Dududududududu!
The Heavenly Lotus Mountain near the White Jade Pavilion shakes.
[Are you saying right now that you're going to oppose me?]
"How could I possibly oppose the Sacred Master?"
[Yet you raise your sword?]
"It is merely for my own protection."
I look calmly at Sacred Master Baek Woon and speak.
"If you must bestow a title upon me, then please explain the reason why. Until then, I cannot accept such a name."
[...Very well. I shall explain.]
Her explanation continues.[Are you familiar with the structure of the Heavenly Domain?]
"I implore for the Sacred Master's detailed guidance."
Woe-wooong—
The surroundings begin to change.
Sacred Master Baek Woon projects an illusion, seemingly miniaturizing the entire celestial system of the Heavenly Domain for display.
Tiny mesh-like structures resembling clusters of galaxies are scattered all around.
[This is the Sun and Moon Heavenly Domain we are within. While most divide it between the Astral Realm and the Decaying Corpse Realm, the truth is that the size of the Astral Realm far exceeds that of the Decaying Corpse Realm.]
Woo-woooong—
A faint attraction force starts to gather within the illusion she created.
At the same time, I notice the flow of attraction force in various parts of the illusion.
The attraction force is distorting various parts of the Heavenly Domain.
[Due to the attraction force emitted by stars, the Heavenly Domain is distorted in many places. Especially the regions with distortions that are particularly severe, are where Quasi-Immortals reside.]
I examine the locations where the Quasi-Immortals reside.
There are roughly 140 highly distorted points.
In other words, there are about 140 Quasi-Immortals at the Entering Nirvana stage within the Sun and Moon Heavenly Domain.
[Do you notice anything strange?]
As I'm observing the model of the Sun and Moon Heavenly Domain, she asks me a question.
Recalling something that has been bothering me for a while, I respond to Sacred Master Baek Woon's words.
"...The Decaying Corpse Realms and Middle Realms are nowhere to be seen."
That's right.
No matter how hard I search, I cannot find Decaying Corpse Realms or the Middle Realms.
Baek Woon nods and explains.
[That's right. The Decaying Corpse Realms and Middle Realms do not exist within the Astral Realm. In truth, most beings in the Middle Realms think that the Astral Realm and the Decaying Corpse Realms are located somewhere beneath their Middle Realm. But they are mistaken. Their cultivation levels are too low to perceive the true structure of the Heavenly Domain, hence the misunderstanding.]
Woo-woooong—
Once again, the structure of the illusion changes.
[Originally, the center of the Heavenly Domain is not the Middle Realms. It was the Astral Realm, also referred to as the universe. With the Astral Realm that continues to expand at the speed of light as the center, countless living beings are born within it, each walking a 'different path' according to their fate.]
"'Different path'...what do you mean by that?"
[Let me ask you this. Do you believe that the only truth, the absolute in this world, is Immortal Cultivation?]
I shake my head at her question.
"That is not the case. Immortal Cultivation is merely one of the many methods."
[You are correct. Immortal Cultivation is merely one method.]
Tak!
With a snap of Baek Woon's fingers, illusions rise from the endless sea of stars.
They are living creatures.
I see lifeforms walking the path of Immortal Cultivation.
These beings mimic the stars, gradually growing their energy and strengthening their lifeforce, generating attraction force within their souls.
After a while, when the attraction forces of certain lifeforms reach some level of strength, they begin to disappear from their positions one by one.
I recognize what is happening and flinch in realization.
"That's..."
[Correct. It's ascension. Now, let me show you.]
Paaaat!
As she flips her palm, the surroundings shift again.
This time, we are in a pitch-black void.
A void where nothing exists.
And at the center of that void.
There are five massive orbs of light and a small light in the center.
Surrounding the five orbs of light are countless dots resembling grains of sand.
This place is...the Interdimensional Void.
[The Astral Realm and the Interdimensional Void are layered over each other. Those who cultivate their attraction force to the extreme—those who we call 'cultivators'—all reach the Interdimensional Void and arrive at the Middle Realms. To put it simply...]
Woo-woong— `
Two sheets of paper float in front of me.
On one sheet, the universe is drawn, and on the other, pitch-black darkness.
As Baek Woon moves her fingers, the sheet with the universe and the black sheet overlap.
With the sheet depicting the Astral Realm on top, Baek Woon performs some sort of spell, and the drawings within the paper begin to move.
[All cultivators are the lifeforms within this sheet. As time passes, the attraction forces they possess grow stronger, pulling in the surrounding force.]
Some of the drawings begin to enlarge.
[And when that force reaches its limit...]
Woo-woong—
The largest of the drawings absorbs the surrounding black ink and bursts from two dimensions into three.
[Just like this, they transfer to another layered world.]
The drawing that absorbed the ink flows into the overlapped black sheet.
[That is the true nature of ascension for cultivators.]
After pondering for a moment, I ask a question.
"So, when their attraction force becomes strong enough, they move to the Middle Realms of the Interdimensional Void. Then, what are Decaying Corpse Realms?"
[The Decaying Corpse Realms consist entirely of the corpses of great beings. And the corpses of these great beings, by themselves, possess the same property as the Astral Realm. Though, they are a bit smaller in size...if I were to explain it using paper, it would look like this.]
Above the black sheet, a paper figure in the shape of a person forms.
The paper figure is torn to shreds, and the torn pieces stick to the black paper in small fragments.
I nod, understanding the meaning behind this.
"So then, aside from Immortal Cultivation, what are the 'other paths'?"
According to Sacred Master Baek Woon, when lifeforms come to possess attraction force, they arrive in the Interdimensional Void and reach the Middle Realms.
Does this mean that one can possess something other than attraction force?
At my question, she smiles.
[It's quite simple. It's a conclusion you already know.]
"Pardon?"
Another sheet of paper floats in front of me.
This one is ashen.
[All lifeforms in the universe will accumulate attraction force as time passes. Those with sufficient attraction force reach the Interdimensional Void, but those who do not reach somewhere else.]
Some of the smaller drawings on the Astral Realm paper gather ink and are ejected from the Astral Realm.
The ashen paper layers with the sheets.
The drawings ejected from the Astral Realm sink into the ashen sheet.
I understand what the ashen sheet represents.
"...The Underworld."
That's right.
She is explaining that the Astral Realm is layered over both the Interdimensional Void and the Underworld.
If her explanation is correct, it makes sense why those who practice Ghost Path Methods in the Bright Cold Realm can connect to places like the outskirts of the Netherworld.
It's because they are layered.
"So, the structure of the Heavenly Domain is such that the Underworld and the Interdimensional Void are layered with the Astral Realm as the core?"
When I ask, Sacred Master Baek Woon shakes her head.
[That's not the end.]
Snap!
Two more sheets of paper appear.
[With the Astral Realm as the center, the Interdimensional Void and the Underworld are layered. Those who cultivate attraction force reach the Interdimensional Void, while those who fail are drawn into the Underworld after death. However, by adjusting the 'changes of attraction force,' one can reach yet another place.]
One of the sheets is covered with countless 'lines,' forming a net as if trying to cage the entire universe.
I recognize the identity of that net-like paper.
'Star Veins...?'
"Adjusting the changes of attraction force...are there cultivation methods for that?"
[No. The changes of attraction force cannot be cultivated by normal living beings. If 'the Underworld' and 'the Interdimensional Void' are where cultivators and living creatures go, this place is where 'stars' reach.]
"Stars...?"
[That's right. The stars that make up the Astral Realm, and the passage of time in this world, are regulated from that world. That world is the river of time, the Source River, or also called the Fate Realm (運界).]
"...!"
'I see...'
I understand the meaning of Sacred Master Baek Woon's words.
The world called the Source River, is the domain of the Heavenly Venerable of Time.
[The Source River is where things that are not living creatures, the souls that are not fully formed, the nonliving go to. There's no need to concern yourself with the Source River. The remaining one place is more important to living beings like us.]
Woo-woong!
At her words, I focus on the last sheet of paper.
That paper is filled with a kaleidoscope of all of Heavens’ natural colors.
[The Flower Realm, also known as the Eastern Heaven Flower Field, is a strange dimension. If living beings in the Astral Realm die and go to the Underworld, and the non-living from the Astral Realm go to the Source River to be regulated, then the Eastern Heaven Flower Field is the world that returns the non-living from the Source River and the souls from the Underworld back to the Astral Realm.]
"I see..."
[In any case, these five different dimensions layered together form a single Heavenly Domain. The vast majority of Heavenly Domains share this same structure.]
As I grasp the structure of the Heavenly Domain, I understand the true nature of my Star Vein Eye.
'I see. Just as Nether Perception senses the 'outskirts of the Netherworld,' the Star Vein Eye senses 'outskirts of the Source River,' the domain of the Heavenly Venerable of Time...'
I initially thought I obtained the Star Vein Eye simply by studying the attraction force between the star veins and stars. However, perhaps it isn't something I gained on my own but rather granted to me by the Heavenly Venerable of Time.
No, more precisely, because His Immortal Treasure, Yeung Seung, granted me permission that I came to possess it.
In that case, the senses of the Star Vein Eye seem to be something that will be impossible for anyone else to acquire, barring very exceptional circumstances.
I organize my thoughts and ask a question.
"So, what is the relationship between the Sacred Master's bestowal of titles and the structure of this Heavenly Domain?"
In response to my words, Sacred Master Baek Woon erases all the surrounding illusions, leaving only the five sheets of paper floating in front of me.
[These five worlds, layered and stacked, form the Heavenly Domain.]
Ssssss—
The five sheets of paper layer together, appearing like one slightly thicker sheet of paper.
As I nod, Sacred Master Baek Woon causes the paper to change.
The ink within the paper gathers, forming a small sphere the size of a finger.
With the sphere as the center, a distortion occurs around it.
[When a lifeform's strength exceeds a critical point, it transcends dimensions like this. Now, let me ask you something. This ink sphere here, which world does it belong to?]
"Since it transcended the flat surface and became three-dimensional, you could say it belongs to all the worlds."
[Correct. Now, here's another question. The ink, having gathered and transcended dimensions, now belongs to all the domains layered within this paper. In that case, 'where' will this ink ultimately belong?}
"...? What do you mean? Isn't the ink sphere something that transcended the flat surface of the paper?"
[Wrong. As long as its essence remains just ink, it can always be reabsorbed by any one of the sheets of paper.]
Sururuk—
The ink sphere that had popped out into the three-dimensional world is reabsorbed by the ashen paper.
I feel chills as I witness the scene.
I understand what Sacred Master Baek Woon is trying to say.
[The ceremony of bestowing a title upon you is to 'anchor' you to relatively safe places like the Interdimensional Void or the Astral Realm. Right now, you're like that ink sphere. You've transcended the plane, but because of that, you're in a position where you can be reabsorbed into any place. In other words, from the moment you entered that realm, you've been at risk of falling into places like the Underworld, the Eastern Heaven Flower Field, or the Source River—places where ordinary beings cannot survive.]
Shiver!
'That means...'
I recall the Heavenly Venerable of the Underworld who once pursued me during my regression.
The oldest existence.
The deepest darkness.
That meant that I could, at any moment, fall into the boundless darkness where that being sought to taxidermize me for eternity.
"...If I fall into the Underworld, I will surely die...but wouldn't I be able to survive if I fall into places like the Source River or the Eastern Heaven Flower Field?"
[Heh heh, you're optimistic. Didn't I tell you that the Source River is where the non-living, not living creatures go?]
"You did."
[If a living creature enters there, they will be 'transformed into a non-living' by the laws of that place. Rationality will be forcibly erased, and they'll be expelled into the Astral Realm as nothing more than cosmic dust. Do you think the Eastern Heaven Flower Field is any different? The Eastern Heaven Flower Field is far more closely linked to the Underworld and the Source River than places like the Astral Realm or the Interdimensional Void. If you fall into the Eastern Heaven Flower Field, you'd better worry about being dragged into the Underworld than about escaping.]
She looks at me sternly, dispelling all the illusions as she speaks.
[Accept it. The bestowal of a title is solely for your protection.]
But as I recall the structure of the Heavenly Domain that Sacred Master Baek Woon just showed me, I speak.
"...If the ink sphere is the Star Shattering stage being, at risk of being absorbed into another world and hence anchored in the Middle Realm to prevent that...then wouldn't it be resolved if we have a foothold in 'another' world as well?"
I explain my Nether Perception to her.
"I have cultivated the Ghost Path Method, and thus possess Nether Perception. Due to this, I am straddling both the outskirts of the Netherworld and the Bright Cold Realm. If I maintain a balance between the two, wouldn't that eliminate the worry of being pulled into one of them?"
However, Baek Woon shakes her head at my words.
[That's nonsense. Do you think balancing is that simple?! Unless you're anchored in at least 'three' worlds, it's impossible. Stop being stubborn and accept the title!]
"...Three worlds, huh..."
I ponder for a moment.
Then, I quickly come to a decision.
"Still, I will not accept the title."
[What!]
"No matter which world I fall into, I will endure it. Now, if you'll excuse me..."
After bowing respectfully to Sacred Master Baek Woon, I turn to leave White Jade Pavilion.
The next moment—
Tukwang!
A tremendous impact strikes my back.
[If you insist on being stubborn, I will have no choice but to force the title onto you...]
I turn around with a frown.
"...Are you saying you intend to try?"
Paaaatt!
A blinding, pure white flash explodes from Heavenly Lotus Mountain.
I tense up, gathering my momentum.
The next moment.
The Sacred Master battle begins.