There were three levels in the Sage-stage. The first level was Ascension. To ascend was to transcend the mortal coil and set foot in the nine heavens. Naturally, one who ascended to the nine heavens was extraordinary.0

To put it simply, all new Sages were at the Ascension level. They had just broken through their mortal limits and ascended. In Taoism, it was called Rising. In Buddhism, it was called Transcedence. In the Dark Ways, it was called Elevation. In Confucianism, it was called Sagehood. So on and so forth. They all meant the same thing.0

In the Ascension level, a Sage primarily focused on comprehending the difference between a Sage and a mortal and solidifying their cultivation and mental state. They unified the three treasures—the physical body, the true qi, and the yang god—into one and attained perfection in all of them. This was to prevent them from losing...0