The 6th Layer of Abyss

On the Spirit Plane, in the 6th Layer of Abyss.

Devil sat atop a throne of blood, the throne that he had taken from undisputed strongest 'mortal devil clan' on the 6ht Layer of Abyss, formerly known as the Giant Devil Clan.

This Clan was even superior compared to the Ghu Clan in terms of their might, and their tempering of their young was no less barbaric. At any one time, they had dozens of Imperial Spirit Realm devils, and around ten at the peak stage - all of whom were ready to ascend to the Nirvana Realm to tackle a fearsome enemy at a moment's notice…

And all of whom were slain by Devil's hands.

After reaching the Nirvana Life Realm, nobody below the Immortal Step could even pose a slight hindrance to Devil, and even the immortals on the 6th Layer, the most powerful demonic layer that could be entered and exited at will by immortals, had taken serious notice of him. Devil knew that every immortal tribe on the 6th Layer was currently doing their all to ascertain who, or what, he was, but it was to no avail.

He quite literally appeared out of thin air, then rapidly rose to prominence within a short period of 32 years. He was an enigma, and because of this, even the immortal tribes were wary off his existence, not wanting to be the first to probe his strength before the others.

They had to consider not only Devil's monstrous power which somehow transcended the Nirvana Realm, but also the other tribes, who would no doubt take it as an opportunity to attack if they were to launch an assault against Devil right now.

Devil sat atop his throne of blood, condensed from the lives of the Giant Devil Tribesmen whom he had slain to create this congealed crimson chair for himself. He tapped his fingers on the armrest impatiently, his expression growing increasingly irate with each passing moment.

"So dull! I will undoubtedly reach the Immortal Step in three years time, but am I supposed to just sit around and wait until then? I suppose this would be the most pragmatic and cautious approach…but I am not a cautious man! I understand now, this is also the nature of that vile Primordial Devil…"

As Devil spoke to himself without a care in the world, a faint smile crept upon his lips.

"I do not know what the main body is scheming. I do not know if we are enemies, allies, or in fact two parts of the same whole. But what I do understand, is that my dao path, is the path of seeking to understand the Primordial Devil…but I will not just seek understanding….I will surpass that old devil, reaching levels of slaughter, pride and absolute domination, unknown to this world before now!"

Having come to a decision after ten days of deliberation, Devil stood to his feet, causing his blood throne, and the entire city all around him to collapse into a sea of blood. He stretched out his hand, causing the ocean of blood to congeal into a sphere, before further condensing into a single point. He then opened his mouth, and actually swallowed the condensed ball of bloody miasma whole!

In an instant, his killing aura erupted ten fold stronger than before.

"My path is the path of slaughter; there is no such thing as waiting and biding my time! I will use these three years to engrave the name of 'Devil' into the hearts and minds of the entire 6th Layer of Abyss; mortals and immortals alike will tremble in fear at my power, before dying to my hands and becoming a part of my endlessly growing killing intent! This…is the path of the Devil!"

Devil spent a total of 10 days within the Giant Devil Tribe, having slaughtered all of its members, as well as many other devil tribes throughout the 6th Layer of Abyss.

As Devil took a step, leaving an empty desolate land in his wake and a bloody aura surrounding his person, he mused to himself aloud whilst walking towards his destination.

"The 6th Layer of Abyss, can be split into a total of five zones; North 6th, East 6th, South 6th, West 6th…and Central 6th. Each of the first four regions are ruled by immortal devil tribes in a similar fashion to the War Flower Empire on the Blood Plane, only, there are no 'branch tribes', and no laws forbidding individuals from raising hell. As for Central 6th…it is the 6th Layer's forbidden land, left alone due to the harsh environment, and as a temporising ground for the devil tribes' rising stars."

Devil's fiendish smile contained a hint of evil as he spoke. So far, he hadn't directly assaulted an immortal devil tribe, though he had come into various conflicts with a few immortals during his time spent in the 6th Layer. Due to his strength which surpassed common sense, the cautious devils were wary of him, so even the immortals had been leaving him alone, given that he didn't seem to be targeting them specifically.

But now, Devil had grown tired of the dull mortal devil tribes, and he had decided to target one of the four immortal devil tribes on then 6th Layer, the Northern Devil Tribe!

Even compared to the Lunar Song Tribe, this was a force to be reckoned with. Like all the other region-ruling devil tribes, they prevented any other immortal devil tribes from sprouting within their region by using overwhelming force. Based on Devil's understanding of this tribe, there were seven immortal devils…on the surface.

"Hey, Sage." He spoke casually, seemingly to the vast barren lands surrounding him. Although he looked to be alone, a young girl with glistening emerald eyes and a black crystal embedded in her forehead appeared as soon as he spoke. She didn't say anything, but just floated by his side as he continued to walk without looking at her.

"I want to destroy the Northern Devil Tribe. Tell me, how much power do they truly possess?"

"More than you can hope to handle. They have a total of 13 immortals; 10 True Immortals, 2 Ancient Immortals and a Dao Immortal. Even one of the Ancient Immortals could kill you with a slap."

For a while, Devil continued to walk in silence. Eventually, he spat out a single word:

"Unacceptable."

"It is the the truth. You are merely a half-immortal, whilst they possess an 85,000 years old peak Immortal Dao protector. The difference between you and he is like that of heaven and earth; even if it is you, it is suicide."

Devil glanced at the Sage thoughtfully.

"But you won't stop me?"

"I am here to observe your path, that is all. If you have chosen this to be your path, and it results in your death, then that is the observation that I will bear witness to."

"Hahaha….Sage oh Sage, you truly are siding with him, aren't you? You couldn't care less about us Dao Clones…only he interested you."

"You three Dao Clones are the manifestation of Yaan'a dao path. What will be, will be. For better or for worse, I am here only to watch."

"Hmm…" Devil fell into thought for a moment, before turning to the Sage with a strange smile. "Tell me then….what if my path consisted of joining forces with you?"

The Sage remained emotionless as ever. However, although without expression, she revealed something shocking for the first time, something that the other two Dao Clones would learn soon enough.

"Before he implemented the Dao Splitting Technique, Yaan made a single request of me. He asked that, should any of the three Dao Clones request my assistance, so long as it does not directly cause harm to him, then I may provide my assistance to each of you…once. You have one opportunity to make use of my strength; this is the power that you have bee granted."

Devil slowed down slightly, and the Sage spoke again.

"I agreed to his terms. I will provide my full and unrestrained assistances to all three of you Dao Clones, without reservation, for a single time. To use my power for something like this, suppressing a mere Dao Immortal, would not only be a waste. It would also be contrary to your heart. Your path is the path of slaughter, your own slaughter, without the assistance of any others.

"You…are correct. I do not need your help to carry out my path towards immortality. I see now, he has only one intention…he made the request of you for one reason alone - he plans to have all three of us Dao Clones to eventually battle the Primordial Devil!!"

Right as the Do Clone of Soul reached this realisation, the other two arrived at this point also.

They had seen through part of the truth, and they now realised that the main body had anticipated that this would happen…

And yet, not one of the three Dao Clones understood what was going on.

The dao path…just what was it, exactly?