And so, never in his life had Langtian felt so confused. His thoughts were a whirlwind, clashing between what he believed and what he was beginning to understand.
Yue Ling sighed, her eyes turning distant, gazing at nothing.
"In the end, what is evil? And what is good? Langtian, do you know?"
"What is good... and what is evil..." Langtian repeated under his breath.
He shook his head slowly.
"I don’t know... Please enlighten me, Senior Sister."
"Haha, even I don’t have a clear answer to that," Yue Ling said with a soft chuckle.
Then, she began to explain her thoughts.
"Let’s say... you save someone from illness. That’s a good thing to do, right?"
"Yes," Langtian nodded without hesitation.
"Or if someone steals, that’s evil."
"But what if... the person you saved turned out to be an incredibly evil man? Someone who had murdered thousands of innocent people long before you met him. What then? Saving his life might have seemed righteous in that moment, but in the long run... it led to even more death. You didn’t help the world. You made it worse. Without realizing it, you became an accomplice to future crimes."
Langtian’s eyes widened slightly.
"And similarly... what if the thief only stole a pill from an apothecary to save his dying child? Because of a drought, he hadn’t been able to grow crops all year. He had no money, no medicine. His child was suffering from a chronic illness. And that stolen pill... was the only hope left."
Yue Ling looked straight at him.
"Then... on what basis can you judge them? Evil, or not?"
"That..." Langtian lowered his gaze, his voice trailing off. For once, he truly didn’t know what to say.
"That’s why we need laws and a moral code, don’t we?" Yue Ling said gently. "To give people something to follow... when the world isn’t so simple."
"Yeah... but even then... it’s still really complicated," Langtian said softly.
"Exactly," Yue Ling replied. "If good and evil were truly black and white, we wouldn’t struggle so much to decide what’s right. Take us cultivators, for example. Sometimes, the ones who preach righteousness the loudest turn out to be the most wicked of all."
And at those words, Langtian immediately understood who she was talking about.
"Yan Hao Hang..." he growled, clenching his teeth and fists. The moment that name entered his mind, the flames of anger stirred again.
Yue Ling was right. They had both seen the truth firsthand, about the man hailed as the most righteous cultivator of their generation.
The Sect Master of the Mysterious Sun Sect, their teacher, a man admired across the land, respected by countless disciples, and praised for leading the righteous sects in many battles against the forces of darkness....
And yet... behind closed doors, he had willingly harmed his own students for personal gain.
"But that aside... what does any of this have to do with demonic cultivation?" Langtian asked, trying to pull his thoughts away from his rising fury.
"Of course it matters," Yue Ling said.
"Because before you begin, I want you to understand, that this cultivation path may seem evil at first glance. And to a certain extent, it is. It’s dangerous. It’s volatile. It’s built on chaos, and if you’re not careful, it will consume you."
She paused for a moment, letting her words settle.
"But power itself isn’t evil. It depends on how you use it. If you can hold on to yourself... if you can use that power to protect, to punish evil, make the world a little less cruel, then it becomes something else entirely."
"Oh, I see. That part I can understand," Langtian nodded.
"It’s like a sword, isn’t it?" he continued. "If I use a sword to punish the wicked, to protect the weak, to slay beasts and defend the innocent... then it’s a sword of justice. But if I use it to kill the innocent, to harm others for selfish reasons, then it becomes a weapon of cruelty."
"Exactly. It’s just like that." Yue Ling finished for him with a faint smile.
"Oh! Wait, I think I get it now!" Langtian suddenly exclaimed. "That’s why you said only good people can walk this path!"
"Oh?" Yue Ling raised an eyebrow, intrigued. "Then tell me, what do you think?"
"It’s because... you have to suppress the inner demonic voices, right? The urge to kill... to destroy... to lose yourself in power?"
"Hehh? Someone’s being clever!" Yue Ling grinned. "You even figured it out without me saying it."
"Haha," Langtian laughed awkwardly, a little flushed from the praise. "Just a guess... I think."
But as he thought about it more deeply, everything began to fall into place.
Because that voice, the inner demonic voice, could be the very reason most people failed on this path.
If all you cared about was power... and you didn’t have the will to resist temptation... if you lacked compassion, morality, self-control...
Then the voice would win.
You’d fall into madness. You’d become a monster, and your soul would no longer be your own.
That’s why evil people had no chance.
For them, this path would only lead to ruin.
But if someone could resist it, if they could face that voice and not flinch, if they could walk through darkness and not become the darkness itself...
Then maybe... they would have a chance.
"Senior Sister... earlier, you were really just testing me?" Langtian asked.
"Of course. I told you I was," Yue Ling replied. "You did great. I tried to provoke you, but even then, you resisted the urge. That’s quite impressive, I must say."
"I see..." Langtian exhaled, rubbing the back of his neck. "Then... the secret to demonic beast cultivation... is just trying my best to suppress the demonic self within?"
"Well, that’s somewhat correct. It’s not that simple though, but... at least, that’s step one," Yue Ling said. "It may sound small, but realizing that truth changes everything. That shift in understanding alone can make a huge difference."
"Yeah... you’re right."
Without knowing that principle, without understanding that the real battle was within, it would’ve been like walking blind in the dark.
Just a single shift in mindset...
But it could mean the difference between life and death.
"So next time, I’ll let you face your demonic self again," Yue Ling continued. "Try to suppress it as much as you can. And once you can stand firm, once you can be in control without wavering, I’ll teach you how to extract that power for your own use."
"Yes, Senior Sister," Langtian said, nodding firmly.
"Alright, that’s enough talking," Yue Ling said with a playful smile. "Let’s enjoy the sweet soup, shall we? Once you finish, I’ll show you something else." She winked.
"O-Okay..." Langtian murmured, glancing down at his bowl of Spirit Lotus Sweet Soup.
’I’m so glad I didn’t fall into the demonic self’s trap,’ he thought.
Lifting his bowl, he took another spoonful.
The soup was absolutely delicious.