It was an old man.
An old man with hair as white as snow.
The old man wore a tattered gray Daoist robe and was diligently sweeping a grave with a broom.
Gu Qingfeng walked over, but the old man remained unmoved.
It was unclear whether he hadn't noticed Gu Qingfeng's presence, or simply didn't care whether Gu Qingfeng existed or not.
"This junior Gu Qingfeng pays his respects to Senior," Gu Qingfeng said, cupping his fists in salute. The old man acted as if he hadn't heard, continuing to sweep the grave.
"This junior Gu Qingfeng pays his respects to Senior," Gu Qingfeng repeated, saluting again. The old man still paid him no mind.
"This junior Gu Qingfeng pays his respects to Senior." Gu Qingfeng saluted for the third time. This time, the old man finally spoke: "May I ask what brings the lay practitioner here?"
"This junior has strayed into this place by mistake. If I have caused offense, I hope Senior will forgive me."
"All matters between heaven and earth have causes and effects that can be traced. The fact that the lay practitioner can come here is no exception. It is not a mistake, so naturally, the words 'offense' do not apply."
Gu Qingfeng could tell this old Senior seemed to imply something, but since the other party didn't state it explicitly, he couldn't be bothered to explain. Instead, he asked, "May I ask who Senior is?"
"This old man is merely the gravekeeper here."
"Gravekeeper?" Gu Qingfeng asked, feigning ignorance. "Then what is this place?"
"Since this old man is the gravekeeper, this is naturally a burial ground."
"Whose burial ground?"
"The burial ground of the various Great Daos."
"What is buried in the graves?"
"The essence of the Great Dao, the root of the Great Dao, the foundation of the Great Dao, the heart of the Great Dao, the source of the Great Dao..." Gu Qingfeng frowned slightly and asked another question: "If the source of the Great Dao is buried in the graves, then what are the various Great Daos of the present era?"
"What is buried in the graves is merely the source of the Great Dao from the Wu Dao Age."
"What do you mean? Are you saying the fallen Great Daos of the Wu Dao Age are not the same as the various Great Daos of the present era?"
"The Wu Dao Age was a cursed era, an era of error and chaos, an era where cause and effect were inverted, and an era that should never have existed."
Gu Qingfeng could understand the part about the Wu Dao Age being a cursed era, but calling it an era of error and chaos, an era of inverted cause and effect, and an era that should never have existed left him confused. He asked, "I hope Senior can offer some guidance."
"This old man himself cannot figure it out, so how could he guide the lay practitioner?"
"This..." The old man murmured to himself, "This old man only knows that all of this began with a curse."
"A curse? What curse?"
"A curse of karma."
Karma. That damned karma again!
Gu Qingfeng had practically developed a phobia of the word 'karma' by now. Just hearing those two words gave him an inexplicable headache.
"Why is Senior guarding this burial ground of the Great Dao?"
"I've forgotten. I can't remember anymore..." "Has Senior also become lost?"
"Perhaps."
Whether this old Senior was truly lost or not, Gu Qingfeng couldn't tell.
The old Senior swept the grave as he gradually walked further away. Gu Qingfeng did not follow. Although he had a bellyful of doubts and questions about the Wu Dao Age, this old Senior's every sentence revolved around karma, which gave Gu Qingfeng a real headache. He couldn't be bothered to press further.
He watched for a while longer and was about to leave when a faint voice suddenly reached him.
"Friend, long time no see."
The speaker was a person.
A person tightly wrapped from head to toe in white cloth.
Seeing this person, Gu Qingfeng's expression froze in surprise. He never expected to meet this not-quite-a-friend here.
"What? Has it only been ten thousand years? Have you forgotten me already?"
The person wrapped tightly in white cloth revealed only a pair of eyes that seemed like deep abysses. After appearing, he stood with his hands behind his back, gazing at Gu Qingfeng.
"Dressed so fashionably, I'd recognize you even if you were reduced to ashes."
Gu Qingfeng replied with a smile.
For some reason, upon seeing this Mysterious Person wrapped in white cloth, he felt an unexpected sense of pleasant surprise.
Yes.
Pleasant surprise.
Because ever since Gu Qingfeng had fused with the Blood of Original Sin, every Original Sin person he had come into contact with had, without exception, become lost. Some were acting mysteriously, like Jun Xuanji; others were acting madly, like that crazy old man. Even when he encountered one or two who seemed mentally sound, like the old monk inside the Nirvana Bone Jade or this gravekeeper of the various Great Daos, whenever the Wu Dao Age was mentioned, they all became tight-lipped. It was always karma, nothing but karma.
Thinking it over, Gu Qingfeng realized that only this Mysterious Person wrapped in white cloth before him seemed relatively normal. He wasn't acting mysteriously or madly. Most importantly, he seemed to know a great deal about the affairs of the Wu Dao Age.
Moreover, Gu Qingfeng had always harbored a strange feeling about this Mysterious Person. This feeling was complex, akin to a sense of familiarity—not mere déjà vu, but an indescribable, inexplicable connection.
"Of course, if I were reduced to ashes, I believe you would certainly recognize me."
"Why?"
"I've said it before: what you are, I am. We are the same kind of person, and moreover, we are the same person."
Hearing this.
Gu Qingfeng's heart stirred. He clearly remembered the last time he met this Mysterious Person in the Original Sin Nightmare, he had asked who the other was, and he clearly remembered the Mysterious Person had answered him with this very sentence.
"So, you are also an Original Sin person, and you have also fused with a drop of living, sentient Blood of Original Sin from Venerable Wu Dao."
"Perhaps."
"Perhaps?"
"Perhaps."
Although the Mysterious Person didn't admit it, Gu Qingfeng already had his answer. In his mind, this Mysterious Person should be like himself—he must have also fused with a drop of living, sentient Blood of Original Sin from Venerable Wu Dao. Otherwise, he wouldn't have this indescribable feeling towards him. This feeling should be the connection between those drops of Blood of Original Sin.
Gu Qingfeng asked, "We've met three times, right? The first time was in the mortal world, the second time was in the Original Sin Nightmare, and the third time is here. I've suddenly realized a problem."
"What problem?"
"No matter where I am, you always seem able to find me."
The Mysterious Person asked, "Do I need to repeat myself?"
"Repeat what?"
"I've said it before: what you are, I am. We are the same kind of person, and moreover, we are the same person. In a sense, you are you, and I am also you. I am me, and you are also me. Finding you is like finding myself."
What 'you are you, and I am also you'? What 'I am me, and you are also me'?
Gu Qingfeng was a bit confused by this, but the Mysterious Person smiled and said, "You will understand in the future."
"Alright, maybe my brain is slow, and I can't grasp the profound meaning right now."
Gu Qingfeng sighed helplessly and asked, "However, if that's truly the case, then why can't I find you?"
"It's not that you can't find me, but that you don't want to."
"I never said I didn't want to. I simply don't know how."
The Mysterious Person shook his head slightly. "You have been refusing to accept the karma of the Wu Dao Age, even resisting it. To be precise, you have been resisting that drop of Blood of Original Sin. If that's the case, how could you possibly find me?"