The Storm Reef had always been a dangerous place, a chaotic jumble of jagged coral and unpredictable currents. But under the occupation of the Draconic Legion, it had become a factory of death.

Alvian materialized on a ridge overlooking the central basin. The water here tasted of copper and ozone. The natural beauty of the reef was gone, replaced by brutal, functional machinery. Massive drills ground into the seabed, tearing up the [Thunder Stones]. Conveyor belts moved the glowing blue rocks into the maws of towering smelters, which refined the ore into fuel for the siege cannons.

The cannons themselves were terrifying. Three of them, each the size of a skyscraper, pointed toward the distant lights of Azureus. They hummed with a low, menacing vibration as they charged.

"Three cannons," Alvian muttered, his eyes scanning the layout. "Protected by a legion of Dragon-Kin and... Reanimated Naga."

He saw them patrolling the perimeter. The bodies of the Lightning Naga he had slaughtered days ago had been repurposed. Their flesh was grey, stitched together with red mana threads. Their eyes were empty voids. They moved with a jerky, puppet-like gait, wielding rusted weapons.

"Necromancy," Alvian spat. "They waste nothing."

[Enemy Identified: Draconic Zombie (Naga Type)]

[Level: 45]

[Status: Mindless / Horde]

There were hundreds of them. A meat shield to protect the artillery.

And floating in the center of the operation, bathed in the arcs of lightning that cracked down from the surface, was General Fulgur.

[Target Identified: General Fulgur (The Storm-Eater)]

[Level: 56]

[Class: Draconic Juggernaut]

[Passive: [Storm Shield] - Absorbs electrical energy to heal and power barriers.]

Fulgur was a beast. He was taller than Drakon, his blue scales thick and plated like tank armor. His four arms held massive piston-hammers that sparked with every movement. He wasn't just commanding the operation; he was part of it. Cables ran from his back into the central generator, regulating the flow of power.

"He's the battery," Alvian realized. "He's channeling the environmental mana into the cannons."

To stop the cannons, Alvian had to stop Fulgur. To stop Fulgur, he had to stop the lightning.

"Seraphina," Alvian whispered into his comms. "Position?"

"I'm at the North Generator," Seraphina's voice was barely audible over the roar of the machinery. "I've planted the charges. But there are two elites guarding the manual override."

"Take them out," Alvian ordered. "Quietly."

"On it."

Alvian looked at the zombie horde. He couldn't sneak past all of them. He needed a distraction.

He reached into his inventory. He pulled out a [Mana Bomb]. He didn't throw it at the enemy. He threw it at a cluster of unstable [Thunder Stones] waiting to be processed.

"Physics Lesson Number Eleven," Alvian whispered. "Chain reaction."

He threw the bomb.

"BOOM!"

The explosion shattered the crate of stones. The raw lightning mana inside destabilized. It arced outward, hitting the next crate, then the next.

"KRACK-BOOM-ZZZT!"

A cascade of explosions ripped through the mining camp. Blue fire engulfed the eastern quadrant. The zombies turned, screeching, shambling toward the noise.

"Intruders!" A Dragon Knight shouted. "Secure the perimeter!"

The guards rushed toward the explosion. The path to the central generator was thin.

"Now," Alvian said.

He equipped the [Draconic Storm Bracers]. He equipped [Voidpiercer].

"[Void Step]."

He teleported. He didn't appear on the ground. He appeared in the air, directly above the first siege cannon.

"System. [Lance of the Void Winter]. Gravity Well Mode."

He drove the lance into the barrel of the cannon.

"Implode."

---

"CRUNCH."

The barrel of the first cannon twisted in on itself, the metal screeching as gravity crushed it into a ball of scrap. The charged mana inside had nowhere to go. It detonated.

"KABOOM!"

The explosion blew the cannon apart, sending shrapnel flying through the water like shurikens. Alvian rode the shockwave, backflipping through the water to land on a high gantry.

"One down," Alvian said.

"INSECT!" General Fulgur roared from the center of the basin. He disconnected the cables from his back with a violent jerk. "YOU DARE TOUCH MY ARTILLERY?"

Fulgur slammed his four hammers together.

"ACTIVATE THE ARRAY!"

Alvian paused. Array?

The ground around the central basin lit up. Runes etched into the metal floor glowed red. Four pillars shot up from the ground, generating a box of solid red light around the central area.

[System Warning: Spatial Lock Detected.]

[Teleportation Disabled.]

[Movement Speed Reduced.]

"A God-Lock," Alvian muttered, shaking his head. "They really are unoriginal."

"You think we did not learn from Ida's failure?" Fulgur laughed, his voice booming. "Ida used water mana. Weak. Fluid. This array is powered by the Dragon's Blood. It does not just trap you. It crushes you."

The red light intensified. Gravity inside the box increased. Alvian felt his knees buckle. It was heavy. Much heavier than Ida's trap.

"Gravity compression," Alvian analyzed. "Inefficient energy usage, but effective."

Fulgur stepped into the array. The gravity didn't affect him. His armor glowed with a counter-frequency.

"Now you are mine," Fulgur growled. "No jumping. No running. Just you and me, and the weight of the ocean."

He charged. He moved surprisingly fast for a juggernaut, his four arms spinning the hammers like a meat grinder.

Alvian stood his ground. He couldn't dodge. The gravity was too strong.

"You want a slugfest?" Alvian asked, his eyes glowing violet. "Fine."

He activated [Runic Aegis +2]. But he didn't form a shield. He formed a suit. The runes latched onto his [Vestments], interlocking to form a second skin of purple light.

"System. Divert all mana to [Strength]."

[Warning! Magic usage limited.]

"Do it."

Fulgur reached him. He swung all four hammers at once.

"THUNDER SMASH!"

"BLOCK."

Alvian caught the two upper hammers with his bare hands. The impact was earth-shattering. The floor beneath Alvian cratered. But he didn't move.

[Strength: 450 (Buffed)]

Alvian held the massive general in place.

"You're strong," Alvian admitted, his muscles straining. "But you're conductive."

Alvian activated the [Draconic Storm Bracers].

"Discharge."

He pumped raw lightning into Fulgur's hammers. But this wasn't normal lightning. It was [Dragonfire Lightning].

"ZZZZT!"

The red electricity surged into Fulgur. The General's [Storm Shield] flared, trying to absorb it, but the Dragonfire property bypassed the absorption. It burned.

"ARGH!" Fulgur screamed, dropping the hammers. He stumbled back, smoke rising from his hands.

"How?!" Fulgur roared. "I am the Storm-Eater! I eat lightning!"

"You eat normal lightning," Alvian said, equipping his lance. "You don't eat the lightning of a god."

Alvian charged. The gravity weighed him down, but his stats were high enough to brute force through it. He moved like a tank, slow but unstoppable.

"You rely on the array to hold me," Alvian said, thrusting his lance. "But you're locked in here with me."

Fulgur blocked with his lower hammers. The lance chipped the metal.

"I will crush you!" Fulgur countered, delivering a flurry of blows.

"BAM! BAM! BAM!"

Alvian took the hits on his [Runic Aegis]. Each hit drained his mana, but his regen was infinite. He was an immortal wall.

"Mirror," Alvian whispered.

He timed his counter. As Fulgur wound up for a massive overhead smash, Alvian triggered [Reactive Force].

"BOOM!"

The kinetic energy of the blow was reflected instantly. Fulgur's own hammer bounced back, hitting him in the face. The General staggered, his nose crushed.

"Now," Alvian said.

He pointed his lance at the red pylons generating the gravity field.

"Physics Lesson Number Twelve," Alvian said. "Resonance."

He hit the floor with his lance. He sent a pulse of mana into the ground, matching the frequency of the gravity field.

"VIBRAAAATE."

The red box shuddered. The pylons cracked. The frequency feedback loop created a harmonic dissonance.

"SHATTER!"

The array exploded. The red light vanished. Gravity returned to normal.

Alvian smiled.

"Now," he said, vanishing into [Void Step]. "Let's try that again."

----

The array was down. Alvian was loose.

Fulgur looked around frantically. "Where are you?!"

"Above you."

Alvian dropped from the sky.

"[Glacial Void Pierce]: Guillotine."

He came down on Fulgur's shoulder. The lance sliced through the heavy armor, severing one of the General's upper arms.

"GRAAAH!" Fulgur howled, spinning around. He unleashed a wave of lightning from his remaining hands.

Alvian didn't dodge. He opened his mouth.

"[Void Devour]."

He didn't have the skill, but his [Vestments] had the property. He absorbed the lightning breath, converting it into mana.

"Thanks for the snack," Alvian said.

Fulgur backed away, fear dawning in his eyes. "You... you are a demon."

"I'm an accountant," Alvian said, walking forward. "And your debt is due."

Fulgur roared, desperate now. He slammed his hammers into the ground, trying to collapse the platform.

"If I die, I take the factory with me!"

"No," Alvian said. "You don't."

Alvian threw [Voidpiercer].

The dagger flew through the air. It didn't hit Fulgur. It hit the generator behind him.

"System Jack."

The dagger hacked the generator. The humming stopped. The factory powered down. The lights went out.

In the darkness, Alvian's violet eyes glowed.

"Now it's just you and me in the dark," Alvian whispered.

Fulgur swung blindly. Alvian stepped under the blow.

"[Frost Descent +2]: Flash Freeze."

He touched Fulgur's chest. The General froze. Not just his skin. His heart. The cold spread instantly, turning the massive dragon-man into a statue.

[Target Immobilized.]

Alvian tapped the frozen statue with his finger.

"Ting."

Cracks spread.

"CRASH."

Fulgur shattered. Thousands of pieces of frozen meat fell to the floor.

[You have slain General Fulgur (Level 56 Elite Boss)!]

[Experience Gained: 2,000,000!]

[Level Up!]

[Level 54.]

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