Chapter 898: Chapter 898: The Downward Path

 The air grew colder as Elara and her group made their descent into the chasm. The faint glow of the ancient runes dimmed as they lowered themselves deeper into the darkness, each step more precarious than the last. The ropes they had anchored above strained against their weight, and the sounds of creaking leather and scraping metal echoed eerily in the vast void below.

Elara's heart pounded in her chest, not from the physical exertion, but from the oppressive feeling that pressed down on them all. The whispers that had haunted them on the surface had grown louder, a chorus of disembodied voices weaving through the darkness.

"Keep moving," Kirin's voice came from above her, calm but tense. "We're almost there."