The Way of Evil Dao! (2)

"The Way of the Devil."

The words solidified in the air, their meaning sinking into his bones.

The 'Way of the Devil' wasn't merely a path of evil—it was a rebellion against the celestial order itself.

It was a demand to be remembered, even by forces that had long abandoned hope.

Su Xiaobai's heart started to beat faster.

The stars above him flickered, and the moon seemed to glow brighter, as if the heavens themselves were weighing his worth, judging whether he was fit for this dark path.

He tore his eyes away, swallowing the unease that settled in his chest.

But before he could fully shake off the ominous feeling, the pages flipped by itself, and the next words began to form.

"Cultivate the forbidden arts, guided by the whispers of the damned..."

The words felt like a cold breath against his ear, sending an icy shiver down his spine.

He could almost hear the faint voices—the damned souls trapped in realms beyond his comprehension, their voices seducing him to reach out and seize what no mortal or immortal should.

"...Where the tears of the gods become the elixir of immortality."

His eyes widened.

The image was unsettling—gods weeping, their sorrow distilled into a substance that granted everlasting life.

The concept alone was wicked, but there was something deeply tempting about it too. Su Xiaobai clenched his fists.

This was a twisted way to escape the inevitable end—by feeding on the divine itself.

"Steal the essence of divinity from the heavens, bend fate to your will, and forsake the cycle of life and death...."

"...The world shall tremble as you ascend, for even the heavens' tears are not beyond your reach."

"The Way of Life."

But the life this path promised was not one of vitality or renewal. No, this was a life that defied nature—an immortality born of the suffering and sorrow of those far greater than him.

Su Xiaobai felt his pulse quicken.

A path where the divine was bent to serve the selfish whims of those bold enough to take it.

His hands shook, not from fear, but from the magnitude of the power it promised.

Still, even that path wasn't enough to sway him.

His heart raced, but he could not stop now.

The next page called to him.

"Wed the heavens with blades of sorrow, take the earth with chains of blood..."

The air around him grew denser, filled with a dark, oppressive energy. The flames of his campfire flickered, their light suddenly dimmer, casting long, wicked laughing shadows around him.

The words twisted his perception, making the night feel as though it were closing in on him.

"Stir the dark essence of Yin in the cauldron of mortal woes, birthing the sinister path of Yang…"

The atmosphere shifted. Su Xiaobai could almostfeel the balance between Yin and Yang contorting into something unholy, something that defied the natural order.

It was as if sorrow and bloodshed had become alchemical ingredients, their suffering transmuted into something more potent and vile.

"Forge weapons from despair, carve your name into the bones of the earth, and wield the darkness within both Yin and Yang to master the abyss...."

"... In the shadows of the Abyss, there is no light—only the endless hunger for the strength."

"The Way of the Abyss."

Su Xiaobai's breath hitched.

The 'Way of the Abyss' was a path into an unfathomable darkness, a place where the very laws of existence warped under the will of those who walked it.

It spoke of Yin and Yang, not as harmonious forces, but as twisted tools in the hands of those who would wield them to destroy. It was a path that required one to surrender to despair, to draw power from the endless suffering of the world.

His mind filled with visions of a realm where not even the light of hope could survive.

For a brief moment, Su Xiaobai felt as though the abyss itself was staring back at him, waiting for him to take the plunge.

Just as the pressure of the abyss began to settle around him, the words of the final path began to glow faintly in the air.

"From the desires of the skies, grasp the forbidden lust…"

The warmth that followed the words was stifling, suffocating in its intensity.

Su Xiaobai instinctively pulled back, though his eyes remained fixed on the glowing text. This wasn't just lust in the carnal sense—this was a deep, forbidden craving for power, for all things unattainable.

"In the twilight's shadow, where even gods distrust, the Evil Dao is born from the ashes of the just...."

The sentence hung in the air like a noose, tightening with every word.

It was a path of betrayal, of forsaking the natural order and moral codes that bound lesser men. This was the 'Way of a Sinner'—a path that urged one to embrace their basest desires, no matter the cost.

"Shatter the heavens' restraint and claim the twilight between worlds..."

"... From the fires of the wicked, rise anew, for the path of the Sinner is not one of repentance, but of ultimate distrust."

"The Way of a Sinner."

The words themselves seemed to pulse with a sinister rhythm, as though alive with the evil they represented.

Su Xiaobai's heart beat in sync with them, a steady drumming that filled his chest with a sense of dread, but also—admittedly—a thrilling temptation.

The 'Way of a Sinner' wasn't just about power; it was about liberation from all rules, from every restraint the heavens had imposed upon existence.

For a long moment, Su Xiaobai remained silent, his gaze fixed on the words before him.

They began to dim, returning to the book, yet their presence lingered in the air like a storm that had yet to break.

"Five paths," he whispered, more to himself than to the world around him.

Each path was darker and more dangerous than the last, but with each one came power beyond anything he could have imagined.

Power that could reshape the world—or destroy it.

He closed the book carefully, his fingers trembling slightly. His breath was slow, controlled, though his mind churned with possibilities. "Of course, the Infernal Emperor would leave something like this behind," he muttered, letting out a bitter laugh. "Five twisted paths to supreme path of evil..."

His gaze flickered to the sky.

The crescent moon hung silently, casting its faint glow on the forest below, as though indifferent to the knowledge that had just been revealed.

"Well," Su Xiaobai said, his smirk returning, "why are the rest of the pages blank?" As he flipped through the book again, aside from the first five pages, the rest were nothing but empty sheets of golden paper.

Was the book still writing itself?

Or perhaps... was he still unworthy?

He didn't know the answer.

With that, he tossed the book back into his spatial ring and turned to the fire. The rabbit was perfectly cooked, its golden skin crackling in the flames.

Taking a bite, he chewed thoughtfully, his eyes still on the darkened forest ahead.

Whatever awaited him tomorrow, he was ready.

As Su Xiaobai sat by his campfire, chewing thoughtfully on the rabbit and contemplating the dark paths revealed by the book, the night seemed calm.

His world felt contained—just him, the cave, and the fire.

Yet, far beyond his knowledge, the simple act of reading those forbidden words had set into motion forces that hadn't stirred for eons.