Path of the Flaming Sword
Also known as the "True Great Way," it appeared as a greatsword wreathed in flame;
"All living things originate from the Supreme Sacred Realm. The light of life descends from there, passing through the Moon-Above Celestial Realm as it sinks. Each celestial body symbolizes the filth of emotions. When the light of life has been refracted nine times and arrives in the Moon-Below Material Realm tainted by filth, humanity is formed..."
"If people wish to return to their original sacred state and trace the light of life back to its source, they must follow the Path of the Flaming Sword and ascend in reverse..."
"The eternal bright moon has always watched over everything in the mortal world, like a lamp that never goes out, illuminating this world."
"All changes in the Moon-Below world stem from the influence of the Moon-Above world. This is known as the 'Manifestation Chain'... Actions that move from below to above, drawing closer to the source, are called 'ascension,' while powers that descend from above and influence reality are called 'mystic arts.'"
—Celestial Palace Documents, Sade Barbina
Mortals (Rank 0)
Rank 0 Degeneration
According to mysticism, mortals were the dregs produced when the sacred light (Law) sent down by the supreme wills—the Hour-Gods—passed through nine layers of refraction, sank, and degenerated.
To step into the mystic realm and become Spirit Mystics, mortals needed exceptionally high Gnosis.
Every mystic organization possessed its own methods of increasing Gnosis;
Before that, mortals could only train pointlessly, allowing their meaningless bodies and spirits to improve by an insignificant amount.
In a given field, such as marksmanship, swordsmanship, or martial arts, skill could roughly be divided into apprentice, proficient, outstanding, and master.
Some mundane factions even made a show of assigning formal ranks to these levels,