Many centuries ago, the First Great War broke out. Demons attacked all the Continents and, led by the Great Abyssal Demon King , crushed each kingdom with overwhelming force. It was a massacre and no force could stop them. Until a hero appeared among the humans who changed the course of the war completely: his name was Seneca and he was later remembered as the Imperial Hero God .
Seneca united and formed a team with which he was able to fight on equal terms against the Great Abyssal Demon King: the Water Style Sword God Hifrid ; the Martial God Iungger ; the Goddess of Magic Irys . They all became known as the Four Pillars .
Together they fought their way through the great demon armies until they reached their commander, the Great Abyssal Demon King. The battle between them was so fierce that the heavens roared and the lands trembled. It was a battle that could be seen from anywhere in the world, but suddenly, everything fell silent after an explosion lit up the skies for a month. No one knew what was happening back then, but one thing was certain: the demons gave up fighting and returned to their lands soon after. The battle was over.
All continents celebrated on a grand scale and the skies regained their color. All the kingdoms of the world waited with open doors for the arrival of those victorious heroes for days. Weeks, months, even years and decades passed, but no kingdom reported having seen that group of heroes.
None of them ever came back.
That heroic story reached every corner of the world and Seneca's name was immortalized as the leader of the Four Pillars, becoming a figure of countless legends.
The Imperial Continent gained prestige and respect from all the kingdoms in the world. Even writers referred to this place as "The Land Where Heroes Are Born" or also "The Continent of Salvation" because they said that a hero would emerge to save everyone if they ever found themselves in trouble.
In honor of Seneca, the calendar of the time was recorded in homage to the years of peace that this human hero granted to each of the races, named after him from the moment of his victory and the emergence of a new era.
***
Year 712 of the Imperial Hero God
That is the time I am currently in.
Oh, interesting...
The Quaramis Palace of the North, Wolf told me, has one of the most complete libraries in the entire Kingdom of Atlas. So I stay locked up here during my time off, devouring all kinds of knowledge.
Although I can hear and understand this language thanks to my spiritual circuits that translate what I hear, I do not master the original language. So Zaphyris kindly assigned me to one of her maids with tutoring qualities to receive private lessons.
I have discovered many things, both completely different and similar to those of my time. The level of intelligence and historical material gathered by this past seems unbelievable.
How could so much information about our ancestors and the true past of our origins have been lost?
That's my biggest puzzle.
Now I think I understand more the logic behind the system of this world: in summary with this information, as well as the different layers of the atmosphere of planet Earth that we already know, there is another layer that allows connections between spiritual systems, and it is called The Great Spiritual Network or the Magic Network.
What was once impossible in my world is now possible thanks to that Spiritual Network that covers the world and the extraordinary behind everything. It is the oxygen of magic and the materialization of spiritual ramifications.
Does that mean that in my time we would be able to use spiritual power which we all possess? It is an interesting theory, but there are also impediments: that Spiritual Network disappeared.
Now, there are combat styles developed alongside spiritual arts: sword, magic, spiritual martial arts, and mechanical technology.
Sword Art fits perfectly with the handling of the spiritual root and the physical body. It is a common art in war but later popularized as an average requirement for survival. Over time, great geniuses of the past came to implement magic on the blades of their swords to strengthen their attacks and increase power, which further caused the development of sword art centuries later.
But it didn't stop there, as thanks to the technique and distinctive handling of the spiritual root, four different Sword Fighting Styles were born: Water Style, Dragon Style, Beast Style, and Mountain Style.
The Water Style is delicate yet strong, it relies on sensing the enemy's intentions and skillfully deflecting each attack while relentlessly counterattacking. It is an elegant Sword Style and one of the most feared.
The Dragon Style is pragmatic and a bit more aggressive, based on wisdom and analysis. It seems to attack when it should defend and defend when it should attack; its defense is the attack and the attack is its defense. The enemy loses without knowing the original pattern of the swordsman of this Style.
Beast Style is the only style without a specific form or pattern. It is very aggressive and is based on using both the enemy's power and your own to your advantage while using your entire body as if you were running on all fours. This gives it more power and agility. Its peculiar way of dancing like a butterfly, defending itself like an armadillo and attacking brutally like an untamable beast makes it an unusually beautiful style.
The Mountain Style is based on strength, its tough style and impeccable defense weakens and reflects the enemy's attacks; when it attacks, it breaks the enemy's posture with a heavy attack and is hardly the first to fall after a long battle.
The sword bases its power level from the lowest tier to the highest in the following order: Sword Warrior, Sword Saint, Sword King, Sword Emperor, Sword God.
To rank up, you must be twice as strong as your own rank in the sword style you master. If you beat your senior in your Sword Style, you gain the right to be called that rank.
Magical Arts seemed to dominate long before the sword, all thanks to their direct relationship with the spiritual circuits. There are countless varieties of magic, as they depend on the individuality of the wielder and their natural development.
There are theories that claim that it is ideal to awaken as many magic circuits as possible at a young age. But there are cases where even after the age of 30, they have awakened new different spiritual circuits. So it is a questionable issue and there is no specific way compared to sword art. It depends on the individual how powerful and skilled their dominant magic is.
What distinguishes the bearer of the spiritual circuits from the rest of the people is their special ramifications that could allow them to awaken a different and powerful magic. Something that makes them stand out from the crowd.
If your magic is powerful, it doesn't matter if it's special or not, then that will be your base and point of power.
Mastering the basic natural elements is also a fundamental starting point for any magician, whether they are a Warrior, Emperor, or God.
The power system is based on the same as that of the sword: Wizard, Saint of Magic, Wizard King, Wizard Emperor, God of Magic.
But despite the harsh demands on the matter, magic did not stop there either: I also discovered that there were great masters in history who did not awaken any special power throughout their lives. But they mastered the basic natural elements to such a degree that they brilliantly decided to merge the Magical Arts with the Martial Arts, which revolutionized both magic and close combat, thus giving way to the birth of the Spiritual Martial Arts , a direct and native branch of the Magical Arts: Firebending, Waterbending, Windbending, Earthbending.
These are the basic elements in spiritual martial arts, but there are other elements and styles that were developed later.
Their system is the same as the previous ones. For example: Martial Warrior, Martial Saint, Martial King, Martial Emperor, Martial God.
Now finally comes the last category: it is not a style or form of combat, but magical tools and implements, which allowed the weakest to arm themselves with equipment that would allow them to fight. Thanks to mechanical technology, many managed to place themselves in the same arena as the most powerful.
But realistically, there is little they can do if they fight to the death.
Mechanical technology uses ingenuity and spiritual power to function as automatic mechanisms depending on their programming, based on the circuits of magic circles and the spiritual network of the world, its idea was born from the great human scientists of the Imperial Continent. Later it was popularized in the world and daily life. But it was also used as weapons of war that increased the military power of the Imperial Continent, previously considered the weakest of the Seven Continents until then.
That's funny...
Humans naturally possess a limit compared to the capabilities of other races that are naturally stronger. In this world, humans are also capable of using their spirit circuits, and they have strived to the point of developing mechanical technology. What's more, the Imperial Hero God Seneca was a human, and there are other powerful people who are humans as well: the Imperial Continent has produced several Sword Kings, Martial Emperors, and even has a God of Magic currently.
They are certainly weak at first compared to other races, but their greatest advantage is the ability to adapt. I think that's why humans had the last laugh in my time. They absolutely do not depend on magic to survive. Not even their life source is dependent on the spiritual power of this world.
Still, it's unfair... so many deaths...