When Lu Yuan heard those words, his face immediately lit up with curiosity.

All this time, his path of cultivation and evolution had been built upon the experience of his previous life, and that included his understanding of realms as well.

Just as it had been in the beginning, before he stepped into the Void Sage Realm, he had never walked that far before, and so he had been unable to reach this particular stage for some time.

It was only after Jiang Ningxian told him of the special nature of this stage that he gained his own insight and ultimately broke through into the Sage Realm.

More importantly, Lu Yuan knew that beyond the three Sage Realms lay the Immortal Realm.

But as for how that realm was divided, he had no idea.

The so-called Immortals spoken of before was merely a general term for a host of immortals. It did not refer to a cultivation realm.

At once, he said nothing more and only smiled. "Please enlighten me."

Jiang Ningxian did not hesitate and continued, "You already know that within the Sage Realm, there are three stages in total: Void Sage, Lesser Sage, and Great Sage. In practice, these three realms are fundamentally similar. All of them revolve around comprehending heaven, earth, and the cosmos, then bringing oneself into harmony with them.

"The deeper one's comprehension, and once one's innate potential has been developed to a certain extent, one can naturally step into that realm."

She thought for a moment, then added, "Let me put it this way. After reaching the Sage Realm, one gains the ability to tear through the void and traverse great distances in a short span of time. But that distance is ultimately limited.

"That is because one is still restricted by heaven and earth. Only by reaching a higher realm, and attaining deeper comprehension, will those limitations gradually disappear.

"And upon reaching the Great Sage Realm, one can cross galaxies and even temporarily open up a separate space."

Hearing this explanation, Lu Yuan could not help but nod. He had already sensed as much himself.

Upon reaching the Void Sage Realm, one could indeed travel through the universe, though the distance remained limited.

As for opening up an independent space, such an ability could only be described as terrifying. It was equivalent to the nascent form of a small world.

Of course, the independent space was only temporary. Even a Great Sage could not truly reach that level of creating a small world.

Jiang Ningxian looked at Lu Yuan and continued. "And above the Sage Realm lies the Immortal Realm. If one were to classify it properly, it should be considered the ninth stage of evolution. This stage contains five minor realms, which together are collectively referred to as the Immortal Realm.

"These five minor realms are Undying Realm, Grotto-Heaven Realm, Creation Realm, Celestial Seat Realm, and Supreme Immortal Realm. Each possesses different methods, and the gap between them is enormous.

"The Immortals who attacked Earth before were, for the most part, only in the first minor realm—the Undying Realm. Across the cosmos, they are certainly powerful, but they are far from standing at the very peak."

Her explanation was exceptionally clear. The entire Immortal Realm was, in essence, the ninth stage of evolution. It had merely been divided into five minor realms because the disparity in strength was too great.

With each rise through one minor realm, the gap was even greater than that of an entire major realm.

Lu Yuan nodded at those words. At the very least, he now had a general understanding. In this regard, he knew he was inferior to Jiang Ningxian, so he simply listened.

She then continued her explanation.

An Undying Immortal could be reborn from a single drop of blood.

A Grotto-Heaven Immortal could open up a grotto-heaven of their own.

A Creation Immortal could create wind, fire, water, and earth within that grotto-heaven, though actual living beings still could not be born there.

A Celestial Seat Immortal would begin to gradually merge with the universe itself, possessing truly heaven-reaching power.

As for the Supreme Immortal, the name spoke for itself; it was the utmost limit of immortals. They were also known as Domain Lords. A Domain Lord was the ruler of various major starfields, and only one who had reached the Supreme Immortal Realm could become such a being. In other words, existences at this level were titans even in the vast universe, mighty figures whose power shook the cosmos.

Of course, this was still not the end of cultivation and evolution. Beyond that lay something belonging to the realm of legend.

Jiang Ningxian had that knowledge, but she also understood that neither of them could come into contact with such matters anytime soon. So she offered no further explanation.

Lu Yuan, meanwhile, was very clear on one thing.

Right now, he had only just stepped into the Void Sage Realm. For the time being, it was enough for him to understand the general road ahead.

After that, the two spoke of several other matters, all of which concerned the future situation and what should be done once the various starfields descended.

The Milky Way Starfield would soon become the center of the entire universe. No one would be able to fully control the situation.

Jiang Ningxian was of the same view. At present, the most important thing was still to increase one's strength. As for herself, she would soon enter closed-door cultivation for a period of time as well—first to step into the Sage Realm, and then to continue her complete recovery.

Lu Yuan knew very well that with her talent, once the restrictions of Separation of Heaven and Earth had been fully lifted, nothing would be able to restrain her any longer.

At the same time, that was also a sign that outsiders would be able to enter the Sage Realm as well.

The rate at which the restrictions of the Separation of Heaven and Earth were failing was faster than expected. 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

Naturally, Lu Yuan understood the reason.

Back on the moon, he had used the methods left behind by the ancient sages to repel the Immortals. But in doing so, a great portion of that power had also been consumed, causing the protection of the Separation of Heaven and Earth to continue dissipating.

He had no other choice then. If he had not done so, those Outer Cosmos beings would likely have already descended.

Where there were gains, there were losses.

At the very least, from the current view, that choice had absolutely been the correct one.

"That should be enough for now," Jiang Ningxian said as she rose to her feet, smiling. "During my seclusion, I probably won't be coming out."

Then she added with a grin, "Don't miss me too much."

With that, she turned gracefully and returned to her own courtyard.

Seeing this, Lu Yuan smiled helplessly, but said nothing.

Just as he had said before, the objective ahead was simple.

He would have Elder Ji and the others establish the complete structure of the Celestial Court, provide them with the greatest possible resources, and place those resources in the hands of the younger generation represented by Zhu Qingyu, so that their realms could rise as quickly as possible.

Beyond that, he himself also needed to find ways to continue growing stronger.

However, he had only broken into the Void Sage Realm not long ago. Advancing further would be somewhat difficult.

Of course, there were many ways to increase one's power.

Within the Zhou Family, he had obtained a great number of excellent divine materials.

There were even Sage Weapons. If he fed those into the Great Luo Sword Embryo, its might would rise further.

Lu Yuan knew very well that for his current realm, he was indeed invincible on Earth.

But once those existences from space descended in full, it would be difficult to maintain that advantage.

Everything was built upon strength.

Fortunately, there was still time.

Without dwelling on it further, Lu Yuan returned to his room. He intended to continue enhancing his strength in every aspect.

Then, making use of Earth's naturally unparalleled advantages, he would strive to take another step forward in the shortest time possible.

He knew this was too hasty a move when the path of cultivation and evolution required patience.

But time was not a luxury on his end. The future situation would only grow more chaotic, and he had to seize that window of opportunity while it still existed.

While others might end up with an unstable foundation if they advanced too much in too short a time, and in turn, their combat strength and even their future path of evolution would be affected. The cost to pay would be far too great.

Fortunately, for Lu Yuan, that was not much of an issue.

Before the First Awakening, Lu Yuan had already begun laying his foundations.

With the assimilation of the various divine artifacts, the solidity of his foundation had already reached an almost terrifying level.

And during the Unfettered Realm, the one hundred and eight shackles he had broken had long since paved the road of cultivation before him.

Now, the only thing Lu Yuan needed to do was move forward step by step until he reached the summit.