Consuming Earths, Devouring Skies

Rain Flow City was about the same size as a continent in the Xiantu Realm. Its surface area was enough room for several countries, but it was purely a city. The entire city was formed with countless buildings as far as the eye can see. They ranged from two stories to skyscrapers that reached tens of thousands of feet high.

After the incident outside passed, the citizens of Rain Flow City exited from their respective hiding locations and resumed their normal agendas as if nothing occurred. Yan Zaizen and crew was quite shocked to see the sudden resuming of activity.

"They haven’t even looked at us," Tao highlighted. The citizens didn’t seem to care about the realmship or their existence. They proceeded to move along as if they were inconsequential. Yan Zaizen didn’t mind this, looking at the vast number of people moving about.

Just as Tao said, Lycahs had a dense population in the city. The pressure within the city was at the absolute lowest, being as heavy as a normal pool. Furthermore, the essence density in the water was quite thick. It was suitable for any race to live in.

Yan Zaizen kept the realmship in the Meteor Ring. "Each culture and inhabitants are different. It’s possible these people often keep to themselves, or simply wish to avoid trouble." Yan Zaizen remarked, landing at a fairly bustling street. Tao and Bai Lufeng landed near him. They realized his words were likely correct. Besides some minor glances of curiosity that’d fade as soon as it emerged, many would simply continue onwards with their daily lives.

The streets were remarkably quiet filling with swooshing sounds of water. Any conversation that took place seemed to be transmitted through qi or soul energy. After all, they were underwater. If they talked underwater, it would simply be a jumbled mess.

Everyone on the streets kept a certain distance, about four feet, from anyone not a part of their circle. Furrowing his brows, Yan Zaizen felt the society within the Deluge Realm truly was very, very different than the Xiantu Realm.

Looking up, he could see countless people swimming in the city. Rain Flow City, after all, was immersed in water. Even at this moment, Yan Zaizen was submerged. Those above were traveling at high speeds with high cultivations. Witnessing this, Yan Zaizen inspected the individuals that were on the streets walking as if they were on the ground. His eyes shone with a brilliant light of realization.

The ones who were walking on the streets had low cultivation bases. They were around the Qi Foundation to the Essence Formation Realm. The ones swimming swiftly above had cultivation bases at the Qi Unification Realm and higher. They included Lycah and Gunyu.

"Seems like there’s some fundamental hierarchy enforced in the city," Tao assumed, realizing that the buildings structures were quite odd. Every building was two story, but the first and second story was far apart. The buildings were taller than average and the first door touched the ground like a normal entrance, but the second was higher up.

The individuals on the ground walked through the first floor calmly while the one’s flying took the higher second story. There were some buildings with even nine total entrances, each higher than the last. Carefully looking at the residents swimming above them, they found that there seemed to be some invisible road or layer in the water.

Just above them were initial-Qi Unification experts, above them was mid-Qi Unification experts, and so on.

"You’re right." Yan Zaizen felt somewhat uncomfortable. As they traveled above, they didn’t even look down as if the people below them were non-existent. "For now, let’s just check out the sights." Yan Zaizen declared causing both Bai Lufeng and Tao’s eyes to shine brightly with excitement. They moved forward with high hopes and desire.

Ten days later.

"Well, isn’t this boring as all hell?" Yan Zaizen’s eyes flickered as he sat at a restaurant located on the ninth floor of a skyscraper. Bai Lufeng and Tao weren’t here. In truth, they were here, they just were on a lower floor. Because of their low cultivation bases, they were prohibited from dining at his level. As for him? Because his cultivation base was TOO high, he couldn’t dine with them.

Their excuse?

It’ll make those with lower cultivation bases feel ’uncomfortable’ and ’pressured’.

Yan Zaizen understood the logic but was still dissatisfied. With a higher cultivation base, people had a formless authority over weaker existence. It seems the society was constructed to prevent this exact scenario. Only in certain areas will you be able to interact with cultivators at your realm, but that was just in your realm. This didn’t even factor in comprehensive combat strength or talent, simply cultivation base.

He was of the mind to simply say ’screw all’ towards the rules, but he wasn’t here to disrupt the order of their established society. In his mind, he wasn’t important enough to have the world focus on his every whim or desire, nor did he have the intentions to make it so. If he did use his cultivation base to oppress ordinary citizens, wouldn’t that only highlight why this society needed to exist.

"To each their own." He remarked, his mind filled to the brink with boredom. In the Rain Flow City, True Essence cultivators typically hid like tortoises in their shells. Interacting with any of them would require going to their place of residence. Therefore, with the Origin Core experts denying interaction with him for society standard reasons, Yan Zaizen felt quite lonely.

If it wasn’t for the Shangyang Auction, he would have regretted arriving in the realm. At least, he’d regret staying for ten days. As for Bai Lufeng, he felt the most oppressed. Because of the society’s rules, he couldn’t lure lower realm cultivators to his bed. His dream of sleeping with a harem of Gunyu women was shattered as he was left with Origin Core cultivators that didn’t even treat him seriously.

Tao was the most bored. Rain Flow City’s society wasn’t one that emphasized academics. Their lack of scholars left him even more bored than Bai Lufeng and Yan Zaizen. As for the libraries, he needed to receive special permission to enter, and he couldn’t receive it even with Yan Zaizen’s support. The rules were so airtight that Tao felt suffocated.

Essentially, abusing one’s cultivation base for an easier path was literally an impossibility. Their earlier assumption of life being easier for them was nothing but a delusion on their part. Yan Zaizen had only discussed some details regarding the Shangyang Auction and putting up the Heavenly Shrine. Besides that, there wasn’t much to gain from it.

After their lonely dining experience, Yan Zaizen and the others departed the restaurant with long faces.

"At least...the Auction starts today." Yan Zaizen begrudgingly muttered. Tao looked hesitant for a second, but then abruptly said, "I think, we should depart directly. Elysian Realm is a pretty long ways from here." Yan Zaizen’s eyes revealed excitement.

Indeed!

In truth, with the realmship, it would only take about a month to arrive in the Elysian Realm from the Deluge Realm. Realmships penetrated spatial void, tunneling through it rapidly with astonishing speeds, and allowing them to soar through the Border Expanse without worrying about encountering odd creatures like those planet-sized mouth-balls.

Yan Zaizen, with his cultivation base and comprehension into spatial laws, could do something similar, but the exertion that would be placed on him would be massive. At one time, Yan Zaizen was thinking of constructing his own realmship. To do so, one needed to reach a comprehension into a spatial void concept at the Domain-level.

Currently, Yan Zaizen’s conceptual law, Spatial Form of Infinite Stability, had already reached that. After his cultivation session of nearly fifteen hundred years, all of his laws, besides Archery of Major Destruction, reached the initial-Domain level.

Nascent level was determined by the depth of conceptual comprehension. Reaching the perfect-stage of the Nascent Level indicated peak comprehension of one’s conceptual law.

Force level represented true law energy integration. The conceptual law starts to develop the essence of their true law. Reaching the perfect-stage indicated peak integration of true law energy, allowing the conceptual law to maintain a strong connection with the heavenly law.

Manifestation level represented the ability to draw upon that connection and enhancing the conceptual law to extraordinary levels, capable of manifesting true law centered around the concept. Essentially, it was a level that focused on enhancing conceptual strength.

Domain level represented establishing a true connection with the heavenly law. When brought forth, the conceptual law could carve out an area of space beneath the heavens that solely belongs to it, capable of pushing out or destroying all others laws inferior to its own. Temporarily, the conceptual law could become the ruler of that space beneath heavens.

Sovereign level turned the conceptual law into its own true law. No longer requiring the support of the heavens and even has the ability to create its own false heaven where it reigned king. At this point, one could forcefully integrate with the Heavenly Domain and excavate a piece of true law that resonates with their concept, capable of creating a Regalia of the Heavens.

The realmship required a heavenly formation and comprehension that reached the domain level. It’s because of this requirement that the Xiantu Emperor and Deluge Realmlord didn’t have the qualifications to own a realmship. Also why, despite the former pirate captain being a menace with a low cultivation base, one where Yu Shi needed only a breath to eliminate, could roam freely and do whatever he wished.

The moment he met Yan Zaizen, he met the bane of most realmships - someone who comprehended spatial laws to the domain level.

"Let’s hope we make a delicious profit from this heavenly shrine. Let’s go!" Yan Zaizen and crew departed with high expectations.