If Marcus were a warrior with fighting spirit, then Rody could command him to kill the terralizard following them and remove the threat.

However, he was merely a lumberjack. Not everyone can possess fighting spirit; it requires a natural talent.

A formal warrior who can't possess fighting spirit can only ever reach the rank of a three-star swordsman, the highest level attainable for ordinary people. A four-star swordsman with fighting spirit is far superior in combat strength to a three-star swordsman. As a slave of darkness, Marcus neither gets hungry nor tired, fears nothing, and doesn’t fear death. He can fight without any reservations, making his combat strength far superior to ordinary people.

But he is clumsy and slow in his actions, and without any training in martial skills. Though physically strong as an ox, his strength is at most equivalent to a two-star swordsman, just a bit better than a novice one-star swordsman.

As for Emma, her strength is even weaker.

If only he had a four-star swordsman and a three-star magician... Rody sighed slightly. Marcus and Emma's strength was too weak and couldn't provide much combat power to protect himself and his mother. It would have been much better if they could cast magic like Nicholas, even though Nicholas's undead magic was almost useless during the day. At least at night, it could be Rody's most reliable protection.

Suddenly, a marvelous and crazy idea emerged in Rody's mind, like a flash of inspiration across his chaotic mind.

Marcus doesn't know how to use fighting spirit, but Rody does, and it's high-level fighting spirit.

Although his body is not destined to cultivate 'Fiery Fighting Spirit' or perform 'Thundering Sword Technique', maybe he can, just like he used Nicholas, borrow Marcus's body to cultivate Fiery Fighting Spirit. In this way, wouldn't it be equivalent to teaching fighting spirit and swordsmanship to his eternally loyal slaves of darkness?

Perhaps they wouldn't perform as smoothly as normal people, but combined with their undying bodies and fearless attacks, their combat power would definitely increase significantly.

As for Emma, maybe he could cultivate some kind of magic on her, turning her into a magician to protect himself.

Rody was thrilled by this idea. If successful, he would be the first necromancer to train and enhance his undead. If it were a human, no matter how loyal they were to Rody, he would not easily teach them fighting spirit and magic. But Marcus and Emma were his eternally loyal slaves of darkness, and he didn't need to worry about their loyalty.

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No matter how powerful they became, they would only be his tools, with no possibility of betrayal.

If he worried about the thoughtless ones rebelling, Rody might as well worry about a dagger or an axe betraying him...

Rody found a large tree and carefully placed his mother on it, then began to experiment on Marcus. The terralizard in the distance watched eagerly but didn’t dare to attack. After trying for a long time, Rody discovered that Marcus indeed had the talent to cultivate fighting spirit. However, he couldn't cultivate the Rhein family's Fiery Fighting Spirit due to attribute incompatibility and his body's limitations in handling such advanced fighting spirit.

But Rody knew dozens of types of fighting spirit.

He understood all the fighting spirits available to the warriors under Lord Warren. After trying one by one, Rody finally found two types of fighting spirit suitable for Marcus's body. After a tough decision, Rody abandoned one and focused on using Marcus's body to cultivate a basic fighting spirit called 'Stone Slash'.

Although Rody was exceptionally talented, Marcus's body wasn't great, and it was estimated that it would take at least three months to successfully cultivate 'Stone Slash Fighting Spirit'. However, the good start on Marcus's body still thrilled Rody.

He then turned his attention to Emma, wanting to try cultivating magic this time.

Since the age of three, Rody had read many magic books from various schools. Despite not understanding meditation, he knew a lot about magical theories. The Rhein family mainly focused on fighting spirit, with very few magicians. Their collection of magic books on elemental magic was as scarce as the morning stars, and all were of a basic level. However, Rody's thirst for learning magic was like a traveler in the desert longing for water.

He tried various basic spells, patiently meditating on each series.

Eventually, Rody, using Emma's body, sensed the dense and solid earth elemental magic. This meant that Emma could become a junior earth mage to protect Rody, at least a three-star junior magician.

This sense of success was something Rody hadn't felt since the nightmare of his fifth year.

Now, he felt a surge of hope and rejuvenation.

He wasn't useless, no! Although he had consumed the despairing 'Magic-Martial Forbidden Potion' and was rejected by the elemental gate, it hadn't forbidden his talent or intelligence. Even though his body wasn't suited for cultivating fighting spirit or magic, he could use his eternally loyal slaves of darkness to practice them... He would never become the Sword Saint or Mage Saint he dreamed of, but perhaps one day, Sword Saints and Mage Saints would stand in rows before him, tirelessly protecting him.

Rody's outlook on the future improved significantly.

Looking at the setting sun, he felt as if witnessing a beautiful sunrise.

That day in the stone chamber, he had felt hope, as if a door of hope was ready to open for him, but he had been too eager to leave and didn't ponder it deeply. After escaping, he was preoccupied with leaving Kolo and didn't take the time to redesign his future. Now, he finally grasped it, firmly holding his destiny in his hands.

Given enough time, he would walk the path of the strong, using a method unknown to others, a path of hope never before trodden.

All this was thanks to the flash of inspiration that crossed his mind earlier.

It completely changed his life and the future of his entire existence.

That night, Rody continued experimenting eagerly. His mental strength was severely depleted, but the headache couldn't dampen his ecstatic mood. Like a child with his favorite toy, he kept trying to condense fighting spirit in Marcus, hoping to soon elevate him to a warrior with fighting spirit, fulfilling his own wish to cultivate it personally.

At night, two more terralizards appeared.

Their courage grew, and one of the strongest crept forward, intending to attack Marcus, who emitted a faint stench of decay at the base of the tree.

"You're courting death!" Although Rody couldn't yet make Marcus possess fighting spirit, he knew he could command Marcus to counterattack according to his orders and will. He no longer felt the anxiety he had before. He directed Marcus, armed with a dagger, to make stabbing sword moves.

Marcus's body was clumsy, and his attack was easily dodged by the terralizard. However, Rody was delighted; this would be a good start.

With no need for self-preservation, Rody manipulated Marcus with his mental strength, continuously attacking, recklessly performing various dangerous maneuvers, fighting desperately with the terralizard. The creature, strong but unintelligent and acting on instinct, greedily bit and tore off a chunk of Marcus's thigh. However, it also got the dagger stabbed into its eye, spewing green blood as it howled and fled.