Tao

In this world, I am no different from a mortal. Yet, countless seek my death.

Once, I wielded mana, a fluid and versatile energy. Here, it is Qi that governs existence. Denser, more primal, it shapes the very laws and permeates every fiber of the world. The path of cultivation relies on it, and the stages of ascension are rigid, merciless. The levels are divided into three stages: initial, intermediate, and peak.

**Body Refinement**

At this stage, one forges their energy circuit, tracing internal meridians to channel Qi. Every breath absorbed strengthens the flesh, solidifies the bones, and tempers the blood. It's an indispensable foundation, for without a body capable of containing Qi, any attempt to progress leads to a gruesome death.

Once the body is forged, the mind follows. **Spirit Refinement** begins, where the cultivator creates their spiritual sea and starts manipulating Qi outside themselves. It's at this stage that external force emerges, allowing weapons to be imbued with sharpness akin to the intent to kill. Those who reach the peak of this level can fly through the skies, dominating the peaks and observing mortals like ants beneath their feet.

**Nascent Soul**

The first true wall. While one can refine their body and spirit with time and discipline, comprehending a Law is a blessing... or an unattainable dream. Only ten percent of cultivators reach this stage. Divided into nine levels, at this point, each must find their Law. It determines their future. It's impossible to possess multiple Laws, but a single Law can encompass countless facets and the abilities of lesser Laws.

Cultivators are no longer mere warriors but beings capable of shaping reality with their will alone.

Everything is decided by the Tree of Tao, the Will of the World. There are those it blesses... and those it curses.

Reaching the peak (ninth star) of the Nascent Soul is not enough. One must create their own inner world, the **Ashkharsh**. Where, in my former world, this stage represented the pinnacle of power, here, it's only the beginning. For once this foundation is laid, a new ascension opens to the truly cultivated.

The Ashkharsh is divided into three stages: knowing one's Law, understanding one's Law, and creating the inner world.

Then come the true steps to power: Sage, Saint-Sage, Supreme-Sage, Celestial King, Transcendence, Celestial Emperor, and Immortal. Until this point, cultivators remain measurable. Some have more powerful Laws, others have stronger foundations, but the difference remains understandable. Even if the power is immeasurably greater. The power that separates an ant from a mortal is closer than the power that separates an Emperor from someone who hasn't yet reached Transcendence. That's why, upon reaching their level, many Emperors either become detached from the world, cultivating in seclusion, or extremely violent, killing all as if they were insects beneath their feet.

But from the next level onward, all comparison becomes futile. Reaching this stage means becoming one's Law. It's no longer mastery but absolute fusion. **Law Incarnation**. A fire cultivator no longer wields flames: they are the flames. A master of ice no longer summons frost: their presence numbs spacetime itself. There are no stages at this level. Nor any way to detect this level of power.

And yet... one final threshold remains. Here, it's no longer about individual Laws but the fundamental principles that govern the universe.

**Ruler Incarnation**, the hypothetical level the first Devourer reached.

The Rules. There are four: the Dharma, representing the cycle of Creation and Destruction, encompassing Laws like time, space, fire, ice, light... The Samsara, embodying the cycle of Reincarnation, including life and death. The Karma, governing the cycle of Destiny, including causality and the connection between all things. And finally, the Nirvana, the source of desire and primordial chaos, born from the extreme Yin of the Void.

All these Rules are subdivisions of the Taoji, the Universal Order. But there is an adversary. The opposite of the Taoji. Where the Taoji shapes and balances, the Wuji consumes and annihilates, returning all to nothingness. Its harbinger? The Devourer, an entity embodying extreme chaotic Yin Qi.

The natural enemy of this world. The antithesis of the Will of the Tao.

The one who should not exist.

That's why, wherever he goes, he is condemned. Wherever he hides, they will hunt him. No matter his strength... they will never stop.

And I, Bai She... am the Devourer of this era.

**End of POV**

***

Far too many sought Bai She's death. Since his awakening as the Devourer, he had become an aberration in the eyes of the world. He embodied a scourge that the universe itself sought to eradicate, for his existence defied natural laws. Yet, despite the countless hunts, despite the enemies rising against him, he had to survive.

Using his Devourer form, he had already transcended the Ashkharsh stage, a phase few cultivators had reached. But he knew he could no longer display it. Too conspicuous, too dangerous. Every use of his power attracted even more powerful predators. Fortunately, they all followed an unspoken rule: it was the younger generation's duty to hunt and kill him.

Why?

Because the appearance of the Devourer triggered a unique phenomenon. The Tree of Tao, the mysterious entity guiding the world's evolution, countered the threat by sowing unprecedented opportunities. Ordinary talents could find supreme artifacts, become reincarnations of powerful cultivators, or inherit techniques lost for eons. In five hundred years, a mere mortal could be shaped into a Heavenly Emperor.

It was a response programmed by the Tao itself.

Also called according to the continent: Yggdrasil / The world tree / Heaven and earth / The absolute / Consciousness.

Every era that saw the birth of a Devourer was a time of fervor, of unmatched geniuses.

Bai She was not naive. He knew he couldn't directly confront this inevitable tide of prodigies. He needed another path, a different cultivation, a Qi and Law capable of masking his true nature.