Chapter 833 - 786: Heroic Spirit Awakening
At a little past five in the morning Beijing Time, the dim light of dawn, the bustling chatter of early-morning snack stalls heralded the start of a new day.
Having pulled an all-nighter with barely half an hour of napping in between, Da Fei removed his helmet, stood up to open the window for fresh air, a biting early spring breeze piercing through him. Then Da Fei hastily freshened up to clear his mind before logging back on.
It must be said, Da Fei, now over thirty, truly felt he couldn’t handle sleep-deprived gaming marathons like in the past. But Da Fei had no choice. At this critical moment, he couldn’t afford a single mistake.
At this moment, Da Fei’s fleet was moving in place amidst the steam-filled, lava-flowing Lava Cave. Yes, moving in place, as the rush of the Flame Stream made it impossible for Da Fei’s ships to advance further, much like running in place on a treadmill at the gym.
In this situation, not getting swept away was already the greatest victory. The impact on the troops’ stamina was equally apparent. Da Fei hardly dared to recklessly train the crew, as training expends the sailors’ stamina, and failing in practice would mean wasted energy, which could lead to an instant collapse.
As for the newly arrived 33 Angels, they were Da Fei’s biggest concern. The current environment in the Lava Cave was far worse than the water conditions of the first three days, and in reality, such volcanic cave surroundings would probably have steamed them alive. Luckily, they hadn’t encountered attacks from Water Monsters, and they could survive on wine and Healing Skill.
Of course, based on the training experience of the past four days, Da Fei thought that drunken Angels might easily evolve into Bloodsucking Angels, which wouldn’t necessarily aid their learning of Sailing Skill. So, to speed up the crash course in Sailing Skill, Da Fei firmly forbade the new Angels from getting drunk. This meant that before the negative effects of the first bottle cleared, they were not allowed to take a second one, relying on mutual healing instead. In fact, the current circumstances didn’t permit the new Angels to get drunk at all. If they got drunk, who would heal them?
If it really came to it, they would drink the Super Stimulating Potion that completely restores life stamina. Da Fei had only one bottle of the Super Stimulating Potion left—it had to last until tomorrow, that is, 5:30.
If the potion couldn’t hold them, there was only one option left: abandon the ammo towboat behind them, reducing the burden on the sailors’ towing stamina consumption.
Thus, in preparation for abandoning ship, Essinger, the new companion, was jumping back and forth, moving boxes of Blood Wine from the rear ship to the front. Certainly, if it came to a point where abandoning ship was necessary, it would be crucial to wake up Miss Elda so she could teleport the cargo back, delaying the Volcano Dragon’s recovery and putting the troublesome plan of advancing deep behind enemy lines on hold.
If it’s put on hold, so be it—unreliable actions should be avoided if possible; Da Fei’s ultimate goal was to train the troops.
Even Essinger, after several dozen round trips, had no stamina left for jumping and sat resting on a box of wine.
Da Fei, bored out of his mind, was afraid he would fall asleep from boredom and approached for a chat: "Can the Angels’ vitality skills be used on you?"
Essinger muttered: "I am a Resentful Spirit, I cannot receive any blessings from Light Magic."
As expected, having a motley crew from different factions was indeed a pain. Da Fei suddenly realized that if they retreated and teleported back to the city, wouldn’t the Resentful Spirit be burned to death by the barrier of the Divine Punishment City like the three chauffeurs before?
Da Fei quickly asked: "If our forces retreat and take you back to the city, how would you withstand the barrier of the Divine Punishment City?"
Essinger shook his head: "No worries, I’m not a Demon, nor am I Undead."
Da Fei was surprised: "Isn’t a Resentful Spirit the same as Undead?"
Essinger muttered: "Perhaps, but I feel I’m different from the Undead. I am not afraid of the Divine Punishment City’s barrier."
Da Fei’s interest was piqued: "Then what are you exactly?"
Essinger shook his head: "I don’t know. All I know is that from the moment I woke up and had memory, I was at the command of the Demon Army. Under their training, I became Sky Cavalry, then step by step an instructor, training more Sky Cavalry. But I noticed other Sky Cavalry were different from me—they were usually true Resentful Spirits."
Da Fei was amazed: "Why are all Sky Cavalry Resentful Spirits?"
Essinger replied irritably: "Of course, it’s because Resentful Spirits are light in weight. Otherwise, did you think any random Volcano Dragon could carry a knight in full heavy armor, weighing hundreds of pounds, flying in the sky?"
Only then did Da Fei understand: "No wonder someone could pull you off the dragon with one hand—you were light in weight, after all."
Essinger coldly intoned: "Can we not talk about that?"
Da Fei laughed heartily: "Alright, alright, my apologies!"
Right at that moment, Elda’s voice chimed in with laughter: "Essinger, you still retain a knight’s dignity after all."
Da Fei was taken aback: "Miss Elda is awake?"
"It’s so hot I can’t sleep at all!" Elda pulled out a bottle of wine from the wine box and drank it heartily.
Essinger quickly stood up and saluted, "Greetings, Lord Elda."
Elda wiped her mouth and laughed heartily, "Essinger, for you to realize that you’re different from ordinary Resentful Spirits shows that I wasn’t wrong about you. You have potential, worth my efforts to recruit."
Essinger replied in surprise, "Please enlighten me, my lord?"
Elda said seriously, "You’re not a Resentful Spirit, you’re a Heroic Spirit! You were once a Mortal Warrior who participated in the Divine Punishment War! In this hellish depth, whether Angel or Mortal dies, their Holy Spirit or soul finds it difficult to return to Heaven. Some Holy Spirits are captured by Demons and become Fallen Angels, while the souls of Mortal warriors become Resentful Spirits. But you’re different. Even until the moment of your death, you remained fearless, without a trace of resentment, anger, or hesitation. Your soul is unstained and steadfast. That’s the reason you became a Heroic Spirit!"
Essinger was shocked, "I’m a Heroic Spirit?!"
Elda nodded, "Exactly. That’s also my reason for surrendering you. In fact, the one beside the Military Governor whom I cut down earlier should have also been a Heroic Spirit, what a pity."
Da Fei exclaimed, "A Heroic Spirit isn’t the soul of a renowned hero or king from ancient legends? Does that mean he wasn’t ordinary in life?"
Elda shook her head, "Whether one becomes a Heroic Spirit isn’t related to one’s status or power in life. The key lies in what state of mind their soul is in at the moment of death. If someone dies with intense negative emotions like anger or hatred, no matter how brave, they cannot become a Heroic Spirit. Dying with regret or fear makes it even more difficult; they’re lucky not to become Evil Spirits. In short, a Heroic Spirit enters a state of absolute selflessness during battle, fearless and without anger, amidst life and death. It’s not easily achieved by common people, but renowned heroes or kings often reach this state to become Heroic Spirits."
Da Fei responded, "Then how did you determine he was a Heroic Spirit? Oh right, what use is a Heroic Spirit? Like a solid, intelligent soldier?"
Elda laughed heartily, "The soul of a Heroic Spirit is pure and unstained. Even if revived by a demon’s dark power, their soul’s essence remains unpolluted. This is the main difference between a Heroic Spirit and an Angel; a Heroic Spirit’s memory might be erased by demons, but they will never fall. That’s why the gods will guide the most devout believers to Heaven after death. These believers are actually Heroic Spirits, the first-class citizens of the Divine Realm whom we Angels serve. Now, do you understand the value of a Heroic Spirit?"
Da Fei’s eyebrows shot up in surprise, first-class citizens of the Divine Realm! Yes, in Nordic mythology, Odin’s Heroic Spirit Hall is where he places the Heroic Spirits who serve him!
Da Fei suddenly understood, "So Heroic Spirits are the best divine sacrifices?"
Elda’s eyes narrowed with a smile, "Exactly, so when we take Essinger back, after purifying the dark energy from him, the Angel Leader can take him to ascend to Heaven. Our merit will at least be upgraded by one rank! If Essinger proves especially capable, we might even rise further!"
So that’s it! Essinger is actually my ticket to promotion, or rather, my treasure! Haha, wahaha! In that case, I definitely won’t let him risk guiding us to attack the Demon Army’s resource warehouse. I should leave something for the European Union Zone to handle. It wouldn’t be right for me to do everything and insult the intelligence and capability of European Union players.
Da Fei exclaimed joyfully, "Then why did you say he was a Resentful Spirit at first? Why not just tell him he is a Heroic Spirit?"
Elda scoffed, "Every Mortal Warrior revived by demons here has their life memories erased and is polluted with dark energy. The key is for them to realize it themselves. If they don’t, it’s useless to tell them, and they can’t ascend to Heaven."
At this moment, Elda spoke kindly to Essinger, "Essinger, once you ascend to the Divine Realm, make sure to work hard, and remember to speak well of Elda at every opportunity, okay?"
Ah, spit! Da Fei couldn’t help but spray a mouthful of saliva.
Essinger trembled as he spoke, "Essinger, thank you for Lord Elda’s rescue and appreciation. I will repay you with all my strength!"
As he spoke, his entire armor buzzed with excitement, and black smoke billowed from the gaps in his armor!
Da Fei was shocked, "What is this?"
Elda laughed excitedly, "It’s the awakening of a Heroic Spirit! He’s expelling the dark energy from himself, which means he was indeed an extraordinarily capable warrior. Haha, we’re in for a big promotion!"
Da Fei’s ears perked up with excitement, she just said "our" big promotion! Haha, wahaha!
Amidst their laughter, a flash of white light enveloped Essinger as all the black smoke scattered instantly, and he sat cross-legged on the ground, surrounded by golden light!
——System Prompt: Your troops have been blessed by Essinger’s "Vajra Body" aura, increasing the resistance to various adverse conditions by 30%, lasting until the end of Essinger’s meditative effect.
Da Fei and Elda both squealed with joy, "He used to be a high-level monk in life!" (To be continued. If you like this work, please visit Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for it with recommendations and monthly votes. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)