Volcanoes were dangerous not only because they could spew lava flows at any time, but also for their instability.
Sure, a small tremor or even a bomb blast wouldn't be enough to make a huge volcano erupt lava, only to shake the top layer of lava, nothing more.
But... six powerful attacks from K1-Phantoms capable of fighting against Top-20 monsters could bring significant destruction.
Adam, Katrin, Oskar, and the others knew exactly what would happen after they unleashed their attacks deep into the volcano, but they had no other choice.
It was far better to risk getting burned by lava than to fight an evolved Prime Thunder Demon.
It's worth noting that since it was lava in Black Cinder Forest, it was actually dangerous to both monsters and Phantoms.
Ordinary lava or molten metal was not capable of injuring K1-Phantoms or Purple Threat Level monsters, at most leaving a light burn that would go away after a couple of hours. It was all about energy.
Black Cinder Forest had a high energy density, which was why there were only Purple Threat Level monsters and Flame Ones.
Technically, although it rarely made practical sense, anything with energy could be a weapon. A sharp branch from a black tree growing in the Black Cinder Forest could pierce the flesh of a Purple Threat Level monster, but it was primarily a resource.
After all, Phantoms' Nexuses were much stronger and more effective, even bare fists were more formidable weapons.
Step. Step. Step.
Adam moved quickly away from the volcano, realizing that the lava was only rising now but soon a massive tsunami would crash down like a rain of flames.
Coming to the nearest black tree, Adam stopped, left Katrin there, and turned sharply heading towards the Golden Light Squad.
Katrin tilted her head in confusion, resting her hand on the tree. The black tree was large enough to be a shield for Katrin, preventing any of the lava clots from reaching her.
Strangely enough, Adam headed towards Osana.
Seeing Adam approaching, Osana smiled slyly and jumped up before he got to her. This allowed Adam to deftly pick her up in two hands and run away.
Osana turned around, watching as Oskar, Lero, and Erla tried to run away.
Blobs of lava slammed into the ground and exploded right behind their backs. But... that was just the beginning, for with each passing second the volcano shook more and more, while the energy from their attacks tore the volcano from the inside out.
"Oh, I didn't expect you to decide to help me. Feel free to hold me tighter, the important thing is to get me out of here." Osana's mouth corners went up.
Adam narrowed his eyes. He ran forward, quickly descending the volcano and leaving deep footprints in the ash layer from his powerful footsteps.
"Thank your abilities for that. If the lava inflicts wounds and burns on the others, you can heal them. Roughly speaking, saving you means saving the others if there is a necessity." Adam said calmly before jumping forward.
Osana didn't answer anything, she just cast a glance to the side looking at Katrin who was standing behind a massive black tree. She was already safe and just watching the developments from the sidelines.
"Then, if I'm so important because of my abilities, why did you save her first and not me?" Osana asked. It was obvious what answer she wanted to hear.
Adam frowned.
"Doesn't that make sense? Katrin is more important than you, more important than all of you. We're members of different teams and today is the first time I've met you, you're practically strangers to me."
Then, Adam squeezed Osana's shoulder tighter, almost to the point of pain.
Katrin and Adam looked at him curiously, not understanding what he was going to do.
Then, Lero's eyes shone brightly as red particles of energy appeared in front of him, quickly turning into a wide scarlet barrier.
The barrier was in the shape of a large transparent disk, like a very thick and strong glass.
Tremble. Tremble. Tremble.
With the next tremble, the volcano finally exploded, scattering streams of lava and massive shards of rock in all directions.
In any other situation, Adam and the others would have tried to destroy the rocks flying at them or hide behind a black tree, but there was no need for that now.
Bam. Bam. Bam.
Clots of lava and sharp rocks rained down Lero's barrier with powerful wind currents that only made them stronger and faster.
Each time they hit the barrier, there was a violent shaking with cracks appearing, but, after a few seconds, the cracks disappeared. As long as the barrier wasn't completely destroyed and Lero had energy he could rebuild his barrier and protect his mates.
Adam nodded satisfactorily as he watched the rock flying towards him.
The stone, crashing into the barrier simply shattered into many shards, sinking into ash and disappearing forever.
'Not bad, not bad at all. I'd be able to escape from the danger zone, but if I didn't have the ability that gives me speed, his barrier would be a real lifesaver for me.' Adam internally pondered while watching Lero.
A strange, unfamiliar feeling appeared inside him. He felt as if he was looking at himself from the recent past.
Sure, Lero was also a K1-Phantom like him, but it was obvious that there was a significant difference in experience between them, especially in deadly battles.
There was no Steel King or dark Phantoms or Thunder Demon in Lero's history, Adam was sure of that.
Adam didn't want to feel that way, but... for some reason, he felt pity for Lero. Not because Lero was weak, but because his lack of valuable experience would sooner or later bring him down.
Adam was a fairly young Phantom himself, so these thoughts seemed unnecessarily arrogant to him, but there was nothing he could do about it. The thoughts just came into his mind and stayed there for a long time.
Tremble. Tremble. Tremble.
After a few waves of trembling, Lero was finally able to breathe out a sigh of relief and cancel the barrier.
He had to expend a lot of energy to protect everyone, but the effects of Katrin's pollen were doing their job and soon Lero would be much better.
"Good job!" Oskar said energetically, patting Lero on the shoulder with a wide smile.
Erla took a step forward, gazing at the aftermath of the volcanic explosion. There was nothing but lava, ash, and dark rock fragments everywhere.
But... her gaze went to the very center where the core of the volcano was that now looked like a real lava lake.
"Hey... Do you think he managed to survive?" Erla asked with a slight tremor in her voice.
Oskar shook his head.
"No way. Our attacks were enough to tear him apart."
Adam didn't jump to conclusions as he stared at the streams of steam coming from the lava lake and the tall silhouette that was slowly rising behind them.