220: The Nine Nether Demon Child, a debate on the Dao Heart

Shen Yuanmo left the collapsing Lesser Western Heaven Buddhist Kingdom.

He did not look back.

The wails of billions of sentient beings waking from their delusion behind him were, to him, merely echoes in the wind.

The Dao was chosen by themselves.

They should also taste the consequences themselves.

His journey was not to save the world, but to verify his Dao.

The Dao of that Joyful Glazed Buddha was built upon theft and deception; its interior was already rotten and would collapse at a touch.

Having seen it, he forgot it.

Shen Yuanmo's thoughts stirred slightly, and with a single step, his figure was already ten thousand miles away.

The land beneath his feet, which had been warm, golden glaze, transformed into pitch-black, scorched and foul Demonic Earth.

That was no ordinary black, but an Absolute Darkness that devoured light, where even Divine Sense would be twisted and torn apart if it attempted to probe.

Deep, bottomless ravines cracked open in the earth. What bubbled out was not spring water, but Devilish Qi as viscous as asphalt, emitting a stench that could cause ordinary Cultivators' Divine Souls to fall into disarray.

In the air, the lingering harmony of the peaceful Buddhist Chants was completely severed.

Replacing it was a bone-chilling savagery, slaughter, and Demonic Malevolence.

Almost the moment he stepped into this realm.

"Roar—!"

"Hiss Gaa—!"

All around, countless twisted roars exploded from underground, from the River of Blood, and from the withered Demonic Forest.

Dozens of Demonic Creatures, emitting the aura of the Golden Core stage, appeared in various forms—some with a hundred legs, some with layered mouthparts, and others covered in eyeballs. All of them locked onto Shen Yuanmo with gazes mixed with greed and hunger.

The pure and boundless Immortal Dao Vitality Qi on his body, like a furnace of Heaven and Earth, was an irresistible peerless delicacy to them! It was the Supreme Medicine capable of allowing them to evolve and transform!

"Blood meal! Fresh Blood Meal!"

"Devour him!"

They rushed forward madly, stirring up a bloody storm, intending to tear this intruder into shreds and devour him completely!

However, in the next instant, an extremely bizarre scene occurred.

All the Demonic Creatures, regardless of strength, halted their frenzied momentum the moment they rushed within three feet of Shen Yuanmo, as if striking an invisible Law Barrier.

The greedy and crazed expressions on their faces completely froze.

Immediately afterward, those Demonic Bodies, which were tougher than gold and iron, began to decompose and dissolve without making a sound.

Muscles, bones, Demonic Cores... all tangible matter turned into wisps of the most fundamental Devilish Qi, dissipating into the void.

In the span of a single breath, dozens of Golden Core Demonic Creatures completely vanished, as if they had never existed.

From beginning to end, Shen Yuanmo did not even lower his gaze.

He simply walked calmly, step by step, toward the deepest part of the Demon Abyss.

Where he walked, an absolutely silent path was left behind him.

This path was three feet wide, clearly delineated: inside the path, Ten Thousand Laws Could Not Encroach; outside the path, Devilish Qi surged.

The remaining low-level demonic creatures trembled, prostrated themselves on the ground, burying their heads deep into the Demonic Earth, not even daring to raise their eyes for a glance.

As for the Demonic Cultivators who were born from chaos and slaughter and possessed slightly higher intelligence, their gall split with fear from afar, and they fled frantically.

Their instincts let out the most mournful shrieks, warning them.

The man in the green robe walking slowly was not prey, but a Natural Disaster!

He was a terror they could not understand, resist, or even imagine!

Shen Yuanmo strolled along in this manner, as if entering an uninhabited land, reaching the deepest part of the Demon Abyss.

A terrifying Demonic Palace, constructed entirely from bleached white bones and Black Blood solidified over countless millennia, rose from the ground, piercing the sky dyed dark red by Devilish Qi.

That was not a building, but the corpse of an ancient Vicious Beast prostrated on the earth.

Above the Demonic Palace, black Qi formed by countless Vengeful Spirits coiled like a Dragon, letting out silent roars.

But on the vast White Bone Plaza in front of the Demonic Palace, one person was already waiting quietly.

It was a youth clad in black robes, whose features were handsome, almost demonic.

His aura was also unfathomable, just like Shen Yuanmo's, firmly established at the Half-step Nascent Soul stage.

However, in his eyes, which were as black as eternal night, there was no human emotion, only extreme madness and the Desire for Destruction that sought to devour all things.

Standing there, he seemed to merge with the will of the entire Nine Nether Demon Abyss; every breath he took stirred the Devilish Qi tides of this world.

The Peerless Genius who had not emerged from the Nine Nether Demon Abyss for ten thousand years—the Nine Nether Demonic Son.

When Shen Yuanmo's figure appeared at the end of the plaza, a trace of scorching light finally ignited in the Nine Nether Demonic Son's desolate eyes.

He did not release any hostility; instead, he bowed respectfully toward Shen Yuanmo from a distance.

"Fellow Daoist, your demeanor in rebuking and driving back that False Buddha, Joyful Glazed Buddha, with a single word has truly impressed me."

His voice was clear and bright, yet it carried a strange Demonic Nature, capable of stirring the most primal desires in the listener's heart.

"I wonder if you would be willing to enter my White Bone Demonic Palace and... Debate the Dao with me?"

He extended the invitation.

Shen Yuanmo stopped his steps, his calm gaze falling upon the Nine Nether Demonic Son.

Under his Insight into Origin Divine Ability, everything about the opponent was revealed.

This person was a pure Devil.

The Cultivation Technique he practiced was overwhelmingly tyrannical, based on devouring the Essence, Qi, and Spirit of all beings.

But, unlike other Demonic Cultivators, this person's Dao Heart was terrifyingly pure.

So pure that only the single obsession of Seeking the Dao remained.

To seek the Dao, he could devour all things.

To seek the Dao, he could also let go of everything.

He did not kill for the sake of killing, nor did he devour for the sake of desire.

He was merely pursuing the ultimate goal of Cultivation in his own way.

Compared to that hypocritical Buddha Lord, this pure Devil Head before him made Shen Yuanmo more interested in observing his Dao.

"Acceptable."

Shen Yuanmo uttered a single word.

"Please."

The Nine Nether Demonic Son turned sideways and gestured for him to enter. The heat in his eyes grew more intense, like a Primeval Giant Beast that had been hungry for ten thousand years finally seeing prey worthy of its attention.

The two, one after the other, stepped into the White Bone Demonic Palace that struck fear into Ghosts and Gods.

Inside the Demonic Palace, it was not the expected scene of blood and chaos.

Instead, it was vast and silent.

In the center of the great hall, there were only two Prayer Mats carved from entire blocks of Ten-Thousand-Year Yin Soul Wood.

The two sat facing each other.

Without formalities or pleasantries, a silent Dao Contention had already begun.

The Nine Nether Demonic Son spoke first, every word transforming into Demonic Sound, attempting to shake Shen Yuanmo's mind.

"My Dao lies in the word 'True'!"

"True Self! True Nature! True Desire!"

"Joy, anger, sorrow, pleasure; Greed, Hatred, Delusion, and Evil—all are intrinsic nature. Why suppress them? Why abstain from them?"

Shen Yuanmo spoke lightly. His voice was not loud, yet it easily smoothed out the overwhelming Demonic Sound.

"Indulging intrinsic nature—how is that different from a beast?"

A wild laugh appeared on the Nine Nether Demonic Son's handsome face: "What is wrong with being a beast? To be born in accordance with Heaven, to act in accordance with desire! On the contrary, Cultivators like you pretend to be lofty, suppress your True Heart, and live hypocritically!"

"Heaven and Earth are ruthless, treating the myriad things as straw dogs! I shall be the Holder of the Pieces! I shall become the Heaven and Earth themselves!"

Shen Yuanmo's gaze remained calm: "If you become Heaven and Earth, who will then be the myriad things?"

The Desire for Destruction in the Nine Nether Demonic Son's eyes began to burn: "All Sentient Beings suffer, sinking into delusion! I shall execute the Great Devouring Method, swallowing all these countless sufferings, along with the sentient beings themselves, into my belly, transforming them into the resources for me to reach the summit! This is compassion! Great Compassion!"

After he finished speaking, the light within the hall dimmed, as if devoured by his will.

His pair of pitch-black eyes locked tightly onto Shen Yuanmo, awaiting his evaluation.

Shen Yuanmo's expression remained completely undisturbed from beginning to end.

He simply and calmly asked one final question.

"After devouring all things, then what?"

A single sentence, like a thunderclap from the Nine Heavens, struck directly at the Nine Nether Demonic Son's Sea of Consciousness.

Shen Yuanmo asked again.

"In this world, only you remain."

"For whom will your Dao be displayed?"

The fanaticism on the Nine Nether Demonic Son's face instantly froze.

Immediately, he erupted into an even crazier burst of laughter!

"Haha... Hahahahaha!"

"A good question! Fellow Daoist asked a truly good question!"

The laughter shook the entire White Bone Demonic Palace violently, causing countless Vengeful Spirits to wail and explode!

"If only I remain, I am the Dao!"

"I am Eternity!"

"And you are the Witness! The final Witness!"

Before the laughter ceased, the Nine Nether Demonic Son suddenly stretched out his hand and slammed it ruthlessly toward Shen Yuanmo!

Boom Rumble—!

The entire Nine Nether Demon Abyss, this Desolate Land silent for eons, completely erupted in turmoil at this moment!

Endless Devilish Qi was forcefully extracted from every inch of the land, transforming into billions of black Mad Dragons, spiraling up into the firmament!

The earth cracked open, the River of Blood poured backward, and the entire Demon Abyss responded to his will, offering him everything!

Billions of Devilish Qi converged madly in his palm, forming a Sky-Devouring Demonic Hand that blocked out the sun. Demonic Runes flowed and Laws intertwined upon it, carrying the terrifying power to assimilate all things and refine everything, fiercely grasping down toward Shen Yuanmo's head!

Debating the Dao is Dao contention!

Words are merely the prelude!

"Fellow Daoist, words are ultimately delusion. The Great Dao must be Personally Verified!"

The Nine Nether Demonic Son's voice, filled with extreme temptation and madness, resounded throughout Heaven and Earth.

"Why don't we merge? You can become my resource, helping me witness that ultimate scenery!"