Chapter 94: The Gate of Bedrock

“Wh-what?! An elemental subplane?” Vivi’s mouth fell open in shock, her furry tiger ears standing straight upright.

Little Donnie looked equally dumbfounded. He had never even heard of elemental planes before and only felt that it sounded incredibly impressive.

Renee, at least, had heard the term mentioned in elementalist resonance chants, but she had never seen such a place with her own eyes, much less traveled to one.

The kingdom of fire, the 【Everblazing Volcano】.

The homeland of wind, the 【Endless Plains】.

The cradle of water, the 【Mirror Sea】.

And the domain of earth, the 【Spine of the Earth】.

Because most Tyrians had long withdrawn from the world, no one had managed to reopen a pathway to the elemental subplanes in ages. Some scholars had even begun questioning whether these so-called elemental subplanes truly existed at all.

Now, that debate could finally be laid to rest.

“Exactly. That’s why I had Renee light the torch before we entered. Without fire elements here, it would be impossible to ignite one afterward. Flint would still work, of course, but I figured the three ladies might not appreciate walking into total darkness.”

“I can see perfectly well at night!” Vivi protested, pointing indignantly at her eyes.

Even Romina, who had remained composed the entire time, now wore an expression of genuine disbelief.

The elemental subplanes were legendary realms said to form the foundation of the world itself. The four elemental sanctuaries were pure domains of elemental power that collectively upheld the main plane where the Vaughn Continent existed. To beings living in the material plane, they were concepts found only in religious myths and magical texts.

But as centuries passed, even myths and magical records had begun contradicting one another, while modern kingdoms no longer possessed the means to verify the truth.

And now this human lord was calmly claiming that they were standing within one of those realms?

“It’s difficult to believe without seeing it firsthand…” Romina murmured. As an elf, her elemental sensitivity far surpassed that of ordinary humans. She extended a hand, quietly feeling the strange texture of the surrounding atmosphere.

“Thank the Mother Goddess. It seems that wandering Tyrian mage’s information was entirely accurate after all.” Nolan nodded seriously, once again crediting the nonexistent “mage.”

Internally, however, he was thinking something entirely different.

What he really ought to thank was the fact that this world had perfectly inherited every setting from the game.

Watching the other four people, including the usually knowledgeable Romina, stare around in utter amazement like country bumpkins entering a grand city for the first time, Nolan felt his vanity receiving tremendous satisfaction.

Whenever someone possessed an overwhelming information advantage, it was hard not to develop a sense of superiority and control.

Still, he had not come here just to laugh at his companions. Clearing his throat, Nolan decided it was better to explain the situation properly before unnecessary panic set in.

“The principle behind this seal is actually somewhat similar to a high-level spatial spell called ‘Dimensional Exile.’ But the Tyrians took the concept much further. Using powerful spatial magic, they forcibly opened a relatively stable passage between the material plane and an elemental subplane. Then they chose the earth elemental subplane, whose structure is the most stable and whose energy is comparatively gentle, and turned it into a natural prison. Finally, they exiled their enemies here and completely sealed and concealed the entrance on the material plane.” Nolan shook his head slightly in admiration. “I have to admit, it was a genius-level concept backed by truly awe-inspiring power.”

Everyone listened, utterly absorbed. The idea of using an elemental subplane itself as a prison completely exceeded the limits of their imagination.

Vivi and Renee stared at Nolan’s back, their eyes now carrying open admiration.

Just how many secrets of the world did this man know? It felt as though there was nothing beyond his understanding. He was like a walking encyclopedia, mysterious and endlessly fascinating.

Even Romina, who had kept a certain distance from him all this time, could not help speaking again. “I never expected you to possess such a deep understanding of the world’s fundamental structure.”

She studied Nolan anew. In her eyes, he had transformed from “a somewhat capable but cunning swordsman” into “an unfathomably knowledgeable scholar.”

Respect for knowledge was a natural instinct shared by all intelligent races.

Great martial strength inspired fear and caution because it threatened one’s survival.

But broad knowledge inspired respect. It suggested intelligence, curiosity, and refinement. Aside from a few eccentrics, scholars were generally far more reasonable than warriors, which made them feel safer to approach.

“When I first targeted your group, I thought you were just some crude swordsman with muscles for brains,” Romina admitted bluntly, still utterly incapable of speaking indirectly. “Later, after watching you give orders, I assumed you were one of those incompetent noble lords with more ambition than ability. My prejudice made me judge you too quickly, and for that, I apologize.”

“It’s fine.” Nolan turned and smiled at her. “Compared to wounded pride, I care much more about practical benefits. As long as we didn’t actually start fighting earlier, I’m already grateful.”

His honesty and humor improved Romina’s impression of him even further.

As they continued talking, they walked deeper along the only available passage while holding their torches aloft.

The stone chamber was not very large, and before long they reached the end.

What appeared before them was a gigantic stone archway nearly five meters tall and three meters wide.

The entire structure had been carved from a single enormous block of rock. Its surface remained rough and rugged, yet the edges had been polished to astonishing smoothness. Intricate and elegant runes were deeply engraved around the frame, each stroke flawless and fluid, as though they had not been carved into the stone but had grown there naturally.

The striking contrast between roughness and refinement gave the gate an ancient, solemn beauty.

“Wow…” Vivi breathed in admiration.

Walking up to the gate, she carefully reached out and touched the cold runes with her fingertips.

“This is practically a perfect work of art.”

“That’s the Tyrian style.” Nolan gazed at the stone gate with a trace of nostalgia. It truly had been a long time since he last saw one. “Most of them were extreme perfectionists. No matter the field, they pursued perfection obsessively and developed their own unique aesthetic standards.”

“So how do we get inside?” Little Donnie walked up to the gate and knocked on it with the hilt of his sword, producing a heavy thud-thud.

“How about I try smashing it open?”

As he spoke, he reached for the sword at his waist.

“Save your strength.” Nolan rolled his eyes. “If you could break through one of the Tyrians’ proud creations, the ‘Gate of Bedrock,’ with that sword of yours, then we wouldn’t need to spend all this effort preparing for war. We could just march straight to Archduke Demonte’s estate and split both him and his front gate in half.”

Little Donnie scratched his head sheepishly and shoved the sword back into its sheath. “Then what do we do? My lord, you must have a way, right?” he asked expectantly.

Nolan smiled. If he had no solution, why would he even come here? He never fought battles without preparation. Turning around, he beckoned to Renee, who had been following closely behind him the entire time. “The next step depends on you, Renee.”

“Me?” Renee pointed at herself in surprise. “My lord, I can’t communicate with any elements here besides earth, much less resonate with them.”

What could she possibly do? She was only a newly advanced Silver-rank elementalist. The gate looked utterly indestructible. Even Nolan had said Little Donnie’s sword could not scratch it, so what hope did she have?

“It’s fine. It’s actually very simple.” Nolan gave her an encouraging smile. “Come here. All you need to do… is repeat a few words after me.”