Seeing Gu Qingfeng laugh so maniacally, Bai Chou said solemnly, "What are you laughing at now?"
"I don't even know what my own Karmic Fate is, what is there for me to change? Change my ass."
"It's precisely because you don't know that you can't just sit and wait for death. Only by preparing in advance can you deal with the unknown Karmic Fate."
Bai Chou was about to say something, but Gu Qingfeng had already lost interest and interrupted him, "There's nothing to prepare, and I can't be bothered to prepare. As for what Karmic Fate actually is, I can't be bothered to seek it out either. It can be whatever it damn well wants to be."
"You really are..." Bai Chou stared at Gu Qingfeng here, seeming utterly speechless. He felt Gu Qingfeng was far too lazy, too passive, and too decadent. He himself wanted to change fate but lacked the ability, while this guy clearly had the power to change Karmic Fate yet chose to sit and wait for death.
"As the saying goes, 'When you gain, sing loudly; when you lose, let it rest. Too much sorrow and hatred are but fleeting. Drink today's wine today and get drunk; tomorrow's worries can wait for tomorrow.'"
Gu Qingfeng said with a smile, "A person's lifetime, it's not that long, but it's not that short either. Why struggle so hard? Might as well use that time to drink a little wine, listen to a little tune, and enjoy life. Who cares what fate or karma it is."
Bai Chou asked, "Are you advising me to accept my fate?"
"Advise you to accept your fate? No, I've never had the habit of advising others. I just want to tell you, everyone has their own way of living. You have yours, and I have mine. As you said, character determines fate. I'm just this kind of person. I was like this before, I am now, and I won't change in the future. Since that's the case, why should I change my fate?"
"Alright."
Although Bai Chou was reluctant, he had to admit that Gu Qingfeng's words left him with no rebuttal.
"Alright, let's not talk about fate and karma anymore. I get a headache just hearing about this stuff now. Let's talk about you."
"About me?" Bai Chou asked, puzzled, "What is there to say about me?"
"You seem to know me quite well?"
"I do know you very well, and..." Gu Qingfeng laughed, "and it's not just simple understanding, right? It's not surprising that you know I comprehended the Four Supreme Mind States, but you even know when I comprehended them, where I comprehended them, and why I comprehended them. That's a bit creepy."
"I said, I've been observing you in secret. My understanding of you is deeper than you imagine."
Staring into Bai Chou's deep, dark eyes, Gu Qingfeng suddenly felt a chill run down his spine and a sense of dread upon deeper thought. He thought for a moment and asked, "During my five hundred years of cultivation, I always felt someone was secretly watching me, and more than one at that. Were you among them?"
Bai Chou met Gu Qingfeng's gaze, remained silent for a moment, then nodded and admitted, "Correct, I was indeed among them."
Seeing Bai Chou nod, Gu Qingfeng started cursing inwardly, "Didn't take you for a peeping tom."
"I just wanted to understand you better, that's all."
"Are you so bored you have nothing better to do? Why understand me?"
Bai Chou did not answer this question and remained silent.
"Besides you, who were the others?"
"They should be people of Original Sin like you and me."
"Should? What, you haven't met them?"
"No."
"You guys secretly peeping at me couldn't have been just to understand me better. You must have had other motives—either to secretly strike, or to set traps and trip me up, or to use me..." This time, Bai Chou still did not respond. Clearly, his secret observation of Gu Qingfeng back then was definitely not just for understanding.
Gu Qingfeng just smiled and didn't press further.
After a long while, Bai Chou finally spoke, "If the Age of No Dao is a chaotic chessboard, then we are all Chess Pieces on this chaotic board. For a new piece entering the game, many of the old pieces want to know whether this new piece is a friend or a foe."
"Then you peeped at me for a lifetime. Did you figure out if I'm a friend or a foe?"
"As you just said, facing the Karmic Fate of Original Sin, you choose to go with the flow—neither resisting nor refusing, neither taking initiative nor taking responsibility. Under such circumstances, how could I know if you are friend or foe? Not only do I not know, others probably don't know either. Perhaps even Destiny and Karma itself may not know."
As he spoke, Bai Chou seemed to suddenly realize something and exclaimed, "I almost fell for your trick!"
"What trick?"
"Your so-called 'going with the flow' isn't sitting and waiting for death at all. It's retreating to advance, fishing in troubled waters, waiting for the situation to become clear, for fate to be determined and karma to manifest before making a decision."
"What retreating to advance, what fishing in troubled waters? I say, you're overthinking things, aren't you?" Gu Qingfeng waved his hand, indicating he had no such intention.
"Isn't that the case?"
"I'm just an honest man. I don't have all those convoluted schemes you guys have."
"Honest man? Ha!"
"However, I am curious. You say the Age of No Dao is a chaotic chessboard, and you and I are Chess Pieces. So how many Chess Pieces are there on this chaotic board?"
"Many, many. The Three Thousand Great Daos are, the People of Heavenly Mandate are, the People of True Destiny are, the People of Tribulation are, the People of Fortune are, the People of No Dao are, the People of Original Sin are... perhaps even Destiny and Karma are Chess Pieces on the board."
Bai Chou listed many messy various people, even including damn things like Sacred Clan members, Maha Clan members, Illusory Clan members, Dragon-Phoenix Clan members—all sorts of legendary descendants of the Primordial Era. What Gu Qingfeng found even more incomprehensible was that even Destiny and Karma were Chess Pieces on the board.
"If even Destiny and Karma are Chess Pieces, then who is the player moving the pieces?"
"I don't know."
"By the way, how many People of Original Sin are there exactly?"
"That depends on how you define a Person of Original Sin."
"Is there a distinction?"
"People of Original Sin can roughly be divided into several categories."
"This thing has categories? How so?"
"It's based on the theory of Original Sin bloodlines, divided into Acquired Original Sin, Innate Original Sin, Cosmic Original Sin, and Primal Chaos Original Sin."
"Acquired Original Sin refers to those who have been tainted by the Breath of Original Sin and whose souls have been influenced by Original Sin. There are many such people, probably countless."
Gu Qingfeng asked, "Who is so damn bored to go and taint themselves with the Breath of Original Sin for no reason?"
"In your eyes, Original Sin might be a burden, but in the eyes of others, it may not be. Not only is it not a burden, it is a mysterious and terrifying power. Many, many people want to obtain this power. Since ancient times, it has always been this way. You once ascended the Nine Nethers Emperor's Throne, so you should know very well how desperately those old demons and monsters in the Nine Nethers, Hell, and Abyss crave powerful strength."