Seated cross-legged upon the palm of that sacred great Buddha, Miao Rulai held one hand vertically before him while the other turned prayer beads, the corner of his mouth curled in an inscrutable smile. Ever since Demon Emperor Blood River had appeared, that smile had never left his lips.
"Many years have passed, yet I never imagined your comprehension of the Dao of Darkness has deepened to such an extent—so profound it astonishes even this seat. Blood River, oh Blood River, I find myself growing ever more impressed by you."
Miao Rulai's voice was ethereal and boundless.
"You entered demonhood with an immortal thought, then stepped upon darkness from demonhood. When you achieved immortality, you were the Emperor of the Immortal Dao; when you descended into demonhood, you became the Emperor of the Demonic Dao. Fortunately, the Dao of Darkness has not bestowed its Heavenly Mandate; otherwise, the Emperor of Darkness would undoubtedly be yours as well."
Since ancient times, there have been Three Thousand Great Dao.
However.
Some Great Dao are easy to enter but difficult to comprehend.
For instance, the Immortal Dao is the most classic example of being easy to enter but hard to fathom.
For mortals, possessing a heart of perseverance makes achieving immortality relatively easy. Once immortal, one steps into the Immortal Dao.
But after entering the Immortal Dao, how far one can go depends on one's innate talent, comprehension, and fortune.
Besides the Immortal Dao, the Demonic Dao and the Ghost Dao also belong to this category of easy entry but difficult comprehension.
Cultivators can transform their physical bodies into demons; discarding the physical body makes one a ghost.
Yet whether demon or ghost, both can also achieve immortality, like the demon immortals and ghost immortals of the Great Desolate.
There are also some Great Dao where entry is not easy, and comprehension is even harder.
Such as the Buddha Dao.
The threshold for the Buddha Dao is much higher than that of the Immortal Dao. Seeking immortality requires only perseverance, but seeking Buddhahood demands more than that. The Buddha Dao emphasizes cause, effect, and opportunity. Without karmic ties to the Buddha Dao or any opportunity, one might spend a lifetime without ever setting foot upon it.
The Demonic Dao similarly belongs to the category where descent is not easy, and comprehension is even harder.
In a sense, the threshold for Demonic Descent is even higher than that for seeking Buddhahood.
Demons are divided into innate and acquired.
Innate demons are heavenly demons, such as Demon Emperor Ren Tianxing.
Demon Emperor Blood River, however, entered demonhood from immortality, so he can only be considered an acquired demon.
Heavenly demons need not be mentioned—they are demons by birth.
But acquired demons are not something anyone can become just because they wish to.
Throughout history, heavenly demons, while not numerous, are certainly not few.
But acquired demons like Demon Emperor Blood River are absolutely rare.
It's not that there aren't many who descend into demonhood, but rather that very few who do so as acquired demons survive.
Firstly.
Whether immortal, Buddha, demon, or ghost, no one idly descends into demonhood without reason. Most who do so are forced by circumstances—perhaps cultivation going awry, leading to a fall into the demonic path, or integrating forbidden fortunes, refining forbidden treasures, resulting in demonic descent.
In such cases, they generally do not live long. After falling into the demonic path, self-awareness is lost. They recognize neither kin nor morality, acting without reason or even a concept of life and death.
A person, feeling full after eating, will stop.
But a demon, even when full, will continue to eat until bursting.
When cultivation encounters a bottleneck, one will pause.
A demon encountering a bottleneck will not stop until cultivation is complete.
Faced with danger, a person will act cautiously or give up; a demon charges forward relentlessly, for a demon fundamentally does not know what life and death are.
Therefore.
Since ancient times, those forced into demonhood either perish from various causes of self-destruction or are slain by other immortals or Buddhas.
Someone like Blood River, who achieved immortality and then descended into demonhood with a single thought, and even ascended to become the Emperor of the Demonic Dao—throughout all history, he is the only one.
Among the Three Thousand Great Dao.
There are also some Great Dao whose thresholds are so high they surpass not only the Immortal Dao but also the Buddha and Demonic Dao.
Such as the Dao of Radiance, the Dao of Divine Saint, the Dao of Life, and even the Dao of Heaven and the Dao of Fate, among others.
These Great Dao are hailed as Supreme Great Dao.
Ordinary cultivators can hardly reach these Supreme Great Dao.
No!
Not that they cannot reach them, but that they cannot even see them.
Let alone ordinary cultivators, even those with the highest talent and best comprehension have no qualification to touch these Supreme Great Dao.
Only those possessing supreme fortune and bearing the Heavenly Mandate have the qualification to touch them.
For example, those with Radiance Bloodline have the qualification to touch the Dao of Radiance.
If one possesses Divine Saint Bloodline, they also have the qualification to touch the Dao of Divine Saint.
But it is merely touching; whether one can comprehend it still depends on one's own fortune.
How many existences in the myriad heavens and worlds have comprehended the Dao of Radiance, and how many have comprehended the Dao of Divine Saint? Probably no one knows.
The only known fact is that, throughout history, those originally possessing Radiance Bloodline or Divine Saint Bloodline have never been many. Those able to comprehend the Dao of Radiance or the Dao of Divine Saint are likely even fewer.
Such is the case for the Dao of Radiance and the Dao of Divine Saint. As for the Dao of Life, the Dao of Heaven, and the Dao of Fate...
These are even more pitifully scarce.
To this day, it is only known that Great Nature Lady Yun Nishang has stepped into the Dao of Life.
Only known that Eternal Nameless has stepped into the Dao of Fate.
As for the Dao of Heaven...
There is none yet.
Speaking of which.
Among the Three Thousand Great Dao, there is also a rather special category of Great Dao.
These Great Dao not only have thresholds higher than the Immortal, Buddha, and Demonic Dao, but are even higher than those Supreme Great Dao like the Dao of Radiance and the Dao of Divine Saint.
Such as the Dao of Darkness, the Dao of Death, the Dao of Slaughter, the Dao of Absolute, and so on.
These Great Dao all belong to the Forbidden Great Dao.
They are also the Great Dao that have been expunged from the Three Thousand Great Dao.
Those Supreme Great Dao, though high in threshold, at least have a threshold to speak of, and it is known what conditions allow contact with them.
However.
The Forbidden Great Dao are different.
The Forbidden Great Dao fundamentally have no threshold. Precisely because there is no threshold, no one knows what conditions allow contact with these Forbidden Great Dao.
An existence with Radiance Bloodline has the qualification to touch the Dao of Radiance.
But an existence with Darkness Bloodline does not have the qualification to touch the Dao of Darkness.
Legend has it.
Only by breaking Taboo can one touch these Forbidden Great Dao.
There is also a saying that only existences with karmic ties to the Forbidden Great Dao have the qualification to touch them.
Opinions vary; no one knows what the threshold for the Forbidden Great Dao is.
Nor does anyone know how Demon Emperor Blood River, after his single-thought descent into demonhood, broke Taboo and stepped into the Dao of Darkness.
Observing the heavens and earth of past and present.
The Forbidden Great Dao have always been a mystery. At least since the Primordial Age, it has been nearly impossible to see so-called Forbidden Great Dao.
There is, however, one person who seems to have a very deep 'affinity' with the Forbidden Great Dao—and not just ordinary affinity.
That person is the renowned Nether Emperor.
It is said this Nether Emperor has stepped into not just one Forbidden Great Dao, but several.
The Dao of Death, the Dao of Absolute, the Dao of Slaughter.
Back in the mortal world, many witnessed the Nether Emperor dominating three Forbidden Great Dao alone, a truly terrifying sight.
And the reason the Nether Emperor has long been considered the Primordial Sin Lord recorded in the Book of Fate is, more or less, related to his solo domination of three Forbidden Great Dao.