After overcoming the dangers of the forest, your journey gets harder with every step. Bats, Spitters and Night Stalkers haunt the caves, calling for new strategies. As you enter for the first time, go slowly, noting where the enemies lurk before charging ahead. Don't try to battle them all. Sometimes it's better to skip ahead and save your energy. The same is true for collecting items. If you've collected extra lives in the previous stage, consider whether it's worth trying to reach some of the dangerous candles here.
- A: Danger is present immediately after you start the stage. Three bats occupy the entrance to the caves, and it doesn't take much to alert them to your presence. There is a candle here as well, and it happens to contain an invincibility granting cross. But claiming it won't be easy until you manage to clear away some of the bats. You won't find as many whip upgrade orbs in this stage, and keeping your whip power is more important than claiming every item.
- B: As you approach this area, a Spitter fireball may be flying toward you, so be prepared to whip it. Spitters can be difficult to defeat It has a clear shot at you, and you can't move fast enough to avoid all of its attack. Stand on the ledge to the left of the Spitter and whip the fireballs. When it stops spitting at you, move in and attack the Spitter directly. Having the Morningstar will speed up the process considerably.
- C: When you begin your first vertical descent, you'll have to rely on unreliable platforms. To get from one level to the level below, you'll have to jump on the falling platforms to make them drop. Before they reach the pit at the bottom of the screen, you must be prepared to jump off and back to safety. On the screen below, you must safely make it across two such platforms to avoid falling to your death.
- D: Crossing the bridge is one of the most dangerous prospects in the game. Big Eyes will attack from both sides, but you can't always fight back. The problem is that if you defeat them, they'll leave a hole in the bridge. Pick and choose your battles. Since you must cross the bridge to the right, it is best to attack the eyeballs when they are on your left. Choose instead to jump over Big Eyes that approach you from the right so that you don't create a gap that's too wide for you to jump over.
- E: The extra life contained in this candle is one of the hardest to obtain. To reach it, you must successfully jump across all three falling platforms. Your timing must be perfect. Jump too late and the platform will fall too far down. Jump too soon and you won't land far enough out to reach your next destination. At least you won't put yourself in any danger so you might as well try to reach it.
- F: Starting at this location, the cave becomes a bit of a labyrinth with ropes that lead back and forth throughout the cave. Branching paths present themselves, but only one selection of ropes will lead you to the end of the stage, while the rest just send you in circles. To start, you must take the right rope down. On the screen below, you should take the left rope down, but not before you strike the candles to reveal an invincibility granting cross.
- !: There is a secret nearby! Check the secrets page for more information.
- G: Before you complete the stage, you must overcome not one, but two Night Stalkers. They can do a lot of damage if they hit you, but their attacks are totally predictable. Before they throw one of their boomerangs, pay attention to whether they remain standing, or if they crouch down first. That will help you predict whether you need to squat below a high flying boomerang, or jump over a low flying one. Don't forget to anticipate their return flight on the opposite level.
Boss[edit]
You've invaded the territory of the Under Moles, and they won't leave you alone until one side is defeated. Under Moles scurry through their underground tunnels which have four exits into this room. Each of the twenty Under Moles that you must defeat will appear from one of these holes. Removing them from the fight as quickly as possible is the key to preventing them from overwhelming Christopher. When you see one appear from the far left and far right holes, jump up or squat down to strike them before they even launch themselves. You can even do this to moles coming out of the center hole if you jump high enough before swinging your whip. For moles coming out of the hole at the very top, or any others that you can't reach in time, know where they land when they leave the holes and be prepared to strike them as soon as they hit the ground. For moles coming from the very top, you can stand below the hole and strike to the right as they fall from the ceiling. Once all twenty Under Moles are destroyed, you will advance to the next stage.