Wizard: Starting With the Knights Breathing Method Chapter 2882: 586: Meeting the Netherworld Ancestor, the Secret of Lifespan!

All of a sudden, Levi noticed a well-known volume resting on the table... "Soronan Quotations," packed with renowned sayings from Sauron. What stood out most oddly was the elegant signature it featured.

"Sauron must have visited this place and encountered the Netherworld Ancestor."

After an uncertain stretch of time, the sound of approaching steps pulled Levi from his reverie.

"Welcome to the Netherworld Ancestor Hall... Levi."

A smooth, alluring feminine voice echoed, as the crystal veil parted, revealing a woman in a gray robe with a rather ashen skin tone, who stepped forward while tilting her flawless visage.

Locking eyes with her, Levi felt as though he glimpsed the endless existences of countless beings spanning the Multidimensional Plane, along with echoes of long-forgotten Nether eras.

This figure was undoubtedly a powerhouse!

An authentic Primordial entity!

The embodiment and enforcer of the Underworld Source River's intent!

"Greetings, Netherworld Ancestor."

"Are you seeking to bring Holy Dragon Augustus into the Underworld?"

"That's one way to put it. Right now, the Underworld battles the Abyss, so gaining another level-10 would be beneficial, in my view."

"Your perspective holds merit... Yet, are you aware that every fresh Nether Emperor emerging soon leads to the abrupt termination of innumerable lives across hidden reaches of this Universe through all sorts of mishaps?" The Netherworld Ancestor's stare intensified.

"I'm not aware," Levi replied honestly.

With hands clasped behind her back, the Netherworld Ancestor gazed toward the Mother River arching across the celestial vault:

"The Mother River doesn't generate lifespans; it merely oversees and distributes them. Our Land of Darkness expands and strengthens at a steady pace.

However, that pace has boundaries, resources remain finite, and within any epoch's turning point, the number of civilizations and level-10s it supports is capped.

As a wizard, you grasp this well.

For a novice mortal to ascend to a primordial soul wizard demands enormous resources, let alone for Grand Wizards or Legendary Wizards.

Every transcendent path follows suit.

Even innate powerhouses like demons, Gods, Nether Emperors... they all demand vast resources too. What form do these resources take?

You rely on elixirs, potions; on Aether Stones, ores—these are the tangible kinds. But there are intangible ones as well, with lifespan being the most straightforward.

Barring us early-born God-demons and Nether Emperors from the Four Primordial Worlds, the majority of existences in Nora and the Multidimensional Plane originate from the Land of Darkness. Still, from birth, they aren't fully owned by it.

They develop their own minds, visions; via feelings, interactions, innovations, they broaden life's breadth—elements the Land of Darkness cannot dominate.

All it can do is moderately curb life's duration, known as lifespan, since living things strive for advancement and breakthrough, ever challenging the set limits.

Similar to other assets, lifespan stays somewhat constant over brief periods but steadily increases over ages; it's like a reservoir.

Yet its expansion rate fails to match the rapid rise of those inventive entities. Take wizards, for instance... your growth outpaces others.

You uncover secrets, apply wisdom, chase inner truths. This journey involves devouring resources at a rate that dwarfs other societies.

That's why wizards face shorter lifespans. Nora belongs to the Land of Darkness; if its inhabitants lived as long as the Dragon Clan, outcomes might improve or worsen...

But this Universe offers no room for such experiments.

Thus, wizards' lifespans can only extend gradually, in modest increments. An unseen force governs this entirely—that's our role in the Underworld.

We manage, we don't create. New Nether Emperors must draw from sustained lifespan reserves; they don't appear from nowhere.

You frequently join the Netherworld Market in Hell; the 'Joss Paper' devils employ is essentially lifespan transformed into a tangible form after our adjustments.

It flows through Hell, ultimately feeding back into the Mother River, perpetuating the loop. This lifespan constraint prevents the Underworld from unchecked growth.

In truth, for entire civilizations, excessive lifespan isn't wholly advantageous. Do you find the wizard civilization's resource entrenchment quite rigid?"

Hearing the inquiry, Levi responded candidly:

"Yes, it's quite rigid; entrenched families and sect powers dominate resources, making it tough for common wandering wizards to advance."

The Netherworld Ancestor chuckled: "What if wizards' lifespans stretched ten times longer?"

Levi pondered briefly before replying: "It might worsen even more."

Lifting "Soronan Quotations," the Netherworld Ancestor leafed through it idly:

"Without doubt, enduring races wielding authority and extended lives would seize total control, as seen in the Abyss, astral world, Nightmare realm, and even the Underworld.

Long ago, Sauron arrived in the Underworld and forged a pact with me for the future. The Underworld and Nora would jointly confront the Abyss, enduring the coming Great Tribulation side by side, united in fate.

The Underworld bolsters Nora, enabling this innovative society to surge ahead; Nora serves as our keen blade, striking at the Abyss and restoring equilibrium among the other Three Realms.

He requested a favor: granting each Legendary Wizard a chance at rebirth. I questioned why not simply prolong their lives to twenty thousand years.

Why bother with such complexity?

He explained: Ten thousand years feels eternal, yet one must seize the now.

Ten thousand years strikes the ideal balance for human ingenuity, fostering creativity while curbing stagnation to promote renewal.

Not too much, not too little, avoiding potential pitfalls.

He believed that with human intellect, it's sufficient to battle fate through personal effort, wresting vitality incrementally from the Land of Darkness.

He noted that the native entities of the Four Primordial Worlds appear mighty, but their vast lifespans dull their sense of urgency and temporal awareness.