"I came, of course, to vanquish demons and defend the Dao! And to earn some meritorious deeds along the way, so there would be fewer shackles when I sought the Dao Fruit of a Divine Immortal," Fairy Yuquan said with a smile.
"Hmm?"
"Little Friend Qingyun has yet to become a True Immortal, so it is only natural that you do not understand the mysteries involved..."
As Fairy Yuquan explained in a gentle, unhurried manner, Shen Mo gained a deeper understanding of cultivation in the True Immortal realm.
Even if one had only attained the lowest grade of Ghost Immortal upon first becoming immortal, one could gradually cultivate and elevate one's Dao practice, seeking higher Dao Fruits. It was simply a process fraught with unimaginable difficulty... Cultivating from Ghost Immortal to Human Immortal was far harder than cultivating from an ordinary mortal to a Ghost Immortal; cultivating from Human Immortal to Earth Immortal was far harder than cultivating from an ordinary mortal to a Human Immortal; and so on.
Yet there was not no shortcut to be found.
If one had "merit upon the Dao and deeds among men," rendering sufficient meritorious service to this world, one could reduce the difficulty of cultivation to a certain extent. Not only would cultivation yield twice the result with half the effort, but the odds of encountering all manner of tribulations and bottlenecks would also decrease greatly.
Furthermore, entering a higher realm required more than sufficient cultivation. One also had to fulfill the hidden condition of "adequate meritorious deeds."
Otherwise, no matter how profound one's Dao practice or formidable one's strength, one would remain bound by layer upon layer of shackles, unable to break through one's original realm!
Fairy Yuquan was now an Earth Immortal. To attain the Dao Fruit of a Divine