Chapter 5 - The power of a toothbrush

His family heirlooms, both of his parents' sole remembrance tokens and his grandfather's gift, were strewn on the ground, broken in pieces. Why would he care about a toothbrush he crafted years ago to brush his teeth just like the fashionable nobles?

To him, even if the toothbrush were broken a thousand times, he wouldn't mind at all. After all, he can just grab a piece of wood, carve it using a slicing knife, grab some boar hair and glue it together using wax. As for the "intricate" carvings, he can just emulate what's popular on the storefronts in the nearby cities and towns.

However, his family heirlooms are another matter entirely. Each piece that gets broken cannot be replaced by a hundred thousand toothbrushes.

"Why are you shaking from head to toe? It's just a toothbrush! If you want it, take it! Just use restoration magic to make my family heirlooms back to their original states.", Cagnus pleaded silently.

When the spear-wielding knight heard Cagnus' reply, it felt as though thunderclaps were bombarding his eardrums, huge beads of sweat trickled down his back as he felt an unparalleled sensation of fear.

He had the highest rank amongst the current Ascetic Knights present in the dormitory. He was an Intermediate Knight.

Such strength was more than enough to acquire the title of Baron or even Viscount.

At the moment, his contributions are the ones that dictate whether he climbs the ladder of the upper echelon or not. That's why he decided to join the Ascetics Knight Order and serve under the Empress herself. He was assigned to be a Guardian Knight in the Imperial Chess Academy, perhaps one of the most important empire's sacred grounds.

He was a smart person; his peers could not compare to him in this regard. Coupled with his high-rank prowess, it made him an extraordinary person.

He can see what other people cannot see.

He can notice what other people cannot notice.

He can recognise what other people cannot recognise.

At this moment, the seemingly-ordinary toothbrush in front of him felt as though it was the most intricate and symbolic existence in the totality of reality. It radiated power that hid countless Truths in it, Truths that permit oneself to peer into the secrets of the Universe itself.

"Truth of Nature!", the spear-wielding knight quickly realised what Truth was imbued inside the toothbrush and frantically poured his consciousness into the wooden handle, trying to decipher the many secrets and intricacies it hid.

The Truth of Nature that was hidden deep inside the toothbrush extended its tendrils out to meet the spear-wielding knight's consciousness, gently pouring its energy into his body.

Because of a serious injury, he suffered in the past, the spear-wielding knight's prowess could not exceed the Intermediate Rank. No matter how much he cultivates the Ascetics Knights' Techniques, or how much he absorbs natural energy, his prowess wouldn't budge.

He relied on his status, money and power to meet the best medics and healers of the Fide Empire, ranging from chaplains, priests, bishops, archbishops and even the cardinal of the Imperial Cathedral.

Yet no matter how many treatments they did or how much medicine he drank, the hidden ailment never disappeared. He would forever stay as an Intermediate Knight.

His Eminence once said: "Perhaps only the gods are able to treat this sort of injury."

From that day on forward, all hope was snuffed, and the spear-wielding knight's advancement halted. He would never advance to the Advanced and Expert ranks.

However. Today is different; he finally managed to peer into one of many Truths of the Universe. He finally managed to peer into one of the Gods' domains, the Truth of Nature.

As the Truth of Nature supplied energy to the spear-wielding knight's body, it nourished his body and began to treat the hidden ailments that plagued his life.

On the surface, the spear-wielding knight looked motionless as he stared at the cloth bag, holding the toothbrush with both hands. Both Cagnus and the others did not notice anything out of the ordinary. However, monumental changes were happening to the spear-wielding knight's body deep down.

The ailment was in the form of a lump and was sitting on top of one of the blood vessels in his abdomen area. It constantly pulsated in and out as though it was a living organism.

It blocked knighthood, magic and other forms of energy from nourishing the spear-wielding knight's central organ, his heart.

By blocking energy to his most vital organ, the ailment successfully succeeded in halting the spear-wielding knight's prowess from advancing forever.

The Truth of Nature's gentle power seeped deep into the spear-wielding knight's body, finally reaching his abdomen by navigating his blood vessels.

It gently covered the pulsating lump in a thin-veiled green layer, then converted it into a beneficial organ that aided the spear-wielding knight when it came to cultivating his battle and physical prowess.

Knighthood and magic are now able to flow smoothly in his body, and when they pass by the lump in his vessel blood, their speed seems to be magnified as they reach his central organ in nano-seconds, aiding him greatly in his cultivation.

Seeing this, the spear-wielding knight was enlightened, "Healing doesn't mean the damage never existed; it means the damage no longer controls our lives."

Plop!

He dropped the toothbrush to the ground. His hands seemed to naturally let go of it. He bent down to grab it, but sensing Cagnus' gaze; he gulped as he retracted his hand back.

Meanwhile…

"What the heck is he doing? He stood dazed for a good second before dropping the toothbrush, is he okay? Perhaps he got brain damage from the bathroom smell?", Cagnus thought to himself, his gaze shifted to the toothbrush.

"Perhaps he got disgusted by my toothbrush, and the abominable smell that was staining the boar's hair bombarded his nostrils, making him lose contact with reality for a good second."

Instinctively, he smiled, showing his pearly-white teeth.

When the spear-wielding knight saw Cagnus' smile, he felt as though the devil was grinning at him. The image of the farmer-boy in front of him transformed into a vicious-looking, two-horned demonic entity that stared at him with unprecedented profoundness.

In front of this "demonic entity", the spear-wielding man felt as though all his secrets were laid bare, free for this devil to read.

He had this strong urge to prostrate himself in front of the village boy; it was irresistible. The only time he experienced this sort of feeling was when he met the Cardinal of Imperial Cathedral, his Eminence Tamizi.

"What is happening to me? Why do I have this sudden urge to prostrate? It's understandable when it comes to his Eminence Tamizi; after all, he is a Fide Master lifeform, an existence that's only second to Gods… But this village boy in front of me… He's not even an Ascentionist!", the spear-wielding man's knees fought hard to stand upright. They wobbled ever so slightly.

In the Fide Empire, there are three paths that lead to godhood: Magic, Knightlyhood and Ascentionism.

Magicians convert the world's natural energy into magic and store it in their bodies so they can use it to explode with unprecedented power afterwards.

As for Knights, they cultivate Knighthood. It is some sort of nourishing power that elevates the body and strengthens it to unparalleled levels. When it comes to physical strength, they are indisputably number one.

And finally, the most mysterious and blasphemous path of them all, the Ascensionist path.

It isn't much known about Ascentionists; it's only known that the upper brass of the Empire is all Ascentionist living gods who have exceeded the Fide Master Rank, thus achieving the International Master rank.

There are some Knight and Magician gods such as Prince Charles and Duchess Love. However, there might be fares in comparison to Ascentionists of the same rank.

As for the power system, their ranks goes as follows: Novice, Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, Expert, Fide Master, International Master and finally, Grandmaster.

Novice is naturally the starting rank of every single Magician, Knight or Ascensionist.

As for Grandmaster, perhaps only two or three people in existence have achieved that rank.

One of them is Maul Purphy the Great, the Founding Emperor of Fide. The other is the unnamed, and mysterious Demon Lord sealed in the Abyss.

Each one of them was a world-shaking existence; their power is incomprehensible and beyond the comprehension abilities of humans.

"I have to let his Eminence Tamizi know about this as soon as possible!", the spear-wielding knight's thoughts whirled as he heard his companion say.

"This identification badge is legit and not forged."

"Peasant Cagnus, we forgive your trespass at the moment. But we will not be so benevolent in the future."

Hearing this, the spear-wielding knight immediately shot warning gazes towards the knight who just spoke.

"This young man has an artefact whose power is on the level of gods! It contains one of the many forbidden domains of International Master-like existences; what do you mean by forgiving his trespass? If this man wants to destroy this academy right here, right now, perhaps only the Princes and Archdukes can stop him!", the spear-wielding man thought silently.

Unfortunately, the man who just spoke seemed oblivious towards his companion's warning as he strode towards the staircase with a puffed-up chest.

"You can return to class.", his haughty voice lingered around.

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Author's note:

I hope you enjoyed this chapter don't forget to leave a review and comment, and since I'm a prostitute, when it comes to stones, throw those at me for extra chapters ;)