Proving the Dao Through Strength

Bang!

Gu Qingfeng released his grip, letting the Heart Demon Lord collapse to the ground like a pile of mud.

"Since his name can't be mentioned, can you at least tell me about his deeds? For example, why did he erase your memories?"

The Heart Demon Lord gasped for breath, his mind seemingly still echoing with the terror of that existence. It took him a long while to regain his composure.

He explained, "Master, this old servant dares not go into too much detail about his deeds. I can only give you a rough idea."

"Go ahead."

"A long time ago, there was no such thing as the Demon Realm. Back then, those who failed in Dao Attunement and mutated into demons mostly roamed the outside world, wreaking havoc.

The weaker ones, whose minds were also unclear, were mostly suppressed by the immortals of the celestial dynasties and sects. The stronger ones hid and survived, some even ruling over their own territories.

But one day, a demon appeared and changed everything. His mutation made him violent and extreme, yet the Dao he cultivated was unique, granting him immense power. Ordinary immortals were no match for him, and he rampaged freely, devouring countless lives.

The more he devoured, the stronger he became, and the more insane his temperament grew. At that time, even True Immortals couldn’t stand against him."

"Wait—True Immortals? What are the ranks of immortals?"

"Master, forgive this old servant’s ignorance. My memories were erased, so I don’t know the full hierarchy of immortals. What I know of the True Immortal realm was only pieced together from rumors over the years.

After Dao Attunement, one becomes an immortal—known as a Loose Immortal. But a newly attuned Loose Immortal isn’t much stronger than a Quasi-Emperor or Emperor from the lower realms. The only real advantage is their indestructibility.

As long as one’s Dao remains fused with the Eternal True World, the immortal cannot truly die. Even if slain, they can revive from their Dao. Of course, this isn’t without cost—each revival consumes their origin. Once their origin is exhausted, their consciousness fades. Even if their Dao remains, without consciousness, they are effectively dead.

After becoming a Loose Immortal, one can cultivate mana. Mana is the key to power. A Loose Immortal with tens of millions of years’ worth of mana would easily overpower an Extreme Dao cultivator. Once one’s mana reaches perfection, they can condense a True Immortal body—that is the True Immortal realm.

This is all I know about the immortal ranks. As for us demons, since the Eternal True World does not acknowledge us, we can never condense a True Immortal body, meaning we can never advance to the True Immortal realm.

The only way to grow stronger is to accumulate mana endlessly.

But mana is like drops of water, while a True Immortal body is like a human body. A downpour of rain can’t kill a person—unless it gathers into a river or an ocean."

Hearing this, Gu Qingfeng felt as though he had found his path forward. Truthfully, he had no desire to undergo Dao Attunement. Attunement meant losing his freedom, forever bound to the Eternal True World.

Even if the Eternal True World was infinite, he hated being shackled.

Besides, Dao Attunement didn’t sound like a good deal—it was like handing over one’s life to another. What if the Eternal True World had some kind of ruler? Wouldn’t that be disastrous?

But without attunement, he would be like the demons—an outsider, even worse off since he couldn’t cultivate mana on his own and could only rely on devouring others.

Then again, when he thought about it, most of his power hadn’t come from cultivation anyway. It had always come from the system.

Oh well. No big deal.

But without attunement, he could never reach the True Immortal realm, cutting off his path forward.

How, then, could he grow stronger?

The Heart Demon Lord’s analogy gave him an idea.

What if he couldn’t condense a True Immortal body? So what? Which was stronger—a human body or an ocean?

How many people could a single tidal wave crush?

What was a True Immortal worth? If a billion years of mana wasn’t enough, he’d gather ten billion, a hundred billion, a trillion!

Gu Qingfeng made up his mind. If the Eternal True World wouldn’t acknowledge him, he’d take the path of strength—accumulating power until even the Eternal True World would shatter under his fist.

"Master, you must understand now how difficult it is for a demon or a Loose Immortal to defeat a True Immortal.

But that demon from back then did it. He devoured countless lives, amassing mana like a raging river, and defeated a True Immortal." The Heart Demon Lord sighed, his tone almost wistful.

Gu Qingfeng sneered. Was defeating a True Immortal really that hard?

Once he devoured the entire Demon Realm, a True Immortal would be nothing!

If the Heart Demon Lord knew what Gu Qingfeng was thinking, he’d probably piss himself in terror.

He continued, "After defeating the True Immortal, that demon grew even more arrogant, his hubris reaching its peak.

And then..."

The Heart Demon Lord paused, fear creeping into his voice. "Somehow, he heard of that existence. In his madness, he actually tried to challenge him."

"Did he get instantly obliterated?" Gu Qingfeng guessed.

"N-no." The Heart Demon Lord swallowed hard. "He didn’t even get to see that existence. He didn’t even know where he was. He just hurled a few insults across the void, mentioned his name... and that was the end of it."

Gu Qingfeng raised an eyebrow. This existence sounded ridiculously powerful—and petty.

This kind of temperament, this kind of style... it reminded him of family.

"Did he die?"

"No. Sometimes death isn’t the worst fate—sometimes living is worse." The Heart Demon Lord trembled.

"That demon, for insulting that existence, incurred his wrath. Then, heavenly flames descended, wrapping around him, burning him.

Those flames were terrifyingly powerful and strange. No method could extinguish them, and the pain they inflicted was unimaginable—a hundred times worse than being pierced by ten thousand arrows or flayed by a thousand blades. The agony seeped into his bones, his soul!

Yet, despite their power, the flames didn’t harm him at all. They just made him suffer eternally, forever."

"But how does this relate to the formation of the Demon Realm?"

"Master, have you heard of collective punishment?"

Gu Qingfeng was stunned. "You mean he wasn’t satisfied, so he created the Demon Realm just to imprison all of you?"

The Heart Demon Lord nodded weakly. "He might have found demons unsightly. So he drew a boundary, turning the most barren land into the Demon Realm. With a single decree, he commanded all demons to enter it.

From then on, the Demon Realm was born. All who fail Dao Attunement are sent there."

Gu Qingfeng’s excitement surged.

Such an extreme, domineering act—if this wasn’t family, he didn’t know what was.

Seeing Gu Qingfeng’s exhilarated expression, the Heart Demon Lord felt his scalp tingle, his heart threatening to leap out of his skull.

This was terrifying!

Was this the reaction a normal person should have?!

Then, Gu Qingfeng asked eagerly, "You said that burning demon isn’t dead, right? Where is he? Is he in the Demon Realm too?"

The Heart Demon Lord instinctively took a step back, nodding reluctantly. "All demons are in the Demon Realm. Of course he’s there too."

"Then what are we waiting for? Take this Emperor to have a look around immediately."

Gu Qingfeng decided to inspect that eerie flame to determine whether the other party was one of his own kin.