Maple Hill County belongs to Earl Hardy's territory, covering an extremely large area. It is the largest among the fifteen counties in Jade Province.
Earl Hardy himself is a noble with a rich heritage, controlling nearly two thousand personal soldiers, not to mention even more militia in various places.
Fengqiu City is the county seat of Maple Hill County and the residence of Earl Hardy. It is surrounded by towering walls, with Earl Hardy's personal soldiers guarding the city at all times.
Habs Manor is located outside Fengqiu City, and it is the largest manor in the entire Maple Hill County, featuring horse stables and forests, serving as Earl Hardy's private estate.
To the north of the manor lies the boundless Moonlight Forest.
The recruitment and selection of personal soldiers take place here, with talented youths from all over Maple Hill County gathering at this location.
Duke and others gathered on an open grass field within the manor. He estimated that there were about two hundred participants in the selection for personal soldiers.
A woman clad in full armor stood on a high platform at the front of the crowd. Everyone quieted down, waiting for her to speak.
Duke recognized her at once; she was the same female Knight he had seen that night.
He later inquired of Wood, and found out that this female Knight was actually Earl Hardy's youngest daughter, named Vivian.
Vivian is quite famous throughout the Jade Province, not only for her beauty but more importantly for her strength.
Under Earl Hardy's command, there are a total of five Official Knight level powerhouses, and Vivian is one of them, even though she is only sixteen years old.
Such a talented girl, possessing both beauty and strength, and as Earl Hardy's most favored daughter, had already become renowned throughout Jade Province.
"In the coming month, I will be responsible for teaching you the breathing technique. Those who can master the breathing technique can join the Nightingale Team, directly under my command," Vivian's voice was still so cold.
The breathing technique is only a part of the training content; if you can master it, you need not participate in the personal soldier assessment a month from now, and can join the unit led by Vivian directly.
The Nightingale Team is a trump card under Earl Hardy's command, composed entirely of those who have mastered the breathing technique, with a total of one hundred and fifty members.
"A Knight's rank is divided into the Knight Attendant and Official Knight stages. Next, I will teach you the Giant Whale Breathing Technique. Mastering the breathing technique means entering the low-tier Knight Attendant level..." Vivian then began to explain the basic knowledge of Knight training.
The Knight Attendant stage is divided into low-tier, mid-tier, and high-tier Knight Attendant. Beyond that lies the Official Knight level.
Beyond Knights are Great Knights, but that is irrelevant to the vast majority of people. There are only a handful of Great Knights in the entire Vera Kingdom.
"The Giant Whale Breathing Technique has nine layers, reaching the ninth layer offers a chance to touch the threshold of a Great Knight. However, this is too distant for you; to cultivate the breathing technique, you must first master the Pile Skill..." Vivian continued her explanation.
Everyone listened intently; this was a rare opportunity not to be missed.
The foundation of the Giant Whale Breathing Technique is the Pile Skill, consisting of twelve sets of movements, each with a corresponding method of breath control.
Mastering this set of Pile Skills and successfully condensing the Life Seed through training will complete the first layer, which is the entry level.
After condensing the Life Seed, continuing the breathing technique training will enable the cultivation of Fighting Spirit.
Fighting Spirit is what sets Knights apart from ordinary people.
Fighting Spirit can multiply a person's strength; circulating it to any part of the body enhances that part's defensive and offensive power.
As Vivian mentioned this, she demonstrated by crushing a longsword into a twist with her bare hand, unscathed.
She circulated the Fighting Spirit to her hand, making her palm as hard as iron.
Only then did Duke intuitively realize that ordinary people theoretically could not possibly defeat a Knight who mastered Fighting Spirit, not even a Knight Attendant.
"You will now formally begin the Pile Skill training of the breathing technique," said Vivian after imparting the breathing technique.
She wore a thick helmet the entire time, hiding her specific features.
It is said that Vivian's silver-white full suit of armor is made from special Starlight Ore, weighing two hundred pounds in total.
She wears this armor long-term to temper her body, only to pursue greater strength and a higher realm.
This is entirely different from other noble ladies; Vivian is a person who prioritizes strength and will endure any hardship to become stronger.
With nearly two hundred people present, it was impossible for Vivian to personally guide everyone, so the specific guidance work was entrusted to the Nightingale Team members.
Everyone received a booklet that detailed the contents of the Giant Whale Breathing Technique, including Pile Skills, methods of breath control, and more.
This information is strictly forbidden from being leaked; otherwise, the consequences are more severe than just a death penalty.
Those present were recommended from various places and had undergone multiple screenings. They would not do anything foolish.
After Duke received the booklet, he read through all the contents, practiced in his mind, and then began the first movement of the Pile Skill.
This movement appeared quite strange, even twisting the body unnaturally, leading one to doubt if a human could execute such a move.
Fortunately, Duke had high physical attributes and good control over his body, managing to perform the movement with about eighty percent accuracy.
There happened to be a Nightingale member nearby, who was surprised at Duke's performance, not expecting someone to achieve this so quickly.
"Lower your right arm a bit more, yes, and tense the muscles in your left calf..." he immediately began to guide Duke, pointing out some issues.
Duke quickly adjusted, and once the movements were correct, a tearing pain spread throughout his body.
His muscles were already feeling uncomfortable, and after adjustment, the pain intensified.
The man guiding Duke was named George, a platoon leader in the Nightingale unit, with the strength of a high-tier Knight Attendant.
He said, "Try to endure it; Pile Skill is about persevering, immediately follow the method in the breathing technique for breath control to see results."
Duke endured the tearing pain in his body and began to adjust his breathing as according to the method in the breathing technique.
Maintaining a breathing rhythm in this state was indeed challenging.
However, the effect was evident; Duke soon felt the main muscle groups in his body heating up, generating a warm current.
According to the records of the Giant Whale Breathing Technique, this is the entry level for the first movement of the Pile Skill.
Once all twelve sets of movements of the Pile Skill are practiced, there's a hope of condensing the Life Seed, thus entering the realm.
Next, Duke's goal was to persist as long as possible; the longer he trained, the better the effect would be.