"If you actively fused with the Blood of Original Sin and accepted its karma, then why didn't you transform into an incarnation of Original Sin?"
"I should have transformed into one."
"Should have?"
The Mysterious Person shook his head again. "I don't remember. When I became one with the Blood of Original Sin, my consciousness vanished as well. I don't know what happened after that."
Gu Qingfeng hadn't expected this Mysterious Person to have experienced the same thing he had. "And then?"
"Then... when I awoke again, I had already become like this. Someone saved me. She told me this white cloth had once wrapped a Holy Infant, was stained with the Holy Infant's blood, and could temporarily restrain the Blood of Original Sin within me."
"There's such a thing?" Gu Qingfeng looked at the white cloth wrapped around the Mysterious Person. "This thing really wrapped a Holy Infant? And it's stained with the Holy Infant's blood? So, the Holy Infant's blood can restrain the Blood of Original Sin?"
"Only temporarily restrain it."
Gu Qingfeng was very curious about who the expert who had saved the Mysterious Person was. How could they be so incredibly powerful, even possessing something that had wrapped a Holy Infant? The Holy Infant—that was a Primordial Sage, an existence of innate Primordial Chaos, ultimate goodness and purity. What so-called Heaven's Favored Chosen, even Fate itself, was just a pile of dung before a Holy Infant, utterly incomparable.
As he was about to ask, the Mysterious Person spoke first. "The one who saved me... you should know them. Even if you don't know them, you should have seen them."
"Who?" Gu Qingfeng searched his mind, but he had no recollection of ever knowing someone so incredibly powerful.
"One who knows the past and future, holds dominion over Fate and Karma, deduces the vastness of the cosmos, comprehends the profound mysteries of Heaven and Earth..." Before the Mysterious Person could finish, Gu Qingfeng blurted out, "You mean... Gengu Wuming?"
"Exactly, the Heavenly Secrets Elder, Gengu Wuming."
Hearing that it was Gengu Wuming who had saved the Mysterious Person, Gu Qingfeng felt a sense of relief. In his mind, throughout all of Heaven and Earth, probably only a being like Gengu Wuming—who held dominion over Fate and Karma, knew the past and future—could obtain white cloth that had wrapped a Holy Infant. And only this Heavenly Secrets Elder, who could deduce the cosmos and comprehend the profound mysteries, hailed as omniscient and omnipotent, would know how to restrain the Blood of Original Sin.
"If you unwrap this white cloth, what would happen? Would the Blood of Original Sin flare up, and you'd transform into an incarnation of Original Sin again?"
"Perhaps. I don't know. I haven't tried, and I don't dare to."
"What's there to be afraid of? Unwrap it and see what happens. If the Blood of Original Sin really flares up, just wrap it back up."
"You think this is child's play?"
Gu Qingfeng chuckled. "Does Gengu Wuming have any more of this Holy Infant-wrapping cloth?"
"What for?"
"Get me a piece too."
"You don't need it. If the Blood of Original Sin in you was going to flare up, it would have done so long ago. It wouldn't have waited until now."
"That's hard to say. My physical body has already begun to recover. What if the Blood of Original Sin flares up then? What would I do?"
"As you said, what's there to be afraid of? If the Blood of Original Sin flares up, you can just ignite the Original Sin Karmic Fire again. After all, you possess the ability of Extinction Nirvana—you won't die..."
"You make it sound so easy. You think it's child's play? Is the Original Sin Karmic Fire so easy to ignite?"
The Mysterious Person used Gu Qingfeng's words to retort him, and Gu Qingfeng used the Mysterious Person's words to retort back. After speaking, both of them couldn't help but laugh.
Their laughter stemmed from the fact that they shared the same experience, the same tribulations, the same fate, and even the same blood flowing within them. They were truly a pair of brothers in misfortune.
"To encounter someone who shares my affliction in the vast expanse of the Great Desolate and the endless reaches of Heaven and Earth... I suppose I'm not so lonely after all. But..." Gu Qingfeng smiled. "We've been talking for so long, and I still don't know your name."
"The surname is Bai, the given name is Chou."
"Bai Chou?" Gu Qingfeng raised an eyebrow, smiling. "Man or woman?"
"Guess?"
The Mysterious Person named Bai Chou stared at Gu Qingfeng, his deep eyes seeming to hold a hint of amusement. "What if I'm a man? What if I'm a woman?"
"Look, we get along so well. Same tribulations, same experiences, sharing the same affliction. If we don't become sworn brothers, we'd be doing a disservice to the word 'Fate.'"
"What if I'm a woman?"
"If you're a woman, it's even simpler."
"How so?"
"As you said, I am you, you are me, I am myself, and you are yourself. If we don't become cultivation partners, wouldn't we be letting down the Blood of Original Sin flowing within us?"
"Ha!" Bai Chou laughed. "If I were a man, I would certainly become sworn brothers with you. If I were a woman, I would certainly become cultivation partners with you. Unfortunately..."
"Unfortunately what? Don't tell me you're neither male nor female?"
"Unfortunately, I'm not human at all."
"Not being human is fine. Being a demon is okay too. I'm not that particular."
"I'm not a demon either."
"A devil? A witch? A spirit? Whatever you are, I don't mind. I said, I'm not that particular. As long as you have consciousness, it's fine."
"Sorry, you may not be particular, but I am."
Bai Chou's words left Gu Qingfeng speechless. He shook his head. "After all that, turns out you're the one who doesn't fancy me?"
Bai Chou shook his head, seeming rather exasperated by Gu Qingfeng's words and actions.
Perhaps having joked enough, Gu Qingfeng didn't continue teasing. He asked, "Have you been to this place before?"
"Yes."
"Is this really the grave where all the Great Daos are buried?"
"It should be."
"I asked that old man earlier. He said what's buried here are the sources of all the Great Daos. Do you believe that?"
"If he said what's buried here are the sources of the Great Daos, then it must be so."
"You seem to deeply trust his words. What, do you know who that old man is?"
"I don't know."
"You don't even know who the old man is, yet you trust him so much?"
"Just a feeling."
"A feeling? You believe in that sort of thing?"
Bai Chou asked, "What feeling did this old senior give you?"
"Probably knows a lot about the Daoless Age. When I arrived, the old man didn't even glance at me. It was the same when you came. Now we've been chatting here for so long, and the old man still remains unmoved. It means the old man not only knows many secrets of the Daoless Age, but he's probably also fully aware of our existence."
Bai Chou nodded. "That's why I said, if he says what's buried here are the sources of the Great Daos, then it must be so."
"It's not that I don't believe what the old man said. It's just, if the sources of the Great Daos are buried here, then what about the Great Daos of the Present Age? What are they?"