Born In Ashes: The Enigma

—) Moon's Essence: A rare natural treasure formed under the influence of ancient Genesis's moonlight over the course of fifty years. Gentle in nature and can be absorbed by individuals from Level 1 to Level 10 to enhance their power.

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Azrael raised an eyebrow after reading the details of the item and seeing the familiar words— Ancient Genesis.

The description didn't make it clear what kind of benefit he would receive after absorbing it and only stated that it could increase the power of individuals from level 1 to level 10.

"I hope it's not something like getting one or two stat points. Otherwise, all the effort I put into obtaining this thing would be in vain," Azrael muttered in a low voice as he closed the status window.

He planned to absorb the Moon's Essence after returning to Moon City, as it would be much safer there.

Even if the Titan Ape somehow sensed the location of the Moon's Essence when he took it out to absorb it in the city, there would be three Tower Masters to deal with it.

After all, they wouldn't allow the Titan Ape to rampage through their territory.

Taking out some food, Azrael filled his protesting stomach.

He had used a lot of energy during his earlier run and to heal his body, so he was naturally hungry.

After satisfying his hunger, Azrael began to ponder about what he should do next.

"I have been in the forest for six days..." He muttered under his breath. "I was already planning to return on the seventh day, but now that things have turned out like this, I might as well go back even though one day still remains."

In his current condition, Azrael could barely draw out 50% of his full strength.

If he pushed beyond that, it would strain his body further and worsen his condition.

Having made up his mind, he didn't waste any more time and quickly climbed down from the tree.

He gathered all his belongings—including the alarm-triggering items—and headed out of the forest.

He ran at a moderate pace, and whenever he sensed the presence of a monster through his sharp senses, he would avoid them as he was in no mood to engage in any battles.

Since he didn't use his full speed to avoid putting additional pressure on his body, it took Azrael more than twelve hours to exit the forest.

Once outside, his tense mind finally began to relax.

While he had been in the forest, he had remained constantly alert, afraid that the Titan Ape might somehow track him down.

But now that he was out and nearing Moon City, he didn't have to worry about that anymore.

"I'll collect the seed I planted on the day of the recruitment event tomorrow..." Azrael said to himself. "Let's hope it yields something helpful for finding the Vessel of Corruption. Otherwise, I'll have to come up with a new plan."

Walking calmly, Azrael soon arrived at the city gate.

The two guards glanced at him briefly, just like last time, and didn't bother to stop him.

Azrael entered the city smoothly and headed straight to the inn he had previously stayed at.

He had paid the rent in advance for ten days, so he still had time left to stay.

Returning to the inn, he immediately went to his room and took a shower to clean himself.

Although he had used water in the Moon Forest to wash off the monster blood he had drenched himself in, it hadn't been enough to completely cleanse him.

As cold water poured down his body, Azrael felt all the swollen muscles within him contract.

He exhaled softly, and after thoroughly cleaning himself, changed into a fresh set of clothes.

"It's a good thing Mom gave me so many sets of armor, or else I would've had to wear this blood-soaked armor again..." Azrael muttered as he placed the armor he was wearing into his inventory.

Once everything was done, he sat down on the bed and opened his status window, his eyes landing on the inventory section.

"Three Tower Masters... if that red-butt ape comes knocking on your city gates, I hope the three of you will be able to stop him," He said with an amused smile.

The next moment, a light golden orb appeared in his hand.

Previously, Azrael hadn't had the chance to observe it properly, as he'd been in a hurry to escape.

But now, holding the orb in his hand, he could feel a warm aura radiating from it, soothing his swollen muscles.

The same desire he'd felt the first time he laid eyes on the orb came flooding back, and his body urged him to quickly swallow it.

Azrael easily resisted the urge and examined the orb carefully.

"It doesn't seem dangerous," He said after observing it for a few seconds. Then, without hesitation, he brought it closer to his mouth, opened it, and swallowed the orb in a single motion.

The moment it entered his body, a wave of warm energy exploded from the orb and instantly spread throughout his body.

Azrael's source core began rotating on its own, rapidly drawing in the energy from the orb.

His core absorbed the energy and began strengthening itself.

Azrael's level started rising rapidly, and in just a few minutes, he advanced from level 7 to level 8.

He had only recently reached level 7 and hadn't killed a single monster since.

The higher one's level, the harder it became to increase it.

Even for Azrael, it would have taken two or three days to advance from level 7 to level 8.

Yet, even after reaching level 8, the energy didn't stop flowing.

His level continued to rise, quickly reaching the peak of level 8 and then, in the next second, level 9.

By the time he reached level 9, most of the Moon's Essence had already been consumed.

Azrael was surprised to gain two levels, but what truly astonished him was the strengthening effect.

He could clearly feel his body growing stronger, and the amount of cosmic energy within him increasing significantly.

Soon, the energy of the Moon's Essence was completely used up, and Azrael let out a soft exhale.

With a look of excitement on his face, he opened his status window to check the changes—and was immediately stunned.