This young-looking man had a broad nose and thick eyebrows, dressed in a wide-sleeved Daoist robe, holding a horsetail whisk. He seemed to be just over twenty years old. However, if one judged him by his youthful appearance and treated him as an insignificant nobody when he showed great respect towards Yuan Lian, they would be gravely mistaken.
This man was known by the Daoist name Yan Hang, referred to as Daojun Yan Hang. In reality, he had lived for thousands of years and held a significant position even in the entire Divine Realm. He was the current Sect Leader of the Wanyi Sect in the Divine Realm and was one of the few Jade Immortals.
Under the Heavenly Dao, the so-called Three Thousand Worlds were divided into countless Small Thousand Worlds, thousands of Middle Thousand Worlds, and over a hundred Great Thousand Worlds. In the Small Thousand Worlds, spiritual energy was thin and scarce, and the beings were ignorant, unaware of virtue and shame, living primitively. Even humans were only slightly better than beasts.
The Middle Thousand Worlds were much more prosperous. They had formed their own cultures, lived in groups, and established various systems, with a common leader revered by the tribes. People in the Middle Thousand Worlds also developed a desire to communicate with the heavens and the earth. Although most people did not know how, some exceptionally intelligent individuals favored by the Heavenly Dao had begun to glimpse the path. However, due to the lack of spiritual energy, they could not progress further.
The Great Thousand Worlds, perhaps better known as the “Cultivation World,” were rich in spiritual energy. There were mortals who could not cultivate and secular dynasties that rose and fell. But above all, there existed the so-called “immortals.” They could not only sense the presence of true spiritual energy and utilize it but also draw spiritual energy into their bodies, cultivating step by step, purifying their souls, and extending their lifespans.
Mortals, if free from illness and disaster, would not live beyond a hundred years from birth to death. The levels of cultivators in the Great Thousand Worlds were divided into five stages: Qi Refining, Qi Condensation, Nascent Soul, Void Return, and Integration. From the moment one stepped into the Qi Refining stage, their originally limited and short lifespan would increase, and by the Integration stage, they could extend their life to over five thousand years.
Humans are inherently afraid of death. Compared to cultivators who can ride the clouds and mist, the lifespan of mortals is as insignificant and short as ants. How could they not yearn for the path of cultivation that defies the heavens? Therefore, as long as there was even a hint of spiritual root, countless people would rush onto this path.
But since it is a path against the heavens, it is destined not to be smooth. Starting from the mortal body, those who can reach the Qi Refining stage before their lifespan ends are one in ten thousand, let alone those who wish to reach the Integration stage. Since the beginning of time, only a dozen or so people have ascended from a Great Thousand World.
In the Small Thousand Worlds, humans, demons, and devils were indistinguishable, and the concept of cultivation did not exist. In the eyes of mortals in the Middle Thousand Worlds, “attaining the Dao and becoming immortal” was merely barely reaching the Qi Condensation stage. The Great Thousand Worlds were vast, and their horizons were broad. In their eyes, “becoming immortal” meant breaking through the Integration stage, attracting the heavenly tribulation of ninety-nine, and ascending to immortality after overcoming it, from then on being able to shatter space and travel the world.
As for what lies beyond, only the disciples of sects with deep foundations could glimpse a bit.
They vaguely knew that above Integration was Earth Immortal, and above the Great Thousand Worlds was the Divine Realm.
*
Buzhou Mountain was the pillar connecting the Divine Realm directly to the Heavenly Dao, supporting the foundation of the Divine Realm below and reaching the Supreme Heavenly Palace above. The immortal mansion that Yuan Lian’s father opened for her was located in the middle-upper section of Buzhou Mountain, shrouded in immortal mist all year round, with spiritual energy so dense it could almost turn into liquid. Yan Hang, having been a Jade Immortal for some years, felt comfortable in such an environment, wishing he could soak up the spiritual energy for thousands of years.
However, the four disciples behind him were just brought up from the lower realm, with the highest cultivation being Void Return. They had not undergone ascension and were not even Earth Immortals. They had previously triggered the formation at the foot of Buzhou Mountain, and it took Yan Hang quite some effort to find them. At that time, they had ventured deep into the mountain’s base and were almost unknowingly eroded by the dense mist, becoming fertilizer for the immortal plants in the mountain.
They were already uncomfortable at the foot of the mountain, and now standing in the immortal mansion was even more unbearable. It felt like a thousand mountains were pressing down on them, and breathing in too much spiritual energy could make them explode. Thus, they stood with their hands hanging and backs bent, using all their focus to resist the pressure, unable to even lift their heads.
Yan Hang had been waiting for Yuan Lian to come out of seclusion, wanting to chat with his master. However, with these burdensome disciples, who were not even qualified to pay respects to the Xianzun, Yan Hang quickly glossed over their introduction.
Yuan Lian nodded slightly, glancing at the young people below.
With just one look, she knew that the soul she had encountered earlier belonged to these people. Although each carried a bit of untimely self-importance, they at least looked decent. To catch Yan Hang’s eye, their appearance had to be above average. As for their cultivation, it didn’t matter much. After all, coming from the lower realm, Qi Condensation and Integration were not much different, just that…
Earlier, her consciousness was quite unclear, muddled. Now, she knew everything she needed to know.
Hmm.
The last wisp of soul Yuan Lian sent out had just returned, leaving some impressions in her mind. It didn’t take much effort to recognize the “old acquaintance” among them. However, she thought there wasn’t much to say. Past events were like smoke and dust; if every “old acquaintance” required a reunion, it would be a waste of time.
Moreover, these people seemed about to be crushed by the spiritual energy. If they dirtied the immortal mansion, it would be somewhat troublesome… Thinking of this, Yuan Lian frowned and, without thinking, waved her sleeve, sending them, along with Yan Hang, out of Buzhou Mountain’s territory.
*
Yan Hang was about to seize the opportunity to say a few more words, but before he could speak, he was swept out by his master, feeling quite regretful.
The juniors, however, finally relieved of the pressure, breathed a sigh of relief. The one with the lowest cultivation, Kuang Yuming, was only at the Qi Condensation stage. In the lower realm, he was a renowned cultivation genius, but in the Divine Realm, he found it difficult to even breathe. After landing, he couldn’t control himself and fell to the ground.
Yan Hang had chosen these four to ascend because he was the most talented and youngest. Now, having made such a blunder, he was embarrassed, his face turning red.
Unbeknownst to him, he felt that as a proud genius, making a fool of himself in front of his master and fellow disciples was shameful. But in Yan Hang’s eyes, someone under a hundred years old was no different from a child, so he didn’t mind and even found it somewhat cute.
He rarely offered a few words of comfort, casually giving a Ruyi artifact to cheer him up. Seeing Kuang Yuming not happy but even more embarrassed, he was puzzled.
However, his patience was only slightly more than Yuan Lian’s. Seeing this, he didn’t think much more, rolled up his disciples, and took them back to the Wanyi Sect, casually finding an inner sect disciple to help settle them, then returned to his residence to meditate and digest his gains from the lower realm.
The disciple, also busy with mundane affairs, upon hearing that these people were brought up from the lower realm by the Sect Leader, skillfully found a few caves with decent spiritual energy at the foot of Wangchen Peak, stuffed them in, left a few jade seals containing sect rules, spirit pills, and artifacts, and was about to leave when Lin Jin quickly stopped him:
“Senior Brother, please wait!” He took a breath and said, “Senior Brother, we have just arrived in your realm, unfamiliar with the place, and dare not disturb the Sect Leader. We don’t know the current situation, so please enlighten us.”
Actually, when one mentions the Divine Realm, they might assume that everyone here is above Earth Immortal, but that would be a big mistake.
If a cultivator from the Great Thousand Worlds relied solely on themselves, they indeed needed to reach Integration to ascend. Upon reaching the Divine Realm, they naturally became Earth Immortals. However, if they had blood relatives or sect elders in the upper realm with high status and were willing to pay a great price, they could bring those with insufficient cultivation across realms.
Moreover, if immortals in the Divine Realm combined and had offspring, there was no way they would be born as immortals. Except for a few with special bloodlines, newborns started as mortals without cultivation, growing up just like those in the lower realm. The difference was that the Divine Realm had more abundant spiritual energy, shortening the cultivation time.
This inner sect disciple was at the Void Return stage. Seeing Lin Jin speak politely, he couldn’t refuse and said, “It’s not that our sect doesn’t value you, but the Sect Leader has this habit of liking to bring people from the lower realm… By the way, where are you from?”
Lin Jin and the others exchanged glances and truthfully said, “Canghai Realm.”
The disciple’s eyelid twitched, repeating, “Canghai Great Thousand World…” Seeing their confusion, he shook his head and said, “It’s nothing, just that someone remarkable came from there…”
“Speaking of which, our Wanyi Sect originates from the Divine Realm, but over the years, there have been traditions passed down outside, and many Great Thousand Worlds and even Middle Thousand Worlds have Wanyi Sect’s legacy. Our Sect Leader suppresses his cultivation and visits the lower realm every few hundred years, always bringing back a few junior brothers and sisters. Not just you, even those at the Qi Refining stage, he is quite casual. Over the millennia, we’ve gotten used to it.”
These words made Shen Ying, who held herself in high regard, extremely uncomfortable, and even Lin Jin’s eyelid couldn’t help but twitch.
“The Divine Realm isn’t anything special, just that there are very few mortals, more abundant spiritual energy, and higher cultivation levels,” he said to Lin Jin. “But I must remind you to be cautious in your actions. In the lower realm, with our cultivation, we might be able to walk sideways, but in the Divine Realm, Void Return stage is common. I’m not even a direct disciple.”
Actually, his words were somewhat biased, thinking the Void Return stage insignificant only because he was in the Wanyi Sect. Outside, someone like him would receive some respect.
Saying this, he didn’t care about their slightly embarrassed expressions, pointed to one of the jade seals, and the seal projected text: “Everything you need to know is in here, just take a look.”
Once he left, Lin Jin and the others looked at each other. They had thought themselves to be dragons among men, standing out among countless geniuses to be brought to the Divine Realm by their master. They didn’t expect the truth to be like this, the psychological gap so large they didn’t know what to say.
Feng Yunqing, whether or not he had calmed down inside, showed nothing on the surface. He nodded to Lin Jin, said goodbye, and was about to leave.
Lin Jin asked, “Junior Brother Feng, where are you going?”
Feng Yunqing, expressionless, calmly said, “To cultivate. Knowing one’s insignificance, self-pity is useless.”
Though reasonable, his words were somewhat heartless. Moreover, due to a well-known past incident, Kuang Yuming still had some complaints about him, so he couldn’t help but purse his lips.
Lin Jin saw that Feng Yunqing still wore the pendant around his neck in the Divine Realm, and noticed the round pendant flickering with a purple-black light, as if something alive was inside. He couldn’t help but shake his head, feeling both angry and sighing inside.
The word “emotion” is indeed a bone-scraping blade, not to be touched lightly.
“Junior Brother, wait a moment. That senior brother mentioned a great figure from our Canghai Realm. We don’t know who it is, but it seems to be a secret. Why don’t we find out together, so we won’t be laughed at for being ignorant in the future?”
Feng Yunqing, though somewhat cold, was not entirely unsociable, so he didn’t refuse Lin Jin’s goodwill.
The brothers opened the jade seal’s restriction together, roughly scanning the flashing text.
Unexpectedly, they found the key point quickly, thinking it would take some time.
The jade seal recorded that there were over a hundred Great Thousand Worlds, thousands of Middle Thousand Worlds, and countless Small Thousand Worlds. However, above the Three Thousand Worlds, there was only one Divine Realm.
The Divine Realm was located at the intersection of the visible and invisible, a space created under the Heavenly Dao, separate from the Three Thousand Worlds. It was vast and boundless, with no measure or distance to describe its size. In such an infinite space, there were only four so-called Supremes.
Above Earth Immortal were the Spirit Light stage and Jade Immortal stage. Though only three stages, each was as difficult as climbing to the heavens, far more challenging than progressing from Qi Refining to Integration. Therefore, there were many Earth Immortals in the Divine Realm, but few advanced further. Yan Hang, as a Jade Immortal, could already serve as the Sect Leader of the Wanyi Sect and command respect in the Divine Realm.
Above the Jade Immortal stage, boundaries could no longer define them. Those who broke through the Jade Immortal stage and could touch and comprehend the Heavenly Dao were called “Xianzun.”
Those who truly merged with a part of the Heavenly Dao and were granted the title by the heavens were Supremes, revered as “Shenwang.”
There were only four Shenwang in the world. Among them, Dao Ji Shenwang was the foremost, naturally due to his seniority and profound cultivation.
Legend has it that millions of years ago, after the Father God created the heavens, he gave birth to five divine lords, the oldest beings in the world. The five divine lords created and refined all things. Later, the Heavenly Dao brought down calamities, and most living beings perished. Only one divine lord remained, Dao Ji Shenwang. After tens of thousands of years, the Divine Realm and the Three Thousand Worlds slowly formed, and the world’s beings recovered, beginning the era of human supremacy. Later, a demon cultivator ascended to Shenwang.
Many years passed, and the last person to ascend to Shenwang did so five hundred years ago. He was human.
The jade seal briefly recorded this Supreme:
“Ascended from Canghai Realm… met Dao Ji Shenwang, who admired his nature and talent, thus called him son and gave him a daughter in marriage… later became a Supreme, known as Canghai Shenwang.”