Kang Oh rushed at a nearby 3 meter Lava Spirit.

Whoosh!

The Lava Spirit swung its fist, unleashing a dark red pillar of fire.

Flame Cannon!

Kang Oh swung Demon Sword Ubist downwards.

Lightning Breath!

Crackle!

Sparks danced over his jet-black blade.

Boom!

The lightning blast drilled through the flame pillar and struck the Lava Spirit's face.

Bam!

The spirit reeled from the impact. Kang Oh quickly closed in and horizontally swung his sword.

Swish.

Kang Oh cleaved through its waist as if he were cutting through tofu. Red shards of light flew through the air. However, he hadn't been able to cut through it entirely. There was a tough mineral within its body, which stopped his blade from going all the way through.

"Tch." Kang Oh clicked his tongue. Abyss Blade wasn't able to display its full power.

Kuooh!

The Lava Spirit stretched out its arms, and attempted to strangle him. Kang Oh backed off, but…

Spurt!

All of a sudden, flames surged from beneath his feet. This was the work of the Lava Spirit's 'Eruption' skill.

Kang Oh gritted his teeth and turned his body to the side. The flames singed his flank and his thigh. Although he'd taken some fire damage, it wasn't that big of a deal.

"Don't try to do everything by yourself."

"Yeah, be careful with the big ones."

The Dwarven Warriors came over and surrounded the Lava Spirit.

"I'll leave it to you!" Kang Oh turned around.

Dealing with the 3 meter Lava Spirits was tough. However, he could kill smaller (2 meter or less) Lava Spirits in a single hit.

If that's the case, then he'd leave the larger Lava Spirits to the Dwarven Warriors, and kill as many of the smaller Lava Spirits as he could!

'That guy!' Kang Oh rushed towards a Lava Spirit, which was just a little over 1 meter in size, and instantly cut it into pieces.

Then...

"Retreat!" Randelhoff abruptly ordered.

'What?' Kang Oh took a look around. The battle heavily favored the expedition force. This wasn't the time to be retreating.

"A lava wave is coming!" Book yelled.

'Ah, the lava wave!' Kang Oh realized why Randelhoff had ordered their retreat.

A lava wave would appear at random and sweep through a portion of the bridge. Anyone caught in the lava wave would die, no question about it.

"Hurry up and retreat!" Randelhoff yelled.

Kang Oh, Eder, and the Dwarven Warriors rushed towards the start of the bridge.

Spurt!

A giant wave of lava covered part of the bridge. It was truly a breathtaking sight.

"Ugh, if you get caught in that, then you're 100% dead," Eder said.

"Yeah, probably." Kang Oh kept the statement 'Be careful of the lava wave' at the forefront of his mind.

Once the lava wave passed, a few puddles of lava remained on top of the bridge. Minerals they hadn't seen before had been left behind too! When the lava wave comes through, it leaves behind rare gems.

"Get to it!" Randelhoff yelled.

"Mining team, follow me."

Ten dwarves ran across the bridge towards the newly formed minerals. At the same time, the lava rose several times, spawning new Lava Spirits.

"Protect the mining team! Don't let the spirits absorb the minerals!" Book yelled.

If the Lava Spirits absorbed the minerals, then they would evolve into named monsters.

"Uaaah!"

"Attack!"

The Dwarven Warriors charged. Even Randelhoff and Book, who'd focused exclusively on leading the troops thus far, joined the battle.

* * *

The Black Hammer Dwarves had been Inarius's slaves for a long time. Moreover, their bodies had been modified without their consent as well!

The Dwarven Warrior, Igriham. An ogre's muscles had been transplanted into his body, giving him incredible physical strength. As a side effect, however, his face became extremely ugly.

He was once considered the handsomest of them all, but one experiment had turned him into the ugliest. That's why he didn't remove his helmet, even when he wasn't in battle. Back then, he'd been bright and sociable, but now, he was cold and reserved.

"Enemies. Attack until they're dead." Igriham swung his hammer at a Lava Spirit. It was a strike with the physical might of an ogre!

Whoosh!

Bam!

His attack was so powerful that the Lava Spirit was flattened like a rice cake.

Roar!

The Lava Spirit fiercely swung its arms, and the surging flames burned Igriham. In spite of that, Igriham remained calm. He simply whacked the Lava Spirit with his hammer again and again.

Whack! Whack! Whack!

The two quickly lost HP. However, the Lava Spirit was the first to die.

"Hmm." Igriham dusted off the flames as if it were no big deal.

The Dwarven Warrior, Book. His left eye wasn't his own. Book's original eye had been replaced by a Basilisk's eye, which petrified anything within its sight.

Book's helmet partly opened, revealing his left reptilian eye.

Petrifying Evil Eye!

The charging Lava Spirit suddenly froze. Its lower body began to stiffen and turn gray.

Roar!

All it could do was punch him, so that's what it did. Its fists burned with mighty flames.

Fire Mace!

Book swung his hammer in turn.

Bam!

The Lava Spirit's fist and Book's hammer clashed! They clashed a second and third time too. Book kept swinging his hammer, and the Lava Spirit kept punching him.

How much time had passed?

The Lava Spirit gave in first. Its entire body had turned to stone, so it could no longer move.

"Rest in peace." Book swung his hammer, smashing the Lava Spirit's head.

Crack!

The Lava Spirit broke into pieces.

Diamond-like black scales sparsely covered Randelhoff's face. Randelhoff was implanted with a Germadil's cells, giving him these steel scales.

Anyhow, these scales allowed Randelhoff to fend off steel weapons with his body. Moreover, he'd carefully constructed his armor, and even carried around a shield too. Thus, Randelhoff had the greatest defense here. He was obviously their tank, the one who took all of the enemies' attacks.

"It doesn't even tickle, you bastards!"

Randelhoff ordered his troops while tanking three 3 meter Lava Spirits.

"Mining team, hurry up! The rest of you, protect the mining team and don't let the Lava Spirits get close to the rare minerals! Book, be on the lookout for the lava wave!"

Each of the Dwarven Warriors had an unusual ability. They were all victims of inhumane experimentation after all! These unusual abilities gave them an edge on the battlefield.

Plus, Kang Oh and Eder were doing more than their fair share. Kang Oh quickly killed any Lava Spirit that was 2 meters or less in size, while Eder protected the mining team with his bone magic.

Obviously, the expedition force was victorious!

"May I take a look at the mineral?" Kang Oh approached one of the dwarves. The dwarf was right about to put the mineral into his bag.

"Go ahead." The dwarf passed him the mineral.

'Let's see here...'

The crystal was mostly red, but had a wavy yellow pattern on it.

"Item appraisal."

[Precious Lava Crystal (Gemstone)]

A mineral that has long been condensed in lava. Powerful fire energy resides within it.

Material Rank: AA.

'Hmm. It's not special.' Kang Oh took a look at the mineral, hoping that his Hyper Intuition might activate, but nothing happened.

"Thank you for letting me take a look." Kang Oh, who'd lost all interest in the mineral, immediately passed it back to the dwarf.

Then...

"We're advancing again!" Randelhoff yelled.

The expedition trudged forward.

* * *

"A lava wave is coming!" Book yelled.

"Where's it coming from?"

"From behind. We have to keep going forward."

"You all heard that, right? Forward!" Randelhoff yelled.

Sometime later...

A lava wave swept through a portion of the bridge. But this time, the lava wave was much larger than before. Thus, a ton of minerals appeared on top of the bridge.

Countless Lava Spirits came for the minerals, intent on absorbing them and becoming named monsters.

"There are a lot of them. Hold off on mining, and focus on the battle!" Randelhoff yelled.

"Ooh!"

"Let's go!"

The Dwarven Warriors fought one or two Lava Spirits at a time. Kang Oh and Eder took out the nearby Lava Spirits first.

Because there were so many lava crystals out there, a few of the Lava Spirits managed to absorb them and evolve.

[The Lava Spirit has evolved.]

[The Enraged Lava Spirit, Curis!]

[The Lava Spirit has evolved.]

[The Enraged Lava Spirit, Baltion!]

[The Lava Spirit has evolved.]

[The Enraged Lava Spirit, Kesarman!]

Named Lava Spirits! They were more than 5 meters in size, and they possessed robust upper bodies. They had gold bracelets around their arms, and black smoke rose from their bodies.

"Keep up your guard!" Randelhoff yelled roughly.

Whoosh!

Whenever a named Lava Spirit swung its fist, flames would shoot out of it.

"Dodge!"

"We need reinforcements over here!"

"Kill the small ones first!" a Dwarven Warrior yelled angrily.

The Dwarven Warriors shielded themselves, pushed through the flames, and bravely swung their hammers.

Eder was busy out of his mind. After all, he was the only member of the expedition that could provide long-range support.

He swung his scythe.

AoE Curse: Slow!

Chains flew everywhere. Any Lava Spirit affected would move slower than before.

"Grow!" Eder attacked using Bone Spears, and cast a Bone Wall to keep the flames from spreading. He remembered to use Bone Bomb on occasion too.

'Now it feels like a dangerous dungeon.' Kang Oh's eyes gleamed.

Although it had been called one of the three most dangerous dungeons in the volcanic region, it hadn't felt that way. Until now, that is! Deskein Heart was finally starting to show its true colors.

'Let's see how dangerous you are.'

Kang Oh pointed his sword at the Enraged Lava Spirit, Curis. He was clearly saying 'I'm your opponent!'.

"Let's go!" Kang Oh pushed through the flames and rushed at it!