Ryu felt that his Master was right, he had been thinking of the Origin Flame too simply. It wasn't just that it allowed him to remember things, it rather allowed him to remember things Perfectly. This was an important distinction and it was something that even Sky Gods couldn't do entirely.
Thanks to the Origin Flame, Ryu was even able to remember that mysterious Mortal Qi he had experienced within his mother's womb. There wasn't a single expert without an Origin Flame that could replicate such a feat.
If he translated this toward his own comprehension instead, the change would be massive.
Why was it that breakthroughs in Inheritance were stronger after regression? It was because to experience the same breakthrough and allow the Heavens to recognize it, it had to be on a level beyond what the original was. It was like taking a hit of drugs, the same dose wouldn't be able to allow you to reach the same high, you had to surpass it to feel that same feeling.
This was all to say that there was a clear distinction. 'Better' didn't necessarily imply an improvement upon the original. Meaning, your next breakthrough could have little to nothing to do with your original comprehension on the matter.
For Ryu who had broken through and regressed so many times, this was especially glaring. He was continuously mastering 'better' Inheritances, but he was benefitting from his previous comprehensions. Instead, it was like he was abandoning one foundation after another, all for the sake of building a completely new skyscraper.
However, if Ryu took his Master's advice, he would be able to return to the previous foundations he abandoned, fuse them into one large base, and then build a skyscraper that put his current one to shame.
Even if he wouldn't gain the benefit of blazing through the Path Extinction Realm like he would have initially, every step would be so firm and solid that every Extinction event, so long as his Dao didn't crumble, would raise him up two, three, maybe even tenfold what it would have originally.
Of course, with this sort of approach, it would make the amount of qi Ryu needed at the Sky God Realm even more astronomical. But, this wasn't something Ryu would even deem to worry about right now. If there came a day where that was the only problem he faced, then it would mean that his enemies had long since been buried beneath his feet.
"I'll do as you say." Ryu nodded. It wouldn't be a simple one step solution unless he was hit with a sudden enlightenment. In fact, the process of fusing his foundations and comprehensions would be just as arduous as fusing his comprehension of the nine weapons into his Great Sword Staffs. Considering Ryu hadn't even finished doing the latter yet, he had his work cut out for him.
"Master, what do you think of the Phoenix Sky God? Why would they not allow me to communicate with my original Spiritual Foundation?"
In explaining his thoughts on what it could mean for his Inheritances to constantly regress, Ryu had, of course, mentioned his previous speculations. In the end, that touched on the Phoenix Sky God and their oddities. He wasn't quite sure of what to do.
Balaur paused for a moment before answering.
"I think you're a bit too quick to conclude that the Phoenix Sky God has sinister intentions. Though I wouldn't lower my guard, I also wouldn't say that that this was an evil act either.
"When you sign a contract, there are certain stipulations to be met. A Sky God's Spiritual Foundation can only be given out once before it falls dormant for a very long time and considering how things are going for our world, there's not much time remaining to begin with.
"Normally, your original Spiritual Foundation would have been used as a sacrifice to summon the Sky God's, this is how inheritances normally work. Your situation would almost never happen.
"I know that you have a hot temper and don't like to take any losses, but think about this from the Phoenix Sky God's perspective. They invested all they had left in you, so how could they let you walk out on your responsibilities so easily?"
Ryu's gaze flickered, seemingly picking up on a subtle meaning behind his Master's words.
"Is there another purpose behind the Inheritance of a Spiritual Foundation that I'm unaware of? Now that I think about it, if a Sky God just wanted to pass on their Inheritance, why not just do it with a Legacy World like everyone else? You seem to be implying that there's a deeper reason?"
Ryu wasn't wrong. If he gained one Inheritance from a Legacy World, then used it as a spring board to become stronger and gain a stronger Inheritance from a different Legacy World later on, the original Legacy World creator wouldn't smite him from the afterlife.
There was give an take in everything, true. But the fact the Phoenix Sky God was the reason Ryu could cultivate at all was enough, was it not?
The reason experts left their inheritances behind was to gather Karma from the afterlife so that when they were reborn, their circumstances would be more favorable. There was no guarantee that they would become experts again, but even in the case that they weren't, they hoped for a peaceful and uneventful life at the very least.
Following this logic, the fact that the Phoenix Sky God was the impetus for Ryu's cultivation journey was enough, no? They wouldn't just stop gaining credit for this if Ryu returned to his old Spiritual Foundation, and that was on top of the fact Ryu wasn't even sure if that was possible.
So… Why was the Phoenix Sky God so territorial? They had reacted almost like a scorned lover, Ryu couldn't quite understand, that was why he had jumped to the conclusions he had. In his mind, the only logical conclusion was that the Phoenix Sky God had sinister intentions. But… It seemed his Master had other thoughts…
"Firstly… Are you aware of what a Spiritual Foundation is and how its meaning differs across cultivation Realms…?"