The next morning, Edward walked out of his room early and went to the Weapon Hall. The hall was large, full of metallic weapons. There was an instructor of the academy in charge of the hall. When he saw Edward entering, he called at him.

"You there, What kind of weapon are you looking for?"

"I am not looking for any weapons. I won't buy a readymade one. I want to order a weapon specially tailored to me."

"A tailored weapon? What rank are you?", asked the instructor.

"Although I am a freshman student, I am already B rank."

"Do you have any academy point?"

"I don't have much, only 2000.", Edward replied. This was his reward for getting first place in the academy selection exams.

"2000 is enough. It can get you a Mid-rank Grade 2 weapon.", said the instructor.

"Yes. But I've heard that the monster cores hunted in the selection exams can be exchanged for academy points. I want to exchange all these cores for the academy points and get the highest grade weapon possible.", Edward said. Then he put a bag in front of the instructor. It was full of monster cores. The instructor checked the cores one by one. Soon, he became shocked. When he saw the grade two wolf beast's core, he was totally astonished.

"You hunted all these monsters during the selection exams?", the instructor asked in shock.

"Yes."

The instructor gulped. 'What a powerful freshman', he thought. He kept staring at the monster cores. Then he looked at Edward once again.

"With all these cores, along with the 3000 academy points you have, you can get a mid-rank Grade 3 weapon.", said the instructor.

Weapons also had grades, just like beasts and materials. There were a total of 9 grades in theory but within the Green Veil Country and surrounding countries, the highest available grade of materials and weapons was only Grade 6. Only someone like Edward knew the truth about the existence of higher grade weapons. From what snow told him, she had a dagger which was a Grade 9 weapon.

Each grade was also divided into four ranks: low, mid, high, and top rank. According to the instructor, he can get a Mid-rank Grade 3 weapon in exchange for all his resources. That was more than satisfying. Even the principal's weapon was only Top rank Grade 3. No one in the entire academy had a grade 4 weapon.

"What kind of weapon do you want for yourself?", asked the instructor.

"I want dual axes, as heavy and dense as possible within one meter in size.", said Edward.

"Hmm. Interesting weapon of choice. But having dual axes means we have to make two weapons. And in order to make it as heavy as possible within one meter in size, we have to get it done by our top blacksmith. In that case, the axes you will get will have to be two low-rank Grade 3 weapons based on your budget. You can get a single mid-rank Grade 3 weapon, like a sword or spear instead. One mid-rank Grade 3 weapon or two low-rank Grade 3 weapons, it's your choice.", said the instructor.

"How many more academy points do I have to add to keep both the axes as Mid-rank Grade 3?", asked Edward.

"4000"

"4000? Then consider it done. I'll pay the rest when I come to collect the weapon. ", said Edward.

"Are you sure?", asked the instructor.

"Yes, I'm sure. Also, here is a design I have made. I want the weapons made according to this design", said Edward.

"Ok, I'll give this design to the blacksmith along with the order.", said the instructor.

After handing out the design blue prints, Edward left the weapon hall.

"Damn it. I really need to learn to make my own weapons one day.", thought Edward. He really wanted to learn to smith. That way, he could create his own weapons in the future. But there was no way for him to learn it in this academy.

*******

After finishing his business in the weapon hall, Edward directly went to the library to see Old Summer. To everyone else who came to the library, Old Summer was just a librarian, but among all the students, only Edward Knew that Old Summer was actually the principal.

It was still early in the morning, so no one was in the library. Only Old Summer was meditating at the center of the library. As soon as Edward entered, Old Summer noticed with his keen senses.

"Well, well, what do we have here? You brat! You have come for help already?", Old Summer said with a chuckle.

"Well, I do need help, and it's important. That's why I came. I need to borrow some academy points."

"Academy points? How much?"

"4000", said Edward with a straight face.

"That much? What do you want to do with that many academy points?"

"Mid-rank Grade 3 Dual Axes.", Edward said everything without beating around the bush.

"Mid-rank Grade 3? You are only in the Body Metamorphosis realm. A grade 2 weapon is more suitable for you. Can you even fully utilize the power of a low-rank Grade 3 weapon, let alone a mid-rank one?", asked Old Summer.

"Other students in the academy may fail to do so, but I can."

"What are you trying to say? Can you really use grade 3 weapons to their fullest? How?", Old Summer didn't understand where Edward's confidence was coming from.

"If I told you that I once trained using a grade 9 weapon, would you believe me?", Edward said with a mysterious smile.

"Grade 9? That's impossible! Do weapons of that high in grade even exist?", Old Summer was skeptical.

"What do you think?", Edward said in an ambiguous tone.

Old Summer understood the underlying meaning of this action. Based. on what he has seen from Edward so far, he knew that Edward definitely wasn't lying.

"What kind of weapon was it?", he then asked, full of curiosity.

"It was a dagger."

"Are you sure it was grade nine?", Old Summer wanted to know more.

"She said it was a suitable weapon for her cultivation level. Back then, I didn't know that weapons and materials had grades. Now that I know after coming to this academy, I am sure it was Grade 9, as it was a suitable weapon for someone like her, someone at the Spiritual Phantom realm."

"Spiritual Phantom realm?", hearing this, Old Summer was shaking with excitement, as he already guessed something. A cultivation realm he didn't know about had to be above the Aura Formation realm. He just wondered how high up the Spiritual Phantom realm was.

"It's the Ninth cultivation realm.", Edward said calmly.

"The ninth realm? So there are indeed cultivation realms above the Aura Formation realm! The legends about Nine cultivation realms are really the truth! Nine Grades, Nine realms, it is all true!", Old Summer jumped in excitement.

"The ninth realm isn't the end. There is a tenth realm.", Edward sudenly spoke in a low voice, yet it felt like a bomb exploding. His words rumbled like lightning inside Old Summer's mind.

"A tenth realm?" this time, Old summer was totally shaken to the core. He has never heard of the existence of a tenth realm, not even in the wildest fantasies and legends. He couldn't even believe his ears.

"Are you sure there is a tenth realm? You are not just guessing wildly, right?", Old Summer said. He was quite serious. His entire worldview was turning upside down.

"I am not even guessing. Her fiance is someone in the tenth realm, the Heavenly Wisdom realm. I saw him myself.", said Edward, with a serious tone.

"Heavenly Wisdom realm, Heavenly Wisdom realm....", Old Summer kept muttering, nearly going crazy after hearing all this information.

Finally, calming down after a while, Old Summer gave Edward an astonished look.

"The girl has a fiance at the unbelievable tenth realm, the Heavenly Wisdom realm. and you are only in the second realm, the Body Metamorphosis realm. Forget about you, even I, the principal of Southern Academy, someone in the Qi Accumulation realm, do not qualify to be even a mere ant in front of that girl or her fiance. Then how did you even dare to fall in love with that girl? Against someone of that level, I don't think even my big brother would be able to do anything.", while Old Summer was talking, he was trembling.

"Well, I am not your big brother, neither do I plan to depend on your big brother. I am me, and I'll reach her myself.", Edward said, with the same old confident look.

"And maybe I shouldn't break the barriers of your imagination once again, but I am still going to tell you this, there are cultivation realms even above the Heavenly Wisdom realm. I don't know anything about realms beyond the Heavenly Wisdom realm, but I know this much that they do exist, and Snow's clan elders are all beyond the Heavenly Wisdom realm. But that doesn't change the fact that I am still going to reach her, be worthy of her and stand along with her.", there was no doubt or wavering in Edward's voice.

"Beyond Heavenly Wisdom realm?", Old Summer almost passed out from shock hearing this.

"Then how can you be so confident? Do you even realize the situation and your position?", not knowing what to say, Old Summer shouted at Edward.

"First of all, I believe in myself. Secondly, even if I turn out to be a mere mortal, I would be a mortal who fought against all the odds to overcome his mortality. Finally, do not think that reaching her and being together with her is the ultimate purpose of my journey.",Edward declared.

"Then what is your Ultimate Purpose?", perplexed, Old Summer couldn't help asking.

My Ultimate Purpose is to find the truth.", Edward said with a heavy tone.

"What truth?", Old Summer asked. he was really confused.

"The truth about me. Sometimes, I feel an invincible aura within me and I get the feeling that a great destiny awaits me. When I think about it, it feels like my destiny is already written by the heavens, and I might be nothing but just another chess piece in the grand scheme of things. This thought scares me."

"I wonder what that means.", after listening to Edward carefully, Old Summer said with a sigh. "If your ultimate purpose is to free yourself from your destiny, then I won't stop you. But be sure to remember this, the cycle of destiny is endless. Even those powerful beings who had freed themselves from their destiny succeed because they were destined to do so. No one can escape destiny unless it is in there destiny to break the shackles of desriny. So, in the end, being free from destiny also requires a kind of destiny. Thus, no one is ultimately free from the cycle of destiny. That's why, although I won't tell you to stop, keep the fact in mind that you will most likely end up failing."

"Maybe you are right. But if that was all, then it would've been a simple struggle against fate, but that's not what I meant.", Edward sighed.

"Then what do you mean?", Old Summer was baffled.

"Back then, when I was trying to save Snow from the demons, I had no cultivation, while the demons were at the Dao Vision and Dao Communication realm, and the leader was a Spiritual Phantom realm demon. And yet, an aura came from within my soul that instantly vaporized all those demons into nothingness."

Hearing this, Old Summer trembled in shock.

'What did just Edward say? That's unreal!', he was going crazy inside his mind.

"Sometimes, I feel like I haven't seen my true self, yet. I hear voices from within me. They say many mysterious things. In the end, I get the feeling that I am not actually struggling against destiny, destiny is struggling against me instead. I feel like my story, my destiny was actually written by me, even overwhelming the heavens. Sometimes, I don't feel like just another chess piece in the grand scheme of things. Instead, something tells me I myself might be the grand schemer. That scares me and makes excited at the same time.", Edward finally said. While he was talking, he was shivering. He was scared, yet his blood boiled with an intent to battle against the whole world, and then there was also excitement deep inside his bones. Without realizing, he started to emit a ruthless aura.

Old Summer stared at Edward with a dumb expression. A while later, after understanding the implications and sensing Edward's aura, Old Summer's mind shook. He could already see Edward ruling over everything under the heavens in the distant future. He couldn't even believe he was acquainted with someone with such potential. Was it a good thing or a bad thing? What grand things will occur in this world when Edward finally achieves his Ultimate Purpose?

None of them could think of an answer. All they could do was to wait for things to slowly unravel.