5 Mortal Ranks

"In the Mortal Ranks you have 4 greater realms that are made up of smaller realms. The first Rank or greater realm is known as Mortal, The second is Ascendant, Third Transcendent, and the last of the Mortal Ranks is Spirit." Rose pauses so that Nia can take in what she has said so far and waits for her to ask anymore questions.

"What are the smaller realms and how do I progress in them?"

"Most greater realms have the same or similar smaller realms with few exceptions. One of such exceptions is the Mortal Realm. Other realms are separated into Lower, Middle, Late, and Peak, but the Mortal Realm is different. The Mortal Realm is made up of smaller ranks ordering from lowest to highest F, E, D, C, B, A, and S ranks. It is like this because they are the foundations of the Mortal Ranks."

Confused Nia couldn't help but ask, "Why is the Mortal Realm different from the others?"

Rose gets up from her seat and stares at Nia's delicate face, "I'm going to get you some food Nia since it has been a long day. Is there anything you want?"

Nia stares into Rose's pink eyes and sees warmth and gentleness overflowing from them. "Okay. I'll eat whatever you recommend."

Rose leaves the room closing the door behind her.

Luna who has been quiet this whole time spoke up to explain, "When cultivating in the Mortal Ranks you gather and compress mana in your heart purifying it. When you breakthrough the smaller realms you fill your heart with mana then compress it increasing the quantity of mana you can use, but when crossing the greater realms not only the quantity of your mana increase greatly but the quality of your mana increase toward the next Rank. Since the Mortal Realm is the foundations you do not store mana in your heart but your body."

*Click*

Nia and Luna turn their heads to Rose who had just came back with a tray of food. On the tray had one plate and three cups. "I'm back and I've brought your food and some drinks." Setting the table Rose puts the plate and a cup in front of Nia and the other two cups in front of her and Luna. The food on the plate was a pasta dish and the liquid in the cup was pink and smelled like lemonade.

Nia noticed that she was the only one with food and couldn't help but ask, "Why don't the two of you have food?"

Rose who just got back replies to her, "The higher realms you are in the less you need to eat or drink and once you reach a certain realm mana completely makes up the nutrients needed to keep your body in top shape."

"What realm would I need to never have the need to eat anymore?"

"Unfortunately we can't tell you what realm you need to be at because it is not within the Mortal Ranks."

"But won't it be awkward if I am just eating alone while we are talking, wouldn't it be better if we eat together?" Nia says averting her eyes with a slight blush running across her face.

'She's so cute!~" Both Rose and Luna couldn't help but smile.

"Sure we can eat together. Now, say ahh." Rose puts some food right outside of Nia's mouth.

"Ahhh" *Chomp*

'Delicious' Nia's face lights up and turns to Luna and goes, "Ah Ah" with an open mouth wanting to be fed by her along with Rose. Luna seeing this couldn't help but give a small chuckle before putting some more food in her mouth as she continues her explanation.

"The Mortal Realm is the foundation before you start storing your mana in your heart. You can enter the Ascendant Realm at any point being in the Mortal Ream. But the higher your rank in the Mortal Realm the greater the benefits including increased mana quantity, cultivation and comprehension speed, a stronger mind, body, and soul, and many other benefits."

"So I could enter the Ascendant Realm right now if I wanted, but I will be weaker than if I was at lets say S Rank?"

"Yes that is correct. Good job Nia!" Rose and Luna compliments with a smile.

Nia who only ever got compliments from her sister back on Earth was not used to them and couldn't help but blush at them.

"Can I have more information about the ranks in the Mortal Realm?"

Rose decides to step in because she can tell Luna is starting to lose her composure with Nia's reactions and blushes. "F Rank is a person who does not feel or sense mana, you should be at this Rank right now. E Rank is when you can feel or sense the mana in the air. D Rank is when you can manipulate mana to increase your physical abilities and stamina. C Rank is when you absorb mana through your meridians and store the mana in your skin. B Rank is when mana is stored in your muscles. A Rank is mana stored in your bones and S Rank is when mana is stored in your internal organs except your heart."

"Wait, If I am a F Rank then how can I become E Rank?"

"There are many ways to feel mana, you can sit and meditate for weeks to months until you can feel it. You could also take a natural treasure or alchemy pill. Even food or drinks can make you sense mana as long as they are made from Ascendant Realm ingredients or greater. For example in the Eastern continent there is a drink called Magical Lemonade made from Ascendant Rank Magic Lemons. It is actually one of the Eastern Continents main transports since only the Eastern Continent has the subtropical climate that allows the growth of Magic Lemons giving them a monopoly over them."

Nia who is getting thirsty from Rose's talk about Magic Lemons and the drink they make picks up her cup filled with a pink drink and takes a sip.

"Hm?"

After taking a small sip an explosion of fruity flavors invade Nia's mouth. She starts to drink and chug the drink finishing it after a couple of seconds. Nia catching her breath, Rose and Luna can see her pink lips slightly wet as a pink droplet slides down her chin before falling off.

Rose and Luna couldn't help but gulp at the sight.

Nia looking at them "I...I feel weird."

---

(A/N: There will be lots of info dumps to try to set up the world, progression, and other things. So bear with me on this until we can get to a point where we can progress in the story without needing massive info dumps.)