Chapter 37: Poison and Flame

  The volcanic peaks near Kytus's territory pierced the sky like ancient teeth, their slopes running red with lava flows. Lance's elemental markings pulsed with each step, responding to powers that had slumbered here since the first kings walked these heights. The suffocating heat seemed a fitting prelude to hunting the Blue Flame Cerberus.

  His progress halted as familiar runes caught his attention - warning markers carved into obsidian, their message clear to those who could read them:

  FLAME HEART DUNGEON

  A-RANK

  Last Inspection: 147 Days Ago

  Warning: Salamander Breeding Ground

  Lance's maniacal grin spread wider as he studied the entrance. Heat shimmered in waves from the dungeon's mouth, while the stone itself seemed to pulse with internal fire. Even this close to volcanic activity, the dungeon's heat stood out - focused, purposeful.

  "Interesting," he mused, his laugh carrying that edge of deadly amusement. "Salamanders. Their poison resistance might prove... educational."

  Fenris rumbled with dark anticipation beside him. The shadow wolf's evolved form seemed to drink in the volcanic shadows, growing stronger in this place of primal power.

  "A small detour," Lance decided, his elemental markings beginning to resonate with the dungeon's power. "After all, we should be properly warmed up before meeting Kytus."

  As he stepped into the dungeon's entrance, the already intense heat increased dramatically. The air itself seemed to burn, while distant chittering echoed through flame-touched corridors.

  The descent into Flame Heart Dungeon felt like walking into a forge's heart. Obsidian walls ran with rivulets of liquid fire, while the air shimmered with heat that would have killed ordinary adventurers within minutes.

  Lance's elemental markings pulsed, adapting to the extreme environment. His earth and fire affinities provided some protection, but it was his evolved poison mastery that interested him most. Already he could sense the salamanders' toxic defenses - more complex than anything he'd encountered before.

  "Their poison has evolved in this heat," he noted, his maniacal grin widening as the first group of salamanders emerged from a lava pool ahead. "Let's see how it responds to a king's touch."

  The creatures were beautiful in their deadly efficiency. Each roughly the size of a large cat, their scales shifting between red and gold as they moved. Poison glands along their spines pulsed with deadly promise.

  "Come then," Lance's laugh echoed through the burning corridors. "Show me what A-rank venom can do."

  The salamanders attacked as one, their coordination suggesting intelligence far beyond normal beasts. Jets of flame mixed with poison sprays, turning the air itself into a lethal cocktail.

  But Lance didn't dodge. Instead, his grin promised beautiful devastation as he reached out with his evolved poison control. The salamanders' own toxins froze in their glands, then began to flow backward through their systems.

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  Fascinating," Lance mused as he manipulated the poison flowing through the salamanders' bodies. "Your venom has adapted to survive volcanic temperatures. The applications..." His laugh carried that edge of deadly amusement. "Well, let's experiment, shall we?"

  The salamanders writhed as their own poison turned against them. But these were A-rank creatures - they didn't die easily. One managed to launch itself at Lance, its jaws trailing blue-hot flame.

  Lance caught it bare-handed, his elemental markings blazing. "Better." His grin widened as he forced the creature's poison to evolve mid-flow. "But not good enough."

  The salamander's scales began to crack as its modified venom worked through its system. Others tried to retreat, recognizing a predator beyond their understanding. But Lance's control had already spread to them all.

  Fenris watched with ancient appreciation as his master demonstrated his growing power. The shadow wolf had seen Lance command poison before, but this was different. More refined. More... absolute.

  "The heat makes their poison more volatile," Lance observed as the salamanders collapsed, their own enhanced venom proving too potent for even their evolved systems. "Which means..."

  A roar shook the dungeon, and the temperature spiked impossibly higher. Through a corridor of liquid fire, something small but terrifying approached.

  "Ah," Lance's grin promised beautiful devastation. "The Red Salamander comes to play."

  The Red Salamander emerged from its lava pool with deceptive grace. No larger than a small dog, its scales shimmered with internal fire that made the surrounding heat feel tepid in comparison. Ancient intelligence burned in eyes that had watched countless adventurers die.

  "Now this," Lance's laugh echoed with deadly appreciation, "is proper A-rank power."

  The boss creature's response was immediate and devastating. It didn't just breathe fire - it commanded it. The very air ignited, turning the chamber into an inferno that melted stone. Its poison capabilities were equally impressive, releasing toxins that would have killed lesser beings instantly.

  Lance's elemental markings blazed as he met the assault. "Impressive control," he acknowledged, beginning to redirect the creature's poison. "But let me show you what true mastery looks like."

  The Red Salamander's eyes widened as it felt its venom respond to Lance's will. But unlike its lesser kin, it didn't panic. Instead, it did something that made Lance's grin widen with genuine delight - it adapted.

  Flames merged with poison in ways that defied natural law. The beast's power evolved mid-battle, forcing Lance to evolve his control in response.

  "Perfect," he purred, his maniacal excitement growing. "Show me more."

  The Red Salamander's next attack demonstrated why A-rank creatures commanded such respect. It compressed its flame and poison into a single point, then released a beam of concentrated death that turned everything in its path to vapor.

  Lance moved with lethal grace, his elemental markings pulsing as he analyzed the attack. "Compression and release. Simple, yet elegant." His laugh carried that edge of beautiful devastation. "But what happens when we add a king's touch?"

  As the creature prepared another blast, Lance reached out with his evolved poison control. This time, he didn't just redirect the venom - he began to change its fundamental nature. The Red Salamander's own poison started crystallizing in its glands, forming structures that shouldn't have been possible.

  The beast thrashed, realizing too late what was happening. Its legendary poison resistance meant nothing against someone who could manipulate toxins at their core. Each crystal grew, spreading through its system with devastating precision.

  "Your power is impressive," Lance acknowledged as the creature fought against his control. "But you serve a false purpose here. These dungeons..." His grin widened. "They belong to deeper powers now."

  The Red Salamander made one final, desperate attempt. It consumed its own flame, transforming into living fire that would have incinerated most enemies. But Lance simply laughed, the sound echoing with promised extinction.

  "Thank you for this lesson," he said, closing his fist. The crystallized poison throughout the creature's body detonated simultaneously, turning one of the most feared A-rank beasts into glittering ash.

  Lance approached the Dragon Statue, its ancient form somehow untouched by the volcanic heat. His Ring of Summoning pulsed as he placed his hand on the weathered stone.

  [Divine Resonance Detected]

  Statue Type: Dragon Lord Conduit

  Status: Active

  Available Functions:

  - Divine Communication

  - Beast Contract Formation

  - Power Absorption

  Note: Ring of Summoning required for activation

  Dark energy swirled from the statue, flowing through the Ring of Summoning toward the Red Salamander's remains. The creature's body began to reconstruct itself, scales reforming with a metallic sheen.

  [Beast Contract Initiation]

  Target: Red Salamander (Rank A)

  Process: Reanimation and Binding

  Warning: Beast will retain intelligence and memories

  Note: Success rate affected by willpower comparison

  The salamander's body fully reformed, but something was different. Where its scales once shimmered with internal fire, they now pulsed with shadow energy. Lance's power had changed its fundamental nature without increasing its rank.

  The creature spoke in an ancient tongue that Lance's Babel Tongue couldn't translate, its voice carrying harmonics that seemed to predate creation itself.

  Fenris's ears twitched forward. "It speaks the tongue of First Flame," the shadow wolf translated. "It says it recognizes a king's touch, though different from the ones it remembers."

  The Red Salamander—no, the creature it had become—lowered its head slightly, not in submission, but in acknowledgment. Its molten gaze locked onto Lance, ancient intelligence burning within.

  "Then tell me, beast," Lance’s voice carried through the scorched chamber, cold despite the heat. "What do you remember?"

  For the first time in centuries, the dungeon trembled. The shadows of forgotten kings stirred. And deep within the abyss, something else—something far older—began to awaken.