The moment Azrael stepped inside the chamber, a sense of crisis washed over him.
Without hesitation, he shifted sideways and raised the Fallen Star vertically in front of his body to block.
The instant he did, he caught sight of a giant fist, nearly half the size of his entire body surging toward him.
In the blink of an eye, the massive fist slammed into the blade. Even though the strike's force had been reduced by five percent due to his Balance Severed skill, the impact still sent Azrael flying backward as if he had been struck head-on by a speeding bullet train.
With a thunderous crash, he was hurled against the chamber wall, embedding himself into it and leaving a deep dent.
'Damn it…' Despite having cultivated the Unyielding Body and possessing exceptional defense, the sheer force of the blow made his mind go blank for an instant. His mouth filled with the metallic sweetness of blood, and a crimson trickle slipped down from the corner of his lips.
"Hmm? You actually managed to block it?" A man's voice, laced with genuine surprise resounded through the chamber.
The instant the voice reached his ears, Azrael froze. His mind felt as though it had been struck by a hammer, snapping him back to his senses.
With effort, he lifted his head and his eyes locked on the figure standing beside the massive earth golem that had attacked him. The golem itself was a hulking creature nearly four meters tall, its body carved from dense, jagged stone, its aura close to level 35 epic level warrior.
But Azrael's gaze ignored it entirely, settling on the man standing at its side. A tall figure, short black hair, cold brown eyes, and a jagged scar cutting deep across the left side of his face.
"Boris," Azrael muttered, his voice dripping with venomous hatred.
"You know me?" Boris arched an eyebrow, clearly surprised by the recognition.
(A/N:- Check out Chapter 100 if you've forgotten who this scarred man is.)
Azrael didn't respond immediately. Instead, he forced himself to his feet with the support of the Fallen Star. Only when he stood tall once more did he look Boris in the eye and answer in a voice as cold as ice.
"How could I ever forget a bastard like you?"
Boris frowned, unsettled by the unusual killing intent emanating from Azrael.
"Have we met before?" He asked, his tone wary.
Azrael ignored the question. His sharp gaze swept across the chamber, filled with oppressive coldness. His killing intent thickened with each passing second, like an invisible tide flooding the room.
"It seems even in Genesis, you are still doing the same vile thin—" His words cut off abruptly as his eyes landed on one of the tubes inside the chamber.
Suspended within, he saw a small girl, no taller than one hundred and ten centimeters. Her life force was desperately faint, her frail body tethered by wires and pipes that continuously injected a strange red liquid into her.
'No. 4…' Azrael's breath was caught in throat as he saw the familiar figure in such a state.
Boris noticed the change in Azrael's expression upon seeing the little girl and his eyes narrowed.
"Don't let him interfere with the experiment!" He ordered in a cold voice.
As soon as he spoke, the earth golem moved. Despite its massive, hulking frame, it appeared in front of Azrael in an instant, its massive fists descending like falling boulders.
Azrael's eyes, however, were still fixed on the girl inside the tube. Even as the golem's fists crashed down toward him, he did not spare it a single glance.
"Stupid," Boris muttered, shaking his head dismissively.
The golem's fists smashed into the spot where Azrael stood, pulverizing the ground with a deafening rumble.
'I thought since he dealt with Melissa so quickly, he would be powerful. But it seems he was just—'
Boris's thoughts froze midway, and his eyes widened in disbelief as he noticed that the spot where the golem's fists had struck was completely empty, with not even the faintest trace of Azrael.
"Where is h—?" His words died as his head snapped toward the tube where the little girl was. Fresh chapters posted on NoveI[F]ire.net
The moment he looked there, a cold chill surged through his spine.
'When did he get there?'
Even though Boris was a level 37 Epic-ranked warrior, his eyes hadn't caught the moment Azrael moved.
At this moment, Azrael stood before the tube filled with green liquid. His face was far from its usual composed calm; his breathing had grown uneven, betraying his shaken state.
(You have unlocked Low-Level Essentia Art — Wings of Wind.)
On his back, faint wings formed entirely of compressed wind energy unfurled, resembling translucent dragon wings. Yet, Azrael paid no attention to the notification or the ethereal wings sprouting from him.
Realizing its strike had missed, the earth golem turned sharply and with thunderous steps, it charged toward Azrael again.
In just two steps, the massive creature closed the distance between them, its enormous arms arcing down once more in a devastating blow.
Azrael did not even spare it a glance and the wings on his back fluttered faintly.
The moment the wings fluttered, two razor-sharp blades of wind shot forth from the wings, slicing through the air with lethal precision. In an instant, the earth golem—a creature with the power of a level 35 Epic warrior, forged by Boris's own class skill and possessing extraordinary defense was cleaved cleanly into many pieces and its body fell apart without even the faintest resistance.
"What?!" Boris shouted in disbelief and a chill enveloped his body as he took a step back.
But before he could react further—
A crushing force slammed into his mind, blanking his consciousness for the briefest instant.
When his vision returned, Boris staggered and his body trembled as though weighed down by an invisible mountain pressing against both his flesh and spirit.
His legs quivered uncontrollably and the chamber around him seemed to shift, its colors bleeding into a horrifying shade of crimson.
He lifted his gaze with trembling effort, only to see Azrael standing amid a storm of bloodlust. The aura radiating from him was no longer human—it was deep, suffocating, and utterly crimson, seething with endless killing intent.
"Wh-what is happening?" Boris stammered, his voice breaking as a bone-deep chill consumed him.
The chamber was drowned in that dreadful aura, a suffocating sea of bloodlust pouring from Azrael, filling the entire settlement.