This chapter will include a list of the cultivation Paths that have been mentioned in Shao's story so far. It will also include some basic information about those Paths.
Path of the Concealing Shadow: This Path focuses primarily on illusions and other means of concealment. Members of the Shen Clan are considered experts at infiltration and subterfuge due to their mastery of this Path. At higher levels, disciples of this Path can utilize "true invisibility" and use illusions to create openings in their opponents' defenses. Though the other factions won't say it out loud, many believe that the Shen Clan is dishonorable and they're all secretly assassins who are just waiting for an opportunity to kill.
Path of the Divine Sword: This Path focuses on using weapons to advance and defend oneself against enemies. For the past thousand years, the Shigong Sect has been the dominant force in Haishan due to its Patriarch. Frequently, members of the island's cultivator clans will leave their homes and become disciples of the Shigong Sect in their formative years. It is incredibly common for disciples of the Shigong Sect to carry the name Wei, Shen, or Gao. The leadership of the Shigong Sect makes no effort to quash these ancient clan rivalries.
Path of the Endless Web: This Path focuses on honing one's enhanced senses and ki detection. Due to their secret technique that allows them to detect one's level of advancement and the presence of a bloodline talent, members of the Xiahou Clan are indispensable in Haishan and most of the Golden Tiger Continent. Spider imagery is popular among members of the Xiahou Clan due to their belief that all things are connected within the Dao like they were all points upon an endless web.
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Path of the Iron Tortoise: This Path focuses on strengthening one's body in order to withstand injury and disease. A mere decade ago, the Gao Clan Patriarch died, and the clan has been in a state of turmoil ever since. The current Patriarch is not strong enough to hold the clan together, and smaller families have been making moves to take control of the clan.
Path of the Striking Hand: This Path focuses on attacking with one's bare hands over everything else. It is said that the Wei Clan was once the dominant faction in Haishan, but that was such a long time ago that few physical documents remain. Members of the Wei Clan claim that "anything a disciple of the Shigong Sect can do with a sword, we can do with our bare hands," though Elders of the Shigong Sect beg to differ.
Path of the Winged Serpent: On the Silver Hawk continent, this Path is called the "School of Hermes." Like many things from the Silver Hawk continent, this Path focuses less on cultivation through exercise and martial arts and more on arcane rituals and meditation. A powerful disciple of this Path is less likely to throw a punch during a fight and more likely to summon pillars of earth from the ground and throw balls of fire from his hands.