risk. Third, the spiderwebs slow acceleration a bit. Carrying the backpack also helps a little. But I don’t know how far the cave goes. If it’s too long, my back will be on fire and I’ll die miserably. But I have to do it. My limbs were losing strength.

I let go with one hand and pulled out the hoe and flower shovel. I planned to descend holding them with both hands and braking. *Shit, I’ll die once, die twice... let’s gooo!*

I released my hand and turned my body so my back faced the sloping wall. At the same time, I bent my knees and stuck the sole of my climbing shoes flat against the wall to maximize friction. *Whoosh!* Acceleration immediately built up and I started sliding down the wall helplessly.

I held the hoe and flower shovel in both hands and scraped the wall, trying to slow down as much as possible. Sparks flew from my hands.

*Ugh... ugh...* I started screaming at first, then had to clench my teeth and hold back the vomit. The smell of the spiderweb section was unbearable. Then I saw a grotesque creature in front of me and couldn’t help but be startled. *Shit, what the hell is that?!*

A spider-like grotesque arthropod! It had dozens of spiky tentacles and legs. The serious part was that each leg was the size of a person’s leg. *Aaaah!* While falling, I screamed and wildly swung the flower shovel and hoe. It wasn’t just one; there were probably dozens of them filling the cave.

*Hiss... hiss...* The centipedes themselves fled somewhere as I fell, making strange noises. Fortunately, they seemed to fear people.

While falling, I quickly put the flower shovel away and pulled out the machete. Then I kicked every centipede that appeared and kept swinging the machete as I descended.

The spiderweb was wet and slippery, so my back and hips didn’t get too hot. That was a relief, but descending endlessly made me fear whether I could climb back up.

Ah, yes, ability points! Nice!

I’m going crazy! Just stop already! Isn’t it true that if I want to raise stats more, I have to go further? Damn, I don’t know!

*Aaaah!* I don’t know anymore!

And then the endless fall ended. Suddenly the slope became very gentle, and I slid into a huge spherical area and rolled down.

As soon as I arrived there, I felt a powerful disgust, like my whole body’s hair was standing up, making me want to vomit. I was standing in the center of a square piled with hundreds of the centipedes I had seen before. And right under my feet... I saw the remains the hunter left scattered everywhere. He died 100 meters above, but his items fell here after piercing the spiderweb section like I did.

Then my eyes caught a shovel made of an unfamiliar bright green metal. I immediately picked it up.

Ooh! I picked up a shovel with attack options! And the attack power is 7 to 10! It’s strong enough to bother even a newbie. Plus I can do double shoveling with the passion of digging, so that damage becomes double!

I kept an eye on the centipedes, scooped up the remaining gear and items of the poor dead senior hunter, and stuffed them into my backpack.

*Chiiiik... chiiiik...*

The giant centipedes threatened my back with aggressive noises. I turned around swinging the new titanium spade. Arthropods are aggressive when they can’t see me, but when I turn, they twist their bodies and flee painfully. I immediately realized they fear flashlights.

First, I took out an extra flashlight and held it in my hand along with the machete, swinging it to open the way back. Indeed, they feared the light. I swung the flashlight quickly toward the spherical wall. In a one-versus-many fight, turning your back to the wall is common sense.

Then I crossed my headlamp and the flashlight in an X shape to create a safe zone. A small triangular area appeared, and the giant bugs could no longer attack me recklessly.

Then I thought about the battery life of the lights. Electricity can’t be used in the tower, so my flashlights are based on mana. But these are the lowest grade, so the mana efficiency is poor and they’ll die after a few hours. The time given to me is very short.

I quickly distributed the 4 ability points from the level-up and the 4 from *Self-Developed Shoveling* into stamina and strength respectively.

Then I opened the characteristic window I had been waiting for.

*Aaaaaah!* I unconsciously screamed. It- it was the Fibonacci sequence! 1, 1, 2, 3... right? There’s nothing else to it? This is huge. If I can survive here!