Aiven was completely unaware of everything happening on the island, as he was entirely captivated by the bronze box before him.

Aiven was eager to know what exactly his spiritual intuition had been leading him to find ever since he arrived on this island. Why did the "snake-man" hold him in such high regard? Could there truly exist an extraordinary gathering effect in the world?

It wasn't the so-called extraordinary traits from the same source, but something involving more elusive talents, destinies, and the real existence of the spiritual world.

As the two oldest paths in the extraordinary world, wizards and knights. Every practitioner aspiring to the extraordinary path knows that breaking through from an apprentice knight to an official knight requires the extraordinary traits of demonized creatures to complete the final extraordinary transformation.

Then, what do wizards rely on?

The answer is—rituals!

The so-called "rituals": that is to establish a connection between oneself and certain world rules, spiritual forces, deities, etc., through specific rites, temporarily yielding self-consciousness, allowing spiritual resonance with super-tier existences from the source of life, and wielding powers beyond one's limits or even beyond one's inherent capabilities!

This is also what wizards rely on to break the bounds of mortals, astonishingly, without the involvement of external extraordinary traits.

Some people believe that wisdom is humanity's innate extraordinary power, so internal that it won't be recognized as extraordinary spiritual light by conventional spiritual vision or other detection methods.

Others believe that the extraordinary traits of a wizard are directly bestowed during resonance with higher existences, requiring no additional hunting by oneself.

"..."

Despite myriad opinions, wizards, as one of the oldest professions, indeed do not need external extraordinary traits to break through.

And in such advancement rituals.

School wizards connect with the school's pre-set extraordinary source, wild mages connect with certain natural spirits, or simply with this world itself.

From the very start, when Aiven performed witchcraft on his sea birds, he independently conducted several rituals, achieving momentary communion with the collective consciousness of all the beings on this planet, "spirit of nature," and "Mother Earth."

Later, after entering the "Violet Eye," he performed specific rituals more frequently, during which he got to experience the grandeur and vastness of the planet's collective consciousness several times.

Aiven seriously suspected whether he had unintentionally met some precondition of the "snake-man's" school, or if he had developed some trait, which compelled the "snake-man's" illusion, the subterranean creatures, and even those statue warriors to regard him differently.

Even whether or not having this obvious token "bronze key" was entirely secondary!

Clack—

The box was completely opened, and any light and shadow effects were gone.

Inside lay two pieces of leather, tied together with leather cords.

The black-red leather, of unknown animal origin, had a glossy surface inscribed with tiny letters, even under the gentle cave light of unknown origin, the letters gleamed faintly like gilding with an impressive luminosity despite their small size.

Reaching out to take the two fairly thick pieces of leather, Aiven revealed three other items at the bottom of the box. Initially, with little expectation of treasure, Aiven found renewed hope upon seeing these things.

Leaving aside for the moment a yellow gem pendant with an ornate design but unknown use, and a small gray leather pouch, Aiven first picked up a small notebook that looked like a journal.

He felt that he should be able to find some answers regarding this relic within the "Rock Giant," the strange sensations, those peculiar creatures, even that long-deceased "snake-man," on its pages.

Under the cave's innate soft lighting, Aiven sat directly on the ground and opened the notebook.

"To the one who comes after! Following the guidance of the Tree of Life, you have arrived here...."

He read word by word, as if witnessing an epic through the text.

"Heber Crete" was the name of the "snake-man," though it wasn't in the least novel, certainly not a renowned historical figure.

However.

He held another, thunderous identity in the extraordinary world—a wizard, a great wizard of the oldest school "Life Tree School!"

Back in "New Inn Port," after learning the difference between school and wild wizards from Delis, Aiven had specifically gathered related information.

Far back in the ancient times when wizards were the rulers of this world, in order to counteract the ever-present risks of losing control in the exploration of truths, the wise sages, after extensive exploration and summarization, founded the first wizard school!

Imitating the extraordinary source of some primitive professions, a unique mysterious source for the school was "pre-set," advancing backwards from the source to create original witchcraft, systematic advancement rituals, and even a rune writing system.

Constantly attracting outstanding talents with similar research directions, gathering the collective power of individuals to continually perfect the corresponding knowledge system, finally achieving the great feat of manifesting the "mysterious source" through prolonged accumulation and flashes of genius!

The manifested "mysterious source" is the ultimate creation of a school and the condensed collection of all knowledge, abilities, and powers of the members. It's the great miracle created by countless mortal wizards!

And the "mysterious source" of the oldest school "Life Tree School" is the Tree of Life from myth, said to have created myriad life!

Because in the center of the Old Continent is a massive, flat-topped steep mountain, called the "World Wall," completely blocking the path between the western and eastern parts of the Old Continent.

Under the influence of mysterious power, even eagles or wizards cannot cross it!

But, according to myth, in the even older times when human civilization was still in its primitive state, that place was called the "Tree of Life." And the "World Wall" separating the entire continent was merely the stump of the "Tree of Life."

Of course, these are just legends, with no evidence to prove the Tree of Life ever existed. But then again, if such a great creation truly existed, how would wizards dare to pin their mysterious source on it?

"Were ancient wizards so powerful?!"

Aiven was deeply amazed by the imagination and creativity of the sages; from another angle, was this process of manifesting a "mysterious source" from nothing akin to creating the "Divine Spirit"?

Continuing to read.

As, in modern times, these core secrets of the school are not documented in external books. What happened to this oldest school later? And why did it disappear in recent times, only its name remaining, never to be seen again? These questions fascinated Aiven!

However.

Contrary to what others might imagine, this oldest school only lasted a short time before experiencing significant fragmentation. Not only did it fail to become the first pioneers, it fell like a toppled ancient giant, becoming the nutrients for the blossoming of various other schools.

The fundamental reason being, the concretion difficulty of the "Tree of Life" was simply too high!

The model's mysterious source was predetermined by humankind, ultimately creating unique witchcraft, systemized advancement rituals, and even a rune writing system.

By continuously integrating outstanding talents with similar research directions, the school broadened its field of expertise, drawing in exceptional talent with various research focuses, and pioneering unique witchcraft, systematic progression rituals, and even a rune writing system from its "source."

The "mysterious source," once brought forth, represents the ultimate achievement of a school and encapsulates the entirety, set to remain on the pages of their studies forevermore, never fully realized. Most humans, except for those extraordinary saints, are ultimately self-serving. Therefore, after a while, some try to find compromise through retreat. As a result, the majority grow complacent while only a few pursue their goals steadfastly.

He acknowledged Delis as she said, "School wizards are different from wild mages." This realization propelled Aiven to collect relevant materials.

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