Chapter 153: The Flame Core [1]

The six-armed stone titan loomed over the iron walkway, its volcanic core blinding the cavernous vault with orange glare. Heat radiated from its towering frame in suffocating waves, warping the surrounding iron pillars under intense thermal stress.

Kale Ardentis stood at the front of his strike team, his green eyes locked onto the glowing fire core embedded within the creature’s chest. His Hexarion physiology remained completely unfazed by the rising temperature, his Flame Resistance passive trait absorbing the worst of the heat.

The four Peak Master enforcers behind him raised their heavy shields, their faces pale as they stared at the Apex rank horror. None of them had ever fought a six-armed stone giant in such close quarters, where a single sweep of its massive fist could crush them to paste.

’Form a defensive perimeter near the stairwell entrance.’

’Do not draw its primary focus.’

The lead enforcer nodded quickly, guiding his men back toward the iron doorway to lock down the escape route. They formed a tight shield wall, ready to intercept any secondary feral specimens that might breach the shadows.

Kale channelled his Beast Force through his internal pathways, green mana wrapping around his arms and legs in a high-frequency vibration. He unsheathed his twin silver daggers, his fingers steady on the pommels as he mapped the Goliath’s heavy movement vectors.

The air in the subterranean cavern grew increasingly dense as the giant shifted its massive weight. Each step of the six-armed horror sent violent tremors through the iron walkway, loosening ancient stone dust from the high ceiling arches.

Neo shot off his shoulder, shifting from matte black to shimmering green as its three heads let out a sharp growl. The hydra flapped its wings, hovering high above the stone giant to draw its six glowing yellow eyes away from Kale.

The Obsidian Goliath let out a deafening, gravelly roar that sent dust and loose stone raining down from the vaulted ceiling. It swung three massive stone arms at once, sweeping across the walkway with enough force to shatter solid bedrock.

Kale blurred into motion, diving beneath the sweeping stone fists with surgical precision. His boots gripped the iron walkway as he slid across the floor, using Lesser Mana Manipulation to coat his daggers in pure energy.

He struck the beast’s left ankle joint, driving the vibrating blade straight into the soft volcanic seam between the rock plates. A sharp crack echoed through the chamber as stone fragments exploded outward, forcing the giant to stagger sideways.

The massive creature thrashed in anger, its remaining three arms slamming onto the iron platform in a desperate attempt to flatten the moving target. The blow tore through the metal grating, leaving deep trenches in the floor.

High above the walkway, Neo activated its Flame Form, its entire body erupting in a pillar of incandescent orange fire. The three-headed hydra unleashed a concentrated stream of refined fire essence directly into the Goliath’s face.

The ancient Apex beast roared in frustration, its upper arms flailing as it tried to swat the shimmering fire spectre out of the air. Its volcanic skin resisted the flames, but the sheer thermal density forced its central eye nodes to contract in pain.

’Neo, use Rattling Roar on its central core!’

The hydra’s three heads opened their maws wide, releasing a devastating, low-frequency psychic shockwave directly at the giant’s chest. The psychic pulse struck the volcanic core, causing the internal fire mana to fluctuate wildly and disrupt the beast’s nervous channels.

The Goliath froze for a brief half second, its six arms rigid as the internal mana shockwave paralysed its stone joints. Kale seized the opening instantly, pushing his Hexarion physical strength to its absolute limit as green energy exploded beneath his feet.

Kale leapt five meters into the air, landing directly on the giant’s lower right arm. He sprinted up the petrified stone limb with incredible agility, his silver daggers carving deep grooves into the volcanic rock.

The Goliath tried to shake him off, but Kale drove his left dagger deep into its shoulder seam, anchoring himself firmly. He brought his right dagger up with a swift motion, driving the blade directly into the exposed core housing in the centre of its chest.

The volcanic stone cracked open, exposing the radiant, pulsating fire core resting within the giant’s chest cavity. The raw elemental density radiating from the orb was immense, casting a blinding light across the dark vault.

The surrounding air shimmered with extreme thermal radiation as the core’s protective shell was breached. The sheer concentration of pure fire mana began to scorch the surrounding stone walls, turning loose mineral dust into glowing embers.

’Neo, execute All Devour!’

The Nemesis Hydra descended from above like a green arrow, its three heads biting directly into the exposed chest cavity. Its sharp jaws locked onto the glowing stone core, tearing it free from the giant’s central nervous nodes with savage strength.

Neo unhinged its maws and swallowed the pulsing Apex core whole, instantly activating its All Devour trait to digest the fire essence. The six-armed Obsidian Goliath let out a final, hollow rumble as its glowing core vanished, its stone body rapidly crumbling into a pile of lifeless grey boulders.

The massive rock collapse echoed through the cavernous sector, filling the air with a dense cloud of grey dust and sulfurous smoke. The iron walkway groaned under the sudden weight of the fallen rubble, but the primary structure held firm.

Kale landed lightly on the iron walkway as the mountain of stone collapsed behind him, wiping dark dust from his Master robes. Neo landed on his shoulder, its dark scales glowing with an intense, radiant warmth that illuminated the quiet chamber.

Blue text windows flickered rapidly across Kale’s retina, logging the massive influx of refined elemental energy. The internal pathways of his beast hummed with unprecedented stability as the core digested fully.

[The Nemesis Hydra has devoured the core of an Apex-rank Obsidian Goliath.]

[Fire Affinity increased by 1%. Current Fire Affinity: 100%.]

[Fire Affinity has reached complete consolidation!]

[The Half Flame Core has fully evolved into a pristine Flame Core.]

[The Nemesis Hydra has unlocked the skill: Volcanic Devastation.]