“Max, I will teach you some of the information the academies do not divulge to ordinary people”, Uncle Arthur continued his discussion with Max.

“As you know, there are four types of spirit bodies. Since time immemorial, the number four has always been a symbol of a lot of mysteries. The four elements. The four major directions. The four phases of the moon. And even the four horsemen of the apocalypse. It may bring luck, but it may also command ruin. Common, rare, and golden spirit bodies are the three most known types of spirit bodies, with the last but definitely the greatest, Divinity (divine spirit body).”

“Schools do not have the capability to test Divinity. Using power stones cannot accurately gauge the grade of the spirit body of the one being tested. Sometimes, possessors of Divinity are initially tested to be wielders of mythical spirit bodies, only to find out later that they were clearly something greater.”

“The Divinity can awaken the greatest yet the most mysterious of all spirit relics - the divine grade. Mind you, there are only a couple of people in this world that can possess divine spirit relics - and all of them are said to possess the power of the progenitors.”

Uncle Arthur paused and took a look at Max. After hearing Arthur's words, Max showed a look of eagerness and was clearly very invested in Arthur’s words. His eyes sparkled with anticipation, Surely, the world was a massive one, he spoke sotto voce.

“The progenitors are the first wielders of magic. No, let us say they are the creators. They are born from chaos and decided to create this world to have a place they can call home. I, myself, do not really know much about these progenitors but all I know is that they are really powerful - far beyond the concept of our reality.”

“Not much has been recorded in the history books but it is rumored that these progenitors condensed spirit relics from their very souls before they disappeared, and will only be resurfaced in this world through the awakening of very fortunate individuals during the different ages of spirit relics.”

“There are three ages of spirit relics that occurred on Earth. The first one was after the birth of the progenitors, the second during the Age of Gods, and the third is the present.”

“The attributes of these divine spirit relics are not one of your ordinary elements. Presently, the only record of divine attributes is ruination - but that is another story to tell. The rest still remains unexplored and maybe even unawakened.”

“As for the other grade of spirit relics, they can only possess common elements, their uncommon variations, and other rare attributes.”

Max took a deep breath and was clearly fascinated by the new revelations. He couldn’t wrap his mind around the wielder of a divine spirit relic with a ruination attribute. Did that man bring ruin wherever he went? Footsteps of destruction, a breath of bane, a punch of overwhelming havoc. He imagined every possible scenario he could think of.

Before he was even lost in his train of thought, Uncle Arthur continued speaking.

“Divine spirit bodies may be very far-fetched for all of us, but there are also very lucky people who can awaken two different spirit relics - they are known as dual wielders. Dual wielders possess the strength of unmatched versatility and of the highest caliber.”

“Unlike spirit knights, the wielders of sword-type spirit relics, dual-wielders can be classified into a wide range of spirit classes depending on the type of spirit relic they awakened. Usually, the spirit relics they awakened are complementary to each other, it can be a sword and a shield, or a crown and a scepter.”

“Less talented dual-wielders can possess two different spirit relics but with same attributes while the more talented ones hold different attributes.”

Max widened his eyes in shock as he heard about dual-wielders. This information was not known to the students or maybe only circulated among the people in the higher-ups. He also knew a little bit about spirit classes because this topic was usually tackled during middle school.

“Although there are relics of dual attributes, the strength they can show is only subpar when compared to dual-wielders of different attributes.”

“The things I’ve said to you are only known by a select few. I informed you all of this to broaden your horizons and not limit yourselves to the known, rather, you should try exploring the unknown.”

“Since you will awaken in about a week’s time, you should allot more time for meditation and clear your mind. My advice for you is to put your mind on a clean slate before awakening - no distractions, no other thoughts, just emptiness. After all, stories start from blank pages, and paintings are produced from empty canvases.”

Max composed his thoughts before preparing himself. He bid farewell to Uncle Arthur and went back to his apartment. Stories start from blank pages and paintings are produced from empty canvases, he kept muttering to himself.

The things he learned today were more interesting than the lesson taught in his almost six years of preparatory education. Although spirit relics were dependent on one’s luck and talent, he fervently believed that maybe unrelenting perseverance and determination could alter the threads of the fate of the unlucky and create ripples in the river of time.

However, despite the hopes Max had for the future, he always kept on questioning himself. Hope for what? for who?

The next morning, Max went to school a little bit later than usual. Just like his morning routine, he climbed the building through the stairs. Halfway there, he suddenly heard loud talking sounds on the 10th floor.

Although he would always act oblivious to the surroundings, it was always said that curiosity killed the cat but satisfaction brought it back. Stopping himself from climbing, he opted to take a look at the source of the murmurs. There, he saw students clustering around a glass window looking at the two figures fighting inside the battle room.

The 10th floor is fully composed of battle rooms, equipped with technologies capable of withstanding great and magical forces. Even a magnitude-10 earthquake would fail to leave even a dent in the building.

“Oh my god, Ethan and Miranda are about to fight!”, said a brown-haired boy excitedly. Max walked towards the battle room with his deadpan face. Still, concealed within was his excitement to see the strength of the two newly-awakened geniuses.

“Miranda, do not underestimate me!”, shouted Ethan from the other side. Even though the battle room was enclosed with glass, the sounds inside can still be heard by the people watching outside. The glass only acted as a protective barrier for the audience to prevent injuries and casualties.

“Hmph, stop talking we are about to start”, retorted Miranda.

Ethan closed his eyes and channeled his internal spirit power towards his hands forming into a hammer spirit relic. The hammer spirit relic was illusorily looking like it was made from the finest steel and boasted a meter in length. Its head was adorned with cracks, while magma oozing with hot billowing smoke was embedded in between the cracks. The bottom part of the wooden handle was interlaced with ox leather giving it a barbaric yet majestic appearance. Furthermore, the hammer glowed in fiery red.

After calling his spirit body, Max wielded it like a descended son of god. A heavy and scorching hot aura was continuously given off by the spirit relic. Max widened his eyes after seeing Ethan’s spirit relic. “A special relic can give off such a majestic feel, what more if it is mythical or even divine? Will the planets shudder? Will the heavens asunder?”.

Miranda, on the other hand, channeled her spirit power towards the center of her chest. White mist covered her eyes as pink magical particles condensed into a necklace. A blinding golden pendant was hung on a pink string. The pendant was carved with an image of a goddess possessing four angelic wings, and on the center was an overseeing eye. Yet, the eye was still closed.

The extraordinariness of the necklace coupled with its magical pinkish glow gave off an ethereal aura - giving Miranda the magical feel of an enchantress. “Oh my god!” shouted a somewhat tall and red-haired girl. “Look at her forehead!”.

Upon hearing those words, Max shifted his attention towards Miranda’s forehead. There, he saw another eye on her forehead, a third eye, and similar to the eye on the pendant, it was still closed.

Max recalled what his teacher mentioned during one of their classes. Awakening a spirit body would sometimes mutate the user when the spirit relic was taken out. This mutation would be helpful in wielding the spirit relic, giving the user a whole new level of control and power.

It could be said that Miranda was very lucky to acquire a mutation, for not everyone could possess it. Ethan constricted his eyes after looking at Miranda’s forehead. He was enveloped with conflicting emotions, fearful yet brave, hesitant yet envious. However, the transformation of his opponent could not stop his eyes from glowing with resolve and determination towards a great fight.