The 'universe' within the Imaginary Tree is vast. It holds countless worlds separated by barriers. Above all beings exist high-dimensional entities supported by the Imaginary Tree itself, the Aeons.
Each Aeon represented a Path, a concept. It bore huge resemblances to the Dao of immortal cultivation. Only, the notion of Paths itself is flawed. Shi Tian saw its underlying mechanisms from IX whose very self is replaced by the Path THEY held. The Aeons of this world are restricted by their Paths, as much as they access all the power that comes from it. It is the law of Primum Mobile, restricting THEM from moving beyond their respective Paths.
The Path of Erudition is not an exception. Its Aeon, Nous, seeks to solve all of the universe's mysteries. Naturally, his Emanators sought to do the same. "Curiosity" exists in their very being.
Genius Society's #83, Madam Herta, was the first to discover this hidden world. Her connection to Nous granted her everything Nous gazed upon—all of their knowledge, so to speak. The interest Nous held towards that unknown powerwas clearly felt by her… as if it was a power that answers a huge question. It is a transcendental question far surpassing even the likes of an Aeon.
Aeons themselves already hold great attraction for Herta, what more of a 'question' that piques THEIR interest?
Tap-!
Ripple-!
She knocked on the invisible 'barrier' twice. The 'information' it held swiftly appeared on her mind. Herta pinpointed a very interesting thing.
"A power similar to Paths, but also unlike it. Xianzhou's myths bear similarities. Self-made Authorities and…"
A brand new type of energy.
All it took were two knocks to figure out the solar system's peculiarities.
"A new system separate from Paths… No wonder."
From the moment she saw the World Rendering Sword, she already discovered its subtle differences. It is similar yet 'different' than the Aeons' recorded descent. The following Divine Transformation Realm fluctuations further confirmed one of her conjectures.
The universe holds a flaw.
The 'Dao Integration Realm' encompassed something missing from the recorded Aeons' descent. It is an additional data. An extra tick in the system. But one overlooked by all.
She temporarily halted her current projects and tracked down the World Rendering Sword's origin to this world.
She wasn't disappointed. The fragments of information she found pointed to a new transcendent system. It is a system capable of turning a mortal into the likes of a God!
Herta's eyes sparkled, her smiles appearing ever-so-often. Anyone who sees her act like this would fall to their knees and worship her as the second coming of Idrilla. She was like a child who received not one, but a thousand new and interesting toys.
Her probing ensued until the administrator of the barrier popped out.
Crack-!
Shatter-!
Herta was kicked out of the 'server'. Nonetheless, her strong interest towards the solar system did not change. Her tranquil mind had long been turned into chaotic waves. 'Stalking' the information preserved within the imaginary barrier whetted her interest even more.
"How many questions can you bring..?"
*****
Things got peaceful. While waiting for Seele, I consolidated my new realm.
{Realm: Early Divine Transformation Realm (2%)}
{Mind: Early Divine Transformation Realm (1%)}
The 'Body' and 'Soul' are no longer separate. This fusion granted new capabilities to the Divine Transformation Realm cultivators. As long as a single infinitely miniscule trace remains in the world, they can resurrect. My life span increased to 12.5 billion. I almost caught up to the age of the observed universe in my previous life.
The Nine Dragons Primordial Universe Body is overpowered when it comes to being an old turtle. However, they are also restricted by a kind of Heavenly Dao in typical cultivation worlds; not here, however.
It wasn't just them; almost all overpowered aspects have drawbacks. In my Tao Body's case, it is the increased difficulty of bottlenecks.
I can imagine why it existed. If there are hundreds of Divine Transformation Realms as powerful as me, the typical cultivation world would have been destroyed long ago. That Heavenly Dao is made to balance all things, ensuring everyone can reach the higher realms while causing minimal damage.
As for whether there are True Immortals who ascended under such worlds, it is very likely. The techniques I received are diverse, but one thing's the same. All of them can be cultivated up to the True Immortal Realm. The knowledge I received at this point is in the billions. It is not wrong to say that I am the cultivation world.
I sorted my thoughts out and made some new plans, mainly on Earth's next development. Humanity's continued growth fed back to my Dao of Enlightenment. I am slightly certain it can turn into a Dao before the Imaginary Barrier goes down.
Population development, artificial planets, and the likes are coming next. The best thing about it is I can dump my resources to solve these things. Not to mention trillions, even if humanity's population reaches quadrillions after two thousand years, we can sustain a lot of living spaces for them.
Hum-!
The familiar presence behind me halted my thoughts.
"There is someone outside. I stopped her from probing."
I turned back and saw Kiana with a serious expression. I already have an idea as to who it was.
"Does she wear a witch's attire?"
"...You really know who it is as long as they are beautiful girls."
Kiana pouted with a wronged look.
…
She's very cute.
The lethality of an already cute and beautiful woman pouting is beyond the heavens. It rarely appears. Once it does, it makes my heart flutter.
She saw my look and became even flustered. I struck with the killing blow.
"It's very cute. The way you pouted."
"..!"
Kiana turned completely silent. Her abashed look made me want to bully her more, but I stopped.
"It's fine if she gets it. I doubt she will care about the outside world." I said to her. "Has the erosion begun already?"
My serious question brought Kiana back.
"Um. It's not as bad as expected."
The imaginary barrier's interaction with the outside world's forces is bound to corrode its strength. The Paths alone might exert greater influence through their Pathstriders and even Emanators. My World Rendering Sword worked wonders when it comes to intimidating them. This erosion is manageable.
"If it continues, we might have 1,500 years left."
"It's enough. Our power by then can manage it."
Even if that was only enough to reach the pinnacle of Void Refinement Realm, it's more than enough to handle most things. My hacks are no longer the Honkai, but the partners I have. Be it their Tao Gifts or the possible Innate Yin I can acquire, they have the greatest bearing for my current cultivation speed.
"By the way, is Sirin alright?"
A startled look appeared on Kiana's face. I became suspicious.
Just what did the two of them cook..?
*****
A/N: You know the rules and so do I ;)