Chapter 451: Choosing His Path
So far in the history of the Human Race, there were only less than a hundred individuals that had the ability and talent to cultivate to the peak of the Second Realm and successfully ascend to the Third Realm, including Khal.
As for why only just a few humans were able to achive something that for other races was as easy as taking a stroll in the park, well, there were several reasons.
First and foremost, while Khal ascended the Thousand Path of Destiny with relative ease, it did not mean it was that simple. In fact, if one tried to ascend to the Third Realm one had to prepare himself or herself for the possibility of failing and ending up gravely injured or even worse dying!
For instance, if one with a weak body and physical resistance tried to ascend, it was very likely that when they reached the step that presses huge amounts of weights on their bodies it was very likely they will be smashed into meat paste as a result!
The same went for oneโs soul, stamina, willpower, and mind. If either one was fragile or could not be defended by any technique or skill, when they step on a staircase that inflicts direct damage on those weaknesses of theirs they will automatically fail the ascension and properly end up dead!
Hence, it was not a huge surprise to see Khal completing such a hard trial with such ease as both his body, soul, and mind was strong thanks to various reasons. For instance, the herbs he consumed and his Soul World that strengthen his soul, and his insane amount of Body Essence that could fortify every part of his body including his soul and mind.
Furthermore, there were also the numerous Power Cores in his possession that he could use in different situations too, allowing him to bolster both his physical body, soul, mind, and other traits of his character!
As for the second reason why only a few humans were able to reach the Third Realm, it was because until now none of them knew that back in the First Realm the Ninth Cultivation Stage was not the peak but the Tenth Cultivation Stage was!
And attempting to challenge the Thousand Path of Destiny with a weaker cultivation base, it was obvious that it was akin to sending oneself to certain death!
...
After taking a deep breath from the fresh air that existed in the Third Realm, Khal opened his eyes and looked around.
Currently, he was standing in the center of a huge square platform with numerous gates around him, each varying in size, shape, and appearance over the other beside it!
There were two hundred and fifty gates on one side of the square platform, indicating there was a total of thousand gates around Khal at this very moment, each different than the other!
"So this is the Path Selection my book has mentioned," Khal mumbled quietly as he walked closer to one of the gates and examined it silently.
According to his Record of All Realms, different from the rest of the existing Realms, once one reached the Third Realm instead of continuing to cultivate their Blessing the same way they did in the past, one will have to choose a path they will have to walk until the very day they could ascend to the Fourth Realm and proceed on with their cultivation!
For instance, if one chooses to walk the path of swords, then that individual has to master all types of swords in existence to perfection before they were allowed to ascend into the Fourth Realm.
And for that reason, in the Third Realm, the power levels were not separated into First or Second Cultivation Stages but instead into Mastery Levels such as Initial, Intermediate, Advanced, Peak, and Supreme Mastery Level!
Of course, if one in the past for example used just swords as a weapon in both the First and Second Realm, it was possible that when that cultivator chose to walk the paths of swords in the Third Realm he or she could gain higher Mastery Level than Initial Mastery Level right from the start!
As for the answer to the question, if one had the chance to walk various paths at the same time, it was a definite yes. However, if one decided to walk more paths than one at the same time, one had to prepare him or herself that the journey will be full of dangers and hardships.
"Which path should I choose?" Khal mumbled as he examined each gate and through some miraculous reason was able to tell what kind of path lay behind each gate.
There was a path he could walk on and master various natural elements, a path that would allow him to wield different weapons to their maximum potential if mastered perfectly, a path of cooking that although seemed useless could probably save many lives in dire situations, and many more.
There were simply so many paths Khal could choose from that even after an entire hour of pondering he failed to choose one.
[Do you plan on walking one or more paths?]
Upon hearing Novaโs question Khal laughed gently before saying, "More than one? My life is already a mess and full of hardships which in the future will only get worse for sure. I donโt plan on making my life even harder than it is, so I will only walk one path."
[As I have thought.]
"Hm?" As Khal walked from gate to gate and inspected them with great curiosity, suddenly his steps halted and his eyes got fixed on a gate that had a circular shape and was half white and half black in color.
"Oh? This one could be interesting." Khal said to himself as he touched his chin with his right index finger and thumb before a soft smile emerged on his face and placed his palm atop the half black and half white gateโs surface.
"I will choose this one."
โPath of the Divine Soul had been chosen. Do you wish to ascend now?โ
