Undercurrents Stirring Inside and outside Qingxu Temple, everything thrummed with prosperity.
The grand spectacle of a thousand sects paying homage, the vigor of disciples diligently cultivating, and the bustling vitality brought by the Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion at the foot of the mountain—all these painted a magnificent scroll of flourishing times, like flames cooking oil and flowers adorning brocade.
Tang Xiaoqi held his position at the center, compiling the "Scripture of World Purification," handling sect affairs, and occasionally guiding junior disciples. Everything seemed to be developing in the best possible direction.
Yet, just as the moon has its phases of brightness and darkness, behind the light, shadows were quietly taking root. Tianjizi's ultimate prophecy that "the root of the demon lies within the human heart" was by no means an exaggeration. Although the demon calamity had been quelled, its profound impact, especially the strike and distortion it inflicted upon living beings' state of mind, was manifesting in a more hidden, yet also more widespread manner.
On this particular day, Senior Brother Mu Qingfeng arrived at the meditation chamber where Tang Xiaoqi was handling affairs, his expression grave. He placed several jade slips recording intelligence reports from various regions on the desk.
"Xiao Qi, over the past month, the number of reported cases of 'possession,' 'personality changes,' and 'going astray in cultivation' across all regions has not decreased compared to before the demon calamity—in fact, it's been... trending upward." The senior brother's voice carried an imperceptible weariness and worry.
Tang Xiaoqi set down the jade slip in his hand (the draft of the "Scripture of World Purification"), his brow slightly furrowed. He picked up one of the intelligence slips and immersed his divine sense within. The information recorded in the jade slip was shocking:
[North Plains, Ice Wind Valley. A minor sect's elder, who lost his beloved disciple during the demon calamity and was overwhelmed by grief, developed resentment after his sect's resources were prioritized for allocation to more severely damaged sects. During closed-door meditation, he suddenly went berserk, injuring several fellow sect members before fleeing into the depths of the wind and snow, whereabouts unknown. The scene retained concentrated negative emotions and traces of faint demonic energy corrosion.]
[Eastern Sea coast, a cultivation family. Having assisted the dragon clan in quelling the rebellion during the later stages of the demon calamity, they were granted resources and sea territories from their rival family, expanding their influence. Internal family struggles for the newly acquired benefits led to brothers turning against each other and uncles against nephews. The eldest son of one branch, having lost a competition, secretly cultivated forbidden evil arts and attempted to curse his rivals. After his scheme failed, he destroyed his own soul, leaving a curse lingering over the family estate.]
[Central Region, a large cultivation city originally under imperial jurisdiction. As the imperial forces weakened during the demon calamity, several major families in the city engaged in endless covert and overt struggles for control. Recently, the head of one family was discovered cultivating forbidden blood refinement techniques in a secret chamber, using the blood, souls, and life essence of his clan's peripheral branch members to sacrifice and refine a magical artifact. The cruelty of the methods was chilling.]
[Western Desert, a gathering place for wandering cultivators. Rumors spread of an ancient demon cultivator's cave dwelling emerging, attracting large numbers of loose cultivators to compete for it. In the scramble for treasure, former sworn brothers turned enemies, with backstabbing and murder for loot becoming commonplace, creating chaos and an overwhelming aura of brutality.]
[Even... within the Alliance itself, some executive members, due to unequal power distribution or dissatisfaction with current policies, privately colluded, spread rumors, and ostracized those who differed from them. Though they haven't reached the point of possession, their hearts have deviated, becoming a hidden source of internal friction.]
One after another, incident after incident—these were not direct invasions by external demons, yet they were more difficult to defend against than demon invasions. They stemmed from the grief of losing loved ones, from the greed of competing for interests, from the ambition swollen by power, from the distortion under desperate circumstances... These were the most primal dark aspects of the human heart, magnified and catalyzed infinitely by the massive disaster of the demon calamity and the subsequent reshuffling of power and resources.
"It's not just the cultivation world," the senior brother added, his tone heavy, "the mortal dynasties are also unstable. Although the wars have ended, fields lie barren, refugees swarm everywhere, and bandits proliferate. Former dynasty remnants and ambitious warlords take advantage of the situation to cause trouble, coveting territory. The common people live in hardship, voices of complaint fill the air, and desperation spreads... These, too, are fertile soil for demonic hearts to germinate."
Tang Xiaoqi set down the jade slip and remained silent for a long while. Outside the window came the shouts of Qingxu Temple disciples practicing techniques, and the distant faint noise from the foot of the mountain—signs of peaceful times. But the contents of this jade slip seemed to come from another, darker world.
He recalled Tianjizi's words before his dissipation: "...As long as there exists a single living being with wicked thoughts, as long as there remains a trace of 'darkness' in the ocean of sentient hearts, the projection of 'Chaotic Darkness' will never truly perish." Now, it seemed, the prophecy was being fulfilled. The seal on the demon was merely a temporary release of the most powerful manifestation. But the root cause of the problem had not been solved; rather, under specific circumstances, it was intensifying.
"How is the promotion of the Heart-Illuminating Academy progressing?" Xiao Qi asked.
The senior brother sighed: "Within our Qingxu Temple, the effects are acceptable; most disciples can accept guidance on disposition. But promoting it across the entire Alliance, let alone the Three Realms... there are significant obstacles. Many sect families still cling to the old concept of 'strength above all,' believing that teaching on disposition is vague and impractical compared to giving disciples more elixirs and magical artifacts. Some even think our Qingxu Temple is using this to interfere in other sects' internal affairs, with ulterior motives."
Xiao Qi nodded, not surprised by this. Changing mindsets is never achieved in a single day.
"Those Alliance members whose minds are wavering—handle them at your discretion, primarily through appeasement and guidance. Only if they are utterly obstinate should you employ thunderous measures." Xiao Qi instructed, "As for the outside world... relying solely on preaching and coercion yields limited results."
He stood up, walked to the window, and gazing at the undulating mountain ranges in the distance, his gaze deepened: "Elder Tianjizi was right—the true battlefield lies in the human heart. And purifying the human heart is neither a task of a single day nor the affair of one sect or faction. This is more like... a long, drawn-out process of enlightenment."
He turned to face the senior brother: "Send word to Mu Xue, Ao Qin, and Zhao Tiezhu, informing them of this matter. Purifying the human heart requires efforts from all sides. The Xuanji Holy Land can focus on spreading ideas and classical enlightenment; the dragon clan can stabilize the seas and shelter living beings, reducing conflicts arising from survival; Tiezhu's Body Cultivation Academy can also emphasize martial virtue and responsibility. Our Qingxu Temple must lead by example, implementing 'illuminating the heart to see the true nature' in practice."
"And the 'Scripture of World Purification'..." the senior brother inquired.
"We need to accelerate the progress." Xiao Qi's tone was resolute, "Not only must we complete it, but we must also find ways to spread its principles. This scripture might be a lamp illuminating the path through future fog."
The senior brother accepted the order and departed.
In the meditation chamber, Tang Xiaoqi was alone once more. He sensed the docile yet vast power of the Green Lotus source within him—power that could purify demonic energy and heal injuries, but how could one purify the formless darkness rooted in billions of human hearts? He knew well that beneath the surface prosperity, undercurrents were already churning. The plague of demonic hearts was like fire seeds hidden underground—any careless move could ignite them into an all-consuming prairie fire.
The road ahead seemed even more arduous and complex than when he had faced the demon directly. But this was precisely the challenge he must face, having chosen the path of "World Purification." He took a deep breath and his gaze fell again on the jade slip containing the "Scripture of World Purification" on the desk. The power of the pen could sometimes triumph over weapons of war.