Chapter 179

Chapter 179: Fellow Daoist!

Watching Old Yang sing with increasing enthusiasm， Ye Tianming couldn’t help but interrupt him，“Senior， are you out of your mind?“

Old Yang:“…….“

Ye Tianming said earnestly，“Senior， you sing very well， but please stop singing， okay?“

Old Yang:“…….“

A moment later， Jiang Zuo walked in and bowed respectfully to Ye Tianming，“Sect Master， many people in the sect have already left.“

Ye Tianming said calmly，“Is it because of the matter with Guanxuan Domain?“

Jiang Zuo nodded，“Indeed. Word has spread outside that you and that young master Yang Jia are mortal enemies……everyone doesn’t want to make an enemy of Guanxuan Domain， so many people have already left.“

Ye Tianming nodded，“Understandable.“

Jiang Zuo seemed to want to say something but held back.

Ye Tianming looked at Jiang Zuo，“Why haven’t you left?“

Jiang Zuo answered honestly，“To be frank， I’m scared too， but I want to wait and see a little longer.“

Ye Tianming laughed，“You’re quite straightforward. But what I’m curious about is， what exactly are you waiting to see?“

Jiang Zuo gave a slight bow，“The fact that the Sect Master was able to defeat Yang Jia means the Sect Master is more capable than Yang Jia， which also means the people behind the Sect Master are more capable than the people behind Yang Jia.“

Old Yang glanced at Jiang Zuo.

Ye Tianming smiled，“Pass the word down— in three days， I will open the Buddha-Demon Trial Path. Anyone still within my sect is welcome to go in and take a look.“

Jiang Zuo’s pupils suddenly contracted， and he immediately bowed deeply，“Thank you， Sect Master.“

With that， he turned and ran out.

Ye Tianming turned to look at Old Yang，“Want to come take a look?“

Old Yang smiled，“It’s not very convenient for me. You all go ahead.“

Ye Tianming nodded.

Old Yang suddenly said，“You’d better be careful.“

Ye Tianming looked at Old Yang， who smiled and said，“The founder of this Buddha-Demon Sect is no simple figure— utterly benevolent， yet utterly wicked. When dealing with him， you’d better be on full alert.“

As he spoke， he suddenly laughed，“I have to say， I’m actually quite curious to see you meet him. It’s a shame I’m not suited to visit him in his domain……“

Ye Tianming said，“Domain?“

Old Yang said，“You’ll find out in time.“

With that， he waved his hand，“I’m going for a stroll……“

As he spoke， he turned and left， but started singing again，“There’s no one in the world like mother dear， a child with a mother……“

Ye Tianming glanced at Old Yang， said nothing， and continued reading.

Three days later.

Ye Tianming chose to open the Buddha-Demon Path. He was naturally looking forward to this Buddha-Demon Path trial— after all， it had once been one of the three great trials of the real world， on par with the Ancient Philosopher Sect’s “Ancient Philosopher Path“ and the Heavenly Court’s “Nine Heavens.“ Of course， none of them could compare to the Immortal Treasure Pavilion’s “Martial Pavilion“ now.

The Immortal Treasure Pavilion’s “Martial Pavilion“ was now the greatest trial ground of all.

The Buddha-Demon Sect’s trial path lay within the Buddha-Demon Seal. On this day， several thousand people— all top-tier powerhouses— gathered before the main hall of the Buddha-Demon Sect.

When Ye Tianming walked out of the main hall and saw so many people， he was momentarily stunned， because Jiang Zuo had previously said that many people had already fled because of Guanxuan Domain.

Ye Tianming looked toward Jiang Zuo at his side， who said respectfully，“Sect Master， when they heard you were going to open the Buddha-Demon Path， those who had left all came back.“

Not far away， a middle-aged man stepped forward，“Please， Sect Master， give us a chance.“

Ye Tianming stared at the middle-aged man，“In broad daylight— what are you dreaming about?“

The middle-aged man:“…….“

Ye Tianming waved his hand，“Those who left before— please leave again now.“

The middle-aged man said in a deep voice，“Sect Master， please give us a……“

Ye Tianming raised his hand and pressed down.

Boom!

The middle-aged man’s cultivation was instantly suppressed， and in the next moment， his physical body shattered with a thunderous crack.

Everyone’s expression changed drastically!

Ye Tianming looked at the crowd，“Don’t make me say it twice.“

Seeing how ruthless Ye Tianming was， everyone knew he was not someone to be trifled with. They turned and left immediately， not daring to linger.

Ye Tianming looked toward the distance. Han Yue walked over， and beside him were three others— two men and a woman. One man was dressed in white robes， holding a blade in his left hand. The other man was a monk wearing a monk’s robe， with a string of human skull beads around his neck， looking both righteous and sinister.

The woman was dressed in a snow-white burial shroud， her face as pale as paper， like a living corpse.

Behind the three of them followed more than twenty people.

Aside from Han Yue， the leading figures were all looking at Ye Tianming.

Han Yue smiled，“Young Master Ye， let me make some introductions. The one with the blade beside me is Pan Zong， the Hall Master of the Martial Hall. This monk is Master Jie Se of the Buddha Hall， and this young lady is Si Bai Ling， the Hall Master of the Death Hall.“

Ye Tianming looked at the three of them， and they looked back at him， each sizing the other up.

Clearly， they were quite curious about Ye Tianming as well.

Ye Tianming extended his hand.

Han Yue hesitated for a moment， then said，“They want to go in first， and pay afterward.“

Ye Tianming smiled，“No.“

“No?“

Not far away， Pan Zong， the Hall Master of the Martial Hall， stepped forward immediately. He stared at Ye Tianming，“The Buddha-Demon Seal belongs to everyone， not just you alone. What gives you the right to charge people? The way I see it， the Buddha-Demon Path should be freely shared with everyone. Don’t you all agree?“

As soon as he said this， the crowd stirred， and some were about to start making noise.

Han Yue glanced at Pan Zong， then glanced at Ye Tianming， and said nothing.

Honestly， he didn’t want to pay either.

It was too much!

Ye Tianming looked toward the Martial Sect Master. Pan Zong smiled，“I know you have a special ability to suppress others’ cultivation. Come on， try suppressing mine. I……“

Before he could finish， Ye Tianming extended one finger and pressed down lightly.

Boom!

Pan Zong’s cultivation was instantly suppressed.

Pan Zong’s expression changed drastically. Just as he was about to speak， Ye Tianming brought two fingers together in a slicing motion.

Swish!

The Martial Hall Master’s head flew clean off.

Ye Tianming looked at the group of Martial Hall powerhouses， his gaze settling on a middle-aged man，“What position did you hold in the Martial Hall before?“

The powerhouse hesitated， then said，“Deputy Hall Master……“

Ye Tianming said，“From now on， you’re the Hall Master.“

The middle-aged man was stunned.

Ye Tianming turned and looked at everyone present， including Han Yue，“I know what you’re all thinking. I have absolutely no interest in your little schemes， and I have no time to play political games with you here. There’s only one thing I want to tell you: I am now the Sect Master of the Buddha-Demon Sect， and it’s simple— those who follow me will prosper， those who defy me will perish. That’s all there is to it.“

He naturally had no time to waste here in the Buddha-Demon Sect. If managing the Buddha-Demon Sect meant spending so much time scheming and maneuvering against them， how would he， Ye Tianming， ever get anything done?

And he understood clearly that in a sect with no cohesion like this， one must never preach grand principles. In turbulent times， harsh measures are needed— you have to apply strong medicine.

The entire area fell silent. No one had expected Ye Tianming to be so domineering， so decisive， so direct.

He killed without hesitation!

Without leaving any face or room for negotiation!

The monk Jie Se and the Hall Master of the Death Hall wore grave expressions. What they were thinking was that this Ye Tianming had killed the Martial Sect Master so effortlessly.

Although the Martial Sect was far from what it once was， that Martial Sect Master was still at the peak of the Boundary-Breaking Realm— and he was killed just like that?

Han Yue suddenly stepped forward， took out a storage ring， and handed it to Ye Tianming，“Young Master Ye， this is from our Demon Sect.“

Ye Tianming took the storage ring， then looked at the monk Jie Se and Si Bai Ling. The two hesitated for a moment， then each took out a storage ring and handed it over.

Ye Tianming put away the three storage rings， then pointed two fingers， sending one ring flying to Jiang Zuo，“The sect’s development requires funds. This is for you— use it as you see fit. If it’s not enough， come find me.“

Jiang Zuo stood there in a daze， barely able to believe it，“Sect Master， this……this……“

That storage ring contained no fewer than several million star core crystals!

He had never imagined that Ye Tianming would hand it over to him just like that.

Ye Tianming smiled，“I， Ye Tianming， trust those I employ and don’t employ those I doubt. I have faith in you.“

Thud!

Jiang Zuo suddenly dropped to his knees and kowtowed deeply， choking up，“Your subordinate will not fail the Sect Master.“

From childhood to now， no one had ever treated him this way— not even his own parents.

Ye Tianming smiled，“Get up.“

With that， he flicked his sleeve， and a gentle force lifted Jiang Zuo to his feet.

Ye Tianming took out the Buddha-Demon Seal. When they saw it， the expressions of everyone present became complicated.

In its time， the Buddha-Demon Seal had been a supreme divine artifact in the real world， renowned and feared. Yet now， hardly anyone in the real world still remembered the Buddha-Demon Seal.

Han Yue and the others also had complex looks in their eyes. Compared to its peak， the Buddha-Demon Sect of today had fallen far， far short.

With a thought from Ye Tianming， the Buddha-Demon Seal trembled violently. In the next moment， a beam of black light surged out from within it and spread across the ground.

The Buddha-Demon Trial Path!

The members of the Buddha-Demon Sect present were instantly filled with excitement at the sight of this path.

The later decline of the Buddha-Demon Sect was also tied to the Buddha-Demon Seal. Because the Seal had disappeared， the Buddha-Demon Path had never been opened again. The Buddha-Demon Sect had lost the trial ground that was their greatest advantage， and it was precisely because of this that it had become nearly impossible for the sect to produce top-tier powerhouses!

Ye Tianming stepped onto the Buddha-Demon Path， and the others quickly followed. As they stepped onto it， the entire path surged with a wave of Buddha-light and demon-light that enveloped them all， and in the next moment， everyone vanished without a trace.

When they reappeared， they were in an unknown wasteland. Tens of thousands of zhang ahead of them stood an enormous Buddha head. It towered ten thousand zhang high— half radiating golden light， half radiating demonic light.

Half Buddha!

Half Demon!

Good and evil coexisting!

Looking at the magnificent Buddha head before them， everyone present was deeply shaken.

Ye Tianming led the group toward the Buddha head. Suddenly， two beams of light spread forth from the eyes of the statue— one of Buddha-light， one of demon-light— stretching straight to where everyone stood.

Beside him， Han Yue said in a deep voice，“The Path of Good and Evil…….this is asking us to choose a path. Choose good， and you receive the good path’s inheritance. Choose evil， and you receive the evil path’s inheritance……“

How to choose?

Soon， everyone present made their choice. Nearly ninety-nine percent of the powerhouses chose the evil path.

Because the evil path was the strongest!

In this brutal world of cultivation， those who were truly kind-hearted did not last long. And the founder of the Buddha-Demon Sect’s most powerful form had also been the demon form.

The only one who chose the good path was Wen Xuan， who had previously challenged Ye Tianming to a literary contest.

Ye Tianming looked at the good path， then looked at the evil path， and after a moment of silence， he walked forward.

He walked neither the good path nor the evil path， but the middle.

An ancient voice suddenly came from within the Buddha statue，“Walking the middle— do you wish to be as I once was: good and evil coexisting， humanity and demonic nature dwelling together……mastering both paths?“

“Wrong!“

Ye Tianming walked steadily toward the Buddha statue， looking directly at it，“What I seek is this: to draw a boundary between good and evil!“

A moment of silence.

The voice rang out again，“Fellow Daoist， well met.“

With that， a monk suddenly appeared not far from Ye Tianming.

A personal welcome!