447: False Guardian of Evil, Temptation of the Path Against the Grain

The Nidao Realm phantom churned violently within the isolation array, its pale black negative energy intertwining with that wisp of Pseudo-Guardian evil qi, actually condensing a humanoid silhouette at the phantom's core. This silhouette wore pale gold Guardian battle armor similar to Lu Chen and the others, with a gentle face and a surrounding aura of spiritual light from the same source as the twelve realms spirit web. At first glance, it was no different from a true Guardian—it was precisely the "Pseudo-Guardian" condensed by the Nidao Realm.

The Pseudo-Guardian slowly stepped out from the light screen of the isolation array (the isolation array could only restrict the spread of Nidao Laws but could not block its condensed physical form). His figure landed on an energy node of the ten realms spirit net, his voice gentle yet carrying a strange bewitching power: "Cultivators of the Twelve Realms, I am the Guardian of the Nidao Realm, come by the order of the Great Dao to balance the imbalance of the Myriad Laws Dao."

He raised his hand and waved, and a pale black spiritual light spread out, falling upon a group of Cultivators below who were currently Cultivating. These Cultivators were originally stuck at Realm Bottlenecks with stagnant cultivation. Upon contact with the spiritual light, the spiritual qi in their bodies suddenly surged, the Bottlenecks loosened instantly, and several Soul Transformation Stage Cultivators even directly broke through to the Mahayana Stage. Their surrounding spiritual light blazed, and their Dao Hearts appeared increasingly stable.

"This... is this real?" A newly broken-through Cultivator said with a face full of wild joy, feeling the surging power within his body. "My Bottleneck was stuck for ten years, yet it was easily broken by this spiritual light. The Nidao Arts are indeed profound!"

"The Myriad Laws Dao emphasizes gradual progress, requiring centuries of Cultivation to break through a Realm, yet the Nidao Arts can achieve it in a moment. This is the true shortcut to the Great Dao!" Another Cultivator's eyes flickered with greedy light as he took the initiative to approach the Pseudo-Guardian. "Lord Pseudo-Guardian, I am willing to Cultivate the Nidao Arts and become a Guardian of the Nidao Realm!"

More and more Cultivators were tempted by the scene before them. The Nidao Arts violated the core Laws of the Myriad Laws Dao, yet they could bring about extremely rapid increases in cultivation. This temptation of "ascending to heaven in a single step" caused many Cultivators with weak Heart-Nature to lose their original intentions. They one after another circulated their spiritual qi, actively absorbing the Nidao spiritual light emitted by the Pseudo-Guardian. Their surrounding auras gradually became violent, and their eyes turned from clear to cloudy, their original Guardian hearts replaced by greed and impatience.

"Hahaha! This is the correct choice!" The Pseudo-Guardian laughed loudly, his gentle face instantly twisting as the pale gold spiritual light around him turned pale black. "The balance of the Myriad Laws Dao was always a lie! Only the Nidao Arts can allow you to truly control power and escape the shackles of guardianship!"

His voice was like demonic music piercing the ears, constantly battering the Cultivators' Dao Hearts: "Guardianship? It is nothing more than the self-consolation of the weak! Only absolute power can determine one's own destiny! Follow me to Cultivate the Nidao Arts, and you can all become existences at the level of Realm Lord, looking down upon the Twelve Realms!"

Under the Pseudo-Guardian's bewitchment, dozens of Cultivators fell completely. Their myriad Laws true bodies were eroded by nidao evil qi, turning into pale black phantoms. Their surrounding auras radiated the same energy as the Nidao Realm as they launched attacks on the surrounding Cultivators, attempting to pull more people into the abyss of Nidao.

"Not good! These Cultivators have been controlled by nidao evil qi; we must stop them as soon as possible!" A hint of solemnity flashed in Ling Xu's eyes as the hongmeng samsara talisman wheel behind his Reincarnation Myriad Laws Body spun rapidly. "hongmeng samsara talisman, purify the Nidao, break!"

Countless gold and purple interwoven runes surged from the rune wheel, turning into a massive purification light screen that enveloped the bewitched Cultivators. Wherever the runes passed, the nidao evil qi melted like snow meeting fire. The eyes of some Cultivators regained a hint of clarity, but many were still deeply eroded by the evil qi, frantically battering the purification light screen.

"Purification by runes alone is not enough; we must awaken their Guardian hearts!" Green Bud unfolded her Spirit Plant Myriad Laws Body and threw out the heart-clearing fruits she had cultivated in advance. The fruits shattered, and emerald-green purification spiritual liquid splashed onto the Cultivators. "guardian mark, awaken!"

The spiritual liquid and purification runes fused together, surging into the Sea of Consciousness through the Cultivators' foreheads and touching the guardian marks within. The guardian marks emitted pale gold spiritual light, clashing violently with the nidao evil qi. Under the pull of the marks, many Cultivators remembered their original intentions for Cultivating and their oaths of guardianship. Their Dao Hearts gradually cleared, and the nidao evil qi within their bodies began to recede.

"I... what did I just do?" A Cultivator woke up, looking at his hands covered in spiritual blood, his eyes full of regret. "I was nearly deluded by Nidao evil arts and betrayed my Guardian heart!"

"The Nidao Arts seem to increase cultivation quickly, but in reality, they are devouring your Dao Heart and Origin!" Lu Chen walked slowly before the Pseudo-Guardian, the golden light of his eternal dao fruit forming a sharp contrast against the other's nidao evil qi. "The Foundations these Cultivators spent centuries to condense are being forcibly ripened by nidao evil qi. They seem powerful, but their Foundations are unstable. Once a backlash occurs, the Dao Heart will crumble, the myriad laws true body will collapse, and they will fall into Reincarnation forever!"

"Hahaha! Alarmist talk!" The Pseudo-Guardian sneered, his figure suddenly turning into pale black mist as he lunged toward Lu Chen. "Power is everything! As long as one can become stronger, what does it matter even if they sacrifice their Dao Heart? You Guardians are nothing more than cowards bound by 'balance'! Guardianship is ultimately a shackle; only Nidao can bring freedom!"

"Strength without order is ultimately destruction!" A flash of determination crossed Lu Chen's eyes as he pushed his Reincarnation Myriad Laws Body to its limit. Power of Reincarnation surged out like a tide, firmly trapping the Pseudo-Guardian's mist. "The balance of the Myriad Laws Dao is not a shackle, but the Foundation that allows power to evolve orderly and all living beings to live in peace. The Nidao Arts break that balance and indulge greed, which will ultimately plunge the Twelve Realms into chaos and turn all living beings into nourishment for nidao evil qi!"

Just as the two were in a standoff, Li Dao's figure suddenly flashed. His Primordial Body Refining Art operated to the extreme as pale gold and pale gray interwoven fist force blasted toward those Cultivators who had completely fallen and could not be awakened. "Those who are stubbornly incorrigible must be eliminated to prevent future trouble!"

Wherever the fist force passed, the Nidao true bodies of the fallen Cultivators instantly disintegrated. Their corpses did not dissipate after hitting the ground but instead turned into wisps of pale black nidao evil qi that flowed back toward the Nidao Realm phantom. Clearly, the Origins of these Cultivators had already been completely absorbed by the Nidao Realm.

"You dare kill my believers!" the Pseudo-Guardian roared, the mist condensing into sharp claws that swiped at Li Dao.

"It's exactly the Nidao remnants I'm killing!" Li Dao was completely fearless, switching his Physical Body to an ethereal state to evade the claw's attack, then instantly condensing into form to smash a punch into the Pseudo-Guardian's core. "Your Nidao evil arts are useless against me!"

The Pseudo-Guardian's core was hit, letting out a shrill scream as the pale black mist violently dissipated, clearly suffering a heavy blow. He hadn't expected Li Dao's Body Refining art to have already integrated the void law, allowing him to switch freely between void and reality, perfectly countering his Nidao form.

"Nidao is Nidao after all; it violates the cycle of the Great Dao and is destined not to last!" Lu Chen raised his hand to form a seal, fusing the Power of Reincarnation with the purification power of the heaven-opening tree to form a massive pillar of light that blasted toward the Pseudo-Guardian. "Today, I shall make you understand that the path of guardianship is not something Nidao can shake!"

The moment the light pillar hit the Pseudo-Guardian, the pale black mist dissipated rapidly as if swept away by a gale. From his collapsing core, a pale black Jade Slip slowly drifted down. It was precisely the "Nidao Eradication Art," its surface covered with runes and methods for purifying nidao evil qi and awakening lost Dao Hearts—a key scripture for dealing with Nidao temptations.

At the same time, everyone clearly saw that deep within the Pseudo-Guardian's collapsing core, a tattered book page was hidden. The text on the page was exactly the same as the general outline of the myriad laws dao, but its interpretation was diametrically opposite. In the general outline of the myriad laws dao, "all Laws share a source, guardianship is the soul" was interpreted on this page as "all Laws are contradictory, power is supreme"; "gradual progress, Dao Heart as the Foundation" was altered to "rapid Breakthroughs, power above all." It was precisely a fragment of the "general outline of the anti-dao" that stood in direct opposition to the general outline of the myriad laws dao.

"Is this... the general outline of the anti-dao?" A flash of shock appeared in Ling Xu's eyes. "The text is the same as the general outline of the myriad laws dao, but the interpretation is completely opposite. Clearly, someone deliberately altered it to bewitch Cultivators."

Lu Chen picked up the Nidao Eradication Art and gazed at the fragment of the general outline of the anti-dao, a hint of solemnity flashing in his eyes. "The evil qi of this fragment shares the same source as the Corroding Spirit Master. It seems the birth of the Nidao Realm is not only related to the negative emotions of the Twelve Realms but also has a deep connection with the residual evil qi of the Corroding Spirit Master. This general outline of the anti-dao is the core doctrine of the Nidao Realm, specifically used to distort the true meaning of the Myriad Laws Dao and bewitch living beings into falling."

With a wave of his hand, he handed the Nidao Eradication Art to Ling Xu. "Quickly transcribe this scripture and spread it throughout the Twelve Realms so that all Cultivators can learn the method to purify nidao evil qi. At the same time, strengthen the planting of dao heart trees. Using the monitoring power of the dao heart trees, we can discover Cultivators infected by nidao evil qi in advance and prevent more people from falling."

"By your command!" Ling Xu took the Jade Slip and bowed solemnly.

After the Pseudo-Guardian dissipated, the energy fluctuations of the Nidao Realm phantom weakened significantly, and the light screen of the isolation array stabilized once more. The awakened Cultivators knelt on the ground one after another, repenting to Lu Chen and the others: "Thank you, Lord Guardians, for saving our lives. From now on, we will surely hold fast to our Dao Hearts and no longer be tempted by Nidao evil arts."

"To recognize one's mistake and change is the greatest good," Lu Chen said gently. "Though the temptation of the Nidao is strong, as long as you hold fast to your original intention of guardianship and stabilize your Dao Heart, you can resist all temptations. In your future Cultivation, you must never be overeager for success; you must progress gradually to go far."

He turned his head to look at the Nidao Realm phantom, a flash of determination in his eyes. "This fragment of the general outline of the anti-dao must not remain in the world, or it will continue to bewitch living beings. When the time is ripe, we shall go deep into the Nidao Realm phantom, seize the complete general outline of the anti-dao, and thoroughly dismantle the core doctrine of the Nidao Realm."

Everyone nodded, their eyes full of determination. The energy of the ten realms spirit net continued to flow smoothly, but having experienced this temptation of the Nidao, everyone understood that the path of guardianship was never smooth. The existence of the Nidao Realm was like a sword hanging over the heads of the Twelve Realms, ready to launch another attack at any time, and that fragment of the general outline of the anti-dao heralded an ultimate clash between the paths of righteousness and Nidao that was about to begin.

Green Bud once again channeled the purification power of the heaven-opening tree, continuously injecting emerald-green light beams into the isolation array to further suppress the negative energy of the Nidao Realm phantom. Stone Firm and Ling Xuan patrolled the various nodes of the ten realms spirit net to check for any missed nidao evil qi. Ling Xu began transcribing the Nidao Eradication Art and distributing it to the Holy Lands of the Twelve Realms.

Under the suppression of the purification power, the Nidao Realm phantom gradually returned to a state of calm, but that fragment of the general outline of the anti-dao still flickered with pale black light deep within the phantom's core, like a hidden tumor waiting for the right moment to erupt. The appearance of the Nidao Eradication Art provided a solid guarantee for the Cultivators of the Twelve Realms to resist Nidao temptations and also strengthened the Guardians' conviction to protect the Righteous Path and dismantle the Nidao.

The pale gold spiritual light of the ten realms spirit net and the pale black evil qi of the Nidao Realm collided within the isolation array, making sizzling sounds as if engaged in a silent contest. The figures of the Guardians stood like eternal monuments, holding fast on the defensive line, using the power of the Righteous Path to resist the erosion of the Nidao and protect the peace they had exchanged countless Reincarnations for. This contest between the paths of righteousness and Nidao had only just begun.