’An outburst from perfectly integrating the Knight’s Breathing Technique with a Sword Form could have such astonishing destructive power?’

Roland took a step forward, scrutinizing the broken training post, and couldn’t help but click his tongue in amazement.

’This power... is probably comparable to the Combat Skill, Flowing Slash! What if I were to use Flowing Slash while channeling the Breathing Technique at the same time?’

At the thought of it, Roland’s heart couldn’t help but race with excitement.

Moreover, he had noticed something else when he channeled the Breathing Technique just now.

Performing any action while the Breathing Technique was active didn’t just increase his Power, but his Agility as well!

This meant that once he could master it and integrate the Breathing Technique into his combat, his strength would take an all-encompassing leap forward.

A moment later, however, Roland faced reality and shook his head with a helpless sigh.

’Just now, all I did was stand still and try to use the Breathing Technique while swinging my sword, and it nearly drained all my mental energy. Even so, the success rate was pitifully low. If this were a real battle...’

An image of an enemy’s fierce assault appeared in his mind.

’An enemy wouldn’t give me a moment to breathe, let alone let me get distracted by channeling a Breathing Technique while also trying to execute a Combat Skill...’

Although he understood the difficulty, Roland didn’t feel much frustration or disappointment.

After all, it had only been a few days since he obtained the Breathing Technique.

Being able to use it in his daily training in such a short time was already a huge step forward.

He firmly believed that with enough time, skillfully applying the Breathing Technique in combat was only a matter of time.

At this thought, Roland let out a long breath. After a short rest to recover some of his physical and Spirit stamina, he moved to another training post.

Just as he was about to raise his training Iron Sword to continue practicing, the sound of heavy footsteps came from behind him.

It was followed by a gruff voice.

"Ho! Not bad, kid!"

Roland turned to see a mountain-like figure slowly approaching.

His leather boots made dull thuds on the ground.

As the man drew closer, Roland squinted, finally making out his face.

"Dean Graham?"

The newcomer was indeed the dean of the Knight Academy, Graham.

However, compared to when Roland had first met him, the powerful dean seemed to have changed.

His build was still as sturdy as a mountain, but his back was now slightly stooped.

His already somewhat messy hair was now completely disheveled. A heavy stench of alcohol wafted over, and there were even a few beads of liquor hanging from his thick beard, ready to drip at any moment.

His entire person was shrouded in an air of decadence and depression.

"GULP... GULP..."

With the sound of liquor going down his throat, Graham casually wiped the booze from his chin, walked over to the post Roland had just severed, and leaned down to inspect it closely.

A moment later, he turned his head, a trace of surprise flashing in his cloudy eyes.

"Kid... you’ve already mastered the Knight’s Breathing Technique?"

Seeing Roland nod gently, this dean of the Knight Academy, renowned throughout the River Domain, strode heavily in front of Roland, his enormous body almost completely blocking out the light.

He sized Roland up, clicking his tongue in wonder.

"How many days has it been since that old geezer Nelson gave you the Knight’s Breathing Technique? Not only have you mastered it..."

His thick finger pointed at the solid training post that had been split in two.

"But you can also crudely wield Fighting Spirit?"

Looking at Roland’s young face, a flicker of imperceptible melancholy crossed Graham’s eyes.

’I never would have thought... that kid Colin really dug up a prime talent for the Academy...’

However, Roland didn’t bask in Graham’s praise. Instead, he keenly caught the key word in the dean’s sentence.

Fighting Spirit.

"Dean Graham..."

Seeing that the man was no longer as aggressive as when they first met, Roland relaxed slightly, bowed a little, and began to ask his question.

"The ’Fighting Spirit’ you just mentioned..."

"It’s that strange current of energy you sense when you cultivate the Breathing Technique..."

Seemingly moved by Roland’s talent, Graham didn’t give a perfunctory answer, but instead began to explain with rare patience.

"This power has different names in different places—Qi Sensitivity, Fighting Spirit, Battle Aura, and so on—but they are all essentially the same thing."

Roland nodded in understanding, then immediately followed up with another question.

"Then, Dean, this... current of energy, how exactly is it produced?"

When he was cultivating the Knight’s Breathing Technique, Roland had been skeptical about the "Qi Sensitivity" described on the Sheepskin Scroll.

He was well aware that being in an Otherworld, many of the natural laws from his past life might no longer apply.

But based on his observations, even Tricks that used Supernatural Power needed to draw upon and convert the free-floating Magic Elements in the air.

This at least proved that some law of conservation of energy likely still held true in this world.

However, recalling the details of cultivating the Breathing Technique, Roland couldn’t help but furrow his brow.

He could clearly feel that the vast majority of the energy flow known as "Qi Sensitivity" sprang into existence from within his body out of thin air when the Breathing Technique was active.

Only a tiny fraction of it seemed to come from some indescribable external force.

This contradiction left him deeply puzzled.

Hearing Roland’s question, Graham threw his head back and took a large swig of liquor.

As an exceptionally pungent smell of alcohol filled the air, the dean of the Knight Academy reached out with a thick hand and clapped Roland heavily on the shoulder.

"Kid, the Fighting Spirit produced by the Breathing Technique originates from within you."

Seeing the confusion in Roland’s eyes, Graham explained further.

"The process of cultivating the Knight’s Breathing Technique is, in essence, excavating your body’s potential. That’s why people with stronger physiques find it easier to succeed in their cultivation and can unleash greater power."

’Excavating your body’s potential...’

Mulling over this sentence, Roland fell into deep thought.

Suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck him. He snapped his head up and said slowly.

"Dean Graham, are you saying... that cultivating the Knight’s Breathing Technique is actually... overdrafting one’s own body?"

"Exactly!"

Seeing that Roland had instantly grasped the key point, Graham nodded in approval, yet a trace of gravity flashed in his eyes.

"That’s why a standard Knight’s peak is usually between the ages of forty and fifty. After that, their strength declines rapidly. And the more powerful the Knight, the more drastic this decline tends to be. Their lifespans... also tend to be shorter."

’Exchanging life for power...’

’Is this the price of obtaining Extraordinary Power?’

Roland mulled over Graham’s words, but then something occurred to him, and he gave an almost imperceptible shake of his head.

’Wrong!’

’If what Graham said is true, then...’

’How can King Morne’s situation be explained?’

As far as he knew, the King of the Golden Valley Empire was now nearly a hundred years old, but both his Spirit and his physique were exceptionally robust.

Even during the military exercises held to reassure the public after the end of the Blood Moon Turmoil, his age was already far beyond the recognized peak for the Knight Profession.

Yet, according to Bronson’s description, a casual strike from Morne at that time was still powerful enough to rival a Fourth Ring Spell cast by a Wizard.

Thinking of this, Roland immediately blurted out the question on his mind.

Hearing this question, Graham fell silent for a moment. A flicker of imperceptible envy flashed in his cloudy eyes, and he then spoke slowly, his voice laced with a complex mix of emotions.

"That... is an exception. As far as I know, there are a few other such exceptions, but..."

The dean of the Knight Academy slowly shook his head, his tone tinged with a sense of helplessness.

"My Knight’s Breathing Technique is far from reaching that Realm, so I can’t give you a definitive answer to your question."

He paused, his cloudy eyes gazing into the distance as if in thought, or perhaps reminiscing.

"But I would speculate that this unusual phenomenon probably has nothing to do with the type of Breathing Technique one cultivates. It’s more like... an expression of some kind of... transformation that occurs after one has tempered their Breathing Technique to its absolute limit."