Cultivation Online

”First and foremost, allow me to properly introduce myself,” Yuan spoke calmly as he faced the hundreds of thousands of guests gathered before him.

”Most of you know me as the Divine Paragon, but my real name is Tian Chenyu, the first leader of the Demon Sealing Clan.”

”As many of you already know, I mysteriously vanished near the end of the Demonic Era,” Yuan continued.

”In truth, after sealing the Demonic Realm, I accidentally returned there through a second entrance and became trapped inside ever since...”

After a brief pause, he calmly added, ”To be frank, I could have returned much sooner. However, I chose to use that opportunity to explore the Demonic Realm and better understand the existence of demons, something I didn’t really get to do during my first visit.”

”I spent an unimaginably long time exploring the Demonic Realm, learning about their history and their existence as a whole. And what I discovered there shocked me to my very core—so much so that it completely changed the way I view demons.”

Yuan’s gaze slowly swept across the countless guests before him before he continued,

”Today, I will reveal everything I learned to all of you.”

The guests swallowed nervously as many thoughts raced through their minds. They could not help but wonder what kind of shocking truth could possibly cause someone also known as the Bane of Demons to change his perspective on their existence.

A few moments later, Yuan took a deep breath before revealing the same information he had shared with the Demon Sealing Clan not long ago.

”There are two kinds of demons. Ordinary demons, who behave no differently from us, and the Forsaken—the ones who have terrorized our world and slaughtered our people since their very first appearance.”

”In the Demonic Realm, the Forsaken are originally ordinary demons who have been corrupted for reasons still unknown, transforming them into bloodthirsty fiends that even prey upon their own kind.”

He then continued, ”They are no different from the criminals in our own world who prey upon the innocent. Because of this, ordinary demons imprison the Forsaken in a place known as the Deprived Crimson Valley.”

”Unfortunately, because the Forsaken are immortal and incredibly difficult to kill, the prison quickly became overcrowded. In the end, the demons chose to cast them into another location beyond their world, completely unaware that our world even existed and that they’d made us experience hell...”

”This is the truth behind the invasion during the Demonic Era. Are there any questions so far?” Yuan asked.

The moment those words left his mouth, thousands of hands shot into the air simultaneously, while many others began shouting questions out loud without even waiting to be called upon.

Yuan ignored those who lacked basic manners and pointed toward someone in the crowd who had patiently raised their hand.

”You there—the second-level God Ascension wearing red robes with a spear on your back.”

The man subconsciously smiled before asking, ”I thought the Demonic Realm was created by some demon called the Red Tyrant?”

”That was merely an unconfirmed rumor from back then,” Yuan calmly replied. ”The Demonic Realm existed long before the demons ever invaded our world. In fact, it even predates the existence of the Nine Heavens themselves.”

Yuan then pointed toward another person in the crowd, who quickly asked, ”Can you tell us more about these ordinary demons? What do you mean when you say they behave like us? Could you elaborate further?”

Yuan nodded calmly before replying, ”Just like us, ordinary demons have families, occupations, and their own society where people simply strive to survive and live their lives to the fullest.”

”Aren’t all demons immortal? How different are their lives from ours?”

”While it’s true that demons are essentially immortal even without cultivating, they are not truly immortal in the sense that they can survive forever without sustenance,” Yuan explained calmly.

”Just like mortals, they still require nourishment to sustain themselves. If they go for too long without it, they risk becoming a Forsaken, which is essentially considered death among their kind.”

”What is the purpose of revealing all of this to us?” someone in the crowd suddenly asked.

Yuan calmly replied, ”I wanted to change your perspective on demons. As far as the world is concerned, all demons are viewed as bloodthirsty creatures that humanity can never coexist with. However, I believe coexistence is possible—just as humans eventually learned to coexist with beasts.”

”Even if there truly are demons that are not violent, there is still the possibility that they could eventually become Forsaken, correct? Forgive me for being blunt, but I don’t believe coexistence is possible unless that issue is resolved first.”

Yuan calmly responded, ”While it’s true that this is indeed an issue, it’s also something we already face in our daily lives. For example, cultivators who suffer from Qi Deviation can lose their rationality and become no different from the Forsaken. Then there are those who practice forbidden techniques and eventually lose their minds because of them.”

”Even if that’s true, there’s not much we can realistically do about people like that. However, demons are different. We can simply keep them confined within the Demonic Realm. After all, why should we take such a risk?”

Yuan shook his head and replied, ”Only time will tell whether coexistence between humans and demons is truly possible or not.”

”As for permanently sealing the Demonic Realm... unfortunately, that was never a realistic solution to begin with. The seal I placed on the Demonic Realm was only a temporary solution, and the only reason they haven’t destroyed it despite being fully capable is because I was in the Demonic Realm to stop them.”

”There are many demons who are curious about our world, just as I’m certain there are many people here who are interested in the Demonic Realm, and demons visiting our world in the future is inevitable.”

He then swept his gaze across the crowd before asking, ”And when that day comes... will you attack them and force them back into the Demonic Realm simply because they are demons? How do you think that will turn out?”

”...”

Silence.

Yuan then spoke, ”Nothing? In that case, I will tell you that it will only lead to another all-out war with the demons, and quite frankly, our world is not prepared to face them.”