Magma flowed in the holes, indicating the presence of empty spots in the areas under them. Its quantity in the sea didn't diminish though, confirming the existence of a source somewhere in the ocean.
Noah felt intrigued as he analyzed the holes. The metallic layer wasn't the end of his journey anymore. There was something else hidden in the depths of those Mortal Lands.
Noah didn't know what to expect. The geology of his previous world didn't have the "Breath" in its system. That layout was already strange if he tried to apply the common sense of his past life.
Still, that only made him more curious. The metallic layer was already a useful discovery. It appeared as a material suitable for defensive items, and its durability surpassed anything on the surface.
Moreover, there was tons of it. Mining it would be troublesome due to the dangerous environment, but it was something worth considering.
Noah descended in one of the larger holes after he concluded his inspection. The black material's fabric appeared softer as he reached for its center, but its value would still be high in the markets on the surface.
Magma flowed endlessly, and Noah descended along with it. Yet, the black layer ended at some point, and Noah found himself in a red waterfall.
His consciousness had kept his consciousness spread during his descent. He became aware of the environment on the other side of the hole as soon as he came out of it, and what he saw left him speechless.
There was air around the waterfall. It had a sulfurous smell when it entered Noah's nostrils, but that wasn't even the most surprising feature of that area.
The magma fell on a large red lake, but it didn't increase its width. A small whirlpool near its bottom drained it due to another hole that connected that area to even deeper worlds.
A few Fire-eating Carps inhabited the lake, but they were simple creatures in the human ranks. The most outstanding feature of that place was the environment outside of the lake.
Noah found himself in a green world. Grass grew everywhere he looked, and mountains showed their tall figures in the distance.
The sun's light didn't reach that place, but there were many holes in the black ceiling that acted like the sky of that place. Multiple waterfalls and lakes filled the environment and illuminated it with their soft red light.
Noah could sense magical beasts in the distance. There was a proper fauna there, in a world that existed under a sea of magma.
'How isn't all of this destroyed yet?' Noah couldn't help but question himself. The fact that there was even air under the ocean and the sea of magma was already miraculous!
It wasn't hard to find a quick explanation. The holes in the metallic layer were narrow, and the magma at that depth was dense. There was a limit to how much of it could invade that area.
Also, there were other holes in that green environment too. The magma never had the chance to accumulate over a certain level.
The plants there provided with clean air, and the metallic layer offered constant protection from the red sea on the other side. It was worth pondering who dug those holes, but Noah was more interested in the fauna to bother with it.
He was already placing the black material on one side of a scale and the fauna on the other in his mind. If he didn't find anything interesting, he would let that environment drown to seize the sturdy metal.
Noah left the waterfall and began to explore those unknown lands. He started with the plants there before moving toward lifeforms in the distance.
There didn't seem to be magical plants nearby, but Noah guessed that he would soon find some of them. He didn't believe that the "Breath" didn't influence any of them.
The region where he descended appeared mostly empty of magical beasts. Noah quickly linked that to the presence of so many waterfalls. The temperature was already high everywhere, but it was even higher near the lakes.
Noah experienced another surprise when he reached the first pack of magical beasts. They were small reptiles that ran on two legs and a couple of short arms.
They resembled a small version of the Tyrannosaurus, and their scales weren't nearly as strong as that tall creature. However, they belonged to the same historical period. They were beasts that the surface thought to be extinct.
'Dwarf Raptors,' Noah thought as he inspected that pack of creatures in the human ranks. 'The fauna here didn't suffer from the changes that have swept the surface. It stagnated. I wonder how this place even came to be.'
There didn't seem to be anything natural about that environment. The metallic sky alone appeared as something unnatural and too perfect for the survival of that hidden world.
Still, Noah couldn't notice any trace of cultivators. There was only a wild and peculiar life everywhere he looked.
Noah killed some Raptors and stored them inside his ring before moving forward. He did the same with every other peculiar creature that he found along the way, and he confirmed that most of them were species that had disappeared from the surface.
The number of waterfalls diminished as he explored other regions, and more magical beasts appeared in the environment. The density of "Breath" in the air increased too and surpassed the standards of best areas in the old continent.
Noah could vaguely guess that he was flying under the old continent by then, but he didn't know if there was a connection with the lack of waterfalls.
Magical beasts in the heroic ranks began to appear as the density of "Breath" increased. Noah collected many specimens that he would study later to improve his knowledge in that field.
The exploration quickly lost its initial excitement since Noah couldn't find anything beneficial to his cultivation. The place was incredible due to its peculiar location and fauna, but they alone weren't enough to stir his complete interest.
'This can become a secret hideout or some special training area,' Noah thought as he flew above that strange land. 'Still, the separate dimension already covers those. It might be better to drown it after seizing some samples.'
Noah's idea remained the same in the following days since he didn't find anything that could surpass the metallic sky's value. Yet, he wouldn't call that world worthless until he explored it in its entirety.
Then, he saw something that made him throw his previous idea away and never think about it again.
As he flew above a mountain, he saw two packs of ape-like magical beasts fighting over some tree. They were all creatures in the human ranks, barely worthy of his attention.
However, his consciousness tensed when he saw familiar runes on the furry skin of the specimens of one pack.
Noah didn't even think. His mental waves went downward, and all the apes in the other pack exploded. No one could hurt the most valuable magical beast with him there.