# Chapter 19: Steel Tainted by Chaos 1
Year 832 of the Falling Stars Era, February 17th, Moldavia Main City.
Joshua stood expressionless in the courtyard of the military camp. Before him were over a dozen knights clad in armor, their chests bearing the emblem of a hand gripping a sword—clearly loyal knights of the Radcliffe Family.
These knights were all in their twenties or thirties, in the prime of youth, filled with courage and passion for struggle. Yet even so, they all felt an inexplicable tension and dry-mouthed nervousness under their lord's calm gaze. The power of his will invaded their spirits, causing the formation of these robust knights to sway slightly.
In truth, every single one of them had been on the battlefield, had experienced the power of blood and fire. But more evidently, for these knights, the warrior before them was more terrifying than any battlefield.
Dark clouds rolled, the wind howled softly, and light snowflakes drifted down from the heights one by one. The February chill had already eased, no longer as biting as a month ago. It blew gently through the city, bringing omens of warmth.
And at that moment, Joshua spoke.
"All of you were chosen here for a reason."
He said flatly, his voice betraying no emotion. But even so, the vast majority present visibly shuddered, with only a few maintaining their composure. The warrior paid no heed to such trivial matters, fixing his gaze on a young knight who hadn't trembled and continued: "Your ages range from twenty to thirty, your strength from early Silver to mid Silver. Do you know what this means?"
"We are young... and our strength is not low!"
This young knight, who clearly possessed considerable courage, raised his hand and loudly replied to Joshua's question: "We still have potential for further advancement!"
"Well said. You were chosen precisely because you still have potential for further advancement."
Nodding approvingly at the young knight, Joshua's expression turned serious as he continued: "But there is one thing wrong—your strength. Your strength is too weak!"
Under these harsh words, everyone instantly stood at attention. Joshua paced slowly back and forth before them, observing the expressions of these knights. He shook his head and said: "With your current strength, when I was at high Silver, I could take on twenty of you at once. Even if you all attacked together, you couldn't defeat me... You are my knights. Aren't you ashamed of this? Do I have to protect you?"
"No!"
Long-standing education caused these young knights to flush red at these words. Their sense of honor and shame made them unable to tolerate this. They stood straight and roared loudly: "Never, my lord! This is the greatest disgrace!"
"Knowing it's a disgrace is good, but it still doesn't change the fact that you are currently very weak."
Nodding slightly, Joshua was quite satisfied with their reaction.
These were all potential seeds the warrior had selected from the fortress and city guard. They all had some talent, but had been buried by family circumstances or other reasons. But that didn't matter. On this Continent of Strife, as long as there was still anger and unwillingness in one's heart, the desire for change, then their future wouldn't be fixed. There was still the possibility of further advancement—just give them an opportunity, and progress in strength would be almost inevitable.
And Joshua could give them that opportunity.
Thinking this, the warrior said to everyone: "Fortunately, your weakness can be changed."
"...!!"
"Lawrence, you are thirty-three years old, strength at mid Silver. Due to your physical constitution, you cannot nurture enough Battle Qi to release externally, nor advance to high Silver, let alone the Gold Realm. But this isn't because your talent is insufficient, but because you were poor since childhood, and your body's potential was never fully developed. You need to consider taking a low-grade awakening potion to excavate your unused power. This way, you can break through to high rank without any lingering problems."
"Blade, you are twenty-four years old, strength at low Silver. Young, strong in physical power, but unable to sense Battle Qi to advance to mid Silver... Your problem lies in your impure will. Though you have courage, you lack conviction. You need to find a goal worth fighting for, one that penetrates your entire heart. Only then can you purify your will and sense the power within your body."
"Silo, you..."
Pointing out the shortcomings and defects of each knight present one by one, Joshua paused after finishing, giving them time to calm down and contemplate their own problems.
"I see."
"I thought my limit was here. I never imagined it was this reason."
"No one ever told me this..."
The knights present seemed never to have experienced such detailed guidance. From childhood to adulthood, they had always followed another knight as his attendant, learning combat and training bit by bit.
Being an attendant to another knight only provided the most basic instruction. If there was no complete inheritance afterward, one could only rely on groping in the dark. Various inheritances were held by nobles and major powers in the central regions of the Empire. Most lower-ranking knights could only rely on talent and instinct to temper their bodies and advance. The younger knights didn't understand the significance of such detailed guidance. Upon hearing their defects, most of them had eyes shining brightly and began excitedly reflecting on their usual shortcomings. But the slightly more mature ones understood just how precious this deep, intrinsic guidance was.
The knights present had all reached the limit of strength achievable through basic knowledge. Joshua's guidance could help them break through this limit!
And never had any lord understood and taught his knights to this extent! Feeling this, the corners of their eyes moistened involuntarily, and their hands trembled slightly. But then, they strengthened their resolve, and their auras became serious.
Watching this with some satisfaction, after a while, Joshua spoke again.
"Shortcomings are visible, so they are relatively easy to correct. As long as you have the will, your strength will soon see a breakthrough. But to become stronger, merely this is not enough."
Joshua's voice wasn't loud, but because the entire venue fell silent the moment he spoke, all the knights could hear their lord's words: "In the final analysis, all of you only know the Empire's standard training procedures, without a complete training system... At best, this will let you reach Silver Peak, but you will never advance to Gold."
"Gold?"
"That's too distant..."
"Impossible."
"Can we also reach the Gold Realm?"
"Isn't that something only noble lords..."
Hearing this, whispers spread through the formation, but then quieted under Joshua's aura of fear. The warrior looked around at his somewhat nervous and excited knights and said seriously: "I have gathered you here today to teach you a complete training system."
"The Steel Armor Breathing Art."
Teaching the breathing art to these knights was something Joshua had long considered. But only after destroying the spacetime gate, when Firefly had fallen asleep, did he have time to gather knights and select those with talent.
While teaching these talented and relatively young knights how to breathe according to a specific rhythm, Joshua was also contemplating future directions in his mind. The number of breathing arts he knew far exceeded even the royal secret collections of some small kingdoms in the Eastern Plains west of the mountain range. Even a great nation like the Northern Empire couldn't compare to him in some aspects. After all, Joshua had crossed over from the year 855 of the Falling Stars Era, that era of demon invasion and total mobilization, when only combat could ensure survival. In that age, various excellent breathing arts were practically worthless, freely disseminated.
"These people will become my guards, so they need strong endurance and impact resistance, to keep pace with me... For the fortress, I might consider the Rock Dragon Breathing Art, which emphasizes explosive power and vitality."
While considering such matters, Joshua noticed that a certain knight beside him had unstable breathing, not following the rhythm he had given. He immediately felt somewhat displeased.
"Control your breathing. Make it slower. Open your pores. You must learn to obtain oxygen through your body, not just your nose and mouth—you are Silver-rank knights, not ordinary people with no control over their bodies. So slow down your organ functions and reduce your blood circulation speed!"
Casually punching a certain knight in the chest, Joshua's released internal force caused this fellow with unstable breathing rhythm to immediately expel all the air from his lungs, his body bending like a bow. But he immediately endured the pain under his lord's gaze, straightened up again, and began breathing smoothly according to the rhythm the warrior had taught, without any displeasure, and with exceptionally high spirits.
This wasn't because he was a masochist, but because of this Steel Armor Breathing Art.
This was a breathing art inheritance! For knights like them, who guarded the borderlands, martial power was more important than wealth. A complete knowledge inheritance was simply priceless!
—One should know that with this, they could completely become independent minor nobles, and moreover, knight families with inheritance, enough to be minor lords in remote areas, living a stable life for generations!
Lord Joshua not only possessed unparalleled martial power but also had such a generous heart, willing to teach this kind of thing to them for free...
This lord was worthy of loyalty.
"That's it. Completely expel the air from your lungs, then inhale according to this rhythm—your bodies will resonate with the power between heaven and earth following this rhythm, not lying stagnant like a pool of dead water, no different from a piece of wood."
Not paying attention to the knights' thoughts, the warrior watched as everyone diligently learned the breathing technique and nodded with satisfaction.
Just as Joshua was teaching the knights under his command to practice the Steel Armor Breathing Art, a slightly older city guard quickly entered the military camp. He respectfully saluted the warrior, and after receiving acknowledgment, said softly to Joshua: "My lord, outside the city, an old man and a young woman say they wish to visit you. The old man seems to be a mage, and his strength is not low."
"A visit? And a mage at that?"
Joshua pondered for a moment. Although he didn't know which mage would visit him, since it was a mage, it was indeed worth meeting. In this desolate Northern land, spellcasters were truly rare.
"Go ahead and bring them to my residence in the west of the city. I'll be there shortly."
(To be continued)