"It's not the Moon Goddess, but a messenger of the Moon Goddess," explained the Moon Night High Priestess with a smile. "The land of the Seven Clans was originally a part of the heavenly realm. Despite the fragmentation of time and space, it still has the capacity to directly communicate with the divine realm, unlike the human world. However, the gods generally don't personally listen to prayers from the lower realms. In the main temple of the divine realm, there are divine messengers who manage and respond to these prayers. Of course, ordinary people's prayers are unheard; only those of the High Priestess or a few elders have any effect."
"Are there other entrances to the land of the Seven Clans besides the Garden of the Radiant Butterflies?" Rody asked, feeling something amiss. If everyone had to pass through the Elf Forest and the Sea Clan territory like him, how many would succeed? Not to mention these regions, the Garden of the Radiant Butterflies itself was probably a nightmare for ordinary beings.
"There should be four fixed entrances. As for the fragmented spaces in time, they are extremely dangerous and generally not used by people," the Moon Night High Priestess replied, shedding light on Rody's confusion.
"How many are there in the Wing Clan?" Rody inquired.
"The Wing Clan's pure white-winged royalty is probably not numerous, just a few thousand. But there are many others like grey-winged, black-winged, bat-winged, spike-winged, and so forth, in huge numbers, though exact figures are unclear, with tens of thousands of warriors. Some of the Wing Clan don't even have human forms; there are bird-headed humans, bat-like beings, and even those resembling evil demons of all sorts. Some have severely degenerated wings, others have none at all, like the centaurs and half-hill monsters; they're all considered part of the Wing Clan, born from indecent crossbreeding, and are utterly repulsive," the Moon Night High Priestess detailed, causing Rody to shudder.
Rody thought more and more, feeling uneasy. Angels might have been plotting against human faith based on the Seven Clans' land for thousands of years. The half-hill monsters he had fought before were similar to the demon clan he had encountered, leading him to suspect that the entire demon clan might be a mutation of the angelic crossbreeds.
As for another experimental site of the angels, it was probably the Exile Land. They threw a large number of monsters there, forcing them to invade the human world every few decades, which resulted in the 'Centennial Holy War' between humans and the demon/beast clans. In this war, angels were the puppeteers, aimed at strengthening human faith in the divine. Humans, though physically weak, were numerous and complex in thought, possessing the faith power the angels desperately needed. For them, humans were like a mine of faith power.
If the Centennial Holy War ended with human victory, not only did the angels not gain more faith, but their temple's image also suffered greatly. Rody suspected that soon, the angels would initiate another war.
If demons and beastmen invaded again, with Marshal Fondsman already dead, the human alliance would be leaderless. Even if the nations could resist, there would be an army of tens of thousands from the Wing Clan waiting.
No wonder the temple dared to assassinate the Prince of the Night from the Abyss; they truly had hidden strengths. Were the angels preparing to betray the divine? Having taken over the faith and continuously building their power while the divine couldn't leave the divine realm, could it be that the Seraph Luhuado of the heavenly realm already possessed the power to enter the divine realm?
"You must wait for me, or I'll really turn into a weeping stone," the Moon Night High Priestess finally decided to return. She held a hope that if Rody waited for her, it would prove her judgment of him was right. Otherwise, this small test would be the end of her life.
To confirm the feeling in her heart, she was willing to try, willing to trust him. She not only wanted to prove to herself but also to the world that following him was the right decision, that he would wait for her. Of course, if she said she wasn’t worried at all, that would be a lie. The oath she made and her numerous reminders indicated the contradictions and anxieties in her heart.
She wanted to trust him, yet feared the harsh reality might break her heart.
"Go ahead! I have some things to think about. There’s no rush, but you should come alone when you return. It’s best not to bring any guards or attendants, understand?" Rody took out a magic map of the human world and pondered deeply. If the angels sent demons and beastmen to invade again, how would it unfold? Where should the resistance start? Where should the defense be set up? What changes would occur among the human nations? While nations like Camaron and Mire didn't need to worry and would fully support him, Norn wouldn’t stand idly by either. However, the situation with Galle, Redlands, Dafrey, and many temple-controlled nations was uncertain. If they were to stab him in the back during the conflict, the human alliance’s army would be doomed.
Especially now that the commander was Galle's Iron Marshal Torovsky, it was like exposing human secrets to outsiders.
Rody pondered over the magic map, deep in thought. Humanity was facing its greatest crisis, yet no one seemed to notice or believe him. The only stronghold was his city in the Land of Evil and his loyal elite team, but they were few in number. Moreover, isolated in the Land of Evil, how long could they hold out against a massive invading force? The thought of the demon clan breaking through was unimaginable.
What method could he use to thwart this vicious conspiracy? He frowned deeply, thinking of a hundred methods, but none seemed feasible with the limited resources at hand. Defeating the demon clan on a local battlefield was easy for him and his elite team, but protecting over ten million people deceived by the enemy was an almost impossible task.
"What are you thinking about?" The Moon Night High Priestess returned, noticing Rody shaking his head in frustration.
"Nothing," Rody replied, quickly waving for Mitir, who was chasing butterflies in the distance, to come back. The Moon Night High Priestess saw the little girl running with a face red from excitement, wearing a crown of grass and flowers, and couldn't help but feel affectionate. She reached out to hold her, but Mitir, used to only Rody, skillfully dodged and leaped into his arms, warily eyeing the Moon Night High Priestess.
"I'm not a bad person, you know!" The Moon Night High Priestess spoke a few words in fairy language, delighting Mitir, who started chatting happily with her.
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"I hope there's still time," Rody glanced at the sky, which was nearing noon. Despite thinking hard all morning, he hadn't come up with a good plan. He wanted to return to the human world as soon as possible to prepare for the upcoming war, but also wanted to stay to observe the Winged Tribe's movements and understand the enemy's strength.
If possible, Rody hoped to gain the support of several tribes in the Seven Realms. His focus now was not on attacking the Heavenly Realm, but on how to deal with the imminent 'Century War.' Before defeating the demon clan, attacking the Heavenly Realm was premature. If humanity couldn’t secure its rear, launching an assault on the Heavenly Realm would be perilously risky.
"Walking is too slow, let's ride mounts!" Rody summoned his 'Life Tiger,' a green vine transformed creature.
"You can turn vines into a tiger? That's really surprising!" The Moon Night High Priestess was astonished to see a human harnessing such natural magic. She had always thought Rody was a brute, expecting his mount to be some ferocious beast, not a vine tiger.
"Summon your white tiger as well," Rody suggested, mounting the vine tiger with Mitir in his arms.
"What white tiger?" The Moon Night High Priestess summoned a lightning leopard, puzzled.
"Aren't you the Moon Night High Priestess of the Elves? Shouldn't your mount be a white tiger?" Rody recalled a memory where elven priestesses supposedly rode white tigers.
"My Natasha is a leopard, not a white tiger," the High Priestess clarified.
"Aren't you called Tyrande? I remember hearing the Elven High Priestess named Tyrande rode a white tiger and wielded a bow..." Rody was even more surprised. He was sure of his memory, but the Moon Night High Priestess in front of him was riding a shadow leopard and wielding a moon blade.
"My name is Ainelu Ye Yue," the High Priestess corrected him, "Don't impose memories of another woman on me!"
"Goodness, I've just recalled a very important memory..." Suddenly, Rody felt a flood of memories overwhelming him, causing confusion about his true identity. When the image of a young man emerged in his mind, he gasped as the memories became clear.
Rody's memories had been static, awakening only when sought. This resulted in confusion; perspectives that once made sense seemed unbelievable now, and vice versa. This contradiction impacted his mindset after awakening the memories.
Now, with a clear memory from his past life emerging, Rody felt a fusion of thoughts. His current life's memories integrated fully with his past, creating a sense of thought convergence.
The viewpoints and perspectives from Rody's two lifetimes, both very reasonable, complemented and filled each other, along with his knowledge and thought realms. This fusion of memories brought Rody a sudden leap in thought, feeling as if the sky had become higher and the earth wider, his soul greatly expanded, almost boundlessly.
The perspectives and thought realms from his previous life greatly assisted in elevating Rody's mental state. "Hahaha, I get it now, that Tyrande isn't real but a character from a game," Rody laughed heartily, feeling a qualitative change in his thoughts and spirit after fully merging his past life's memories.
"I have no idea what you're talking about, Mitir, do you understand why he's laughing so foolishly?" the Moon Night High Priestess asked.
"I don't know," Mitir blinked her big eyes, shaking her head adorably.
"My memories are so abundant, so rich, so useful, hahaha, I can't describe it, but this joy surpasses even that of gaining great power. I feel as if I’ve been reborn," Rody continued to laugh heartily, a stark contrast to his usual cool demeanor, clearly ecstatic.
"Is it because I helped awaken it?" The Moon Night High Priestess wasn't sure what she had said to elicit such joy, but seeing Rody so happy, she couldn't help feeling a bit proud.
"It's indeed thanks to you! I have things to think about, to resolve, I’ll talk to you later…" Rody closed his eyes, beginning to ponder deeply.
"This guy is really strange," the Moon Night High Priestess secretly observed him. Rody sat cross-legged on the back of the Life Tiger, his hands forming patterns reminiscent of magical arrays, changing slowly but gracefully. As Rody performed these motions, he seemed to grow taller and more imposing.
For a long time, Rody remained silent, only moving his arms and fingers in rotation. After a while, an energy field emerged around him, invisible and colorless, like a magical aura. Mitir, initially clinging to Rody's back, was eventually repelled by this invisible force, running into the Moon Night High Priestess's arms in fright.
The High Priestess and Mitir curiously watched Rody, noticing his energy field intermittently producing towering flames and wandering lightning. These flames and lightning seemed gentle, emerging around Rody and moving at his will, almost sentient. Eventually, the flames concentrated intensely in Rody's palm, forming a tangible fire fist, while the lightning crackled at his other hand's fingertips, transforming into an electric claw.
Without using battle aura or chanting spells, Rody’s body began to float. Then, in mid-air, he suddenly started to move.
Rody's movements resembled a dance, yet to the Moonlight High Priestess, they seemed like a kind of prayer ritual. The energy field expanded significantly, astonishing her with its ability to isolate all magical elements. Within it, it was like the 'power domain' of Sword Saints and Magic Saints, belonging entirely to Rody.
However, this energy field differed from the 'power domain' as it was colorless, formless, and only perceptible in sensation. It was enormous, far surpassing the 'power domain' of Sword Saints and Magic Saints by more than tenfold. The Moonlight High Priestess had never seen such a unique and vast energy, gradually filling the space.
The mysterious energy, emerging slowly from Rody's lower abdomen like qi, filled the entire energy field. The Moonlight High Priestess marveled at Rody's skillful manipulation of this energy. He made it revolve like a celestial river in the sky, even condensing bright, sparkling stars. This powerful and beautiful energy transformed the surroundings as if the world faded away, leaving only Rody and the mystical star river slowly spinning.
With a long howl from Rody, the star river spun rapidly and eventually turned into specks of starlight, returning to his body. At that moment, the Moonlight High Priestess saw Rody as if he had become a different person, exuding a divine aura, seemingly shining brightly. His black hair, reminiscent of the star river, had gentle streaks of lightning gliding through it.
His eyes now contained the beautiful star river that he had just controlled. He had definitely become stronger, leaping a great bound in strength in just half a day. But the Moonlight High Priestess couldn't fathom how much stronger he had become or what realm he had reached. In her intuition, he seemed like an insurmountable mountain, enigmatic and formidable.
"Is this really the power I cultivated in just half a day?" Even Rody himself couldn't believe it. He threw a punch towards the distant earth, unintentionally creating a fist energy so powerful that it almost tore the sky apart and stirred up a whirlwind. Overwhelmed with excitement, he stomped on the ground, making the Moonlight High Priestess feel as if the whole earth was shaking, dizzying her. Surprisingly, such a stomp didn't crack the earth, nor did it leave any footprint.
Rody then concentrated fire elements like battle qi and, using a technique from his past life, condensed it into a huge sword. He swung the sword forward in a frenzy, swiftly rotating and slashing horizontally. He then thrust the sword tip into the ground, reaching for the sky at its peak, and, with a powerful arm rotation, he chopped down as if splitting a mountain in two.
As a result, a two-meter-deep, hundreds of meters long gash appeared on the earth. The Moonlight High Priestess and Mitil were stunned, gaping at Rody's incredible attack method and its astonishing power.
"The techniques of our ancestors are indeed magnificent; it really works, I've actually mastered martial arts." Rody's expression was one of immense shock, but upon trying again, he expressed a hint of disappointment, "The sword energy was supposed to transform into a giant dragon. Why didn't it happen? It seems I still haven't fully grasped the profound essence. No, I need to practice more…"
"Hey, you're destroying the earth! Are you trying to kill us?" The Moonlight High Priestess screamed in terror.
"Dizzy, I forgot about you," Rody muttered to himself, relieved. If his strike had accidentally killed them, it would have been a tragedy beyond repair.
"What kind of magic is this? So terrifying? No, it's battle qi, right? I can't believe humans possess such miraculous battle qi…" The Moonlight High Priestess, holding Mitil tightly, was still feeling her heart race uncontrollably.
She was extremely frightened. When Rody swung his sword in a rotation, it wasn't without danger to her. Astonishingly, she didn't suffer any harm as his attacks passed right through her body.
"No, this isn't magic or battle qi. It's a martial art created by a great civilization, the essence of human skill, completely different from magic and battle qi… It's the opposite, relying not on external objects or elements but on energy cultivated within oneself, and technique… Ah, but you wouldn't understand! In short, it's a magnificent combat technique. I never thought I could combine it with magical elements. Maybe it can also be combined with battle qi. I want to try it out later!" Rody explained excitedly.
"Don't try again. If you do, this world might be doomed," the Moonlight High Priestess said, half-jokingly, trying to hide her awe, "It doesn't seem that impressive, just a bit more brute strength."
"Amazing, brother is so powerful," Mitil applauded with her little hands.
"No use explaining, you wouldn't understand!" Rody, in a good mood, didn't bother to argue. The skills he had cultivated were not something that could be described as mere brute strength. They would be the nightmare of angels, and he believed that even the gods in heaven would scream under the might of his continuously improving martial arts. With these techniques, Rody suddenly felt much more secure. Now, he could challenge saints without relying on divine artifacts.