When they arrived back on earth, Damien wasted no time. Their group immediately headed for the Asgard headquarters that stood tall in the middle of Los Angeles.
“The mana density of the atmosphere has dropped intensively,” Rose commented as they were on their way.
Damien couldn’t really feel the difference since the planet itself provided him mana as long as he was present on its surface, but when he actively attempted to tell the difference, he noticed that around 50% of the ambient mana in the world was gone.
‘This must be the work of those old men, so they should be ready to leave.’
While communicating with the world core, he was able to tell that it didn’t really mind the drain of mana that occurred. It could simply produce mana to make up for the difference, even if it took many years to do so.
It was a planet, after all. Time that counted as lifetimes were humans could barely even be regarded as milliseconds to it. Not to mention that the world core had only recently gained sentience.
It had no attachments to the beings who lived on its surface besides Damien. It only thought about its own survival and progression.
Thinking about the world core, Damien remembered something important. ‘Ah! In my rush to feel some more action, I forgot to check if I could bind Apeiron as well!’
He already confirmed that he had a stronger connection to the world than any other planet besides earth, so he wanted to try his hand at gaining power through it.
He even had plenty of free time in the month he spent on the planet. His thoughts were so preoccupied with the future that he’d overlooked such an important task.
‘Well, I haven’t even explored the full benefits of binding earth, so I guess it’s fine. Plus, I can just go back to Apeiron at some point and see what I can do.’
Damien snapped out of his thoughts as the group arrived on the balcony of the Asgard skyscraper. They were greeted by the two old men that still remained.
“Come in,” Xiao Zhen said with a smile. “Let me introduce you to our Cloud Plane before we leave.”
Yin Jian still looked like he held a slight grudge, but it wasn’t anything major. He was aware of the necessity of Damien’s actions, he just didn’t agree with the speed at which he took them. There weren’t any signs of hesitation in his eyes.
But, their plan had already been set in stone long ago. There was no need for any extra talking or negotiation.
When everyone had taken their seats within the meeting room Damien had seen on his first visit, Xiao Zhen began his speech.
“Compared to what I’ve seen on this planet, our Cloud Plane is far more advanced and even our method of cultivation vastly differs.
“For starters, what you call ‘classes’ have different names in our world. 1st class is called the Foundation Establishment realm, where one begins their journey to strength. 2nd class is called the Elemental Comprehension realm, where one feels their uniqueness and decided on the direction of their future path.
“From here, it gets a bit more technical. The realm you call 3rd class is actually two separate realms for us. There are the Core Formation and Core Expansion realms.
“To explain this step, I must explain a few other facets of our world. Our denizens are born with pathways within our bodies called meridian pathways, and we practice cultivation manuals that show us how to circulate mana throughout our bodies.
“The meridians act as gates for mana and aid in the efficiency and potency of our mana output, and the cultivation manuals have varying efficiency as well.
“The lowest grade is Common grade, these are the ones possessed by the common populace who never end up reaching last the Foundation Establishment Realm.
“Next comes Black Grade, then Earth and Sky grade, and finally, Heaven and Divine grade. Each has increasing rarity, with Divine grade meridians signaling heaven-defying geniuses and Divine grade cultivation techniques able to turn someone with common talent into a relatively powerful genius.
“The reason I mention this is because these are important for speaking about the Core Formation and Expansion realms. Although the meridians have the purpose of regulating the flow of mana, they aren’t always enough for the higher levels of power, especially if one doesn’t have a higher grade set of meridians.
“And so, we form cores. The placement depends on the cultivator, but their core is essentially the center of their entire pathway. It helps with regulation, efficiency, potency, and even increases mana capacity.
“During the first 50 levels of what you call 3rd class, we form and develop our cores to fit with the already existing system we have in place, and during the latter half, as the name implies, we expand them.
“And finally, what you call 4th class. This class is split into two realms as well, but they are much more complicated. They are the Law Connection and Law Sea realms. As for the processes of these realms, they don’t need to be described as they are far away from any of us at the moment.
The more Damien listened, the more he realized that the Cloud Plane was a true cultivation world. From meridians to sects to the heavens, all of them were prevalent there. It was as if the concept came from a novel, or maybe the novels were inspired by places like the Cloud Plane.
After talking some more about the realms, Xiao Zhen spoke about the power structure of the world. There were 5 continents, 4 in each cardinal direction, and one in the center.
The strongest power of them all was the Jade Heavenly Palace; which ruled the central continent and even had some say in the other 4 continents, which had their own rulers.
The Jade Heavenly Palace had tens of 4th class beings in the Law Connection realm, and even a few who entered the Law Sea realm. Meanwhile, powers like the Burning Sun Sect that the old men originated from, which could be considered mid-sized powers, had only a single or a few Law Connection realm experts at best.
3rd classes, on the other hand, were spread far and wide without rarity. The world was objectively tens of times stronger than Apeiron.
There were also various major clans and organizations, and too many sects to name, so Damien cut Xiao Zhen off. After all, learning new things as they came was part of the excitement. He just needed a general overview so he wouldn’t stick out like a sore thumb.
“To be honest, our Burning Sun Sect isn’t suitable for any of you. You’d already be considered at the level of an elder if you joined us. In my opinion, you should join a power in the Central Continent.”
Damien picked up a detail from the tone of his voice. Unlike before, when Xiao Zhen had said only he could join them in the Cloud Plane, he now included the girls as well. It seemed the power he displayed during their last meeting had changed his mind.
“Alright, there’s no need for more talking then. We already know the powers on the Central Continent, so we can choose which one to join when the time comes. For now, let’s go to the world.” Damien said.
And Xiao Zhen agreed. They had already completed their mission on earth, so there was no reason to stay. They only waited an extra few weeks for Damien.
But Damien suddenly thought of something crucial. “How did you guys even get here in the first place?”
He could move through space easily without any help, but that was only because he received Celestial as his 3rd class. It wasn’t extremely common for people to have this ability, or it’d be impossible for earth to have remained secluded for so many years without outside forces invading.
Xiao Zhen smiled slightly before walking toward the balcony. “Come, let’s go somewhere secluded first.”
The group flew to an empty plain well outside of the city before Xiao Zhen made a motion to take something from his spatial ring.
Flash!
In front of their eyes stood a large vehicle that was shaped like a mountainous sword. “This is our flying treasure. The larger ones aren’t very common, but they’ve been handed out by the Jade Heavenly palace to those of us who receive these kinds of missions.
“Although this treasure is only at the Sky grade, it can still take us to our world in the span of a few months.”
“Only sky grade?” Damien asked in confusion. Wasn’t Sky grade the 3rd highest in their entire system?
“Yes, when it comes to flying treasures that can traverse the boundless space, Sky grade is the minimum. Those Heaven grade and the few Divine grade ones in existence are much faster, have more defenses, and can even kill cultivators and the beasts that reside in the darkness with their specialized artillery.”
Damien raised his brow but didn’t comment. He knew nothing so it wasn’t his place.
Instead, he directly stepped into the massive sword treasure in front of him. It was time to see a new world.