Born In Ashes: The Enigma

RUMBLE!

As the two-headed ogre began to make its way back toward the orc village, the ground for hundreds of meters around it suddenly began to quake.

The ogre halted its steps and both pairs of its eyes narrowed as it glared at the trembling earth.

BOOOOOOM!

Without warning, the ground in front of it convulsed violently, as if the land itself sought to throw everything off its back.

Jagged fissures split open across the barren crimson soil, and a guttural hiss of a monster reverberated through the air.

Then—

BOOOOOOM!

Suddenly, the land ahead of the ogre erupted like a volcano and a massive, hollow earthworm burst upward, its colossal cylindrical body tearing through rock and soil with terrifying ease.

The flesh of the worm was ghastly pale, translucent enough to reveal veins writhing with dark ichor deep within.

Rows upon rows of sharp, rotating teeth spun endlessly inside its cavernous maw, capable of grinding stone and even high level metals into powder.

The moment the worm emerged from the ground, it unleashed an ear-splitting screech.

Even though Azrael and the others were hiding a few hundred meters away, the sound made them flinch and clutch their ears in pain.

Hearing the hollow earth worm's screech, the two-headed blood ogre didn't back down and it also bellowed in rage, both of its monstrous jaws opening wide.

The ogre stomped heavily on the ground, its blood-red muscles coiling like steel cables, making the earth quake with every step.

CRACK!

Suddenly, the ogre ripped a boulder the size of a house from the ground with its bare hands and hurled it toward the worm as though tossing a mere pebble.

The rock spun through the air like a deadly projectile and smashed into the worm's gaping maw with a thunderous impact.

Boooom!

Yet, instead of faltering, the moment the boulder reached its mouth—

Crunch!

The worm snapped its jaws shut and the massive rock was shredded into fragments, swallowed as if it were nothing more than a loaf of bread.

When Azrael and the others witnessed this from afar, their bodies trembled and they couldn't help but draw in sharp, cold breaths.

"I don't think even normal epic-level armor would fare any better than that boulder against this worm," Luo Bingqing said in a low voice, his body quivering slightly under the oppressive energy waves radiating from the battlefield.

Before Azrael or Elyara could respond—

WHOOSH!

The hollow earthworm suddenly lunged forward toward the ogre, its colossal body slamming down like a tidal wave.

The worm was far faster than the ogre and collided with it in an instant.

BOOOOOOOOM!

The sheer force of the impact created a shockwave that sent sand and shattered rock flying in all directions, destroying the terrain.

The ogre crossed its two massive arms before its chest and withstood the impact head-on.

The earth collapsed beneath their clash, and dozens of meters of land sank, throwing up dust clouds so thick that the orange sky above seemed blotted out.

Through the swirling haze, Azrael and the others saw the ogre roar and lash out.

Both of its enormous hands gripped the worm's slimy flesh and tore, ripping away chunks that sizzled as black blood sprayed across the battlefield.

Where the blood struck the ground, the soil corroded instantly, smoking and bubbling like acid.

"Let's go. This is our best chance to escape while those two are entangled with each other," Elyara said, her voice tense as she watched the hollow earthworm and the ogre battle.

Luo Bingqing nodded and added, "If they suddenly move in our direction while fighting, even if they don't specifically target us, we'll still be in grave danger. The difference in power is simply too great."

Azrael didn't respond to their words and his eyes remained fixed on the brutal clash between the two-headed blood ogre and the hollow earthworm.

Under the Infinite Comprehension trait, his mind processed every single detail of the fight and from the power both monsters displayed, he estimated their stats to be close to four or even five hundred points.

Not only that, while observing the glowing red aura surrounding the ogre and the poisonous mist seeping from the hollow earthworm, he could tell that even their skills were far from ordinary.

Although the ongoing fight posed extreme danger to them, one thought dominated Azrael's mind.

'If I somehow killed them, how much stronger would I become?'

When Azrael remained silent, Luo Bingqing and Elyara turned to look at him and their faces changed when they saw the calculating glint in his eyes.

"You… don't tell me you're planning to interfere in their fight?" Elyara asked in a grave tone.

Hearing her question, Azrael finally turned his gaze from the battle and looked at them.

"You two should move away from here. I want to try something."

"You crazy bastard…" Elyara cursed under her breath as his words confirmed that he truly intended to involve himself with those two monstrous creatures.

"You shouldn't act recklessly," Luo Bingqing warned, his expression serious. "Both of those monsters are very close to reaching Legend level. Just one attack from either of them is enough to take our lives."

Azrael nodded slightly at Luo Bingqing's words.

"I know. That's why I'm telling both of you to get away first. You've seen my agility, along with my ability to fly, I can easily escape from those two."

He paused, then added, "Don't worry about me. I just want to try something. If it fails, I'll immediately run away."

Luo Bingqing and Elyara frowned.

Though they knew Azrael could fly and had a good chance of escaping even if something went wrong, they still felt it was far too reckless to provoke such dangerous monsters.

BOOOOOOM!

A loud booming sound interrupted their thoughts.

As all three of them turned their heads heads towards the battlefield, they saw the ogre hurling the hollow earthworm aside, raising a giant cloud of sand.

"Go. I will join you soon," Azrael said when he saw the ogre leap after the worm and without waiting for their reply, he dashed toward the battling monsters.

"This guy…" Elyara muttered, anger flaring as she debated whether to leave or stay to help if something went wrong.

"We should leave," Luo Bingqing said firmly. "If we stay, we will only hinder his escape. Unlike him, we can't fly, and he would have to help us."

Elyara looked in the direction where Azrael had disappeared and after a moment of hesitation, she finally nodded, and both of them withdrew from the area.