Although he had a quarter of his Magic Energy remaining, as the saying goes, a lean camel was bigger than a horse. A quarter of his Blue Depth Core was still significantly more than these Rank 2 Beast Lords! Furthermore, he had been observing the five Beast Lords closely throughout the chase. He had a decent understanding of them now. For example, the Fat Light Chicken specialized in mental attacks and energy absorption. Using the stolen energy, it could strengthen and even heal itself. However, it was large, clumsy, and mildly stupid. Protector Avin did not consider it a threat. The wolf, mantis, and toad had their strengths and weaknesses too. The only creature that remained an enigma was the ferret that, up to this point, had simply watched. Who knew what it was thinking?
The Featherwind Sect sent someone to observe his battle and combat prowess, so he was not very keen on revealing too much, especially his trump card. It came with a heavy drawback, so less people knowing about it was ideal. Aside from that, his combat system was indeed juvenile and underdeveloped. That was undeniable, but… he did not reach his status by doing nothing. He was a monstrously prodigious Arcanist, possibly the most talented in history, since he was the first human to achieve Blue Depth Core. His talents could not be measured by common sense!
Most people had one main specialty. Nassandra had water, Freon had fire, and Elizabeth had wind. Even Benedict had sword and Shirley halberd. That formed the basis of their combat systems. As for Protector Avin, he specialized in all four fundamental elements: wind, water, fire, and earth! And it was not the case where he had a lackluster understanding of them either. Comprehension was best represented by Attainment Stages. Basic Form Stage meant a beginner. Minor Form Stage meant some proficiency. Major Form Stage meant respectable understanding. This was where Benedict and Lady Kalasena were stuck at. And finally Perfect Form Stage meant mastery of the entire field. It was a level that very few people achieved. They could truly call themselves a 'master' at that point. Sir Roland Hawken, Benedict's father, was one.
So, what about Protector Avin? He was a rare quadruple Perfect Form. In other words, he had Perfect Form in wind, water, fire, and earth, all four elements! It was unheard of! He knew almost every single elemental spell in the Zino Kingdom, and he had created many of his own. His backlash and error rate were nearly zero when casting these spells too. The problem was that most of the spells in the Zino Kingdom were designed for Gaseous Fog Arcanists, which made sense, considering there were less than ten Condensed Drop Arcanists.
Spells and techniques were rigid constructs. You could pour in as much energy as you wanted, but they would only change so much. Anymore and they would break under the strain. The same went for equipment. This was why Elizabeth sought out better armaments for her and her friends. Their strength had outgrown their equipment. A chef could not cook without ingredients. And for Protector Avin, using a Gaseous Fog spell was akin to fighting with a twig. It was hard to fully express his Rank 3 King status, but that was what his Attainment Stages were for. He could turn even the worst ingredients into something noteworthy!
A vast number of ideas flitted through his head as he dodged another attack. The chicken was stupid, the mantis rarely attacked, and the toad was obvious, which left that wolf. Protector Avin felt annoyed because it attacked whenever he exposed an opening, and it disappeared whenever it was caught. He decided to get rid of it first. When he landed on a tree branch, he purposefully removed some of his barriers and showed weakness. Like a moth drawn to the flame, two large wind claws tore through the forest towards him. Even the tallest trees were cut into pieces. It was a terrifying amount of power! Protector Avin raised his barriers in time to block the tremendous attack. The resulting collision unleashed a shockwave that obliterated the tree he stood on and sent wood splinters flying everywhere.
The man flew back in a controlled manner and landed on the snow. At that moment, three more attacks came from the left, right, and center. He blocked them again, feeling the tremendous impacts through his body. Stuck in the middle, his back was open. Wind twirled and the faint outline of a wolf materialized behind him. The beast was overjoyed seeing his plight and immediately attacked. Little did it know, this was precisely what Protector Avin wanted. A beast was a beast in the end. It was all too easy to trick. Protector Avin stopped pretending and repelled the three attacks before turning around. The tip of his wand was already revealing a new Magic Circle. Powerful howling winds emerged, spiralling around the wolf like a tornado, and dragged huge volumes of snow. This was the Peak Gaseous Fog wind-type spell, Wind Vortex. His spell-casting speed was practically instant!
Before the wolf had time to react, he followed up with another spell. The snow flowing inside the wind vortex melted into large streams of water that lashed out at the beast in the center. The wolf dodged the first three attacks with swift movements, but water kept coming from every direction, almost like the ocean waves. Countless currents wove together to form an elaborate watery cage. High Gaseous Fog water-type spell, Ocean Prison! Even for a Rank 2 Beast Lord, it panicked when it found itself drowning. Small Magic Circles appeared on the wolf's claws, as it violently lashed out. Protector Avin avoided its crazed attacks while the landscape was ravaged. The spell was on the verge of collapse! Using that opportunity, the wolf prepared to dissolve into the shadows again, except Protector Avin was one step ahead.
The water changed to stone and sealed the wolf inside. A large boulder surfaced! Peak Gaseous Fog earth-type spell, Stone Tomb! As expected, the beast failed to escape. Protector Avin suspected it used the wind to travel. If it was fully enclosed like now, then it was stuck. While he pondered this, he was double casting another spell. A beautiful bow forged from fire entered his hands. He pulled back on the string, as a yellow arrow materialized. Peak Gaseous Fog fire-type spell, Golden Spark! Releasing it, it pierced right through the boulder and burst into an explosion of heat and flame, which was contained by the earth spell. Outside, there was only a muffled noise and smoke. One was unlikely to be enough, so he casted four more arrows in rapid succession. After four explosions, the stone tomb was close to crumbling. From start to finish, it took less than three seconds. That was how fast Protector Avin was! He wanted to finish off the wolf except he was stopped by the other Beast Lords.
A sharp light shone from the horizon and rapidly approached. Protector Avin jumped to avoid the flying strike, which was easy enough, because the mantis's target was the trapped wolf. It sliced straight through the spell and out the back, leaving a long gash in the mountainside. The stone tomb reverted to ordinary water and revealed a gory mess with two halves of a body. The Obsidian Wind Wolf was dead! Protector Avin smiled. How convenient. He did not have to waste any energy. Granted, those Gaseous Fog spells used a tiny amount of Magic Energy.
Now, for the chicken… it fluttered over while drooling. Its eyes were fixed on the wolf's corpse. Although its wings were stubby, it was surprisingly fast. Protector Avin considered his next move. It might be possible to slip away while the chicken and mantis were distracted. His goal was to rescue Freon and Nassandra, not to fight with these beasts. However, if his theory was correct that the chicken could absorb energy to strengthen itself, then could it do the same with the wolf's corpse? If so, how strong would it become? He was not willing to take that risk. He raised his wand, not against the chicken, but the corpse. High Gaseous Fog fire-type spell, Thirty-Six Falling Stars! A ray of light blasted out, split into thirty-six smaller beams, and showered the area in a series of explosions. The corpse was completely destroyed! This caused the chicken to howl with grief and aim its murderous eyes at Protector Avin. A strong killing intent washed over him.