The System whisked them all away to a ruddy plane of volcanic rock, with only one occupant. A massive reptilian beast lorded over the expanse, billowing fumes leaking out of its mouth every now and again. Its scales glowed with the light of the sun, and a condensed aura of power expanded outwards from its form like an invisible Sword of Damocles. The ground beneath it bubbled and smoked from the intense heat, liquifying and boiling.
Sam was standing beside all of the survivors, and he was surprised to see that they had unconsciously adopted a formation with him at its head. Everyone realized that this was not an event that they could afford to trifle with. If any of them were to survive, they would need Sam’s help, mainly because the monster was keyed to his power. Without him, there would be no hope of victory.
Sam watched as the monster uncoiled, revealing hundreds of feet of sinuous coils, with four stocky legs keeping it off the ground. It opened its mouth, as if to yawn, but instead expelled a mighty burst of searing flame. The ground beneath turned to glass, and the fire condensed into a spear of pure heat that contained rich insights into a powerful Dao Seed. Sam was unable to sense what it was to any level of exactitude, given that it matched his own power.
Shields sprang up before the motley army, forming thick plates of elemental energy and Dao energy that coalesced into a bulwark that could have stopped a meteor. The spear of fire impacted it with far greater force than any such interplanetary wanderer though, and began to bore through. Sam started to gather up potency within his hammer, preparing his strongest attack. There could be no holding back here.
As the spear of fire melted away, only a few layers away from striking the E Rankers, Sam leaped forwards. His hammer blazed with the blinding light of a second order Dao Seed, as well as 15 points in elemental mastery. Finally, a tiny ball of condensed mana added a nuclear element to the construct, one that would ensure utter devastation.
His comparatively tiny figure arced across the air like a speck of dust suspended in a sunbeam. The brightness of his hammer increased until his own form was practically invisible. Then he descended towards the monster, ethereal flames billowing around his form.
As he fell, the army behind him charged, desperately seeking the damage positions that would let them ascend. Those who had already seized victory stayed back a bit, such as the lava wielding twins, who had already won enough events to pass on through the Tower. Most of the rest still here were the cream of the crop, but there were still more than a thousand challengers, which the weaker fighters would have to place amongst to progress.
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The serpentine monstrosity reared back on its hind legs and gathered energy in the back of its throat. Sam shook his head. The majority of the times that he used his most powerful skill, his foes seemed to want to match it with one of their own. Despite this observation, Sam was utterly serious about this attack. He could sense an immense level of power radiating from the energy coalescing within the monster’s throat, easily enough to match him if he wasn’t careful.
He continued without fear, building up momentum behind his almighty strike. His hammer continued to blaze, reflecting off the matte black surface of his new armor. Just before impact, he used his armor’s ability, and a wave of durability cascaded across his form, girding him against harm. He quickly channeled his other buffs, and his strength skyrocketed. Then he brought his hammer down.
The monster belched forth a pyroclastic blast of pure heat, the air before it bursting into flame. Sam brought his hammer down in an implacable arc, sending the full force of his being into it. It met the wave of flame like the fulcrum point of a world sized lever, extending its domain outwards to prevent the fire from reaching Sam. A tiny speck of light appeared on the end of the hammer, rapidly expanding into a supernova of energy as the weapon drained its power into the orb of light. Then it erupted forth, slamming into the wave of fire. Had it been a normal breath attack, it would have been instantly obliterated by Sam’s strike. However, it was absolutely filled with Dao energy and advanced elemental mastery, turning it into a technique that could have scorched a small country to bedrock.
Sam was transfixed midair by the nexus of power, continuing to blast his energy into the air before him. Even then, the heat began to reach him. His armor glowed a dark red color, and his skin started to blister as it continued to rise in heat. So durable was the metal that even the tiny glow represented an immense amount of heat, enough to vaporize most normal metals.
Sam let out a roar of rage, but for the moment, he was stuck. Then a beam of scarlet energy struck the monster on one of its hind legs, tearing through the scales and knocking it off balance. Sam looked down to see Jacob racing forwards, his fist glowing with incandescent light. Sam smiled, knowing that it would bolster the man’s Dao energy reserves. The Overlord had entered the fight.