After Ivan slowly opened the book, the first thing that entered his sight was not the discussion of the Sky Knight, but the origins of the knight path itself. Seeing this, Ivan's interest rose slightly. He adjusted his posture and calmly began to read through the thick ancient pages.
According to the book's records, nearly three thousand years ago, in the 3576th year of the Glory Calendar, a fifth-level Great Wizard named Richard discovered a plane called Angolus. It was a medium-level fourth-class plane that had only recently advanced from a low-level plane less than a thousand years ago. Because of its unstable development, the plane's defensive power had not yet fully matured to the level of a true medium-level plane.
Seeing such an great opportunity, Great Wizard Richard immediately organized an interplanar colonization war. Leading a standard low-level floating city along with an army of nearly twenty million wizards and slave legions, he invaded the plane through a massive interplanar passage.
After entering the plane, the wizards quickly began to analyze the native civilization and their power system.
To their surprise, the people of that plane did not cultivate magic. They trained only their physical bodies and awakened something called a Life Seed within themselves. Through the Life Seed, they controlled a mysterious energy known as chi. They called themselves Knights.
Thus, the wizard civilization named that plane the Knight Plane.
With the presence of a fifth-level Great Wizard and a floating city capable of suppressing the laws of the plane, the war lasted only five years before the Knight Plane completely fell under wizard control. After conquering the plane, the wizards gradually began extracting its resources while researching the unique knight power system.
At the same time, many high-level members of the Wizard Council had already noticed a serious problem within the wizarding world. The mortal population of the wizarding plane numbered in the billions, yet those born with wizard aptitude were extremely rare. Every year, countless mortals lived and died without ever contributing to the strength of the wizard civilization.
To the cold and rational wizard civilization, that was an enormous waste of resources.
Because of this, the high-level wizards gathered together and decided to create a cultivation path suitable for ordinary mortals, a power system that did not require harsh wizard aptitude and could be practiced by almost anyone with enough effort and talent.
Thus, a great research began.
The wizarding plane had conquered countless material planes throughout history and collected thousands of different power systems. Some civilizations cultivated bloodlines, some relied on divine faith, while others transformed themselves into strange creatures to gain power.However, most of those systems had extremely strict requirements and were unsuitable for widespread use.
Within the universe of the endless planes, planes themselves were divided into many categories.
The most common among them were the material planes. These planes possessed stable laws and complete environments where countless races and creatures could coexist together. Humans, elves, dwarves, beastmen, magical creatures, and countless exotic races could all survive within such worlds. Most of the planes conquered by the wizard civilization belonged to this category.
Then there were the elemental planes. These worlds were formed entirely from a single pure element. Fire elemental planes contained endless seas of magma and flames. Water elemental planes were vast oceanic worlds filled with terrifying sea creatures born from pure water energy. Likewise, there were earth, wind, lightning, ice, and countless other elemental worlds. Such planes were extremely valuable for elemental wizards due to their dense elemental concentration.
After that came the dead planes. These planes were worlds whose origin energy had been exhausted or forcefully extracted by powerful existences. Once a plane lost its origin, the laws of the world would gradually collapse. Life energy would decay, negative energy would surface, and eventually the plane would transform into a land of death filled with undead creatures, dark beings, and corrupted monsters.
Then there were the abyssal planes. Unlike ordinary worlds, abyssal planes did not naturally form. Deep within the endless universe existed the Endless Abyss, a terrifying dimension inhabited by abyssal demons. Whenever abyssal demons conquered a plane, they polluted the world with abyssal aura. If the corruption was not cleansed quickly enough, the plane itself would slowly transform into an abyssal plane and eventually be dragged into the Endless Abyss as one of its countless demonic worlds.
These were only the primary categories. Beyond them existed many special worlds with unique environments. Some planes were entirely covered in oceans where oceanic races ruled supreme. Such worlds were not considered elemental planes, yet they were not fully material planes either, so the wizards categorized them as resource planes. The wizard civilization rarely cared about developing such worlds and instead simply harvested resources from them.
There were gem planes rich with magical crystals, lava planes overflowing with volcanic essence, wood planes covered by endless forests, metal planes abundant in rare ores, and countless other strange worlds spread throughout the endless universe.
Using the knowledge gathered from those countless planes, the high-level wizards experimented with one power system after another. Yet every attempt ended in failure. Some systems required divine bloodlines, some demanded special physiques, while others required inborn talents even rarer than wizard aptitude itself.
After nearly twenty years of research, even the high-level wizards gradually felt helpless.
At that exact moment, Great Wizard Richard returned from the Knight Plane. And after hearing about the difficulties faced by the high-level wizards, he presented the knight cultivation system before the Wizard Council.
The moment the high-level wizards saw the knight path, their eyes lit up.
This was exactly the power system they had been searching for and for presenting such a cultivation system suitable for widespread use, Great Wizard Richard also received enormous rewards and resources from the Wizard Council.
The entry barrier of the knight path was astonishingly low. Although the highest native expert of the Knight Plane had only been a third-level Sky Knight, during the final war of resistance a fourth-level Domain Knight had appeared.
However, that Domain Knight had eventually been personally slain by Great Wizard Richard.
Still, the existence of a fourth-level lifeform proved the value of the knight path.
Within the endless universe, any power system incapable of producing a fourth-level being was considered a defective path. Only systems capable of reaching the fourth level could truly be called god-level power systems because the fourth tier represented the threshold between man and god itself.
At the same time, another fact was mentioned in the book.
Any power system capable of surpassing the sixth level and stepping into the seventh level was known as an Overlord-level power system. The wizard path itself belonged to this category, alongside the divine systems of the gods and the abyssal systems of the Endless Abyss.
Satisfied with the knight path, the high-level wizards, with the permission of Great Wizard Richard, immediately traveled to the Knight Plane to study its laws and environment.
However, they quickly discovered another problem.
The laws of the Knight Plane were fundamentally different from those of the wizarding world. The birth of a Life Seed depended heavily on the plane's natural laws. Furthermore, because the Knight Plane did not revolve around mana or spellcasting, the suppression against wizards was extremely severe.
When entering the Knight Plane directly, most wizards could only utilize forty percent of their strength. Even after analyzing the plane's laws and adapting themselves, they could barely maintain seventy percent of their original combat power.
Compared to the wizarding world where wizards could retain one hundred percent of their strength, and compared to ordinary material planes where wizards could still maintain nearly eighty to ninety percent of their power after analyzing local laws, the suppression of the Knight Plane was terrifying.
Moreover, very few spellcasters existed within the Knight Plane itself. Even if some occasionally appeared, they would quickly be suppressed or killed due to the overwhelming dominance of knights within that civilization.
After years of analysis and discussion, the high-level wizards finally reported the issue regarding the laws of the Knight Plane to the six Truth Wizards who ruled the wizard civilization.
The Truth Wizards personally intervened.
After discussing among themselves, they used unimaginable power to slightly alter the laws of the wizarding plane itself, allowing mortals to awaken Life Seeds and practice the knight path within the wizarding world.
Reading this part, Ivan's pupils constricted slightly.
The eighth-level Truth Wizards had altered the laws of an entire plane itself.
That kind of power was completely unimaginable to him.
Even now, Ivan could barely comprehend what kind of existence an eighth-level Truth Wizard truly was.
The book then continued to explain the evolution of the knight path afterward.
The original knight system had been extremely crude, so the wizards optimized and refined it. The chaotic ranking system of the Knight Plane was reorganized into a strict cultivation hierarchy: Knight Apprentice, Low-Level Knight, Intermediate Knight, High-Level Knight, Great Knight, and finally Sky Knight.
A Great Knight possessed physique and constitution comparable to a high-level wizard apprentice, while their agility could even surpass wizard apprentices.
However, because knights lacked mental energy and spellcasting ability, a single Great Knight was still no match for a high-level wizard apprentice.
Normally, four to six Great Knights were required to kill one high-level wizard apprentice.
Reading to this point, Ivan unconsciously became more focused.
The next section finally described the realm of the Sky Knight.
When a Great Knight reached the limits of their body and Life Seed, they would attempt to fuse their chi with mana. Originally, the breakthrough method of the Knight Plane had been crude and extremely dangerous, but the wizards simplified the process after years of research.
A Great Knight only needed to envelop their body completely with chi and consume a specially prepared mana potion. The potion would react with the chi and gradually fuse mana into it, giving the chi magical properties.
Once the fusion completed, the knight would break through and become a Sky Knight.
The reason for the title Sky Knight was also straightforward.
After reaching this realm, knights gained the ability to fly through the sky like wizards. Their chi also gained basic magical properties, allowing them to use certain magic tools and simplified wizard patterns.
After the first-level Sky Knight came the second-level Sky Knight, followed by the third-level Sky Knight.
Beyond that point existed the first major bottleneck of the knight path.
The fourth-level Domain Knight.
Although the wizards attempted to improve this stage, breaking through the boundary between man and god was difficult even for wizards themselves. They could only optimize the process slightly.
After becoming a fourth-level Domain Knight, a knight would awaken something called a Knight Domain. Within that domain, the knight's strength would increase tremendously while enemies would suffer suppression depending on the difference in power.
Reading to this point, Ivan noticed something.
The higher the rank described in the book, the vaguer the information became.
After thinking briefly, Ivan quickly understood the reason.
Although the knight path was considered secondary within wizard civilization, it was still a god-level power system. Sky Knights were already formal-level existences comparable to official wizards. Knowledge related to formal-level realms was naturally extremely valuable.
The academy would never distribute such information freely.
The wizard civilization followed the principle of equal exchange.
If Ivan truly wished to continue walking both the wizard and knight paths simultaneously, then sooner or later he would need enough resources and status to purchase higher-level knowledge himself.
After understanding this, Ivan slowly finished the final pages.
The last section recorded the development of the knight path throughout the last three thousand years.
At first, the wizards experimented with the knight system within the Central Continent in a limited setting. After gaining preliminary success and confirming that the knight path was suitable for the mortals of the wizarding plane, the wizards gradually began spreading the knight cultivation system throughout the wizarding world.
However, the wizard civilization never distributed the knight path freely.
Everything had a value.
The knight cultivation methods were first given only to nobles, wizard families, retainers of wizards, and relatives of important organizations. Through them, the knight path gradually spread wider and wider across the wizarding world.
Eventually, knights became one of the most important military forces during interplanar wars.
Although individual knights were weaker than wizards, the entry barrier of the knight path was extremely low. As a result, the number of Sky Knights within wizard civilization grew rapidly.
Countless academies and wizard organizations began training knight legions for external conquest.
Over time, various knight breathing methods appeared one after another. Specialized knights gradually emerged across battlefields. Flame Knights, Earth Knights, Shadow Knights, Wind Knights, and countless others formed complete military systems.
Even so, the status of knights within wizard civilization remained far below that of wizards. Most knight legions were still treated as expendable forces during planar wars, and their casualty rate during interplanar invasions was horrifyingly high.
Yet the few knights capable of surviving countless battlefields and reaching the peak of the path were all terrifying existences worthy of respect.
After closing the book, Ivan fell into deep thought.
Originally, he had believed the knight path was merely a naturally formed cultivation system of the wizarding world.
But now he finally understood the truth.
The knight path was a tool created by the wizards themselves to fully utilize the enormous mortal population of the wizarding world.
A secondary cultivation path designed so the countless mortals of wizard civilization would not go to waste.
After thinking silently for some time, Ivan slowly returned the book to its shelf.
His gaze then moved toward the surrounding bookshelves filled with countless knight breathing methods. Some were ordinary breathing techniques while others were fragmented high-level inheritances collected from different organizations and kingdoms.
Ivan did not hesitate.
He immediately began pulling out one breathing method after another, rapidly flipping through the pages. Nova continuously scanned the information through Ivan's eyes and stored everything within its database.
Most of the breathing methods were incomplete or ordinary. However, Ivan still copied them all. Even fragmented information possessed value. If Nova truly managed to organize and improve breathing methods in the future, then every bit of knowledge would become useful.
While skimming through the shelves, Ivan suddenly paused.
A particular book had caught his attention.
Unlike the other books, this one had no title written on its surface. Its cover was forged from a strange gray metallic material covered in faint ancient patterns. The moment Ivan touched it, he felt a cold sensation spread across his fingertips.
Seeing this, Ivan's eyes narrowed slightly.
He immediately pulled out the thick ancient book and carefully began reading through it.
After finishing the contents of the book, Ivan was genuinely surprised.
The book actually contained some experiences left behind by a Sky Knight along with several fragmented Sky Knight-level breathing methods.
Although the methods were incomplete, the value of the information was still astonishingly high.
Without hesitation, Ivan immediately ordered Nova to copy all the fragmented Sky Knight breathing methods into its database.
After Nova finished recording everything, Ivan slowly returned the strange metallic book back to its original position before continuing to skim through one high-level breathing method after another.
Time quietly passed within the silent library.
Ivan remained immersed within the sea of knowledge while Nova continuously organized and categorized the massive amount of information. One breathing method after another entered Nova's database.
At that moment, Ivan suddenly felt his bronze badge vibrate lightly.
A translucent screen unfolded before his eyes.
A message from Olivia appeared.
"Ivan, have you found what you were looking for?"
Seeing the message, Ivan blinked slightly before asking Nova for the current time.
"Master, it is currently evening."
Hearing Nova's reply, Ivan was slightly surprised.
Yesterday, he had unknowingly spent almost the entire day inside the library, and today the same thing had happened once again.
Looking toward Olivia's message, a faint smile appeared on Ivan's usually calm face.
"Yes. I found quite a few useful things. Are you done reading?"
A few seconds later, Olivia's reply appeared.
"Yes. I read many books about druids and potionology."
Seeing her response, Ivan immediately typed once again.
"Then head toward the library entrance. I am coming as well."
This time, Olivia's reply came almost immediately.
"Okay."
After seeing the message, Ivan copied the high-level breathing method in his hand into Nova's core database before placing the book back onto the shelf.
Then he quickly walked toward the entrance of the library.
The massive library remained as quiet as ever.
Only the faint sound of pages turning echoed occasionally between the towering bookshelves.
When Ivan finally reached the entrance hall, he immediately noticed Olivia.
She stood beside one of the stone pillars while holding several thick books against her chest.
Her emerald eyes wandered around the hall quietly.
But the moment she saw Ivan emerging from the endless sea of bookshelves, her eyes instantly brightened.
A soft smile unconsciously appeared on her face.
Ivan walked toward her calmly.
Olivia also hurried slightly toward him.
When they met halfway, Ivan glanced at the stack of books in her arms.
"You borrowed all of these?"
Olivia looked a little embarrassed.
"…I might have taken a few too many."
Ivan gave a faint chuckle.
Without waiting for her response, he naturally took most of the books from her hands.
"You'll tire yourself carrying these."
Olivia instinctively loosened her grip.
Then, after a brief hesitation, her fingers quietly hooked around Ivan's sleeve.
Her cheeks became slightly red.
"…Thank you."
Ivan looked at her flushed face and smiled faintly.
"It's only a few books."
His tone remained calm as always, yet Olivia somehow felt warmth hidden beneath those simple words.
The two of them then walked toward the front desk together.
The old librarian, who had been half asleep the entire time, slowly opened one eye after hearing the sound of books landing on the desk.
When he saw Ivan and Olivia standing side by side, an amused smile immediately appeared on his wrinkled face.
"Oh?"
"So the little lovebirds came to study together again?"
The moment those words entered her ears, Olivia's face instantly turned bright red.
Even the tips of her ears became crimson.
She subconsciously lowered her head slightly and moved a little closer to Ivan.
Ivan himself rarely showed emotions.
But this time, even his ears became faintly red.
It felt strangely similar to being caught by one's elders while secretly dating.
Awkward.
Yet oddly warm at the same time.
Seeing their reactions, the old man chuckled softly.
This time, he did not tease them further.
"These common books can be borrowed freely," he said lazily. "But they must be returned within one week."
Saying this, the old man pointed toward the scanning device beside the desk.
"You'll need to scan your badges so the library can keep a record."
Hearing this, Olivia quickly scanned her badge while trying not to meet the old man's smiling gaze.
Ivan stood calmly beside her while carrying the books, though the faint redness near his ears had not completely disappeared yet.
After completing the registration, both of them finally walked out of the library together.
Although Ivan possessed a space ring, he still did not use it casually. He still lacked understanding about how valuable spatial equipment truly was within the wizarding world. Until he fully understood its worth, he preferred remaining cautious.
Outside, the sky had already turned orange-red beneath the setting sun.
The academy pathways were dyed in warm golden light.
Olivia quietly walked beside Ivan while lightly holding onto his arm. Her expression had mostly calmed down now, though a faint blush still lingered on her cheeks.
Ivan remained as calm as always, yet his steps unconsciously slowed slightly to match Olivia's pace.
Neither of them spoke much during the walk.
Yet the atmosphere between them felt warm and peaceful.
By the time they arrived near the floating disk leading toward the residential district, the cafeteria had not fully opened yet. Only a few apprentices could be seen sitting inside while chatting quietly.
Seeing this, Ivan looked toward Olivia.
"Looks like dinner will have to wait."
Olivia softly smiled.
"We can just eat at the dormitory later."
Ivan nodded slightly.
Soon, both of them stepped onto the floating disk together.
The disk slowly rose into the air, carrying them toward the student district beneath the evening sky.
The wind gently brushed past them while the sunset dyed the distant clouds crimson.