Gods and Buddhas

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Gods and Buddhas (神佛)
Species/Race	Divine entities; many are described as Spirit Thread parasites or beings created for exploration through Interaction Zones 642 677
Affiliation	Spirit Flight Heaven system; independent Secret Gods; Neutral Gods 503 560
Occupation/Role	Objects of Worship God faiths; sources of Spiritization, Divine Decrees, divine might, and Spirit General power 196 491 502
Status	Active, though individual Gods and Buddhas can be killed, forgotten, revived, or cast into the Forgotten Abyss 579
First Appearance	Daoist deities are enshrined in Tai Xuan Hall, including Taiqing Moral Celestial Venerable of the Three Pure Ones 195

Nature and Existence

Gods and Buddhas normally do not act in the mortal world without a physical medium. Statues and people can serve as vessels through which they influence reality, while their strongest true bodies reside in their respective Voids. 351 566 575

Their consciousnesses are connected to the Great Abyss. The platforms within the Great Abyss are manifestations of their true bodies, and a deity's platform falls into the Forgotten Abyss only after it is completely forgotten. 579 631

Later discoveries indicate that Gods and Buddhas may have been created within Interaction Zones to explore the world beyond the heavenly curtain. 642

Forms and Manifestations

Gods and Buddhas possess no single physical form. Their vessels and projections range from humanoid statues to animal-human hybrids and massive monstrous bodies. 275 486 638

• Statues are vessels rather than the deities themselves; complete statues can conceal secrets and substantial danger. 312 351
• A God or Buddha may manifest through paintings, statues, people, or fabricated offspring carrying only a trace of its power. 514 566 638
• Their true bodies are associated with platforms and Voids in the Great Abyss. 566 579
• The Three Pure Ones appears as a single white-robed body with three elderly heads, while the Western Sect's Tathagata manifests with black-and-gold Buddha light. 638 644

Classification

Origins

Type	Description
Physical Body Gods	Gods who advanced from human Spirit Generals. 514
Innate Gods	Deities said to have existed from the beginning and to possess their own Voids; they are also said to have originated beyond the heavens. 514 517

Religious Standing

Category	Description	Known example
Manifest Gods	Gods incorporated into Spirit Flight Teaching's religious hierarchy and assigned God Positions. 560	Earth Mothers, Heavenly Gods, God Lords
Secret Gods	Gods that refused to accept a Spirit Flight Teaching God Position. 560	Remnant Gods and complete Secret Gods
Neutral Gods	Particularly powerful Secret Gods whose faiths were effectively tolerated and later reclassified. 560	Moon God

Hierarchy

Classification	Ranks
Secret Gods	Remnant Gods; complete Secret Gods 560
Manifest Gods	Earth Mothers; Heavenly Gods; God Lords; Spirit Flight Heavens 560
Earlier terminology	Spirit-Attached Bodies; Subordinate Gods; Main Gods; God Position Creators 560

Spirit Flight Teaching formally incorporated the Gods and Buddhas of the Great Dao Sect, True One Sect, and Buddhist School into its Earth Mother and Heavenly God system. Faiths that resisted this control became external or Secret Teachings. 503

Powers and Characteristics

Divine Might

Every movement of a God or Buddha carries divine might. Their attacks can impose unavoidable paralytic shock upon the mind and spirit; insufficient will can leave a target rigid or frighten them to death. 519

• Divine might can be concentrated into varied True Seal arts through combinations of consciousness, emotion, and martial arts attainment. 645
• Divine might and force can affect Spirit Core holders and Worship God followers in ways ordinary people cannot perceive. 619
• Divine might is ineffective outside the heavenly curtain, a limitation discovered by the Moon God after entering the Outer Realm. 646

Spirit Thread Bodies

Gods and Buddhas possess bodies built from black, red, and silver Spirit Threads. Black Spirit Thread forms the core structure, red Spirit Thread forms flesh and skin, and silver Spirit Thread functions as blood. 519

• Their Spirit Threads are the source from which Spirit General Spirit Threads derive. 519
• A deity's body is vastly tougher than a Spirit General's; Zhang Rongfang could evade Stone God's attacks but could not harm it with his Immortal Method. 519 520
• Spirit Generals and Divine Generals are substantially weaker derivatives rather than equals of the Gods and Buddhas they worship. 519

Void and Memory

A God's Void is the source of its power and the location of its true body. To enter a Void, a core Spirit Thread must be combined with a Core Statue. 566

• Killing a God or Buddha does not necessarily erase it; as long as its platform, worship, or memory remain, it can revive. 579
• A deity killed inside its Void may return as a new being if worship resumes, rather than as the same consciousness that was destroyed. 579
• Destroying believers, artifacts, temples, and statues can cause a deity to be forgotten and fall into the Forgotten Abyss. 579
• Gods and Buddhas may form connections with mortals through Spirit Cores, marks, and entities such as the Blood Lotus. 529

Doubtful Cloud Mist

Doubtful Cloud Mist is said to originate from Innate Gods rather than being an ability they created. It isolates living beings from the harmful effects Innate Gods naturally exert on their surroundings. 517

• Spirit Generals naturally possess Doubtful Cloud Mist and can open or disperse it at will. 491
• Gods and Buddhas can use the mist to establish contact with suitable targets, as seen when the White Scale God's painting triggered its arrival. 514
• Gods and Buddhas travel through the mist more easily than ordinary martial artists. 658

Worship God and Spiritization

Worship God is the transformation ritual through which mortals become Spiritualized Individuals. Their rank is determined immediately upon worship. 196 232

Spiritualized Rank	Description
Spirit Guard	Usually transformed from ordinary people; gains a body as hard as metal and increased speed and strength. 232
Spirit Vein	Intermediate Spiritualized rank above Spirit Guards. 196 232
Spirit General	The strongest class of Worship God practitioner and the Gods and Buddhas' most powerful mortal agents. 196 491
Divine General	The highest tier among Spirit Generals, including figures capable of guarding Great Ling for generations. 503

Spirit Generals can actively perform Great God Descent, allowing the God or Buddha they worship to greatly enhance or possess them. Their strength depends on the deity behind them, their Spirit Thread quality, martial arts realm, and strength of will. 491 507

• Spirit General Spirit Threads are classified as silver, red, or black; darker threads indicate a deeper union with the worshipped deity. 491
• Gods and Buddhas issue Divine Decrees directly into their followers' minds, compelling immediate action. 495 502
• Worshippers whose lifespans reach their limit can be forcibly transformed into God Helmets, a reserve force directly controlled by divine sects. 402
• The number of believers and a sect's territorial control contribute to the strength of its God or Buddha. 332
• The Ten Thousand Sects Covenant once restrained Worship God practitioners from consuming ordinary people's brain marrow to increase their sect's total Spirit Thread. 469

Relationships

• Spirit Flight Heaven — Governs a vast hierarchy of Earth Mothers and Heavenly Gods, accumulates divine might, and enforces control through the Manifest God Register. 503 646
• Worship God practitioners — Mortal followers transformed into Spirit Guards, Spirit Veins, Spirit Generals, and related divine servants. 196 232 491
• Spirit Generals — Their strongest standard mortal agents; they can invoke Great God Descent and wield derivatives of divine Spirit Threads. 491 519
• Zhang Rongfang / Qiankun Zi — A major enemy who studies their nature, enters their Voids, destroys their platforms, and seeks to purge their influence from the world. 519 579 632 644
• Reverse Time Society — A long-standing anti-divine faction that resists becoming anchors for Gods and Buddhas through repeated forgetting and madness. 525 627 638
• White Scale God — A Remnant God who explains much of their hierarchy, Voids, Spirit Threads, and revival mechanics to Zhang Rongfang. 514 519 560 579

Story Role / Major Arcs

• During the era of Myriad Gods, major powers competed with mighty gods behind them; ideological and Worship God differences split the Great Dao Sect into Jade Void Palace and Heavenly Treasure Palace. 207
• Zhang Rongfang's investigation begins after he acquires an intact Blood God statue and concludes that Gods and Buddhas may influence human subconsciousness. 312 314 323
• The collapse of the Ten Thousand Sects Covenant removes restraints on Worship God practitioners, contributing to massacres and sectarian expansion. 468 469
• Contact with the White Scale God reveals the distinction between Physical Body Gods and Innate Gods, while Zhang Rongfang's confrontation with Stone God demonstrates the gulf between mortals and divine bodies. 514 519 520
• The Human Immortal Temple becomes a designated taboo after Zhang Rongfang kills Spirit General Sang Lan without a Demon Weapon, prompting Divine Decrees and investigations by numerous divine sects. 502 503
• Zhang Rongfang enters the Mo Sang God's Void, kills it, and learns that destroying a deity's worship and remembrance is necessary to prevent its return. 575 579
• During the Heaven and Earth Convergence, Divine Shepherd and Saint Dance overwhelm the Great Sect Alliance, while Zhang Rongfang resolves to cleanse the world of Gods and Buddhas. 618 619
• The Human Immortal Temple and its allies destroy sect altars, statues, and Worship God practitioners across Great Ling in an effort to sever divine influence. 632 633
• Da Ling Desire Heaven gathers more than twenty divine offspring to eliminate Zhang Rongfang, but their coalition fails to permanently destroy him after an assault within the Three Pure Ones Void. 638 644
• After the heavenly curtain is breached, surrendered Gods and Buddhas are employed to patrol Great Ling and suppress unauthorized divine rituals. 652 658