Chapter 12: Supply Package

There was still one thing left: the Spirit Essence.

Ethan looked down at the golden orb in his hand.

He had been waiting for this.

Without hesitation, he crushed it.

Crack!

The golden orb shattered into countless particles of light and flowed into his body.

A warm sensation spread through him.

Then the notifications appeared.

[Spirit +100]

[Duration: Permanent]

[One Mind, One Legion activated.]

[Spirit +100 shared with all Shadow Wraith Soldiers.]

Permanent just as the system had promised.

"Not bad."

Ethan glanced back at the Hell portal where a countdown had appeared above it.

[Dungeon Reset: 00:57:47]

The dungeon would need less than an hour before everything inside returned to its original state, including the monsters, the Waykeeper, and even the Goblin Boss.

Ethan had nothing else to do but wait.

After thinking for a moment, he looked back into his inventory as there was something he had almost forgotten about.

The Uncommon Supply Package.

It was the reward he had received for being the first to complete the trial.

Ethan had spent nearly six hours since arriving in Elyria without eating.

Since he had some time to kill, there was no reason to keep it in his inventory.

He took the package out and placed it on the ground.

He had seen plenty of these in his previous life.

Supply packages were fairly common, but their contents were never quite the same. Sometimes they contained food or medicine. Other times, they held useful tools, consumables, or something completely unexpected.

In Elyria, talents and skills ranged from Common to Uncommon, Rare, Epic, and Legendary.

An Uncommon Supply Package naturally wasn’t comparable to those things, but it was still something produced specifically for adventurers.

He couldn’t be sure what was inside.

After nearly six hours without eating, he wasn’t going to leave it sitting in his inventory.

Ethan sat down near the dungeon entrance and placed the wooden package in front of him.

He opened the fastenings and lifted the lid.

The first thing that reached him was the smell.

Ethan’s eyes immediately brightened.

Inside the package were several neatly wrapped portions of meat, along with dried fruits, sweet snacks, and a few small bottles of preserved drinks.

More importantly, it was all consumable.

Ethan picked up one of the roasted meat portions and cut off a piece.

He placed it in his mouth, chewed, and swallowed.

[You have consumed Earth Vein Boar Meat.]

[Strength +1]

Ethan’s eyes lit up. He had almost forgotten how satisfying this was.

Food made from monster materials wasn’t merely something to fill the stomach.

Not every beast condensed its essence into an Essence Orb upon death. Some left behind physical corpses instead.

Their flesh, blood, bones, and other parts could be processed into various materials, and some could even be prepared as food.

Unlike an Essence Orb, which provided an immediate boost when consumed, the power contained within this kind of food was gradually absorbed by the body.

A single piece usually only provided a tiny increase, but the increase was permanen

And the stronger the beast it came from, the greater the benefit.

Ethan was about to cut another piece when something caught his attention out of the corner of his eye.

The Village Elder was staring at the meat in his hands, though he seemed determined to pretend otherwise. Ethan couldn’t help but smile.

"Come over and eat."

The Elder immediately straightened. "I wasn’t looking at your food."

"Of course you weren’t."

"You’ve just returned from a battle. You should eat properly. There’s no need to worry about an old man’s appetite."

"I have enough." Ethan tore off another piece and glanced at him. "Come."

The Elder hesitated before shaking his head. "This old man has eaten enough in his lifetime. You should keep the food for yourself."

"You’ve been staring at it for the last minute."

"I was merely observing it."

"Then come take a closer look."

The Elder’s expression twitched. After a moment, he sighed and walked over. "Young people these days..." He sat down beside Ethan and accepted the portion of meat that Ethan handed him.

This time, the Elder didn’t bother pretending.

He tore off a piece, chewed slowly, and swallowed.

His expression changed.

The Elder looked down at the meat in his hand, nearly drooling. He remained silent for a moment before looking at Ethan.

"My strength..."

He clenched his fist again, harder this time. A trace of disbelief appeared in his eyes.

"It increased."

Ethan smiled.

The Elder stared at his hand. "My strength hasn’t increased for years. At my age, I can no longer hunt powerful beasts like I once did." He looked at the meat in his hand. "Yet one piece of this actually increased my strength."

"That’s why I told you to eat."

The Elder looked at the remaining portions of meat, his earlier hesitation completely gone.

"Where did you get this?" He picked up another piece and examined it. "I’ve seen plenty of monster meat in my time, but this is nothing like what I’ve tasted before."

Ethan shook his head. "Don’t worry about that. Just eat."

The Elder glanced at him, then immediately picked up another piece. "Fine."

He clearly no longer cared where the meat had come from.

Ethan smiled and continued eating as well.

A few minutes passed before the Nightmare portal suddenly lit up.

One figure after another stepped out.

Lucian.

Elena.

And the rest of their party.

They had successfully cleared the Nightmare difficulty, but there was no celebration on their faces. Their expressions were subdued, their steps slower than usual, as though the victory had been overshadowed by something none of them wanted to talk about.

The Elder immediately got to his feet. He wiped the grease from his hands against his clothes and hurried toward them, a wide smile already spreading across his face.

"You actually cleared it so fast..."

His voice was filled with genuine relief.

"I knew you would clear the Nightmare difficulty. Well done!"

But as he got closer, his smile slowly faded.

Something was wrong.

The Elder looked from Lucian to Elena, then across the rest of the group. Not one of them looked happy. Even after successfully clearing a difficulty he thought was nearly impossible, none of them showed the slightest excitement.

His brows furrowed.

"What happened?"

No one answered. Instead, their eyes slowly turned toward Ethan.