Chapter 77: The Moon Child

Wah!
The creature let out a piercing scream, its sharp claws viciously stabbing toward his eyes.
But Charles watched its attack with a broad smile, as an invisible barrier appeared, causing the creature’s assault to fail and leaving its claws aching from the impact.
“My little darling, you’re quite mischievous, aren’t you?” Charles grinned, reaching out to tug at a tuft of fur atop its head.
This monster was the very one that had nearly killed him earlier. At that time, he was new to this place and had not anticipated such ferocity from his opponent—he was nearly devoured.
Three guards and two hunters had already fallen to it; had it not been for Firefly’s timely arrival, Charles would never have survived!
Now, however, the balance of power had completely reversed. This beast, so terrifying in the eyes of mortals, was no stronger than a chick in Charles’s hands.
The creature itself was bizarre. It resembled a child of three or four, but its body was covered in silvery scales, glittering under the sunlight.
It possessed a black, sharp beak like an eagle and limbs reminiscent of a monkey’s, though its claws were sharper still. On its back lay a thick armor plate, somewhat like a turtle shell.
Most peculiar of all, atop its head grew a mound of silvery hair, much like a bird’s nest—soft and damp to the touch, reminiscent of seaweed.
Wah!
The creature struggled to escape, but was powerless. Instead, Charles slammed it to the ground, and before it could rise, kicked it again.
His physique far surpassed that of ordinary humans, and with his indestructible protective aura, he could utterly subdue this nonhuman beast.
Ten minutes later, Charles stretched his limbs, performed a few simple exercises, then squatted down with a smile. “Heh, I bear no grudge at all. Do you still dare to fight back?”
Wah!
The creature whimpered like a child, crouching by the roots of a tree, its whole body trembling. Its unscaled face was swollen high from earlier punishment.
It had suffered more than just a beating—arms and legs had been severely tested, leaving it unable even to flee.
Meow!
Just then, the little white fox hurried over from a distance. Upon seeing the creature, its eyes flashed with ferocity and it prepared to pounce, frightening the monster into curling up into a tight ball, its body quivering.
“Alright, let’s spare it for now.” Charles, having vented his anger, felt much better and gathered Firefly up, preventing her from attacking.

He then drew from his breast a prismatic pine cone, its colorful light blossoming and enveloping the creature entirely.
“White Spirit!”
A translucent interface appeared; in the small totem slot below, a new image emerged.
“Moonborn Beast: Special totem, unevolved, can upgrade, evolution success rate 80%, evolution points required: 4.
Abilities: Absorbs moonlight, strengthens, rapid movement.”
Why is the evolution success rate so high?
Charles was surprised; when Firefly became his main totem, the success rate was only 10%, and even now she had not evolved.
“Never mind, I’ll study that later. Let’s try it once and see.”
He focused his mind on the “+”, evolution points quickly dropped, and a layer of grayish-white energy shrouded the creature. Charles held Firefly and watched from the side.
Wah!
The creature screamed; its body, less than a meter tall, suddenly swelled to over four meters, its entire form covered in layers of silver bone armor.
A thick tail sprouted behind, bristling with sinister spikes and stretching over three meters long.
Its palms transformed, ejecting four dagger-like bone blades, gleaming silver, reminiscent of Wolverine from sci-fi films.
The silvery bird’s nest atop its head multiplied, turning into seaweed-like strands that billowed behind it in the wind.
“Rampant Moon Beast, special totem, evolved form, can upgrade, evolution success rate 4%, evolution points required: 16.
Abilities: Moonlight absorption, slaughter form, super strength, underwater breathing.”
After reading, Charles was astonished to find its talents surpassed Firefly’s—it possessed four abilities outright. Intrigued, he ordered, “Show me your power.”
Wah!
With a roar, the creature charged the great tree behind, its claws slashing forth a curtain of silvery light that shattered the trunk in an instant!
Boom!
The tree, thick enough for a man to embrace, fell. Before it hit the ground, the creature leapt onto the trunk, stripping it into smooth timber with a few swift strokes.

When it was finished, the enormous beast shrank back to its original size—less than a meter tall, now appearing as feeble as a little monkey.
Wah!
Now small, the creature emitted a fearful sound, reluctantly shuffling toward Charles, clearly remembering the earlier beating.
“Hm, I didn’t expect the slaughter form to look like this. You really know how to play. Since you resemble a kappa and absorb moonlight, I’ll call you Moonling.” Charles chuckled.
After transformation, it possessed a terrifying appearance—a ruthless beast that could kill without blinking. Yet, in this guise, it was like a wolf in sheep’s clothing, gentle and harmless, making it perfect for a surprise attack.
“Alright, come with me.” Charles beckoned, and the creature followed, step by step.
Firefly perched on his shoulder, asserting her dominance with soft, wriggling sounds; finally, she leapt onto the bird’s nest atop Moonling’s head.
Under Charles’s authority, Moonling dared not resist, allowing her to play atop its head.
Charles found it amusing. He quickly reached the forest’s edge and took a carriage back to the manor.
At the manor, Irene, who had been resting, rose quickly and curiously eyed Moonling behind him. “Charles, is this another evolved totem?”
“Yes, it’s a totem beast my teacher helped me tame long ago—a fairly ordinary auxiliary totem,” Charles said casually, offering no explanation of its strange abilities.
“Oh, it looks silly but rather cute.” Irene smiled, reaching out to touch the bird’s nest atop Moonling’s head, finding it quite amusing.
Firefly allowed no one but Charles to touch her, leaving Irene envious. Now, however, this totem beast was docile and adorable, nuzzling her palm in a pleasing manner—the cool, smooth texture delightful to the touch.
“I’ll leave it for you to play with. I have research to do.” Charles left Firefly and Moonling with Irene and headed for the lab once more.
He had stopped most of his dissection experiments and now devoted himself to drawing inheritance factors, analyzing the codes within to deduce possible evolutionary paths.
Every organism was a treasure trove, and inheritance factors were the key. Unlocking them could grant boundless evolutionary possibilities—even super-evolution!