Talnor’s sword was like a blur, and even though the cutting weapon was ill suited against monsters made of rock, he managed to make it work. A current of electricity ran up and down the blade, melting the rock as it made contact. The sword slashed dozens of times every second, cutting through the rock with ease. However, the monster was larger than the length of the blade, which meant that Talnor was hard pressed to do any lasting damage.
Meanwhile, Eduardo’s rapier was like a beam of light, piercing through the golem in front of him like a shower of sunlight. Holes were blasted through the monster’s form every second, and it was falling apart at the seams.
Jeffrey and Lao fought side by side, sending energy bolts and cyclical energy racing through the air. One of the golems was shuddering as every motion sent a shockwave through its own body, a hallmark of Lao’s Dao. Jeffrey’s energy beams detonated in flares of radiant power, blowing chunks off the golems. However, the fight was far from a forgone conclusion. The golems were slowly pressing forwards, largely unhindered by the attacks. Although massive pieces of their bodies were being blasted apart, the monsters were more than large enough to tank it.
Sam did not see any reason to intervene however, as he ultimately had faith in his followers to win. As he watched, he began to cultivate his Dao, using the insights from the fight to aid him. Revenge was a concept that was easily gleaned from battle, as every fight was an expression of its concept. His Dao Seed of the Avenger was stimulated every time that he landed a hit on his enemy, or otherwise harmed them. Of course, the depths of insight that he needed for a Seed were far deeper than that of a Dao Fragment, so it all evened out in the end.
About ten minutes later, the fight finished up, with the captains finally wearing down their enemies. For fighting up multiple levels, they were doing quite well indeed. Of course, Sam himself was an outlier, and as such his own experience did not count.
As the golems fell apart into shards of rock, the lake began to boil once more, and the head of a massive monster breached the surface. This creature looked like a turtle made out of lava, and its entire body glowed with a bright orange light. Scales of lava rock floated around on its surface, swirling around the liquid flesh. It was over a hundred feet long, and its entire form emanated heat. A thick shell of cooler lava squatted upon its back, above a beak of blindingly hot molten rock. Lao found himself shielding his eyes, his focus on mental stats making itself known. Although the man was hardly weak by any sense of the word, he was a lot frailer than the others.
Sam hefted his hammer as the turtle rose out of the lake. This was a monster that was beyond the capacities of his captains alone.
The turtle bellowed in rage at the sight of the interlopers, and opened its beak wide. A spray of molten rock erupted outwards, and arced towards the group. Lao summoned a bright blue energy shield in front of the group, preventing the lava from hitting them. He channeled his power through his staff, taking some of its abilities for his own. As a result, the shield grew beyond its normal limits. The plane of roiling blue energy rotated rapidly in the air, sucking the momentum out of the lava blast, and redirecting it.
This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.
The molten rock struck the shield and bounced off, recreating a volcanic eruption in a display of Lao’s unique Dao. The lava shot back towards the turtle like a shotgun blast from hell, impacting it with the force of a meteor. Such was the nature of Lao’s abilities that the lava actually hurt the turtle, where it normally would have been useless. The monster recoiled, and bellowed once more, rising out of the lava pool. It set its feet down on the rim of the lake, and levered itself out. With a roar, it trundled forwards, melting the stone beneath its fiery stride. Sam summoned his mana and Dao energy to his hammer, bringing it back in preparation for the battle. With a surge of power, he rocketed forwards, bringing his hammer down like a thunderbolt. The turtle turned its head up towards him, but it was too slow.
His hammer impacted the monster’s head with a bang, blasting apart the loosely clumped lava that made up the turtle’s form. A shockwave rippled through the semiliquid monster, and it shuddered under the onslaught. Sam raised his hammer once more, but the turtle stamped its feet, creating a wave of pressure that swept him away. At this point, the others were also engaging, and Sam watched as he teleported to a more advantageous position. Talnor slashed through one of the monster’s forelegs, causing it to stumble, and Eduardo followed up with a light blade that carved off more of the limb. However, lava flowed from the pool to repair the monster’s wounds. That explained why it was so easy to damage.
A barrage of energy bolts came streaking in from Jeffrey as the turtle recovered, blasting apart more of its molten flesh. Sam moved in, swinging with wild abandon at the weakened monster. Its entire body was a walking source of danger, and even he was sweating in his armor. The others were likely feeling far worse. Lao was over a hundred feet away from the beast, and he was covered in perspiration. His skin was noticeably reddened. Jeffrey was a bit better off, but he still kept his distance. Only the three melee fighters were able to attack the turtle head on.
Sam pivoted in midair, teleporting rapidly to confuse the monster, and then plummeted down, imbuing his hammer with a seed of pure mana. Aiming at the rear end of the monster, he caved in its entire back, briefly separating it from the lava that healed it.
“Now!” He shouted, prompting the others to loose their most powerful attacks. He could have finished it off on his own, but that would destroy the point of this mission.
A storm of energy and light erupted from his allies, reducing the turtle to a spray of lava. It slumped to the ground and slid back into the lake, defeated. Essence rushed into them, but with it split five ways, it was not enough for a level up. Sam teleported back to his allies, and let out a sigh.
“This is a lot more exhausting than I had expected. The heat makes this so much worse.”
“If even you’re complaining, it must be bad,” Eduardo said, chuckling.
“I suppose so,” Sam replied.
As he prepared for the next wave, he started to hear a rumbling noise in the distance. Frowning, he turned around, and spotted a tide of red on the horizon. Eyes widening in alarm, he started to pack as much energy into his body as he could. The rest of the dungeon monsters were coming this way.