The Destruction Demon God and Bei Ming's Wager

Bei Ming stopped in his tracks, turned around, and asked, "What exactly do you want?"

A cunning glint flashed through the Destruction Demon God's eyes as he said, "Let us make a deal.

"As long as you release me, This Seat will take you as my disciple, grant you an opportunity, and personally guide you in comprehending the Laws of Destruction;

"This Seat's Laws of Destruction rank among the very foremost of the Three Thousand Great Dao Laws;

"Well? Tempted?"

Bei Ming slowly shook his head. "The Dao of Destruction is your Dao, not mine."

"Ho ho—" The Destruction Demon God laughed eerily, with a hint of mockery in his voice.

"Kid, has no one ever told you how tactless you are?

"A Chaos God as your master—across the entire Honghuang Continent, few people could ever receive such an opportunity..."

Bei Ming narrowed his eyes slightly, looking the Destruction Demon God up and down. His gaze held both scrutiny and a measure of distrust.

"With your current condition, even if you were released, who knows how many Yuanhuis it would take before you could cultivate back to the Primordial Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal realm;

"Right now, you are hiding on the Three Immortal Islands, and no one knows of you;

"But once you get out, I do not think you will obediently enter seclusion to cultivate;

"By then, we might end up getting ganged up on together."

"Heh heh heh." The Destruction Demon God's face appeared increasingly cold and sinister beneath the ghostly light.

"So, you do not intend to release me?"

"Obviously." Bei Ming replied without thinking.

"If I release you, my Three Immortal Islands will be the first to go;

"Besides, your current strength needs re-cultivation. You cannot serve as my backing;

"Even if you can help me comprehend the Laws of Destruction, that still is not the path of my Main Cultivation;

"Why would I do something that loses me so badly?"

"Jie Jie Jie." The Destruction Demon God laughed sinisterly. "In that case, kid, I can give you another good suggestion.

"Since you think the benefits of releasing me are not enough, while I am desperate to get out, then do you dare gamble with me?"

Bei Ming said seriously, "I am a proper Cultivator and have never been fond of gambling.

"Since you cannot say anything worthwhile, I still need to travel the Honghuang Continent. You can continue 'cultivating' here."

The Destruction Demon God said confidently, "Are you not curious about how to transcend?

"My suggestion is closely related to your path of cultivation."

"Related to me?" Bei Ming's gaze tightened slightly. "For example?"

The Destruction Demon God revealed a meaningful smile. "I heard Yang Mei say that Hongjun attained the Dao and became a saint, becoming Honghuang's first saint.

"Though saints possess combat strength on the level of a Primordial Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal, there is ultimately a gap between them and true Primordial Zenith Heaven Golden Immortals who attained the Dao through Laws.

"As a Cultivator, do you not wish to attain the Dao through Laws and walk Yang Mei's path?"

Bei Ming's expression remained calm, but a cold glint flashed through his eyes.

"Some things cannot be made to happen merely because I want them to."

Below Saints, All Are Ants. Of the Three Thousand Guests of the Purple Cloud Palace, it could be said that they were the three thousand most talented Cultivators in Honghuang;

Yet in the end, only Six Saints emerged, while all the rest remained ants.

Bei Ming had always been pragmatic when considering matters;

What he had obtained was merely Kun Peng's innate foundation. Without any other opportunities, attaining the Dao through Laws was far too elusive.

Of course, if there was an opportunity, he naturally had to fight for it;

But if there was no hope, then settling for the next best thing and pursuing the position of a saint was not unacceptable either.

At the very least, he could cast off the label of "ant" and achieve the state where, so long as Honghuang endured, he would endure.

What was more, saints were not entirely puppets of the Heavenly Dao.

If they truly were puppets, then during The Investiture of the Gods, how could Tongtian Sect Master have set up the Zhuxian Formation and the Ten Thousand Immortals Array to stop Xiqi from attacking Shang?

With a single shake of the Six Souls Banner, the four saints might have suffered no more than some injuries, but Jiang Ziya and Ji Fa would absolutely have fallen into eternal damnation.

Though Tongtian ultimately failed, that resistance had truly existed;

Puppets had no right to resist. They could only obey absolutely.

Besides, ever since Hongjun merged with the Dao, he had only acted against the saints once;

That was when The Investiture of the Gods drew to a close, when he fed the Three Pure Ones the Fallen Saint Pill and warned them not to continue their internal strife.

If the Heavenly Dao truly could erase saints with a single thought, was there any need for such a superfluous measure?

Hongjun could have simply told the Three Pure Ones that if they kept fighting among themselves, they would die. Could it be that the Three Pure Ones would think Hongjun was lying to fool them?

Moreover, looking at the overall state of Honghuang, though this matter had indeed harmed the Three Pure Ones—especially Tongtian—it could also be considered a good thing.

Tongtian Sect Master could no longer seek revenge against Yuanshi Tianzun, who had brought in outsiders to beat up his younger brother. Having suffered this silent loss, the most he could do was cut off all dealings with Laozi and Yuanshi Tianzun.

The Three Pure Ones could not turn on one another, preventing the three Saints from launching a Holy War and benefiting the stability of the Primordial Wilderness.

From the perspective of those Primordial Wilderness beings regarded as mere ants, wasn't this a good thing?

For Bei Ming, the best course was naturally to achieve transcendence; even if the Primordial Wilderness completely vanished, he would remain safe and sound, untouched in the slightest.

The middle course was to attain the Dao and Become a saint, bringing this "Kun Peng" account to its endpoint and not wasting this journey of transmigration.

As for the worst course, it was to lose the struggle and walk Kun Peng's old path.

As long as he did not perish, he could simply lie flat. After living for so long, couldn't he at least enjoy himself?

He could just keep his head down until the Immeasurable Calamity and go down with everyone else. Whether it was the End of All Things or a restart, what did it have to do with him?

The Destruction Demon God's gaze slowly roamed over Bei Ming. After a long while, he spoke slowly:

"You have your own ideas, but you also have practical concerns. Isn't it simply a matter of your origins...

This Seat will give you this opportunity. You may try to refine This Seat. So long as you succeed, you will become the Destruction Demon God!

Cultivators of the Primordial Wilderness are merely comprehenders of Laws, while you will become the controller of the Laws of Destruction!

If your cultivation achieves success, you may not be unable to contend with Yang Mei."

Hearing this, Bei Ming chuckled softly. "Refine you? I'm not so arrogantly ignorant of the height of heaven and the depth of earth.

Right now, you are suppressed by the Formation and cannot actively attack me. But if I begin refining you, I will give you the chance to Seize my body."

"Hahaha!" The Destruction Demon God suddenly threw back his head and laughed, speaking without the slightest concealment:

"Precisely! This is a colossal gamble—one that stakes your existence and mine. Do you dare?

If you win, it will be no different from shedding your mortal frame and exchanging your bones. Your future will no longer be confined to the Primordial Wilderness!"

Bei Ming lowered his eyes slightly, unable to keep from weighing it in his heart.

The Destruction Demon God's gamble was indeed tempting.

The cases of Yin Yang Lao Zu and Qiankun Lao Zu, who had perished ahead of time, could not prove anything;

Hongjun and Luo Hou had both chosen to develop within the Primordial Wilderness, so they could not serve as references;

And for Chaos Gods like Yang Mei, breaking through to the Primordial Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal realm could not even be called "attaining the Dao";

It was merely a normal stage along their path of cultivation;

Just as no Primordial Wilderness Cultivator would claim to have attained the Dao merely because they had broken through to the Great Luo Golden Immortal realm.

If he could truly refine the True Spirit of the Destruction Demon God and inherit his identity...

Perhaps this path could work.

Seeing Bei Ming silently ponder, a gleam of triumph flashed through the Destruction Demon God's eyes:

"Well? I've spoken with complete candor."

Bei Ming raised his eyes, a hint of sharpness in them.

"Do you dare swear to the Great Dao that everything you have told me is entirely true, without even a single trap hidden in your wording?"