Can We Reconcile?
25: Hiss…
Can We Reconcile?
Chapter 25: Hiss…
Can We Reconcile?
[Boss: Found the kid!] [No.
2: Where?
What’s the situation!] [Boss: Not good!
She’s in the Boss room!] [No.
4: The Boss room?
Isn’t this the first floor?!] [No.
3: Hold on!
I’ll be there soon!] [No.
4: Wait!
What Boss is in the room?] A dense curtain of cross-shaped light bullets rained down like heavy artillery, tearing through the air toward the Boss.
Yet, the moment the glowing projectiles breached the perimeter of his scorching domain, they dissolved into harmless sparks.
The Boss raised his hand, and his [Explosive Flying Shield] whistled through the air, leaving a trail of searing heat in its wake.
On the other side of the cavern, the Snow Mountain Great Ape King let out an devastating roar.
It scooped its massive hands together, condensing the ambient frost into a gigantic snowball, and hurled it with devastating force.
The spinning shield and the massive sphere of ice collided violently in mid-air.
A deafening explosion ripped through the cavern, sending a shockwave of steam and debris in every direction.
[Boss: It’s the Snow Mountain Great Ape King!
But its size is ridiculously large!] [No.
4: Damn!
Do you guys feel the ground shaking?!] [Boss: Obviously!] Boom—!!!
The Ape King slammed both of its tree-trunk-like arms into the frozen earth.
A visible, jagged shockwave tore across the ground, sweeping toward the Boss and Ifrit like a localized tsunami.
His flaming pupils constricted.
The Boss immediately abandoned his offensive stance and fell back to Ifrit’s side.
He dropped to one knee, curling his massive frame to firmly shield the young Sarkaz girl with his own body.
The terrifying shockwave crashed over them, but it had absolutely no detrimental effect on the Boss.
Instead, absorbing the kinetic impact caused his molten body to surge with power, his physical form rapidly expanding until he towered at a staggering ten meters tall!
The Boss glanced down.
Beneath the shelter of his arms, Ifrit’s face was twisted in pain, her small body trembling from the overwhelming pressure of the environment.
Seeing her like that caused the inferno within his chest to flare with absolute fury.
“Roar—!” With a bellow that shook the cavern ceiling, the Lava Troll charged back toward the Ape King, leaving a trail of molten footprints in his wake.
The Ape King narrowed its crimson, bloodshot eyes.
It stood perfectly still, waiting for the exact moment the Boss closed the distance.
Then, it slammed its fists into the ground once more.
Rumble—!
The earth beneath the Boss’s feet instantly collapsed into a jagged sinkhole.
Losing his footing, the molten giant toppled heavily to one side.
Seizing the opening, the Ape King beat its chest in a thunderous rhythm.
The air chilled rapidly as countless razor-sharp ice shards materialized, shooting toward the downed Boss like a torrential rainstorm of glass.
The screeching hiss of ice instantly vaporizing against hyper-heated magma echoed continuously.
Within seconds, the entire battlefield was swallowed by a blindingly thick, white fog of steam.
The Ape King braced its hands against the shattered earth, its massive muscles coiling like springs.
Using the sheer momentum of its leap, the beast charged violently into the dense white mist!
“Roar—!!!!” Barrage!
It was a high-purity, unadulterated barrage of violence!
The Ape King swung its fists frantically at the brightest glowing silhouette within the fog, while simultaneously summoning a localized blizzard, indiscriminately raining ice shards downward to shred its target!
One second passed.
Two seconds passed.
Three seconds passed.
Four seconds…
The Ape King’s eyes suddenly bulged.
Mid-swing, its massive fist had been caught.
The beast’s feet touched back down onto the cavern floor.
The resulting shockwave from its landing blew the surrounding curtain of steam away.
“Roar…” Rolling waves of suffocating heat washed over the Ape King’s face.
As the white mist finally dissipated, the figure standing before it was no longer a ten-meter creature.
It was a Lava Troll whose sheer mass was rapidly approaching twenty meters!
The Ape King immediately registered the drastic change in its opponent’s size, its primal instincts screaming at the exponentially increased threat level.
It instantly condensed another massive boulder of ice in its free hand and brought it smashing down toward the Boss’s head!
It was entirely useless.
The snowball vaporized into a harmless puff of steam the very millisecond it grazed the Boss’s molten armor.
The Lava Troll’s body continued to expand, breaking the twenty-three-meter mark, completely eclipsing the Ape King’s once-imposing stature!
Caught between shock and rising panic, the Ape King ripped its other fist back and threw a desperate punch right at the Boss’s face.
Smack.
It was firmly caught by a second, magma-dripping palm.
A searing, agonizing pain flared across the skin of the Ape King’s knuckles.
Reacting purely on survival instinct, the beast condensed a thick layer of permafrost around its trapped arms to stave off the burning.
The clash of absolute heat and absolute cold produced another massive eruption of steam, once again shrouding the two colossal beasts.
“Roar—!!!” The Lava Troll roared.
To the Ape King’s absolute disbelief, the molten giant lifted its entire body off the ground and slammed it mercilessly into the cavern floor!
The bedrock shattered and caved in under the impact.
The Ape King let out a miserable, agonizing shriek.
But immediately following the cry of pain, the Ape King’s eyes ignited with an intense, blinding red light.
The Floor Boss had entered its half-health berserk state!
Its muscles bulged to grotesque proportions, tearing through its skin, while its snow-white fur was stained with an ominous, blood-red hue.
A surge of berserk kinetic energy exploded outward, actually forcing the Boss’s overwhelming weight upward!
The Boss did not yield an inch.
He poured more strength into his grip.
The two terrifying behemoths stood dead center in the ruined cave, their four hands locked together in the most primitive, brutal test of raw strength imaginable!
The surrounding earth groaned and splintered continuously under the sheer pressure of their clash.
It was a terrifying display of power, enough to level mountains and sunder the earth.
“Roar—!!!” x2 The two giant beasts roared in unison.
A curtain of apocalyptic fire and a wave of absolute zero cold crashed into each other face-to-face, producing a violent explosion of white mist that swallowed their heads.
Within the blinding fog, crimson berserk eyes and flaming pupils filled with unyielding rage stared fixedly at each other, mere inches apart!
Suddenly, the smoke was blown away by a violent, unnatural airflow.
The Ape King’s jaws were unhinged, stretched wide open.
Deep within its throat, a destructive, cross-shaped beam of pure energy was frantically gathering!
How utterly despicable!
It was actually using the deadlock to charge a point-blank blast while the Boss’s hands were restrained!
A hint of cunning flashed within the Ape King’s berserk red pupils.
With both of your hands locked, how will you defend…
Bang—!!!
A heavy, molten punch containing world-shattering destructive power smashed fiercely onto the top of the Ape King’s skull!
The sheer force of the blow instantly slammed its upper and lower jaws shut.
The terrifying energy that had not yet fully erupted was violently detonated inside the beast’s own mouth.
Huge, shattered fangs mixed with scorching blood and jagged ice shards blew out from between its lips.
The Ape King was completely stunned by this attack from a “third party.” The agonizing, stinging pain inside its ruined mouth proved that the strike was absolutely real.
But…
the tactile sensation of its hands being locked with the Lava Troll’s two hands was also undeniably real!
Who is it?!
Where did the attack come from?!
Enduring the severe concussion, the Ape King forced its eyes to focus on the entity standing before it, its pupils shrinking in sheer, unadulterated disbelief.
Behind the Lava Troll, scorching magma churned violently in the air.
A third, much thicker arm made entirely of liquid fire was slowly retracting, residual red light still flashing off its knuckles.
[Divine Transformation] Accompanied by the heart-stopping, rhythmic thud of surging lava, the Lava Troll’s figure expanded once again.
A massive, suffocating shadow completely enveloped the Ape King’s trembling form.
At the same time, a fourth, equally massive lava arm condensed and solidified behind the Boss’s back.
Oh, it’s fine.
The Boss just has four hands now.
Ape King: “…” “Roar…” (Hiss…
Can we reconcile?) The answer to its plea was immediate.
“Roar—!!!” (Ora ora ora ora!!!) Barrage!!!
The Boss was using a barrage too!!!
And it was faster!
Infinitely stronger than the Ape King’s!!!
The two front hands remained locked, pressing down firmly on the Ape King’s arms, pinning it in place.
Meanwhile, the two newly formed, colossal arms behind his back swung down frantically at a speed completely invisible to the naked eye!
Boom boom boom boom—!!!
Not only that, but those two giant arms ignited with blinding, apocalyptic red light and explosive flames!
Due to the extreme, terrifying speed of the strikes, the violent flames actually merged, forming a solid, circular ring of fire around the Boss’s upper body!
The Ape King’s skull was constantly deforming, caving in, and charring black under the terrifying, storm-like barrage of molten fists!
It couldn’t even manage to let out a single wail.
“Roar—!!!” Accompanied by the Boss’s final, earth-shaking roar, the two front arms suddenly released their grip, and the two burning giant arms behind him ceased their relentless assault.
All four massive lava hands clasped together, forming a single, colossal meteorite fist.
With the weight of a falling star, he smashed it down fiercely into the Ape King’s exposed, bloodied chest!
The snow-white ribcage caved in instantly.
Along with the sickening, crystal-clear sound of shattering bone, a beam of scorching, concentrated light pierced straight through the beast’s back!
“Awooo…” The Ape King let out a pathetic, dying wail.
Its originally deafening, arrogant voice now sounded incredibly small and miserable.
However, the Boss didn’t even intend to grant it the right to a final cry.
Two hands shot out, pinching its thick neck like molten iron pincers.
The other two hands violently grabbed its upper and lower jaws, mercilessly forcing them apart!
The Ape King had absolutely no strength left to struggle.
Its eyes held only the most primitive, agonizing fear and desperate pleading as it stared up at the Boss, who now looked like a descending demon god.
The Lava Troll opened its giant mouth, and a blinding light—like a miniature sun—gathered within the depths of its throat.
Reflected in the Ape King’s despairing eyes, the Boss pulled the beast’s broken head closer.
With two hands forcing its jaws to their absolute maximum width, he fired a point-blank blast directly down the depths of its open throat!
Liquid fire surged out from the Ape King’s seven orifices, immediately followed by the rapid expansion of its torso.
Boom—!!!
Accompanied by a deafening explosion, the Ape King’s massive body was blown apart from the inside out, turning into countless charred, bloody fragments that scattered across the entire cavern.
A single, broken eyeball rolled across the ground, stopping with a soft plop right at Ifrit’s feet.
The final, absolute despair was still permanently etched into its frozen pupil.
“Roar—!!!” The Lava Troll, having utterly eradicated the strong enemy, threw his four arms wide open and let out a triumphant roar, looking exactly like a victorious gladiator standing over a conquered arena.
Ifrit sat on the ground, staring at the scene before her.
It felt like a myth reborn right in front of her eyes.
She was completely speechless for a long time.
Is this…
the true Flame Demon?
Following the death of the Floor Boss, the ground in the center of the cave began to rumble.
A massive, gorgeously decorated treasure chest slowly rose from the earth.
At the exact same time, on the open ground flanking both sides of the treasure chest, a ghostly blue portal and a dark purple portal unfolded silently in the air.
Ifrit’s gaze was immediately drawn to the familiar blue portal.
Is that the exit?
She pressed her hands against the scorched ground, trying to push herself up.
However, the Lava Troll had also turned his attention to the newly spawned treasure chest.
And then, he actually started punching it.
The intense, rhythmic shaking of the cavern floor made Ifrit, who had only just managed to stand, lose her footing and fall hard onto her back again.
Plop…
It was a soft sound, but it was enough.
The Lava Troll suddenly snapped his head around.
His burning, molten pupils locked onto her instantly.
Ifrit stared back at him.
She hesitated for a fraction of a second, then gritted her teeth and stood up once more.
She took a tentative step toward the towering giant, gathered every ounce of her courage, and spoke: “Um…
thank you…” “Roar—!!!” A scorching heat wave violently rushed toward her face.
The last thing that entered Ifrit’s field of vision was a massive lava meteorite fist, rapidly expanding until it covered her entire view.
[Rhodes’s Note: Enjoying the operation so far, Doctor?
(This daily grind literally pays the landship’s rent!
to use the links!)