"Maintain, Overflow, Refine, Revert, and Ascend."
"The Three Elements are not only the foundation of extraordinary power but also the cornerstone of human existence."
"These three forces sustain human life."
"As mentioned before, when people praise a certain legend, they unconsciously release psychic energy. But it's not just praise, nor solely psychic energy—every action of a person consumes the Three Elements."
"Psychic energy exists constantly, merely sustaining the soul's function, hidden within the soul."
"Mages unlock psychic power through meditation, and then, using advanced meditation techniques, they reverse the flow of this energy to actively sustain their own souls, reducing the unnecessary overflow of psychic energy and thereby accumulating more."
"Knights operate similarly, proactively maintaining their bodies, meticulously controlling the consumption of life force. This allows them to digest more food, absorb more nutrients, and see better results from their training."
"This is the first stage of extraordinary cultivation—Maintenance. It's about maintaining one's life and soul to accumulate more life force and psychic energy."
"While soul and life are inherent, natural energy, though consumed through eating and breathing, is far more difficult to truly control. This is why few professions focus primarily on natural power."
"Shamans primarily use nature, but they come with several drawbacks. Their cultivation is more about resource acquisition."
"However, they do have advantages, such as low entry barriers and little demand for personal talent."
"Stage two—Overflow. Those who reach this stage are naturally gifted in their respective professions. They maintain themselves so well that their powers overflow."
"Stage three is closely tied to stage two—Refining. It's about using various methods to refine the overflowing energy."
"Take knights again. Their life force overflows, and when coupled with their legendary achievements, they refine their power. Thus, creating achievements is their form of cultivation, and once these achievements are established, they evolve into nobility."
"Refining is known as the Solidification Ritual, also called the Ritual Path. The essence of a ritual is the communication between humans and the Three Elements, while the Ritual Path is a permanent channel of communication."
"Once this permanent channel is established, one enters the fourth stage—Reversion. With a stable Ritual Path, the self's essence is further enhanced. This stage tests the stability of the Ritual Path."
"Countless practitioners find themselves stuck at this stage. The duration of the Reversion stage varies depending on the Ritual Path."
"Once Reversion is complete, one enters the fifth stage—Ascension, where the personal essence is greatly enhanced."
"These are the basic stages of professional cultivation. Some professions may diverge from this framework. For example, some special mages refine in the second stage, combining it with the maintenance process."
"But overall, most will adhere to this framework. There are many more specific details about each profession that I will gradually teach you in the future."
"So, Gold, which stage are you in?" Adam asked, having absorbed the knowledge with great interest, feigning curiosity.
"I'm in the third stage—Refining," Gold said, his body exuding a cloud of black smoke. "As a bloodline mage, my power comes from my bloodline ability, and the black smoke is the manifestation of my awakened bloodline. The bloodline, in essence, is a nascent Ritual Path."
"However, because it grows alongside you, it needs to go through the stages of Maintenance, Overflow, and Refining, just like an untrained individual, before it can become a stable Ritual Path."
"Maintenance, Overflow, Refining, Reversion, and Ascension are the stages of cultivation. As for the specific methods, I'll teach them to you. Your ability seems to be more about the exchange between life force and psychic energy—an auxiliary power. I can teach you the knight's cultivation method, but for mages, that's something you'll need to figure out on your own."
Gold's teaching was thorough, and whenever Adam had a question, Gold quickly provided an answer. With his growing understanding of the foundational theories, Adam began to form a vague plan for his own path to the extraordinary.
His weight-based ability gave him immense potential on both the life and soul paths. He could train using the bloodline mage's methods, but his combat ability wouldn't be enhanced significantly due to the nature of his power.
Thus, Gold's suggestion was to train in both the knight and mage paths, ultimately forming his own unique profession through his bloodline's awakening.
The lesson went smoothly, and both Adam and Gold were satisfied with their first lesson. Unfortunately, time was limited, and before midnight, the lesson had to conclude.
Though Adam still had many questions about Gold, both his rational analysis and instinctive judgment told him that Gold was someone he could trust for now.
Thus, Adam shared a part of his plans.
"Why are you in such a hurry to leave Loya, Nesser?" Gold asked, his brown eyes fixed on Adam's, his gaze sharp.
Through their interactions, Gold had come to know Adam as a cautious person. Yet, in some matters, Adam appeared unusually urgent, leaving many gaps in his reasoning.
"It's normal for outcasts to want to flee from a theocratic nation like the Holy Sound Kingdom, right?" Adam met Gold's gaze naturally, but when he noticed Gold's eyes drift toward the scar on his face, Adam turned away.
"The Church's influence in Loken Kingdom may not be as strong as in the Holy Sound Kingdom, but outcasts are still ostracized there. Moreover, you have the God's Tear ritual, which can conceal your abnormalities. There's no need to rush."
Gold didn't press further, instead repeating his emphasis, "There's no need for such urgency, Nesser. You're still young."
"My cooperation with Mansra is limited to within Loya. I don't interfere with border defenses. He's always wanted to eliminate me but couldn't gauge my strength. He's reluctant to escalate things, which is why he's tolerated me."
"Mansra's family's merit Ritual Path is unstable, and there are signs of their fall from grace. The resources they gain from the smuggling business are their bottom line. He won't allow any disruption in that line. Getting someone like you into the smuggling operation will be difficult."
Gold continued, explaining his relationship with Mansra and offering Adam the information he had.
"Lastly, you should be aware that Mansra publicly has dealings with a mage, but privately, he seems to be connected to other factions."
"Never underestimate any noble, even those whose family's merits are waning. Their foundations run deep."
"I understand," Adam nodded and stood to leave. He had other matters to attend to tonight.
"Also, take care," Gold said, holding up his wine bottle. "That old man, Shaya, was once known as one of the Three Saints alongside Alva and another. He's incredibly powerful."
"Don't get caught by the Church and end up implicating me."
"Alva?" Adam turned back, surprised. Shaya, the head monk, was an elderly man, well over eighty, but Alva appeared middle-aged, no more than forty. Their relationship seemed close, but Adam found it strange that they were referred to together.
"I wasn't in the Holy Sound Kingdom back then, but I knew of the title. You can ask him yourself; isn't he your teacher?" Gold scratched his face indifferently.
Adam thought for a moment, then formally bid farewell and left Gold's small cabin.
Before heading to his next destination for the night, Adam released the bird, letting it return to the Bokou house. It wasn't fully trained yet, and staying with him could cause problems.
After handling that, he made his way to South River Road, No. 17.
He had previously instructed the outcast, Will, to purchase the house as a new meeting place for the outcast organization he planned to establish. He had also promised to perform the God's Tear ritual for Will that evening.
However, Adam felt that learning was more important, so he came to Gold first. Delaying the outcast organization's progress would help them better understand the hierarchy within the group.
South River Road, located in the southern district's slums, was once part of the city's moat, but the moat had been filled in over time, leaving the name unchanged.
It was close to the slums and not far from the noble district. Adam had previously observed that the house was vacant, in a convenient location for quick escapes. The surrounding area had frequent foot traffic, yet the entrances and exits were discreet and complex, making it ideal for secret meetings.
Most importantly, Adam wouldn't have to run all over the place at night anymore. It would save him a lot of time.