83: Chapter 83 Deep Weaving and Crossroads of Fate

On the fifth day since the [Numerology Maze] opened, while the taverns in the Adventurers Town were still buzzing about the maze's strange and ever-changing nature, the true [Dominator] of the maze had already turned his gaze toward the deeper underground.

Zhang Hao hovered above the perfected core of the first underground floor, his consciousness tightly connected to the massive [maze builder panel].

The over eighteen thousand [maze construction points] accumulated on the panel were like a burning flame, urging him to proceed to the next stage of creation.

"Expand, second underground floor."

The moment the command was issued, vast [Dream Power] poured in from the [Void Realm], eroding and expanding downward along the [Rock] foundation of the first floor.

In his perception, a much broader second underground floor, with a space of 200 maze grids, was rapidly taking shape, its blank foundation unfolding in his consciousness like a scroll.

An indescribable sense of excitement seized Zhang Hao.

Compared to patching up the existing framework of the first floor, this feeling of pioneering a brand-new space from scratch, using it as a canvas to splash [fate trajectory] and [Karma], intoxicated him even more.

He "watched" the empty second-floor space, the golden starlight in his left eye and the [Chaos] darkness in his right eye lighting up simultaneously.

In his vision, this unpioneered land was no longer a simple [Rock] space, but a collection of countless intersecting, colliding, and yet-to-be-defined [fate trajectory] and [causal threads].

His job was to become the anchor in this [Chaos], giving form and direction to these invisible lines.

"First, set the tone." Zhang Hao's thoughts flowed.

He planned out the main structure of the second underground floor—more complex and variable circular passages, secret chambers that required specific conditions to open, and several monster nests clearly marked as dangerous areas.

The overall difficulty had taken a qualitative leap compared to the first floor.

Immediately after, he began to fill in the details.

Unlike the first floor's configuration, which was primarily [Elementary]-grade with some D-grade, he would generate only D-grade monsters, treasures, and traps for the second underground floor.

Regarding monsters: He introduced D-grade entities with more aggression and special abilities.

For example, the [Shadow Claw Pangolin] capable of short-range burrowing sneak attacks; the [Corrosive Flying Ants] that moved in swarms and sprayed corrosive acid; and the [Grotto Golem], a massive creature that served as a regional guardian and could swing its giant [Rock] arms.

These monsters were not only stronger, but their behavioral patterns were also more complex, even exhibiting simple coordination.

Regarding treasures: D-grade rewards were naturally more alluring.

He set up [Elementary] Attribute Fruits that could significantly boost a specific attribute (such as Strength or Agility); [Enchanted Weapons] with faint elemental effects; and [Skill Legacy Crystals] that recorded simple but practical skills (such as "Illumination" advanced to "Flash").

The placement points for these treasures were often accompanied by huge risks or puzzles that needed to be solved.

Traps and environment: The traps on the second floor were more lethal and treacherous.

In addition to reinforced physical traps (such as chain ground spikes, heavy pressure guillotines) and energy traps (such as continuously burning flame paths, paralyzing electric grids), Zhang Hao also set up some rule-based disturbances.

For example, an area filled with "Chaos Mist," where those who entered would have their sense of direction severely disoriented; or a "Silence Force Field," where all sounds within the range were swallowed, making it impossible for teammates to even hear each other's shouts, easily causing psychological panic.

However, what Zhang Hao designed most meticulously, and what made him feel the charm of [Karma] the most, was the passage connecting the first and second floors.

He set up several normal "conventional stairs" or "downward fissures" that required adventurers to actively explore and defeat guards to find.

But beyond that, he buried a special "Easter egg."

In a room on the first underground floor that seemed ordinary, and even occasionally spawned decent treasures, he set up an extremely concealed, non-direct-damage D-grade trap—the [mirror of fates crossroads].

This mirror looked like a decoration or an insignificant environmental interaction point.

But when unsuspecting adventurers (especially those teams who thought they were familiar with the first floor's routines and were a bit careless) triggered it, the mirror would not shatter, nor would it fire beams of light; instead, it would instantly activate a short-range forced teleportation array.

The person who triggered it and their teammates in the immediate vicinity would be enveloped by an abrupt white light before they could even react, and the next second, the scene before their eyes would have changed drastically—it was no longer the familiar environment of the first floor, but the gloomy, oppressive second underground floor where the monster aura was significantly stronger!

Furthermore, the teleportation landing point was not a safe zone, but a random, non-core, yet definitely unsafe area on the second floor.

The "cause" was triggering that seemingly harmless mirror, and the "effect" was being forcibly thrown into a more dangerous, deeper environment.

The shock, confusion, fear, and intense unease about the unknown brought about by this sudden change in circumstances produced an intensity of emotional fluctuation far beyond that of ordinary traps.

More importantly, this perfectly achieved a "diversion" of levels, sending those adventurers whose strength might not have fully reached the D-grade standard, but whose [Luck] (or rather, "misfortune") had arrived, into a more cruel trial ground ahead of time.

Having completed this entire layout, Zhang Hao felt satisfied with the "possibilities" on the second underground floor that were waiting to be triggered.

The structure of the entire [Numerology Maze] became more three-dimensional, and the gradient of challenges became more distinct.

The first underground floor mainly provided E-grade [Host] with opportunities for adaptation and initial [Breakthrough], while the second underground floor was the true trial ground prepared for D-grade [Host] and even those "lucky ones" chosen by "fate."

His use of [Talent] became increasingly proficient; he was no longer just observing the [fate trajectory], but was able to more actively set "signposts" and even "forks in the road," plucking the [causal threads] to let the [Host] who entered perform more unpredictable tragedies and comedies within the established framework.

The data on the [maze builder panel] also updated accordingly:

[Maze Layers]: 1st Underground Floor, 2nd Underground Floor (Opened)

[Maze Size]: 1st Underground Floor 100/100 Grids | 2nd Underground Floor 85/200 Grids (Core Area Initially Constructed)

[maze construction points]: 18,755 → 9,102 (Huge consumption, but worth it)

[Maze Monsters]: 1st Underground Floor 38 Grids (Mainly E-grade, 3 D-grade) | 2nd Underground Floor 25 Grids (All D-grade)

[Maze Treasures]: 1st Underground Floor 26 Grids (Mainly E-grade, 2 D-grade) | 2nd Underground Floor 15 Grids (All D-grade)

[Maze Traps]: 1st Underground Floor 30 Grids (Mainly E-grade, 2 D-grade) | 2nd Underground Floor 20 Grids (All D-grade, including [mirror of fates crossroads])

[Other]: 1st Underground Floor 6 Grids | 2nd Underground Floor 25 Grids (Used for complex environments and special rule areas)

Zhang Hao knew that when tomorrow's first ray of light shone upon the Adventurers Town, his [Numerology Maze] would offer those explorers brand-new "surprises" and "nightmares."

And he would continue to sit high behind the scenes, enjoying this symphony of fate woven by his own hands.