Chapter 341: Ascension in Flames

Luke sprinted through the dense forest at the edge of the capital, branches snapping underfoot as something massive thundered behind him. The ground shook with each impact. When he glanced over his shoulder, a pack of salamanders—each the size of a giant crocodile—burst through the trees in a blaze of red and black scales.

He’d stirred the nest himself, of course. One acid arrow shot into their cavern and the entire colony had come boiling out, furious and flaming. Their scales shimmered like molten rock, and when one opened its jaws, the light pouring out was blinding.

[Flame Salamander – Lvl 58]
[Flame Salamander – Lvl 58]
[Flame Salamander – Lvl 58]
[Flame Salamander – Lvl 58]

There were at least eight of them chasing him, and judging by the cavern’s depth, dozens more were waiting below.

Luke skidded to a halt, drawing both kukris from his inventory. The salamanders fanned out, circling him, tongues flicking between their jagged teeth. Several bore burns from his acid arrow, their flesh raw and hissing.

He activated his epic skill: [Demonic Predator Hands].

Black blood oozed from his palms, crawling across his arms like a living shadow. It thickened, clinging to his skin and shaping itself into a pulsating armor of dark veins and jagged edges. His fingers stretched and split into clawed monstrosities that dripped with corrosive ichor. He lunged forward, every slash leaving a smoky trail of acid in the air. The scent of burning filled the corridor as a salamander reared up to spit fire—only for Luke to hurl a kukri straight into its head before the flames ever reached him.

[You have slain a Flame Salamander – Lvl 58]

Another lunged. Luke raised his hand, pulling the thrown blade back with magnetic force. It shot through the creature’s neck, acid sizzling as it buried deep.

[You have slain a Flame Salamander – Lvl 58]

The rest roared, their throats glowing white-hot before releasing a storm of fire in unison. Luke didn’t even have time to brace.

A metal chain snapped around his waist and yanked him out of the inferno. He hit the ground hard, tumbling across the dirt. When he looked up, Charlie stood nearby, lowering her arm.

“I didn’t mean to kill two of them,” he said apologetically as he deactivated his skill. The difference in power was enormous when he was using the demonic hands.

Charlie darted through the trees, sprinting toward the salamanders that were already rushing in their direction.

They bellowed, the sound rumbling through the forest, but she didn’t flinch. Her stance was firm, fists raised, eyes steady. One leapt at her; she dodged easily. Another spat a fireball. Charlie summoned a spectral barrier, the air rippling around her as flame after flame smashed into it. Cracks spiderwebbed through the shield.

Before it broke, Charlie focused, channeling her energy as she activated her level 45 skill as a pugilist.

[Basic Levitation (Ultra-Rare)]: Allows the user to levitate up to five meters above the ground, moving with lightness and stability while suspended in the air. This magic breaks the restraints of gravity, granting smooth and controlled movement across the battlefield.

With her Pugilist’s Leap skill, she shot upward faster than the eye could follow, rising into the air until she hovered above the salamanders. There, she activated Steel Fist. Then she cut the levitation midair, dropping like a meteor.

Her fists crashed down, slamming into the first salamander with a devastating blow, further amplified by the force of Power Punch.

[Princess Charlie has slain a Flame Salamander – Lvl 58]

Another lunged, snapping at her. Charlie darted sideways midair, gliding effortlessly before launching forward again, her fist colliding with its snout. A surge of light flared as she activated [Spectral Charge], chaining her momentum into another strike.

A third salamander leapt up at her, but she rose higher, gravity bowing to her will. Then she descended fast, both fists slamming down at once. The impact crushed the creature into the earth, the ground fracturing beneath her as she kept punching, relentless.

[Princess Charlie has slain a Flame Salamander – Lvl 58]

A fireball shot toward her, massive and blinding, but she didn’t flinch. Charlie met it head-on, cutting through the flames like a comet, her fist crashing straight into the salamander behind it. Each hit landed with a brutal symphony of cracking bones and tearing flesh.

[Princess Charlie has slain a Flame Salamander – Lvl 58]

When the last of the creatures collapsed, Charlie hovered above the smoldering corpses, her silhouette framed by smoke and embers. She hung there for a moment, ghostlike, before slowly descending to land beside Luke.

Among the flood of death notifications on his interface, one line burned brighter than the rest:

**The [Pugilist] 2nd Class of Princess Charlie has reached Level 50! (+3 Strength, +2 Endurance, +2 Agility, +2 Vitality, +2 Perception, +2 Intelligence, +2 Free Points.)**

[WARNING: Princess Charlie’s second class has entered Mandatory Evolution!]

All of that happened because of her new skill. Levitation had turned her from deadly to downright terrifying. Luke had been experimenting with different combat ideas ever since she unlocked it, testing how far she could push that power. With it, she could drag enemies upward using her spectral chains, cut through a mob from above, or strike targets completely out of reach.

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It wasn’t exactly broken, though. The mana drain was enormous, and her movement speed in the air couldn’t compete with her sprinting on the ground. She was limited to five meters off the surface, but even then, she might as well have been flying.

“Charlie, can you carry me?” he asked.

Without hesitation, she scooped him up in both arms.

“I meant like… on your back,” he said quickly, realizing she’d already started levitating with him cradled like princess.

“Oh, how cute. She’s Superman and you’re Lois Lane,” Artemis chimed from the necklace.

Luke pretended not to hear.