'The first path is the easiest for you. Some of the best beast tamers in history have been those with your Ice Jade Crystal body for obvious reasons. Little brother just smells too good.' Ailsa giggled.
'This will be easier on your Mental Realm as well. Beasts are obviously more autonomous than undead creatures, so the pressure on your Mental Realm is only limited to the initial contract signed. In addition, beasts can improve very quickly. Their comprehension is mostly based on their innate talent, so they really only need resources to cross realms.
'Still, there are cons as well. Firstly, beasts aren't as unintelligent as humans paint them out to be. As of the Fifth Order and above, their thoughts are no less complex than yours. As such, they have their own societies and hierarchies as well. If a human suddenly starts accumulating vast amounts of their kind, it won't go unnoticed.
'In addition, the selection of beasts in this Realm is lacking. There's a reason the dominant race here is that of humans. The Ancient Beasts were killed off long ago, leaving only fledgling beasts. The greatest beast of this Realm is likely only of the Tenth Order, far more powerful than you now, but not nearly enough to help you accomplish your goals.
'This means that if you want to take this route, little brother will have to do one of two things. You'll have to either set aside even more resources so that I can help the beasts of this Realm break their bloodline shackles, or, we'll have to travel to other Realms. Of course, the latter of these options makes the first drawback I mentioned many times more dangerous.'
Ryu listened carefully as he slipped into a tub of Seeking Wood filled with Vital Tree Essence for recovery.
Though there were drawbacks, it wasn't impossible. After all, Ryu had the Incubator and Ailsa, both of whom were capable of helping him nurture large swaths of Spiritual Herbs. He was in a unique position to raise many beasts.
The most glaring issue was one Ailsa hadn't mentioned, and that was one of space. Even if Ryu had the resources to raise so many beasts, where would he do so? The Incubator's space was decently large, at least the size of a large Clan's territory even on the Shrine Plane, but one had to remember that it required Ryu's strength to transport things in and out of it. That was a limiting factor for sure.
'The second option is necromancy.'
Hearing this, Ryu looked up toward Ailsa in confusion. Hadn't she just said that wasn't a possibility?
Ailsa smiled coyly. 'Though I'm not a Quibus Faerie, who said one must have a Quibus Faerie to become a necromancer? In all of this, you shouldn't forget that you were chosen by the Phoenix Sky God.'
Ryu's eyes widened with surprise. "You mean?"
'Your trial encompassed life, reincarnation, and death for a reason. The white flames of your Spiritual Foundation are also linked to that reason. The Life Flame, known as the Ice Flame of your Ice Phoenix Clan is blue. The Death Flame of the Dark Phoenix Clan is black. The Reincarnation Flame, known as the Rebirth Flame of your Fire Phoenix Clan is red. The culmination of them all are your white flames.
'The Phoenix Sky God embodies them all, this is why his legend is so muddied and it took so much effort for you to grasp the faintest image of his life. If you tap into his Legacy, not only life and reincarnation, but the subtleties of death will lay bare before you.
'Even if your Mental Realm will restrict you, comprehending death will greatly lessen the burden. Unfortunately, this path has even more roadblocks. Namely, though the Phoenix Sky God followed the Path of Death in part, he wasn't a necromancer. Meaning, even if you reflected upon his legacy, you would receive no help from him in that regard.
'In addition, you have two opposing phoenix bloodlines within your body that will make it difficult for you to grasp concepts of death. To make matters worse, you also have the Lightning Qilin bloodline within you. Lightning is exceptionally good at wiping out yin, which would make your path even more difficult.'
Ryu smiled wryly. It seemed there were even more challenges to this one than the last one. Maybe the only good news was that in Ryu's time, there was no taboo on Death comprehension like there was for those who cultivated the Mental Realm.
'The third possibility is something you likely don't know about as it's a path available only to those with a Noble Faerie as their Life Partner.' Ailsa stuck her ample chest out proudly, something that looked quite adorable in her half a foot tall form. 'It's possible for me to open a path to the Faerie Realm and allow you to contract other Faeries. Though it would be almost impossible to quell Faeries at or above my level, it would be possible to take control of lesser Faeries.
'The more Faeries you have supporting you and even fighting on your behalf, the easier fighting 'alone' becomes. Though, much like the other paths, this path has its issues as well.
'First, taking Faeries under your wing can only be done if both parties are willing. It cannot be done by force. As you know, intimacy is incredibly important, and, the stronger the Faerie is, the less useful I am in helping that process. Secondly, Faeries can only exist outside the Faerie Realm with the help of an anchor. Because I'm such a high-grade Faerie, much of your capacity as an anchor has already be taken up. And, the only way to increase that capacity is by cultivating your Mental Realm…'
Ryu sighed. He had always thought his talent was infallible, come to find out his talent was suddenly his most limiting factor.
'The fourth possibility simply requires the knowledge and vast resources, and that's to use puppets. High grade puppets are quite good in battle, though they'd never be as good as humans. They simply don't have the flexibility. Quite frankly, though this option puts the least stress on your Mental Realm, it's also the worst option. At least, I've never heard of a puppet as strong as a World Sea Cultivator.
'And the fifth option…' Ailsa smiled. '… Knowing you, it is the option you'd like the best – and that's simply to become so powerful that no outside aid matters.
'Focus your growth on movement speed and recoverability. With the Northern Heavenly Wind, you have the potential for your speed to become unmatched, but that alone isn't enough. We need to raise the Northern Heavenly Wind from its embryonic stage by feeding it more winds. In addition, finding the Southern Wind, the Breath of Life, would give you endless stamina and recoverability. Emphasize your Phoenix Bloodlines. Rebirth from near death and the Natural Order of Life are both hidden within you.
'So… What do you think? Did Big Sis give you enough options? Which will you choose?'
Ryu fell into his thoughts. Though he now had many options, each was vastly more difficult than the next. He began to wonder if using such a path was even worth it… Maybe he should begin to cultivate his own forces as Ailsa suggested from the very beginning?