*Boom*

The moment the fireball collided with the Great Ice Wall, a chilling explosion erupted, shaking the entire battlefield.

A wave of scorching heat and freezing air clashed violently, creating a devastating shockwave that scattered everything in its path.

Even Axton was thrown backward by the impact.

His vision blurred for a moment as he hit the ground hard and rolled several meters away.

*Ding*

-380 HP!

He saw his health points plummeting rapidly and immediately pulled out a few recovery potions from his inventory.

Without a second of hesitation, he popped the covers open and gulped them down.

Any delay could have meant instant death.

The Fire Dragon wasn't a mere beast.

It was a calamity.

The power radiating from its flames alone could kill him in seconds if he wasn't careful.

*Ding*

[Fire Dragon]

[Grade: Unique]

[Level: 50]

[Magic Power: 4850]

[Attack: 2015]

[Defense: 1100]

[HP: 4000/4000]

[Skills: Fireball, Heavenly Meteor Shower, Descending Hell]

Axton's eyes darted through the data.

The Fire Dragon's magical power was monstrous.

Nearly five thousand points of magic power!

However, as he examined it closely, he spotted what he was looking for.

The dragon's defense… that was it — the weak point.

Despite its terrifying offensive power, its defensive capability was relatively weak. Compared to its immense magic power, the difference was glaring.

Like every trial so far, there was always a loophole — a way for the participant to exploit the rules.

Axton smirked.

"Found it," he muttered under his breath.

If he wanted to win, he'd have to go all out and exploit every single weakness this dragon had.

*Whoooosh*

The dragon's massive wings flapped, blowing away the cold mist that had clouded the battlefield.

The motion alone produced hurricane-like gusts, scattering ice shards and dust across the ground.

*Rooooaaaaarrr*

The dragon's furious roar thundered through the frozen battle scene.

Sparks of fire gathered around its enormous jaws, heating the air until it shone.

The temperature spiked instantly.

The cold battlefield turned hot as the dragon prepared yet another fireball attack.

"Here it comes again…" Axton muttered, his hand tightening around his staff.

This time, he wasn't going to hold back either.

He activated one of his special titles — the one he had earned sometime ago in a deadly Hell Mode dungeon he raided with Dragon Claw Guild.

[Dungeon Slayer active!]

[All stat parameters have increased by 10%]

Instantly, his body felt lighter and stronger.

A rush of power flooded his veins.

His strength, speed, defense, and mana — everything rose by ten percent.

It didn't seem like much on paper, but given how high his stats already were, it was a massive boost.

The ground cracked beneath him as he gathered mana.

He had already downed both HP and mana recovery potions, restoring himself to full strength.

"Round two," Axton whispered, his breath fogging in the air.

*Whoooosh*

The Fire Dragon roared and unleashed another enormous fireball.

The ball of hot flame lit up the entire sky, a miniature sun descending toward him.

Naturally, Axton reacted immediately.

With both hands raised, he cast another [Great Ice Wall].

A thick, towering barrier of blue ice rose before him — glimmering, dense, and reinforced with his boosted stats.

But that wasn't all.

"Ice Armor!" he shouted.

A layer of ice quickly enveloped his entire body, forming crystalline armor that glowed faintly.

It was his second layer of defense — a shield against the aftermath of the explosion that would inevitably follow.

The fireball slammed into the wall like a meteor, shattering the silence.

*Boooommmm*

The impact tore through the air, flames and frost colliding once again in a magnificent explosion of fire and smoke.

The entire ground trembled.

The shockwave blasted outward, flattening the surrounding terrain and leaving nothing but steam and molten ice.

But this time, Axton didn't wait for the smoke to clear.

He had already begun his counterattack.

The battlefield was now covered in thick mist and rising smoke.

This was the perfect cover for his next move.

"Let's end this."

His mana surged, and his hand was gloved with energy as he raised it to the sky.

[Sword Shower]

Five massive blades made of energy materialized high above, each one spinning rapidly and gleaming under the light of the flames.

The dragon sensed danger and roared, swinging its wings wildly to clear the mist.

Unfortunately for the beast, it was already too late.

The blades rained down from above like divine punishment.

*Shing*

[Pierce]

The blades struck, impaling the Fire Dragon's massive body one after another.

The air trembled with each impact.

*Crash* *Crash* *Crash*

The beast shrieked in agony, thrashing violently as the blades tore through its scales and burst out from the other side, leaving gaping wounds that oozed molten blood.

The combination had drained a huge chunk of Axton's mana, but it was the only way to completely bypass the dragon's defenses while keeping a safe distance.

Smoke and ash filled the air.

The once bright flames around the dragon began to flicker weakly, dimming as its HP dropped sharply.

-1200 HP!

-950 HP!

-1600 HP!

The dragon's health bar continued to drain.

With one final roar, the Fire Dragon crashed to the ground.

-250 HP!

*Boooooommm*

The impact shook the environment like an earthquake.

The earth cracked open, flames burst from the fissures, and everything within a wide radius was reduced to rubble.

Axton hovered above the ground, panting heavily.

His ice armor was cracked in several places, and his breath came out in rough gasps.

His body trembled slightly from mana exhaustion, but his eyes remained sharp.

He stared down at the fallen dragon, its giant body twitching faintly before going completely still.

He had won.

…Barely.

'If it weren't for my new ice-element skills… I would've lost here… twice.'

He exhaled slowly, feeling the adrenaline still rushing through him.

The power gap between him and a true elemental beast was frightening.

Beasts like this Fire Dragon were monsters in every sense of the word, far stronger than their human counterparts.

He tightened his fist.

'I didn't expect to meet a Unique Grade beast in a trial like this,' he thought quietly.

The thought sent a shiver down his spine. Though it wasn't fear that filled his heart.

It was excitement.

Each victory, each trial, each near-death encounter — all of it was proof that he was growing stronger.

He remembered his previous battles with the King of Ox Demons and now this dragon.

Every one of them had pushed him to his limits, forcing him to evolve.

"This world… really doesn't hold back," Axton said with a wry smile.

His gaze lingered on the dragon's corpse for a moment longer before a notification suddenly flashed before his eyes.

*Ding*

[You have defeated the Fire Dragon]

[Calculating results…]

[You have cleared the third and final stage of the Dragon Knight Trial]

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