Chapter 187: 187. Apex Predators lurking

They moved into Zone 3 together.

The volcanic region was hostile immediately. Heat pressed against Owen’s skin despite his CE reinforcement. The air tasted like sulfur. Black rock crunched beneath his boots.

Lava rivers carved paths through the landscape. Glowing orange veins that pulsed like arteries. The temperature near them was lethal to most species.

Owen’s CE dropped passively. 2 points per minute just to maintain body temperature regulation.

Gorvax seemed unaffected. His species adapted to extreme environments through five hundred years of cosmic travel.

“How far in did you go?” Owen asked.

“Center of the zone. Where the volcano is active.” Gorvax pointed northwest. A massive mountain loomed in the distance, smoke billowing from its peak. “The predators there are Tier 5, five-stars minimum. Some push into Tier 4 territory.”

“And the prisoners?”

“Mostly dead. I killed three. Environmental hazards killed two more.” Gorvax’s voice was matter-of-fact. “Zone 3 has the highest elimination rate. Heat, lava, toxic gas. Most prisoners avoid it.”

“Which makes it valuable,” Owen said. “Fewer competitors. More credits per kill.”

“Exactly.”

They walked for an hour. Crossed lava flows using stone bridges that cracked under their weight. Navigated geysers that erupted with superheated steam.

Owen’s CE sense detected movement. Multiple signatures. Ahead. Clustered together.

“Predators or prisoners?” Gorvax asked.

“Predators. Three of them. Tier 5, four-stars. Hunting as a pack.”

“Good. We need credits.”

They approached carefully.

Through the heat shimmer, Owen saw them.

Magma Hounds.

Canine-like. Massive. Their bodies were living rock with molten cracks glowing orange. Eyes like burning coals. Each one was the size of a horse.

[MAGMA HOUND PACK]

[ESTIMATED TIER: 5, FOUR-STARS EACH]

The hounds hadn’t noticed them yet. They circled something—a corpse. Another prisoner. Already dead. Being consumed.

Owen’s notification pinged.

[PRISONER ELIMINATED: #174 – CAUSE: MAGMA HOUND ATTACK]

[PRISONERS REMAINING: 187]

Gorvax’s scythe materialized. “We’ll do a Standard approach. I draw attention. You strike their weak points.”

“Got it.”

Gorvax stepped into view. His CE flared. The hounds’ heads snapped toward him immediately.

They abandoned the corpse. Snarled. Molten saliva dripped from their jaws, hissing where it hit the ground.

The alpha charged first.

Gorvax met it head-on. His scythe swung in a wide arc. The blade cut through the hound’s shoulder.

CRACK!

Stone split. Magma sprayed. The hound yelped but didn’t fall.

The other two flanked. Coordinated.

Owen moved. Momentum Shift. 7 CE. He appeared beside the left hound.

Dragon’s Breath. 120 CE.

Black flames erupted directly into its face. The hound thrashed. Fire consumed its eyes, its mouth. It couldn’t see. Couldn’t breathe.

Owen drove a 100 CE punch into its exposed throat.

CRACK!

The hound collapsed. Dissolved into light.

[KILL CONFIRMED: MAGMA HOUND]

[CREDITS EARNED: 6,000]

[SHARED KILL BONUS: +3,000]

[TOTAL CREDITS: 296,000]

The remaining two hounds split their attention. One stayed on Gorvax. The other turned toward Owen.

It lunged. Jaws wide. Molten saliva arcing through the air.

Owen dodged. The hound’s jaws snapped shut inches from his arm.

He countered. Indestructible Scales manifested across his forearms. He grabbed the hound’s lower jaw. Pulled.

His CE surged. 80 CE into pure strength enhancement.

CRACK!

The jaw dislocated. The hound howled.

Owen didn’t let go. He drove his knee into its skull. 60 CE.

CRACK!

It collapsed.

[KILL CONFIRMED: MAGMA HOUND]

[CREDITS EARNED: 6,000]

[TOTAL CREDITS: 302,000]

Gorvax had already finished the alpha. His scythe through its spine. Clean. Efficient.

[KILL CONFIRMED: MAGMA HOUND]

[CREDITS EARNED: 7,000]

[SHARED KILL BONUS: +3,500]

Owen’s CE sat at 3,897.

They stood among dissolving corpses. Breathing hard. The heat making everything worse.

Gorvax looked at Owen. “Quite Efficient.”

“You too.”

A notification appeared.

[CURRENT RANK: #3 OF 187]

Owen blinked. “Third?”

“Shared credits count for both of us. We’re both climbing.” Gorvax checked his own rank. “I’m seventh.”

“Good. Keep it up and maybe we both walk out of here.”

“Maybe.”

They continued deeper into Zone 3.

—

By the end of day four, they’d killed six more predators. Two more prisoners who tried to ambush them.

Owen’s credits: 438,000.

Gorvax’s credits: Unknown, but his rank climbed to within to 5.

[CURRENT RANK: #2 OF 183]

[SURVIVAL TIME: 4 DAYS, 11 HOURS]

[PRISONERS REMAINING: 183]

They found shelter in a cave system. Natural cooling from underground water flows. Defensible position with only one entrance.

Owen sat against the wall. His body ached. CE regeneration was slower here—the environment drained him constantly.

Gorvax stood at the cave entrance. Watching. Always watching.

“You ever sleep?” Owen asked.

“When necessary.” Gorvax didn’t turn. “Sleep makes you vulnerable. Vulnerability gets you killed.”

“You can’t stay awake for six months.”

“I can try.”

Owen closed his eyes anyway. Not full sleep. Just rest. His CE sense active. Alert to threats.

Hours passed.

Then Gorvax spoke. “Something’s coming.”

Owen’s eyes opened. He stood. Extended his CE sense.

A signature. Massive. Far larger than anything they’d encountered.

Tier 4, two-stars.

“What is that?” Owen whispered.

“Volcano’s apex predator.” Gorvax’s scythe pulsed. “I avoided it before. Alone, I couldn’t kill it. Together…”

“We try?”

Gorvax looked at him. “It’s worth at least 50,000 credits. Maybe more.”

Owen’s jaw tightened. “Then we try.”

They exited the cave.

The creature appeared through the smoke and heat shimmer.

Ember Colossus.

Thirty feet tall. Bipedal. Humanoid shape but wrong. Its body was molten rock held together by some primal force. Eyes burned like stars. Each step left molten footprints that glowed long after it passed.

[THREAT DETECTED: EMBER COLOSSUS]

[ESTIMATED TIER: 4, TWO-STARS]

[WARNING: EXTREME DANGER]

It saw them. Roared. The sound was thunder and avalanche combined.

The ground shook.

Owen’s heart hammered. “Plan?”

“Don’t die.” Gorvax charged.

’Great plan.’

Owen followed.

—

The Colossus swung. A fist the size of a car.

Gorvax dodged. Barely. The fist cratered the ground where he’d been standing.

Owen circled. Momentum Shift carrying him around the Colossus’s flank. He struck its leg. 100 CE punch.

CRACK!

Stone fractured. Molten energy leaked. But the Colossus didn’t fall.

It kicked. Backward. Caught Owen in the chest.

WHAM!

He flew. Hit the ground twenty meters away. Rolled. Gasped.

His CE dropped by 250. Ultra-Regeneration burned 180 CE to heal broken ribs.

’CE: 3,467. That one hit almost killed me.’

Gorvax attacked from above. He’d leaped impossibly high. His scythe came down on the Colossus’s shoulder.

CRACK!

The blade bit deep. Energy exploded. The Colossus roared. Grabbed Gorvax mid-air. Slammed him into the ground.

BOOM!

Gorvax’s CE flared. He phased slightly. Avoided the worst of the impact. Rolled free.

The Colossus turned toward Owen. Opened its mouth.

Fire. Not normal fire. Tier 4 flames. Concentrated. Lethal.

Owen activated Dragon’s Breath. 250 CE. Black flames met orange.

The collision created a shockwave. Both fires canceled each other partially. But the Colossus’s flames were stronger.

Owen dove left. Fire scorched the ground where he’d been.

Gorvax appeared beside him. “Legs. Target the legs. Make it fall.”

“On it.”

They split. Attacked from opposite sides.

Gorvax struck the right leg repeatedly. His scythe carving chunks from stone.

Owen targeted the left. Cosmic Impact Fist. 150 CE. Again. 150 CE. Again.

CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!

The left leg buckled.

The Colossus tried to compensate. Shifted weight. But Gorvax’s assault on the right leg had weakened it too much.

It fell.

BOOM!

The impact shook the entire zone.

Owen didn’t hesitate. He climbed onto its chest. Gathered everything he had left. 400 CE.

Dragon’s Tongue combined with Cosmic Impact Fist.

“{Shatter}”

His fist drove into the Colossus’s head.

BOOM!

The skull cracked. Molten energy erupted. The Colossus thrashed once. Twice.

Then went still.

Dissolved into light.

[KILL CONFIRMED: EMBER COLOSSUS]

[CREDITS EARNED: 75,000]

[SHARED KILL BONUS: +37,500]

[BONUS: ELITE KILL – +50,000]

[BONUS: VIEWER ENGAGEMENT CRITICAL SPIKE – +30,000]

[TOTAL CREDITS: 630,500]

[CURRENT RANK: #1 OF 183]

Owen collapsed to his knees. His CE sat at 2,417. Nearly empty.

Gorvax stood nearby. Also breathing hard. His scythe dissolving.

They looked at each other.

Then laughed.

Exhausted. Pained. But alive.

“Number one,” Owen said.

“For now,” Gorvax replied.

The drones circled them. Recording. Broadcasting.

Across the galaxy, the broadcast hit record viewership.

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