It felt so good to be close to the witch!

What does it mean to nod and shake your head at the same time?

"There truly exists a higher realm beyond the legendary." Fuma set the tone with this single sentence, then asked softly:

"Lord Roy, do you know how many years the Empire has been established?"

Before Roy could speak, or perhaps she didn't even intend to let him answer, she continued on her own:

"It's been almost 500 years, or to be precise, 502 years."

"The Kolei Empire, which rose to prominence in the south of the continent, lasted even less, only a little over 300 years."

“500 years…300 years…that’s so short?” Roy exclaimed in surprise.

For an ordinary dynasty or empire, several hundred years is indeed a long time, but for a dynasty that controls the highest level of extraordinary power and monopolizes the class, several hundred years seems too short.

Aside from its extraordinary power, the Radiant Empire's overall production level was roughly equivalent to that of medieval Europe on Earth. The Cole Empire, on the other hand, was better off. Although its magical mechanical technology primarily served the "nobles" who mastered battle aura, the discarded outdated technologies did contribute to productivity to some extent. However, the effect was limited; ordinary people could at most live a slightly more comfortable life than those in the Radiant Empire, but nothing more.

With this level of productivity, it is simply impossible for ordinary people at the bottom to overthrow nobles who possess extraordinary power.

So, how did the previous kingdom of the Glorious Empire collapse more than 500 years ago?

Roy was puzzled, but after a slight pause, Fuma continued:

"Records related to the supreme realm beyond legend are extremely rare to date. Only the great nobles who have inherited the legacy since the founding of the Radiant Empire have left a few."

"But the information we have is extremely limited."

"The Soros family's secret archives record that an unprecedented war took place on this continent before the founding of the Radiant Empire."

"In this unprecedented and earth-shattering battle, there are many super strong individuals who are even above the legendary level participating in the fight."

"This great battle was later known as the 'Battle of the Blood Moon'."

"The Blood Moon War brought profound destruction. It is said that countless lives were lost and the continuity of civilization was almost destroyed. The transmission of breathing techniques also suffered a severe break at that time. The breathing techniques we practice now are mostly modified and compiled from fragments found in ruins after the founding of the Radiant Empire."

"After the Blood Moon War, the concentration of magic power in the world dropped sharply."

"Since then, no more legends have been able to advance, as if the current concentration of magic power is no longer able to support existences above the legend level."

"Therefore, the Blood Moon War is also regarded as the dividing line between the old and new eras."

"The reason I nodded and shook my head earlier is because the realm above the legendary level does indeed exist. However, the current world environment and the perfection of the breathing technique are no longer sufficient to support breakthroughs above the legendary level."

"Most breathing techniques, including the advanced ones, can only be cultivated to the legendary level at most, after which there is no way to advance further."

At this point, a faint look of pride appeared on Fuma's face: "But the Flame Breathing Technique is different."

"It was obtained by the ancestors of the Soros family from an ancient overseas site after going through great hardships."

"Although it only contains the main content of the breathing technique and lacks the various special skills that come with it, as long as you can simultaneously comprehend the three major traits of [Explosive Flame], [Extreme Bloom], and [Newborn], there is a very high probability that you can break through to the Legendary level!"

“It’s a pity…” A hint of sadness flashed in Fuma’s eyes: “The difficulty of practicing the Flame Breathing Technique is just too high.”

"Over 99% of knights who practice the Flame Breathing Technique are unable to comprehend any traits other than [Explosive Flame]. Even Father is stuck at [Explosive Flame] and [Extreme Bloom], and has no clue about [Newborn]."

"Otherwise, with Father's accumulated knowledge and experience, even if the magic of the world's environment is insufficient to support him, there is still a possibility of trying to break through to the level of legendary."

"I see..." Roy suddenly realized.

It turns out that the true history of the Breathing Technique is only about five hundred years old, and even the Flame Breathing Technique has some gaps.

It is not difficult to learn from Fuma's description that before the Blood Moon War, there were many beings in this world who were beyond legend and comparable to "gods". Breathing techniques were also the mainstream tradition at that time, which not only included the main content of breathing techniques, but also a variety of special skills.

However, the great war caused a break in the lineage, resulting in a gap in the breathing techniques. The current breathing techniques are merely a compilation by modern people based on the ancient traditions. Not only have they failed to break through the legendary path, but they are also severely lacking in various special skills that can improve combat power.

Presumably, the secret technique was developed by knights who later practiced breathing techniques to improve their combat power. However, compared to a complete inheritance, the secret technique is not enough to bridge the gap between the battle aura system and other systems that can cultivate into gods.

"The Blood Moon War, relics from a previous era..."

Roy kept these two keywords in mind.

Leaving aside the Blood Moon War, which occurred over five hundred years ago, the power of time is enough to erase far too many traces.

But “prehistoric relics” are different.

This wasn't the first time Roy had heard this term.

The extremely sinister blood refining method in the Witches' Guild's basic meditation techniques was obtained by the Witches' Guild from a pre-historic ruin.

"Where should we look for prehistoric relics?"

Roy looked at Fuma in front of him and asked.

"As the main battlefield of the Blood Moon War, there are no relics on the mainland. Even if there were, they would have been explored by the Empire over the years. Nowadays, the only place where relics can still be found is the overseas islands that are shrouded in gray fog all year round."

"It's too dangerous there. The harsh environment, the terrifying natural disasters, the rampant monsters... For the empire, the effort and the reward are completely disproportionate."

Fuma replied.

“Is that so…” Roy stroked his chin.

He remembered that the Witches' Guild hid among the overseas islands, using the unique properties of the gray fog to evade the temple's pursuit.

He had previously planned to make contact with the Witch Association once his strength and influence had increased to a certain level.

After thinking for a moment, Roy continued to ask Fuma, "Your Highness Fuma, I'm not very clear about the star rating system above Legendary rank, and I'd like to ask you about it."

"It seems that the combat power varies greatly at each level above the legendary level?"

Roy had this question mainly because of the huge difference in strength between the legendary three-star knight Sima and the Flame Sword legendary knight Andrew.

Today, with his improved strength and deeper understanding of the legends, he no longer blindly fears them, but can rationally compare and analyze the gaps between them.

Of course, the biggest reason is his own improved strength, which has given him greater confidence.

When Ais had just been promoted to the Grand rank, she was instantly killed by the domain of the legendary three-star Sima. However, if it were the legendary one-star Flame Sword Legendary Knight Andrew, Roy felt that even if Ais was no match for him, she could hold out for a while, or at the very least, for a few seconds.

This huge gap between star levels seems to indicate that the gap between star levels in the current highest level of the Legendary Breathing Technique system is far greater than before the Legendary level.

Faced with Roy's question, Fuma organized her thoughts and explained:

"Your speculation is correct."

"The power range between each star level in the Legendary series is extremely large."

"Once a legendary knight advances to the second star, he can easily crush or even kill three legendary first stars."

"From two stars to three stars, and from three stars to the peak, the same principle applies, and the gap widens further."

Fuma let out a soft sigh: "The reason for the current situation is partly due to the difference in breathing techniques, but the more crucial reason lies in the radiation suppression of lower-level soul fire by higher-level soul fire."

"Soul Fire?" Roy accurately captured the key phrase.

“Yes, Soulfire, your strength is now close to legendary; it’s time to learn more about this.” Fuma countered, “Lord Roy, what do you think is the key to a Gold Knight’s advancement to legendary?”

Roy frowned; this was also a question he had been pondering recently.

The Flame Breathing Technique is indeed a breathing technique that can be cultivated to the legendary level, or even beyond.

There are records on how to break through from gold to legend, but these records use all sorts of professional and obscure terms. Without a mentor to guide and explain, it is easy to make big mistakes by guessing blindly.

"Physical strength? Battle aura?"

Roy tentatively suggested, but before Fuma could answer, he dismissed his own guess.

The path of a knight's martial arts training consists of five stages: Apprentice, Formal, Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Legendary. Among these, the Apprentice and Formal stages are foundational and can be disregarded.

Starting from the Bronze stage, knights practice breathing techniques, absorbing magical particles from heaven and earth, combining them with their own life force to condense into battle aura, breaking through the limits of the human body, and mastering extraordinary power.

Upon reaching the Silver level, battle aura acquires attributes, further increasing its purity and destructive power.

Upon advancing to Gold rank, a knight can absorb complete magical energy, resulting in a significant transformation in the purity of their battle aura. They begin to modify their organs using battle aura to achieve an even higher limit to their battle aura. Once the organ modification is complete, they can even condense a "true form of battle aura," making them a humanoid firearm in terms of combat power and destructive force.

At the Golden Peak level, the knight's body and fighting spirit have reached a point where further progress is impossible. —All internal organs have been transformed using fighting spirit; there's nowhere left to modify them.

In other words, at this point, the only place where you can further increase the strength and upper limit of your battle aura is the brain.

"So, the key to advancing from Gold to Legendary lies in spirit?" Roy said thoughtfully.

“Yes, spirit, or more accurately, soul.” Fuma affirmed Roy’s idea:

"Spirit and soul are not the same; the former is a part of the latter."

"After condensing their true form, the body of a peak Golden Knight is called a 'Battle Aura Body,' but in fact, this name is not correct. The accurate name is 'Half-Battle Aura Body,' because at this time, the brain inside the knight's body is still a pure flesh and blood structure."

"Unlike other organs in the human body, the brain is too fragile and mysterious. Directly using Qi to modify the brain will only result in the head exploding and death."

"Countless predecessors have paid a bloody price for this."

"To transform the body into a true 'battle spirit body' and complete the transformation of the brain into battle spirit, one must ignite the spark in the brain and form a spark of soul fire!"

"Only under the protection of the Soul Flame can one safely complete the transformation of the brain into fighting spirit, thereby undergoing a complete metamorphosis and advancing to the legendary level."

"And the flame of the soul will extend into a domain after a knight advances to legend, granting the legendary knight the power to fly through the air and an unparalleled strength in the world."

"Therefore, the key to a Golden Peak Knight's advancement to Legend lies in igniting the spark in their mind, and it is this very point that stops the vast majority of Golden Peak Knights."

Fuma's expression became extremely serious. She looked at Roy and said, "The reason for this is that once the fire seed in the brain is lit, there is no chance to go back or start over. Either you form a soul fire and advance to the legendary level, or you die and your soul perishes, disappearing from the world."

"The location of the 'fire point' in everyone's soul is different. The only way to find the 'fire point' is to use a sufficiently strong spark in the brain to illuminate the location of the 'fire point' in the soul."

"And the 'fuel' that ignites the fire in the mind is the knight's vitality, fighting spirit, and everything else."

"By giving everything, as long as you can find the 'fire point' in your soul, you can eternally ignite the fire of your soul and ascend to legend."

"But if the 'firewood' is exhausted and the 'fire' in the soul is still not found, the fate will naturally be to be burned to ashes."

"The probability of a typical peak Gold Knight advancing to Legendary status is a pitiful less than 5%."

"The stronger a knight is in terms of vitality, fighting spirit, and spirit, the higher the probability of him becoming a legend, because he can maintain the fire in his brain for a longer time and has more time to find the 'fire point' in his soul."

"Once the Soul Flame is lit, the range of its radiant light is the limit that the Legendary Knight's Domain can expand to."

"The brighter soul fire will exert a strong suppressive effect on the less bright soul fire. This is manifested externally as the suppression of the domain. This is the most fundamental reason for the huge difference in strength between each star level in the legendary realm."

“So that’s how it is…” Roy took a deep breath, his heart filled with shock.

Fuma's explanation unveiled the mystery of the legend, allowing him to make more thorough preparations in advance when he advances to the legendary level.

"Is there anything else you want to ask? About my previous request..." Fuma looked at Roy nervously.

“I have no reason not to agree.” Roy agreed without further hesitation: “There’s just one thing I need to make clear beforehand: my abilities are limited, and I may not be able to help you find the root of the disaster.”

"Even if we were lucky enough to find it, with my current strength, I probably wouldn't be able to solve it."

"It's alright." Hearing this, Fuma completely relaxed: "The difficulty now is that we can't find the root of the disaster. As long as we can find it, the Duke's Mansion will provide support in terms of force."

"I've always believed in you."