As a pure being made of Law, the Heavenly Dao was naturally more sensitive towards Law than ordinary humans.
It could easily perceive the type of Law that Niu Chang had comprehended.
However, it found that it detested this Law due to its inherent nature as a pure Law being.
Although the Heavenly Dao's opinion was quite interesting, it didn't carry much weight with Niu Chang. Why should he follow random advice from someone he didn't even know?
There might be both truth and lies within it to confuse him.
"Why do you hate my truth? Isn't this the truth?" Niu Chang asked, firmly believing in his pursuit of the truth.
"The truth?" Heavenly Dao paused for a moment and finally understood why Niu Chang's distorted truth felt so tainted.
"You are a madman," it commented simply to Niu Chang.
"Naturally, those who seek the truth are often considered mad by the ordinary. I don't expect anyone to understand my goal, especially not someone like you," Niu Chang shook his head, as this was something he had anticipated.
The truth he sought was the truth—neither the original truth, nor the supreme truth, nor the true truth.
The truth was simply the truth.
The pinnacle of everything, a singular concept from which everything derived.
If it had any other word before or after it, would it still be the truth?
The scale behind Niu Chang was already on the brink of collapse, its surface full of cracks. Yet, it still bore the weight of numerous arguments against Heavenly Dao's scale.
"Never trust in justice done by others," Niu Chang had learned this lesson from his experience reading many books. The laws and legal systems portrayed within them were merely tools to create more drama for the main character and to justify their vigilante acts.
"Even in the end, justice will never truly bring peace." Niu Chang could hear the sound of his scale cracking and teetering on the edge of destruction.
"For this reason, justice that embodies humanity no longer protects me. It's time to revert to the truest form of law and order. Equality."
With his will, an illusory, colorless light materialized behind the scale, and a hand grabbed its handle.
Following the hand, the arm appeared, and later, the full humanoid body emerged—an androgynous and gender-neutral avatar.
It lacked hair and the texture of skin; it resembled a statue carved from the finest, delicate stone. A blindfold covered its eyes, shielding them from the world.
Unadorned by any clothing, it had nothing to conceal.
This was the true form of the Blind Judge technique.
"I demand equality in all things," Niu Chang stated solemnly, and the Blind Judge behind him raised its scale, presenting it toward the Heavenly Dao.
Should the scale behind the Heavenly Dao attempt any argument to alter the verdict, it would demonstrate that it no longer adhered to the essence of justice.
Whether it was justice or order, their existence was to ensure equality, granting everyone the ability to live their lives in tranquility.
So, when one party remained dissatisfied with a judge's final decision, it was natural to resort to the fundamental essence of law and order—retribution in kind.
Should this plea be rebuffed, would justice retain any meaning?
"In the end, your approach to upholding justice and fairness was never intended to achieve these goals. It was all for your own advantage," the Heavenly Dao claimed as it dismissed the scale.
If it rejected true equality, the Blind Judge would deem it an offender, an attempt to obstruct legal authority.
"With such a grasp of law and justice, why not choose the Law of Equality and Kindness?" It confronted Niu Chang's adherence to his false truth.
"Justice and law were never destined to be venerated. Without an all-encompassing being to oversee all, they become a farce that everyone exploits."
As the scale representing the Heavenly Dao relinquished its role as judge, the final verdict was delivered—equality in all things.
This signified that both the Heavenly Dao and Niu Chang stood on the same plane.
"Wait," Niu Chang interjected swiftly.
The Heavenly Dao didn't pause to listen to his remaining words; however, it ceased its actions when it observed something floating in front of Niu Chang.
"This thing called... Honestly, I still haven't decided on a good name for it. Do you realize that battles and fights are futile? Why do we engage in conflict only to determine losers and winners? Wouldn't it be better if the entire concept of fighting itself condenses into a single action that produces immediate results?"
As much as Niu Chang yearned to experience an epic battle scene himself, he couldn't help but despise the absurd and meaningless fights he encountered in the stories he had read.
Why didn't they do this or that? This entire arc could be resolved in three chapters if they were even slightly more prepared.
Thus, he crafted the most potent mortal skill—an ability known as the Massacre skill, capable of countering anything still bound by the constraints of normal reality.
Attacking, defending, counterattacking, parrying—all of these maneuvers could be executed flawlessly through the Massacre skill.
However, when confrontations ascended to the realm of Law itself, circumstances took a bewildering twist. Fire devoid of physical attributes that could ignite something, ice capable of instantaneously freezing all without the need to traverse any distance, and countless other manifestations of the Law.
In this realm, the physical maneuvers of the Massacre skill naturally waned in effectiveness. This prompted Niu Chang's aspiration to elevate its level to that of a Law.
Hence, he conceived the floating ball before him—a ball without any trace of physical texture, existing as a mirage. It emanated a bright red light and adorned itself with pure black hues.
The effect of this skill was simple; it didn't execute the enemy, instead, it harnessed the fundamental Law of Killing. Its purpose was to bypass all battle sequences and yield the outcome directly.
Thus, it wouldn't encounter any resistance from the enemy's power, for it merely accelerated the inevitable.
"In other words, farewell," Niu Chang uttered kindly as he pressed the skip button.
...
In the external world.
Within the dead zone saturated with diverse negative karma.
Niu Chang, who was casually assisting his two followers in leveling up, blinked before refocusing on his task.
'Not even a fraction of a second has passed,' Niu Chang thought. 'Death in that place truly erases one's existence from this world. That's why it oddly felt familiar, like the void of emptiness.'
Then he sighed.
'With this skip battle button, when will I have my spectacular fight? Like a fisherman seeking fish in a desert, huh?'
The battle he engaged in with the Heavenly Dao didn't prove as fulfilling as he had anticipated.
He could only blame himself; he had devised the skip battle button to avoid witnessing pointless fights.
Even the Blind Judge technique nullified his adversaries' level advantage over him, rendering it futile.
'At least I gained something from this brief confrontation.' Niu Chang peered into his mental space, where he discovered a trove of knowledge seemingly innately his.
It constituted the authority of the world he currently inhabited.
He found no interest in it. To him, it seemed preferable for someone else to possess this world, whom he could then subjugate to serve as his energy source.
Thus, he slightly altered the world's authority, allowing it to fragment. He retained genuine control, yet allocated fragments to others, assisting them in enhancing their cultivation levels.
His primary motive was to enable some subsequent humiliation once his preparations concluded.
He would don ordinary attire and stride toward the grand palace of heaven. There, he would orchestrate a scene and humiliate everyone present.
'It's a solid plan. Hopefully, I can derive some enjoyment from this staged spectacle.'
Unable to stumble upon such a scene by chance, Niu Chang resolved to craft one himself.
Simultaneously aiding his two followers in surmounting their final obstacle toward becoming saints, Niu Chang elected to aggregate all the negative karma in this dead zone for personal use.
The repugnant miasma, engendered through negative karma's condensation, converged into a single point and underwent refinement, eventually materializing into an artifact.
This silent, deadly miasma sensed its refinement and began to react. A chorus of cries and curses reverberated through the vicinity, enough to drive anyone to the brink of madness.
Yet, Niu Chang found exhilaration in this.
[Establish karma with evil spirit of demonic dao]
As the antithesis to the Heavenly Dao, its strength remained below par, still in the throes of growth.
By his volition, a scale materialized behind Niu Chang.
"Why the howling?" As the world's proprietor, everything was rightfully his. What entitlement did this miasma possess to contest the landlord?