"Returning to deities, they took their divine office as their core, and the Divine Godhead formed around it served as the source of their power. This often made them unique, hence the so-called godhood inheritance. That was how the First-Generation Angel God passed their position to the Second-Generation Angel God. Without an existing divine position, one could only pursue self-created godhood. They generally achieved this through the power of faith, as the Sea God did," Chen Xiaojun explained.
"But those were all acquired deities, who reached that state through cultivation. There were also innate deities, born with divine offices and Divine Godheads. These deities emerged from nature when heaven and earth first opened. Thus, they had no need for the faith-based godhood method either," Chen Xiaojun continued.
"Innate deities?!" Chen Cong found the concept unfamiliar.
"Yes, Second Granduncle. But those things are too far removed from us to have anything to do with us," Chen Xiaojun explained. "So deities also face restrictions: the power of faith, limits on their numbers, and the constraints of their divine offices. Moreover, the Divine Realm exercises control over them."
"The constraints of their divine offices?"
"Yes. A divine office is the core and foundation of a Divine Godhead. Ultimately, having a divine office means having to fulfill its associated duties. If a deity fails to do so, their Divine Godhead will wither, fall in rank, or even collapse. On the other hand, fulfilling those duties earns them the faith of the relevant living beings, accelerating their cultivation. Two sides of the same coin, each benefiting the other."
"However, once those deities grow powerful enough that the power of faith no longer gives them an advantage in rapid cultivation, fulfilling their divine duties instead gets in the way of cultivation. Or they find themselves confined