Balaur rarely got to explain much of anything to this disciple of his, so when he got the chance to, even though he was certain Ryu knew at least 90% of the answer, he still chose to explain.
"The first time your Spiritual Foundation has any sort of relevance it at your Awakening. It becomes the foundation for your future cultivation and you lay the ground work for it immediately. The further you progress through your Rites, the larger it becomes and this foundational size becomes important toward your later strength.
"When you step through your Rites and enter the Pulse Opening Realm, the Qi Fumes your Spiritual Foundation releases become the driving momentum you need to open your Qi Pulses. The larger your Spiritual Foundation, the more Qi Fumes will waft into your Meridians, and the faster you will be able to open your Qi Pulses. Of course, this will also be reliant on the sturdiness of your Meridians as well…
"Upon crossing the Pulse Opening Realm and entering the Qi Refinement Realm, the thickness of your accumulated Qi Fumes will be what decides how quickly you can solidify and catalyze it into true Mortal Qi!
"Beyond the Qi Refinement Realm, you enter the Spiritual Severing Realm. It's only by severing the connection between your Spiritual Foundation and reconnecting it in continuous cycles can your Meridians grow in strength.
"As the connection strengthens, the Qi Fumes that Spiritual Foundation wafts become more complex, higher in purity and more valuable. What your Meridians weren't able to sense at lower Realms, and the high level Qi Fumes that couldn't make it through your weaker connection previously, now makes itself known, strengthening you many times over and even giving your Meridians the same spatial characteristics your Foundation has, allowing you to store far more qi.
"You can see here, each foundational step is connected to the Spiritual Foundation. Many say that the Spiritual Foundation doesn't show its true strength until the Dao Pedestal Realm, but this is wrong. From the very beginning, it's been with you every step of the way!
"It's only thanks to the strengthening that the Spiritual Foundation provides that a normal individual can survive the opening of the Qi Vessels of the Divine Vessel Realm, that one can take on the connecting of Pulse and Vessel in the Connecting Heaven Realm, and one can withstand the concentration of Immortal Qi upon entering the Immortal Ring Realm.
"Even for you, my disciple, who skipped the Spiritual Severing Realm, you experienced endless benefits just reconnecting your Spiritual Foundation after just a single Severing, allowing you to reap all the benefits in one sweep.
"But then comes the Path Extinction Realm. This is where the fundamental function of the Spiritual Foundation truly begins to change, not the Dao Pedestal Realm.
"While you undergo your Extinctions, it is your Spiritual Foundation that keeps you roots, it's it that remembers what your foundation is built upon and it's it that guides you back. The feedback loop strengthens your Spiritual Foundation in return and enhances your connection with it. Finally, at this point, after reaching the pinnacle, the Spiritual Foundation is no longer just about wafting Qi Fumes, the connection has become strong and sturdy enough that it can even begin to store qi for you, exponentially increasing your strength!
"Upon entering the Dao Pedestal Realm is the second chance you get to increase the size of your Spiritual Foundation. You have now gained one chance in the Mortal Realms, and this will be your chance in the Immortal Realms. After undergoing your Extinctions, your Inheritances and comprehensions have been beaten down and bloodied for years. However, this will be your chance to build them back up once again.
"The stronger you build up your comprehension, the stronger your Spiritual Foundation becomes and the larger it will grow. Because your connection has been solidified to the greatest degree, this directly correlates to a stronger store of qi for you. But, ultimately, it will still be Fumes.
"The truth of the matter is that 99% of Qi is in the form of Fumes. When you catalyzed Qi Fumes into Mortal Qi and then to Immortal Qi later, you were just stepping into a higher form of Qi Fumes. Even if it seemed thick in your Meridians, it can never compare to true Liquid Qi.
"This is precisely why the Cosmic Seed Realm and everything you've done to this point is so important. When you reach that Realm, the reason you gain access to Cosmic Qi is because the Cosmic Seed of comprehension you plant into your Spiritual Foundation will cause a crack. This crack will release Qi Fumes unlike anything you've experienced before, allowing you to catalyze Immortal Qi into Cosmic Qi.
"When your Cosmic Seeds have dug deep enough roots to become blooming flowers, your entire Spiritual foundation will shatter, forming your World Sea and the highest form of energy you will ever touch upon. The density and depth of your Spiritual Foundation is beyond your wildest imagination…
"And it also become the foundation for your Godhood."
Balaur gazed deeply toward Ryu, his expression painted with the utmost seriousness.
"A Godhood is no longer as simple as comprehension. When your Cosmic Seeds have germinated, they grow, becoming flourishing plants and lands. Life is breathed into your Godhood and it can become a world all its own.
"When a Sky God passes a Spiritual Foundation down, they aren't just passing on an Inheritance, they're passing on their personification. A Legacy can only be Inherited once and that will be it. It will be up to the inheritor whether or not they want to pass it along. But, a Sky God's Spiritual Foundation is left in a perpetual loop and cycle, a continuous funnel of Karma of a Sky God across as many lives as they live.
"The difference is like night and day, they cannot be compared."
Ryu frowned. "And what if a Sky God manages to accumulate enough Karma to become a Sky God once again in another life."
"…"
Balaur didn't respond immediately. The chances of this happening were almost nil. Becoming a Sky God was simply too difficult. Even if you lives through millions of lives, chances were you wouldn't even reach the Dao Pedestal Realm once in those chances, let alone Sky God.
But… Though Balaur had said that the Phoenix Sky God likely didn't have sinister intentions, he still had to be honest.
"… In the case that they reawaken to their own memories, they would want it back."