Having decided to build a capital city, the last matter Zhang Tie discussed with the three elders was the hierarchy of sacred ranks and rites established by the Ancient God Church.
The division of ranks and divine offices within the Ancient God Church would chiefly be based on the characteristics of the Ice and Snow Wilderness and the Ancient God Church itself. In total, it would be divided into three tiers and fourteen ecclesiastical ranks.
The most ordinary believers of the Ancient God Church were known as followers. This was the first tier of the Ancient God Church.
Among the followers, those who swore to uphold the precepts of the Four Sacred Practices and practiced them could, after ritual and recognition, become priests.
Priests who held no office in the Ancient God Church but practiced the Book of Eternity in their homes and daily lives were called White-Robed Priests. Priests who joined the various branches and institutions under the Ancient God Church, resolved to become its clergy, and were willing to serve it were called Black-Robed Priests.
Black-Robed Priests were divided into four grades, their rank determined by the length of time they upheld the Four Sacred Practices and by their performance. From lowest to highest, they were Iron Star Priests, Copper Star Priests, Silver Star Priests, and Gold Star Priests. The shortest time for a priest to rise from Iron Star Priest to Gold Star Priest was four years.
Priests were the second tier of the Ancient God Church, and also the foundation of its development.
Above the priestly tier was the third tier of the Ancient God Church—the most eye-catching tier of ecclesiastical authority.
The lowest rank in the ecclesiastical authority tier was that of acolyte. A Gold Star Priest who advanced another step could become an acolyte.