However, the reaction time was ultimately too short, and aside from turning his head to stone, Vay failed to address many details; for instance, the petrification was too rapid without a firm support point.
Because of this, aside from protecting his head, he took the full brunt of the impact elsewhere.
The tremendous force sent Vay flying, bouncing off the ground several times before crashing heavily from the sky.
Vay didn’t have time to consider his injuries. As he was falling, he immediately wielded the power of the earth to create a completely enclosed stone prison around himself.
The Stone Prison Technique is a spell technique of control type, used to restrain an opponent’s movements. But at this moment, as Vay applied it on himself, it became a powerful defense spell.
With the protection of this stone prison, Vay could catch his breath and adjust his condition.
Vay briefly perceived his injuries, and aside from some inevitable external wounds, he was basically unharmed. However, there was a large dent in his head, signifying the significant strength of his opponent. This wasn’t like the frail shadow apprentices he had seen competing in the Sky Tower, who focused on shadows and neglected their physical bodies.
Though his head had a dent, it didn’t matter since it was completely petrified.
Vay gently tapped his ear, and the dent recovered.
After restoring the dent in his head, Vay decisively pulled out three potions from his brooch.
The three bottles were different in style: one was conical, another had a chain, and the last was encircled with vines.
The potion in the conical bottle was the Glowing Fluff Potion, a low-level potion that could quickly heal external injuries.
The potion with the chain was the Pheromone Transmutation Water, which could swiftly block extraordinary connections related to pheromones, while also altering or concealing them.
The potion encircled with vines was the Karissa Antidote.
All three were basic potions, but aside from the Glowing Fluff Potion, which was popular among the general public, the Pheromone Transmutation Water and Karissa Antidote were rare and valuable potions in the market, with a hefty price tag.
Furthermore, the Glowing Fluff Potion had the most pronounced effect, while the other two were more of a precautionary measure for Vay at present.
The Pheromone Transmutation Water was a precaution Vay took against his opponent exploiting pheromones. After all, he had suffered external wounds and must have bled. If there was some kind of curse-like method enacted through the pheromones in his blood, it would be a misstep.
The Karissa Antidote served to prevent and counteract toxins and was resistant to energy toxins to some extent. Vay took it as a precaution, fearing that the opponent’s attacks might be "poisoned."
After all, in his mind, if one could attack with shadows but instead used physical assaults, there must be a hidden secret. Perhaps it was poison, so taking the antidote was a respectful precaution.
This was probably an exhibition of monetary strength.
Although the apprentices couldn’t see through the stone prison, the official wizards present could see all of Vay’s actions.
For this behavior, Dox criticized his wastefulness over the Mind Ribbon.
The Pheromone Transmutation Water and Karissa Antidote were a complete waste.
Kaier also agreed with Dox, but he dared not say it aloud.
Instead, Angel was murmuring under his breath, and upon closer listening, it turned out he was reciting names like: Maca Scent, Light Blue Potion, Bruno Amplification Potion, Black Charm Soup, Sunlight Praise...
These were all names of potions—each useful for preventing various tricks in advance or for power enhancement.
Initially, Dox didn’t understand Angel’s intent, until Angel commented, "If he’s going to drink, he might as well drink these too, for better security."
Dox: "..."
Angel: "Though most are not really useful, if potions are to be used to guard against opponents’ tricks, one should be thorough."
At that moment, Dox once again realized the disparity of the world, and the gap in wealth.
Perhaps Dox and Kaier’s gazes were too "heated," making Angel glance back at them and softly say, "This is just a personal little suggestion, your battle experience is greater, so these are actually unnecessary."
Angel’s words tactfully made them feel for themselves.
More battle experience? Unnecessary? No, they could use them, just couldn’t afford it.
Angel, thinking he had resolved the awkwardness with high emotional intelligence and empathy, changed the topic to the changes in the dueling ground.
Angel: "For his head to be able to elementalize, Vay achieving this during the apprentice period is indeed surprising."
Dox: Are you surprised? Why didn’t I see any signs of surprise?
Dox internally scoffed yet still followed up on Angel’s words, saying, "Vay mastered petrification early; it should be related to the Noah bloodline..."
Reaching this point, Dox glanced at Black Earl, and seeing no reaction, he continued, "He even defeated my younger self with this move. It counts as his trump card, and revealing it so early might pose some challenges ahead."
Angel agreed with Dox’s assessment.
Earlier, when the Shadow Ghost attacked from top to bottom, it was clear he was holding back. Not because he didn’t dare to use a killing blow, but because he knew that with his ability, even if he hit Vay’s head with full strength, he likely wouldn’t be able to kill him.
The reason for holding back was that the Shadow Ghost’s main focus wasn’t damage; he was assessing.
Assessing Vay’s abilities.
Vay’s trump card: Petrification, was so easily probed out by the Shadow Ghost.
It can be said that even in such a short clash, the gap in practical experience between the Shadow Ghost and Vay was quite vast.
However, Vay wasn’t entirely without chances.
After all, Vay had another trump card: monetary power.
As long as Vay’s monetary power was enough to compensate for the practical experience gap with the Shadow Ghost, it’s possible to turn disadvantage into advantage.