Facing this scorching Hot Sand Hell, their magic-specialist companions each cast a protective magic circle beneath their feet to prevent their soles from being scalded.
Everyone walked across the blazing desert. Countless waves of unbearable hot air rose from the sand, causing everyone to sweat profusely, yet they pressed on.
RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE—!!!
At that moment, the Hot Sand Hell began to churn. Thousands upon thousands of sand grains gathered together, forming undulating waves. Faced with this sudden change in terrain, the group was stunned for a moment before immediately steadying their footing.
In the distance, two enormous, towering mountain peaks shaped like scimitars rose from the desert floor.
Moreover, those two mountain peaks charged towards the group at incredible speed. Seeing this, everyone instantly drew their weapons and unleashed their attacks, directing them all at the two peaks.
However, no matter how terrifying or powerful the attacks were, they left no marks on the two mountain peaks. Not even a single small stone was dislodged.
ROOOOOOOOOOOAR—!!!
A dragon's roar brimming with supreme majesty echoed out. A dragon as tall as a mountain peak burst forth from the sand.
This dragon's body seemed composed of rock and topaz. The two scimitar-like mountain peaks were actually just its shoulder pauldrons. The rocky horns on its head were as intricate as deer antlers. Its tail, claws, and feet appeared immensely powerful, and its physique was more robust than any dragon any of them had seen before.
[Primal Stone Dragon, Emperor Topaz Dragon] (Level: 6 / Attribute: Earth / Race: Dragon / ATK: 2600 / DEF: 0)
The Emperor Topaz Dragon looked down at the ant-like figures below and declared, "I am the [Primal Stone Dragon, Emperor Topaz Dragon]! I am the Guardian Dragon of the Hot Sand Hell!!"
Issei Hyoudou gazed at the Emperor Topaz Dragon's towering, mountain-like form, swallowed hard, and said, "So big...!!"
"Truly a dragon as tall as a mountain peak," Sairaorg also remarked, looking at the colossal Emperor Topaz Dragon before him, beads of cold sweat forming on his forehead.
"All of you, sink into this scorching desert!!" the Emperor Topaz Dragon roared with a rough voice. Instantly, a sandstorm whipped up around them, trapping both the dragon and the group within it.
"Sandstorm Claw!!" A thick, yellow aura of earth energy enveloped the Emperor Topaz Dragon's right claw as it struck at the group, like a massive meteor falling from the sky.
At that moment, Ladra Buné, one of Sairaorg's "Chariot" pieces, forcefully intercepted the Emperor Topaz Dragon's meteor-like claw attack. However, judging by the expression on his face, blocking it was a struggle.
"HAAAAAAAAAA—!!!" Ladra let out a mighty shout. His form gradually began to enlarge, finally transforming into a giant dragon, though its size was significantly smaller than the Emperor Topaz Dragon's.
Then, the dragon-form Ladra exerted all his strength to push the Emperor Topaz Dragon back into the sandstorm. But the Emperor Topaz Dragon stood immovable like Mount Tai. Even when Ladra gritted his teeth and used his full power, it remained unmoved.
Seeing this, the Emperor Topaz Dragon placed both hands on Ladra's shoulders and said to him:
"Young one, dragon power is not used like this. Moreover, you haven't even tapped into the majority of your strength."
With that, the Emperor Topaz Dragon forcefully lifted Ladra and threw him into the sandstorm. The violent sandstorm assailed Ladra's body like a thousand cuts. His massive dragon body also obstructed the sandstorm's rotation, causing it to dissipate.
"Ladra!!" The instant the sandstorm cleared, Sairaorg rushed with his pieces to the fallen dragon Ladra on the Hot Sand Hell, all wearing expressions of deep concern:
"Are you okay?!"
"Where are you hurt?!"
Ladra weakly opened his eyes, looked at his comrades, and said feebly, "Ugh... You all go on ahead. Leave the Emperor Topaz Dragon to me. Powerful people have always been the ones to cover the rear before. This time, let someone weaker like me do it."
Hearing this, Sairaorg angrily swung a fist at him and said, "You idiot!! If anyone's covering the rear, it should be me!! The Emperor Topaz Dragon's scales are incredibly hard. Only my power can break through its armor!!"
"Regulus!!" Sairaorg shouted to his partner beside him.
"What a troublesome host you are~," the summoned Regulus said, shaking his head with a light laugh. He then transformed into a ferocious golden lion—his true form: the independently manifesting Longinus, [Lion King's Battleaxe], also known as the Nemean Lion from greek mythology.
"My lion! King of Nemea! You who are called the Lion King! Answer my valor and become my raiment──────!" Sairaorg chanted. A full-body armor shaped like a golden lion clad Sairaorg. The helmet trailed long golden fur resembling a lion's mane. The chest plate resembled a lion's face, its eyes gleaming with life as if possessing a will of its own—truly armor that embodied power.
"HAAAAAAAAAA—!!!" The roars of Sairaorg and Regulus echoed as Sairaorg clenched his right fist tightly, leaped into the air, and attacked the Emperor Topaz Dragon.
"Grand Axe Crusher!!" A voice rang out at that moment, and an attack like a flying battleaxe cleaved into the lion-faced armor on Sairaorg's chest.
URK—!!!
"Lord Sairaorg!!" Sairaorg's pieces cried out in worry.
Sairaorg coughed up a mouthful of blood mid-air and fell to the ground. His "Queen" piece, Cuishea Abaddon, ran over, looked at the wound on his chest, and said:
"Such a severe injury!! It looks like it was struck by a battleaxe blade!!"
"Axe blade?! Could it be him?!" Upon hearing Cuishea's words, Azazel suddenly remembered the Specter that Ikuse Tobio and the others had mentioned encountering in Agreas before they set out.
At that moment, a Specter landed. His underworld armor resembled the mythical Minotaur, though the horns on the helmet curved horizontally.
He slowly stepped forward, looked at the group, and said, "I didn't expect you to make it this far. That's not bad."
"It's you, as I thought... the Specter with the arm that can shatter Longinus..." Cold sweat dripped down Azazel's forehead as he spoke with the expression of one facing a great enemy.
The Specter halted his steps, looked at the group with an imposing aura, and declared, "That's right. I am Gordon of the Celestial Prison Star, Minotauros."
"You're late, Lord Gordon," the Emperor Topaz Dragon complained, looking at Gordon.
Hearing this, Gordon immediately explained to the Emperor Topaz Dragon, "My apologies, Emperor Topaz Dragon. There were a few souls trying to escape earlier. It took me some time to capture them."
At that moment, Sairaorg, having recovered through Cuishea's treatment, stood up, panting, and said, "This time, I'll be the one covering the rear. All of you, hurry to the next hell."
"But..." Issei Hyoudou found himself in this situation again. The last shred of hope in his heart was fading. He truly didn't want to experience the feeling of losing comrades once more.
"GO—!!!" Sairaorg roared. The mouth of the lion face on his chest plate opened wide, unleashing a mighty roar. A massive sonic wave formed a powerful air current, pushing everyone to the edge of the Hot Sand Hell.
"Lord Sairaorg, I'm staying too," the dragon Ladra said, slowly rising to his feet, his eyes filled with hostility as he glared at the Emperor Topaz Dragon.
"Ladra, why didn't you leave?!" Sairaorg looked up at Ladra and shouted.
A slight smile curled at the corner of Ladra's mouth. "Lord Sairaorg, if one person has to deal with both a Specter and a Guardian Dragon, they might be overwhelmed. So, adding a dragon like me should lighten the load a bit."
"Alright! Let's go together!!" Hearing this, Sairaorg revealed a knowing smile and declared loudly.
Subsequently, the man and the dragon charged forward together.
Gordon showed a dangerous smile and charged forward alongside the Emperor Topaz Dragon, shouting at Sairaorg, "I'm going to rip out all the fangs of this golden lion of yours!!"
"Then come and try it!! Gordon!!" Sairaorg, like a golden lion baring its fangs, threw a punch at Gordon before him.
Their fists collided. The resulting sonic boom blasted the surrounding sand apart. Behind them, one could see the terrifying figures of a muscular Minotaur wielding a battleaxe and a lion made entirely of gold, locked in combat.
Meanwhile, the Emperor Topaz Dragon and Ladra fought in their most primal forms, using fangs and claws.
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