Attempts have been made to delve deep into the cave, but either immense danger or the fact that one must be surrounded and covered in spiders to make it far has caused people to either turn and flee or pass away before reaching the end.
The War of Shadows and Spiders
The Lair of the Spiders is not just a threat to those who enter into the cave. The spiders hatched inside are known to spread around the Eastern Reaches, making the land difficult to live in. Military forces are gathered all over the region just to protect the few citizens that reside in local settlements like Ortoise, Cassis, and Baoying. To protect the nearby
Jihdi Peninsula,
the Zhizhu Wall was built specifically to counteract the spiders and prevent them from reaching the Jihdi Empire.
Carved into the wall (supposedly, or at the very least carved into the minds of all the Jihdi citizens) are the words said by Nyx when the Jihdi first asked her to stop the spiders from invading their lands. Words that have caused a rift between the Empire and the Temple of Nyx.
"It is not the place of the Gods to intervene in every situation mortals consider a nuisance, nor is it my place to traffic in Izanagi's daylight.
I am the fringes of the world you know. I am the edge of your sight. I stick to the shadows, and if you wish to survive the onslaught of the spiders, it may be best for you to do the same.
Pray to me, and the shadows will protect you. Fail to do so, and your empire falls to my children."
— Nyx
This delegation's provocation and Nyx's response have caused an unofficial war that has raged for hundreds of years straight between the spiders of Nyx and the Jihdi of the Zhizhu Wall. This war is one of the longest continuous wars in history, with no clear end in sight and no apparent way to stop it other than to surrender and allow the spiders to overtake the peninsula again.
Anyone who enters the Lair of the Spiders is considered dead on arrival. No efforts are to be made to rescue or heal them, as it would be a waste of resources. No one is ever sent there by any governing body, as it would be sending them to their deaths. Even the great warriors, mages, and
Dragons avoid the Lair of the Spiders, knowing no good can come from setting foot within.
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