Chapter 25: Oh No, He's Fallen into Demonic Deviation
Li Tianwei, who was cultivating according to the revised version of the Three Thousand Converging-Heaven Intentions, was at that moment caught in deep contemplation.
Yet, for some unknown reason, he suddenly shivered uncontrollably, as though a gust of cold wind had howled past him.
That chilling aura came precisely from the Soul-Corrupting Banner unleashed by Liu Muyu.
The banner could taint spiritual energy itself—once inhaled, it would completely plant a demon within the cultivator's heart, defile his Spirit Platform, shatter his Dao Heart, and render him incapable of cultivation forevermore.
After leaving, Liu Muyu did not bother to check whether Li Tianwei was still cultivating.
With the Soul-Corrupting Banner's aura spreading, it was already enough.
"Hu hu——"
"Five Elements, Five Elements…"
At that moment, Li Tianwei was contemplating the easiest place to begin.
Undoubtedly, it was with the Five-Colored Spiritual Energies of Heaven and Earth—metal, wood, water, fire, and earth.
That was, after all, the most superficial and tangible aspect of all.
The Book Spirit beside him, through Li Tianwei's recent revisions, had already discerned his intent.
In its eyes, Li Tianwei was nothing short of utterly arrogant and conceited.
"What Five Elemental Intent? If Dao Intent were that easy to comprehend, then every cultivator in the entire cultivation world would have already grasped one."
Such were the Book Spirit's thoughts, though naturally, it dared not reveal them outwardly.
"As expected of Master. The Five Elements are the most common within spiritual energy. Starting from here, one will surely comprehend Dao Intent."
The Book Spirit had no choice but to flatter him under Li Tianwei's tyrannical pressure.
In truth, within its heart, it was eagerly anticipating the moment when Li Tianwei would discover that Dao Intent could not be comprehended so easily.
Yet Li Tianwei, as it happened, was indeed as the Book Spirit had imagined—utterly clueless about the Five Elemental Spiritual Energies of Heaven and Earth.
According to the Five Intentions Converge to Heaven Art, the Dao Intent of Heaven and Earth stemmed from the laws, the order, and the evolving phenomena of the world.
Human cultivation itself was an act of defying Heaven—striving to seize but a sliver of Heaven and Earth's spiritual essence.
That very essence was Dao Intent—the fragment of law stolen from the world itself.
To seize Heaven's secrets was to defy the heavens.
In the cultivation world, even comprehending a single wisp of Dao Intent was enough to create an insurmountable gap between cultivators.
Even Immortal Tianyuan himself had only ever comprehended five kinds of Dao Intent.
Of course, in Li Tianwei's eyes, that was merely Immortal Tianyuan's exaggeration. To call one who comprehended a single Dao Intent a "Heaven's Chosen" who surpassed all others?
That was simply blaming the path for one's own incompetence.
This much could already be seen from the Heaven-Origin Dao Foundation Method.
Though he thought this way, Li Tianwei still believed that Immortal Tianyuan must have had his reasons for success.
When it came to foundational teachings, he had no objections.
Just as Li Tianwei continued to draw in spiritual energy, delving deeper in search of Dao Intent—
The corrupted spiritual energy stirred by Liu Muyu's Soul-Corrupting Banner had already quietly infiltrated the cave residence.
As one of the Sacred Lands standing alongside the Sacred Land of Lingxu, the Sacred Land of Baiyuan had crafted this banner to completely corrupt potential Ascension Seeds.
Forged from the resentment of one hundred thousand tortured souls, and refined by several seventh-grade Artifact Refiners through eighty-one intricate steps, the Soul-Corrupting Banner was made solely for destruction.
Moreover, most novice cultivators had yet to temper their Dao Hearts, lacking any real experience or resilience.
The grievance energy—born of one hundred thousand souls who were flayed, dismembered, and slaughtered—was enough to let a devil cultivator ascend one or two realms just by absorbing it.
At this moment, the foul aura continued to seep in, while Li Tianwei used his Fission Qi-Guiding Method to channel the spiritual energy inward.
Yet the corrupted grievance energy was immensely dense; under the influence of his fission technique, the surrounding Heaven and Earth spiritual energy grew increasingly violent and sinister.
Had Liu Muyu still been there, she would have seen the entire cave shrouded in a crimson haze of slaughter and resentment—like the very den of a demon.
Unfortunately, she was no longer present to witness it.
Li Tianwei, of course, had no idea that someone was secretly scheming against him.
He felt nothing strange as he inhaled the polluted energy.
For at that moment, bizarre visions flickered before his eyes, while faint whispers echoed endlessly in his ears.
Compared to Li Tianwei's confusion, the Book Spirit of the Five Intentions Converge to Heaven Art was utterly dumbfounded, staring blankly at the sea of foul resentment.
"This is grievance energy… Not good!"
As a spirit born of a celestial art, the Book Spirit naturally recognized it.
This energy originated from demonic arts—during Immortal Tianyuan's era, the devils delighted in refining such things.
By fusing grievance energy into Heaven and Earth, they could corrupt entire regions, making cultivators' spells ineffective and preventing spiritual recovery.
Worse still, prolonged exposure would allow endless resentment to invade one's body, corrode the Spirit Platform, and dissolve one's Divine Sense—leaving one crippled and unable to cultivate.
Now, this ancient evil had returned, enveloping the entire cave. Though the Book Spirit longed to switch masters, it could not truly abandon Li Tianwei.
Having already recognized him as its inheritor, it had to correct him no matter how hopeless he seemed.
Faced with this grievance energy, it could not allow him to perish.
"Master! Master!"
The Book Spirit hurriedly mobilized the remaining celestial energy within the book.
In an instant, golden light burst forth as faint spiritual energy gathered, the Book Spirit attempting to awaken Li Tianwei.
Unfortunately, the grievance energy was designed precisely to corrupt spiritual energy and spiritual power—and this particular energy had been refined from one hundred thousand souls by the Sacred Land of Baiyuan.
Shaa—
The Book Spirit's counterattack was entirely futile.
The grievance energy immediately engulfed it, forcing it into mere self-preservation.
Outside, the Book Spirit struggled desperately, trying to save Li Tianwei.
Yet Li Tianwei himself knew nothing of this, unaware that danger was fast approaching.
He only heard the whispers in his ears, while strange images flickered unceasingly before his eyes.
Since he was meditating to comprehend Dao Intent, the arrival of the grievance energy coincided perfectly.
Those illusions, those whispers—corrupting enough to drive any cultivator mad—were instead seen by Li Tianwei as—
"It's working! As expected, my talent is extraordinary! The moment I enter meditation, I can already glimpse a trace of Dao Intent!"
Li Tianwei marveled to himself.
Indeed, he mistook the hallucinations and heart demons born of the corrupted energy as signs of successful comprehension.
In such a state, his conviction only deepened.
After all, even Immortal Tianyuan had taken more than ten years to form his first Dao Intent—
Yet Li Tianwei, in less than a single meditation session, had already seen signs of success!
"False Spiritual Root? Poor aptitude? What System, what Book Spirit, what Heart-Questioning Steps? If I truly had poor aptitude, how could I progress so quickly?"
Li Tianwei snorted coldly.
Of course, he ignored the bloody visions flickering before him, the chilling resentment that filled the air, and the cries of infants and the elderly echoing around him…
In his eyes, this was merely the manifestation of Dao Intent.
Was this not the nature of all living beings—life and death, sorrow and suffering?
He recalled the novels he once read: to become immortal, one must experience countless reincarnations, endless cycles of birth, death, and pain, comprehending the myriad emotions of the mortal world…
So these sounds, these visions—were but minor matters!
Li Tianwei felt no fear at all.
Instead, he charged forward without hesitation.
And thus, in the face of grievance energy that could drive any cultivator mad and defile the Spirit Platform, Li Tianwei recklessly absorbed it all.
Even more astonishingly, he guided it directly into his body.
What followed was a scene beyond imagination.
The grievance energy enveloping the cave, along with the surrounding spiritual energy, surged entirely into Li Tianwei's body.
Because of his use of the Fission Qi-Guiding Method, Li Tianwei directed the energies to collide and fuse at specific points.
Soon, under the clash of corrupted and violent spiritual energies, the entire cave erupted in blood-red light.
One could even see countless dark shadows screaming and wailing throughout the cave—it had become a true demonic abyss.
At the center sat Li Tianwei, cross-legged like the sole demon of that place, endless resentment surging and churning around him.
Even demonic cultivators would never dare to absorb grievance energy in such a manner.
As the grievance energy rushed toward Li Tianwei, the Book Spirit finally managed to break free.
Upon opening its eyes, it saw the nightmarish scene within the cave—and its gaze fell directly upon Li Tianwei.
"He's fallen into demonic deviation! Not good!"