"You are treating it like Kraeth’sol. It works through compression, gathering Verth into a single point and compressing it until its maximum density. And for the rest of the complex workings, your blood handles that. All in all, it is simple. But this one is a bit complex."

The Infernal Dragon spoke. Emperal nodded his head when he heard that. The technique was based on precision because...compression was precise.

Sol’vethrak was different; here, the physics was pretty straightforward.

The technique worked by converting Verth directly into kinetic force through rapid thermal expansion, in simple words. It was a controlled explosion at the point of contact between the foot and the ground.

Adding the flame affinity...was the work of his blood, as he still couldn’t directly convert Elemental Verth like Verth Shapers.

"Just like that, you compress that flame into the output pores of the foot and release it downward against a surface, and the expansion pushes the body upwards and forward."

It was at a rate proportional to the compression density—literally.

And here arrived the problem.

"So the problem is the release rate, huh?"

Emperal muttered. Hearing this, the Infernal Dragon hummed in response.

"The fire you use and the pure Verth you use...require one hell of control and precision."

Emperal exhaled when he heard that, "So how do I control this thing efficiently then?"

"The control mechanism requires you to split your Verth output into two streams. In stream one, compress continuously and feed fresh Verth into your sole output at a...let’s say, regulated rate. The second one, however, instead of compressing, it continuously releases and vents the expanded Verth downward at the same rate it was being generated."

"Hmm, makes sense. But...if the release outpaces the compression, wouldn’t the expansion become unstable and explode?"

He couldn’t help but be puzzled. It wasn’t that the mechanism was confusing him; it was the workings of it...like it pretty much sounded unrealistic to him.

The Infernal Dragon nodded when he heard that, "Yes. And if the compression outpaces the release, the Verth keeps building up until it reaches criticality anyway."

The most straightforward explanation for this would be the difference between a rocket and a bomb. Both of them relied on the same chemical process, but one was controlled and directional, while the other resulted in pure destruction.

Suddenly, Emperal’s eyes widened, "So the reason my second attempt sent me flying so high was that...I hadn’t matched the rates?"

"...Yes, you had correctly identified the two-stream requirement, but hadn’t matched the rates. Your compression was still running faster than the release. Sometimes, I’m really amazed at how you grasp things so quickly."

Emperal chuckled when he heard that, "This is nothing, you should’ve seen how fast I had mastered the way of the sword."

"...Are you implying your comprehension lessened when you got my inheritance?"

"...I never said that."

The next day, Emperal set out to deliver the letter to the post, which was apparently some aerial beasts.

Though he didn’t know her exact location. He trusted the authorities would definitely know a Verth Shaper named Dresh.

Returning to his mansion, he resumed his practices. But his mind...it occasionally drifted to Vraelyn.

Whenever he thought about her, his body gave out some rather...unusual signals. It seemed to...crave her presence.

"Is this happening...because of my blood?"

Such questions had naturally arrived a few times in his mind, but he had dismissed them. The cravings inside became more and more intense.

It was only through his willpower that he had managed to control himself, and the credit also went to Soleine.

...

Aelvorn, also known as the First Land. This was the land where Verth had graced the world through a Great Tree called the EverHeart Tree.

The EverHeart Tree was the main reason why the Cycles of Verth could continue, and the cultivation realms could exist.

When the first creatures came to worship the EverHeart Tree, the EverHeart Tree blessed them with immense powers.

Just like the love the firstborns receive, it was heavy and protective.

But these creatures, however, were not some peace-loving minions. 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

They fought, they waged huge wars, they slaughtered, and they once dominated the land during the Great Ages.

These beings were feared throughout the world for their monstrous physiques and the Verth control they possessed.

From the dawn of ages, the Elves had dominated Verandis. After the Elves came the humans.

A mysterious subspecies of beings who appeared out of nowhere, they were termed lesser beings by the Elves.

Aka, the Humans.

Because of this racial discrimination, thousands and thousands of wars have been fought, ending with Elven victories each time.

It was only in the past two millennia that a monstrous genius was born among the humans, saving them from the endless slaughter of the blood-hungry Elves.

That man was so blessed with Verth that even the purest of Elves failed to match his genius.

With a sword in his hand and endless Verth gathering beneath his soles, the man slaughtered the Elves and almost caused genocide at times.

And finally, with this man at the front, the Humans and Elves came into a mutual agreement once every five hundred years.

The Humans and all other races could enter the realm created by the Everheart Tree and some other ancient Elves.

That realm was ever-shifting, looping, and filled with Heavenly treasures. This agreement was the beginning of respite, causing the halt of various wars.

Nobody knows who created the realm. It was either the Everheart Tree, or the ancient Elves—or heck, people even doubted it was a ’created’ realm in the first place.

And that realm opening was exactly a year away in Emperal’s current timeline. Meaning, he still had a year to train.

A town in Aelvorn, just past the borders.

"Town Lord! There is a letter that arrived today in your name."

In a medium-sized hall, on the clean floor, there stood a woman with a letter in her hand, in front of her.

A beautiful woman sat there, her platinum-green hair cascading over her shoulders, giving her an ethereal look.

Her forest-green eyes shifted as she looked at the woman and the letter curiously.

"From whom is it?"

"Uh...it’s a weird name called...Emperal."