Great Red Immortal Sect

Chapter 410 Demonic Way
In the palace.

The crimson flames burned, and the sound of wood and stone melting could be heard from time to time in the alchemy furnace. When Xu Xuan heard what Ping Xiu said, which were all ancient matters, his supernatural powers seemed to sense something, and his thunderous nature rose.

"In ancient times, the Thunder Palace generally had two important positions. One was to preside over the Heavenly Tribulation. Whenever a cultivator broke through, they would have to undergo the tribulation to temper themselves from the Foundation Establishment stage, and withstand the lightning with their lives. The other was to uphold morality. However, this morality was not the morality of cultivators, but the morality of heaven and earth."

“In ancient times, true cultivators who sought immortality would be subject to various calamities, the two most terrifying of which were the tribulation of lightning and the tribulation of demons.”

"Fellow Daoist, you cultivate 'She Lei,' so you should be familiar with this, right?"

"It refers to the two paths: 'She Lei' and 'Dai Qi'."

A pure silver light flashed in Xu Xuan's eyes. His heart stirred. He was very familiar with She Lei. The true meaning of this path was to punish on behalf of Heaven, to punish those who defy the times, to use one's own heart to replace the heart of Heaven, and to use morality and punishment to subdue all cultivators in the world.

As for the Qi of Despair, there is the Path of Demonic Trials, which is a series of trials on the path of cultivation. It is not the demonic path of Blood Qi or Evil Qi. Its nobility lies above many immortal paths.

"The name 'Daiqi Demon' was added later. In ancient times, it was the name of the supreme immortal lineage. Its function was to hinder and temper cultivation."

"If it weren't for the many great merits that the She Lei Dao has made in this world, it might be labeled as a demon by now. The so-called demonic path is actually just a matter of the likes and dislikes of various cultivators."

"The demons of ancient times were not those who could gain their name by killing a few people and consuming some blood essence; they were those who defied the heavens and violated the laws of heaven and earth."

Pingxiu seemed to have some feelings about it, perhaps because he felt indignant about the fate of that Immortal Lord Xuanming.

"Today, the distinction between immortals and demons is not very clear. They are mixed together, all claiming to be immortals. Even if they do evil deeds, there is no one to condemn them."

Xu Xuan sighed at this moment, "If the Song family, as an imperial family, can lead several immortal sects to commit blood sacrifices, let alone the lower cultivators. If the higher-ups don't care, who knows what the situation is like below."

"When the two paths of the world were flourishing, the level of immortality in the world was far higher than it is today. Cultivators not only need to cultivate magic power and supernatural abilities, but more importantly, their character and realm."

"Back then, the concept of 'sins' was emphasized. Does Sword Immortal Xu have any knowledge of this?"

When Pingxiu inquired about this matter, Xu Xuan was naturally very familiar with it. The ultimate meaning of the [Jiefa] sword lineage is to determine punishment according to sins, and to resolve all evils with the sword.

The sword technique he comprehended, called "Master of Calamity," involved this very concept. In the past, when he used it, he could often determine a person's sins, but he didn't know why.

"I hope you will discuss this further with me, fellow Daoist."

Xu Xuan's expression turned slightly solemn, and he couldn't help but look at this Master Pingxiu with even higher regard. Although the Western Sea was remote, there were still experts there, no less than Dali.

"The so-called 'crime' is to violate the principles of heaven and earth and the laws of the Thunder Palace, which is unacceptable to morality. As for the so-called 'karma,' the Buddhist sect talks about it a lot, in great depth and in a very mysterious way."

Pingxiu flipped his hand and produced a handful of spirit sand that shimmered with starlight, which was placed in a spirit plate as large as a round table, with the surface level.

"This is the present world."

He activated his supernatural powers and used his magic to take out a tiny, blue insect the size of a mustard seed, signaling Xu Xuan to activate his spiritual sense, otherwise they wouldn't even be able to detect the insect.

"This is a mustard worm, which is of no use. It is only because it is as small as a mustard seed that supernatural powers can detect it with their spiritual sense."

Pingxiu placed the insect in this level sand tray, and the mustard insect fell into it. Each grain of sand was like a mountain to it, unshakable.

"This insect is like many minor cultivators who, upon reaching the Foundation Establishment stage, can only leave a trace on a speck of dust. Placed between heaven and earth, it is completely imperceptible."

After speaking, Pingxiu took out another insect, which was now the size of a grain of sand and was also blue, and placed it in the plate.

This insect crawled through the vast expanse of stardust for a short time, shaking many of the stars, but eventually it was exhausted and collapsed, leaving behind only faint traces.

"This is our Purple Mansion, which is much stronger than that of a minor cultivator, but in the grand scheme of things, it is still just a drop in the ocean."

After speaking, Pingxiu took out another insect. This insect was red and gold in color, as big as a fist, and it was very conspicuous when it landed on the sand table. At this moment, it was rampaging around in the sand table, raising dust.

"This is the power of the Golden Elixir, truly capable of shaking heaven and earth."

Then Pingxiu collected all the strange insects, his expression slightly composed, and said:

“Xu Jianxian, you can take a look at this sand table. The traces left on it are the [karma], which is the situation in this life.”

As he spoke, Pingxiu activated his magic power, using true fire to refine the star sand into a single entity, and then sent many red-gold and blue alien insects onto it.

"Fellow Daoist, you can activate the Divine Power of the Earthly Thunder to establish the Heavenly Laws for this sand table. If any insects make any rash moves, they will be struck down by lightning. The more traces they leave, the heavier the lightning punishment will be."

Xu Xuan suddenly understood. He activated his supernatural powers, using the laws of the Primordial Order and the Heavenly Tribulation as punishment, to create a net of lightning on the sand table. Any insects that tried to gnaw on the table would be punished with lightning.

"This is what the Thunder Palace does. Karma is the inner essence, sin is the outer essence, heavenly law is the name, and punishment is the reality. Thus, the inner and outer essence are unified, and the name and reality are both present, thus giving rise to the majesty of the morality of heaven and earth."

"Not to mention the ancient world, its solidity far surpasses that of today. Fellow Daoist, you may withdraw your supernatural powers and take another look at the situation."

Upon hearing this, Xu Xuan immediately withdrew his divine power, and the lightning punishment disappeared. The group of alien insects then began to gnaw at the sand table, and the originally unified and solid sand table began to gradually wear down and collapse.

The insects as large as red gold flapped their wings and flew away from this place, but some were still trapped too deep and could not escape even with flapping their wings.

Xu Xuanxin suddenly felt a shiver run down his spine, as if he had vaguely grasped something crucial. But then he heard Pingxiu whisper, "The higher the level of cultivation, the more hidden one should be. They almost never show themselves in the mortal world, lest their karma become too heavy and incur the wrath of Heaven. At that point, even if they wanted to spread their wings and fly away..."

"Therefore, we established a lineage and commanded our disciples to carry out our duties. Although you gentlemen can decide our life or death with a single word, there have been few who have killed those above the Golden Core stage throughout history, except for a few famous demonic Golden Core cultivators."

Xu Xuan recalled what the True Man Zhuo Xie of the Shangxiao Sect had said years ago, and realized that this was the same principle. He immediately understood.

“If the insects on this plate had been educated and all cared about this place, they wouldn’t have collapsed so quickly.”

"That's right. This is the meaning of the tribulations that ancient cultivators had to undergo. First, to filter out the mediocre people, and second, to make the cultivators have awe and be mindful of their sins, so as not to go to such extremes as to exhaust the resources."

Pingxiu looked somewhat sentimental, and said softly:
"Overall, this is naturally a good thing. Those selected after calamities are often true enlightened beings, proven by reason, not by power."

"But if it were to fall upon every cultivator, what suffering it would bring. Often, they would be lucky enough to break through, but once the heavenly punishment descended, their inner demons would arise, and all their efforts would vanish into nothingness."

Xu Xuan looked at Ping Xiu at this moment, and the image of the master in front of him suddenly became somewhat unfamiliar in his eyes. The more the other party talked, the deeper it seemed, it was not a spur-of-the-moment thing, but more like he wanted to tell him something.

"The might of the Thunder Palace descends from the heavens, indeed."

He sighed, but Pingxiu, standing beside him, simply shook his head and said:
"The tyranny of the Thunder Palace was so great that even the Heavenly Emperors could not tolerate it. The last Heavenly Emperor of ancient times, who was proven by divine thunder and was known as Xuanhao, was often controlled by the Thunder Palace. In the end, taking advantage of the departure of the Immortal Lord, this Emperor actually rebelled against the Thunder Palace!"

"Even though the Thunder Palace suppressed the chaos, the Heavenly Court was also scattered. From then on, this path truly began to decline and died out until the Zhou Dynasty."

Xu Xuan had heard these rumors before, but now that he had cultivated supernatural powers, he felt a different way of thinking when he heard them again.

Even the most revered Heavenly Emperor must be subject to lightning punishment. There is a divine power in the path of divine lightning called "Dispelling Divine Punishment," which can transform lightning into a way to avert punishment. This power is likely applicable to this Xuanhao Heavenly Emperor.

"Even so, the establishment of the Thunder Palace is more beneficial than harmful. In ancient times, if the Thunder Palace had not suppressed the chaos of blood and qi, who knows what the scene would be today."

Xu Xuanqiu, having endured many hardships to attain supernatural powers in Shelei, naturally differed from the orthodox ancient immortals like Pingxiu, and thus had an appreciative understanding of the Thunder Palace's role in administering punishments.

The current discussion about the peace talks carries a negative connotation, and there seems to be some debate between the two sides regarding the orthodoxy. However, there is no particular emotion involved; they are simply discussing their respective doctrines.

"The matter of Blood Qi was indeed suppressed by the Thunder Palace, but the root cause was that the oppression of this palace was too great. There was a demon who was ranked among the top three in history, with the Daoist name [Qi Yong], who was honored as the Blood Qi Demon Ancestor and whose position was equal to that of an Immortal Lord."

“When he was young, he cultivated and suffered many tribulations from the Thunder Palace. His fellow cultivators even perished in the lightning, which is why he had the desire for revenge.”

"Immortal Lord Weiping, but who was the Blood Qi Immortal you suppressed in the past?"

Xu Xuan had some doubts. The ancient Blood Qi True Lord ascended to immortality by taking advantage of this chaos, and this Blood Ancestor was probably the highest-ranking figure in the world.

“Naturally, he is his disciple. This Qi Yongxue Zu, who is the true fruit of blood qi, was originally a figure of the immortal path. Later, he devised a way to defile the blood qi and escape to the heavens on his own.”

“What He left behind is called the ‘Oath of the Way,’ which is an oath made with Heaven and Earth in exchange for one’s position, cultivation, and even life.”

When Pingxiu mentioned this, it stirred something in Xu Xuan's heart. He had learned about such mysteries through the events at Tiandu Mountain during his cultivation days, and it seemed to be an entanglement within the realm of enlightenment.

"This oath is called the [Oath of Heavenly Blood and Shared Life], which was activated after He went to the heavens and elevated His disciple [Blood Steps] to the position of immortal."

Do you know what the purpose of this oath is?

Pingxiu's eyes were slightly cold, and his tone carried a hint of apprehension, but Xu Xuan only shook his head and said:

"Fellow Daoist, can you enlighten me?"

"The purpose of this oath is to borrow the wondrous essence of the 'Blood Qi' Dao Fruit through the act of 'sharing food'."

"In ancient times, even if a mortal had a vast amount of blood and qi, it would not be as effective as a single Purple Mansion Spirit Fruit, so naturally no one would pay attention to it. But after making this vow, the miraculous effects of refining mortal blood and qi will descend directly from the blood and qi."

"Many cultivators in the world have discovered this secret. At first, they all upheld morality and refused to take it. But later the situation changed. If you don't use it, your enemies will use it and they will be able to suppress you. By relying on their blood energy, they can recover faster than you."

Pingxiu stroked his beard and sighed, his voice tinged with emotion, and continued:

"Therefore, it eventually reached the point of rampant abuse. He promoted Xue Chi to ascend to immortality in one step and was called the Demon Lord. He was also suppressed by the Thunder Palace. This one was far inferior to his master, but he could use this oath to link the lives of all the people in the world who shared the same food, which made the Immortal Lord also have a problem."

"Otherwise, if Immortal Lord Tianpeng had simply unleashed a lightning strike from the heavens, Blood Steps would have been shattered to pieces. Why would such a massive conflict have been necessary? Yet, after this battle, Thunder Palace began to decline. Do you understand why, fellow Daoist?"

Xu Xuan suddenly understood something and said in a deep voice:
"Fellow Daoist, do you want to tell me that the demise of Thunder Palace lies with the people of the world? The wonder of Qi Yong Blood Ancestor lies in pushing all cultivators of the world to the opposite side of Thunder Palace. Under the will of the people, Thunder Punishment will not exist."

"Yes and no."

Pingxiu's eyes brightened slightly, and he whispered:
"Fellow Daoist, you cultivate the Thunder Sect and came to my [Dou Tian] lineage. At first, I was surprised, thinking that there was some old grudge, but after looking into it, I found that it was not like that."

"I believe I have some connection with the Thunder Palace. Today, when we meet and talk about these old matters, I realize I've been too talkative."

Xu Xuan's expression turned serious, a flash of silver lightning passing through his eyes, and he immediately replied:

"Thank you, Fellow Daoist Pingxiu, for passing on your teachings to me."

(End of this chapter)