"May I ask, fellow Daoist, should we judge all things by deeds or by the heart?"
At this question, Zhong Neng had no answer.
He already understood what Xuanming meant.
Those words were difficult to answer and equally difficult to refute.
Judge deeds, not hearts; judge hearts, and no one is flawless.
He looked toward Ji Yuan, whose gaze was blank. Zhong Neng thought, You're blind, not deaf.
Xuanming continued his verbal assault, his words still striking straight at the heart.
"Fellow Daoists, since the source of evil feeds on the greed and wicked thoughts of all beings under the Human Dao, ten thousand years of accumulation must have made it even more vast and terrifying. Though the Dao Patriarch possesses boundless merit and an unwavering will, how can we know that, steeped in the source of evil day and night, he has not been influenced and already become a great evil?
"I sacrificed myself for all living beings beneath heaven for thousands of years. How can you know that merit has not gathered upon me and given rise to Good Thoughts?"
Zhong Neng flew into a rage. "Enough of your twisted reasoning! Xuanming, the Immeasurable Dao Patriarch has brought blessings to all living beings. You will not insult and slander him! To wash away your own infamy, you dare show such disrespect to the Dao Patriarch. Your intentions alone deserve death!"
Xuanming remained calm and composed as he continued his assault. "I am merely discussing the facts. Why turn your shame into anger, fellow Daoist? Besides, if the Dao Patriarch was unaffected, where did I come from? Why else would heaven and earth follow the principle that utmost yang gives birth to yin, and all things reverse upon reaching their extremes?
"You hail from the Demon Race, yet you