Matters of the Literary Dao had, fundamentally, always begun from the humblest places and been tied to mortals.
Though the Literary Dao could stand above the heavenly palace, its roots lay in the dust.
This was the fundamental difference between it and the cultivation methods of other Daos.
Other cultivators looked at aptitude, spiritual roots, and comprehension. Although cultivators all emerged from the mortal world, as their cultivation advanced—even as early as Foundation Establishment—they had already begun to break away from mortal dust.
The distinction between Immortal and mortal began here.
Once a person entered the Return to Void or Ascension realm, they would basically possess only a heart that sought the Dao, casting everything else aside.
Everything existed only for the path toward becoming a true immortal.
Yet the vessel of the Literary Dao could never break away from the commonplace things of the masses. It could stand high above and look down upon the human world, but everything it possessed came from the human world. It would never leave it behind.
This was the uniqueness of the Literary Dao.
A person might write a fine essay, one filled with pure qi, or even one like supernatural abilities and Daoist magic.
Once brought forth, it could kill people, slay enemies, and employ countless other methods. Yet all of this came from literary accumulation. It might have nothing whatsoever to do with the essence, qi, and spirit of other writings, but it was all built upon the heritage accumulated by those who came before.
Only by standing upon the shoulders of predecessors could one climb ever higher.
So-called writings were affairs of a thousand ages; from today, one began anew. This beginning anew referred both to breaking free of an individual creator's essence, qi, and spirit, and to overlapping with