Qian Renxue immediately sat down obediently and listened attentively to Earth Granny's explanation.
"First, you need to know the cultivation realms of the Primordial World."
"Refining Essence into Qi, Qi Refinement and Spirit Transformation, Refining Spirit and Returning to Emptiness, and Refining Emptiness and Joining the Dao. These are the four great barriers of mortal cultivation."
At this point, Qian Renxue could not help asking a question.
"Granny, are there only these four realms?"
The Douluo Continent had a full nine major realms, or ninety-nine realms if they were subdivided.
"Of course there are more than four. As I just said, these are only the four cultivation realms for mortals."
"Above those are the immortals: earth immortal, heavenly immortal, true immortal, mysterious immortal, golden immortal, primordial unity golden immortal, Daluo golden immortal... They are far, far beyond us."
"Immortals!"
That single word filled Qian Renxue's heart with boundless yearning.
The power of such a realm already exceeded her imagination. She did not have even the slightest concept of it.
"If I could become an immortal, even the weakest earth immortal, I would count as someone important in the Primordial World, wouldn't I?"
Meanwhile, heated discussions also broke out across the Douluo Continent.
"Eleven cultivation realms have been revealed so far. Whether there are more beyond them is still unknown."
"My heavens, just how powerful are those people?"
"Ordinary bandits could kill Tai Tan after he became a god, and that eagle whose strength didn't even rank treated hundred-thousand-year soul beasts as food. That Snake Maiden has probably only just reached the first cultivation realm, right?"
"How powerful must immortals be? How can such an incredible world exist?"
At that moment, everyone on the Douluo Continent fell silent, whether they were sect masters or dazzlingly brilliant geniuses.
Powerful. Powerful beyond their imagination.
Even Ning Fengzhi's hands were trembling, though he still clung to a sliver of hope. "My Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect is unrivaled in support, so no matter how powerful they are, my Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda Martial Soul will always have a place to shine. There's no need to worry."
At that moment, he was immensely glad that he had a support Martial Soul. Those with power attack system Martial Souls were the ones truly finished.
No matter how strong you were, could you be stronger than an immortal? You probably could not even beat a bandit.
Quite a few people even suffered cultivation deviation upon hearing this news, blood splattering on the spot. The power they had pursued all their lives turned out to be worth less than dog shit, and their spirit was utterly broken.
The Primordial World was simply too terrifying.
"Foolish child, don't let it blind you."
A single remark from Earth Granny brought Qian Renxue crashing back to reality.
"I have served as an Earth God for nearly a hundred years, yet even now, I am still going around in circles in the first realm, Refining Essence into Qi."
Qian Renxue was stunned. Earth Granny was actually still in the first realm? She could become a god even so?
Of course, Qian Renxue did not mean to look down on Earth Granny. She was merely surprised.
Then she grew happy. Looking at it this way, the strength required to become a god was not as high as she had imagined. At least becoming an Earth God did not require too much strength.
But a faint bitterness still welled up in her heart.
"Granny, is this cultivation method very difficult? Or does it depend on aptitude?"
The thought that Earth Granny had cultivated for nearly a hundred years and was still going around in circles in the first realm made Qian Renxue's scalp prickle.
That was a level of difficulty she could not imagine.
"Cultivation methods naturally depend on aptitude and temperament. Neither of those was how I became an Earth God. Your aptitude must be better than mine."
Earth Granny spoke with consideration for Qian Renxue's feelings.
"Besides, if one day you obtain a divine position, you will receive a yearly stipend."
"A stipend?"
Qian Renxue keenly picked out the important word.
The distribution of stipends meant that the hierarchy of gods was highly developed, forming a concrete system.
"The stipend of gods and immortals is merit. An Earth God like me receives ten strands of merit each year."
"Merit?"
Qian Renxue's eyes instantly lit up. Merit was a wonderful thing. It could let her become a god and turn calamity into good fortune. At the very least, it could secure her a good reincarnation in her next life.
Earth Granny saw what Qian Renxue was thinking at a glance.
"In truth, the uses of merit far exceed your imagination. For example, expending merit can raise your cultivation realm without any hidden dangers."
"Then, Granny, you must not have used merit to raise your cultivation realm, right?"
Qian Renxue asked.
"I certainly haven't. Merit has so many uses and is so important. Using it to raise one's cultivation realm is the most wasteful approach."
Qian Renxue nodded instinctively. That was indeed true.
"Then, Granny, are there other ways to raise one's cultivation realm quickly?"
"Naturally, there are."
Under Qian Renxue's eager gaze, Earth Granny slowly spoke.
"For example, there is the Ginseng Fruit belonging to Great Immortal Zhen Yuanzi, the Ancestor of Earth Immortals. It flowers once every three thousand years, bears fruit after another three thousand, and takes yet another three thousand to ripen. Each harvest yields only about thirty fruits."
"But its effects are extraordinary. Merely smelling it adds three hundred and sixty years to your lifespan, while eating it extends your life by forty-seven thousand years."
"If you could eat one, even if you did not become an immortal on the spot, you would not be far from it."
Qian Renxue was already listening in a daze, but Earth Granny continued.
"Another example is the Golden Cores refined by Taishang Laojun. A single one can turn a mortal without any cultivation into an immortal on the spot."
"A single pill can make someone an immortal?"
Qian Renxue's mouth fell open.
"And that is not all. Legend has it that a single Golden Core of the highest quality can make someone a Daluo golden immortal, one of the strongest among immortals!"
Earth Granny's voice could not help ringing with force. She yearned for it too.
"One Golden Core, a Daluo golden immortal?"
No matter how she tried, Qian Renxue could not connect those two terms.
Daluo golden immortal was the highest realm Earth Granny had just mentioned. Then what kind of splendor must Taishang Laojun, who refined those Golden Cores, possess?
"Besides those two methods, there is a third: the Peach of Immortality."
"The Heavenly Court has three thousand Peach of Immortality trees, divided into three grades. Even the lowest grade is enough to sweep away every obstacle in cultivation."
The Heavenly Court!
Qian Renxue connected that term with the stipends and pieced together a truth.
She could no longer spare any attention for resources that raised cultivation realms and asked directly.
"Granny, are gods governed by the Heavenly Court?"
"Of course."
Earth Granny spoke as though it were only natural. "Girl, you must remember: the Heavenly Court came first, and only then came the gods. All gods are appointed by the Heavenly Court's Great Heavenly Venerable."
"The Heavenly Court is the sole ruler of the Myriad Heavens and Realms, the supreme existence."
"From matters as great as the appointment of every god and the survival or destruction of worlds, to matters as small as how many inches and fractions of an inch of rain fall, everything is managed by the Heavenly Court."
"Even the Underworld falls under the Heavenly Court's jurisdiction."
"To put it simply, everything you can see or hear, everything you know or do not know, is governed by the Heavenly Court."
Qian Renxue held her head. She was utterly bewildered.
The Heavenly Court came first, and the gods came afterward. What weight did that carry?
So many cultivation realms, so many powerful immortals, even birth, aging, sickness, and death-all were governed by the Heavenly Court. Just how powerful must the Heavenly Court be?
And what kind of splendor must the Great Heavenly Venerable possess, the one who presided over the Heavenly Court and carried out the Investiture of the Gods?
Earth Granny's voice continued to echo.
"Take you, an outsider, for example. If the Heavenly Court were unwilling, you could not enter the Primordial World, nor could the world you came from enter the Primordial World."
Qian Renxue lost her balance and nearly fell to the ground.
"Earth Granny, do you mean that the Heavenly Court even knows I appeared here?"
She had only been here for a day.
"What else? It would be strange if the Heavenly Court did not know."
"But don't overthink it. The great gods of the Heavenly Court have no time to keep watching someone as insignificant as you. Even a single glance would count as taking you seriously."
Before you continue