Two days later, Rody and Chris bid farewell to the mermaid tribe and headed towards the Thunder Hidden Mist Land.
Rody didn't even dare to ask for the Mermaid Princess's name, fearing that a single wrong word from him would turn her into foam. Had it not been for this, he would have outright refused. Although Rody left as if escaping, the mermaid tribe treated him with great respect, and the mermaid guards even addressed him as "Your Highness," which made Rody feel faint.
"Did you receive Princess Sally's magic book? Your Highness," Chris teased Rody all the way, causing him a headache.
"I'll hit you if you say that again!" Rody threatened.
"You don't need to rush your marriage. Mermaids live for at least two hundred years, and royal ones for three to five hundred years. Princess Sally is only in her teens, not yet of age, so don't be too anxious..." Chris was driving Rody crazy. Couldn't he be quiet for a while and stop joking about his unfortunate situation?
If it weren't for the Sword Emperor lying in ambush above, Rody would have left long ago.
As for the Mermaid Princess, as long as she doesn't die of a broken heart and turn into foam, let her keep waiting. Maybe with time, she will forget about him. And it was only a single meeting, the impression couldn't be that deep.
The Mermaid Princess wasn't angry about Rody's hasty departure.
She had come to see Rody the night before and gave him a brilliantly shining pearl. When Rody accepted it, the pearl automatically flew into his brow and disappeared. Rody, who usually had difficulty sensing his soul's presence, discovered at that moment a small soul flame next to his soul, faintly blue and very gentle.
In that instant, Rody understood.
The Mermaid Princess was not afraid of him leaving because she had already placed a part of her soul beside his own.
Rody felt surprised and a bit curious. How did the Mermaid Princess manage to split her soul? It seemed somewhat similar to the Flame Emperor's avatar. If that separated soul energy grew significantly, forming an avatar wouldn't be difficult.
Before leaving, he pondered deeply. If he could separate an avatar made of soul, spirit, and dark magic power to strike at enemies, it would definitely be a powerful method. Rody had already successfully used mental power to form combat weapons like a mental war hammer, mental net, and mental saw, but he had never thought of forming an avatar.
Even if it lasted only a few seconds, an avatar under his control attacking the enemy would undoubtedly be a lethal strike.
Regarding the soul, Rody's own soul was not powerful enough to condense into a form, but he possessed his 'Undying Divine Fire.' This 'Undying Divine Fire,' as he continually refined the Heart of Flames with his spirit, would grow more abundant and larger. Even if not enough to condense into human form, it could still form a protective divine fire for a spiritual avatar.
Thus, a wild idea took shape in Rody's mind.
Inspired unintentionally by the Mermaid Princess, Rody decided to develop a new combat magic: an avatar formed by mental power, using 'Undying Divine Fire' and 'Mental War Songs' as weapons to attack enemies.
Moreover, Rody planned to use this avatar to cast magic, as it wouldn't be restricted by the prohibition of magic and martial arts, being entirely free.
After trying for a whole day, Rody managed to form a faint half-figure with his mental power, only to find that his mental strength was almost exhausted. In this comparison, he was somewhat amazed at the strength of the Flame Emperor, who could freely fight with his avatar. Rody's 'Mental Shadow Avatar' couldn't last a minute, but the Flame Emperor's avatar was not only real but also capable of casting illusion magic. This alone showed the strength of one of the six great Demon Kings, the Flame Emperor, who boldly challenged the angelic race.
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"You fool, you really are a big fool," Chris scolded Rody when he learned of his idea.
"Can't you speak nicely?" Rody wanted to know his opinion, otherwise, he would have hit him already.
"The Flame Emperor's avatar is an innate ability of their fire demon race. Moreover, many demon races have the ability to physically split their bodies, it's their talent, you know? I think there are not many people in the world who can use mental power to form an avatar like you and then add protective divine fire and make it sing war songs with mental power. You're crazy. Even if you have the mental strength, it's not meant to be used like this!" Chris's words made Rody feel better; apparently, not everyone had this ability, and he might indeed be a genius.
"I think this is good for training mental strength, especially since it allows me to freely cast magic," Rody said, somewhat proudly.
"You're a madman. With so much mental power, you could simply drown your enemies alive. Why bother doing this?" Chris admired Rody in his heart but wouldn't say it out loud to avoid Rody bragging.
Three days later, less than a hundred kilometers from Thunder Hidden Mist Land, Rody had learned to use mental power more efficiently and grasped new control methods.
Chris saw a half-figure avatar resembling Rody, purely formed by mental power, faintly glowing with golden light, holding the Undying Divine Fire in its hands, and silently chanting 'War Songs' with mental power, leaving him dumbfounded.
Of course, Rody was still not completely satisfied with his success. The Undying Divine Fire should form a massive ring of fire or a fire shield, surrounding the mental avatar to enhance its power and maintain a better form. For the chanting of war songs, Rody thought it should not be vocal but formed into a musical instrument with mental power, like the Silver Eyed Singer playing the harp.
Of course, the instrument is also a part of the avatar, allowing it to perform simultaneously, freeing up the hands to wield a mental war hammer and a mental saw for attack.
Although mental power strikes are invisible and traceless, the dispersed mental power is far less effective than the concentrated strikes of a mental war hammer, especially when facing powerful opponents. The effectiveness of the mental war hammer and mental saw far exceeds the diffuse, invisible mental power strikes in the entire space.
If this kind of mental avatar is successful, Rody further plans to use it to chant necromancy spells or other magic. Meanwhile, he can just sit back, watch, and cheer for victory.
"Have you ever thought, what if there are many enemies, and some hidden enemies don't attack your avatar but instead ambush your real body? What will you do then?" Chris raised a significant concern.
"My real body also needs to be strengthened. Apart from finding ways to rapidly enhance my pets' protective abilities, I also need to think of methods for myself," Rody nodded.
"What methods?" Chris asked curiously.
"I can't say for now, I'm still thinking..." Rody smiled mysteriously, nearly killing Chris with curiosity.
Chris knew Rody well and was aware that he would never leave a fatal flaw for the enemy. But suffering from the prohibition of magic and martial arts, what methods could he possibly have to enhance his combat power and defense? He doesn’t know natural magic, and almost all his mental power is concentrated in forming the avatar. What method would he use in this situation?
After thinking for a long time, Chris still couldn't figure it out.
Looking at Rody's profile, for the first time, Chris realized that this guy was even more outstanding than himself, and he had to admit it.
"How about I teach you natural magic?" Chris bit his lip and decisively said, "If you learn natural magic, it will definitely be of some help. But I must make it clear, you have to teach me more magic, or I won't exchange. This isn't an equal exchange; it's me, your friend, gilding the lily."
"Chris, it's a good thing you're not a woman, or I guess I'd have to run away from another marriage!" Rody laughed heartily.
"You bastard, do I look that bad?" Chris became furiously angry.
"If a man looks like you, it's probably just passable, but if a woman looks like you, that would be terrible. I guess the world's number one Princess Tai Ping would be you." Rody had barely finished speaking when Chris, huffing with anger, punched his shoulder and chased after him, saying, "Who's Princess Tai Ping? What nonsense are you talking about?"
Rody fell over laughing. This guy was male; why would he mind such words? Shouldn't he be more upset if called a brawny man with big breasts?
Perhaps people with elven blood, regardless of gender, are sensitive to words like 'small,' 'flat,' and 'plain.' Thinking of this, Rody burst into laughter and ran off.
Chris relentlessly pursued Rody from behind, adamant that Rody retract his words or there would be no end to it.
Without their Light Magic Horses, Rody and Chris, though accustomed to swift movement through forests and having traveled day and night, both felt it was impossible to return in time for the Magic Martial Arts Contest. Chris wasn’t particularly regretful, but Rody felt he hadn't fulfilled the Grand Marshal's wish. By prioritizing the rapid enhancement of his abilities and abandoning the Magic Martial Arts Contest, which represented the honor of the military, he felt somewhat apologetic.
If the incident with the Mermaid Princess’s plea for help hadn't occurred midway, they believed everything would have proceeded smoothly. Moreover, without this event, a Mermaid Princess wouldn’t have suddenly appeared, causing Rody threefold headaches. However, upon further reflection, Rody realized that without this disruption, he wouldn’t have been inspired and certainly wouldn’t have created the spiritual avatar...
Rody felt ambivalent, unsure whether to be happy or worried.
He felt that life was like a chain, with each link interlocked. Some things are unavoidable, seeming like a misfortune at first, but when viewed in the grand scheme of things, they appear inevitable or even beneficial. Perhaps, life is just like this, with events suddenly occurring and throwing one into disarray. Only after they pass does one realize that everything is a part of life.
"I feel something is not right, but I can’t quite put my finger on it." Chris became somewhat anxious after entering the Thunder Hidden Mist Land.
"There's been someone following us for two days. I didn't say anything, just didn’t want to worry you," Rody nodded lightly.