"You little brat! I didn't see it coming—you're quite something!"
Da Xing the Mad Monk wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, his heart filled with as much fury as possible. Beyond the fury, however, lay even greater shock and terror.
His physical body was reputed to be indestructible Vajra, the legendary Immovable Golden Body. Having roamed the Great Wilderness for so many years, Da Xing the Mad Monk wouldn't dare claim he was invincible across heaven and earth, but those in the Myriad Heavens capable of injuring him were absolutely as rare as phoenix feathers and countable on one hand.
Yet today, he had been struck until he spat blood by a mere mortal who possessed neither cultivation level nor fortune. How could Da Xing the Mad Monk not be shocked, not be terrified, not be furious!
"It seems if I don't show you some real skill today, you'll really think I can't beat you!"
With that, Da Xing the Mad Monk pulled out the tattered fan hanging at his waist, pointed it at Gu Qingfeng, and shouted sharply, "Brat, today I'll let you witness the power of the Great Compassion, Great Mercy Life-and-Death Fan!"
Almost anyone who had heard the name Da Xing the Mad Monk knew he possessed a tattered fan. This broken fan was a gift from the Ancient Buddha Ran Deng, named the Great Compassion, Great Mercy Life-and-Death Fan.
Legend had it that this tattered fan possessed boundless dharma power and infinite mysteries. One wave could bring the dead back to life; another wave could reduce one to dust and smoke. It made no exception for any immortal, demon, Buddha, monster, or ghost, nor could any cultivation level or fortune withstand it.
"You little brat! I'll give you one last chance! Speak! What the hell are you, or else I'll turn you to dust and smoke!"
"Who are you trying to scare with such a broken thing?"
Gu Qingfeng stood atop the Buddha Statue's head, smiling as he looked at Da Xing the Mad Monk, disdain in his voice. "Da Xing, don't say I look down on you. Today, I'll stand right here. You take that broken thing and fan with all your might. Forget turning me to dust and smoke—if you can so much as budge me even a hair's breadth with that broken thing, I'll admit you have some skill!"
"You! Little! Brat!"
Da Xing the Mad Monk had never suffered such immense humiliation. Furious beyond measure, he roared each word deliberately, "If I don't kill you today, I, Da Xing, will be your damned grandson! Ahhh—" With a furious roar, Da Xing raised the Great Compassion, Great Mercy Life-and-Death Fan with both hands and swung it violently at Gu Qingfeng.
With that swing, Buddha light filled the sky; Buddha dharma was boundless.
It was like the destruction of heaven and earth, like the cycle of life and death, like the transformations of primordial chaos.
After the swing, when he looked again,
Da Xing the Mad Monk stood there frozen like a statue, for he discovered that fellow was still standing atop the Buddha Statue's head, smiling as he looked at him. The smile at the corner of his mouth held a hint of mockery, a hint of disdain, a hint of smugness, a hint of schadenfreude—as if he were watching a spectacle.
"You... I... How is this possible..." Da Xing the Mad Monk was utterly bewildered. He looked at Gu Qingfeng, then at the Great Compassion, Great Mercy Life-and-Death Fan in his hand. He simply couldn't figure it out, couldn't understand, couldn't comprehend why, after his swing, this fellow before him remained standing there as steady as if nothing had happened.
"Ah!"
Refusing to believe it, Da Xing the Mad Monk swung the fan again.
Once more, Buddha light filled the sky; Buddha dharma was boundless, like the destruction of heaven and earth, like the cycle of life and death, like the transformations of primordial chaos.
Yet after this swing, Gu Qingfeng still stood atop the Buddha Statue's head, smiling as he looked at him, the smile at his lips growing even more pronounced.
"This..." Da Xing the Mad Monk swung seven or eight times in succession, but the result was the same.
This time, Da Xing the Mad Monk was completely dumbfounded. Not only was his mind blank, he even began to doubt life itself.
"Da Xing, that thing of yours is so broken, has it malfunctioned? Could it be broken? Hahahaha!"
Gu Qingfeng stood there, laughing heartily.
Broken? How could it be broken?
Da Xing the Mad Monk clearly knew his Great Compassion, Great Mercy Life-and-Death Fan was not broken, nor could it break.
But if it wasn't broken, why did it have no effect whatsoever on this fellow before him?
Truly, it had caused no effect at all.
Forget turning him to dust and smoke.
Not even a corner of his robe.
Not even a single strand of hair had been disturbed.
Da Xing the Mad Monk was encountering such a situation for the first time in his life. In the past, whenever he pulled out his Great Compassion, Great Mercy Life-and-Death Fan, he could grant life or decree death to whomever he wished. Though he might encounter some mysterious and powerful existences whose life and death he couldn't dictate, it was always enough to give them a hard time. It was never like today, where there was absolutely no effect.
This feeling was even more bizarre and strange than encountering ghosts or gods.
Da Xing the Mad Monk's expression shifted repeatedly. He stared wide-eyed, staring fixedly at Gu Qingfeng, unable to regain his composure for a long time.
"If you ask me, Da Xing, you might as well throw away that broken fan of yours. It's useless anyway, so why keep it? What Great Compassion, Great Mercy Life-and-Death Fan—it's neither compassionate nor merciful, nor can it dictate life and death. You'd be better off tossing it. What do you think? Hahahaha!"
Watching Da Xing the Mad Monk's utterly bewildered expression, Gu Qingfeng laughed even more joyfully.
"You! What exactly are you!"
Perhaps realizing the severity of the situation, Da Xing the Mad Monk no longer carried himself with the previous playful and mocking **unrestrained demeanor. His entire person became serious, like a wrathful manifestation of a great Buddha.
Gu Qingfeng lifted a wine jar, took a swig, and laughed, "What's the matter? Really don't recognize me?"
Da Xing the Mad Monk was inwardly horrified. "We know each other?"
"Nonsense! Of course we know each other. Not only that, strictly speaking, I still owe you a favor."
Da Xing the Mad Monk scrutinized Gu Qingfeng closely. The more he looked, the more familiar he seemed, yet he couldn't recall anything and had no impression whatsoever. "How come I don't know you? I have no memory of you at all, though you do look strangely familiar."
"Familiar is right. As for why you have no impression, that's a bit complicated to explain. Even I can't quite make it clear."
Indeed.
As for why others had no impression of him,
Gu Qingfeng himself couldn't explain it clearly at the moment.
He only knew it should be related to the four words 'returning to simplicity'.
Previously, he had comprehended Great Extinction, transcending all life and death.
Then he comprehended Great Freedom, transcending all Daos.
He also comprehended Great Illusion, transcending all truth and falsehood.
Afterward, he comprehended Great Compassion, transcending all sentient beings.
Comprehending these four great Buddhist states of mind could lead to sainthood. Achieving sainthood meant transcending everything—the legendary 'returning to simplicity'. Yet Gu Qingfeng had not achieved sainthood, nor had he returned to simplicity. Instead, he had ignited the Original Sin Karmic Fire and undergone silent extinction rebirth.
Gu Qingfeng pondered that he had probably 'returned' but not yet 'simplified', existing in a kind of chaotic state. That was why others had no impression of him.
Of course,
this was merely Gu Qingfeng's own speculation. What kind of state he was truly in now, even he couldn't say clearly.
"Then what is your surname, your given name, what is your Dao title!"
"Me? My surname is Gu."
Gu Qingfeng took another swig of wine and chuckled. "Dao title Chixiao. As for my name, my original name is Tianlang, also known as Qingfeng."