God Ash: Remnants of the fallen.

'Skills like Hollow Judgement, Lightning Edge, and Mana Blade are things I created myself either in the heat of battle or during an epiphany. As such, I have no clue on the details of their origin.'

Cain thought about it for some time, yet he still failed to grasp it completely...

Falling deeper into his thoughts, a brilliant idea came into his mind. Waving his hand, he summoned the {Tome of Weapon and Skill Thesis} from his {Armament Armory}.

Steve's manuscript said skills were a result of changing the Ley lines within the body to influence the mana flow patterns of the world.

However, was this truly the case? Or rather, was this all there was to it? Although this was the first time he had heard of Ley lines, he was faintly aware of their existence. He just didn't know what they were called and their complete functions.

'No use thinking about that now...' Shaking his head to remove distracting thoughts, Cain opened the tome in his hand. The cover of the book was made from black leather carved from the flesh of an unknown creature. The paper was like anything he had ever seen and felt like silk, yet was as pliable as metal sheets. The contrast was nothing short of stunning...

Unlike the [Records of Akasha I], it wasn't extremely bulky. Turning a few more pages, he began reading the contents of the book.

The contents of the book began with a question:

'What is a Skill?'

Squinting, his attention completely captured, Cain dove deeper,

'Skills are the physical manifestation of mana brought about by a change in the arrangement of Ley lines within the body, leading to a corresponding change in the mana flow patterns.'

Cain immediately knew that Steve's hypothesis was spot on, causing his respect for the lanky dark-haired youth to increase.

'There are two major types of skills; Utility and Battle Skills. Battle skills are skills that focus solely on maximizing the art of killing and warfare. Utility skills focus more on granting its user a special characteristic or trait that can be useful on and off the battlefield. Then, there are hybrid skills that are a delicate combination of both...'

'Skills can also be divided into two categories, Active and passive. These concepts are the defining structure of what skills are.'

Reading further, Cain's eyes suddenly widened as he glanced at the last line of the page,

'However, they are not necessarily true...'

'Interesting...'

'The concept that skills can be rigidly grouped into these categories and boxes is simply an attempt to keep things orderly. However, those who try to abide by the laws of natural order tend to be the first to meet their end in this mad universe...'

'...So ominous!' Cain couldn't help but shiver when he read these words. He felt the emotions of whoever wrote the book at that moment.

'All things follow the natural order, the system. That is what we are made to believe. However, the truth is often hidden behind many veils. To pierce through them requires sharp eyes, and a mind strong enough to bear the terrors and knowledge hidden behind these veils.'

'My dear readers, I believe skills should be as ever-changing as energy, flowing from one form to another. A true skill can adapt to whatever is thrown its way.'

Staring at the book, Cain was filled with mixed expressions. He didn't know what to think about this. After all, the system had never led him astray. It was his most reliable helper, even though it was a bit greedy at times...

'To develop what I call 'True Skills', one must first throw all previous knowledge away. It will be of little use...' This sentence made Cain suspect that the author of the tome was truly the Demon of Sorcery, Azazel.

'First, we begin by showing the link between the human mind, the Ley lines, the body, and the spiritual realm.

On the next page, a more detailed and complex version of Steve's diagram is revealed. The major difference, however, was the other, more complicated diagram beside it. It was similar in shape to a human body. However, instead of the Ley line, organs, veins, and arteries being depicted, there was just a single network of slightly glowing threads within it.

The arrangement of these lines made Cain feel a little dizzy as he couldn't quite understand them. It was as though he was trying to gaze directly into the sun or something...

'According to common knowledge, it is known that for every object and or action influenced by mana in the physical realm, a corresponding one occurs or exists in the spiritual realm. This is the same for humans, beasts, devils, and even celestials.'

'While I am not quite certain, I would like to believe that the human equivalent within the spiritual plane is the soul...'

Cain's eyes widened all of a sudden...

His doubt suddenly increased even more. He had asked Azazel previously if he knew what the soul was, but the latter had failed to give him any answers. Could it be that the author of the tome he was currently reading wasn't the demon?

'The lines within are called links. They link the spiritual body to the physical one. By manipulating the spiritual, one can influence the physical. The physical body is a mere shadow of the physical. It influences its actions and mana flow patterns. For one to truly master what skills are, one must learn to control the spiritual on command.'

Cain took a short break to rummage through his thoughts. On one hand, he was unable to truly understand the contents of the book. How was he supposed to control something that in theory, didn't exist on the same plane as him?!

There was a big difference between controlling mana that existed in the spiritual plane and controlling a spiritual entity, mostly because the spiritual entity was supposed to be his true self.

'For centuries, those who have gazed across the starry skies have searched for answers to these questions, yet, their minds have been burned with madness and corruption, as those who want to see the other side must be ready to give up their entire being.'

Flipping the page, Cain came across a new piece of information. On this fresh page, stood a man holding a long sword. In front of the man, was the drawing of a very thick tree. Compared to the man, the tree might as well have been a mountain. Cain felt the mana on the page fluctuate a bit as soon as he laid his eyes on the sketched man.

The drawing suddenly began to move. The man placed the long blade at his hip, and with a sudden step forward, he disappeared and appeared on the other side of the page, his blade glowing with blue flames.

The huge tree immediately trembled, and the upper part of the tree turned into a billion speckles of sawdust. Cain stared at this with his eyes and mouth opened wide...

However, the man suddenly fell to his knees. It was obvious he had completely expended his energy.

Below the drawing of the man and the tree were a few words;

'A man without control over his spirit is like a flood crashing into a mountain.'

Turning to the next page, Cain saw the same picture of the man and the ancient tree, only this time, the man's posture and bearing were different. When Cain stared at the man, he felt as though he was staring at a glob of mana.

Suddenly, the man moved again...

Placing his blade diagonal to the ground, its hilt at his hip, he took a step forward. Just like the first one, he appeared behind the tree. Blue flames once again erupted from his blades, only this time, they were more compact and looked more like a second layer of metal than real flames.

Turning his eyes to look at the tree, he saw that, unlike the first tree, this one had been cut into hundreds of perfect square logs.

It was as though fireworks had gone off in his head. He stared at the man who stood tall with his chest puffed out and his blade lying on his shoulder.

Below the moving images, was a string of words;

'However, once control is established, the flood becomes a concentrated blade of water that can cut through the hardest of rocks while still maintaining the fluidity and power of the flood.'

Closing the book, Cain stared at its cover with a blank expression.

'So that's what it is... A true skill isn't one that just deals damage. A true skill is a skill that serves a purpose.'

Any skill could deal damage, but it was very rare to find a battle skill that had a purpose aside from increasing speed and dealing some sort of damage. Right now, he felt like he had finally grasped it.

All that was left was to put it into theory...

Standing to his feet, Cain pulled the {White Claw} from his inventory. It was the length of a katana, and was completely void of any decorative patterns aside from a few runes etched into its surface, making it look like a dangerously sharp curved bone.

According to the blade's description, it was a sword that was completely void of all energy. Which meant it could be imbued with his own energy at will.

Cain immediately opened up his status screen and gazed at the skills there...

Sitting on top of his skill panel were the first skills he had ever obtained.

With a wave of his blade, he activated one of them...

"Mana Blade..."