"Kid Gu, you're mistaken there. I wasn't involved in what happened back then in the Liúshā Small Secret Realm."
"Are you pulling my leg?"
Gu Qingfeng said, "You were there when the Daoless Mountain manifested back then, and you were also there when I ignited the Original Sin Karmic Fire. I heard that later, something unknown happened in the Liúshā Small Secret Realm, and both Jun Xuanji and Eternal Nameless tore through space to rush in. Are you telling me you weren't involved?"
"Kid Gu!"
Da Xing the Mad Monk explained, "I was indeed present when the Daoless Mountain manifested back then, but after you ignited the Original Sin Karmic Fire, the entire Daoless Mountain was filled with it. Seeing the situation turn bad, I hightailed it out of there."
"And then?"
"What 'and then'?"
"What, so you're telling me you knew nothing about such a huge event happening in the Liúshā Small Secret Realm?"
"It's not that I knew nothing, but... I only found out later. By the time I knew, the Liúshā Small Secret Realm was already in complete chaos. At the time, my White-Browed Senior Brother and I had no idea what was happening."
"You didn't know then, but you must know a little something now, right?"
"If you're asking me about what happened back then, you're asking the wrong person. You should ask Jun Xuanji."
"If I could find Jun Xuanji, why would I be asking you?"
"Fair point."
Da Xing the Mad Monk also sat down on the head of the Buddha statue, taking the fine wine Gu Qingfeng handed over. He said, "I only learned about that incident later. To this day, I'm still not clear on what was true and what wasn't."
"What exactly happened?"
"I heard that not long after you ignited the Original Sin Karmic Fire—almost at the same time—an Original Sin Incarnation appeared in the Liúshā Small Secret Realm."
"You're saying that not long after I ignited the Original Sin Karmic Fire, an Original Sin Incarnation appeared in the Liúshā Small Secret Realm?"
"That's right."
Da Xing the Mad Monk nodded. "At the time, my senior brother and I were terrified. We thought it was you, having faked your death on the Daoless Mountain and then undergoing Silent Extinction Rebirth here. It wasn't just us; Jun Xuanji, the others, and probably Eternal Nameless back then all thought it was you too."
"And then?"
"Then I don't know! By the time my White-Browed Senior Brother and I rushed over, Jun Xuanji, Eternal Nameless, and the others were already fighting. You know my level of skill—I couldn't get involved at all. Before I even understood what was happening, they had already finished the job, damn it."
"You're saying the reason Eternal Nameless and the others barged into the Liúshā Small Secret Realm back then was because a new Original Sin Incarnation had appeared here, and they all thought it was me after Silent Extinction Rebirth?"
"Yes."
"What happened later? What about that newly appeared Original Sin Incarnation?"
"Don't know! I heard it ran away."
"Ran away?"
"That's just what I heard. Whether that newly appeared Original Sin Incarnation really ran away or something else happened, I'm not too clear. However, later, Eternal Nameless said that Original Sin Incarnation wasn't you."
Gu Qingfeng rubbed his chin, muttering, "This sounds a bit bizarre. I ignite the Original Sin Karmic Fire, and right after, an Original Sin Incarnation pops up in the Liúshā Small Secret Realm? That can't be a coincidence, can it? Why does it sound so strange?"
"Heh, strange, right? What's even stranger is yet to come. Do you know why an Original Sin Incarnation immediately appeared in the Liúshā Small Secret Realm after you ignited the Original Sin Karmic Fire?"
"You know?"
"I know a little bit."
"Tell me what's going on."
"Empress Wuyou, you know about her, right?"
"Of course I know."
"Back in the Great Northwest, she used a drop of Blood of Original Sin to nurture many of Those with Original Sin, including you as one of them. Back then, almost all of Those with Original Sin nurtured in the Great Northwest were wiped out by Empress Wuyou. Only two are still alive—one is you. Do you know who the other is?"
"I did hear that besides me, there's another woman from the Great Northwest who is still alive, a woman who seems to be the senior sister of Canyang Valley. As for who she is, I don't know. What, from the sound of your voice, could it be that the Original Sin Incarnation that appeared in the Liúshā Small Secret Realm was that senior sister from Canyang Valley?"
"Not at all."
Da Xing the Mad Monk leisurely drank a cup of wine before continuing, "To tell you the truth, back then, Empress Wuyou didn't just use that drop of Blood of Original Sin to nurture Those with Original Sin in the Great Northwest. She was also nurturing them here in the Liúshā Small Secret Realm at the same time, and not just one either."
"There's such a thing?"
Hearing this, Gu Qingfeng was quite surprised. He truly hadn't expected Empress Wuyou to also be nurturing Those with Original Sin in the Liúshā Small Secret Realm. He asked, "Why would Empress Wuyou nurture so many of Those with Original Sin?"
"You're asking me? Who should I ask?"
Changing the subject, Da Xing the Mad Monk added, "However, we can't exactly say it was Empress Wuyou using the Blood of Original Sin to nurture Those with Original Sin. From what Eternal Nameless implied, she seems to suspect it was that drop of Blood of Original Sin playing its own tricks, and it seems to involve some messy stuff about fate and karma."
"Eternal Nameless said that?"
"Not only did Eternal Nameless say that, but Jun Xuanji said the same. Anyway, from what they meant, they both seem to suspect the Blood of Original Sin was up to something."
Previously,
Gu Qingfeng had asked Jun Xuanji and also asked Empress Wuyou a question: why was he one of Those with Original Sin?
Both Jun Xuanji and Empress Wuyou said that him becoming one of Those with Original Sin might be due to karma, or perhaps arranged by fate, or maybe the Blood of Original Sin chose him. As for the exact reason, they didn't know either.
If it really was due to karma, arranged by fate, or the Blood of Original Sin choosing him,
then why were there other Those with Original Sin besides him?
And not just one?
Also,
back then when he ignited the Original Sin Karmic Fire on the Daoless Mountain, why did an Original Sin Incarnation immediately appear in the Liúshā Small Secret Realm? What connection was there?
"Kid Gu, you should understand that the drop of Blood of Original Sin that nurtured you is extraordinary, right? I heard that drop of Blood of Original Sin even came from the Daoless Venerable? Is that true?"
Gu Qingfeng shook his head. He couldn't explain this matter either.
"Think carefully. Isn't this whole thing bizarre? Why would that drop of Blood of Original Sin nurture Those with Original Sin, and not just one? What was its purpose? Why did a new Original Sin Incarnation immediately appear in the Liúshā Small Secret Realm at the same time you ignited the Blood of Original Sin?"
Gu Qingfeng shook his head again. He didn't know this matter either.
"As the saying goes, those involved are confused, while onlookers see clearly. I've thought about this for a long time and have come up with a bit of an idea. I don't know if I'm right or not, so just listen casually."
"Go on."
"There's a prophecy in the Book of Fate. Do you know it?"
"What prophecy? I haven't heard of it."