The Nine Heavenly Realms derives its name from its ring-shaped structure. Although the name implies there are nine rings, in reality, there are only three rings that spin around one another. Each of these rings contains three smaller rings within it, creating the appearance of lower, middle, and upper rings, the inhabitants of this realm called them the nine rings of heavens.
In the middle of the three big rings is a giant ball of darkish green miasma that pulses like a heartbeat, constantly releasing miasma gas that envelops the nine heavenly rings with each heartbeat, accompanied by a low hum no one could hear, the gentle pulse of energy from the miasma that kept this strange universe alive. Under its aboriginal touch, everything within its embrace thrived with life; chaos and order met at a common ground, creating an eternal cycle of life, death, and rebirth.
It is in this strange universe that our story unfolds…
"It is said that untold millions of years ago, back before the stars had names. The continents and everything under the heavens still thrived under permanent chaos. Humans, despite being more intelligent, were at the bottom of the food chain; the earliest human ancestors were left at the mercy of the demonic beasts that thrived in the wilds, and blood and death were commonplace. At that time, humanity was at its infancy stage. Of what use is intelligence in the face of a creature that spills molten lava?
Just when it seemed like the newly thriving weak were about to go extinct, the eldest of the tribe prayed to the heavens, and the stars responded. He was blessed by the heavens; he became the first cultivator. Zhuyin became known as the progenitor of cultivation; his path, though followed, allowed humanity to carve a place for themselves under the heavens.
The later generation quickly discovered that Zhuyin's path was flawed, as cultivation using this method often led to an early grave; it was akin to burning one's lifespan and vitality in exchange for power."
….
Chu Hua squinted her eyes; that was the end of the scroll. Frustrated, she meticulously turned to the other side of the paper, expecting to find more, even though she already expected not to find anything useful. Perhaps a part of her was hoping to be proven wrong, but the end result was what she had expected.
On the other side of the worn scroll was a blank page, with not even a shred of ink; she could only sigh in disappointment.
But on the bright side, she got a new piece of information. Most of the things recorded here are not open to the public—just another piece of information colonized by those people. They harbor secrets and hoard information to themselves, not allowing even a shred of it to leak out.
However, after expending so much effort, she had once again gotten her hand on another piece of vital information.
She surmised that, given the nature of the record she just read, it wasn't very important to them, which is why she had gotten it in the first place; any true information about cultivation was tightly sealed; anyone of them who leaked it would be ostracized from the clan in the best case scenario; or, worse, they would be hunted down by the full force of the clan.
But still she treasured it greatly; the old man once said, "Information is power, and the lack of information is oblivion.
Chu Hua couldn't help but release a slight giggle, for a moment showing her pearl-white teeth. "Turns out there was another path that does not involve creating a 'Rebis,'" she mused, apparently awed by the new discovery.
But sadly the text didn't say anything on how to tread this path, but even still. The path seemed dangerously flawed; vitality and lifespan in exchange for power didn't seem like a good deal.
Although she didn't know how people cultivated in the ancient times, she had some ideas as to how cultivation was later perfected.
The process involves creating a 'Rabis,' which the ancients called 'the fusion of unlikely things," yin and yang in reverse, creating chaos instead of order. The Rabis is created by brewing otherworldly potions from materials to create a heavenly abomination, a 'Rabis' stored in the aperture.
This method of cultivation was carefully thought of and perfected by the later generation after Zhuyin. Rabis is different for each path; water path cultivators created water path Rabis, and fire path cultivators created fire path. Rebis, lightning path cultivators create lightning path Rabis, and the same goes for every other path, wind, life, cloud, and earth, and so on; each path has ingredient corresponding to its stage.
Chu Hua's mind was blown away the first time she heard it. That was all she knew about Rabis cultivation, and given that after insurmountable years. people still practice cultivation like this, it meant that while it may not necessarily be perfect, it was far better than the Zhuyin method of cultivation.
A Qing Wu clan disciple had unintentionally blurted out one day while he was drunk out of his mind. Chu Hua had waited for the man to return; she had prepared her mind to use some unorthodox method to persuade him if necessary, but the man was never seen again.
According to the stranger, the highest grimoire in the Qing Wu clan's arsenal only reached stage 4 and is of the water path. Meaning the strongest master of the Qing Wu clan was only a Stage 4 Rabis master, along with elders of other paths.
Although she was not exactly sure how strong a stage 4 was, that had allowed the Qing Wu clan to rule the Qing Mao Mountain unchallenged; this was their domain, and everyone who lived here either is one of them or their slave.
That stranger had leaked vital information belonging to the Qing Wu clan, which was no different from telling their enemies that they possess the stage 4 ingredient of the water path; this indirectly means that the patriarch of the Qing Wu clan was a stage 4.
The information that was unintentionally let out may as well be considered useless by the powerful and lofty Qing Wu clan, but to the likes of mortals like Chu Hua, it was a vital milestone in their lives.
Because ever since that incident something had clicked in her mind, Chu Hua had become obsessed with Master Rabi; it was as though it was all she had been missing all her life.
Chu Hua had used a hefty sum to purchase this scroll; though it wasn't, it was not entirely worthless.