The second stage of the raid began the moment the stairway ended.
The forest faded behind them, replaced by the oppressive silence of stone.
They had entered the Raid Caverns.
The ceiling arched high overhead, but the space was still far too tight for Dante to maneuver freely. Massive stalactites hung like spears from the cavern roof, and narrow stone pillars jutted from the ground at uneven angles.
Rivers of glowing sap flowed along the cave walls, illuminating the tunnels with a dim amber light. The liquid pulsed faintly as it moved, like veins carrying life through the stone.
Jax studied the space and nodded.
"Yeah… Dante's sitting this one out."
The dragon had been brought back into storage once they started climbing the stairs to the next floor.
Instead, Jax summoned a smaller but still formidable strike force.
Dark energy rippled across the cavern floor.
One by one, his elite shadows rose.
Fang.
The serpent beast slithered upward from the darkness, its long body coiling across the cavern floor.
Gryph.
The shadow gryphon emerged next, wings folding tightly against its body to fit within the cavern.
Loki.
The frost giant rose slowly, his massive frame scraping the cave ceiling as icy mist drifted around him.
And finally—
The ground cracked apart.
A massive hand burst from the stone.
Then another.
The enormous shadow ogre hauled himself from the darkness.
Grendel.
Fourteen feet tall.
Club in hand.
The weapon had once been carved from enchanted wood, but now it was forged from hardened shadow.
Grendel planted the club on the ground and exhaled slowly.
The cavern trembled.
Behind them, several shadow knights appeared, armored figures ready for battle. A pair of shadow mages lingered behind the formation.
The army was smaller now, but far more focused.
A perfect strike unit for tight spaces.
Bunny rested her hammer on her shoulder and glanced at Pixelle.
"We let the shadows control the fist few floors, and then Jax captures future allies when they present themselves."
Pixelle hovered beside Nyxian's shoulder.
"I had heard he about his shadows, but I didn't realize just how powerful they were."
"Their power is directly attributed to their master." Nyxian corrected her.
Pixelle blinked.
Who is this man that she is now in love with?
"Oh."
The first monsters appeared quickly.
Sap bubbled along the cavern floor.
Then the creatures emerged.
Sap Elementals.
Living masses of burning sap that oozed forward with sticky flames.
Behind them came Bark Sentinels.
Humanoid knights formed entirely from wood and enchanted bark armor.
Their cracked wooden bodies regenerated the moment they were damaged.
And slithering along the cave walls—
Thorn Vipers.
Serpents made of twisting vines and jagged thorns, perfectly camouflaged against the rock.
The cavern exploded into motion.
Grendel stepped forward.
Then he inhaled deeply.
The ogre's chest expanded.
And he roared.
WAR ROAR.
The sound slammed through the cavern like thunder.
Every monster turned instantly.
Every predator.
Every ambush hunter.
Every sap elemental.
All of them focused on one target.
Grendel.
The ogre grinned.
"Good," Bunny muttered.
The monsters attacked.
Sap elementals launched burning globes of sticky fire.
Thorn vipers burst from the walls.
Bark sentinels charged.
Grendel swung.
The club moved like a falling tree.
CRACK.
Three bark sentinels shattered instantly.
Fang darted forward.
The serpent beast struck like lightning, piercing through the chest of a sap elemental and tearing it apart before it could explode.
Gryph launched from the ground, wings slicing through the air.
Its claws tore through a cluster of thorn vipers mid-lunge.
Loki raised his massive hand.
Ice surged across the cavern floor.
A wave of frost froze several sap elementals solid before they shattered under Grendel's next swing.
Even Jax got involved.
Peacemaker flying out, slicing through beasts, while he pulled out Requiem and blasted beasts trying to attack.
He holstered his guns before his giant sword returned to his hand.
The battlefield became chaos.
But not for the Vixens.
They simply walked forward.
Occasionally Llandra would draw Starpiercer.
A volley of arrows would streak across the cavern.
Each shot perfectly placed.
Every arrow finding a weak point.
A thorn viper dropped.
A bark sentinel's head shattered.
Then she returned the bow to her side as if nothing had happened.
Zee occasionally raised Sanctaris, creating a brief barrier when sap explosions burst too close.
But mostly…
The shadows handled everything.
Floor after floor.
Wave after wave.
The monsters never slowed them down.
They simply walked forward.
Time passed quickly.
When they finally stopped, Jax checked his system timer.
Almost four hours.
Pixelle flew closer.
"What floor are we on?"
Jax smirked.
"Twenty."
Her wings stopped.
"…What?"
She looked around.
They had barely fought.
Most of the time they had simply walked.
Pixelle shook her head in disbelief.
"No raid team clears twenty floors in four hours."
She crossed her arms proudly.
"Well… it's a good thing those shadow knights handled everything."
She puffed up slightly.
"I was about to save your life, Jax."
In her three-inch form, the bravado looked adorable.
Nyxian tried not to laugh.
Later after another comment about how she would have save Jax, Nyxian pulled her aside.
"You can't save Jax."
Pixelle blinked.
"What?"
Nyxian shrugged casually.
"You will never save Jax."
Pixelle frowned.
Nyxian continued calmly.
"If Jax ever actually needs saving…"
She glanced around the cavern.
"…the world is probably already doomed."
Pixelle's shoulders sank.
Her dream.
Her fantasy.
The heroic moment.
The day she would swoop in and save him.
That dream was looking… increasingly unrealistic.
Still.
One thought remained.
Maybe someday.
Ahead of them, the cavern widened.
Something enormous moved in the shadows.
Sap dripped from the ceiling.
Then the creature stepped forward.
The Sap Titan.
A massive humanoid figure made from tree trunks and molten sap.
Flowers grew along its head like hair.
Its wooden body curved into a strangely feminine shape.
Branches formed what looked like arms, legs… even a mockery of a chest.
It moved with eerie grace.
Molten sap dripped from its fingers.
The titan lifted its arm.
And hurled a blazing glob of burning sap.
Grendel blocked.
The impact splattered molten sap across the cavern floor.
Where the liquid landed, the ground hardened instantly into sticky traps.
Several shadow knights became stuck.
The Sap Titan laughed softly.
Then it moved forward.
Elegant.
Confident.
Overconfident.
Jax watched carefully.
"Perfect."
He whispered.
"Let it think it's winning."
The shadows pushed forward.
Several became trapped in the hardened sap floor.
The titan advanced.
Its arms extended.
Branches sharpened into spears.
It lunged.
Gryph and Fang were struck.
Both shadows shattered instantly.
Grendel barely managed to block the next attack.
The titan raised its arms for the finishing strike.
Jax and Bunny moved at the same time.
Air Walk activated.
They launched into the air.
Llandra's arrows streaked past them.
Cover fire.
Distracting the titan.
Bunny came first.
She twisted midair.
Titanfall swung upward in a devastating underhand strike.
The hammer connected beneath the creature's chin.
BOOM.
The titan's body lifted into the air.
Branches snapped.
Sap exploded outward.
Then Jax arrived.
Peacemaker flashed.
One clean strike.
The Godslayer blade cut through the titan's body like molten butter.
He swung his duel blade like a dance.
The creature exploded into pieces.
Silence filled the cavern.
A golden crystal dropped to the ground.
Golden Sap Core.
Jax picked it up.
His Inspect skill activated.
Golden Sap Core
A rare transmutation catalyst capable of granting regeneration and healing properties.
Jax smiled.
"Merriweather's going to love this."
He stepped toward the fallen titan.
Preparing to claim it as a shadow.
Then—
"Wait."
Nyxian stepped forward.
"Let me try."
Jax raised an eyebrow.
Then stepped aside.
Nyxian placed her hand on the broken titan.
Shadow magic surged.
The cavern trembled.
Then the creature rose again.
But smaller.
Much smaller.
The towering titan shrank until it stood just slightly taller than Nyxian.
Its wooden face looked peaceful now.
Nyxian smiled.
"I shall name you…"
She thought for a moment.
"…Flower."
The creature reached up and plucked one of the blossoms from its head.
It gently placed the flower in Nyxian's hair.
Nyxian laughed.
"You will obey me, Jax, and the Vixens."
"You will protect us."
"And we will grow stronger together."
Flower smiled.
Then raised its wooden fists.
Ready to fight.
Jax resummoned Fang and Gryph.
The two shadows appeared again beside Flower.
For a moment, they stared at one another.
Former enemies.
Now allies.
Fang lowered its head slightly.
Gryph nodded once.
Flower mirrored the gesture.
An unspoken agreement.
Then Jax looked at the group.
A grin spread across his face.
"Well…"
He rested Peacemaker on his shoulder.
"Now we're leveling up.