The ten map fragments had all been gathered.
Now, they only needed to follow the sequence on the map and light the torch stands at ten locations to reach the hidden eleventh stone pillar.
The torch stands were pitch-black, composed of a mixture containing fire-resistant iron ore unique to the Well of Eternal Imprisonment, and they protruded from the Lava Lake.
Each torch stand was about three meters high, looking like a reef jutting out from the seabed of the Lava Lake.
There were hollowed-out caves in the cylindrical reefs, and within these caves stood torches that could be lit.
The torches looked irregular, as if they were naturally formed.
“How do we light them?”
Serafina looked at the first torch recorded on the map and spoke with confusion.
Because the torch stand appeared to be made of rock, there was no obvious part that could be set ablaze.
“Let’s try fire magic first.”
Leoward raised his wand and stood at the very front of the fire-resistant boat, aiming at the torch.
A simple Fireball shot out, accurately hitting the torch stand.
A cluster of dazzling sparks erupted from the pitch-black rock of the torch stand, and then it ignited.
Serafina could feel the vibration beneath her feet. Around the ignited torch stand, the Lava Lake rippled like the surface of water before gradually settling down.
A flickering flame then rose from the torch stand.
The red flame seemed somewhat ill-matched with the rough rock of the torch stand.
But the torch stand had indeed been lit.
Serafina gazed at the torch stand, an inexplicable thought surfacing in her mind.
She felt that the style of this torch stand seemed to match another kind of flame better.
That was the Forbidden Fire, which burned with the texture of an oil painting.
If the Forbidden Fire were used to light these ten torch stands in succession, what would happen?
The thought only lingered for a moment before Serafina suppressed it deep within.
At the moment, her Red Rose team wasn't the only adventure team in the group. Any thoughts about potential leads were better kept to herself for now.
Besides, she didn't have any residual Forbidden Fire to experiment with.
Although she possessed the Forbidden Fire Blessing Mark, she had no Forbidden Fire Container and thus no way to carry residual Forbidden Fire.
“The first torch stand has been lit. Let’s not waste any more time here.”
Eomer also studied the torch stand for a while before deciding not to linger.
After all, Caiman had already given up on the hidden boss in the Lava Lake. He would certainly reach the next floor first to seize the initiative.
They couldn't afford to delay too much because of their exploration of the Lava Lake.
The Forbidden Fire was their ultimate goal.
“Understood.”
Serafina nodded. Following the map's guidance, they searched for the second torch stand in the Lava Lake.
Under the map's direction, one torch stand after another was lit, and everything went smoothly.
After all, the Red Rose team and the elven team were currently the top-tier teams in the Well of Eternal Imprisonment.
With the two cooperating, almost nothing in the entire Lava Lake could pose a threat to them.
Time passed steadily as they explored through the thick smoke. Finally, the last torch stand was lit.
Ten dazzling pillars of light rose from the ten locations across the Lava Lake.
The entire Lava Lake began to shake violently, as if an earthquake were occurring.
Directly ahead of them, the thick smoke was churned by an invisible giant hand, creating a smoke tornado.
The smoke tornado continuously gathered the surrounding smoke into its center.
“Stabilize the fire-resistant boats!”
As the captains of each team issued their orders, the rocking fire-resistant boats were quickly brought under control.
When the smoke finally cleared, a massive black shadow appeared before them within the haze.
“It’s the eleventh stone pillar!”
The hidden boss of the twelfth floor, the Sub-dragon Wyvern, was right before their eyes. No one wanted to fall behind; they urged their fire-resistant boats forward, pushing through the smoke tornado that hadn't fully dissipated to approach the giant pillar.
As they drew closer, everyone could finally see the full view of the hidden eleventh stone pillar.
The previous ten giant pillars, though varying in size, were none as massive as the one before them.
With a diameter of nearly thirty meters, the stone pillar extended upward as if propping up the entire floor until it vanished at the edge of their vision.
At the base of the pillar, waves of lava crashed against it, yet they could not move the stone pillar in the slightest.
Stone steps protruded from the pillar, spiraling upward. Each step was more than large enough to accommodate an entire team.
Gazing at the eleventh stone pillar within reach, Serafina did not act impulsively.
Walking to the bow, she drew her blade and slashed a sword qi toward the first stone step.
She didn't use her full strength, of course; the sword qi hit the stone pillar and left only a shallow sword mark.
“It’s not a Stone Step Monster.”
Once it was confirmed that they weren't dealing with Stone Step Monsters, the group began to transfer from the fire-resistant boats to the stone steps in an orderly fashion.
Since they had already agreed to explore together and divide the spoils according to their needs, no one had any intention of betraying the others.
The elven team might have disliked humans, but their pride as elves meant they would never violate an agreement they had made.
They climbed steadily along the stone steps surrounding the pillar.
With every step they climbed, they would launch a testing attack on the next step to ensure it wasn't a Stone Step Monster in disguise.
Although it was a bit time-consuming, no one complained.
Clearly, they had all experienced some of the 'gifts' of the Well of Eternal Imprisonment during their exploration of the stone pillars.
However, to their disappointment, they climbed all the way to the top of the stone pillar without encountering a single Stone Step Monster.
The Well of Eternal Imprisonment's cunning had reached a new level.
The platform at the top of the stone pillar was different from the others.
There was no treasure chest here; instead, there stood a massive stone gate.
The stone gate was supported by two giant pillars ten meters high, and the lintel at the top was covered in carved flame patterns.
The lintel had once been covered in paint, depicting the colors of flames.
But now, having been washed by time, most of the paint had peeled away and disappeared.
Only some scattered, mottled remnants of paint remained.
Yet, that special color allowed everyone to recognize what the flames represented with a single glance.
“Forbidden Fire!”
Everyone drew their weapons and raised their shields, warily watching the stone gate.
At the same time, they cautiously scanned their surroundings.
Around the edge of the circular platform at the top of the stone pillar, ten torches stood at even intervals.
The form of these torches was identical to the ten they had lit earlier.
Currently, these torches were all already lit.
However, while they had found the hidden eleventh giant pillar, they hadn't seen the hidden boss, the Sub-dragon Wyvern.
Could it be that they had to pass through the massive stone gate?
Leoward, the mage, pulled out a white card.
“Summon, Gargoyle.”
As Leoward threw the card, a magic circle unfolded.
A red-faced gargoyle was summoned, clutching an iron sword as it walked toward the stone gate.
As the red-faced gargoyle approached the stone gate step by step, the gate suddenly shuddered, as if sensing something.
Then...
Boom!
A massive, scaly claw lunged out from the stone gate, crushing the red-faced gargoyle with a single strike.
The poor red-faced gargoyle vanished instantly, reverting to its card form.
“It’s the Sub-dragon Wyvern!”
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