Duncan felt his mind tremble as he realized the truth.
The fact that the black heart was guiding him toward his true self came with a lot of other implications as well. And the most important implication was that he was currently straying away from his true self.
This wasn't good at all.
Unlike righteous path cultivators, one of the core tenets of the demonic path was to be true to your self. Righteous path cultivators pursue righteousness and being in harmony with the world.
Even if they weren't righteous or harmonious, their actions tend to be righteous. Even when they commit crimes, they would use a righteous excuse to commit them.
Like the Buddhist monks stating that they are suppressing devils and establishing virtue. Like the saying that there is no gain without paying. There were all kinds of philosophical arguments used by the righteous cultivators while doing something.
And there is an underlying reason for it.
The righteous path doesn't mean that everyone who cultivates is righteous. Who doesn't have some evil thoughts lurking in their mind? Who doesn't have some hidden desires in their heart?
The reason the righteous cultivators try to act righteous is that it is a form of dao heart training. All those evil thoughts and hidden desires are what hidden demons were made of. By training their righteousness with actions, righteous cultivators will be able to deal with them easily.
As they say, saying a lie one time is a lie. But, if you repeat a lie enough times it would become truth. That is the principle behind such behavior by righteous path cultivators.
If they truly believe in their fallacies, then they would eventually become righteous themselves in their own mind. By convincing themselves that they are righteous, righteous path cultivators will be able to battle their inner demons easily during tribulations.
Everything in cultivation is based on how to advance easily to the next stage. And this practice is no different.
Contrary to the righteous path, the demonic path believes in cultivators being true to their inner selves. They need to immerse in their negative emotions and truly accept themselves to advance to a higher level.
These were two contrasting approaches that complement each other in reality. With demonic cultivators immersing themselves in their indulgences, the righteous cultivators are needed to keep the world in balance.
And nature is all about balance.
The difficulty faced by demonic cultivators was far higher than righteous cultivators when they reach higher realms. Due to repeated immersion into their negative emotions, the mindset of demonic cultivators would eventually distort. And it will begin to affect their dao heart.
This is a dangerous sink-or-swim method.
With such extreme methods, there would naturally be great rewards. That's why demonic cultivators have far more gains in the earlier stages. But, as time progresses, the rewards become mediocre and the difficulty increases severalfold.
Nevertheless, the basic principle remains the same.
A demonic cultivator should remain true to his inner self. They must indulge in their desires and take care not to sink into them completely. That is the way demonic cultivators sharpen their dao hearts.
Duncan's straying away from his true self was a serious mistake that could bite him in the back as he advances to higher levels. Right now, the problem may not be that big. But, as he advances in cultivation realms, the importance of dao heart becomes more and more significant.
Duncan had read about this in the scripture hall while browsing the common knowledge of the cultivation world. And this revelation was like a bolt of lightning to his head at this moment.
Duncan knew that he must embrace his true self sooner or later. If not, there will be huge problems in the future. Moreover, the black heart's guidance was also telling.
Duncan recalled his actions since he joined the Heavenly Demon Sect and found that he was indeed drifting away from his true self. He had become more and more cautious and wasn't willing to take risks if things were not in his favor.
Duncan frowned as he realized this. But, there was nothing he could do about it currently. He could only try to act in accordance with his true self in the future. That was the only way he could see to get out of this tricky situation.
Looking ahead at the youngster who was leaping above the monster, Duncan felt an innate kind of satisfaction emerging from within. He knew that this was what he always wanted to be.
There was a hint of recklessness and madness emanating from the youngster's figure when he decisively confronted the demonic beast. This kind of heroic demeanor was absent from him these days. Duncan could only shake his head at that thought.
No, it wasn't heroic.
That was a wrong assumption. Duncan knew very well he wasn't a hero. So, the heroic demeanor wasn't the core. The real reason that youngster's figure resonated with him was because there was a kind of unruliness deep in that attacking figure.
Duncan vaguely felt as if he understood something. But, it still wasn't clear yet. He knew what he must do. But, the why evaded him. What about that figure resonated with him was something he needed to think deeply upon.
Shaking his head, Duncan turned around and walked away from the battle scene. The next moment he was outside the bloody ground. Duncan looked around and found that the rest of the areas were looking pretty normal. Something told him that he wouldn't gain anything else even if he searched around now.
So, Duncan decisively gave up and walked towards a nearby grass stalk.
Duncan looked at the grass stalk deeply and a determined expression crossed his face. Reaching out, Duncan once again touched the blood that was present on the grass stalk and concentrated on figuring out the mysterious feeling it gave to him.
After realizing that the black heart was guiding him towards his true self, Duncan let go of his wariness towards the things present in this area. He was now sure that everything present here was to guide him in one direction or the other.
Feeling the drop of blood in his fingers, Duncan concentrated on unveiling the mysterious feeling within them. Concentrating hard, Duncan could feel a kind of pull coming from the blood. He could feel it connecting with something deep within him as well.
Duncan closed his eyes and forgot about everything else. All his concentration was on the blood that he was touching…
*****
Meanwhile, in the barren valley…
BOOM!
A large cave-in appeared causing the surroundings to be filled with dust.
WHOOSH!
A gust of wind blew past the area driving away the dust and revealing the scene to the eyes of everyone present.
"Hah, no wonder, no one was able to find any ancient relics in this region. These relics were all underground," Han Shindong said in a triumphant tone. "Uncle Long, your guess was right. Luckily, we weren't fooled like the others."
Before their eyes stood a large underground palace of sorts that was filled with numerous pillars. There were mysterious patterns carved all over the pillars. Just one look at it was enough for the people present to know that there was some hidden mystery present in them.
"Uncle Long, take a few men and secure this area. Until we leave here, no one is allowed to disturb us," Han Shindong announced arrogantly.
Hearing his words the expressions on his subordinates' faces twisted unnaturally. Han Shindong's words right now might have sounded prudent and sensible. It would have been the case if it was uttered outside. However, inside the Grotto Heaven, these words showed his naivety and cluelessness.
Indeed, outside the Grotto Heaven, a relic like this could have been blocked off and cordoned off. But, here, no one would give face when facing such an opportunity. Moreover, who among his subordinates didn't wish to obtain their own lucky encounters?
It could already be considered a miracle if they were willing to guard you against others inside the ruins, but expecting them to guard outside and fight against desperate cultivators coming to obtain their own fortuitous encounters can only be called stupidity.
Uncle Long noticed the change of expressions on the subordinates' faces and cursed Han Shindong internally. However, this young master of his was used to such things and didn't know how to read the situation.
"Young Master, I think it would be prudent to bring all of our men inside. We don't know what other traps are waiting inside. We might need manpower to dismantle them. Moreover, did you forget about the scorpions? Their preferred mode of attack is to ambush from underground. And we are heading underground. This is their hunting region. So, I think it is better to be cautious," Uncle Long advised in a roundabout manner.
"Ha ha ha, Uncle Long, you are indeed very experienced. Since that is the case, let's not waste time. We can head inside," Han Shindong laughed merrily and gladly accepted the suggestion.
The subordinates looked at Uncle Long in gratitude. He merely nodded at them and led their group into the underground region.
