"You're right, it does have a weakness. It looks like we have an in."
Ember's dark flames that once engulfed the round blue sphere of mana begin to dissolve inwards. I watch the entire structure shrink. There are small explosions and it lets off white arcs of light similar to miniature sun flares.
It's not much, but it definitely shrinks... We can work this that.
"Again. Fire at it again."
My continuous mana output is nowhere near what Ember can produce, so I'll have to leave this part to him.
"Understood."
The glossy black-scaled majestic dragon flaps its wings slowly as we glide closer to the Boss again. A dense black and red plume of flames shoots down at the dormant monster to cover the entire structure once again.
Cries from newly spawned monsters can be heard while waiting for the sea of flames to clear.
The outer layer shrinks a minuscule amount yet again.
Blue mana residue takes in the flames, giving off a light buzz and flashes of light that sound like fireworks.
The blue and white magic residue disappears into thin air but the barrier's mass slowly grows back the moment it's destroyed.
I smirk as Ember lets another attack go.
"Again."
Over and over, we spawn-kill the mutant mobs that come running out from the orb. As they dissolve, dozens of shards begin to pile up on the arena floor. I pay little mind to this, solely focusing on the diameter of the orb that has now shrunk almost half a meter after just a dozen attacks.
Still, there's no movement coming from within, and the barrier itself is still being replenished by the cloud of blue mana-imbued fog that flows up the mountain from the original dungeon.
Ember glows bright red, slowly plundering MP from the environment around him to fuel his attacks.
If I'm seeing this right, the moment Ember lets up, this Ogre's entire defense will be restored in just a few seconds...
We continue to circle the Boss, 20-30 meters up in the air.
"Again."
I charge up my blade, harnessing the mana residue around me to charge my blade over a full MP bar. There's over 3000MP ready to fire off. At this density and newfound power from all my level-ups, it will be the most devastating attack I've ever thrown.
It takes nearly half a minute, but I'm waiting for the perfect time to strike.
Black flames continue to rain down, tampering with the Ogre's defenses as I take aim for the perfect shot.
I can sense that the shield has been weakened now to under half of its normal thickness, so I let my attack fly. With a powerful thrust, the black crescent of flames plummets down toward the mediating Mountain King.
There's a loud twang of dispersing mana in the air as my blade cuts a deep hole right through the already-damaged blue orb.
As the fiery blade enters the structure, one of the Ogre King's hands twitches and an eye opens wide staring through the clouds of mana to look directly at me. It shines a deep blue hue.
Time feels like it slows for a moment, then Ember swoops upwards avoiding the debris from my strike breaking the barrier.
In the blink of an eye, the mutant grabs both of his axes and swings them upwards to block my attack.
Its speed and instant readiness are astonishing. With reflexes like those, it may be faster than me.
A loud cracking sound echoes throughout the entire dungeon as my attack hits both of its axes. A loud grunt comes from below as it's deflected to the side, but still manages to land a hit on the Ogre's upper arm.
The fiery crescent then flies out the other side of the dome, trailing with a light drip of crimson blood.
It wasn't much, but I landed a hit...
"A good start."
We fly high into the air as the murderous roar of the awakened Mountain King shakes the entire Dungeon.
The bright blue mana swirling around this beast begins to compact, getting denser and denser until it covers the beast in a blue shimmering body suit.
The once massive orb of energy now covers a dual axe-wielding Giant Blue Ogre Boss.
Glistening blue and white, the entire body of the beast is covered head to toe with thick mana.
I may have been very lucky to get a shot in before it fully woke up...
Two dark blue lights shine from the monster's face, showing me where its eyes are located, but I can't see its actual body.
All that stands before us is a glowing blue and white outline of a monstrosity.
"So... much mana..."
I've never seen or felt so much energy all in one place since I fell into the Titan's Domain. This is completely different...
That mana was freely floating in an open void.
This mana is 100% in control of the monster before us.
The air wavers before my eyes and the buzzing from mana in the air is so loud that everything around me sounds silent...
The flaming rock from our previous attacks makes a wall of flames and half-dying mutants create the perfect contrast to show off the Dungeon Break's Boss in all its glory.
The silence ceases and it lets out another murderous roar, pointing its axes straight up at us in the air.
I yell out to Ember through our link.
"Again, fire! The real battle begins now!"
Thick flames engulf the 10-meter-tall Blue Ogre King, but it doesn't move a muscle. The monster stays in place and takes the attack.
Its outer layer of mana crackles and pops as it eats up the flames and lets white mana disperse into the air.
"Again!"
We circle the monster as it calmly stands still, following our flight path with its dark blue gaze taking attack after attack.
Meanwhile, I charge my blade up just like before. It takes well over half a minute to use the dungeon air, but just a few seconds with MP potions. I release another 3000 MP attack straight at the King.
"I wonder how it'll react this time...."
This is the same devastating strike that shattered its defenses just moments ago to draw blood.
Instead of standing its ground and taking the hit, the massive beast finally lifts its axes again.
This time around, they're covered in a thick layer of dense blue mana. On impact, there's a slight pause and reaction of light and twanging sound, but the strike I throw is defected off deep into the boss room without much effort at all...
Then, the mutant finally makes its move.
It turns and begins running in our direction. The ground cracks and shakes, leaving high craters behind in its wake. Dense blue mana drips from beneath its feet leaving pools of blue residue all over the battlefield.
The monster gets closer and closer, but we're high in the sky.
Ember lets out another attack, covering the Ogre in a crimson wave of flames. Instantly, the monster retaliates and swings its axes as the flames dissolve into its armor of mana.
We're over 30 meters in the air, so there's no way it can reach us. Even with a jump in the air, I doubt it can leap this far...
While thinking this, my eyes open wide at the reality of the situation.
As it swings its two axes, dark royal blue mana comes shooting out of them, just like the attack I sent flying at it earlier.
In an instant, It spawns mana crescents far larger and denser than my own.
Amber senses the danger too and we dodge instantly. swooping lower to the battlefield.
The Ogre King swings its axes again, sending two blue crescents of murderous blue light our way.
A swerve to the right takes us out of its line of fire, just barely. The wind blows by me on both sides with vicious force as we speed up and the seriousness of this battle sets in.
I grit my teeth while charging my blade and we dodge another two attacks as it lets out a roar to shake the Boss room once again.
Just when I thought it couldn't get any worse... The pools of mana all around the dish-like battlefield begin to bubble and glow much brighter.
Rocks start to braking and more Ogre's roars start to fill my ears.
Dozens of mutants start spawning from the residue pools left behind by the Boss' footsteps.
We fly around the battlefield as more and more mutants spawn with seemingly no end in sight. Ember blows flames down on them as the Boss tracks our movements sending off more mana-filled attacks.
I let off attacks of my own, drinking mana potions to charge my sword as well as using some residue from the atmosphere to fuel my attacks.
Every one of them is blocked with incredible precision, and every step this beast takes spawns more obstacles for us to avoid and take out.
Ever since that first unguarded strike that made this Ogre bleed, I haven't even gotten past its blades. Not a single strike has hit its shielding yet.
The blue fog from above is feeding its defenses even more, nearly negating Ember's fiery attacks.
The shielding around its body is growing back at close to the same rate the fire is burning it down.
I have to do something.
"Dungeon Walker."
Out of frustration and curiosity, I blip to the monster's opposite side while Ember lets off one of his flaming attacks.
I let one of my own soar, right at its back.
It can't move in time, and I land a direct hit...
A red, black, blue, and white explosion follows and I see its bright blue armor open up for just a moment to expose its skin.
The time it takes for me to bring another mana potion to my lips is more than enough for it to heal the small hole in its barrier and turn my way...
I blip back to Ember's back and stare down at the monster as it turns its blue eyes to meet mine.
"We're completely outmatched... but I have an idea."
The rumbling of newly spawned mutants comes running our way, and the Boss holds both of its axes steady, covered head to toe in pure blue armor.
It charges its blades while I whisper under my breath and open my status screen.
"It's been a while, but it's time to upgrade another skill..."
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Author's Note:
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