Ouyang Tianyun stared at Elder Wu for a long moment before speaking. "Elder Wu, what is the purpose of having us watch this fighter? It’s not just about how the fighter ends up. What does this have to do with us?"
"Combat is a collective phenomenon in the Shangmo Plane. Once you face an opponent from Shangmo, you cannot treat them as ordinary foes," Elder Wu explained seriously to his students. He was worried they might be too soft-hearted.
The students fell into deep thought. They knew that if Elder Wu said so, there must be a reason.
Yi Yunfei, the senior disciple, spoke first. "So, the Shangmo Plane actually favors brutality. They worship the ruthless edge within demonic nature."
Elder Wu looked at Yi Yunfei with approval. "Exactly. The name Shangmo comes from this very trait."
"It seems we need to be careful in this small competition," Gu Jun said calmly.
Elder Yi smiled. "No worries. They have their barbaric methods; we have our strange techniques. As long as you don’t break the rules, do whatever you want. If they break the rules first, just hit back with the same force."
His words were simple, yet they resonated deeply. At least the seventeen students of the Sage Academy had taken them to heart.
As the fighters below began their battle, the students felt a different kind of cruelty.
Zhu Yanyi watched the struggle below with cold eyes. She understood that these people could no longer be called human. In the Shangmo Plane, true humans did not exist. This was the tragedy of this plane.
Shangmo, Shangmo. So demonic nature was this terrifying. No wonder it was difficult for demonic cultivators to succeed in the end. It was because demonic nature was可怕 (terrifying). It did not guide a person’s conscience; it guided their worst instincts and base nature.
Zhu Yanyi’s gaze grew slightly heavy, as if lost in thought. Elder Yi turned her head and happened to see Zhu Yanyi’s contemplative expression. She asked unconsciously, "Zhu Yanyi, what’s wrong?"
Zhu Yanyi spoke slowly. "I am thinking about how terrifying human weakness and base nature can be. In my place, there is a book called the Three Character Classic. The first sentence is: 'When people are born, their nature is good.'"
"Originally, I didn’t understand why such a sentence existed. I thought it was just to make the Three Character Classic sound catchy. But now, I don’t think so."
Elder Yi and the others unconsciously focused their attention on Zhu Yanyi.
"Fifteen, your words seem to have another meaning," Ouyang Tianyun said.
Zhu Yanyi nodded slightly. "I have always known that cultivators can cultivate not just immortality, but also demonic paths. Hence, demonic cultivators exist. But among those who truly succeed in demonic cultivation, I have only heard of one: the Great Emperor Chiyou, who has returned to chaos and nothingness. I have not heard of anyone else succeeding. Why has no one else succeeded in demonic cultivation?"
Zhu Yanyi asked this rhetorical question to those present. They shook their heads slightly.
"I have heard a bit. It is said that when demonic cultivators reach the Divine Realm, the result is the same as cultivating immortality. Perhaps these demonic cultivators became gods, so no one mentions them anymore," Ouyang Tianyun said.
Zhu Yanyi shook her head slightly. "Are there other opinions?"
Elder Yi spoke up. "Zhu Yanyi, just say what you think. Listening to you like this is vague."
"'When people are born, their nature is good.' But there is another sentence after that: 'Natures are similar, habits make them distant.'
It is not just about temperament. Actually, a person’s nature at birth is neither good nor evil. A person’s character is like a blank sheet of paper. What matters most is how one paints their own colors on that blank paper. And these colors change according to the environment.
Just like in our Sage Academy, our style is to go with the flow. Everyone speaks their mind, shares their thoughts, and shares benefits together. This is a character of great harmony. This character makes us relaxed, of course, and it is also related to our profession."
Zhu Yanyi paused for a moment. "We are healers. Healers see the most of human birth, aging, sickness, and death. Seeing so much life and death, we cherish life very much. We know that living a lifetime is not easy.
Actually, whether a cultivator can succeed and ascend smoothly is also not easy. Some cultivators fall midway. Do they not want to live? But sometimes, the environment forces them to give up their lives.
There are many good sayings in my hometown. One of them is: 'Death is inevitable for all men; some die heavier than Mount Tai, others lighter than a goose feather, depending on their pursuits.' Others say: 'Since ancient times, who has escaped death? Leave a loyal heart to shine in history.' This is the result of the life in my place at that time."
Zhu Yanyi licked her lips slightly. "The people of the Shangmo Plane are also infected by their environment.
I clearly remember that as soon as we entered, we felt the hostility and killing intent here. In such an environment, how could their nature not become warlike and fond of fighting?
They can become demonic cultivators, but we cannot let them walk the path of evil. If a person’s heart is not strong enough, and they stay in this environment, I fear they will live in great pain. Every day, they will encounter nothing but fighting, because fighting is written into their blank lives from birth."
"Hearing you say this, it seems to mean one thing," Elder Yi said, pondering slightly. She had to admit that Zhu Yanyi’s view seemed novel, but she could not deny that it was correct.
Zhu Yanyi smiled slightly and then said, "I just thought of this."
"So, does this mean this plane has a problem?" Ouyang Tianyun suddenly asked. If Zhu Yanyi’s theory was true, then the problem with this plane was huge.
Zhu Yanyi nodded slightly. "I feel that way. This plane should have a problem. True demonic cultivators would never be like this."
"Then what do you think we should do? Become saviors?" Gu Jun asked.
Zhu Yanyi glanced at Gu Jun. "What is our identity? Healers.
What is a healer’s instinct? Medical skill.
And as true healers, there is a saying: Lower healers treat people, middle healers treat the state, and upper healers treat heaven.
If we only like to treat people, we are just lower healers. This plane can be considered a state. So, this is the best place to test whether we can become middle healers."
"Cough." Elder Wu almost choked on her saliva upon hearing this. She looked at Zhu Yanyi. "You want to heal this plane?"
"It doesn’t hurt to try," Zhu Yanyi laughed. "If we succeed, supreme karmic merit will descend upon us. If we fail, we just do our best, so we don’t leave ourselves with a knot in our hearts or a regret."