A few minutes after I had entered the room, Lia and the others follow, soon spreading out over the room. Laying around in one of the beds, I begin to think about the events that have taken place recently and instantly realise I had forgotten to ask Lia about the things she learned in the tomb.
"Lia, you said before that you now a way for me to get the Divine Essence I need, since we're not doing anything for a while why not share it now?" I ask.
"Oh, I also want to hear why the descendants of the Azure Dragon are all the way in Talonia," Aurelia says.
"Both of those are lengthy matters to talk about, so for now I'll tell you about the Divine Essence and save the story behind the Azure Dragon for tomorrow or something."
"That's fine, if they're both going to take a lot of time I don't mind putting it off. Considering the time that's a reasonable choice and I'm also a little interested in this topic myself," Aurelia says.
"This can actually apply to everyone, not just Cory. So long as you walk the path of apotheosis then anyone can form their own Divine Essence," Lia explains.
"I think I remember the big bear saying something similar, but it's been a while so I don't remember everything he said. But what your telling me is that I have to become a God, is that it?" I ask.
"Simply speaking, yes, that's right. But to be more specific, you will need to comprehend some kind of divinity as a Demigod, doing so will grant you the Divine Essence, there are a few more steps to fully ascend to Godhood but since you are only trying to obtain the Essence I expect you to stop at this stage."
"You're not wrong... but, well, I don't think I would really mind being a God, there's just something about the idea that rubs me the wrong way. Is this the only way to get the Essence?" I ask.
"There is one other way, this only applies to you and a few others though. Just like you would an Elemental, find and kill a God then absorb it from them. I believe Wanjing can also make use of this method as well. It's just... killing a God without at the very least being Legendary, to be honest, is essentially impossible," Lia says.
"I get it, I'm not going to go picking a fight with a God before I'm ready... but what if I just happen to come across one that is on the verge of death?"
"If your actually being serious, then even if they were injured, weakened, and suppressed, you'd still be fighting something that has the strength of the Legend tier. You need to keep in mind, the realm of the Gods is far above the strength of the average Legendary Master or Legendary Monster. From what I learned in the tomb, even the weakest of the Gods can slap someone Like Lord Gaoh to death. Please listen to me when I tell you to not pick a fight a God just for the sake of the Essence, not just for your sake but for mine as well."
"Alright, alright, I'll just focus on this path of apotheosis or whatever it's called. So how do I do that?" I ask.
"It's not that I don't want to tell you, but what I learned requires you to have the Azure Dragon's power to use it properly, so I don't think this will work. Actually, Wanjing should know more about this than me," Lia says.
"Yeah, like, I think I can safely say that about a third of all Shengdi knows how, and basically, everyone is aware of its existence. The big and powerful families as well as anyone with a wealthy background has their own techniques, not to mention the various sects that also have their own ways to ascend," Wanjing explains.
"Don't keep it a secret, tell us, I know I'm not the only one here who wants to know," I say.
"You know, it is actually supposed to be a secret of my family. Not just mine, but these techniques are generally not shared with others for no reason, but my family's cultivation technique isn't that good compared to others, it's not even fully developed and doesn't have a way to reach the level of Demigod. Knowing this, are you sure you want to know?"
"Is there any downside to learning yours then swapping to something better?" Aurelia asks.
"It's not like you can't learn more than one cultivation technique, but it will great significantly harder to grow if you practice more than one."
"You know, now that I think about it, things are already pretty difficult for me, so I think I'll wait for something better," I say.
"That's what I thought you'd say, Teacher."
"I also have a similar thought to Cordelia on that matter, but Lia, can you tell me about those last few steps that are needed to fully ascend from being a Demigod to a True God?" Aurelia asks.
"I know it didn't sound like much when I skimmed over it before, but while it sounds easy it's really not that easy."
"Yeah, I figured as much, I'm just curious since this is actually something I want to accomplish I thought it would be good to know ahead of time. My knowledge of the Gods isn't great compared to what I know regarding Demons and Spirits."
"Do you at least know of the two broad categories that Gods full under? The method of ascension differs depending on what you're trying to become," Lia says.
"Yeah, I'm aware that the Gods can be divided into really small groups, but they all fall into being classified as either a Natural God or a God of Worship. Akkre is a good example of a Natural God, these types of Gods aren't reliant on believers and their strength comes solely from their respective domains. The Gods of Worship, on the other hand, have to build up their own strength and can increase both their bottom and upper limits depending on their believers. Here in Grauntia, the Gods of the Church of Wisdom are mostly Gods of Worship," Aurelia says.
"Just like I thought, you do know more than me regarding the specifics, but as I said the method differs once depending on which you want to become. For Gods of Worship, as you are comprehending a divinity, you also need to actively find believers and people who will worship you. The type of divinity you choose to comprehend will also need to not be of a natural force. On this point, it is the opposite for the Natural Gods. That's actually it for Natural Gods, but apparently natural divinities are harder to comprehend."
"Not to interrupt or anything, but... actually I completely mean to interrupt, to begin with, I don't care for this topic. Anyways, how am I gonna find a way to ascend to at least to Demigod?" I ask.
"You really couldn't wait, could you?" Aurelia says.
"Uhm... I don't really know," Lia says, looking towards Wanjing.
"It's up to me then. Teacher, I think you could try--"
Before Wanjing can give me a complete answer as several arrows come flying through into the room from the open balcony. In a rush, the four of us retreat to the far side of the room, away from the balcony as a group of eleven people come falling from the sky, landing on our balcony, shattering the last bits of the now broken glass door.
As the eleventh person walks into the light of our rooms candles, I see a familiar face and then hear a familiar voice.
"Oh, come on, you've got to be kidding me!" the final assailant says as the light reveals her to be Yue.
"That's my line! My luck is truly awful, somethings really do never change."