Eventually, after determining that it was safe, Sam teleported to the top and opened it. Within was a pile of metal ingots, each of which glowed with a faint reddish hue. They looked like iron that was imbued with the spirit of a volcano, and they were warm to the touch. Sam shrugged and put them into his storage device. Although they were novel, they were not exactly the sort of treasure to get out of bed in the morning for. A month or two ago, Sam would have been happy, but he was a very different man now.
He left the chest behind, noting that it sank into the ground of its own accord, and flashed back towards his allies. They were making their way towards him at their own speed, fighting off the attacks of strangely shaped avian elementals that swooped down from thin air, as if forming out of the latent volcanic power. Sam lent his hand from afar, sending a lance of energy towards the flock. It blasted through a few, before detonating in a brilliant flash of red and blue power. Fueled by his new Dao, it was like it was propelled by rocket fuel. Sam could sense that the skill was close to an upgrade, but he would need to integrate his new Dao more securely to truly upgrade the skill. Right now, his skill was more aligned with rage than anything else, which meant that he would need to find a way to bind it to vengeance for it to work more efficiently with his powerset.
A few ideas were already percolating through his brain, but he put them on hold for now. He had a raid to direct.
It took about half an hour to clear out the monsters between them and the center of the dungeon, with energy attacks lancing across the space as they fought. They worked well in a team, with a balanced number of fighters on both sides of the martial spectrum. The monsters were no pushovers either though, and they gave as good as they got. For every ten monsters felled, one of the party members took an injury, generally a burn of some kind. Most of them did not have the sheer physicality that Sam did. However, there were ample rewards for this.
Everyone gained a few levels, and Sam managed to scrape two out by a hair’s breadth of essence. His leveling speed here was high, given the danger. However, everyone was forced to take breaks upon leveling, as all of them were quite far into F Rank. Node breaking was perilous at the best of times, and doing so in a dungeon was even more dangerous.
By the time they were facing the boiling lake of lava that filled the center of the cavern, all of them were hot, tired and aching from their level ups. Of course, this dissipated soon enough, but the memory was still there. As they watched the lake, it bubbled violently, and a group of monsters waded out. These ones were clearly elites, formed from a thicker type of lava that glowed with an auburn hue. They took the shape of four armed humanoids, ten feet in height. Plates of obsidian armor covered their bodies, with the light of their molten forms shining out between the cracks.
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“I think these guys took the concept of a lava lamp far too literally,” Jeffrey said, trying to inject a bit of levity into the situation.
However, everyone knew just how much of a fight was coming. These monsters were clearly just the beginning of the hordes to come, and likely the reason that the previous ones had been so lacking. The strongest monsters dwelled in the lake. Sam headed towards the strongest of the monsters, while the others found their own targets. Talnor set his eyes on the second strongest, and Eduardo on the third. Meanwhile, the two ranged fighters started to gather up elemental energy and Dao energy to support their allies. There were four of the monsters, with one of them clearly stronger than the others.
Talnor drew his katana from his sheath, imbuing it with an electric charge from the friction. With a battlecry, he slashed a dozen times in the span of a second, weaving a net of golden energy in the air. It hovered there for a moment, and then swooped towards the monster. The golem stared at the attack for a moment and then with blistering speed, it smashed its mace through the attack. Electricity played across its form, but it did little to hurt the monstrosity.
Sam teleported in the blink of an eye, appearing above the head of the monster. However, it somehow detected him, and it snapped its blunt skull up towards him, locking eyes. Its weapon, a massive ax that was more like a hammer, slashed through the air. A lesser man would have dodged, but Sam set his hammer in the path of the attack, blocking with his sheer strength. He anchored himself in place with Girdings of the Arbiter, and met the strike head on.
Shockwaves reverberated through his body as the attack made contact, and he almost was dislodged. The golem was dozens of times heavier than him, and its strength was immense, perhaps greater than his own. However, Sam had many other bonuses, not least of which was his Dao. He started to empower himself as soon as the attack made contact, and he began to grow in power as his Dao made itself manifest. He could feel a rival Dao rising within the golem as they fought, more than strong enough to combat that of a normal F Ranker. However, Sam was far from normal.
As the high stage Fragment blossomed within the golem, drawing from the volcanic surroundings, Sam slammed his Seed down on it. A crack rang through the air as the monster’s Dao shattered, breaking apart before the sheer power of Sam’s own. The golem staggered, and Sam pushed its weapon backwards, driving his hammer into its rocky temple. There was a blast of elemental energy and mana as he sent his energies rocketing down the haft of his weapon, and the monster’s head exploded.
Chunks of superheated rock slashed through the air, and essence rushed into him. It was a not inconsiderable amount, but it paled in comparison to beings like the Titans. Still, it was almost enough for a level up. Rather than steal the fighting experience from his allies, Sam simply watched, empowering them with the Mantle of the Arbiter. The Epic skill brought new power to their bodies, banishing the exhaustion and mental fatigue.