Chapter 303: Chapter 303: Mephisto's Resentment
Constantine's curiosity about the healing magic remained, especially concerning its cost. If it wasn't too great, he considered trying it himself. His eyes sparkled with anticipation as he tentatively asked Robert, "So, is the price you pay really that high?"
"It's huge," Robert affirmed seriously, nodding. "With my strength, I'd have to work for tens of thousands of years after death, and while alive, I need to occasionally channel energy to them..."
Constantine gasped sharply at the steep price, deciding it was beyond what he could accept.
"I'm sorry you have to pay such a high price..." While the deceitful explanation fooled Constantine, it also duped Claire. She approached Robert with a furrowed brow and a face full of guilt.
"It's okay. Who cares about what happens after death? Besides, if I have to work for tens of thousands of years, doesn't that mean my consciousness will persist forever? I suppose many would accept such a cost..." Robert chuckled, shaking his head as he spun his web of lies.
"I certainly couldn't accept it. The thought of having self-awareness but losing freedom, bound to follow others' commands—it sounds torturous..." Constantine shuddered, unapologetically debunking the idea.
Retaining self-awareness after death sounds appealing, almost like a continuation of life or akin to immortality. However, Constantine understood it wasn't that simple. This state of existence, devoid of freedom, was akin to being a puppet, perhaps even worse than losing one's self-awareness after death, which at least spared one the anguish of lost liberty.
"If you want to compensate, bring over some real powerhouses. Once I end their lives, I could repay part of my debt..." Hearing Constantine's bleak depiction, Robert noticed Claire's changing expression and really wanted to give Constantine a beating for his bluntness. But, having already woven a tangled web, Robert had no choice but to play along.
"No wonder you often seek powerful opponents to fight. So, you have this need too!" Constantine nodded understandingly, then looked at Robert thoughtfully. "Being powerful is indeed better. Someone weak like me has to resort to tricks to transfer costs, but a powerhouse like you can hunt other strong beings to pay off debts. Impressive..."
"Powerhouse, huh?" Claire, overhearing their conversation, murmured thoughtfully. She felt indebted to Robert for his many aids and considered finding suitable opponents for him a way to help.
"You don't need to bother with that, Constantine can handle it," Robert quickly guessed Claire's thoughts and shook his head with a wry smile.
"Why not? You've helped me so much; I must repay you!" Claire insisted, challenging Robert's dismissal.
"Because you're not strong enough. What you consider powerful isn't necessarily what I consider powerful!" Robert shook his head, frowning as he bluntly spoke to Claire.
"But Constantine isn't stronger than me! I'm really powerful now; none of Nick Fury's men could stand against me!" Claire, eager to prove her worth, even began to dismiss Constantine's capabilities.
"Perhaps your talent has allowed you to advance quickly, but that doesn't mean you're truly stronger than Constantine, especially since he has been navigating the supernatural world alone for years. You haven't seen what he's truly capable of..." Robert gestured towards Constantine to demonstrate his prowess.
"Indeed, my strength doesn't compare to Claire. Her progress has been so rapid that even the Guardians say she might become the most powerful Shadow Hunter in history!" Constantine, however, did not follow Robert's lead and instead praised Claire.
"Have you eaten your tricks?" Robert glared at Constantine, annoyed.
"My tricks can only be used once. How could I waste them on a mere spar?" Constantine spread his hands innocently.
"I was saying, Claire doesn't have such tricks. She lacks the survival skills you possess..." Robert sighed, earnestly explaining to them both, "Also, Constantine has more knowledge and is more cautious. He knows who the real powerhouses are and avoids provoking them. Claire, you can't tell an enemy's strength as well, and recklessly engaging a strong opponent could lead to trouble!"
"Are you worried about my safety?" Claire's eyes lit up as she looked at Robert expectantly.
"???" Robert frowned, puzzled by Claire's interpretation.
"Sorry, I was presumptuous!" Claire, seeing Robert's expression, apologized with a lowered head.
"Alright, I have things to handle elsewhere. Later, if Constantine finds any strong opponents, let me know, especially that Mephisto..." Robert was about to continue when Constantine abruptly cut him off.
"Don't say his name!" Constantine's face paled as he hastily interrupted.
"It's not a big deal..." Robert frowned, sensing nothing amiss
despite his vigilance.
Meanwhile, Mephisto, who was playing games with the Joker, paused and frowned towards the direction where Robert was. "Eh? Someone mentioned my name? Who knows I'm on Earth? Interesting, I'll send my lovely knight to play with him..."
"Next time you mention him, use a whisper spell!" In the magic base, Constantine looked around, and after confirming there was no anomaly, he cautiously advised.
"I didn't have that habit before..." After a thorough sensing revealed no danger, Robert shrugged.
"But if he's really on Earth, mentioning his name without him knowing makes no sense..." Constantine didn't heed Robert's reaction and fell into thought, muttering, "Could he have left Earth? But the hellfire on Earth should be his doing; what's going on? No, I need to check the books for similar cases..."
"I'm leaving. Let me know if you find anything. And don't go looking for trouble with those whose strength you can't gauge. Using healing magic then would cost even more!" Robert walked away mid-conversation, leaving Constantine somewhat speechless. He then turned to Claire and said something before disappearing in a flash, not waiting for her response or a guardian's escort.
"Blue cube, Carol, Mephisto..." Robert flew through the air, his mind racing with thoughts. He touched his chin, tentatively calling out, "Mephisto? Mephisto? Mephisto?"
After calling several times with no response, as if Constantine's taboo was non-existent, Robert was unaware that each call irked Mephisto, who was resuming his game with the Joker. The dark lord nearly lost his patience and nearly decided to confront Robert personally, irritated by the incessant buzzing in his ear.
Ultimately, Mephisto restrained himself, knowing that he had only sent a fragment of his consciousness and hadn't used any power. If he went after Robert, he'd have to restart his manipulation of the Joker.
Compared to the incessantly calling Robert, the Joker was more important; Mephisto had been subtly influencing the Joker's path for a long time and didn't want to interrupt his plans because of Robert.
Of course, Mephisto certainly held a grudge against Robert, vowing to make the annoying buzzard suffer. He planned to drag Robert's soul to hell and torment him with ceaseless noise daily.
"Could it really be as Constantine said, that Mephisto isn't on Earth?" After his attempts, Robert mused doubtfully, "Does that mean there's one less formidable villain? I was actually looking forward to dealing with Mephisto; he seemed like a high-class opponent. Oh well, I'll go see Carol then. Maybe I can even spar with her while I'm there?"
Eager for a challenge, Robert had always wanted to spar with Carol but had held back to avoid potential complications. Now, though, he felt mature enough to handle it without complications.
"Let's go see then!" Robert's form vanished from the spot, the annoying buzz around Mephisto finally ceasing.
Soon, Robert arrived at Savage Island, which Jor-El had nearly finished transforming. There were plans to build a space portal near the Kent farm to provide quick access to Savage Island, ensuring that the Kents and the Danvers could swiftly find refuge if needed.
However, the identification issues for such a portal, not to mention constructing a space channel spanning half the globe without alerting anyone, were monumental tasks...
"I knew you'd come here instead of the farm!" Upon entering Savage Island, Robert found Carol hovering midair, waiting for him. When she spotted him, her eyes gleamed.
"Were you waiting for me?" Robert, sensing the battle intent from Carol, looked forward to the confrontation.
"Yes, I lost to Clark before, and I want to see what you're capable of. I think you want to fight too. After we battle, we can talk about the Tesseract..." Carol nodded, pleased by Robert's rising battle spirit, and suggested excitedly, "Where shall we fight? In space?"
"I can't survive in space like you guys. I can stay there briefly, but intense combat would significantly reduce my time there..." Robert explained, indicating that his powers were not yet fully adapted for such environments.
"Then let's fight here in the high altitude of this subspace! It's not small after all!" Carol, surprised that Robert, seemingly more powerful than Kara, couldn't survive in space, agreed to the alternative.
The reinforced subspace high above was a suitable battleground, safe from any collateral damage as long as they avoided Savage Island.
"Swish!"
"Swish!"
Robert and Carol simultaneously vanished from the ground and soared into the sky, quickly halting in the high altitude. Robert's battle spirit burst forth, its intensity altering the very environment, prompting a serious look from Carol...
Carol had encountered many strong
beings, though she hadn't fought many directly. Among all she had seen, Robert's power might not be the greatest, but his fighting spirit was the most torrential. The universe had its share of belligerent races, but none that could condense their fighting spirit to such a reality-altering extent, something even the previous Carol had neither seen nor heard of...
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