```
After quite some time, Richard obtained about 5 milliliters of ether. This amount was only 1% of a bottle of mineral water on modern Earth, but in Richard's view, it was already enough.
He sealed the glass bottle containing the ether with a cork to prevent evaporation and wrapped it with dark linen to prevent strong light from causing oxidation.
Satisfied, Richard nodded, took the bottle, and walked out of the independent laboratory.
Walking into the palace hall outside, sunlight shone through the window onto the ground. Richard looked up and found that the sun had already moved westward, indicating that he had unknowingly spent an entire day in the laboratory. Yet he didn't feel the slightest hunger; instead, he felt mentally excited and was eager to return to his bedroom to test the ether he had just prepared. He wanted to see if he could really unlock the so-called life remolding, to see if the power of science could overcome the barrier of the magic system.
Anticipation...
While thinking this, Richard was about to step upstairs when a voice rang out.
"Prince, Prince!" Richard raised an eyebrow, and without guessing, he already knew who it was.
Turning his head, as expected, he saw Edward jogging over. He stopped nearby, panting, and asked, "Prince, um... is your research finished?"
"Hmm, it's temporarily finished," Richard replied, then asked, "During this time, nothing happened in the palace, right?"
"No, no." Edward shook his head.
"That's good." Richard nodded, turned, and was about to continue upstairs, speaking, "I have important matters to attend to now. Continue to guard the palace, and this time, unless the palace is on fire, don't disturb me no matter what happens."
"This... then dinner..."
"You eat by yourself."
"Prince!" Edward called out anxiously, "You haven't eaten anything since yesterday. If you keep doing this, your body won't hold up..."
"I know my body best. Not eating for a short time isn't a problem. I'll have breakfast tomorrow, so don't worry. That's it." While speaking, Richard had already gone upstairs, disappearing from Edward's sight.
Edward's expression was complex, and he couldn't help but sigh, "Prince, if you continue like this, I might not be able to continue my duties as the captain of the personal guard..."
...
Returning to his bedroom connected to the study, Richard didn't rush to try immediately; instead, he meticulously studied the Monroe Chapter again. After carefully analyzing the content about "star body projection" and confirming it was correct, he made up his mind.
As night fell, Richard sat cross-legged on his velvet bed in his bedroom, took out the glass bottle containing ether, opened the cork, and brought it to his nose to start inhaling deeply.
As air entered his lungs through his trachea, Richard clearly felt changes in his body. When he reached a boundary, he quickly sealed the bottle and placed it on the table beside him. Then he remained motionless on the bed, letting the ether quickly take effect in his body.
Just after a dozen seconds, Richard felt his brain tingle slightly, and then his body began to feel heavy.
After several dozen seconds, his body felt as heavy as if it were filled with lead.
A minute later, he couldn't move at all, but his consciousness remained clear.
Recalling the records in the Monroe Chapter, Richard began to imagine his consciousness as weightless, unbound by gravity, able to float to the surface like a fish, and soar into the sky like a bird.
In an instant, Richard clearly sensed his entire body starting to tremble. It wasn't from shivering due to low temperature but as if something was trying to break free from his body.
He continued to use spiritual power to manipulate and control his consciousness, attempting to float out from his body.
"Buzz buzz!"
Richard felt the trembling of his heavy body become more intense, as if he were sitting in a galloping carriage on a dirt road rather than on his soft velvet bed. Something unknown felt uncontrollably about to leap from his body.
"Buzz buzz buzz buzz!"
Unsure if it was an illusion, Richard gradually felt the entire bed start to vibrate, followed by the ground and the house, as if experiencing an earthquake.
But Richard knew very well that the plains where Blue Lion City was located had no history of earthquakes, and the chance of an earthquake occurring now was nearly zero. The most likely explanation was that his body was undergoing some special change due to "star body projection."
"Buzz buzz buzz buzz buzz buzz buzz buzz!"
The vibration intensified, and Richard clearly felt his body being roughly pulled by some force. Suddenly, he discovered a multitude of lines appearing in his body—every line pierced through his chest and emerged from his back, continuously vibrating, carrying high temperatures, threatening to slice his body into thin layers, unbearable pain.
Richard suddenly speculated that these lines might be magnetospheric lines materialized from thought.
His body was oriented north-south on the bed. Assuming the current world resembled Earth, then the geomagnetic north pole would be at his front, and the geomagnetic south pole at his back (the geomagnetic poles are opposite the geographical poles). Thus, the geomagnetic field starting from the north pole would extend along the ground northward, passing through his body to reach the geomagnetic south pole.
Then...
Richard had just thought of this when he heard a "crack" sound at his ear, as if something broke, and his entire being suddenly lightened. Then Richard felt his eyes open, seeing the scene.
This wasn't opening his eyes physically but rather the "opening eyes" of the consciousness floating out from his body. The sight seen was slightly different from what the eyes could perceive, but Richard easily discovered that his consciousness was now floating above his physical body in the form of a white mist.
Yes, he was floating above himself.
It was a strange experience, clearly aware that the one sitting motionless on the bed was him, yet his consciousness indeed existed in another form.
"Interesting..." Richard muttered to himself, quickly speculating in his mind, "Is this a soul state? Or a plasma state? Or perhaps quantum..."
Due to the limited information, Richard couldn't come up with a scientific explanation for the current situation even after prolonged speculation, so he could only continue observing his surroundings with his mind's "eye."
Then Richard noticed something resembling a transparent band emerging from the back of his consciousness's neck, connecting to his physical body, forming some sort of link.
Richard attempted to move away from his body, and the transparent band automatically elongated behind him. No matter how far he left, there was no length limitation, and it appeared infinite.
Richard tried walking to the adjacent study, mentally intending to return to his body. Instantly, the transparent band on the back of his neck transmitted a strong pulling force, drawing his consciousness back to his body like teleportation. Surprisingly, to shorten the distance, the consciousness even penetrated directly through the wall.
This led Richard to discover that his consciousness could disregard any tangible substances, easily passing through walls or other obstacles.
```