章節 49: Appendix C: Benefits and Drawbacks of godhood

This section will discuss Chaotic gods, Aspects, Immortals, Faith gods, and Force Ghosts.

Chaotic gods take advantage of completely unDefined Possibility to jump from ordinary to whatever they want to be. Most of their disadvantage lies within the difficulty of avoiding dissolution into the Void. They remain linked to Possibility, and have an enormously strong Will that must not falter, for even after being Ascended they must constantly make firm their Form so as to avoid dissolution. On the other hand, this link allows them to shape the Forms/Definitions of Reality however they wish, as long as they succeed. Most practice qi cultivation so as to strengthen their Form. As they grow in skill and Will power, they normally become nigh invincible even against other Ascended.

Immortals are the term for Ascended qi cultivators. An Immortal is an individual who's Definition has been altered and enhanced to point that the world can no longer support them and the individual's Will is what Defines them. This transference does not come without cost, as the Will one is claiming his existence from will try to reclaim the cultivator at certain thresholds.

Immortals all have a Dao, a code and goal they function by and aim for, for aimless undefined cultivation does not allow for Ascension. Unfortunately, because of the length of time required to cultivate, even slight aberrations in the technique to strengthen oneself will get exaggerated. This will usually lead to mental illness, causing once happy contributing members of society to become overly concerned with small perceived slights to their, to shut themselves away from normal interaction, and some even become predators that will do whatever they desire to others.

In summary, the advantages of qi cultivation are many. Additional strength, magic techniques done by exerting one's qi and Will, natural superpowers, and immortality are just a few. The disadvantages are mostly the mental illnesses that come from cultivation deviation (Heart Tribulation), though many cultivators also complain about the Heavenly Tribulations they go through, which are merely knee jerk reactions of the world trying to remove something that became foreign to it, like a child picking at an itchy scab. Immortals also do not have a limit to their growth, and some are even powerful enough to harm Chaotic gods, depending on their respective power sets. Before we move on, though, the biggest disadvantage is that the qi Path of Ascension can be the longest of all the Paths, depending on available energy and the world Laws in place.

Aspect is the term for those who have Ascended with the mana Path of Ascension. It involves taking mana into oneself, warping the cultivator's Definition until the world's former Definition is changed enough for the cultivator to grasp it and make it his own. There are two kinds of Aspects, Bound and Unbound. Bound Aspects rely on the mana element or elements existing Definition to reDefine themselves. This Ascension has a high chance of succeeding, but will bind the Aspect to the world. Unbound Aspects rely on their own Definition of their chosen Element(s) to Ascend, but normally fail. Not only do they have to reDefine themselves, but also all their accumulated energy. The difference can be looked at like this: Unbound Aspects force the energy of an Element to become their own version, while Bound Aspects change themselves to fit the world's Concept.

Just speaking in terms of advantages between the two types, Bound Aspects are invincible when to comes to their chosen domain and frequently succeed in their Ascension, while Unbound Aspects rely on a personal power pool that they have to replenish and normally fail. Unbound Aspects can world hop if they can figure out how and can cultivate additional Elements, though with some risk, while Bound Aspects are wound tight with their world, bound by their Definition. They can attempt to cultivate additional Elements, but usually fail because of the last issue we'll discuss with being a Bound Aspect. While Unbound Aspects can make their Elements fit them, Bound Aspects fit their Elements, which warps their mindset. A Bound Aspect of Fire can't perceive the Element of Earth without much effort, much less handle it to cultivate, unless there is some world Law that homogenizes the source of the different Elements.

In regards to advantages against other Ascenders, Aspects usually have the advantage with their chosen Concept, but are useless in regards to other matters. Their Ascension can be the easiest if Bound or harder than qi Ascension if Unbound.

Faith gods is the term being used to describe those who Ascend using the Faith Path of Ascension. They cultivate like mana cultivators by absorbing power that has been offered to them. The cultivator then uses the Concept attached to the offered power to alter himself until he can Define himself.

The biggest advantage of Faith cultivation is that it is one of the easiest Ascensions due to being supported by the Wills of the Ascender's cult. They also can have powers added on, depending on how they develop their religion. There are two main disadvantages, one being that the Faith cultivator can be Defined for the worse by his priesthood, and the other that they are reliant on their worshippers' offerings and prayers for Faith power. They are bound to whatever people acknowledge them as a god for good or ill.

In comparison to other Ascenders, Faith gods range from as invincible as a Chaotic god to running out of power even more quickly than an Unbound Aspect. They need to keep their religion going to keep their power, so most who desire to kill a Faith god will first wipe out their worshippers.

Force Ghost is the term being used for those who Ascend by cultivating their connection to the Force. This kind of Ascension is different than the others, for a Force Ghost does not become an entity that is separate from his world, but one that joins with his world's Will. Additionally, no energy absorption is required. The Force cultivator merely becomes one with world to the point that he actually becomes part of the Force. He is technically a god because he supports his own existence, but he is not separate from the Will that sustained him before. That being said, the state of mind needed to achieve Ascension is difficult to reach. There are few Jedi in the star Wars universe that managed to Ascend, and only one known Sith.

There are two disadvantages to this Path of Ascension. The first is that a Force Ghost is bound to his chosen world forever, becoming part of what Defines Reality from Chaos. The second is that a Force Ghost has very limited immediate power, mostly consisting of minor nudges and messages. Their forte is manipulating everything that happens into their desired outcome. This is because of two reasons. One is that a Force Ghost's omniscience makes them see every future path, and their direct interference will almost always end in an outcome they will not like for them or for the world which they are part of. The second is that destroying or altering that which they Define is anathema to their state of resonance.

There are also many advantages to becoming a Force Ghost. Force Ghosts can predict the future, because they are omniscient about their world. They play with events like a game of chess, manipulating every piece into the desired place. If there is an existential threat to the world from outside it, Force Ghosts usually are able to go all out. They are unbeatable. Future prediction on top of manipulating Reality itself makes for an invincible combination.

Before we wrap up this discussion, there is one more thing I wish to make clear. The Paths of Ascension are not exclusive. An Ascender can and will usually cultivate multiple Paths. Qi cultivators like to mana cultivate, trying to perceive and absorb Concepts like the sword or cutting. Force cultivators will do qi cultivation on the side, since they can absorb and convert energy incredibly efficiently once they are resonating with the world. Level up systems usually use a combination of mana, qi, and possibly Faith cultivation.

There are also magics that have entirely different meanings based on what Path one cultivates. Death mana magic can be acceptable if its in a world where necromancy is tolerated, while death magic for a Faith cultivator is evil and will corrupt the Definition of one who practices it.

One more thing. One might ask what the advantages to being a god over the power increase is. After all, Ascension is dangerous, and non gods can kill gods given the right circumstances.

Just based off the definition of godhood being that one's Will is what sustains one's existence, there is one obvious advantage - the world's Laws hold less sway over a god; how much less is determined by god type. Obviously, Laws can't not affect a god who's interacting with a world, as that would mean the god isn't actually there. This can also be a disadvantage, since the god will be recognized as foreign and may be expelled from the world if he doesn't pay an appropriate price to adjust his internal Laws to somewhat match the world he's in. This is why gods usually act through intermediaries; never mind having to temporarily adjust their internal Laws to affect the world, some are unable to even adjust themselves!

Additionally, since a god is a miniature reality in of himself, creating a domain that is an extension of himself is not difficult. He can use this to store objects or people in.

Finally, keep in mind that Ascension is just the first step in becoming a power player in the multiverse.