As Moxie looked around, he was struck from behind by an unknown attack. Staggering forward, he turned to see Ashlyn—alive but missing an arm—standing with a grin.

“You asked me earlier,” she said mockingly, “if I was fast enough to break through dimensions. Let me show you.”

Moxie glanced at the devastated landscape surrounding them and frowned. “I still doubt that,” he muttered under his breath.

Just as he prepared to counter, a sharp cracking sound echoed through the air. Before he could react, he looked down to see his hand severed cleanly at the wrist. His hand lay on the ground beneath Ashlyn, who sneered triumphantly.

“You weren’t fast enough,” she taunted. “I traded my ability to manipulate the dreams of others for something far greater—I can now manipulate my own dreams in the real world and bend time to my will.”

Moxie gritted his teeth, but his resolve didn’t waver. He took to the air, leaping high to observe her movements. As he hovered, he asked, “So you’re claiming you’ve manipulated time itself to move through dimensions?”

Ashlyn smirked but didn’t reply.

Moxie’s sharp eyes tracked her every movement. If what she says is true, he thought, she’s playing with a dangerous ability. As he descended, he adjusted his stance to counter her speed. However, another sharp crack rang out, and Ashlyn struck again, sending him tumbling across the battlefield.

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Moxie groaned as he struggled to stand. His body bore the heavy damage from her relentless assault. Looking up at the sky, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

Ashlyn, sensing an opportunity, rushed in to finish him off. But the moment she moved, an ominous shift in the air made her hesitate. Her body screamed at her to retreat.

Moxie’s form began to radiate a chilling yet searing energy. His body heated up as if it were ablaze, yet it emanated an eerie coldness. A massive surge of Essence erupted from him, and a brilliant beam of light descended, visible even from across distant seas.

Ashlyn’s instincts screamed for her to run, and she obeyed without hesitation. But it was too late. The explosion of energy engulfed the area, transforming Moxie’s appearance. White flames erupted from his mouth and back, giving him the appearance of a fallen angel.

The battlefield stilled as everyone felt the overwhelming power emanating from Moxie. His newfound form radiated an uncontainable and boundless Essence. Stretching his limbs, Moxie muttered, “My body... it feels different. Flexible.”

Ashlyn stared in horror. “You’re not human… You’re not even of your own race anymore,” she whispered.

Desperate for answers, she called Taleb, who was still locked in combat with an uncontrollable, fully awakened Auforus.

“Taleb!” she yelled. “I need to know what Moxie is now!”

Taleb dodged a fierce attack before replying, “I’m kind of busy not getting obliterated here!”

“Just do it!” Ashlyn pleaded.

Taleb’s eye glowed briefly as he focused on Moxie, but the effort caused him to stagger. Blood trickled from his eye as he fell to the ground, laughing maniacally.

“Stay alive until Judas finishes his fight,” Taleb told her, his voice unnervingly calm. “Because… Moxie has achieved something no one has in millions of years.”

Ashlyn trembled as she listened.

“He’s attained the title of a demigod.”