Chapter 128 – Hero Dolai

“Guji~?”

Dolai’s large eyes were filled with surprise, but soon narrowed into crescent shapes. It hopped forward, opening its massive mouth like a black hole, slurping up all the surrounding flames that were still blazing fiercely to prevent the fire from spreading further.

Next time, I must learn a water-spraying ability.

In this Trial Realm, the wild monsters were generally quite formidable and high-ranked, but they were relatively few in number and sparsely scattered throughout the realm.

In its previous battle, Dolai had made mistakes such as ‘not concealing its movements’ and ‘not scouting the surroundings in advance,’ yet no mishaps occurred. It didn’t attract attacks from other monsters, and in fact… by skipping the steps of concealment and scouting, Dolai’s approach seemed more efficient in terms of results.

The simple-minded and single-celled Dolai certainly couldn’t devise such advanced tactics. It was just like a little bee, buzzing as it flew above the forest.

Soon, Dolai, acting as ‘bait with its own body,’ was attacked by a wild monster.

A burly and ferocious gargoyle, its eyes glowing with a crimson light, rose from beneath a nearby hill. It spat out energy cannonballs one after another and, with a flap of its wings, stirred up a fierce wind, transforming into a gray streak as it lunged at Dolai.

Bang, bang, bang—!

Silver wings spread open in mid-air, blocking the incoming energy cannonballs.

Dolai puffed up with anger, “You despicable wild monster, you have no honor in combat!”

But it was you who showed no restraint or caution. What if you encountered a powerful wild monster in such a situation? Wouldn’t that mean game over?

Lord Mu felt exhausted both mentally and physically, wanting to say something but holding back. In the end, he sent no hints.

After dozens of rounds of intense combat, General Dolai, who had already ‘broken through,’ slew the elite gargoyle in mid-air.

The pure energy it gained allowed it to level up by half a rank.

Immediately after, Dolai began feasting voraciously, swallowing the charred and unappetizing ‘Thunderfire-Baked Gargoyle’ in one gulp, then reluctantly nibbling on dozens of gold coins.

After a while,

Dolai’s aura began to surge once more, this time directly increasing by three ranks. Leveling up seemed to have restored most of the energy it had expended in the battle.

“Hooray~!”

“Let’s keep going, guji!”

Without any method, plan, or the slightest bit of caution, Dolai continued to race through the sky above the forest.

…

「Dolai has defeated the wild monster ‘Hurricane Falcon.’」

…

「Dolai has defeated the wild monsters ‘Shadow Wolves × 3.’」

…

「Dolai has defeated the wild monster ‘War Golem.’」

…

From ordinary-ranked giant wolves to war golems whose rank was no weaker and whose combat power was several times stronger than that of the Earth Rock Dragon, the wild monsters Dolai encountered along the way grew increasingly powerful.

Some of the formidable wild monsters could have easily crushed the initial version of Dolai with a single punch.

But coincidentally, after defeating twenty to thirty wild monsters, Dolai had by then reached a very high rank, its body enveloped in a terrifying energy pressure that even it couldn’t fully contain.

It continued to charge around foolishly, feasting and crushing everything in its path.

The entire forest was thrown into chaos, and it gradually approached the Lava Dragon Canyon.

At that moment,

A faintly glowing spot in the forest caught Dolai’s attention.

Under Lord Mu’s exasperated and helpless gaze, it swooped down with a ‘biu,’ flying straight toward this unusual area.There were no monster ambushes, nor any traps—only a plain, unremarkable small wooden hut and an elf standing in front of it, dressed as a ranger with a quiver on his back and a war bow in hand.

“Gurgle~?”

“Warrior, have you come to slay the evil dragon? I am willing to lend a hand, but…”

「Prompt: You have discovered a Hero Projection. Would you like to spend 1,000 gold coins to hire the hero ‘Wood Elf Phantom Ranger Regal’?」

「Prompt: This projection possesses 30% of the combat power of Hero Regal during the final trial battle and will undergo level adjustments based on the challenger’s initial rank for balance.」

「Prompt: You can only hire one Hero Projection to assist in battle.」

This seemed to be the projection of a past challenger.

Sure enough, Dolai soon found three other ‘Support Heroes’ available for hire nearby:

Human Holy Light Priestess Julia;

Death Knight Black Iron;

Grandmaster Fist Thunderclap;

“This makes sense,” Mu Yuan nodded slightly, as if he had expected this.

He had found it strange earlier—even if ordinary challengers gained extra strength by killing wild monsters and recruited hundreds of elites, it would still be difficult for them to defeat the final boss.

The combat power displayed by the Lava Dragon was far too overpowered.

Hence, the appearance of ‘Support Heroes.’

However, if a challenger failed to scout the surroundings beforehand and only discovered these hero hiring spots right before the final battle, only to find they had no gold coins left… they would find themselves in an awkward predicament.

Dolai only had a few dozen gold coins left, far from enough to hire the expensive Support Heroes.

Moreover,

“Demanding gold coins? How despicable!”

Dolai fumed angrily. Were they asking for gold coins? No, they were asking for its life!

It snorted, then abandoned these Support Heroes and flew away with a whoosh.

What slightly comforted Mu Yuan was that Dolai didn’t immediately challenge the final boss.

It was still early; dusk had not yet arrived.

Dolai skirted the canyon, riding the wind as it swiftly flew over hills and forests. Wherever it passed, thunder and flames erupted, accompanied by continuous roaring explosions.

After charcoal-grilling… engaging in over a dozen battles… it finally ate and drank its fill… accumulating enough energy.

Its hair strands floated continuously, the tips burning like flames, with arcs of lightning dancing among them.

An unconcealable radiance of energy rippled around it, while red, blue, and cyan elemental particles swirled and danced around its form.

Even its eyes changed color, with concentric rings of light spreading outward, interweaving red, blue, cyan, and gray—sacred and divine, yet indifferent to the world.

However,

In the next moment, it wiped the corner of its mouth, and the divine aura vanished without a trace.

“I wonder how the Lava Dragon tastes.”

“Anyway, it’s time for the final battle.”

Dolai soared into the air, arriving before the canyon, then stepped on invisible stairs, climbing step by step, step by step, until it reached the highest point.

Standing atop the sky, it looked down upon the vast earth.

Then,

It raised its hand, and fire elemental particles surged from all directions. Infinite light and heat burst from its palm, the orange-red flames scattering the clouds in the sky, as if it were single-handedly holding up a sun!

It weighed the sun in its palm, then hurled it down fiercely.

The increasingly dazzling, boundless radiance erupted violently, turning the entire world into a blinding, blazing white. In the midst of the tremendous roar, the shockwave swept outward like a colossal tsunami, tearing apart the canyon’s surrounding rocks as if they were cardboard.

With just one strike,Dolai altered the terrain, causing the entire canyon to sink downward, now filled with flowing flames and lava.

Yet, moments later, a massive, ferocious Lava Dragon with a charred and partially damaged body burst forth from the fiery lake, roaring at the sky.

“Oh, right, Lava Dragons must have high fire resistance.”

Dolai understood—it wasn’t foolish.

It had simply been careless and forgotten.

From high above, it looked down, its eyes turning pure blue, like lakes brimming with thunderous water, reflecting destruction and indifference.

“In my name, thunder come.”

The voice echoed in layers.

Even though Dolai’s tone was inherently youthful, it now carried an air of majesty.

Boom—!

Thunder roared in the clear sky!

The previously cloudless expanse, dried by endless heat, saw water vapor gather in the blink of an eye. Dark clouds emerged, spreading rapidly outward from Dolai.

The overcast clouds blanketed the heavens!

Shadows enveloped the earth!

Brilliant blue-purple lightning surged among the dark clouds, like dancing thunder serpents, casting the Lava Dragon—which had just roared a few times while standing on the fiery lake—in shades of green and purple.

That was the color of its face.

Was this fair?

If the Lava Dragon had enough intelligence, it would surely point to the sky and demand an answer.

This round was unplayable!

With Dolai’s distant gesture, endless thunder transformed into hundreds of roaring thunder dragons, crashing down from the sky and colliding with the fiery lake below, unleashing an even more violent tide of destruction.

Auroras streaked across the sky.

BOOM—!

「Ding!」

「Prompt: Your unit ‘Dolai’ has cleared the Hero Trial…」

Mu Yuan watched the Lava Dragon, which had met an undignified end, and mourned it for 0.3 seconds.

“The Lava Dragon’s combat power was somewhat beyond the norm. Unless the challenger was exceptionally gifted, they would need to gather over a hundred elites and invite a Hero to assist to have a chance at taking down this BOSS, but…”

Compared to the Lava Dragon, Dolai in this trial was the true outlier.

It was an invincible existence born from the collision of its inherently powerful Devouring Talent and the unique rules of this realm.

With such invincible power, no strategy was needed; General Dolai alone could crush everything.

「Trial Summary: ① During this trial, quasi-Hero ‘Dolai’ eliminated 66 wild monsters and explored over 66% of the map; ② Quasi-Hero ‘Dolai’ suffered no unit losses during the trial; ③ Quasi-Hero ‘Dolai’s’ energy level increased by #@￥%^ during the trial; ④ In the final battle, quasi-Hero ‘Dolai’ defeated BOSS Lava Dragon in 16.3 seconds; ⑤ No Lord prompts were used in this trial; ⑥ Quasi-Hero ‘Dolai’ did not hire any assisting Heroes; ⑦…」

「Comprehensive evaluation in progress…」

「Prompt: This Hero Trial has been rated Perfect.」

「Prompt: As quasi-Hero ‘Dolai’ achieved a perfect evaluation in the trial, it can leave a Hero projection in the ‘Dragon-Slaying War’ trial. The projection will appear randomly in future trial spaces. If invited and it assists the challenger in defeating the BOSS, the assisting Hero will receive certain rewards.」

「Prompt: Retain the Hero projection?」

「Prompt: Minor adjustments to the projection’s appearance are allowed.」

Mu Yuan: “…”Dolai’s trial process was far from perfect, but the outcome of Dolai’s trial…

It one-shotted the BOSS. If that isn’t perfect, then what is?

“If the overpowered Dolai were to appear as an assist Hero, crushing BOSSes left and right… just imagining it… shivers!”

Unfortunately, such a sight was destined to remain elusive in the short term.

The trial space shattered like a mirage, and the baptism of rules began to descend.

At the final moment, Mu Yuan only heard Dolai’s urgent cry.

“Wait, I haven’t eaten my Lava Dragon yet—!”

Before being kicked out of the space.

(End of Chapter)