The Killing Curse struck the Balrog instantly. The demon let out a painful shriek, as if severely wounded, and the flames writhing across its body flickered ominously. Luke was breathing heavily, leaning on his staff, a flicker of triumph on his face. But the next second, his expression froze, and his pupils constricted.
The Balrog had broken free from the Basilisk's hypnotic gaze. In a surge of pure fury, it whipped its fire whip, lashing the Watcher in the Water and the Basilisk (who had successfully launched its sneak attack) away from it, sending them tumbling directly into the abyss below.
Before Luke could even worry about Basilisk Herpo, the Balrog unleashed a low, guttural roar. The surrounding flames were then sucked into the Balrog's body as if it were a whale swallowing the entire inferno. The previously dim flames on the Balrog's form suddenly surged anew, radiating an even more scorching temperature. Simultaneously, it conjured a blazing flaming scepter. The Balrog swung this scepter, and even hotter flames gushed forth, spraying directly towards Luke and Gandalf.
Luke's face tightened, and he slammed his staff hard into the ground, mobilizing all his magical power. "Protego Maxima! Omnia Protecta! Impedimenta!" Luke erected an immensely strong magical barrier, instantly covering both himself and Gandalf. But the flames released by the Balrog were overwhelmingly hot; the surrounding rocks quickly began to melt into magma.
The magical barrier Luke held was also gradually thinning, as if melting away! To make matters worse, the effectiveness of his fireproof potion began to wear off, and he started to feel the searing heat. Without hesitation, he quickly pulled out several more bottles of fireproof potion from his pocket and poured them all into his mouth. He then handed an identical potion to Gandalf beside him.
"Gandalf, drink the potion quickly! Otherwise, the Balrog will roast us alive if it doesn't kill us outright!"
Gandalf immediately raised his head and drank the potion, then bravely faced the Balrog's flames. He held Luke's Flaming Sword in his hand, and the Ring of Fire on his finger flared fully for the first time, radiating a dazzling light. "I am the servant of the Secret Fire, wielder of Anor's Flame! The fire of darkness cannot defeat the flame of light! No evil spirit can overcome me!" The Ring of Fire, Narya, unleashed its formidable power. Countless fire elements converged, causing the Flaming Sword in Gandalf's hand to ignite with a roaring, sacred fire.
Gandalf and Luke were engulfed in a storm of fire, the sacred flames clashing violently against the dark fires of the Balrog. The entire mine was instantly consumed by flames, forming a churning sea of fire where orange and white flames intertwined. Countless orcs, unable to escape, were swallowed by the inferno, turning to ash.
The surrounding rock structures were obliterated and melted by the scorching heat. Luke looked at the devastation around him, a profound sense of relief washing over his face. Fortunately, he had prepared the fireproof potion; otherwise, even if he wasn't burned to death, he would have been roasted alive by the intense temperature!
Seeing Gandalf mobilize the power of the Ring of Fire and just barely hold his own against the Balrog, Luke also took out the Light of Eärendil and pointed his staff at the crystal bottle. "Lumos!" Normally a simple illumination charm, when combined with the Light of Eärendil within the crystal jar, it produced an unexpected effect.
The Light of Eärendil erupted with a dazzling radiance, a purifying power that suppressed all darkness. It momentarily obscured the Balrog's flames, causing the Balrog, a creature of shadow and fire, to feel immense discomfort. The Balrog was forced to retreat continuously, compelled to use its huge, shadow-transformed wings to block the overwhelming light.
Luke and Gandalf, fighting in unison, seemed to gain the upper hand. But both knew this was only temporary. Individually, their strength was no match for the Balrog's full might. Unless they could quickly eliminate the demon, they would inevitably perish if they continued to simply waste time! At that moment, a deafening roar of a giant dragon echoed from the direction of the First Hall in the east. Luke and Gandalf were immediately delighted. Their much-needed help had finally arrived!
Sure enough, the next second, a massive dragon, clad in sturdy armor and flapping its colossal wings, broke through the solid mountain wall and descended from the sky. "My Lord, I'm here! The great dragon Smaug is here to save you!"
Hearing Smaug's imposing words, Luke said impatiently: "Stop talking nonsense! Let's deal with the Balrog together!"
"Okay, watch me!" Smaug responded confidently, directly spraying hot dragon flames at the Balrog opposite. The scorching dragon fire engulfed the Balrog. The demon didn't dodge, but stood there, seemingly accepting the baptism of the dragon's flames. It absorbed all the dragon fire into its body, and the flames around it grew stronger, emanating an even more powerful aura.
"Uh, this..." Smaug was momentarily stunned. Luke's face darkened, immediately suspecting the dragon was deliberately causing trouble. "You stupid dragon, the Balrog is the incarnation of fire! You spit fire at it, thinking it's not strong enough?" Luke raged. If fire could deal with the Balrog, he would have summoned Fiendfyre long ago! Why would he wait for this idiotic dragon to breathe fire? "Don't fight it with fire; suppress it with your body!"
Hearing Luke's scolding, Smaug felt a little guilty and immediately lunged, biting the Balrog. Smaug was over a hundred meters long, while the Balrog was only six or seven meters tall. Even without the blessing of dragon flame, Smaug's immense body and hard scales and armor were enough to keep him engaged with the Balrog for a while. More importantly, as a fire-breathing dragon, Smaug possessed a certain resistance to the flames unleashed by the Balrog.
Of course, this didn't mean Smaug could defeat the Balrog. Although Smaug was covered with hard scales and had an extremely large body, he was essentially still a mortal creature. The Balrog was a fallen Maia, a lesser god with a divine body made of flames. Smaug's physical attacks could hardly hurt the Balrog. However, Luke had no hope that Smaug could defeat the Balrog; he just needed to hold it back.
Facing the giant dragon Smaug's attack, the Balrog swung its flaming whip and lashed Smaug. Smaug roared in pain from the blow. His ferocity aroused, he continued to bite and attack with his claws and teeth, even attempting to swallow the Balrog whole. The dragon Smaug did indeed cause some trouble for the Balrog, forcing it to divert some of its attention. This also reduced the pressure on Luke and Gandalf.
At this moment, the system finally responded.
[Hogwarts Sign-in System: Locating Moria, do you want to sign in?]
Hearing the system prompt, Luke's eyes lit up, and he urgently shouted in his heart: "Sign in! Sign in quickly!" He just hoped this check-in would give him something to deal with his current situation.
[Sign in successfully, congratulations on obtaining Grindelwald's improved version of the Fiendfyre!]
Then, a memory of Grindelwald's improvements to Fiendfyre instantly flooded into his mind. Fiendfyre possessed extremely powerful destructive properties. It could burn almost everything, and even Horcruxes could be easily destroyed by it. However, because it was incredibly dangerous and uncontrollable, even the most evil dark wizards dared not cast the Fiendfyre spell easily.
But there was one exception: Grindelwald. Grindelwald had not only mastered the Fiendfyre Charm but also refined it, granting it the ability to distinguish friend from foe. For those loyal to him, even within the Fiendfyre's embrace, it remained harmless. However, for enemies, the Fiendfyre unleashed its all-destructive power. Luke, having gained the memory of Grindelwald's improved Fiendfyre Charm, was instantly overjoyed.
He immediately cast the Fiendfyre Spell without hesitation, and the dark blue Fiendfyre gushed from his wand, spreading wildly in all directions with a violent, destructive, scorching power. The Fiendfyre relentlessly devoured all combustible materials around it, even the flames of the Balrog, and finally transformed into the image of another Balrog burning with dark blue flames!
Gandalf was momentarily startled by the Fiendfyre raging around him, but he soon realized that these terrifying flames didn't seem to pose a threat to him, nor did they radiate any burning temperature. The Balrog was also drawn to the newly appeared Fiendfyre "Balrog." The next second, under Luke's mental control, the Fiendfyre "Flame Demon" roared and rushed directly towards the Balrog.
The Balrog felt provoked by the Fiendfyre "Flame Demon" and swung its fire whip to attack the impostor who dared to mimic it. The two Balrogs entangled in a fierce fight, blue and orange flames intertwined, continuously erupting with scorching, terrifying power. Everything around them was burned and melted by the flames, as if they were in a sea of magma and fire.
But the Balrog was ultimately a fallen Maia, the master of fire. The "Flame Demon" transformed by Fiendfyre was eventually torn to pieces by the Balrog and reverted back into mere flames. Seeing that the Balrog had the upper hand and that Fiendfyre could do nothing to it, Luke remembered the original fate that had happened when Gandalf and the Balrog fell into the abyss together, and how the flames on the Balrog's body were extinguished when it fell into the deep water at the bottom of the abyss. This was completely different from the situation where he had used water to deal with the Balrog before, only for it to evaporate instantly.
He quickly asked Gandalf, "Gandalf, in what kind of water can the fire of the Balrog be extinguished?"
Hearing Luke's words, Gandalf was stunned for a moment, then he suddenly realized. "The Vala Ulmo is the lord of all waters. Wherever there is flowing water, it is his domain. Moreover, he hates the evil deeds of Morgoth and his minions, the Balrogs, so they are greatly restricted in water. If we can lure the Balrog into the water, perhaps we can extinguish its flames and weaken its power!" The question remained: where was there water to divert it to? The two of them looked at the bottomless abyss below them at the same moment.
"I can feel water vapor in the abyss, there must be water underneath!" Gandalf affirmed. Luke naturally knew there was water below. But how to lead the Balrog into the abyss?
On Smaug's side, the Balrog was, after all, far more powerful than the dragon. The Firelord used his fire scepter to release scorching flames, melting the dragon armor on Smaug's body and burning his scales red, as if he were about to be roasted. Surrounded by flames, Smaug couldn't help but let out a painful dragon roar. Although he had a certain resistance to fire, he couldn't withstand the continuous burning of the dark flames by the Balrog.
"Evil spirit, you shall not pass!" Gandalf stood in the center of Durin's Bridge, his Flaming Sword ablaze in his hand, emitting a dazzling light that drew the Balrog's attention. The Balrog raised his flaming whip, flames blazing from his nostrils, and a sneer in his yellow eyes, as if to accuse Gandalf of overestimating his abilities.
He walked onto the bridge and swung his whip of flame. The tip of the whip was like a swift, agile serpent, whirring with the wind as it lashed at Gandalf. Wherever the whip passed, the air ignited, leaving a trail of twisted lines.
Gandalf quickly dodged sideways, swinging his Flaming Sword in an attempt to block the Balrog's attack. The Flaming Sword and the flaming whip collided with each other, making a loud noise and splashing countless sparks. The huge impact force spread in all directions, causing cracks to appear on the surrounding stone bridges. Gandalf staggered back under the immense force, and the flame of the Flaming Sword in his hand grew dim. The Balrog's mockery intensified as it continued to advance, closing in on Gandalf.
"Avada Kedavra!" Luke's attack caused the Balrog to swing its fire whip vigilantly, colliding with the incoming magical spell. The fire whip shattered instantly, and the Killing Curse was also offset. At the moment when the Balrog was distracted, Gandalf gathered his strength and struck the stone bridge hard with his staff. With a loud bang, the stone bridge collapsed rapidly under the powerful force, and stones fell into the abyss. The bridge beneath the Balrog's feet also broke, and its huge body lost its support. With a terrifying roar, it fell into the abyss.
But the next second, a whip of fire flew out from the abyss and swept directly towards Gandalf. "Protego!" Luke was well prepared and immediately provided protection for Gandalf. The fire whip was blocked by the Iron Armor Charm and returned in vain. But then it stretched out again like a fire snake and directly coiled around a protruding stone wall above the abyss below. Relying on the fire whip, the figure of the Balrog quickly approached upwards from the abyss again.
Upon seeing this, Luke drew out the Divine Spear Aiglos without hesitation, concentrated all his strength, gathered magical power on the Divine Spear, and suddenly thrust it deep into the ground. The ground cracked instantly, and the remaining half of the stone bridge and the stone wall extending to the abyss were broken and fell into the abyss, knocking down the Balrog that was climbing up below.