The air above Vigan City was still and heavy, charged with atmospheric energy. It was 11:00 PM—the precise moment the Red Gate to the Ashen Keep dungeon would open, marking the start of the Volcanic Chimera's seven-day respawn cycle. I was clad in simple, dark clothing, my Epic Gauntlet radiating a silent, intense energy beneath my sleeve.
Juts had executed his task perfectly. I had confirmed the success of the paralyzing agent by observing Commander Salazar's residence from afar; the lights were off, and his security detail was inexplicably lax. Salazar was neutralized, giving me a twenty-four-hour window of total strategic dominance over Vigan's most valuable asset.
I found the Red Gate behind a crumbling warehouse near the docks. It was a terrifying spectacle: a shimmering, deep scarlet vortex that radiated oppressive heat and the sulfurous stench of ash.
This was no mere dungeon. In my past life, the Ashen Keep was known by its true name: Sola's Castle. It was an Epic-rank fortress designed to filter power—only those with overwhelming strength could even reach the boss.
I stepped through.
The heat was immediate, oppressive. The interior of the Castle was a vast, ruined lava tube system. The floor was jagged, cooled obsidian, crisscrossed with glowing veins of molten rock. The atmosphere was thick with ash and residual elemental fire energy.
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I moved with absolute efficiency. My goal was not to clear the dungeon but to bypass all non-essential combat and conserve my finite Lich Soulfire energy for the boss.
The guardians of the initial levels were Cinder Lizards (Rare-rank elementals) and Ash Golems. They operated by territorial defense and brute force—predictable threats.
I activated Shadow Step and Silent Form.
I moved like smoke, gliding past the Cinder Lizards entirely. When an Ash Golem blocked a crucial ascent path, I didn't engage in a power-draining structural fight. I simply used the Echo Rune, projecting the sound of a massive wall collapse down a side tunnel. The Golem, programmed to respond to structural threats, diverted immediately. I Shadow Stepped past its massive, slow body and continued the ascent.
My Epic Gauntlet was an engine of pure resource management. I used the Specter Sight continuously, filtering out the heat distortion to reveal hidden pathways, unstable steam vents, and the precise, minimal areas of Golem patrol routes.
Within fifty minutes—a time that would take even a full Rank A team two hours—I reached the central boss chamber.
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The boss chamber was a massive caldera, the air shimmering with intense heat. The Volcanic Chimera was perched on a central obsidian spire—a horrifying fusion of three distinct monsters: a serpentine tail of solidified magma, the massive forelegs and torso of a Black Bull, and two heads—one of rock and fire, the other of smoke and steam.
The creature roared, its eyes glowing embers. It immediately opened the fight with its signature move: a simultaneous blast of Molten Fire from one head and a choking cloud of Toxic Ash from the other.
This was the perfect test for my prepared defense.
I didn't try to dodge the combined area attack. I had to prove my mastery.
I activated Energy Null (Entropy/Defense). A small, invisible field shimmered around me, precisely destabilizing the concentrated flow of the incoming Molten Fire stream. The flame didn't stop, but its energy intensity was immediately cut by half.
Simultaneously, I activated the Polaris Ursus essence, raising an instantaneous, translucent shield of diamond-hard Ice Armor over my body. The weakened Molten Fire impacted the ice, hissing violently and reducing the shield, but failing to pierce it. The Toxic Ash rebounded harmlessly off the cold surface.
Offense Nullified. Defense Confirmed.
The Chimera, seeing its primary attack fail, charged with brute force. It was time for the final, devastating counter-offensive.
I activated the full might of the Crimson Lich Essence. I didn't rely on raw impact. I launched a barrage of focused Soulfire Lances—pure scarlet energy bolts designed to pierce the creature's elemental shell and target its inner core.
The lances struck the creature's rocky torso, not with explosive force, but with incendiary precision. The Lich's Soulfire bypassed the elemental resistances and began to consume the Chimera's internal, arcane bonds. The rock head shrieked, fire sputtering from its maw.
The Chimera was weakening rapidly, but it had one final, desperate move.