With his realm stabilized and his power control reaching new heights, Tang Xiaoqi did not rush to end his seclusion. He knew that cultivation was like sailing against the current—if you don't advance, you fall behind. Especially after taking charge of Qingxu Temple and shouldering the expectations of the Three Realms, his personal strength was the foundation of foundations. He remained in the quiet valley, continuing to polish himself, attempting to integrate his newly comprehended Purifying Lotus Heart Fire and chaotic air current into more complex spell combinations, even beginning to deduce the embryonic form of divine abilities unique to his own path.
On this day, moonlight like water quietly flowed through the valley, draping everything in a clear radiance. Xiao Qi sat cross-legged on the bluestone, his mind faintly resonating with the celestial stars, comprehending the ineffable connection between the stars' movements and his own Green Lotus origin. Suddenly, he felt something, as if an invisible thread had been gently plucked in the depths of destiny.
He opened his eyes and saw before him, not far away, the moonlight seemed more condensed than elsewhere, like tangible milky-white tassels slowly rotating and interweaving. Without spatial fluctuations or spiritual energy ripples, right in the center of that abnormally concentrated moonlight, a figure gradually materialized from void to solid, quietly emerging.
The newcomer was still in a disheveled state—worn Daoist robes even bearing some oil stains, hair messily tied up, carrying a vermilion wine gourd in hand. His face wore that seemingly eternal smile carrying a bit of worldly cynicism yet also seeming to see through everything. This was precisely that divination cultivator who appeared like a dragon's head but not its tail, who had given guidance at critical moments several times—Tianji Zi.
"Tsk tsk, impressive, truly impressive." Tianji Zi had barely appeared when he began sizing up Tang Xiaoqi, a difficult-to-detect surprise flashing in his eyes. "We haven't met for long, and not only has your cultivation stabilized at Late Nascent Soul, but even your Dao foundation exudes a certain... hmm, indescribable quality, somewhat like that legendary... chaos at the beginning, all methods returning to source? Strange indeed, strange!"
Xiao Qi was already accustomed to Tianji Zi's unpredictable appearances. Seeing him arrive, though surprised in his heart, he stood and bowed respectfully: "Senior Tianji Zi, long time no see. Your demeanor remains as ever."
"Spare me the empty pleasantries." Tianji Zi waved his hand, walked unceremoniously to the stream, took a swig of wine, then casually sat on a rock, patting the space beside him. "Sit, sit, standing while talking is exhausting."
Xiao Qi sat as indicated, but in his heart, he knew that Tianji Zi's appearance at this moment was no coincidence—there must be important matters.
Tianji Zi smacked his lips, seeming to savor the wine's fragrance, but his gaze was cast toward the bright moon, his tone becoming somewhat drifting: "Kid, the demonic nest has collapsed, the Demonic Lord has been temporarily beaten down by you, the Three Realms held a lively celebration and gave you the title of 'World-Purifying True Lord'—how does it feel?"
Xiao Qi was silent for a moment, then answered truthfully: "The responsibility is heavy, like walking on thin ice."
"Heh, at least you're still clear-headed." Tianji Zi turned his head, his gaze suddenly becoming sharp, as if it could pierce through the physical form straight to the depths of the soul. "Then do you know what exactly you sealed, or repelled?"
Xiao Qi's brows slightly furrowed: "An extraterrestrial demon, gathering the world's negative emotions and energy, intending to devour this realm."
"Correct, but not entirely correct." Tianji Zi shook his wine gourd. "It indeed came from 'beyond the heavens,' but its essence is not simple consumption. You can understand it as... a kind of ultimate 'darkness,' a certain manifestation projection of 'chaotic darkness' that has existed in opposition to 'light' and 'order' since the universe's birth. It is not an independent life form, but more like a... phenomenon, a rule."
Xiao Qi's mind shook—this was the first time he had heard such a clear description of the Demonic Lord's essence, far beyond his previous understanding.
Tianji Zi continued: "You used Green Lotus power combined with the Four Symbols Soul Crystals to temporarily suppress and seal it, even purifying most of its manifested power. You did indeed do beautifully. But, kid, remember this—you cannot completely destroy it."
"Why?" Xiao Qi couldn't help but ask. "As long as power is strong enough..."
"It's not a matter of power." Tianji Zi interrupted him, his tone carrying an unprecedented gravity. "Because its true root is not only beyond the heavens, but also... here." He extended his finger, tapping Xiao Qi's heart, then pointing toward the valley outside, toward the sleeping thousands of miles of mountains and rivers in the moonlight. "In the heart of every living being."
"In the heart?" Xiao Qi seemed to understand.
"Exactly." Tianji Zi looked up and took another swig of wine, exhaling a long breath carrying the scent of alcohol. "Greed, jealousy, resentment, fear, despair... these negative emotions, these dark sides of the heart, are the soil that nourishes it, the coordinates and channels through which it projects its power into countless worlds! As long as there is one living being in this world who harbors evil thoughts, as long as there remains a trace of 'darkness' in the sea of sentient beings' hearts, the projection of that 'chaotic darkness' will never truly perish. What you sealed was only its relatively powerful manifested form this time. It's like weeds—burn one crop, and as long as the roots remain, when the time is right and the spring breeze blows, it will sprout again, possibly even appearing in another form, in another place."
Xiao Qi's expression gradually grew heavy. He recalled the seemingly inexhaustible power of the Demonic Lord during their confrontation, power that could mobilize people's negative emotions. He also remembered those bewitched cultivators of the Shadow Assembly in the shadow plane. So, the true enemy was far more formless and difficult to deal with than he had imagined.
"So, Senior's meaning is that the true test comes not from beyond the heavens, but from... human hearts?" Xiao Qi's voice carried a trace of dryness.
"Indeed." Tianji Zi nodded, gazing deeply at him. "Force can destroy the manifested demonic body, can seal powerful projections, but cannot root out the darkness in human hearts. Purification power can cleanse eroded souls, but can hardly prevent the birth of evil thoughts. Tang Xiaoqi, your current cultivation, status, and prestige are sufficient to influence the entire Three Realms. Your future path should not merely be pursuing the peak of personal power, or acting as a firefighter putting out demonic flare-ups wherever they appear."
He stood up, walked before Xiao Qi, his turbid eyes seeming to hold circulating galaxies, the birth and destruction of universes: "You need to think about how to fundamentally weaken the power that 'chaotic darkness' projects into this realm. How to guide hearts toward goodness, how to establish order and hope, how to let light illuminate more corners, making the soil that breeds 'darkness' increasingly barren. This is the most effective, yet also the longest, path to oppose that ultimate darkness. It is also the true meaning of your 'World-Purifying' Dao."
Tianji Zi's voice was not loud, yet it resonated like a great bell in Xiao Qi's sea of consciousness, pushing open an entirely new door for him, letting him see a grander, yet also more difficult, picture of the future path.
After speaking these words, the aura on Tianji Zi's body began to become ethereal and uncertain, his figure gradually fading, as if about to merge into that moonlight filling the sky.
"Senior!" Xiao Qi hastily rose.
Tianji Zi waved his hand, his face returning to that worldly cynical smile: "I've said what needed to be said. This old man should find a place to sleep in. Kid, the road is still long... take care of yourself. Perhaps... this will be the last time you and I meet."
Before his words faded, his figure had completely dissipated, as if he had never appeared. Only the faint trace of wine fragrance in the air, and the "ultimate prophecy" echoing in Xiao Qi's heart, proved that everything just now was not an illusion.
Xiao Qi stood alone under the moonlight, silent for a long time.
Tianji Zi's words were like a massive stone thrown into his calm lake of heart, creating towering waves. He had originally thought that with the Demonic Lord defeated and the Three Realms initially stabilized, what followed would be reconstruction and consolidation. He never expected that the seemingly defeated enemy's roots were so profound and tenacious, and that the true battlefield was in the invisible realm of human hearts.
He looked up at the starry sky, his gaze seeming to pierce through endless void to see that "chaotic darkness" lurking deep within the laws of the universe, and also to see the possible subtle ripples in the depths of every living being's heart in this world.
The future path instantly became incomparably clear, yet also incomparably heavy.
Purifying the world meant not only purifying demonic energy, but even more so purifying human hearts. Was this the true mission of the "World-Purifying True Lord"?
The moonlight was cold, shining on his solemn face, reflecting eyes that were increasingly determined yet also deeply aware of the long road ahead.