Chapter 57: going deeper [massage chair bonus - ]

Chapter 57: going deeper [massage chair bonus Chapter ]

[Bonus Chapter thanks to<(the peak)>]

Our energy rose together in perfect balance. The air around us grew incredibly warm as my energy mixed with Suzy’s deep magic. We did not use any loud techniques or fancy weapon skill. We just focused our raw mid-stage Ascendant power straight into our palms, waiting for the exact right moment to release the strain.

"Now, Barry," Suzy said. We struck the center of the royal crest at the exact same second. The combined output of two mid-stage Ascendant cores poured straight into the iron plate like a sudden wave. The internal matrix lines of the old lock did not even have time to trigger the fire trap. The glowing crown symbol split down the middle with a ’crack’, its magic circles short-circuiting instantly.

The massive hatch flew open from the pressure, swinging back against the grass. A dark opening was revealed in the ground. Instead of a natural cave or a hole, a wide staircase led straight down into the darkness beneath the pasture. The air coming out of the hole felt very old and dry, carrying no moisture at all.

Victor immediately stepped forward with his four guards, their spears ready as they looked down the opening. "Sir, the perimeter is clear, but the internal structure looks completely artificial. This was definitely built by the old palace engineers."

"Victor, take two men and guard the upper entrance," I ordered. "Suzy and I are going down to check the assets. Toby, stay near the kilns and keep the brick production running."

Toby, who had sneaked over to watch the seal break, looked a bit disappointed but gave a firm nod. "Fine, but you better bring back some good metal for my new ovens!"

I laughed, turning back to the opening. Suzy was already standing at the top step, her hand resting firmly on the her weapon. Her clothes moved slightly as she took a deep breath, her eyes looking down into the dark corridor.

"Let’s balance these books," I smiled, stepping down right next to her shoulder. We walked down the stairs steps for several minutes, the light from my wrists keeping the path visible. The deeper we went, the wider the passage became, until the staircase finally opened up into an enormous underground hall that stretched out for hundreds of feet.

The sight inside was completely surprising. This wasn’t a standard monster dungeon or a gold vault. It was a abandoned factory from the old dynasty. Dozens of giant mechanical structures made of iron stood in straight lines across the floor. Huge gears, pressing levers, and long conveyor tracks were covered in layers of dust. These machines were designed to process raw materials on a massive scale, but they had been sitting completely idle for ten years.

Suzy walked over to the nearest machine, her step clicking quietly against the floor. She reached out her hand, her fingers wiping a layer of dust off a flat brass plate attached to the frame.

"Barry, look at the stamp on this frame," Suzy said, her voice carrying a deep, emotional weight as she looked up at me. "This is the official seal of the Royal Supply Department. This whole facility was built to manufacture high-grade iron plates and structural support beams for the palace walls."

I stepped up to the machine next to her, I pulled up my invisible system menu to run a full check on the machinery.

’System, analyze these units. Tell me if the internal components are still functional.’

[System: Analyzing Royal Manufacturing Units... Total Success, host! These machines are completely solid. They just need raw coal and iron ore to start running again. If you power this facility up, you can produce enough premium construction materials to build a whole fortress city in Oakhaven within a single month!]

[Inventory Notice: A hidden storage crate is located behind the central steam boiler panel! It contains the original operational manuals and three rare engineering cores left behind by the old palace foreman!]

’A complete industrial branch right under our feet,’ I thought, a greedy smirk forming on my face as my yellow eyes scanned the vast room.

"Your father’s records were completely right, Suzy," I said, turning my head to look at her .

"The Prince didn’t just hide human resources down here. He built a secret manufacturing hub to produce extra military assets without the main council knowing. And now, the entire facility belongs to our company."

Suzy looked out at the long rows of machines, as her business mind saw the massive potential. "With this equipment, Barry... we don’t just help the village survive. We can turn this whole outer valley into an independent economic superpower that the capital can never crush again."

"Exactly, manager," I laughed,"Let’s go find that storage crate and get these gears turning."

The dark hall remained completely still as we walked past the giant rows of silent manufacturing units. The old metal frames looked like giant shadows in the dim yellow light coming from my arms. Every single gear wheel and pressing lever was covered in a deep layer of dust that had not been disturbed for ten long years.

Suzy kept her hand resting near her weapon handle as she walked beside me.

"The central power engine should be right behind that large copper boiler panel," Suzy said. "If my father’s records are correct, the old palace workers used a high-grade coal fire to turn the main drive shafts from this section."

"Let’s go open the main panel, manager," I said, stepping up to the large structure that blocked the rear wall.

I reached out my bare hands, grabbing the edges of the metal sheet. I used my mid-stage Ascendant strength to pull the casing forward, my muscles tightening under my sleeves as the old rivets popped out of the brickwork one by one. The metal frame bent outward, revealing a hidden space right underneath the main furnace line.

Inside the gap sat a large, square box made of dark hardwood, containing the original operational manuals and three rare energy items left behind by the old palace foreman. But before my fingers could even touch the wood, a voice from the ceiling beams directly above our heads.

A mechanical sentry guardian dropped straight down onto the ground right between us and the box. It was a construct shaped like a tall warrior, its body built from old bronze plates and thick wires. Its eyes glowed with a dim red magic light, and it lifted a metal club, its internal gears grinding loudly as it locked its target onto my chest.

[System Security Warning: Low-Level Mechanical Sentry Active!]

[Tier: Early Ascendant.]

[Mission: Protect the engineering files from unauthorized personnel.]

"I’ll handle the front line, Suzy," I said, stepping right in front of her. The mechanical warrior didn’t wait. It went forward, swinging its metal club down in a quick, vertical strike aimed straight for my head. The movement was fast, the air pressure from the swing pushing against my clothes before the before his weapon even arrived.

I didn’t try to change into my large reptile form in this tight space. I stayed on two legs, using my high speed to glide right inside its reach. The bronze club grazed my shoulder, tearing a clean strip of fabric from my coat as it hit the ground behind my feet.

Before the machine could reset its arm gears, I activated my verbal skill at full power.

"Your Employment contract is totally invalid" I said , the wave of manager authority blasting out of my chest.

The skill hit the mechanical sentry straight in its magic core, short-circuiting its internal matrix lines instantly. The red light in its eyes blinked blankly, its bronze joints locking up completely as its mechanical brain was fried by the sudden blast of legal jargon.

While the guardian was frozen for three seconds, I balled up my right fist, gathering my energy into my fist, and delivered a massive punch straight into the center of its bronze chest plate.

Crack!

The force of my punch shattered the outer casing completely, breaking the internal gear links into small pieces. The mechanical sentry stumbled backward, its red eye light turning off permanently as it collapsed flat onto the ground, completely broken.

Suzy didn’t waste a second. She ran past the broken machine, her dark hair flying behind her as she reached into the hidden wall compartment and pulled out the dark hardwood box. She brought it back to the wide desk area, opening the lid to reveal three glowing blue crystals and a thick stack of design papers written by the old palace foreman.

"We have the full operational manual, Barry," Suzy said, as she looked up at me. "The blue crystals are the primary ignition items. If we insert them into the lower furnace valves, the main steam pressure will return to the entire factory system instantly."

"Then let’s get the staff down here to run the production lines," I smiled.

I turned around, looking at the opening at the very back of the engine room. The staircase didn’t just stop at this floor; it kept going down into a much deeper, darker tunnel line that went straight toward the core of the valley.

"Suzy, you take these design papers upstairs," I said, my voice turning serious as my eyes scanned the deeper passage. "Show them to the old blacksmith and Victor. Get the village workers down here to start cleaning the conveyor tracks and loading the coal bins. I am going to go a little deeper down this path to make sure there are no other hidden security threats waiting for us in the dark."

Suzy looked at the tunnel opening, her expression turning a tiny bit worried as she reached out to touch my new clothes, her fingers lingering near my wrist for a brief second. "Don’t go too far alone, Barry. We don’t know what else the old Prince hid at the bottom of this place."

"Relax," I laughed, giving her a reassuring look . "I am just doing a quick inventory survey. Get the factory ready for the reopening shift."

Suzy nodded, taking the box of manuals and heading back up the main brick staircase toward the village yard to recruit our new workforce.

Once she was gone, I turned back toward the deep passage. My body dissolved smoothly into my smile snake form, my dark reptile scales moving silently through the high weeds and rubble as I glided down the lower tunnel path. The air grew warmer and drier the deeper I went, the old walls showing strange, dark marks that didn’t look like regular palace construction.

I kept moving for ten minutes, my eyes tracking the ground until the corridor finally opened up into a deep, subterranean ravine filled with hundreds of raw, unrefined magic crystal veins growing straight out of the bedrock.

[System: Deep Tier Asset Discovered, Barry! You have just entered the primary raw material source for the old dynasty’s forbidden core projects! The energy density in this lower cave is perfect for your next transformation advancement!]