Specria entered the Library of Knowledge with Medoria. They bid farewell to the Elementals who brought them before heading to the shelves. The interior didn't have any lantern or lamp, using only concentrated Fons to illuminate the room.

The Fons tainted the brownish wooden design of the first floor with its blue hue. With its presence, no bugs and dust could damage the documents inside the Library of Knowledge.

"By using a specific Fons pathway, the Scholars create a spell formation encompassing the Library of Knowledge. To my knowledge, it's the biggest permanent multi-function formation," Specria said.

"The place changes a lot."

Specria shook her head. "It doesn't change one bit. The only thing that changes is your perception."

"If only mistress were here, she would have praised me."

Specria sighed. The room flickered in blue light, highlighting the category signs as well as showing the general path within the place. With their help, she easily found her desired section.

"Medoria, I know you don't like learning, but this is important." She glided her hand across the bookshelf before picking a book. "History of the World: The Great Races."

"I've already read it. During my recuperation period, I have too much time."

"What about this?" Specria showed Medoria many books, but Medoria had already read them all. "You read a lot."

"Compared to mistress, this is nothing."

"Let's go to the second floor."

Specria followed the trail of Fons to a spiral staircase. The brownish hue of the design gradually shifted to orange as she ascended. The first floor contained comprehensive information regarding mundane subjects.

For the Scholars and the Arbiters, their journey started on the second floor.

On this floor, Fons gleamed in orange light, emphasizing the ancient aesthetic of the bookshelves and the pathway. Specria strolled across the hall, the floor tiles vibrating under her feet. They illuminated her surrounding and guided her to her desired section.

"Origin of Fons, have you read it?"

"Fons is the byproduct of the souls. It powers the fabric of reality but is limited by the environment."

"What is the source of all souls?"

"The Originator is supposedly the origin of all things."

Specria smiled and glanced at the ceiling. She recalled the mythical scene of that day, where a blurry image of the Originator manifested on the sky, signifying that someone had transcended the limit of mortality.

Before the fleeting silhouette, she felt a suffocating presence permeating her mind. Despite staying infinitely far from it, she struggled to control the Fons in her body, her desire threatening to go berserk.

"Miss Specria?" Medoria said and leant closer to Specria. "Are we going up?"

"Not yet." Specria chose another book. "All Races: the Great, the Lesser, and the Mythical."

Medoria took the book and skimmed through the content. The orange Fons surrounding her illuminated the letters, giving her warm lighting and soft shade.

The Great Races differed from the Lesser Races because they had the Authorities in their rank while the Lesser Races lacked the innate talent to become the Arbiters. In the ancient time, the number of Great Races had always been three: the human, the Elf, and the Elemental.

The Mythical Creatures, such as the Dragon and the Harpy, were the creatures with a special bloodline, growing powerful as they mature, but they could never grow past their bloodline. Though some ancient monsters could play with the Authority, their overall strength remained weaker.

Medoria put back the book with a tired expression. The content bored her. "Let's go to the third floor."

Specria giggled. She knew Medoria wouldn't read the entire book, but the information she absorbed was enough.

The third floor shifted its hue from orange to crimson. The pathway shone in yellow light, seeping from the gaps on the floor. With red Fons flowing through the patterns on the walls and floors, everything was brightly lit.

The layers of Fons concealed the scenery, though the lines on the floor kept Specria from wandering off track. Despite its cosy appearance, the Library of Knowledge was gigantic, spanning hundreds of meter in diameter.

Aside from the bookshelves, the third floor displayed the models of Arachna, varying in types and ranks. The crimson shade from the Fons painted a bloody image on it.

"The Arachna was the race of the devourers, capable of digesting everything. They accelerate their numbers with Fons, so they prioritize the Arbiters over common men and avoid eating the androids and drones" Medoria said and pointed at various Arachna.

Specria nodded along. Though Medoria didn't have the extensive technical knowledge, she was once one of the most accomplished assistants as the Princess of Resolution's right hand. Her strategic mind was far greater than Specria who dwelled in Fons all the time.

"I get it, you know more than me in this department." After the tenth Arachna, Specria struggled to keep up. "Let me confirm something first before we go to the fourth floor."

She picked a few books about the history of the ancient past and flipped through them. It talked about the Age of the Ancient where the Mythical Creatures ruled the world, the Dark Age where the Arachna manifested and fought against the Gods and the Great Races, and the present time where the Gods were largely absent, and the Mythical Creatures remained slumbering.

By cross-referencing multiple books, Specria gained a more comprehensive view of history.

Before long, she guided Medoria to the fourth floor. At the door to the fourth floor, golden Fons seeped through the gap and hovered around them. It touched the rings the Scholars gave them and read the permission level.

"From this floor onward, all information is classified." Specria turned to Medoria, her expression solemn. "Remember: do not cast any spell or damage the books."

Specria walked through the gate. The golden hue covered her vision. Like the kingdom of Gods, everything glittered in soft, divine light. Space around her folded into stacks, creating a shortcut for her to travel everywhere she wished.

She held Medoria's hand and stepped forward. The scenery around her twisted and stretched, morphing into a different perspective. In an instant, she arrived at the section about the Gods and the laws that dictated reality.

Every book on the shelves was nameless and authorless, having the same thickness and same texture. Specria touched one and watched it shone. It revealed its title and sent the information to her mind.

She selected a few books and tossed it to Medoria who skimmed with utter uninterest.

"Gods, Spiritualization, and Faith."

The Gods were the beings of unending power, created first by the Originator to oversee the world. They condensed Faith into Divinity, and through Spiritualization, they created a lifeform with the potential to carry Divinity and become a Vessel.

"Do you believe in the afterlife?" Specria said.

"The concept of an afterlife is meaningless. I don't ponder over it."

"A second chance sounds too good to be true. I would rather rest in peace instead of living again." Specria sighed. "What about immortality?"

"Immortality is stagnation. Everything changes, not even the Originator remains permanent. Until we can crack it open, we wouldn't know what it's like."

"Well said." Specria smiled. She put back the books and walked around the pathway, looking through some more books before turning to Medoria. "What do you think about intelligent Arachna?"

"There must be something that causes them to hate us, and we to hate them. To me, as long as mistress was alive, I don't mind anything else."

"Do you know what to do when you meet her?"

Medoria stared at the ceiling, her eyes losing in thought. "When the time comes, I'll know."

Specria and Medoria lingered on the fourth floor for a while, discussing knowledge and history. They observed the flow of golden Fons and attempted to decipher the mechanism of the Library of Knowledge.

"As expected of the biggest permanent formation, at this level, it should be able to contend against a God," Specria said. "Just by examining the flow of Fons here, I've gained tons of practical knowledge."

"It's indeed an eye-opening experience. I wonder what it would take to make something as big as this."

Standing in front of the spiralling staircase, Specria felt an oppressive presence radiating from it. A gloomy aura overwhelmed the pleasant air of the fourth floor.

She took a deep breath and ascended to the fifth floor. All sounds faded to silence, and all vision shifted to emptiness. Her hand that held Medoria lost its grip. She turned to look and found nothing but a series of endless staircases.

Despite the lack of wind, the freezing air permeated the atmosphere. In the staircase lit dimly by the candles, Specria lost her perception of time. She counted her step and lost her count then counted again.

For what it felt like days, she held onto her sanity and traversed the soundless environment. With every step taken, a soft glow on the ring increased.

She could accelerate the process by injecting her Fons into it, but she remembered the warning and decided to suffer through the entire way.

Because of her days in isolation, the solitary didn't fret her. The narrow staircase allowed her to introspect and evaluate her knowledge. Though she couldn't practice her Fons, the time she spent inside the Library had accumulated her an immense amount of reference.

As she lost in her thought, Specria gradually refined her Fons and strengthened her foundation. The cold atmosphere turned warm as the silence of doubt and hardship faded away.

With her path laid out before her, Specria knew what to do to reach the peak. She glanced at the darkness before her and stepped forward. The ring on her finger shone and dissipated the veil of concealment, revealing a pitch-black gate.

It towered over Specria and cast its shadow upon her, submerging her under the majesty of the Great Races, though it couldn't affect her. She pushed the gate open. A soothing atmosphere greeted her.

The soft music echoed. In the comfortable darkness, a row of ever-illuminating candles lit the pathway for Specria to progress. She stepped on the wooden floor and listened to the creak, her eyes sweeping rows of worn-down shelves which held countless hand-written books.

"Medoria, you're here before me?" Specria said.

Medoria stared at the darkness in front of her. She furrowed her brows and turned to Specria after hearing the call. She glanced at the direction before shaking her head. "Are we the only people in here?"

"You saw someone?" Specria looked around. "I've heard that strange phenomenons would occur when the concentration of Fons reaches the threshold."

"It must be like what happened at the staircase." Medoria rubbed her eyes. "I saw a silhouette I thought was mistress."

Specria took Medoria's hand. "Don't overthink. As long as you become an Authority, you will find her."

"It's too hard. Not everyone can transcend the limit."

"That's why we are here. The fifth floor deals with the ascension to Authority and the nature of Divinity."

Specria held a candle lantern and traversed the darkness. Without Fons to guide her way, she could only rely on the row signs and the serial numbers of the shelves.

The Authority was the title of the being who transcended their limit and acquired Divinity, the condensation of their experience, knowledge, emotions, belief, and faith. By combining everything at once, the peak Arbiter would undergo an explosive growth that broke the mortal limitation.

There was no set of guidance or outline. Each Authority would face a challenge unique to themselves. If they succeeded in rejecting the outside world and sustained themselves, they would form Divinity. If not, the annihilation of the soul was certain.

Logically, the chance of transcending the limit was zero, but in the mystical process, something happened that helped the peak Arbiter to hold onto their collapsing self and stabilize their power.

Some said it was willpower, others experience, and a few said knowledge. Nevertheless, everyone agreed that they had to reject the world and created their world to stabilize the Divinity.

Only then would the Originator manifested and stared at the new Authority. Only then would one have the power to control their Fate.