Chapter 833: Three Paths
Involution, as defined in the Yuan Yang Realm, was the phenomenon where, following the advent of the Yin-Yang Five Elements Art, the expansion in the number of cultivators vastly outpaced the rate at which Spirit Stones and other cultivation resources could be discovered and extracted.
This immense surge in demand caused the prices of all goods to skyrocket, making resources prohibitively expensive and forcing the vast majority of cultivators into a brutal competition for survival.
"You all have three choices." When Bai Mo answered Mo Feng Wu's question, he didn't use the singular "you" but the plural "you all."
"Please forgive us, Senior."
Hearing the implicit meaning in Bai Mo's words, Wei Wu Ya and his entourage no longer concealed their presence, appearing one after another. Mo Feng Wu, still clutching her wine bottle, was so startled she dropped it.
Twenty-five Transcendent God powerhouses, over one hundred and twenty Nascent Soul Grandmasters—fully half of the Yuan Yang Realm's high-tier combat strength—were all gathered here!
Leading them was Wei Wu Ya, the Grand Elder of Yang Huo Palace in Nan Ya Zhou, who had just emerged from seclusion not long ago.
After their parting at that Dao discourse many years ago, he had felt a premonition and entered a death seclusion. When he finally broke out of it again, over eighty years had passed.
He had expected everything to be as it was upon his emergence, but after a few inquiries, he felt as if he had missed an entire era!
Thousands of times more cultivators than a century prior, like locusts, exploited every usable spiritual vein and resource, yet they still fell far short of satisfying the appetites of the new cultivators.
Foundation Establishment cultivators watched as they, once esteemed seniors, were suddenly reduced to a state worse than dogs.
Golden Core cultivators watched as they, once esteemed seniors, were suddenly found everywhere.
Nascent Soul cultivators grew somewhat fearful.
And Transcendent God cultivators were stirred as well.
Thus, the major sects across the entire Yuan Yang Realm began searching for Bai Mo, who had lectured on the Dao decades ago.
For he was the cause of everything.
He could not be divined, nor could his heavenly secrets be spied upon, forcing them to resort to the most primitive methods of searching.
Dozens of Transcendent God cultivators, plus over a hundred Nascent Soul cultivators, along with countless sects backing them, collectively used human wave tactics, spending a full decade before finally pinpointing Bai Mo's location.
"You all have three paths you can choose from."
"This is the first." Bai Mo slowly stood up, eyes closed, appearing utterly harmless, yet everyone regarded him as a formidable enemy.
With his left hand, he drew a circle, which expanded little by little, eventually transforming into the shape of a door.
"A silver door?" The crowd simultaneously swept their divine senses over this grand gate burning with silver flames, but they couldn't glean much information. They could only barely ascertain that beyond the door lay a world devoid of malice, even carrying a hint of goodwill.
"This is the second." Bai Mo remained with his eyes closed, drawing another circle beside the silver door.
This time, it was a grand gate burning with white flames.
"And this is the last." As soon as his voice fell, a grand gate burning with black flames appeared beside the white door.
An almost visibly tangible malevolence permeated the area around the black gate.
"That's the True Intent of Slaughter and Destruction!!!" A green-robed cultivator, wielding a long sword, suddenly shot out from the crowd, arriving before the black-flamed door. He stared intently at it, his gaze like that of a lover or someone encountering a rare treasure.
The corners of his mouth gradually turned up, revealing a nearly fanatical smile.
"Qing Yuan Zi, what are you doing?!"
"That Sword Lunatic..."
"What?! True Intent of Slaughter and Destruction?!"
True Intent, in the Yuan Yang Realm, was a top-tier power that only Transcendent God cultivators could begin to access. Spells imbued with True Intent would inherently carry a special True Intent contamination in their attack effects.
For instance, if a sword cultivator could comprehend the True Intent of Slaughter, their sword moves would carry a dual contamination effect, affecting both mind and body.
Anyone struck might not only suffer mental contamination, directly transforming into a lunatic who knew nothing but slaughter.
Moreover, the true essence on the sword moves would continuously damage the victim's body until a power of the same level completely neutralized the True Intent of Destruction on it, only then would it subside. It was an extremely troublesome power.
Comprehending True Intent was also a way for Transcendent God cultivators to continue their cultivation ascent. It was just a pity that the Transcendent God stage was the limit of this realm.
“
Heaven creates myriad things to nourish humanity!
...
Humanity offers nothing in return to Heaven!
...
Kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill!
”
Watching the green-robed cultivator, now completely entranced, begin to emit the same black flames as the door, he chanted strange poetry while laughing, then actively walked into the black gate.
The other Transcendent God cultivators dared not stop him, for Qing Yuan Zi had always been known as the Sword Devil. He was not only capricious and volatile, killing at a whim, but also a solitary rogue cultivator. Yet, his combat strength was exceptionally strong, and several Transcendent God souls had even perished beneath his blade.
"Qing Yuan Zi is just... gone?" It wasn't until they watched him completely vanish beyond the door that they finally reacted.
Their intuition told them that this Sword Devil, who had roamed freely throughout the cultivation world, would never return.
"To my surprise, the first person to make a choice actually chose the third path," Bai Mo said calmly, showing no sign of actual surprise.
"..."
The path behind the black gate was clearly related to death, destruction, and the True Intent of Ruin. Generally, any cultivator who was still mentally sound would not choose such a True Intent comprehension, which was prone to producing lunatics.
Especially Transcendent Gods from established sects; they certainly didn't want to wake up one day to find their own sect razed to the ground by the True Intent of Destruction.
Or, for some inexplicable reason, suddenly become the public enemy of the entire cultivation world.
As for the other two doors, one was silver, exuding goodwill, and the other was white, devoid of any emotion. They appeared far more normal than the black gate.
"May I ask, Senior, what do these three paths each represent?" After an uncomfortable silence, it was still the leader, Wei Wu Ya, who gritted his teeth and asked.
"You all... don't you wish to escape this involuted world?"
"Three paths represent three different choices."
"..."
Bai Mo's words were somewhat baffling. They weren't like that madman Qing Yuan Zi, able to recklessly step through the doors to investigate.
So, the twenty-plus Transcendent Gods leading the group almost simultaneously turned their heads, looking at the more than one hundred accompanying Nascent Soul cultivators behind them...
"..."
"Master..."
"Grand Elder..."
"Adoptive Father..."
Most of these Nascent Soul cultivators had intricate connections with the Transcendent Gods, making it difficult to simply send them in as cannon fodder to scout the path. Thus, everyone continued to exchange glances.
"Please enlighten us, Senior," Wei Wu Ya once again stepped in to save the situation.
If it weren't for his Primordial Spirit having strongly warned him before their departure that he absolutely could not defeat the opponent, that even all of them combined could not defeat him, Wei Wu Ya would have long since resorted to interrogation. There would be no need for such humble inquiries.
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