Please be my partner.

Ares's mouth twitched. He didn't ignore Spike on purpose, but he initially thought that this was just an extraordinary life with earth blood. He didn't think that 'this dog is a branded knight' at all.

It is no wonder that Ares did not think of this possibility at first. The extraordinary professions circulated among humans are all tailored to humans according to their own needs. Other kinds of extraordinary life can hardly use this to become extraordinary professionals.

Ares was a little choked up at this moment. Was he going to invite a dog to join their lava school?!

Even if it was a dog that became a branded knight, it was still...

Melen said with a smile: "Mr. Ares, I would like to ask you more about the Lava School."

Ares laughed awkwardly and said, "Well... Anyway, you should think about it for a while. I have something else to do, so I'll be leaving first."

Ares's hurried departure seemed somewhat embarrassed in the eyes of the three men and the dog.

Mellen chuckled and motioned Lance and Gad to continue forward, asking, "The Lava School is the superior of the Earth School? How do you say that?"

This is indeed a problem that Mellen is concerned about. Although the Branded Knight does not account for a large proportion of Spike's overall strength nowadays, it can be regarded as a supplement. If the Earth School is really bad, it is not impossible to let Spike change the school inheritance.

The two Earth Knights exchanged a glance, and Lance sighed, "Of course, that's not true. The Earth School is more or less superior to the Lava School, but..."

Gad added, "But the fact is, at the same level, the Lava School is indeed ahead of the Earth School in terms of actual combat capabilities, and..."

He hesitated for a moment, then said, "Well, since your... dog has become a reserve knight of the Order of Dusk, it doesn't matter if you know these things. But if you don't want to join the Order in the future, you'll need to sign a contract to keep this information confidential and not disclose it to anyone else."

After a moment's thought, Melen nodded in agreement.

After getting Mellen's confirmation, Gad said, "I imagine you also have some doubts about the demons you encountered during the initiation test?"

Hearing this, Melen immediately understood that those demons were indeed no less powerful than those in the original test category.

Gad continued, "Actually, the main reason our Order of the Dusk Knights established their headquarters deep within the Sunset Mountains is to guard a space-time rift here, which leads to a certain abyssal world."

Lance added, "It is precisely because of this responsibility that the Dusk Knights were able to reach an agreement with the human nations, allowing them to train and recruit Branded Knights without restriction while refraining from internecine conflicts. Once these Branded Knights reach the Second Stage, if they wish to pursue the path to the Third Stage, they must come to the Sunset Mountains and fulfill their responsibilities as Branded Knights."

"Only with a constant infusion of 'new blood' can the Knights of Dusk resist the invasion of the demons of the abyss and protect this world from being swallowed by the abyss."

Perhaps fearing to frighten Mellen, Gad hurriedly said, "Don't worry. The agreement between the Dusk Knights and the human nations contains many clauses, including a call-up order when necessary. If an anomaly occurs in the space-time rift, the extraordinary beings of the human nations can be called upon for support. We all understand the principle of the lips and teeth being cold."

"Because of their role in guarding the space-time rift, the human nations regularly send large quantities of rare resources to help the Knights of Dusk grow and develop."

Melen nodded. Indeed, even if the human side was in conflict and hostility, they had to unite and face the abyss demon that could destroy the world.

History has long proven that the best way to completely unite a race is to create a powerful foreign enemy.

Gad continued, "The environment near the space-time rift is quite harsh, filled with lava and destruction. Lava Knights are more adaptable to this environment and even receive environmental bonuses, making them a natural fit."

Melen immediately understood that no matter who was in power, judging from their performance, the Lava School was indeed superior to the Earth School in terms of lethality in combat, at least at the low levels.

In addition to the environmental influences near the space-time rift, the lava school will be strengthened to a certain extent, and other schools may be weakened. With this addition and subtraction, the gap will immediately widen.

Based on Ares's previous words, Melen also speculated that hunting demons might be related to some important considerations within the Knights of Dusk, such as becoming a formal member, exchanging rare resources, or learning more profound inheritances.

In this case, it is not difficult to make a choice.

Melen thought for a moment and then asked, "What did Ares mean by 'Root Mark'?"

Gad and Lance exchanged a glance, and Gad began to explain, "All the strength of us Branded Knights comes from the brands engraved within our bodies. Due to the interconnectedness between brands of the same origin, all the brands engraved within a Branded Knight will eventually merge into one, becoming a single root brand."

"This is the legendary path of our Branded Knights."

"The road to legend? Could it be that..." Melen's eyes lit up.

Gad nodded and said, "You're right. As long as you achieve the Root Brand, the Branded Knight will naturally advance to Legend. No other conditions are required."

Before Mellen could ask any more questions, Gad sighed and said, "Unfortunately, the only one in the entire Dusk Knights who currently possesses the complete inheritance of the Root Mark is the Dawn School, the lineage of the Knight Leader."

Melen was immediately choked, frowned and asked: "There is no complete inheritance of the root mark in the Earth School?!"

Gad said matter-of-factly, "Of course. Don't you know the history of the Branded Knight? At the end of the Extraordinary Age, the Branded Knight was just an Extraordinary profession that wizards casually researched to make their servants or experimental subjects more useful."

"At a certain time later, many geniuses emerged among the Branded Knights, ending the wizards' rule over the Branded Knights. The strongest of these, the Knight of Dawn, united with many powerful Branded Knights to form the Order of Dusk. Even during the dark period when the transcendent declined and spirituality receded, our Order of Dusk still tenaciously survived and grew stronger step by step."

"Time was limited for the Branded Knights' ancestors, so the inheritance of many schools is incomplete, without the complete root brand. These need to be improved step by step by us, the later generations."

"The Lava School has been digging into the 'roots' of our Earth School because more knights mean more possibilities. Even ordinary knights could stumble upon new marks. If one or two true super-geniuses emerge within the school, the root marks could be significantly supplemented, benefiting the school as a whole."

Lance said unconvincedly, "The power of the earth is one of the basic elements that make up the world. If the root mark is really born, the Earth Legend will definitely be able to beat the Lava Legend!"

Gad sighed and shook his head.

That's true, but after so many years of poaching by the Lava School, the Earth School has become increasingly weak, and is far behind in the exploration of the root imprint.

After a brief moment of thought, Melen asked without hesitation, "Newly joined reserve knights have a chance to choose again, right?"

Gad and Lance's expressions first looked grim, then dark.

Although they felt that there was nothing wrong with Mellen's choice, they still found it difficult to accept.

After a moment's silence, Lance said helplessly, "Yes, according to the rules, the reserve knight does have the opportunity to re-select, but you saw Ares's performance just now. I'm afraid the Lava School won't welcome your... dog."

Mellen glanced at Lance and said, "Who said I want my dog to switch to the lava school? Lava is a branch of the earth. Isn't switching to that school the wrong way?!"

Lance was delighted at first, then asked doubtfully, "So what do you mean?"

Melen said seriously, "I hope Spike can transfer to the Dawn School. Please help me with the relevant procedures as soon as possible."

Lance and Ged looked at Mellen with a serious expression, their eyes became dull and the corners of their mouths began to twitch unconsciously.

After a long pause, Lance said speechlessly, "Even if you want to transfer to another sect, you can't just transfer to any sect. You can only transfer to a similar sect. The Lava Sect has developed a number of secret methods to recruit people from our Earth Sect. These methods can speed up the process and reduce losses."

"Besides, the Dawn School belongs to the lineage of the Knights' Leader. Every member of the Dawn School is called a Son of the Dawn and has the potential to become the leader of the Dusk Knights in the future. You..."

At the end of his speech, Lance glanced at Spike, obviously saying that the latter was not qualified.

Melen curled his lips and said, "Why do the Twilight Knights still discriminate? Spike may look like a dog, but he's very human at heart!"

"Son of the Dawn? Who says the Dawn Dog isn't a son?!"

Chapter 195 Demon Hunting Order and Oath

After confirming again and again that Spike couldn't transfer to the Dawn School, Mellen said with a look of regret: "The system of the Dusk Knights is too rigid. You have no idea what you've missed!"

Lance and Gad looked at each other. They had begun to doubt whether letting the Dog Knight join the Dusk Knights was the right choice.

Melen curled his lips and said, "In that case, my dog should stay in the Earth School."

After saying that, Melen signaled the two of them to lead the way quickly.

Soon, the three men and the dog entered the interior of the building complex. It looked like a prosperous small town, except that all the townspeople were Branded Knights. Of course, not all of them were second-level. There were also quite a few who were first-level or even below the level. The latter should all be Branded Knights trained within the Order of Dusk.

Soon, they arrived in front of a tall building that was filled with the rich power of the earth and looked extremely heavy.

Lance said, "This is the headquarters of our Earth School. Let's go. After completing the registration, you will be a member of our Earth School. Of course, you can use the opportunity to transfer to another school within a month, but if it exceeds a month, it will be regarded as you automatically waived it."

Mellen nodded, there was nothing to hesitate about.

After entering the hall, Lance and Gad's bodies suddenly stiffened and their expressions became tense.

Mellen asked in confusion, "What's wrong?"

Gad whispered, "Great Knight Hans is here too. He's quite traditional and takes rules very seriously."

Meren suddenly realized that this Great Knight Hans was the conservative faction that the two had mentioned before, who might prevent Spike from joining the Knights of Dusk.

In fact, from Ares's previous performance, it is not difficult to see the general attitude of the Knights of Dusk towards Spike, the Dog Knight.

Grand Knight is the title given to the third-order Branded Knight in the Order of Dusk. This level is already considered a high-level one, and they usually play the role of managers in their respective factions.

At this time, Hans's gaze had already turned over. Lance and Gad were startled and could only bite the bullet and walk forward to say hello.

Hans ignored the two funny guys. He first looked at Spike carefully for a moment, then stared at Mellen.

In terms of strength alone, Hans is considered a strong man among the third level, and his power is quite amazing, but this is naturally a breeze for Melen.

After this oppressive silence lasted for a long time, Hans said, "Welcome to join us."

"Huh!~" x2

Lance and Gad breathed a sigh of relief, and then felt incredible. The development before their eyes was so different from what they had imagined, it was a complete reversal.

The two did not dare to stay any longer. After greeting, they hurriedly pulled Mellen away to handle the formalities.

Hans watched Mellen and Spike leave in silence.

In the extraordinary era, the wizards' servants and experimental subjects are not just humans. In the early days of the formation of the Knights of Dusk, there were Branded Knights of extraordinary races, such as werewolves, ogres, orcs, elves, etc. Therefore, compared with other extraordinary professions, Branded Knights are more adaptable to extraordinary races.

However, with the end of the extraordinary era, those naturally extraordinary races lost the soil for their existence and gradually degenerated and died out.

Now, with the return of spirituality and the reappearance of the extraordinary, those extraordinary races in history will inevitably appear again. Therefore, the top leaders of the Dusk Knights have already set the tone that they will selectively accept extraordinary races in the future. Spike just caught up with the first one.

Lance and Gad, two lower-level members, naturally had no idea of the decisions made by the top leaders of the Dusk Knights, and were still fighting a battle of wits with the air.

The appearance of demons in the entry test of the Earth School had long been detected by supernatural objects. After understanding the reason, Hans came to meet the duo of Mellen and Spike.

As for Lance and Gad's little cleverness, he wouldn't care. He just needed to give them some small punishments later.

At this time, Lance and Gad didn't know what they were about to face. After passing Hans's level, the two of them became obviously much more active, completely exposing their true natures. Once they started talking, they seemed unable to stop.

Mellen responded with a smile, and calmly guided the topic towards the areas that interested him.

Perhaps because they had lived in the headquarters of the Dusk Knights for many years, there were not too many complicated relationships between them, and the two of them did not notice Mellen's intentions at all. Their eyes were clear, simple and even a little cute, which made Mellen feel a little embarrassed.

As a second-level Branded Knight who has completed the entry test, Spike has already completed all the prerequisite levels. He only needs to go through the final registration and oath to become a reserve member of the Knights of Dusk.

Registration was simple and was completed quickly under the guidance of Lance and Gad. They received a token with the word "Demon Hunter" engraved on the front and the word "Earth" engraved on the back. This was the credential of the Order of Dusk and also an extraordinary item that recorded the achievements in hunting demons.

Demon Hunting Merit is the most valuable general equivalent of the Order of Dusk. It can be exchanged for rare resources and inheritance, and Demon Hunting Merit itself cannot be traded.

Of course, there are also authority restrictions when using Demon Hunting Merits for redemption.

There are differences between reserve knights, official knights, and grand knights.

In order to upgrade one's authority, in addition to one's own strength, the total number of demon hunting merits obtained is also one of the basic conditions.

At present, the Demon Hunting Order in Mellen's hand cannot be used. It needs to be activated by Spike's blood when taking the oath before it can be officially activated.

This so-called oath is not a pledge of allegiance to the Knights of Dusk, but a pledge to fight against demons and not betray the human race.

The oath-taking time for the Order of Dusk is at the beginning of each month, and there are only three days left.

During these three days, although Mellen and Spike were unable to formally contact the Knights of Dusk, they were not idle.

Because Melen has chosen the Earth School, they can begin to receive the basic education of the Branded Knights.

You know, Branded Knight is an extraordinary profession that has been passed down from the extraordinary era and has never been interrupted. Unlike Mentor Heb who only teaches a few rune brands related to advancement, true Branded Knights need to receive instruction in a complete rune brand system. Only in this way can they understand what a brand is, and in the process of continuous improvement in the future, they can dig, analyze, research, create, and discover more rune brands.

In the process of continuous learning, Melen also understood that the [Heavy Mountains] and [Giant Engines] that Spike had learned were the most classic combinations of the Earth School. He only needed to complete the drawing of the [Heart of the Earth] and train the three advanced brands to a certain level, and then he could combine them into the third-level ability [Body of the Earth]. At that time, the Branded Knight would naturally be promoted to the third level.

The ability of [Body of the Earth] is quite comprehensive and gentle, and it is one of the best ways for the Earth School to break into the third level.

During the study period, Melen and Spike also tried to engrave several new basic imprints. Through precise perception, they noticed more things.

The relationship between the rune marks was more complicated than they had initially imagined.

If the root imprint is compared to a complete, three-dimensional whole, then the combination imprint, advanced imprint, and basic imprint are like large, small, and fragmented pieces.

The latter three must be cleverly combined to make the former perfect.

But the key point is that the number of basic imprints itself is unknown, and advanced imprints and combination imprints are evolved from countless basic imprints. The total number of combinations is more than tens of millions, and with each additional basic imprint, the number of combinations will expand significantly.

It is foreseeable that among these unknown number of combinations, the vast majority are incomplete and imperfect. They will give you an illusion that you are about to succeed, but you will only find out that this is a dead end when you spend countless energy to reach the end of this road.

Moreover, even the root imprints of successful combinations have different strengths due to different ways of combination.

This is definitely an unimaginably difficult road.

Time passed, and soon it was early September, the day when the Order of Dusk took their oath.

Lance and Gad, as the guides of Meren and Spike, were even more excited than them. The oath-taking time of the Dusk Knights was at six in the morning, which was the last moment of dawn.

Lance and Gad woke them up before five o'clock, when it was still dawn, and the three of them and the dog headed towards the central area of the Knights.

Melen originally thought it was too early to go at this time, but when he arrived, he found that dozens of people had already arrived.

This is a large square. In the center of the square is a ten-meter-high giant knight statue. The knight is wearing simple armor, with a gentle face and a hopeful smile on his lips. He is none other than the first leader of the Knights of Dusk, the Knight of Dawn Andrew.

Among dozens of people, only a dozen stood in front of the knight statue with the Demon Hunting Order in their hands. Most of them were relatively young, and although their expressions were barely serious, they could not hide the excitement in their eyes.

Others were scattered around, obviously there to watch the ceremony.

With the arrival of Mellen and Spike, the little knights all looked over, showing expressions of curiosity, surprise, calmness, or hostility, and began to talk in low voices.

Mellen listened for a while and found that they were all talking about Spike, the dog knight.

Apparently, after these few days of fermentation, the fact that Spike joined the Earth School and became a reserve knight of the Dusk Knights has become known to everyone.

When it was almost six o'clock, a great knight came out and began to preside over the oath-taking ceremony.