How to reach the "7th World"

A comprehensive and detailed step-by-step guide that tries their best to avoid spoilers.

Introduction

• This guide will include all of the possible things you can do in every world that directly affects the progress (and route!) of the path towards the 7th world, including optional stuff.
  Because of that, I won't minmax this guide. I will probably make a separate guide about the possible skips, and how to do them, but for now, let's take things easy. Okay? Good.
  
  
• Avoiding spoilers as much as possible when not tagged, in case you ask yourself "How do I get beyond 7-4?" They require doing exactly the same steps, with some extra additions. I recommend first doing the normal 7-4 run before going beyond that barrier, so I'll add the extra steps to get beyond 7-4 at the end of the guide.
  
  
• You will also notice that I did "Step 2A" and "Step 2B", aswell. Why is that a thing?
  Well, no matter which route you take, it is possible to reach the 7th world (and beyond!). The important thing to do, are the specific steps on every world. So, the reason why I added a letter on them, is because they are still the second world, due to branching paths being a freature in this game.
  
  
• The reason why I chose the Jungle being "2A" and not "2B", despite Volcana being probably your main choice, is because I classify them from left to right, top to bottom. As the Jungle is the path at the left, I chose to name it "A" path. This does not mean you should only do Step "2A, 4A" or "2B, 4B", not at all! Feel free to do "2B, 4A", "2A, 4B" if you want. Whatever path you choose, does not matter, as long as you do the specific steps of each area, it's all good!
  
  
• I'll also like to add an unprofessional thing to take in note, and that is that I'm not a native English speaker. Despite me being confident in my english, please, feel free to comment any grammar/typo you spot ;)
  
  
• I am also aware that there is a guide that also shows all of the content inside here, in a more simplified and compact way, but it might be too overwhelming and confusing for newer players, so I tried to do a more comprehensive guide instead.
  Still, feel free to use the other one if you want. It's pretty good too!
  https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2255354338

1. The Dwelling

First things first!
In the Dwelling, find the golden key in either 1-2 or 1-3. It is impossible for the key (and the chest!) to spawn on 1-1 or 1-4.
You will find it in different places, always on the top layer. The key will NEVER spawn on the background layer, so don't worry about that.
Take the key towards a golden chest located in the same level where you found the key.
The place where that chest is will always look the same: A wooden tile with a single entrance and a ladder going down.

If everything was done correctly, the Udjat Eye will pop out upon getting close to the chest with the key in your hand. Be sure to grab it!
(You will have to literally touch the chest to open it up. The distance portrayed in the picture does not represent the distance where the chest opens. The reason why I'm a little far from the chest and the Udjat eye, was just for esthetic purposes).

2A. The Jungle

If you chose the door with butterflies in 1-4, you will met the Jungle path, and I hope you have bombs, because you will need some of them to find the black market entrance, on either 2-1, 2-2, 2-3, or even 2-4!
Thankfully, the Udjat Eye at the top right, will open up their eye, beating faster and faster the more you get near the entrance.
*boom*

• If you are are still having troubles to find the black market, you can look for any entrance to the back layer (usually, the cave where the sisters are trapped in), and If the music changes, with a (not-so) entire different tone, the black market is in that level.
  
• If you have the compass, you will see two arrows appear, instead of one. This other arrow does not point at the entrance, but at the exit of the black market.
  
• Sometimes you can barely see the contour of the cave-entrance in the background, so be sure to look out for that too!
  
• It seems that the entrance is located always where there are an obsessive ammount of leaves. Still being guided by your Udjat eye, try to bomb where there are tiles with leaves!

Once you bomb out the entrance, you will have to descend until you reach the black market. Don't bother using ropes to get back up, there is an exit at the bottom right of the level.
I personally recommend to grab the four-leaf clover located at the upper area of the black market, as itprevents the ghost from spawning for two more minutes than normal for the rest of the level! (making it appear at the 5 minute mark, or 4:30 if cursed or with a dead co-op player). Take care if you are using the teleporter though, as it will guarantee the max range of your teleport for the rest of it aswell!

Before buying anything,I recommend making sure you buy the Hedjet first, a crown that will be used in 4-3.
The Hedjet is located at the far-right, after the first set of shops.

After the Hedjet is adquired, there is nothing more needed to be done in the Jungle path. Be ready to face off Olmec after 2-4!

2B. Volcana

If you chose the door at the right in 1-4, you will met the Volcana path, a place filled with fire and lava everywhere. I hope you don't have any flamable item in your back, or you will have to dodge an instakill death at every step!

Going at the actual steps, In 2-1, find a cave that has a key inside of it.
Then look for a cell door, and use your key on the door to open it up.
Inside, you will meet Van Horsing. He will help you safely kill a mini-boss, in their own castle, aswell as giving you a gem! Since that gem wasn't spawned by a ghost pot, no ghost will spawn. Thank you Van Horsing!

Some things to keep in mind:

• Sometimes you will find more than a single jail cell, with just a single key on the level. So if you are in the cave with the key, always move your camera up and down, by pressing the up/down key for some seconds, and try to spot where Van Horsing is, taking advantage of these two ALWAYS spawning in the back-layer. You know, just to avoid accidentally missing this step.
  
• If you do miss that step, don't worry, it will be slighty more difficult to do, but you haven't failed the run.
  
• If the level starts with a message that says "Your voice echoes here" (also known as a level "feeling"), it means the level is larger, so there is a high chance you will meet this "two jails, one door" situation.

After finding Van Horsing, you can freely go to the next level.
Be sure to look out the drill at 2-2 or 2-3! as a drill can spawn at the top of the level. This time, mine spawned at 2-3. Once you find it, go towards the platform I'm standing on the picture, and use the Udjat Eye on it. This will consume the item, taking it off from your inventory, activating the drill in the process. Once the drill is activated, you'll have to climb down where the drill headed (You can use the chain as a "rope").
If you have troubles finding the drill

• If you have the compass, it will show up two arrows. That will only happen if the drill is in that level.
  
• The drill is always located always at the top too, connected to the level boundaries.

Some things to also keep in mind after activating the drill

• Once activated, the drill will go towards the bottom of the level, and it will destroy anything in their path, including shops, Kali altars, and lava pools, so always be prepared for the worst. Sometimes the bottom will be filled with lava, sometimes angry shopkeepers will climb up, who knows! so don't be hasty, and take it easy. You will receive a clover after a bit too, which will prevent the ghost from spawning for two more minutes than normal! (making it appear at the 5 minute mark, or 4:30 if cursed or with a dead co-op player) for the rest of the level. Take care if you are using the teleporter though, as it will guarantee the max range of your teleport for the rest of the level aswell!
  
• If there is something in the way you don't want it to be destroyed, you can use some bombs to reach the bottom. There will be explosives nearby, so you can use it to chain explosions, but NEVER put a bomb on top of them, neither throw a bomb at those, as they are quite sensitive.

After you get down there, seek the red-colored tiles. There will be a back-layer entrance there with a clover.
Once you enter the back-layer, grab the clover and start climbing up (beware of skeletons and bats in the dark!)
Now that you climbed all of that, welcome to Vlad's castle!
Keep climbing, but bewary of vampires and traps. But there is a bigger threat, and that is Vlad, the vampire guarding the Royal Crown!
If you did the steps to get Van Horsing, he will quickly end with this threat, giving you an easy access to both the crown and Vlad's cape. After getting the crown, there is nothing more needed to be done in the Volcana path. Be ready to face off Olmec after 2-4!
If you didn't start Van Horsing's quest:

• Vlad will slowly flight towards you. DO NOT WHIP HIM OR YOU WILL BE TELEFRAGGED (Insta-killed) Instead, try to jump on top of him, and then kill him with an arrow from a dart trap once he is stunned. That is the strategy that I use to get his cape in a safe and consistent way. You don't need to kill him, so you can just get the crown and get out, but the cape not only gives a second jump, but also makes more blood drop, which is useful for another item.

3. Olmec's Lair

Welcome to Olmec's Lair!
For this next step, you'll have to kill Olmec.
Yup, all three phases. I won't be discussing how, since there are too much strategies to cover, so... have fun!
It's good to note that The Ghost won't appear in this level, so don't worry about the timer.

You will know when Olmec is officially dead as soon as their body touches the lava. Once it falls into the lava pool, land on top of his head, using it as a platform, and wait until he is low enough so you can get inside the cave.
After climbing a little, possibly dodging bats and skeletons in the dark, you will find the Ankh. It is VERY important to take care of it. The Ankh it's a one-time use item, that will automatically revive you on death. We have to purposedly kill ourselves in the fourth world for the next step, in a specific place, specially if you chose the Temple path. That is why you will have to avoid dying until we meet that place where we need to use it. The time will come, don't worry. For now, I want to personally congratulate you for beating Olmec. Good job!
If you don't have anything that will let you safely descend from the top like a cape, a jetpack, or ropes, be sure to open up the crate at the right. The crate on the top right has a guaranteed chance to spawn a parachute (And there is a coffin at the top left too, in case you want it!) But before getting out of the back layer, I recommend checking the next section: "Waddler 1"

~ Waddler 1

Before going to the next level, it is good to know that Waddler exists in Olmec's Lair. Waddler is basically an NPC that will move your items to "deeper levels" Also known as: 5-1
He is located in the first phase arena, the top layer, at the far right, next to a ladder.
Note: Sometimes the bush won't appear, but that does not mean Waddler isn't there!
You will obviously require at least two bombs to get there.
Now, the question is: "Should I give Waddler my items?" and the answer depends on which path you take. We just want to get to the 7th world, but it's a good thing to note that if you go towards The Temple of Anubis, you can chose to temporarily say goodbye to these items, tackling world 4 without anything more than what you find in the path, just to recover them after 4-4, or lose them as soon as you get out of 4-3 without any chance of recovering them, doing the rest of the 4th world, the 5th, and the 6th without any equipment, reaching the 7th world without anything, unless you find a shop with the exact items that you want, of course.
In short, and with spoilers: You will have to die in a specific way. Dying in that specific way, will make you drop your back and hand equipments. So for example, if you had a cape and a rock, you will lose both of them when you die. If you give the items to waddler now, you will have to do everything without the items, but you will recover them once you reach 5-1.
If that wasn't enough of a reason, we are gonna need to hold an item in both worlds, so if you have a weapon, it's recommended to leave it to Waddler. .
Remember you can also drop your back item by pressing down and the button you use to enter doors!
Once that is done, we can proceed normally to the 4th world.
You'll have two doors to choose. Tide Pool, where you fought Olmec's second phase (the one where it floats)
Or... The Temple of Anubis below Tide Pool's entrance. Your choice!

4A. Tide Pool

Welcome to Tide Pool! This time, we'll have to do things in every level, except 4-1, so don't worry about the route until 4-2, always trying to perserve the Ankh, until a very specific place comes to play in 4-3.
In 4-2, traverse towards the level until you reach the bottom layer, where you will find Excalibur. If you have a crown, you will be able to pull it out.
Just to list some alternative scenarios:

• Alternative B: If for some reason you don't have a crown(example: you used shortcuts), you can still achieve the run! but it will be a little complicated. You will need a minimum of 10 bombs and the Clone Gun from the star challenge located in 4-2. You will have an easier time if you have paste too. As soon as you get the clone gun, go towards Excalibur, and clone it to get a broken one. Don't worry, it still works, it's just not as powerful.
  
• Alternative C: If you weren't able to get the Clone Gun to get the Broken Sword, It's ok, don't panic, you can still complete the run, only that it will take a lot of patience, and maybe some more bombs.

Once you're ready, it is time to face 4-3!
Listen carefully: as soon as you enter the level, drop the sword (if you have it) and your back-equipment (by pressing down and the key you use to enter doors, if you have a back equipment, of course) why? because the time has come.
It is time to use the Ankh there.
Look for an entrance to the background layer, to be met with a one-way door.
Inside, you will find an idol-trap that you have to activate and then lava will fall out. You have to die anyways, so, enjoy the show!

• There are ways to avoid losing the Ankh here, but that is a speedrunning tactic, so I wont discuss that here. I'll probably make an entire separate guide on that section aswell, as it requires a lot of explanation.

Now that you were resurrected at the start of the level, grab anything you left up there and head towards the bottom again! This time, you'll find that the lava pool from before, is now gone from it's initial place, revealing a door that was before covered by lava!
This door will take you to a different 4-4.
Now, welcome to Abzu!
As soon as you enter, you will see some screen shake going on. Climb up, to see Kingu, your objective. Jump to the platform in her back as soon as you can, and start slashing until she is dead! The Ghost won't appear here, so don't worry about the timer.

• If you don't have that much ropes, nor mobility equipment, there is a back-layer entrance between the start and the exit of the level, underwater. That backlayer, most of the times, will let you get to the top with just 1 or 2 ropes.

After around 15 Slashes, she will be dead, droppping a valuable item: The Stone Tablet. This will be useful in the 6th world.
The reason why we need the sword, is because if you try hitting it with your whip from the start, it just won't hit. You will have to use 10 bombs before you can hit the shell, and it will take A LOT of time and whips. If you have the broken sword though, you will need to use 10 bombs, but it will take a lot less.
Now that she is dead, we are done here. Congratulations for beating Kingu! now, let's head to the next area.
The exit is located at the bottom left, but I recommend checking the rest of the level for some loot if you want, as The Ghost won't appear here.
Now, it is time to get to the 5th world. There is nothing to do there, other than finding Waddler if you used it before, so if you didn't, feel free to skip to the 6th world.

• You won't need Excalibur anymore, but feel free to take it with you, if you want. It doesn't really matter.

4B. Temple of Anubis

Welcome to The Temple of Anubis! This time, we'll have to do things in every level, always trying to perserve the Ankh, until a very specific place comes to play in 4-3.
First, find Anubis sitting on their throne at 4-1.

You can easily kill it with two paste bombs, or with spikes shoes. Anubis will drop the Scepter, an incredibly dangerous but powerful weapon that will target the nearest body, so if you wanna try it out, be careful where you shoot, as you might accidentally kill yourself/someone in co-op!

Sadly, the fun will be soon over, as we are gonna use the Scepter as a key in 4-2. If for any reason you don't have a crown, it will say "The Scepter fits, but nothing is happening!, making you unable to open up the door. The door where you are gonna use the Scepter, looks like this:

Upon using it as a key, the Scepter will dissapear, and you will be met with a special 4-3.

• Before proceeding, make sure you'll have more than 1 hp for the next level! Otherwise, all of your efforts will be gone to waste! More info about this in a bit.

"You've finally made it! The legends were true! The city of gold is real!".
I know you are throbbing with excitement, but don't use the Ankh yet. You first have to reach the middle of The City of Gold, where the Kali altar is.
Now, I know it sounds dangerous, but trust me: Once you are there, jump from as high as you can into Kali's altar, stunning and sacrificing you in the process.

• Here we can see a clear example why you should trust Waddler your stuff, instead of going to the temple with your equipment. Goodbye, Jetpack!

But now that we did that, you will see a cute cutscene of your soul traversing into a new and refreshed 4-4.

Welcome to Duat!
Duat may look scary at first, specially due to the color palette, making an entire contrast of the both The Temple of Anubis and The City of Gold, but if you move slowly, you should be fine. (Also, The Ghost does not spawn here!)
Why should you go slowly you ask? well...
It's because there is a (not-so) friendly serpent called "Apep" or as the community calls it, "Pepe

• You can see where Apep will appear because most of the times it is marked by 2 entire tiles of bone-blocks. Apep triggers as soon as you are between three tiles below and above that range.

Once you reach the top, the true bossfight will begin, with both Osiris and Anubis II going at you. (Anubis II was too shy for the picture, but they will be there). You can kill Anubis II with a single paste bomb, but I wouldn't recommend doing the same with Osiris, as it will take a lot of bombs, as most of the bombs gets blocked by their hands.
What I recommend doing, is to jump on top of a hand, and start back-whipping Osiris. Another thing you can do, is literally stomp on his head with spike shoes. He will die instantly.
After Osiris dies, a valuable item will drop: The Stone Tablet. This will be useful in the 6th world.

Now that he is dead, we are done here. Congratulations for beating Osiris and Anubis II! now, jump into the portal once you are ready so you can head to the next area.
Now you will meet the 5th world. There is nothing to do there, other than finding Waddler if you used it before, so if you didn't, feel free to skip to the 6th world.

5. Ice Caves (~Waddler 2)

Welcome to the Ice Caves!
In here, like we discussed before, there is not much to be done, unless you used Waddler's services before. In case you didn't, you can skip over to the next section.
To find our friend, you must find the yeti cave first, so you can enter the back layer, and spot where Waddler is.
For me, Waddler was located at the top right of the yeti caves. You can baaarely see it, but you found him!
So, how do we get there? First of all, try to visualize the point where the room starts, specifically, the entrance, which will always spawn at the left of that room. Now, we have to get out of the back layer, and bomb where you think the entrance is. You can also use landmines if you want.
Speaking of landmines, how convenient! a Landmine was set for me exactly where I was gonna bomb.
*boom*

Say Hi to Waddler, grab your things, and feel free to hop into the next level once you feel ready!

6. Neo Babylon

Welcome to the horrifying world of Neo Babylon!
There is nothing to do in 6-1, so you can relax, take your time to understand how scary this place is, and try your best to not die. We are almost into the 7th world, keep it up!
Once you reach 6-2, look for a back-layer entrance that looks like this.

• This entrance will always have an elevator on it's side.

Inside, you will find a lot of colored statues. These statues are named "Ushabti", and you'll have to grab the right one.
Remember the "valuable item" you got in the 4th world? aka The Stone Tablet? well, the Tablet will describe which Ushabti you have to carry onto the next level.

• They are not that fragile, don't worry. You can grab any Ushabti you want, it won't make you fail the run, unless you go

The Tablet says: A smiling servant of wood marked by the bat shall open the door for the Aspirant.
In my seed, it said the correct Ushabti is the Wooden-Smiling Ushabti with a bat engraving, it WON'T be the same everytime, so always check that everytime you get the Stone Tablet.
Once you find the right one, grab it and go to the next level.

• If you are having troubles finding the right Ushabti, have a small guide on their different looks.

If everything was done correctly, the Ushabti will begin to crack...
Revealing a new friend, Qilin! This good boy will let you fly as much as you want, for as long as you want! It's like a jetpack but without fuel!
Sadly, since it's a mount, it has HP. Specifically: 4 Health Points.
You'll have to reach Tiamat's throne with Qilin alive. Good luck with that! I recommend grabbing it instead of going to the end of the level while being mounted on it.

• It's good to note that you don't have to be mounted for Qilin to go with you to the next level. You can have him stunned in your hand, and he will proceed with you to the next level.

Say hello to Tiamat, and fly towards the Sky!--- (you don't need to kill her, by the way)
Soon enough, you will be met by A LOT of lasers (and anxiety!)
I know you may be sweating at this point, but you have to keep calm and time the jumps right. The lasers will activate and deactivate in cycles. You don't have to worry about fuel.
Since it is the last step of the run, it might look hard, but in reality it's quite easy, so get comfy around those lasers, and everything should be fine.
Congratulations! You have made it! Sadly, you can't take fly-boy with you (unless you are playing in co-op). Only thing that is left, is getting inside Olmec!

• IMPORTANT: If you made Tun hostile (The mouse/rat-faced NPC that you can meet in secret shops or in challenges), THEY WILL WAIT FOR YOU THERE, AND THEY ARE GONNA ATTACK YOU. So, if you did made Tun hostile... Best of wishes.

Now, you’ve conquered Neo Babylon,
The Ice Caves, Olmec, and the Dwelling
Went through lava, water,
Survived trough poison and curses
And even made some friends (or enemies) along the way.
You’ve learned to explore.
There’s no way left to go but up
And in a moment I’ll shut up, but let me say
I’m glad you came.

===Reaching 7-5===

To avoid any imagery from the 7th world in this guide, I made this one a separated guide:
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2307162936

[odddibbles]

then there would be " Neo Babylon: Frustration and stress expressed in level form "

[odddibbles]

might as well be: "the giude to hell: living with 37 purgatory sentences in one frickin world"

[Whitepatch]

@drumibe If you're really lucky/smart about it you can keep flammable backwear through the 4-3 trap. As long as you don't die to the lava you'll be ok.

[MicroToast]

You only need to drop you backwere i 4-3 A if it is flamable

[Danny Devito]

Cool guide, the drill can also spawn on 2-4 in Volcana though!

[Gloose]

If you could add some of the images that didn't get uploaded correctly that would be awesome, otherwise great guide!

[Myst3ry X]

I know that this have been added in a very recent patch but you get a jetpack in duat , after killing Anubis ||