Bulette

"Everyone, stay alert..." Lonely as Snow carefully held up his heavy shield and spoke in a low voice. Right now, he had to watch out not only for monsters in the labyrinth, but even more so for his liability teammates. Recalling the horrific fate of being polymorphed into a sheep just moments ago, Lonely as Snow subconsciously took a few steps away to put some distance between himself and Feitian Nüwu. "Aw, come on, that was just an accident." "Besides, no harm done, right?" Feitian Nüwu sheepishly scratched her head, giggling. European Emperor and Jiuli timidly hung back at the very rear of the party, terrified that some bizarre monstrosity would leap out of the shadows and one-shot a pair of scrub wizard apprentices like them. "Watch me speedrun this quest for you guys." Feitian Nüwu led the way with magic, moving briskly through the labyrinth. It was obvious she was trying hard to redeem herself and maintain her dignity as a "grand senior." Lonely as Snow, however, frowned once more. A paladin's Divine Sense allowed him to pick up on subtle signs. He turned to look at the teammates behind him. "Have any of you noticed..." "The ground nearby... it's trembling." "What do you mean?" Feitian Nüwu tilted her head in confusion. *Crunch, crackle.* Before Lonely as Snow could finish speaking, a rumbling sound of churning earth echoed out. The surrounding ground and stone vibrated violently as a massive mound of earth suddenly bulged up directly in front of him. He shouted in an urgent panic: "Scatter! Danger!" *Roar—!* The mound abruptly exploded, sending dirt and debris flying in every direction. Accompanied by a ferocious roar, a colossal dark shadow leapt out from beneath the earth. *Boom!* The behemoth pounced down. Its terrifying weight slammed onto the labyrinth floor, making the ground shudder again and throwing up clouds of dust, dislodging fine pebbles from the rocky ceiling overhead. Fortunately, the four had scattered early, and Lonely as Snow rolled with all his might, preventing the beast from crushing them. Even so, the shockwave from its deadly leap alone knocked them several meters back, sending them tumbling to the floor. Once the dust settled, everyone finally saw the uninvited guest clearly. It was a monstrous beast resembling a cross between a shark and a lizard, easily over four meters tall—practically a small mountain. Thick plating covered its entire body, encrusted with clinging soil, and its claws designed for burrowing were exceptionally massive and robust. This was a bulette, an absolute apex predator of the subterranean world. At that moment, its beady, soybean-sized eyes gleamed with a faint light, fixed hungrily on them. Foul, viscous saliva dripped from the edges of its gaping maw; it seemed thoroughly impatient to devour these humans who had dared trespass into its territory. Lonely as Snow lay on the ground, gazing up at the terrifying beast. [Bulette] [Challenge Rating: 5 (1,800 XP)] "Holy crap... such a high-level monster." Beside him, Feitian Nüwu boasted smugly, "You newbies make a fuss over everything. Back in my day, a single spell of mine took down several level-eight frost giants—" *Awoo—!* Before she could finish, the bulette leapt once more with unstoppable momentum. Lonely as Snow scrambled to brace his heavy shield and intercept it. As the party's sole meat shield, he had a very clear grasp of his role. *Boom!* With a thunderous crash, the thick shield miraculously took the brunt of the bulette's pounce. Yet under that monstrous force, Lonely as Snow was sent flying several meters, rolling over a dozen times across the floor. "Big sister, could you please pay attention?!" he cried out in agony. Seeing the bulette open its bloody maw and charge straight at European Emperor, intent on swallowing him whole, Lonely as Snow gritted his teeth. *These absolute clowns!* Ignoring the numbness wracking his body, Lonely as Snow forced his shield up and once again invoked his Channel Divinity. [Channel Divinity: Champion Challenge] With a flash of radiant white light, an illusory chain snapped into place between the bulette and Lonely as Snow, as if erecting an arena where they were bound to a duel. Watching the bulette charge toward him to the violent tremors of the ground, he tightened his grip on his shield and muttered to himself: "In the end, it's always me shouldering everything..." "I'll hold it off! Focus your damage!" Lonely as Snow roared at the top of his lungs. "Witch Bolt!" Jiuli raised his staff high. A crackling beam of azure energy pierced toward the bulette, forming an arcing tether of lightning between him and the beast. Yet the creature's hide was far too thick and rugged; it couldn't care less about such a faint current. "Color Spray!" European Emperor couldn't afford a staff, so he could only extend his bare hands to cast. A dazzling burst of kaleidoscopic light erupted from his palms, and then—slammed entirely into the floor. "European Emperor! Aim the damn spell!" Lonely as Snow desperately maneuvered around the bulette, not forgetting to yell in fury. European Emperor scratched his head and defended himself sheepishly in a small voice, "My caster level is too low, I'm not that proficient yet. Bear with me, bear with me!" "Watch this!" Feitian Nüwu declared with supreme confidence. "Fireball!" The moment the words left her mouth, a turbulent surge of wild magic churned. Butterflies and flower petals fluttered through the air, but the anticipated ball of flame never materialized. "Huh? That's actually pretty romantic," Feitian Nüwu muttered in surprise, breaking into a grin. Lonely as Snow dodged another swipe of the bulette's claws, only to be struck by a follow-up ram that sent him hurtling several meters through the air. He smashed into the labyrinth wall, leaving a human-shaped crater. "Romantic my ass! Hurry up and deal damage—!" he wailed weakly from the crater. If not for the protection of his adamantine armor, Lonely as Snow probably would have been reduced to mincemeat long ago. "Casting now, casting now!" Snapping back to reality, Feitian Nüwu hastily responded. She absolutely couldn't leave these rookies with the impression that she was unreliable. She was striving to become a dependable senior! At that thought, she gritted her teeth and thrust out both hands, crackling arcs of electricity wreathing her fingers. "Lightning Bolt!" *Boom—!* A thick bolt of lightning roared from her outstretched fingers, instantly piercing straight through the bulette. Her luck was exceptionally good this time. Under the influence of the Wild Magic surge, the power of this lightning bolt far exceeded her expectations. *Awoo!* The bulette unleashed a heavy, agonized roar. A massive patch of scorched black scarred its flesh. Under the devastating impact of the lightning, its colossal body crashed heavily to the ground, shaking the floor once more. "Heh heh, knew I had to be the one to step up," Feitian Nüwu said smugly, pleased with herself. However, she had forgotten that a lightning bolt deals piercing damage along a line—and along that path lay not just the bulette, but also Lonely as Snow, who was still embedded in the wall. "Sister Witch... you forgot about me..." A feeble voice drifted from ahead. "No way, did I—?" Realization dawning on her, Feitian Nüwu crept forward with an intensely apologetic expression. Lonely as Snow lay sprawled on the ground, clinging to life by a thread, his eyes beneath the visor filled with utter exhaustion. He was charred black as charcoal from head to toe. The hair under his helmet had been burned clean away, and faint electric arcs still coiled over the surface of his adamantine armor. Although the bulette had absorbed most of the blast and the adamantine armor had significantly blunted the lightning's force, Lonely as Snow still couldn't shake the despair of nearly being roasted to a crisp by his own teammate's spell. "Sigh... if I'd known it would come to this, I never would have..." Lonely as Snow stubbornly turned his head away, puffing out a wisp of blue smoke from his mouth. A former paladin, now reduced to a piece of barbecue. He never should have joined this cursed guild!