Zheng Zha was utterly thrilled, patrolling the underground chasm on his skeletal warhorse. This Moria passage was vast; despite being called a tunnel, its internal height spanned at least tens of meters. It was large enough not just for a horse, but a war elephant—provided, of course, that the elephant could also disregard gravity.

The first day of their march passed without incident. According to Gimli, they were still outside the main gate of the Moria settlement. The underworld of Moria was simply too immense; even if Orcs were present, they might not immediately encounter them. After this initial uneventful day, the group’s vigilance gradually subsided, becoming less jumpy than when they first entered. They found an open, flat area to make camp, built a fire to cook, and only after all preparations were complete did everyone finally get a chance to rest a little.

“...So, your Elven race also has a skill called ‘Explosive Arrow’? Right, you call it the Twin Blade Arrow—what a strange name.”

Zhang Heng found himself getting along very well with Legolas because both were archers, and both utilized that “Explosive Arrow” technique. Furthermore, Zhang Heng was inherently kind-hearted, so the two conversed with great pleasure, exchanging techniques for using their arrows.

“Indeed. Because using this arrow technique harms the enemy as much as it harms oneself. With my strength, even if I continuously use my life force to recover, I can fire the Twin Blade Arrow at most twenty times before my arms swell to the point where I can no longer draw the bowstring. If I were to use the Three Blade Arrow, I could manage a maximum of only three shots,” Legolas said with a smile. Elves were indeed an incomparably beautiful race; his smile alone made several of the older female survivors blush.

Zhang Heng silently gazed at his silver metal bow, and after a long pause, he spoke, “Three Blade Arrow? You mean a three-shot burst? If even three shots are so difficult to achieve, then... how terrifying a feat of archery must ‘Nine Arrows Piercing the Sun’ be?” On the other side, Zheng Zha and Zhao Yingkong were sparring with Aragorn and Boromir. Because the “Main God” had altered the difficulty, the plot characters in the Middle-earth world were astonishingly strong; for instance, both Aragorn and Boromir could emit their own Dou Qi (Battle Aura).

Zheng Zha had witnessed this Dou Qi during his battles with the Demon Reincarnation Squad; it was truly formidable. Although its durability was inferior to Neili (Internal Force), and it lacked the power to heal injuries, its burst potential was significantly greater than Neili.

In a confrontation between Zheng Zha and Aragorn, if Zheng Zha did not activate his “Explosion” state, he stood no chance against an Aragorn using Dou Qi. However, once the “Explosion” state was engaged, he was stronger than Aragorn using Dou Qi by a margin of two points. If he further activated the “Destruction” state, Aragorn would be instantly vaporized. Of course, since they were merely sparring, neither side employed their absolute strongest forms, so Zheng Zha couldn't be certain that this was the full extent of Aragorn’s capability.

Meanwhile, Boromir was crying out in pain, not because Zhao Yingkong’s skill was overwhelmingly superior—if they faced off directly, Zhao Yingkong couldn't defeat Boromir without using her self-created instant-kill skill, the Flash Spirit Vacuum Wave. In terms of strength, speed, and reaction time, even with both having activated the second stage of their gene locks, the reason she had Boromir bawling was due to the invisible attribute of her Victory Vow Sword, combined with her exquisite assassination techniques. This combination amplified her power considerably, enough that even Zheng Zha hesitated to engage her directly. Boromir, who had initially looked down on her as just a young girl, found himself at a disadvantage after the initial clash. Attempting to forcefully counterattack now was impossible unless he was willing to fight her to the death—a near-equal exchange.

Soon, all four ceased their exchange. Boromir was a wreck; much of his clothing was shredded, his fine knightly attire now resembling that of a beggar. Zhao Yingkong offered no words, simply nodding to Zheng Zha before returning to the campfire. Zheng Zha offered an embarrassed smile to Boromir: “My apologies, that’s just her nature. She often does things that make people awkward, haha. Please don’t mind her. Honestly, if you were to fight her seriously to the death, that girl wouldn't beat you.”

Boromir stared intently at Zhao Yingkong. Only after Zheng Zha spoke twice did he turn back with an awkward laugh, only to fix his gaze back upon her. That look gave Zheng Zha a bad premonition.

In essence, the group fell into a rhythm of resting and eating when tired, walking when they had nothing else to do, and setting up camp when sleepy. Unconsciously, nearly four days slipped by. During this time, Gandalf got them lost once, but they finally arrived at the entrance to Moria: a magnificent palace. On either side of the entrance stood colossal pillars, five to six meters in diameter, covered entirely with countless runes and strange engravings. There were easily hundreds of such pillars, creating a truly grand hall.

The group walked slowly through this immense hall, each experiencing a profound sense of awe. As they passed a small room adjacent to the main hall, Gimli suddenly rushed toward it. The others exchanged glances and followed close behind. When Zheng Zha and the others entered the room, they saw a single beam of sunlight piercing down from the ceiling, falling directly onto a stone sarcophagus in the center. Gimli was hunched over it, weeping inconsolably.

Gandalf approached the coffin and quietly intoned, “Balin rests here, son of Fundin, Lord of Moria…”

“He is dead,” Gandalf removed his hat and stated with resignation. “Just as I feared. There are no Dwarves left alive in all of Moria.” He then bent down and picked up a book from the floor.

On the other side, the members of the Reincarnation Squad who had entered the room carefully examined their surroundings. This chamber was clearly once a memorial room for the Dwarven race; numerous discarded documents littered the floor, and the walls were plastered with maps and other official papers. As Neos moved through the room, seemingly unconcerned, his eyes meticulously traced the map of Moria displayed on the wall. After a long moment, he beckoned Zheng Zha and the other to join him, then said, “Look here. These maps precisely detail the Dwarves’ already refined mineral storage chambers… Though the raw ore is plentiful, refining a small amount of usable mineral requires vast quantities of ore. Given the Dwarves’ savings over so many years, their reserves must be substantial. Instead of chipping away at the raw rock ourselves, we should seize all these refined minerals. If we ever need more such resources, like Mithril, we can spend reward points to return later. What do you think?”

Zheng Zha exchanged a look with Ganniel; both nodded in agreement with Neos’s proposal. Neos then studied the map. “It’s just... the location of these storage vaults is somewhat peculiar. Moving in rashly might result in casualties. This part will likely rely on you, Zheng Zha; only your Skeleton Nightmare can safely traverse this area.”

Zheng Zha asked curiously, “You’ve talked this much, but you still haven’t told us where the mineral storage room actually is?”

“By the Bridge of Khazad-dûm… near that collapsing bridge where the escape happens later in the storyline, there is an inconspicuous room housing the Dwarves’ mineral stores. According to these records, there is one kilogram of pure Mithril and two ounces of Elvish metal. Whether we obtain these items hinges entirely on you,” Neos waved his hand.

Mithril has low density, making it quite light. One kilogram would be similar in volume to the Mithril coat worn by Frodo, and Frodo’s coat was alloyed with other metals, whereas this kilogram is pure, refined Mithril. Exchanged at the “Main God’s” market, it would be worth no less than twenty to thirty thousand reward points—enough to craft dozens of storage rings for him.

“I’ll risk it! Fortune favors the bold. And with the Skeleton Nightmare, that location is practically a paved road for me? I only fear that the situation might be worse than in the original movie plot—the strength of the Orcs and that Balrog remain unknown…” Zheng Zha sighed. His first concern was the unknown power level of the Balrog; it would be foolish to assume the “Main God” would let them pass the corridor safely. The Balrog was likely immensely powerful. Secondly, if the Balrog was that formidable, he had even less reason to abandon the fight against it just to retrieve minerals. He wanted to kill the Balrog to obtain its energy core and reward points.

Ganniel clearly understood Zheng Zha’s hesitation. He gritted his teeth and offered, “How about this: if you go retrieve those minerals, Neos and I will only take a quarter each. Furthermore, we will safeguard your companions while you are gone. Additionally, Neos and I have little use for fire-element energy stones. If we manage to kill the Balrog, the energy stones go to you. If you kill the Balrog, the energy stones still go to you. Does that work?”

“Fine, then when the time comes…” Zheng Zha agreed through clenched teeth, but before he could elaborate further, a sudden, massive BOOM startled the three of them. It turned out a Hobbit had accidentally dropped a piece of debris into a deep well. The sound echoed almost throughout Moria. Instantly, everyone stopped talking. After the reverberation finally faded, drumbeats started to rise from all directions—the drums of the Orcs, accompanied by faint, echoing roars...