Chapter 19: The Choice
“Plane Warden?”
Hearing this name, Linley felt a glimmer of understanding. Warden—the meaning of watching over and guarding. No wonder this Hodan possessed such terrifying strength.
“Linley, you haven’t answered yet. Are you willing to go to other planes?” Hodan urged.
Whether a Saint-level expert wished to go to a higher plane was their own decision. The Plane Warden was only responsible for informing them of this matter.
Linley, however, remained very calm.
“Mr. Hodan, to be honest, I know almost nothing about other planes. Could you please tell me in detail?” Linley asked humbly.
Doehring Cowart actually knew of the existence of Plane Wardens as well, but back then, Linley’s strength was still very weak, and Doehring Cowart hadn’t been in a hurry to tell him. However, Doehring Cowart had spoken about the matters of the Four Supreme Higher Planes.
“Material planes like the Yulan Plane are extremely numerous. These material planes are all more or less the same, except that some material planes are dominated by magical beasts, or by other races, while some are dominated by humans… These planes are essentially no different.” Hodan narrated these basic pieces of knowledge belonging to the higher planes.
“Above these material planes are the Four Supreme Higher Planes and the Seven Divine Planes.” Hodan laughed. “For example, the Seven Divine Planes were created by the Seven Elemental Sovereigns. The Four Supreme Higher Planes, on the other hand, were created by the Four Supreme Gods.”
Linley nodded.
“What is the difference between the Seven Divine Planes and the Four Supreme Higher Planes?” Linley pressed.
Hodan let out a scornful laugh. “The Seven Divine Planes are the Earth, Fire, Water, Wind, Lightning, Light, and Darkness Divine Planes. For example, if you walk the path of comprehending the Laws of the Earth, entering the Earth Divine Realm will make your training twice as effective with half the effort.”
“However, the Seven Divine Planes are inferior to the Four Supreme Higher Planes. You should still enter a Supreme Higher Plane.” Hodan tempted him. “Linley, you must understand, these Supreme Higher Planes were created by the Supreme Gods. The Four Supreme Gods exist above even the Sovereigns.”
“Supreme Gods? Can someone train to become a Supreme God?” Linley suddenly asked.
Hodan stared at Linley in astonishment.
“Haha…” Hodan burst into loud laughter, as if he had heard a huge joke.
Linley looked at Hodan with confusion.
“Linley. You really are quite ignorant.” Hodan laughed. “You simply don’t understand that the Supreme Gods are not beings trained by people. Let me tell you, for example, the Sovereigns. Every race has a chance to train and become a Sovereign. But the probability is extremely, extremely low…”
“How low?” Linley pressed.
“For example. Out of a hundred million ordinary gods, it’s not even certain that one will become a Sovereign.” Hodan laughed. “For instance, in that Radiant Divine Realm, there are many Lesser Gods, Greater Gods, and Highgods. But even after millions of years, it’s very difficult for even one of them to become a Sovereign.”
Linley fell silent.
“Lesser Gods, Greater Gods, Highgods?” Linley frowned, looking at Hodan with confusion.
Back then, Grandpa Doehring had only mentioned gods, and nothing else.
“Of course, the divine sparks of gods are also ranked by level.” Hodan said seriously. “When you comprehend the Laws to a certain degree and gain the acknowledgment of the Elemental Laws themselves, a divine spark will naturally descend, and you will become a god. But at the start, you are merely a Lesser God. As your comprehension increases… reaching a certain boundary, you will step into the realm of a Greater God.”
Only then did Linley understand.
“What level of god is the War God?” Linley asked curiously.
Hodan shot Linley an exasperated look, then laughed. “For the sake of your ancestor, I’ll tell you. The War God… is merely a Lesser God.”
“A Lesser God?” Linley blinked a few times.
Good heavens, the War God had entered the Demigod level over five thousand years ago. With his talent, he should be far more terrifying by now. How could he still be a Lesser God?
“Haha, Linley, do you think advancing from a Lesser God to a Greater God is easy?” Hodan shook his head.
“But the War God was already a Lesser God over five thousand years ago.” Linley immediately said.
“At that time, he was a Lesser God. But even among Lesser Gods, the gap is enormous. Suppose comprehending one percent of the Elemental Laws makes you a Lesser God, while comprehending ten percent makes you a Greater God. Even if he comprehends nine percent, he is still a Lesser God. Tell me, is comprehending one percent the same as comprehending nine percent? Even though they are both Lesser Gods.” Hodan explained simply.
Linley suddenly understood.
“Linley, don’t be too greedy. On the path of the gods, every single step forward is extremely difficult. In the Four Supreme Higher Planes, there are countless beings who have spent hundreds of thousands or even millions of years without being able to advance from a Lesser God to a Greater God.”
Hodan sighed with emotion. “Above the gods, the ‘Sovereigns’ are invincible.”
“Aren’t there the Supreme Gods?” Linley immediately said.
“The Supreme Gods?” Hodan suddenly burst into loud laughter. “You just asked me if a person can train to become a Supreme God. Now let me tell you—”
“The Supreme Gods…” Hodan looked at Linley with a smile. “Linley, the Supreme Gods were not trained by people. They have no gender, and they don’t even have a true body.”
“Ah?” Linley looked at Hodan in shock.
“The Four Supreme Gods are actually the manifestations of the Four Supreme Rules. They themselves are the rules by which countless planes operate! The God of Death is the Rule of Death, the God of Destruction is the Rule of Destruction, the God of Fate is the Rule of Fate. The God of Life is the Rule of Life!”
Hodan smiled as he looked at Linley. “Tell me, can the Supreme Gods be trained to?”
Linley understood.
The Four Supreme Gods were fundamentally a part of the heavens and earth of countless planes. They were the sky, they were the ground… They transcended all living beings. They themselves were the Rules!
“The Supreme Gods themselves are the Rules. They have no emotions like love, hate, or enmity. They are indifferent. If you curse the Supreme Gods, the Supreme Gods won’t care. If you flatter the Supreme Gods, the Supreme Gods won’t reward you. …If you try to disrupt the operation of the planes, the Supreme Gods will punish you.”
Linley smiled.
The Supreme Gods, though they existed, were manifestations of the Rules. There was no need to pay them any mind or heed them.
“Curse the Supreme Gods? Is there anyone who dares to curse the Supreme Gods?” Linley asked with a laugh.
Hodan was stunned, then laughed and scolded, “I was just speaking figuratively. Even after living in the Infernal Realm for so many years, I’ve never heard of the Supreme Gods manifesting. For now, you can consider that the strongest and most invincible are the Sovereigns. The will of the Sovereigns cannot be defied!”
Linley nodded to show he understood.
“Linley, the Seven Divine Planes are only beneficial for training in specific Elemental Laws. The Four Supreme Higher Planes are different. No matter which Laws you are training in, in the Four Supreme Higher Planes, your training speed will not be slower than in the Seven Divine Planes.” Hodan tempted him. “Therefore, the Four Supreme Higher Planes are the best choice.”
The Four Supreme Higher Planes were the Celestial Realm, the Netherworld, the Infernal Realm, and the Life Divine Realm.
“Linley, your family’s ancestors are all in the Infernal Realm. Why don’t you go to the Infernal Realm as well?” Hodan continued.
Go?
Linley had already made a decision in his heart.
In that Infernal Realm, there were only family ancestors he had never met. What meaning would there be in going there? But in the Yulan Continent, there was his younger brother, Wharton, and his good brothers, Yale, Reynolds, and George, as well as many good friends and brothers, like the five Barker brothers and Jenny and the others.
Furthermore.
He still had a goal—to uproot the Radiant Church from its foundations.
Seeing Linley hesitate, Hodan continued to tempt him. “Linley, the Infernal Realm has many races, all kinds of powerful and formidable races, and a never-ending stream of bizarre attacks. Training there will be much more passionate.”
“No.”
Linley shook his head and laughed. “Mr. Hodan, thank you for telling me so much. But I am still young, and I haven’t even gotten married yet. I’m not in a hurry to go.”
Hearing Linley say this, Hodan could only nod helplessly.
As a Plane Warden, he was not allowed to force anyone to leave their own plane. If someone was unwilling, even if they trained to become a Highgod, they could continue to stay in the material plane.
“Mr. Hodan, I want to ask, after going to a Supreme Higher Plane, can one come back?” Linley suddenly asked.
Hodan shook his head. “Almost impossible. Out of a hundred thousand who enter a Supreme Higher Plane, I’m afraid not even one can return to their homeland. Because the cost of returning is terrifyingly high.”
Linley understood now.
No wonder the War God and the High Priest were unwilling to go to the Supreme Higher Planes. Even Demigod-level experts were unwilling to go, which showed how difficult it was to return.
Out of a hundred thousand who go, it’s hard for even one to return.
Such a probability was far too low.
“Mr. Hodan, I apologize for making you come all this way for nothing.” Linley said humbly.
“In that case, I’ll be on my way.” Hodan stood up. “Linley, if one day you want to leave this material plane, you can come find me at the ‘Arctic Icefield’ at the end of the North Sea. I live on the highest iceberg in that Arctic Icefield.”
Linley was startled inwardly.
“Arctic Icefield?” This was the first time Linley had heard that there was an Arctic Icefield at the end of the North Sea.
“Mr. Hodan, what about the end of the South Sea?” Linley asked curiously.
“The South Sea’s range is much larger than the North Sea, almost boundless. At its end… is the edge of the Yulan Plane, the spatial turbulence.”
Linley suddenly understood.
Hodan then directly soared into the air, flying straight towards the north, and soon disappeared at the edge of the sky. Linley stood there, unmoving for a long time.
His conversation with Hodan had a great impact on Linley.
“Boss, I’m actually very curious about the Supreme Higher Planes. Wow, all kinds of bizarre and strange races, and Saint-levels are just ordinary there. It must be really cool there.” Bebe’s eyes were shining.
Linley patted Bebe’s little head. “If you go, you’re looking for death.” There, any random strong person that popped up could probably kill you.
But Linley had a clear idea of his future training path.
Sovereign? That was far too ambitious.
For now, he had to take it step by step, first reaching the Lesser God level. Once he became a Lesser God, Linley was confident he could destroy the Radiant Church.
…
Linley was very self-aware. With his current strength, on the vast stage of the Yulan Continent, he didn’t even have the right to be arrogant.
“Even against that Olivier, I can’t be sure I can win.” Linley had no confidence at all against Olivier’s ‘Blackstone Sword’ soul attack.
Soul attack?
Linley couldn’t help but think of the Coiling Dragon Ring. Back then, when a strand of faith energy descended upon Linley, a surge of power had emerged from the Coiling Dragon Ring to block it.
“But Grandpa Doehring was also the master of the Coiling Dragon Ring back then. Why didn’t the Coiling Dragon Ring help him when he died?” Linley wondered in his heart.
The mysterious energy within the Coiling Dragon Ring needed to be guided.
That strand of faith energy from the Radiant Sovereign had triggered the energy within the Coiling Dragon Ring, allowing it to block the attack. But Olivier’s attack might not necessarily draw out the energy of the Coiling Dragon Ring.
“I don’t know what secrets the Coiling Dragon Ring holds. Regardless, I can’t pin my hopes on the Coiling Dragon Ring. When fighting, I must rely on myself.”
…
At this moment, the main hall, courtyards, and other areas of the Earl’s mansion were filled with nobles, wealthy merchants, and other important figures, but Linley and his two magical beasts were in the backyard training grounds, training as if no one else was around.
“Once I go to the Infernal Realm, it will be hard to return. I can’t hope to get support from my family’s ancestors. In the Yulan Continent, I can only rely on myself.”
But at this moment, Linley had forgotten why the dozens of Dragonblood Warriors of the Dragonblood Warrior clan, as well as the other three Ultimate Warrior clans, had all left the Yulan Continent without exception. Not even a single Saint-level was left behind to look after their descendants?
The waters of the Yulan Continent were far deeper than Linley could imagine.