Void Realm

In the courtyard.

Liu Bowen walked in.

"Liu Bowen." Lu Zhen invited him to sit. "Those mechanical creations outside were a real eye-opener. The cultivation civilization of the Great Wilderness is far beyond that of our world."

Liu Bowen shook his head.

"An eye-opener? Lu Zhen, you think too highly of that scrap metal."

"They're just crude devices our Nine Provinces Market traded local products for with other small worlds. In the Great Wilderness, they'd count as ninth-tier goods at best. They're nothing worth showing off."

Lu Zhen's expression shifted.

"Ninth-tier?"

Liu Bowen stroked his beard and said slowly, "The Great Wilderness is vast, with forces as numerous as the hairs on an ox. Below the ninth tier, Rogue Cultivator settlements and wilderness tribes are all unranked."

"Those with a primordial small world behind them, like our Nine Provinces, can barely qualify for the ninth tier.

But even that isn't easy. We're still below the Kill Line, living from one day to the next."

"Above us are the top ten among the hundred-odd small worlds in this region.

They have deep foundations and left the Kill Line behind long ago. Those count as eighth-tier forces."

"As for the Supreme Unity Mystic Sect, which rules the territory of all these worlds..." Liu Bowen paused, a trace of awe entering his eyes. "That's seventh-tier."

The teacup in Lu Zhen's hand stopped for a moment.

"Only seventh-tier?" He looked up at Liu Bowen. "Then above the Supreme Unity Mystic Sect..."

Liu Bowen waved a hand with a bitter smile.

"I don't know. Nor would I dare know."

"Information at that level carries a staggering price. A ninth-tier force like ours has no way to reach it."

"Forget what lies above. The Supreme Unity Mystic Sect alone is prosperous beyond imagination. Years ago, I