There were two main cultivation systems in Aurora.
The Knight and the Mage cultivation systems.
Under these two, several variations existed.
Simply put, the Knight path primarily focused on the physical aspect of supernatural power, while the Mage path was more mysterious and energy-based. Explore more at My Virtual Library Empire
There was a universal saying.
All paths lead to the same end.
This applied to the supernatural world as well.
At the King Rank stage, both Knights and Mages possessed similar means, with only a few variations in prowess.
A King Rank Knight had a stronger body, while a King Rank Mage, though physically weaker, had far greater energy reserves.
This didn’t mean one was inherently stronger than the other—each had its own strengths and weaknesses.
“The way of the Mage system is indeed different.”
Compared to the Knight system, which Michael was more familiar with, the Mage system remained somewhat elusive to him, despite his own magic-based class.
The Apprentice Stage—Rank 1.
For a Knight, cultivation began with passively accumulating mana into the body through breathing techniques.
As they lacked the ability to manipulate this mysterious energy directly at this stage, they focused on condensing a Life Seed.
This Life Seed formed in the heart region and the process of creating one led to the strengthening of the body as a result.
Before officially becoming a Knight, the movements and training forms that followed a knight breathing technique did little to guide their mana.
However, once the Life Seed was established, it acted as a supernatural organ—just like the brain—serving as a focal point for all things magical.
At this point, the previously ineffective movements now played a crucial role, helping channel the accumulated mana to open acupoints through the guidance of the Life Seed.
Acupoints acted as the body’s natural limits.
The more acupoints a Knight opened, the more mana they could draw into their body—just like a container expanding its capacity.
The number, type and location of acupoints opened directly influenced a Knight’s strength.
Some Knights were stronger, some were faster, and others had more resilient bodies.
The breathing technique a Knight practiced also determined their elemental affinity.
Michael understood all of this after he became an Awakener.
Before his awakening, his knowledge of such advanced supernatural concepts had been limited—these were topics that weren’t studied at his level in school.
However, after awakening and gaining access to the Supernatural Forum, he had frequently come across posts about Knights, unintentionally and intentionally deepening his understanding.
The Life Seed was the foundation of a Knight’s power.
It was also the key reason some talented individuals could awaken as Knights as their second class when they became awakened as an Awakener.
Imagine this.
If you had an organ designed to unlock the limit on the body that had always been part of you since birth, after awakening it becomes insignificant because Awakeners, after all, could simply level up and allocate stats to grow stronger.
As an Awakener, you no longer have the limit of an ordinary man.
However, for those with a Life Seed before awakening, the ability to unlock acupoints remained, allowing them to function like an Awakener while still utilizing their innate method of power accumulation.
Though different from the traditional path, this still resulted in significant strength.
This was also why Awakeners couldn’t light up a Life Seed again.
Though the acupoints still existed within their bodies, an Awakener no longer had a defined physical or magical limit.
Instead, they became something akin to a forever unofficial Apprentice Knight, capable of passively absorbing mana to enhance their physical abilities but unable to undergo the structured process of a true Knight’s cultivation.
Without limits, the natural process of forming a Life Seed ceased to exist.
Without a life seed they also could not sense the location of these acupoints.
This was the cultivation system of a Knight—how they grew stronger and why one could also obtain it as a second class after awakening.
Then, there was the Mage cultivation system.
Michael had later discovered that Mages, like Knights, could also be a second class obtained during an Awakening Ceremony.
The difference was that while Mages didn’t need to ignite a Life Seed before awakening, they possessed something else that could carry over—a naturally opened acupoint.
This was why it was often said that every Mage could have been an excellent Knight.
Though rare, some individuals were born with an extraordinary affinity for mana. They didn’t need to reach a higher rank to manipulate or sense it; their bodies instinctively gathered it from a young age.
Through this passive cultivation, some lucky individuals naturally opened one of the most crucial acupoints an Elite Knight (Rank 2 Knight) needed to advance to Commander Rank.
For knights, this acupoint allowed them to interact with mana directly and even cast spells like true Mages.
However, unlike Knights, who opened acupoints that were spread throughout the body, a Mage’s defining acupoint was located in a far more delicate place—the brain.
Mages naturally accumulated mana within their minds, but without a strong enough body and repeated advancements to reinforce their fragile internal organs, this made their path far more dangerous for others.
Despite being as popular as the Knight cultivation system, the number of people who originally started as Mages was incredibly low.
Even fewer Knights ever switched to becoming Mages after advancing to rank 3, as doing so meant abandoning their foundation entirely.
Unless there was an exceptional reason, most wouldn’t make the change.
Mages possessed incredible versatility and numerous means to fight, but that didn’t mean Knights were weak. Knights had fewer techniques, but they were just as formidable in their own right.
The acupoint that defined a Mage, unlike a Knight who had to open multiple acupoints to progress, was just a single, unique acupoint.
Not all acupoints were the same.
Some merely increased a supernatural’s mana capacity. Others, however, were special—opening them granted abilities such as elemental affinity or elemental manipulation.
These acupoints were incredibly difficult to open.
For both Mage Apprentices and Rank 2 Knights, awakening this acupoint granted them access to their Sea of Consciousness—a unique internal realm that was often called the seakl of consciousness were the Mana Pool.
Knights possessed mana reserves due to their Life Seed, but a Mage’s mama pool was exactly as its name implied.
An advantage Mages had over Knights was that they weren’t limited to a single affinity.
This didn’t mean they could wield all affinities, but unlike the Knight cultivation system—where one’s breathing method most times determined a fixed elemental path—pure Mages could interact with multiple affinities as long as they had even a slight natural connection to them.
The Mage cultivation system provided by the Association wasn’t one that was created for the purpose to become a mage.
After all, Mages were either born with the talent or switched to after advancing to Rank 3.
Instead, what the Association provided was a visualization method—a technique to enter the Sea of Consciousness—and the method to draw mana into it to expand one’s Mana Pool.
This tied into another reason why Awakeners were considered special individuals.
“Even without opening the special acupoint, from the moment one Awakens, the awakening of their Sea of Consciousness follows.
This is also the reason why all Awakeners can cast spells regardless of their class,”
It was clear that the Association had modified the cultivation manuals they sent to Awakeners. After all, most traditional cultivators had no use for this information.
Michael’s eyes lit up as he read further.
It felt as if a new world had been opened to him.
Suddenly, several things started making sense.
After reading a bit more, he set his phone aside, a contemplative expression on his face.
“The Sea of Consciousness is a magical realm where a Mage or rank 3 Knight can absorb mana from the external world and to cast spells.
In this space, as long as one’s rank allows it, they can store Spell Models—pre-constructed spells that require no casting time.
However, this method is highly mana-intensive, consuming reserves far faster than externally casting a spell using a bit of mana from the surrounding atmosphere.”
The more Michael organized his thoughts, the brighter his eyes became.
“Is this why Awakeners only need a thought to activate a skill?
Could it be that… our skills actually exist within our Sea of Consciousness?”
Michael wasn’t entirely sure about this theory.
After all, he still needed hand movements to cast spells—unlike the instantaneous casting described in the email.
“Maybe… I simply don’t have any Spell Models in my Sea of Consciousness?”
Michael recalled how the Awakener skill system functioned—how it always seemed to guide them.
The instant casting described in the email reminded him of how spells worked in games.
A single click, and the spell appeared.
Curious about his suspicion, Michael didn’t immediately attempt to check his Sea of Consciousness.
Instead, he pulled out his phone once again, navigated to the Supers Association Forum, and typed something he hadn’t searched for before.
> “Is there a difference between skills and spells for Awakeners?”