But if it really comes down to that point, and he has to choose one to protect among everyone, the Black Earl will still choose to protect Angel. As for the reason, merely being a "member of the Research and Development Institute" is enough.
Angel was indifferent about it, as long as the Wise Sovereign doesn’t suddenly make a move, Angel has ways to handle it. However, facing the Black Earl’s kind intentions, Angel still thanked him with a nod.
"By the way, don’t mention the glasses." The Black Earl thought for a moment before reminding Angel about the glasses issue.
Though the Wise Sovereign had already curbed his anger, who knows if he might rage again over his "wound being ripped open"?
Angel didn’t understand the Black Earl’s meaning but still nodded.
Afterward, Angel and the Black Earl walked out of the earth ring wall together.
As they left the ring wall, two shadows emerged from within the ring wall, one was the Wood Spirit, and the other was Earl Mi.
The Wood Spirit and Earl Mi just brushed past each other, and the Wood Spirit looked at Earl Mi doubtfully, the next second, its expression turned into one of terror.
But before the Wood Spirit could be scared away, Angel directly grasped its hand: "Alright, it’s my shadow. If you’re even scared of shadows, how do you plan to venture out?"
As Angel spoke, Earl Mi had already merged back into his shadow. Seeing Earl Mi disappear, the Wood Spirit let out a sigh of relief.
However, the Wood Spirit’s expression remained startled and uneasy, especially upon seeing the Black Earl floating nearby, it couldn’t help but try breaking free from Angel’s grasp to find a secluded place to hide.
Yet, Angel had learned from earlier occurrences, how could he let the Wood Spirit escape easily?
After struggling for a while, the Wood Spirit conceded. Instead of running away, it ran behind Angel to hide.
"The nose is scary, the eyes are scary too, so scary..." The Wood Spirit hid behind Angel, still shivering. But the words it murmured caused everyone to pause slightly.
The "scary nose" naturally referred to the Black Earl.
And the scary eyes, this was quite intriguing. The Black Earl didn’t have eyes, and Angel’s eyes weren’t the source of the Wood Spirit’s fear, then the only possible one was... the Wise Sovereign.
"Alas..." The Wise Sovereign sighed softly, then lightly stroked his forehead, and the eye on top of his head disappeared.
It was only then that the Wood Spirit timidly peeked out, using a voice almost like a whispered mosquito’s, it said, "Teacher."
Calling the Wise Sovereign teacher wasn’t unexpected. The Wise Sovereign had stated from the beginning that he accepted the Wood Spirit as a student.
What took them by surprise was that the Wood Spirit seemed very afraid of the Wise Sovereign’s three eyes, but once the Wise Sovereign reverted to two eyes, that fear disappeared.
This implies that the Wood Spirit wasn’t afraid of the Wise Sovereign, but feared his third eye. Could it be that this third eye hid some cunning trick?
While everyone harbored doubts, the Wise Sovereign spoke up: "It’s quite sensitive to all non-human appearances. Only when facing human appearances does its fear slightly decrease... perhaps it’s a common trait of spirits."
The birth of spirits generally satisfies two conditions: firstly, their true form embodies a deeply ingrained meaning; secondly, it requires long-term presence in a harmonious energy environment.
Of course, there are exceptions, but generalizing with induction, objects satisfying the above two conditions have a higher chance to give birth to a spirit.
The so-called "deeply ingrained meaning" is actually the heart’s yearning, the binding of thoughts from wise beings.
In Jon’s words, it’s "what one constantly thinks of, there will be a response."
This also means the birth of spirits is closely related to wise beings. In the Wizards’ Realm, especially the Southern Domain Wizard World, where non-human wise beings are oppressed by extreme sects, the birth of spirits is almost invariably connected to humans.
So, the Wood Spirit being more fond of human appearances is quite normal in the Wise Sovereign’s view.
Yet, the Wood Spirit has exaggerated its "heart’s longing." Being fond of humans is one thing, but its fear of beings even slightly different from human appearances is magnified many times, terrifyingly so.
It is precisely for this reason that the Wood Spirit to this day remains frightened by the true body of the Wise Sovereign.
Before encountering the Wood Spirit, the Wise Sovereign always adopted the "Triclops Blue Demon" prototype for his appearance: burly stature, skin of eerie blue, fearsome tusks, and three intimidating eyes.
But as he gradually interacted with the Wood Spirit, the Wise Sovereign started modifying his appearance slowly.
The current youthful look is the result of these changes.
However, until now, the Wise Sovereign couldn’t always keep the third eye closed because this third eye is the central hub for most of his body’s energy. Once closed, many abilities would temporarily vanish.
Using illusions to mask it, the Wood Spirit wasn’t buying it because it could see through the illusion.
Only when the third eye is closed does the Wood Spirit reluctantly consider the Wise Sovereign as "human." But even so, the Wood Spirit was still too timid to face the Wise Sovereign. It had a flawed personality, not a lack of intelligence; it was acutely aware the Wise Sovereign wasn’t human. Closing one eye merely made the Wood Spirit feel more comfortable, but each time it thought of the true body of the Wise Sovereign, it couldn’t help but shiver.
The Wise Sovereign temporarily set aside his inner emotions, his gaze sweeping across the distant individuals still within the earth ring wall, before finally looking toward Angel nearby.
"Shall we talk here, or go to my abode first?"
"The bonus condition was achieved in the Hanging Jail Stairway, the necessary condition doesn’t need to be completed here?" asked Angel.
Previously, the Wise Sovereign hadn’t mentioned what the necessary condition was, but now, after a brief silence, he finally spoke: "The necessary condition...is in the Legacy Land."