Dao Sect, Library.
Jiang Yan sat inside, poring over books and digging into the secrets of martial arts:
"The path of martial arts for the Human Race is a path of life's ascension."
"The foundation of the Human Race's martial cultivation lies in one purpose alone: longevity, the pursuit of immortality."
"The Dao Realm: the realm of Gods and Devils. One may become a god, an emperor, an Emperor, a king..."
"To reach it, one may either delve into the power of one's own bloodline, or seize the spirits of heaven and earth to make up for one's deficiencies. Those who achieve great mastery can all attain the Dao Realm."
"The Human Race is but one of the myriad races across the vast sea. Their flesh is frail and their souls weak. To attain the Dao Realm, they have no choice but to seize the spirits of heaven and earth to replenish themselves and advance further."
Brilliant golden light spilled down from the sky, blocked by the window lattice and scattered in flecks across the room.
Jiang Yan held an ancient book in his hands, reading with rapt attention.
The book recorded no cultivation techniques. Instead, it explained the path to attaining the Dao Realm. After reading it over and over, he distilled its message into four words:
The strong prey on the weak!
The Way of Heaven took from those who had more and gave to those who had less. The Human Race was not born as Gods and Devils and had no innate bloodline power. To attain the Dao Realm, they could only plunder heaven and earth to strengthen themselves.
Once they reached the Jie Realm, the bloodline power of almost every race—not just the Human Race—had been exhausted. At that point, they could burn their bodies as