One-Eyed Monster

What exactly is Spirit Power?

This is a question that concerns many people on the Yowein Continent.

However, very few can give a precise answer.

Most scholars believe that in the eyes of ten thousand people, there are ten thousand interpretations of Spirit Power. Every person’s sensory perception of Spirit Power is somewhat different.

Spirit Power takes countless forms; this is the conclusion that scholars ultimately reached. Indeed, this conclusion is closely related to the Six Professions. Spirit Power is the most fundamental aspect of the Six Professions, or, one might even say, the most fundamental aspect of the entire Yowein Continent.

Spirit Power is also an important distinguishing factor between Adventurers with Class and Non-Adventurers. Adventurers with Class can sensorily perceive Spirit Power; Non-Adventurers cannot. Non-Adventurers neither see nor touch it, regarding Spirit Power as a formless, shapeless, transparent air.

Adventurers with Class can sensorily perceive Spirit Power, but their descriptions of it have proved impossible to unify.

This most fundamental aspect of the Yowein Continent, as a result of its many unique portrayals by various Adventurers with Class, takes on all sorts of strange forms.

Fighters believe Spirit Power to be a myriad of colors, resplendent and dazzling. Hunters think Spirit Power is just a series of smells, whether strong or subtle, each with its unique character. Wizards perceive Spirit Power as a formless touch, a play of extreme cold and intense heat, ever-changing. Politicians insist that Spirit Power is a formless sound, like a melody of metal, stone, silk, and bamboo, resounding and filling the ears. Alchemists firmly believe that Spirit Power consists of visible particles, appearing in myriad forms, full of wonders. Scholars hold an even more peculiar view—they think that Spirit Power is a series of numerals: simple, yet containing endless possibilities.

Each of the Six Professions has a unique understanding of Spirit Power, making it difficult to describe it in unified terms. This caused even Scholars, who excelled at discovering patterns and summarizing them, much consternation.

The Six Professions held their respective views and were prone to disagreements, which hindered the inheritance of their traditions, causing some chaos among them.

To ensure the continuation of their traditions, the Six Professions eventually compromised and finally reached a consensus on the description of Spirit Power. Although this consensus seemed somewhat far-fetched, the Six Professions were quite relieved.

The consensus was that Spirit Power is manifold: it has no fixed form or style and can be sensorily perceived.

The Six Professions initially believed that only things exhibiting signs of life could possess Spirit Power, while other things like soil, stones, or flowing water did not. However, the further development of Alchemy once again overturned this understanding. Even seemingly lifeless rocks carry abundant Spirit Power, and it is, in fact, the most fundamental form of Spirit Power.

Thus, the Six Professions’ consensus on Spirit Power was elevated to another level. This time, it was not so far-fetched and seemed quite reasonable.

Therefore, Scholars could confidently write in their beloved books that Spirit Power is the life force concealed within all kinds of objects. Objects possessing Spirit Power are called Living Beings, while those lacking it are termed Dead Objects.

The Six Professions originally thought that the ability to distinguish between Living Beings and Dead Objects was the most fundamental difference between Adventurers with Class and Non-Adventurers. However, they later discovered this could not be an absolute distinction. This was because, apart from Wizards and Alchemists, other Adventurers with Class had almost zero sensory recognition of the Spirit Power contained in natural objects such as stones and flowing water.

At this point, the Six Professions began their discussions anew, this time focusing on the distinction between Adventurers with Class and Non-Adventurers.

Eventually, they discovered that the greatest difference between Adventurers with Class and Non-Adventurers lay in the recognition of Spirit Power contained in Living Entities. Non-Adventurers’ senses could not perceive the existence of such Spirit Power; they could only appreciate the ambiance or artistic conception. In contrast, the senses of Adventurers with Class could perceive Spirit Power, whether visually, olfactorily, or otherwise.

Thus, this sensory method of identifying the Spirit Power of Living Entities was singled out and termed the Spirit Sensing Ability.

Meanwhile, the methods by which Wizards and Alchemists identified Spirit Power in objects like stones and flowing water were categorized under professional skills.

As mentioned before, the Six Professions’ sensory perceptions of Spirit Power are myriad and peculiar. Therefore, the Spirit Sensing Abilities of the various professions also differ.

Fighters sense colors, Hunters sense secrets, Wizards sense spirits, Politicians sense sounds, Alchemists sense substances, and Scholars sense numbers.

The Six Professions summarized their Spirit Sensing Abilities into the points above, based on the characteristics of their own Spirit Sensing. Of course, these details were ultimately documented by the Scholars.

Fighters’ Environment Sensing Skills: Fighters’ Spirit Sensing Ability stems from their vision; they perceive Spirit Power as colors. The three primary colors—red, blue, and yellow—can be broken down and combined to form various different colors, each corresponding to a specific emotion. Emotions, in turn, govern actions; anger, sadness, joy, and fear can all incite killing. Fighters, who primarily master Physique Technique, perceive Spirit Power most directly. Their Environment Sensing Skills focus on controlling the colors that govern emotions.

Hunters’ Secret Sensing Skills: This skill represents the Hunters’ deep study of smells. Smell is the sense linked to memory and desire. Hunters’ perception of Spirit Power is based on smell; they use different smells to locate, track, and hunt their targets. For them, smells are special Symbols. They hide or assimilate their own scent, making it one with the scents of their surroundings. They camouflage themselves in this manner to achieve concealment.

Scholars’ Numerical Sensing Skill: This skill appears even more extraordinary. Scholars can capture the transformations of Spirit Power because, in their eyes, all Spirit Power is displayed as numerical Symbols. These numerical Symbols combine with each other to form patterns, and these patterns are then revealed in the form of numerals: direct and simple.

Wizards’ Spirit Sensing Skills: These skills seem rather peculiar. Wizards believe Spirit Power is nothing but temperature—absolute cold and heat. At its peak, heat becomes fire, and at its extreme, cold becomes ice. The interplay of cold and heat forms wind. Changes in temperature affect the entire Natural Force, and it is through this principle that they control a portion of the Natural Force.

Alchemists’ Substance Sensing Skill: This skill is also quite special. Although Alchemists’ perception of Spirit Power, like that of Fighters, is visual, it is far more refined. They believe Spirit Power materializes as tiny, granular, solid entities. These particles combine in various ways, and the resulting objects differ based on the method of combination. They attempt to deconstruct objects and then reassemble them. Through this perceptive ability, they discovered the fundamental method of Alchemy: the Alchemy Equation. Those Spirit Power particles, resembling fine granules, cannot combine freely. To mold these tiny entities into a new object, an exchange with something else is required. The Alchemy Equation defines the principles governing such exchanges.

Politicians’ Sound Sensing Skill: This skill differs from those of the other five professions. Politicians’ perceptive ability is auditory. Moreover, Politicians do not perceive individual units of Spirit Power; their perception of Spirit Power is area-based. Their reaction to a single instance of Spirit Power is not significantly different from that of an ordinary person. Their Spirit Sensing Ability perceives Spirit Power as sound. A concentration of Spirit Power within an area can form a resonant sound, granting Politicians a far-reaching perspective to further refine order and rules.

While the Six Professions have varied perceptions of Spirit Power, they share one commonality.

This commonality is the ability to condense Spirit Power.