chsdbacks Chapter 169 The Death of the Flame Demon
Chapter 169 The Death of the Flame Demon
Chapter 169 The Death of the Flame Demon
Just when Dui thought he was about to be consumed by this fear.
A warm and courageous force flowed into his body, alleviating his inner despair.
It turned out that Gandalf had timely enveloped him in the power of the Ring of Fire, Naya.
Without hesitation, Dui's instinct for survival overcame his fear of the darkness. He activated his staff to cast the magical music that Tom Bombadil had taught him, and with the power of the magical music, he summoned his guardian spirit.
Like lighting a faint candle in a murky swamp, the guardian's light struggled to illuminate his body, dispelling the sticky darkness clinging to his skin and bringing a brief glimmer of light.
The appearance of the magical music caused the darkness behind them to pause, but then the whispers suddenly became sharp and dense, like thousands of fine needles piercing their consciousness.
The basilisk struggled to carry Dui and Gandalf, closely following the Balrog, who was now fleeing in panic and was no longer the hunter but the hunted.
At this moment, the Balrog became their only hope.
Its enormous form twisted and struggled in the dim light, carving out a narrow escape route for Dui and his companions in the terrifying pursuit of pure darkness.
But the unseen, terrifying thing deep within the abyss, with its icy will like a frozen gaze, locked onto these few prey fleeing in panic.
After an unknown amount of time, as if traversing eternity, a faint glimmer of light finally appeared in the darkness at the end of the tunnel.
The Balrog in front, and the basilisk behind it, along with Dui and Gandalf on its back, shot towards the light with their last strength, like arrows released from a bow.
They emerged from the dark tunnel and finally arrived at the dwarven secret passage, which showed signs of human excavation.
The gaze of the nameless creature behind them remained ever-present, and neither dared to linger, continuing to ascend the secret passage.
The nameless creature's gaze finally disappeared only when they reached the deepest dungeon in Qazadoom.
The group escaped with their lives, their eyes filled with relief at having survived a disaster.
Dui's juniors were soaked through, unable to tell whether it was cold sweat or water.
"What exactly was that thing?" Dui asked, still shaken.
"A creature that lives in the earth's core and gnaws at the earth's foundation." Gandalf took a deep breath and didn't elaborate further.
"Alright, forget about it. They won't come to the ground until the end of time. Until then, we don't need to pay too much attention to them, because that will only cause us trouble."
He then turned his gaze back to the Flame Demon in front of him, his expression serious and cold.
"The deep waters of Ulmo have temporarily extinguished the Balrog's flames. We must kill it completely before it reignites and regains its strength!"
The Balrog opposite them turned around, his eyes burning with eternal hatred locking onto Dui and Gandalf once again.
The terror he had felt in the abyss had been replaced by a deeper rage, his eyes filled with a mixture of the fury of surviving a catastrophe and a deep-seated resentment toward them—the very people who had caused him such a horrific ordeal.
It let out a deafening roar, and the entire underground space trembled, as if to release all the fear it had endured in the abyss.
Just when Duy and Gandalf thought the Balrog was going to attack them, it turned around and ran away!
"Chase!" Gandalf and Duy did not hesitate and immediately gave chase.
The lowest level of the dungeon in Qazadoom has an endless spiral staircase leading to the highest peak.
The Flame Demon fled upwards up the stairs.
Dui and Gandalf rode on the basilisk in pursuit.
The flying broom, which could originally fly, was burned to ashes in the flames of the Balrog.
Both of them exerted all their strength and unleashed their strongest attacks.
On the endless staircase, the two sides continued to climb, chase, and fight.
Even with its power greatly reduced and without flames, the Flame Demon is still extremely powerful.
Its sharp claws became its most deadly weapon, and its viscous body was more dangerous than a venomous snake that could suffocate you.
"Avada Kedavra!" Dui seized the opportunity and once again unleashed the killing curse with malice.
The Killing Curse struck the viscous fire demon instantly.
The Balrog let out a painful roar, the flames burning in its eyes dimmed, and its breath grew even weaker.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, the basilisk Herpo quickly coiled around the fire demon, stared directly at it, and delivered another heavy blow, even biting the fire demon's neck hard and injecting venom.
The Flame Demon cried out in pain, tearing the basilisk off its body with its sharp steel claws and flinging it away.
But the next second, Gandalf's sword, burning with white flames, pierced the Balrog's waist.
The bright flames inflicted yet another great blow on the Balrog.
As the Flame Demon's strength was continuously weakened and it felt its life was threatened, it dared not entangle with the two people and the snake any longer, and once again frantically fled towards the end of the endless staircase.
Dui and Gandalf were not having an easy time either.
Their robes were tattered and torn, and their skin bore the marks of burns. Every breath they took was accompanied by burning pain and the smell of blood.
Even with the infusion of the power of the Ring of Fire, the weariness of the soul could not be removed.
Dui, in particular, had been overworked both physically and mentally after repeatedly casting Killing Curses with his staff. If it weren't for the support of Naya's power, he would have been too weak to fight any longer.
However, they dared not relax for a moment before dealing with the Flame Demon.
They climbed tirelessly upwards, perhaps traversing tens of thousands of steps.
A huge, sloping crack finally appeared in the darkness ahead, as if the earth had been cleaved open by a giant axe.
The icy air, carrying the long-lost chill of the high mountains, rushed in violently.
They rushed out almost simultaneously.
Everything suddenly became clear!
The biting wind, like countless icy blades, swept across Dui's face. All around was snow, a vast expanse of white.
This is none other than Silver Tooth Peak, located atop the Misty Mountains!
Before them stood a colossal tower carved entirely from massive stones—the Tower of Dulin.
Silver Tooth Peak is surrounded by sheer cliffs on all sides, offering a panoramic view of the land shrouded in clouds and mist.
As soon as the Flame Demon arrived, new flames began to erupt from its body, its aura surged, and a flaming whip reappeared in its hand.
However, after its strength was continuously weakened, the Flame Demon at this time was completely different from the one at the beginning.
The Balrog's flames burned fiercely in the cold wind and snow, seemingly transforming all fear and anger into destructive power.
The enormous flaming whip tore through the cold wind, carrying a heat wave hot enough to melt steel, and lashed down at them.
"Thunderous explosion!"
Dui unleashed his full power from his staff, casting a powerful spell at the flaming whip.
The dazzling spell collided with the flaming whip, creating a massive impact that blasted the flaming whip into countless fiery meteors.
Gandalf brandished his staff, unleashing a dazzling wave of light that sent the Balrog flying into the Tower of Durin.
Cracks appeared instantly in the Tower of Dulin, and the rock-carved walls turned into flowing lava.
Gandalf and Dui continued their attacks, while the basilisk Herpo assisted from the side, glaring at the Balrog, ready to unleash a beam of light at any moment.
At that very moment, beneath the sheer cliff on the east side, the wind and clouds began to churn.
A giant dragon burst forth from the clouds below the mountain, flapping its wings as it charged toward the Tower of Dulin.
Smaug charged at the Balrog, his tail, like a battering ram, slamming heavily onto the Balrog and smashing it once more against the Tower of Durin.
The Tower of Dulin could no longer withstand the pressure; its massive stone walls shattered and collapsed, sending tons of boulders crashing down on the Flame Demon.
The flames on the Balrog's body flickered as it was smashed.
Duy and Gandalf didn't miss the chance to strike while the dog was down, and together with Smaug, they attacked Balrog.
On Silver Tooth Peak, flames would suddenly appear, light would flash, and dragons would roar to the heavens.
The enormous commotion caused a sudden change in the celestial phenomena, with winds rising and clouds surging.
Seeing the dark clouds gathering in the sky, Gandalf showed a happy expression and raised his staff high into the air.
"I am the messenger of wind and clouds, the master of thunder! In the realm of the heavens, you have no place to live, you wicked fire of Udon!"
Gandalf's thunderous voice resounded atop the solitary peak.
As if in response to his call, amidst the flashes of lightning in the clouds, a bolt of lightning as thick as a bucket suddenly descended and struck him directly.
Gandalf caught the lightning with his staff and instantly struck the Balrog.
The Flame Demon looked terrified and tried to create a fire shield by channeling its flames.
But faced with the power of thunder, the fire demon's resistance was weak and powerless, and the fire shield collapsed and dissipated instantly!
The lightning pierced through its massive body without any hindrance.
Time seemed to freeze at that moment.
The inextinguishable flames surrounding the Balrog suddenly went out, like a candle being extinguished.
Its charred, ugly appearance was revealed.
The Balrog was on its last breath, and the boiling flames inside it dimmed and cooled.
This time, it could not produce even a single spark, let alone reignite the flame.
Gandalf, who had summoned thunder, looked exhausted and weak, as if he had used up all his strength.
"Duir, quickly plunge the divine spear into its heart!"
Without hesitation, Dui rushed to the Balrog and, amidst its terror and despair, grabbed the spear and, with all his might, plunged it into the Balrog's burning heart in its chest.
The Balrog let out a final, piercing, soul-shaking shriek.
The piercing scream pierced through the clouds and echoed for a long time among the cliffs of Silvertooth Peak, filled with resentment, pain, and utter annihilation.
The flames burning in its eyes were completely extinguished, leaving only a viscous, black body that reeked of sulfur and stench.
Seeing that the Balrog was completely dead, Dui suddenly collapsed to the ground, too weak to even pull out his spear.
He was panting heavily, his body and mind were exhausted, his magic was severely depleted, his skin was burned, and he was tired and in pain all over.
Gandalf on the other side was in no better shape than Duy; his robes were tattered and could no longer cover his body, his beard was burned off, and his body was covered with burn marks.
Even his staff showed signs of damage, looking like a stick that had been burned.
Even so, both of them showed smiles they had never seen before.
They finally killed the Balrog!
(End of this chapter)