“So, the higher-level Cultivation Schools are all in the Upper Four Prefectures and the Central Prefecture. The Sect Powers in the Lower Four Prefectures are generally not strong. Even if a School suddenly sees its power greatly increase, it will try its best to move into the Upper Four Prefectures…”
An Chen nodded in satisfaction.
He spent over an hour learning a lot of basic information about the Nine Heavens Continent from Su Xiaojiu.
For example, the Nine Heavens Continent is divided into nine prefectures, and these nine prefectures are further divided into the Upper Four Prefectures, the Lower Four Prefectures, and the Central Prefecture.
What was surprising was that the naming of these nine prefectures was extremely casual.
They were directly named after their geographical directions, such as the southern one being the South Prefecture, the northern one being the North Prefecture, and also the Southeast Prefecture, Northwest Prefecture, and so on.
The Southeast, Southwest, Northwest, and Northeast Prefectures are the Upper Four Prefectures, and the remaining four prefectures, excluding the Central Prefecture, are the Lower Four Prefectures.
Compared to the Lower Four Prefectures, the Upper Four Prefectures are “better” in many aspects, and even Cultivator from the Upper Four Prefectures will consider themselves superior when they meet Cultivator from the Lower Four Prefectures.
As for the Central Prefecture, it is a relatively independent region.
Apart from First-Rate Powers, smaller Schools and other second and third-rate Powers often have friction and conflicts, and these conflicts can even be cross-prefecture.
As for conflicts between First-Rate Powers, they are not entirely absent, but they are more restrained. However, there can still be conflicts and even wars, and historically, there are stories of entire Sects being annihilated.
Conflicts also sometimes arise between prefectures due to resource issues, and these conflicts are much larger in scale, though they are rarely encountered.
However, all of these only happen within the Upper Four Prefectures and the Lower Four Prefectures. The Central Prefecture is nominally a “permanently neutral zone.”
The major Powers in the Central Prefecture also call themselves neutral Powers and will never actively, directly, or indirectly initiate conflicts.
On the Nine Heavens Continent, there are not only Cultivator; on the contrary, the most numerous are Mortals. If calculated as a ratio, Mortals probably outnumber Cultivator by about one hundred to one or even more.
Mortals have not formed the concept of a country, or to be precise, it formed and then disappeared, replaced by “Cities.”
In a sense, a City can be considered a Mortal’s country.
The reason for this situation is that the wilderness between Cities is too dangerous. Whether it’s Yao Beasts, rampant bandits, or even some small Schools, these are obstacles that Mortals cannot overcome.
The towering City walls block these dangers, and most Mortals can only live within the City and in some village-like settlements. No Mortal has the strength to cross the wilderness and establish a political power.
In fact, even the City Lords who control the Cities are basically powerful Cultivator.
In this world, Mortals are the lowest existence, and all power is concentrated in the hands of Cultivator.
Generally speaking, the stronger a Cultivator’s power, the greater the power they can control. Simply put, the strong are respected…
Hmm, it perfectly aligns with the settings of the novels An Chen used to read.
In addition, An Chen also generally understood some of the more powerful forces on the Nine Heavens Continent.
The more famous Powers in the North Prefecture are the Medicine King Valley and the Treasure Artifact Sect. These two Sects, one producing Pill Cultivator and the other Artifact Cultivator, are renowned throughout the Nine Heavens for their abundant Medicinal Pills and Magical Artifacts.
Medicinal Pills, Talismans, and Magical Artifacts are the most important things for Cultivator, so these two Sects are generally not dared to be provoked by other Sects.
After all, no one wants their own Power’s supply of Medicinal Pills and Magical Artifacts to be cut off.
The Xuanqing Sect, which is known for producing Talismans and Talisman Cultivator, is located in the West Prefecture. Another behemoth in the West Prefecture is the Sword Inquiry Sect, and all the Cultivator of the Sword Inquiry Sect are powerful Sword Cultivators.
The South Prefecture has the Frenzy Warrior Sect, whose name sounds very much like a large guild in a certain online game but specializes in Body Refining, and the Ten Thousand Flowers Sect, which specializes in wood-attribute Cultivation Techniques, as well as the Six Great Families.
However, the Six Great Families are closely united and can basically be considered one Power.
According to Su Xiaojiu, the Six Great Families also relied on their unity and common development to become a First-Rate Power.
Finally, the South Prefecture also has the Guiyi Sect, which is purely supported by its sheer size.
The Guiyi Sect can be said to be the largest Power in terms of size, with hundreds of thousands of Elders and Disciples. However, it is a mixed bag, with quite a few strong individuals, but even more are Qi Refinement Stage small fries who are at the bottom of the Cultivation World.
The Guiyi Sect’s development strategy is mainly to recruit widely; they accept Medium Grade Spiritual Roots and Low Grade Spiritual Roots that other families don't want.
The Guiyi Sect is even the bane of many small Schools.
After all, many small Schools in other prefectures are waiting for the behemoths above to pick out the good Disciples, and then select some decent prospects from the rest to cultivate.
Sometimes, a good prospect not discovered by a large Sect even has the chance to make a small Power rise rapidly.
But in the South Prefecture, the Guiyi Sect takes them all, leaving them with nothing, not even the leftovers.
The South Prefecture has more Powers, and thus, the situation in the South Prefecture is more chaotic—these were Su Xiaojiu's exact words.
However, Su Xiaojiu did not elaborate on why the South Prefecture was chaotic or how chaotic it was.
As for the East Continent, it has the Water God Palace and the Fire Phoenix Sect, as well as the Hou Tu Sect. These three Sects all focus on elemental attribute Cultivation Techniques, and their specific attributes can be inferred from their names.
There is some conflict between the Water God Palace and the Fire Phoenix Sect, but it's not between the entire Schools; on the contrary, the two families have a relatively good relationship.
After all, both sides restrain each other; if they fought, neither would benefit.
However, Cultivator from the Water God Palace would call Cultivator from the Fire Phoenix Sect stupid, and the Fire Phoenix Sect would say that male Cultivator from the Water God Palace were effeminate. As for female Cultivator…
What Water God Palace female Cultivator? Those are goddesses from the neighboring Sect!
As for the Hou Tu Sect, due to the nature of their Cultivation Technique attributes, most of their Cultivator are honest and simple, abide by the rules, and do not cause conflicts with others.
Someone once suggested they move to the Central Prefecture and become a neutral School.
As for the Central Prefecture, it also has more First-Rate Powers.
The most famous is an Academy, named Nine Heavens.
To be honest, An Chen was also very puzzled as to why there would be an Academy in the Cultivation World, but that was the fact.
Su Xiaojiu said that the Nine Heavens Academy is a common Academy for all Sects, but the one in power, or rather the Headmaster, is a powerful individual not controlled by any Power.
Sects can send their young juniors to study there, and the Academy also searches for Geniuses across the Nine Heavens each year to bring them into the Nine Heavens Academy for study.
Students sent by other Sects, upon leaving, gain a dual identity: one as a Sect Disciple, and the other as a Nine Heavens Academy graduate.
However, it seems that the major Schools do not send their true Geniuses there.
An additional identity does not just mean a title; it also comes with many obligations, responsibilities, and even various miscellaneous ideologies.
No Sect is willing to risk their future Elders or even successors within their Sect having an additional identity as a Nine Heavens Academy graduate.
The leaders of their own Sects must be “clean” and not mixed with anything else.