The research direction of the innate-attribute cultivation methods in the Nine Immortal Realm was actually completely different from that of the Nine Sons Channels. They were practically two extremes heading in opposite directions. Although both took affinity with innate attributes as their foundation, they followed entirely different paths.
The Nine Sons Channels directly communicated with and connected to the power of innate attributes, turning oneself into a transit station for the power's medium. The power of the innate channels became one's output force. Li Poxiao and Xia Ruize were typical examples of this.
The Nine Immortal Realm was different. Its cultivation method was based on affinity and borrowing power. Looking back over the foundations I had learned, the cultivation method most similar to this was the Cloud Dragon Divine Art I had cultivated in the Ancient Dragon Household of the Nine Heavens. The Cloud Dragon Divine Art had nine levels in total, beginning with Light Body, Sword Qi, Armor Shield, Hundred Weapons, Myriad Swords, Concealing the Edge, and Following the Dragon, and culminating in Freedom of the Heart and Supreme Limitlessness. These represented the realms achieved through using Sword Qi. Of course, I had cultivated it to the level of Supreme Limitlessness, so I understood cultivation methods centered on control and affinity exceptionally well.
The General Dao Formula of the Nine Immortal Dao Formula was a cultivation method of this sort. Of course, since it was not tied to the nine innate attributes, the general principles soon branched into schools based on the nine innate attributes, such as the Six Paths cultivation methods of the reincarnation attribute and the Eastern Emperor cultivation methods evolved from the Heavenly Dao school. They should have been similar as well.
Admittedly, I had deduced all this through tracing things back and extrapolating, so there