Ordinary people become martial artists, cultivating primordial qi within and unleashing it without as they train in martial arts techniques. Those who reach the pinnacle become cultivators, refining true qi within, absorbing the essence of the sun and moon, and casting spells as they fly through the world. Those who reach the rank of military commander cultivate immortal power, opening space to travel and mastering divine abilities. Those who become Saint Kings cultivate divine power, breaking through boundaries and traversing space as they master laws and create their own worlds. Those who become Eternal Undying Venerables cultivate boundless thought, creating countless worlds with a single thought: as long as their thoughts endure, so will they. Thought cultivators refine their minds among the stars and can reach anywhere in the galaxy with a single thought. They stand beyond the Dao, outside the Five Elements, free to roam the boundless worlds.
There are the paths of spirit stones, trade, alchemy, formations, artifact crafting, tribulations, martial arts, the mortal world, Confucian scholars, cultivation techniques, divine abilities, and laws. A single move, a single test, a little at a time, a fraction of a moment, one layer, one realm, one world: each realm brings its own pressure, martial techniques, crushing force, spells, destruction, immortal arts, life and death, divine arts, and the creation and destruction of universes. The book explains it all in grand, extravagant language, comparing it to jade. The protagonist discovers and comprehends each word and explanation, then breaks through.
Thought cultivators transcend the world. Ranks one through nine are divided into early, middle, and late stages, followed by perfection, the pinnacle, and the Boundless Realm. At each rank, a cultivator can break through and ascend higher. One ox's strength is 500,000 jin; ten oxen equal the strength of an elephant, or five million jin. Ten elephants equal the strength of a dragon, or fifty million jin.
The Tang Dynasty controls the jianghu, where strength reigns supreme. The dynastic court's loyal forces include ranked clans, sects, sacred grounds, and religious orders, all of which serve the Tang. The protagonist Chu Yang's sect is the Liuyun Sect. This year, the Literary Exchange has fallen below the ranks, and the Tang chancellor has issued an order to hunt down the Liuyun Sect.
