Clearing Things Up

After exchanging Sovereign's Might, the atmosphere between Aier and Pash eased considerably.

"By the way, Aier, there's something I've been very curious about."

"Would you mind clearing it up for me?"

"Oh?"

Aier raised an eyebrow. "Is there really anything in this world that could leave a Sovereign puzzled?"

"Aier, don't put Sovereigns on too high a pedestal."

Pash shook his head. "You're at Grand Perfection, so you naturally know how powerful Willpower is."

"Most Sovereigns owe their strength to the Willpower contained in their Sovereign Sparks."

"Other than that, there's nothing particularly special about Sovereigns."

Aier smiled.

He knew all this, of course.

In fact, even Pash probably didn't know as much about it as Aier did.

It was true. There was nothing particularly special about Sovereigns.

What was special was the Sovereign Spark!

A Sovereign's strength came almost entirely from the Willpower within their Sovereign Spark.

What Pash was leaving out was that the Willpower within a Sovereign Spark was practically inexhaustible.

Even though the grade of a Sovereign Spark limited how much Willpower a Sovereign could use, it still far surpassed that of someone at Grand Perfection.

The range of one's divine sense could, to a certain extent, also be taken as a measure of strength.

With a single thought, a Sovereign could spread their divine sense across all of Hell.

Even after using Willpower and Sovereign's Might, Aier could spread his divine sense only across a large city—about one-tenth of a prefecture. There was simply no comparison with a Sovereign.

"Go ahead and ask. I'll tell you what I know."

"What do Laws or Edicts look like in the eyes of someone at Grand Perfection?"

"Just as I thought!"

The moment Pash asked, Aier understood.

This was probably the question every non-Grand Perfection expert most wanted answered.

They knew that the end of cultivating Laws or Edicts was Grand Perfection.

It was a realm reached only by completely fusing all the Profound Mysteries of a Law or fully comprehending an Edict.

Countless years had passed, the world had changed, and generations had come and gone.

There were still more than sixty Sovereigns.

But the number of experts at Grand Perfection could be counted on one's fingers.

Some Sovereigns might have asked other experts at Grand Perfection this question, but Blood Peak Sovereign Pash certainly wasn't one of them.

After all, with Pash's strength, he wouldn't dare leave Hell for another Divine Plane or the Supreme Plane, afraid that another Sovereign with a Destruction Divine Clone might lie in wait for him.

The only expert at Grand Perfection in Hell was Dunnington, the Destruction Overgod's emissary, and Pash had little contact with him.

Only after becoming the first Sovereign to befriend Aier did Pash finally ask.

"Laws in the eyes of someone at Grand Perfection?"

Aier pondered for a moment.

Perhaps no one in the Coiling Dragon Universe understood this better than he did.

For one thing, the other experts at Grand Perfection had focused their efforts on a single set of Profound Mysteries. Apart from Fate Chief Sovereign Ao Fu, Aier didn't know whether any of the others had additional Divine Clones.

And after refining so many Godheads, Aier's understanding and use of the Profound Mysteries could not be surpassed by any other Earth Grand Perfection expert, should one exist.

Besides Earth Element, Aier's Wind Element Divine Clone was now just a hair's breadth from Grand Perfection.

So when it came to what the Profound Mysteries looked like to those at and below Grand Perfection, Aier was perhaps the most qualified to speak.

"Let me put it this way..."

"To someone at Grand Perfection, the Profound Mysteries of a Law hold no secrets!"

"Before reaching Grand Perfection, everyone who cultivates Laws or Edicts is like a blind man feeling an elephant. They use the fragments they've felt and piece them together like a puzzle to form the elephant."

"Put the pieces together correctly, and you've found the point where the Profound Mysteries of a Law fit together."

"Piece together a trunk or a leg, and that means you've completely fused two Profound Mysteries."

"Piece together the whole elephant, and you've reached Grand Perfection."

"If the elephant is missing its trunk or eyes—or even just a single hair—you can only fall short at the threshold of Grand Perfection."

"Those at Grand Perfection, however, have gained a pair of eyes. They can see the true form of the elephant that is the Law, and they can shape the Law into the form of an elephant at will."

"I see..."

"'A blind man feeling an elephant' really is a perfect description."

After hearing Aier's explanation, Pash sighed.

But even knowing the difference between those at Grand Perfection and those who weren't, thanks to Aier's words, didn't help Pash much.

For one thing, the Four Edicts were different from the Seven Elemental Laws. The Four Edicts were each complete wholes in themselves.

Cultivating the Elemental Laws was a gradual process, from easy to difficult, with each step building on the last.

Cultivating the Edicts tested one's comprehension far more. They were difficult from the very beginning.

After getting the answer he had wondered about for countless years, Pash chatted with Aier for a little longer, then took his leave.

Aier didn't try to stop him.

It wasn't as if they'd never have another chance to meet.

As long as Pash wanted to, and Aier was still in Hell, Pash could find him at any time.

And if Aier wanted to see Pash, he could simply head to the center of Blood Peak Continent, to Tianshan Prefecture, and chat with him.

Neither Aier nor Pash thought this would be their last meeting.

Watching Pash walk away, Eric suddenly slapped himself across the face.

"Smack!"

"Hey, Eric, what are you doing?"

Eric's action startled Aier, who quickly asked him what was wrong.

The fact that most of Eric's face had swollen red showed he hadn't held back.

"Lord Aier, I'm checking whether I'm dreaming."

Eric gave Aier a fawning smile. "It seems I'm not dreaming. I really did meet a Sovereign!"

Sovereigns were mysterious figures even to the countless beings of Hell.

They ruled all of Hell, and they were also the ones who made and upheld its order.

Everyone knew that Sovereigns possessed unimaginable powers. Even an Asura Prefect, a mighty expert standing at the peak of the divine level, would be killed in an instant if he angered a Sovereign.

Moreover, Floating Shadows of Sovereigns in action had circulated throughout Hell: images of a colossal face blotting out the sky.

Even though it was only a projection, the might radiating from the vast amounts of Sovereign's Might caused everyone beneath it to prostrate themselves and regard the Sovereign with the utmost awe.

"Ah..."

Seeing Eric like this, Aier shook his head. He didn't intend to try to change Eric's views.

Eric was, after all, merely an Highgod who had advanced by refining a Godhead. Although becoming Aier's steward had broadened his horizons considerably,

even many Asura Prefects went their entire lives without ever seeing a Sovereign. That was enough to explain how Eric felt.