Lin Jun, who was following the adventurers from a distance, started to feel something was off.
This path seemed so familiar,
Wasn't this the road to the Flame Demon's lair?
Lin Jun was well aware that there hadn't been any battles at the Flame Demon's nest; otherwise, the mushrooms he had around there would have detected any magic power fluctuations.
Could it be that after the Flame Demon went out last time, it didn't return and missed them when they came down?
He had always thought these people had taken a route unknown to him. After all, the Deep Area's vastness and multiple entrances were beyond his capacity to explore.
Since they were heading towards the Flame Demon's nest, the question now was—has the Flame Demon returned home?
————
"Ha, now I can finally relax."
Having found the Duke's Daughter, Gall was in high spirits. What adventurer wouldn't be tempted by the reward of an entire city?
"Captain, you don't know how desperate I was when you said the direction changed on the 9th floor, I thought she might have been trapped in the touch..."
Before Gall could finish, Night Owl kicked him.
Seeing the pink Puki in Night Owl's arms, he recalled that Inanna was still here, and his previous words might have been a bit too candid.
"Ahem."
As always, Captain Nova stepped in to change the subject.
"Ivan, do you have the confidence to undo Miss Inanna's transformation technique?
Do we need to find some professional to break the curse once we're out?"
Ivan didn't like what he heard: "Do you think I'm no better than those third-rate hacks?
It's just a transformation that used a solidification potion; do you think it can stump me?
It's not as hard as turning you guys back from scarecrows in the Scarecrow Abyss."
Nova was just trying to change the topic but inadvertently stepped on Ivan's sore spot, leading to an awkward laugh:
"I don't understand, I don't understand, as long as you're confident..."
Unknowingly, they had returned to the entrance that connected to the upper levels.
The heat was just as intense as ever.
Night Owl, already intolerant of heat, felt even hotter with a Puki in her arms.
But considering Inanna was still a Duke's Daughter, even as a Puki it wouldn't be right for a man to hold her casually.
Night Owl had no choice but to endure the heat, quickening her pace slightly.
On the other hand, Inanna seemed unfazed by the heat in Night Owl's embrace, thanks to her Level 6 resistances.
"Wait!"
The short, urgent voice of Great Mage Ivan made Night Owl and the others halt.
"The magic power fluctuation has changed."
[Reconnaissance Skill]
"Night Owl," the Great Mage's voice was steady, "take the lady and go."
Night Owl gave Ivan a glance; although this old half-elf was often eccentric during his magic addiction phases, he was the most experienced in the group when sober.
Without hesitation, she merged with Inanna into the elongated shadows of the group, darting quickly into the passageway.
Just as she vanished, the entire cave began to quake.
The magma pools on both sides surged like boiling veins, with viscous golden-red bubbles bursting one after another, spewing sulfurous smoke and heat waves.
Night Owl's departure alerted the hidden enemy that they had been discovered, prompting it to not let the remaining prey escape.
With an inhuman roar, a massive figure emerged from the magma pool.
A mountain-like upper body made of semi-solidified lava and charred bones, its dark red rock shell encasing its body and the Heart of Lava within as if it were armor.
At the same time, several human-sized flame monsters, appearing as smaller versions of it, leaped out to block the path.
Gulp—
The half-dragon swallowed hard.
"A Flame Demon...and magma puppets..."
"Careful, there's a Level 64," Ivan stated after using the reconnaissance skill to assess the Flame Demon's power.
There was no time for further exchange; the Flame Demon had already swung its magma giant fist at them.
[Shield Domain]
Gall raised his shield to form a massive shield phantom in front of them, forcibly blocking the blow.
However, given the level difference, he wasn't unscathed, with blood continuously seeping from within his armguard.
[Resurgence]
[Life Potential]
Nova took a sharp breath, releasing two spells of healing and enhancement, allowing Gall to barely maintain the Shield Domain.
With another roar, realizing it couldn't directly crush these insects, the Flame Demon lifted a tidal wave from the magma pool beneath it.
Sensing the danger, Ivan decisively inserted an A Level Demon Crystal into his abdomen, simultaneously casting [Awakening Technique] to keep himself sane amidst the turbulent magic power, albeit at great personal pain.
Facing a Level 64 Flame Demon, he dared not hold back, giving his all at 300% strength.
[Ice Ring]
The embedded Demon Crystal provided him with a power boost far beyond that of an ordinary magic staff, the Ice Ring spreading from the three of them in all directions.
It froze the rocky ground, the few magma puppets, and collided with the magma wave, barely solidifying it in place.
"We need to flee...quickly."
The excruciating pain stimulated every nerve in Ivan's body; he couldn't sustain this status much longer.
Even under this explosive enhancement, his magic could only just match the Flame Demon's ordinary power, prolonging the fight would mean certain death.
"I'm afraid it's not that simple."
The Flame Demon had moved near the passage entrance, blocking them, as they tried to resist the magma.
Seeing this, Ivan finally cursed:
"Damn it, if we manage to survive this, I'll apologize to Kemo; the last time she said Flame Demons were highly intelligent, I laughed at her..."
"What now, should we retreat?"
The half-dragon glanced at the passage they came from, thinking there might still be time to retreat.
"No, hold on for a while longer."
Nova's tone was that of someone who had made a decision, and after working with him for ten years, Gall knew exactly what he intended to do.
"You want to use that? Even that might not handle such a Flame Demon!"
Ivan remained silent. After blocking another wave of magma, he was in too much pain to speak, saving his last strength for the next spell.
Nova did not explain but merely exchanged a glance with the half-dragon, who, as usual, chose to trust his captain.
A small twig with two budding green leaves was taken out from Nova's bosom.
Lin Jun, observing from afar, immediately noticed this item on the panel.
[Divine Artifact: Yesheng Wood Core (Remnant)]
Another Divine Artifact!
Magic power flowed into it, but it wasn't just magic power.
Nova's life force was also being drawn out in large quantities, visibly causing him to thin.
After finally satiating the Divine Artifact, Nova pointed it at a corner of the Flame Demon's chest—there was a tiny crack on its rocky shell.
Seeing this detail was why he dared to counterattack here.
A green bud turned into a beam of green light, piercing through the Flame Demon's armor and shattering the Heart of Lava within its chest.
The Flame Demon, who had moments ago been assured of victory, suddenly suffered a fatal blow.
With its core shattered, it could no longer support its massive form and collapsed beside the magma pool, letting out one last feeble wail.
The strongest creature Lin Jun had ever seen, one that had blocked him for years, died just like that.
He felt the heat emanating from the sunstone fragment beneath the carapace.
This is what a Divine Artifact is...