# Chapter 6: My Order 8000
Year 837 of the Falling Stars Era, June 15th. The scratching sound of pen against paper rustled softly, while the light of a Glowstone Lamp cast a warm, pale golden glow across the desk.
In the second-floor study of the Lord's Mansion of Moldavia, the rare sound of writing could be heard, accompanied by steady, rhythmic breathing—proof that the writer's thoughts were clear and flowing.
One could see a sheet of clean, white stationery of fine craftsmanship. A large hand held a fountain pen, writing a series of characters at a speed that was not fast, but exceptionally steady.
**[To the Most Holy Israel: On the Essence of Soul's Ultimate Essence]**
This was the opening of the letter, followed by a lengthy expanse of text. Since the first page had just been turned, one could only look at the beginning of the second page.
"Based on the above conclusions, you should also understand my views and the vocabulary I use to describe them."
The writer's handwriting bore no embellishment whatsoever. He wrote as if a machine were operating—every stroke matched the standard font perfectly. Even under a magnifying glass, one could find no difference whatsoever. Maintaining this rhythmic regularity, he continued writing: "I can put it this way: if the normal human brain is hardware, then the soul is an additional mounted virtual processor that can optimize the hardware's operation. Self-awareness operates the hardware of the brain, loading the database of memory and genetic instinct, thereby activating the entire body."
"However, hardware has its limits. The fragile human brain cannot handle overloaded operation... Whether it's the breathing cycle of Battle Qi or the rune circulation of magic, both require significant resources. In subsonic and supersonic-level combat, the human brain can no longer handle this computational speed. At this point, the soul takes over part of the work, processing some information."
"During the training of the White Dragon Knight Order, I used Steel Force to detect every subtle change in each of them during training and combat—whether in soul or Life Energy... During high-intensity training, the brain is protected by Life Energy or Arcane Power, maintaining its overloaded operation. But when actual combat arrives, the brain is no longer overloaded, because by then the soul replaces the brain in controlling the body."
"This is a qualitative change... Silver-rank Transcendent. At this stage, the soul receives the nourishment of energy and develops rapidly. By the time warriors can release Battle Qi externally and mages can manipulate external energy, their souls have all fully matured. Abilities such as 'Sixth Sense,' 'Danger Precognition,' 'Sincere Path,' and 'Mind's Eye' basically develop at this stage."
When he reached this point, the writer paused. He seemed to be considering his wording, and only after a while did he pick up the pen again: "The soul grows along with the growth of Transcendent power. At Gold-rank, it no longer optimizes the brain's algorithms but takes over all complex calculations. By the time one reaches Ultimate-rank or even Legendary-rank, even the brain is no longer necessary—it can be discarded at any time."
"I have every reason to draw this conclusion: the soul is an organ that humans evolved to master Transcendent power. It did not exist when our species was born but evolved in high-concentration energy environments. The soul is part of an ordinary person's consciousness but is the entirety of most Transcendent beings—its very existence is the manifestation of 'Transcendent power' and 'First Flame' within humans created by 'Steel Force' and 'Life Energy,' the fusion of fire and steel."
"The so-called Soul's Ultimate Essence is the moment when the soul completely sheds all constraints and becomes an independent entity."
At this point, the writer's strokes became heavier: "And at that time, the original concept of 'human' has already disappeared. What emerges is a new, sublimated 'soul human.' They may still possess a physical body, but it is no longer the main body of life."
"This is my insight regarding the 'soul' and 'Soul's Ultimate Essence.'"
"—Joshua Van Radcliffe."
The letter was complete. The writer—Joshua—placed it into an envelope. On the envelope, brilliant magical light flickered. An instant later, the envelope turned to ashes amidst the shifting, uncertain glow of Arcane Power. Meanwhile, in some distant place, a letter bearing exactly the same content was slowly materializing within a delicate crystal formation.
Recently, Israel had been extremely busy. The old Pope's workload far exceeded that of others: whether it was the Holy Mountain Fortress or the descent of the Seven Gods, all of this was his responsibility. For this reason, Joshua, who had previously often discussed and debated various Transcendent power issues with him, now chose to communicate via letters, exchanging their views.
Although communication formations had now developed to an extremely advanced level, even capable of crossing continents, Joshua felt that occasionally indulging in nostalgia wasn't a bad thing. Since he had plenty of time, writing was also fine. He put down his fountain pen, stood up from his seat, walked to the sofa in the corner of the study, and closed his eyes.
Now, Joshua had obtained his own answer regarding Soul's Ultimate Essence, but he did not intend to take this path.
For the vast majority of people in this world, the reason the soul grows stronger as one's power increases is that the brain—as hardware—can no longer process the increasingly rapid flow of information. Moreover, as a vital point, the brain is often targeted by enemies. Therefore, abandoning the brain and choosing the soul is correct... but not always.
For example, Joshua—his hardware was harder than everyone else's combined, even harder to erode than the 'Divinity' that acted as a virus capable of assimilating conscious algorithms.
Perhaps the only thing with a head harder than a warrior's head was a Steel Serpent. The body of this great will was the entire world itself. The world, as the purest steel creation, naturally had a soul that was the purest condensation of fire—also a fusion of fire and steel. Unfortunately, the 'world' could not be used as an organ of thought, so Steel Serpents still used souls to think.
Joshua was different from Steel Serpents and ordinary people. At this moment, his body was entirely composed of degenerate matter. No amount of overloaded operation could damage this substance. He didn't even need this substance—he only needed to assemble a supercomputer for himself using a special inferior Transcendent alloy to carry his consciousness and soul, and his pure computational speed would surpass most Legendary-rank beings. With the soul's assistance, he could even reach the level of 'foreknowledge.'
But through the soul, Joshua—who currently had no vital point—did not intend to create a new, crucial weakness for himself. His plan was to make every part of his body possess independent computational ability and independent survival capability: even a drop of blood, a tiny fragment, a speck of dust could compute, reorganize, and self-replicate... Does this sound familiar? A single drop of blood can propagate a race, a tiny fragment can transform most of a world. Even after dying for a thousand years, the thought particles left behind can still form Divine Calamity Mist, preserving most of one's thoughts and memories—
This was the 'Perfect Body' of Ancient Dragons and the 'Undying Soul' of the gods—two forms that almost stood at the pinnacle of life. At this point, Xing Zheng was met with silence. He waited in this silence, full of hope. Even if the answer was unsatisfactory, he didn't mind. The God of Might simply wanted to know the answer of this person named Radcliffe. He simply wanted to know this one thing, with no other demands.
But he did not receive an answer.
Joshua remained silent. He met Xing Zheng's gaze without any concealment, but still did not speak. The warrior disdained to utter an answer he himself could not understand. He was unwilling to make a response he himself could not confirm. So at this moment, he could only remain silent.
Finally, the gray-haired knight sighed. Xing Zheng slowly turned around, speaking in a flat, uninflected tone: "Joshua, we—the Seven Gods—all have high expectations of you."
"You are the fastest, strongest, and most perfect Transcendent being in the history of the Mycroft World."
"Your power is second only to the Sage in the entire history of the Era of Radiance and the Era of Falling Stars—second only to that Saint whom even gods can only look up to, unable to comprehend his realm. You are the only one who approaches him, approaches this existence who promoted the same order to the entire Mycroft World."
"We cannot estimate your future, nor do we need to... Your existence satisfies us, pleases us, delights us. You can help us, represent us in guarding this world."
"But you have not yet found your order."
Standing in the windless snowfield, Xing Zheng turned completely around, gazing at the endless snowy landscape, slowly shaking his head. He said softly: "Israel and Nostradamus have done better than you in this regard. They both have firm convictions—not that you don't, but they have worlds they wish to realize in their hearts, orders they wish to achieve."
With these words, Xing Zheng's body dissolved. The gray-haired knight shattered into countless deep gray fragments, which swirled and condensed in midair like a nebula, finally forming a pure black floating ring. This ring rotated once in the air, and a majestic voice emerged from it.
"You are the one closest to the Sage... I want to know your answer. My purpose is simply that."
Accompanied by a barely perceptible flow of light, the black ring vanished into the ice at the center of the Sea of Bewilderment. As the pervasive Divine Power dissipated, the howling north wind began to blow again. One could hear the harsh wind tearing at the atmosphere, producing sharp whistling sounds. Joshua stood in the center of this snowfield that had regained its sounds, still frowning, silent.
"My order..."
After a long while, the warrior murmured to himself. Countless fragments flashed through his mind—about battle, about exploration, about distant star seas, about the infinite worlds in the Void... Joshua couldn't help but smile slightly, but then sighed softly.
He understood Xing Zheng's purpose now... but he still could not give an answer.
Joshua had seen too much, done too much. The warrior's gaze spanned countless worlds. He had witnessed the unique time perception and reproductive views of the Midgardians. He had seen the distinctive Mana technology of the migrating Elves. Joshua's gaze did not stop at Moldavia, nor even at the Mycroft Continent. His gaze pierced through the Multiverse.
From such a broad perspective, how could he arrive at an answer of 'order' that could encompass everything?
Even so, Joshua was not without any clues. Several shadows flashed through his mind: the Imperial Foreign Exploration Department, the Myriad Realms Sacrificial Ground, and Xiao Guang... He thought of many things—growing stronger, fighting, continuous exploration. These were the beliefs that had sustained Joshua all along. If he were to derive an order that belonged to him, these key elements could not be missing.
"My order."
Repeating this word once more, Joshua couldn't help but shake his head again.
"What a good question."