Gradual Revelations
Devil was brash, arrogant, self-assured, and ruthless to the core…but he was not stupid. He understood that if he directly targeted the Northern Devil Tribe right now, he would simply be sending himself to his death. No matter how much he hated to admit it, the fact of the matter was that he was still too weak.
As this thought emerged in his mind, Devil ground his teeth and the bloody aura surrounding him grew even stronger.
"I will definitely annihilate every devil tribe on the 6th Layer of Abyss…but now is not the time to face the strongest contenders, not just yet. I'm still too weak; I need to get stronger…I need to slaughter more!"
Devil had already reached the Nirvana Life Realm, so by all conventional reasoning, it should be impossible for him to grow stronger unless he obtained some unimaginable treasure, or increased his dao comprehension…
But Devil disdained the use of any tool other than his own body, including the earthly daos! His only weapon was his own spiritual form, and his blood-soaked aura which continually grew stronger the more he killed.
And so, he would temper this weapon further, and further, and further, until it surpassed the limits of what the Nirvana Realm could contain!
Devil made his way towards the Northern Devil Tribe, but stopped tens of miles away, atop a mountain of corrosive mud that would cause any ordinary Foundation Step cultivator to disintegrate into ash. The entire Northern Devil Tribe was surrounded by 99 of these mountains, acting as the first line of defence against any potential invaders, and also acting as a severe deterrent, and a display of this immortal tribe's immense might.
As Devil stood atop one of these 99 mountains, he could feel the endless aura of death and hatred that had accumulated within this mountain range across the aeons. He could feel the strength of the distant towering tribe, just based upon this first line of defence alone, and he knew…that he was outmatched.
Without a word, Devil turned around and left.
By his side, the Primordial Sage continued to float silently, looking at him with a clear gaze.
In a gruff voice, Devil asked:
"I know that you will watch me no matter what, but do you really need to linger within my line of sight like a mosquito?"
"Only you can see me, others cannot. And I won't interfere in your path, no matter the direction you choose to take."
"That's not the point…" Devil glanced at her with an irate look. "Just seeing your annoying face following me around, watching me with your damned emotionless gaze all the time…it's pissing me off. Your existence is getting in my way."
"I see. It's a shame that you're powerless to do anything about it, isn't it, Devil? You are weak; far weaker than the Primordial Devil."
"You-!" At the Sage's unexpected direct provocation, which seemed somewhat out of character for her indifferent self, Devil turned towards her in his rage, only to find that she had vanished. She was like a ghost, coming and going as she pleased. It made people wonder if she was truly a real living being in this world, or if she was a different type of existence entirely…
"Tch…that bitch, she's deliberately provoking me. What happened to not interfering with my path? She's clearly urging my hatred to grow stronger…" In the end, Devil just shook his head and sighed. He continued to walk away from the Northern Devil Tribe, until that tribe was many thousands of miles behind him.
Eventually, Devil came across another tribe; the Swamp Devil Tribe. They were a tribe on par with the Giant Devil Tribe, and when Devil descended upon their core tribe lands with his unrestrained bloody aura, within moments, several Heavenly Blessings appeared, signifying that the tribe had acknowledged Devil's appearance as a true tribal disaster, immediately urging their Peak Imperial Spirit Realm powerhouses to step into Nirvana.
Minutes later, Devil continued on his walk, having obliterated the entire Swamp Devil Tribe, leaving only a ruined region of hateful miasma and lingering grudges that would never be fulfilled.
As he departed, his bloody aura was slightly stronger than before.
"I'm too weak…so I will kill until I'm strong! I could wait until I reach the Immortal Step, but why should I do so?! Why should I wait for the Heavens to 'grant' me with power, when I desire power right here and now?! I will slaughter, I will kill, I will destroy everything in my path! I will devour every life in my way, turning everything into my own strength, until my bloody aura of slaughter becomes my dao, and my dao becomes slaughter itself! This…is my, The Devil's, dao path!"
The Dao Clone of Qi had found his path in his home filled with peace and love, whilst the Dao Clone of Soul had found his path in violence and hatred. They were like opposites of one another, and yet…they were both Yaan.
As was the Dao Clone of Mind.
On the Sage Plane, the Dao Clone of Mind had finally left the Dao Formation. It wasn't that the Dao Formation was no longer useful to him, but staying within this formation was not the best use of his time during these next three years until his Immortal Ascension came around.
The Dao Clone of Mind was born of Yaan's innate curiosity towards all things in this world, and his desire to learn more, about himself, and about the world around him. And so, he exited the Dao Formation and entered a rotating seven-colour polyhedron temple, which, like everything else on the Sage Plane, had no name, but was where the Primordial Sage preferred to meditate in solitude, without any external distractions. Today however, this place, which looked strange on the outside but very plain on the inside, was being used as a meeting room between the only two living residents on the Sage Plane.
"Primordial Sage…just what are you, exactly?"
"That's quite the vague question. Care to specify?"
Knowledge sighed and shook his head.
"You know exactly what I'm asking, Sage. You can read my thoughts, and I expect that you will be able to read this clone's thoughts until I reach the Immortal Step. I expect that only divinities and Immortal Step psyche cultivators can escape your mind reading abilities; that's why you suppressed the psyche path so severely throughout the four planes."
After a moment of silence, the Sage looked Knowledge in the eyes and responded in her ever-monotone voice.
"I am the Primordial Sage, one of the four Primordial Demons…however, the truth is that, although the others consider me their older sister, I am the youngest of the Primordial Demons, though only by one tenth of a second; I came into existence following the first thoughts in this world, the thoughts of the other three Primordial Demons. Likewise, the Sage Plane was born shortly after the other three planes alongside myself, which you have already realised…is my Sea of Consciousness."
Knowledge's eyes widened. He was surprised, not because of this extreme revelation, but because the Sage had actually told him something that he imagined was a big secret of hers!
"I am telling you this, because aside from myself, nobody else in this world possesses the ability to read your memories. Even if you are one day devoured by the Primordial Devil, he will not learn of this information. And naturally, I can easily prevent you from revealing this information to others of your own accord." The Sage explained calmly.
Knowledge nodded slowly, but he still had his doubts. Firstly…
"What if the main body devours me?"
"You and your main body are the same person; I am telling you this information, because I am willing to reveal this truth to the rational side of your complete self."
After a moment of silence, Knowledge had one more question.
"Why tell me this at all, though?"
"Should Yaan emerge the victor in the inevitable battle between he and the Primordial Devil, we will become natural allies. I am establishing a repertoire of trust between us early on as proof of my sincerity."
"…That isn't how trustworthy people speak, you know."
"Indeed, but unfortunately, you are well aware that I am not a trustworthy person." The Sage replied calmly.
Knowledge wasn't really sure how to respond to that. The Primordial Sage was incomprehensible; just when he thought that he was beginning to understand her, she came out with something absurd like this. In the end, he decided that since she was apparently being so agreeable in order to establish 'trust' between them right now, he might as well take advantage of this situation to the fullest. He didn't know if a single word coming from her mouth was the truth, but their conversation alone was still very useful to him.
"Do you know what the main body is planning? Why has certain information been withheld from me?"
"I cannot answer that question. I will not interfere, beyond providing some minor assistance, with Yaan's path; I merely wish to observe. I will tell you one thing, however – before using the Dao Splitting Technique, Yaan requested that I grant each of his three Dao Clones with my full assistance a single time, so long as this assistance does not harm his main body. I accepted this request, and I will assist you once, should you choose to accept my help."
"I see…" Knowledge muttered. He felt like he was starting to understand something, but the full truth was still outside of his grasp. In the end, he shook his head and sighed. Since the Sage wouldn't say anything else about the main body and his intentions, then he wouldn't waste time lingering on this matter. Honestly, he wasn't even sure if the Sage herself understood the main body's full intentions.
Regardless, he felt certain that all would be made clear at the Immortal Step.
"Is the Primordial Devil aware of Yaan's survival?" Knowledge asked, though he already knew the answer in his heart.
"Yes. As I have already mentioned, I am assisting you both along your paths whilst observing your growths, and I will sit by the side without interfering with the final outcome."
Like Devil, Knowledge also realised what this meant – Yaan intended for the Sage's 'assistance' to help them face the Primordial Devil. However, since she said that she would not directly intervene in their conflict…
Knowledge sighed.
'It seems that in the end, it is inevitable that us three Dao Clones will all face the Primordial Devil together, and this battle will almost certainly take place on the Qi Plane, since the Primordial Devil cannot enter the Sage Plane nor Spirit Plane, and we have no reason to seek him out in his homeland. My only uncertainty, is the role that the main body will take in this battle, and how he plans to survive if the Primordial Devil is destroyed…'