--An) As promised, here you go!--
"The blue ball is mana. It is the simplest form of power that allows one to achieve a long, long life through evolution. But the process is long, and even if you are able to live thousands of years, you will eventually grow old and die. While it can be powerful, it is only a little powerful. Only when you reach a stage to break through to the Mana Plane will you be able to even be considered a baby here in the Astral Domain. While after many, many evolutions you can eventually reach the point that you can fight on par with someone from the astral domain, the length of time it will take to reach that point, you might just end up being an old man unless you are some kind of freak of nature.
"The reason why this is is because the power output and the enhancements it has on the body. Think of it as two kinds of metals. You have one metal that is very strong and unbreakable, but the metal next to it, while it can be used for many things, is weak and easily broken.
"Basically, if let's say Blake was to fight a baby here, the baby would win if it knew what it was doing. You can consider those with astral energy as the fine line between a demigod and a mortal.
"I hope this makes sense. I was trying to simplify it as much as I could." Nanaya rubbed her nose as he looked at the group of people in front of her.
"No, it was very well explained." Lillia was the one to answer. She had to admit that she now had a better understanding of both astral energy and mana. "But what is this mana plane you talked about?"
"Oh, that? It's the place one will go once one reaches a certain evolution point. They will not be able to evolve anymore once they reach a certain point until they enter the Mana Plane. To continue evolving with mana at that point, you would need a large abundance of it and it would need to be very pure. Only then will it be possible to continue growing on power." Nanaya replied. Her tutors all taught her these things since the Astral Domain has both mana and astral energy.
"I see… So that is why everyone would leave for the higher plane…." Gemini mumbled as she fell into thought.
"Then can I ask how does a normal mortal like us take in astral energy that can be said to be the boundary of mortal and demigod?" Blake finally spoke up.
Nanaya's eyes lit up as she smiled sweetly and said: "I am glad you asked. There is only one way and it is quite tricky. To even be able to sense astral energy here in the Astral Domain, you would need to die and be reborn."
"Huh?" Everyone felt like they did not hear her correctly.
"Well to be more precise you would need to be near death. Only when you are near death can you begin to see the flow of astral energy in the air. It is when your mind and body are about to separate and allows you to see the unseen. If during this time, you take in the astral energy, you can not only save yourself but reconstruct your body into a more powerful one. From what I know, mortals who have been able to achieve this are quite strong, stronger in fact, than the residents of this domain. Because not only will their lives be extended indefinitely after being reborn, but they can still use mana to grow in strength as well. It's like a two for one but the cost is high." Nanaya's words made everyone go into deep thought.
"Is there a safe way to go about it without the risk of actually dying?" Noa asked. She did not want to risk it if death was something that might happen.
Nanaya shook her head as she said: "I asked the same question to my tutor as well. Her words were that to gain power, one must take risks. If a mortal wishes to step on the path to becoming a god, they must first be willing to die and be reborn.
"Let me tell you a small story of how gods are born." Nanaya looked at everyone, and when everyone nodded, she continued. "Gods can be considered the chosen ones. They normally have a deep belief in gaining power. Or are under the protection of earlier gods. You see…. Most gods die and come back to life. But it's not what happens before their death that has much importance but after they have died.
"The life of a mortal is like this. Born, live their life as best as they can, then die. This is just the life cycle of all living beings. I do not know when the first gods were born or created but the gods after that were all hand picked by other gods. They took an interest in these mortals, and when they died, instead of letting their souls dissipate, which most souls do, they give them a chance to go to the underworld and give them a single task. Crawl up from the underworld and gain great power." Nanaya only knew all of this thanks to her mother. "Only by completing the task of escaping the underworld can they gain power and become gods or goddesses. My Mama was the same."
"So to gain power of any kind, there is always some kind of trial. To be a single step from godhood is already quite grand for a mortal. And to acquire such strength, the only way is to die and be reborn, just like how the gods have to die and be reborn to actually become gods. Only the children of gods are able to be gods from birth just like I am considered a goddess, albeit weak. And just like how the people of the Astral Domain live here and give birth here. Their children, too, are only one step away from godhood." Nanaya's explanation resonated with Blake and his family. Even Joy and Destiny understood her explanation, even if it was a tiny bit confusing. They still understood that in order to be powerful, there are risks and trials that you will need to undergo.
