Gu Qingfeng and Da Xing the Mad Monk drank their wine and chatted idly, their conversation mostly revolving around the chaotic state of the Present-Ancient Era. Gu Qingfeng wasn't particularly interested in the topic, but having been asleep for a full ten thousand years, he knew nothing about the changes in the Present-Ancient Era. Listening wasn't a bother, especially when it came from Da Xing the Mad Monk's mouth; it felt like watching a spectacle and was rather amusing.
"About this...
Hey, Young Gu!"
In the middle of their chat, Da Xing the Mad Monk suddenly stood up and personally poured a cup of wine for Gu Qingfeng, saying, "It's been a long time since we last met, you know."
"What's this about?"
Gu Qingfeng did not accept the wine Da Xing offered. "What game are you playing now?
What new scheme are you cooking up?"
"What scheme? I'm just pouring you a drink! Don't measure the gentleman's heart by the petty man's yardstick, kid!"
"Unsolicited courtesy is either fraud or theft!"
"Relax, this courtesy of mine is neither fraud nor theft. I just want you to do me a small favor, and also..." Before Da Xing could finish, Gu Qingfeng cut him off, "No discussion. Won't help."
"Damn it!
Aren't you being too harsh, kid? I haven't even said what it is, and you're already refusing?
What if it's a good thing?"
"What good thing could possibly come from your mouth?
If it were a good thing, would you still need my help?"
"What nonsense are you spouting!
I just want you to give some pointers to my foolish disciple. This brat's aptitude is a bit dull, his mind isn't sharp either. I've taught him for so long, and he hasn't made much progress."
"I say, Da Xing, is your head alright?
You want me to give pointers?"
Gu Qingfeng laughed. "Your Lord only knows how to kill people, when have I ever known how to instruct them?
Moreover, this kid is a Tribulation-Bearer who bears the True Mandate. I am a person of Original Sin. The great calamity of the Present-Ancient Era is probably tied to Original Sin. You want me, a person of Original Sin, to instruct a Tribulation-Bearer who will one day deal with your Lord?
The fact that I haven't killed him yet is already giving you plenty of face."
Upon hearing this.
Before Da Xing the Mad Monk could speak, Monk Bu'er, terrified, immediately knelt on the ground and said, "Ancestor Gu... Ancestor Gu!
This lowly one may be a Tribulation-Bearer who bears the True Mandate, but... but this isn't what I wanted! I'm innocent! I have never, ever thought about dealing with you in the future! Even if you gave me a thousand, ten thousand times the courage, I wouldn't dare be your enemy! If you don't believe me, I can swear a Heavenly Oath right now! Even if I die in the future, I will never be your enemy!
Absolutely never!"
"You useless coward!"
Da Xing the Mad Monk grabbed Monk Bu'er by the collar and gave him a beating, berating him, "Can't you give me some face?
One sentence from Young Gu scared you shitless?
Can you be any more spineless?
And you call yourself a Tribulation-Bearer who bears the True Mandate?
I wonder if the True Mandate was blind like a dog's eye, how could it pick a soft, cowardly egg like you!
What can you do all day besides drinking and eating meat?
You're good for nothing and leave nothing uneaten!
Get lost!"
After the beating, Da Xing the Mad Monk directly kicked Monk Bu'er, sending him tumbling down from the top of the Buddha statue.
Da Xing the Mad Monk seemed genuinely furious. After the scolding, he glared at Gu Qingfeng and shouted, "Young Gu, if you won't give pointers, then don't! Why scare him? Look what you've done to my foolish disciple!
But it's also my disciple's fault for being so useless, damn it!
Nothing's even happened yet, and he's already this scared. How can we count on him to face the calamity in the future? Might as well give up hope looking at this."
Gu Qingfeng chuckled. "Alright, stop putting on an act in front of me."
"An act?
What act?
When have I ever acted for you?"
"I say, Da Xing, how come I never noticed before that you, old man, have so many tricks up your sleeve?"
"What tricks?
What are you talking about?
I don't understand."
"Is that so?
Fine!
Since you want me to instruct your disciple, call him over now. Your Lord will definitely give him some good pointers."
Looking at Da Xing the Mad Monk frozen in place, Gu Qingfeng smiled. "What's the matter?
Dare not?"
"Why wouldn't I dare? I'd be more than happy!"
"Enough, stop pretending. Da Xing, after all this talk we've had, you still suspect that I'm an Original Sin impostor?"
"Young Gu, heaven and earth bear witness! I was just joking earlier. I never suspected you were an Original Sin impostor."
"Even if you don't suspect I'm an impostor, you probably suspect whether my consciousness has now shifted towards Original Sin, right? Afraid that I've fused with Original Sin without knowing it, unconsciously dominated by Original Sin?"
"This...
Well..." Da Xing the Mad Monk scratched his head, laughing somewhat awkwardly. "You saw through me, kid."
Indeed.
Da Xing the Mad Monk had always doubted whether the Gu Qingfeng before him was still the same Gu Qingfeng he knew from before. In Da Xing's mind, Gu Qingfeng was, after all, a person of Original Sin. He had fused with Original Sin blood, and nearly became an Original Sin incarnation. What was even more bizarre was that after igniting the Original Sin Karmic Fire, he had actually come back to life after ten thousand years.
Most importantly, he clearly knew that the drop of Original Sin blood Gu Qingfeng fused with was no ordinary Original Sin blood, but a drop belonging to the Venerable of the Daoless, a drop that possessed life.
Even though Gu Qingfeng still seemed like the same Gu Qingfeng from back then, better safe than sorry. What if Gu Qingfeng's self-consciousness had long vanished, and the current Gu Qingfeng was just an Original Sin impostor?
What if Gu Qingfeng's self-consciousness had already fused with Original Sin, and he himself didn't know it?
Therefore.
Earlier, Da Xing the Mad Monk had used Monk Bu'er to test him. Monk Bu'er was a Tribulation-Bearer who bore the True Mandate. For Original Sin, Monk Bu'er's existence was a threat. If the Gu Qingfeng before him were truly an Original Sin impostor, even if he didn't kill him on the spot, he would certainly not allow him to grow up.
"Listen, Young Gu, don't get angry when I say this. It's not that I don't trust you, I'm scared!
Truly scared!"
Gu Qingfeng asked indifferently, "Scared of what?
Scared that I'll kill your Tribulation-Bearer disciple who bears the True Mandate?"
"Not scared of you, but scared of Original Sin."
Da Xing the Mad Monk sat down again, his expression turning quite serious. "There are some things you might not know. The reason I brought my foolish disciple to hide here isn't just to hide from those bald donkeys of the Western Heaven, but also to hide from the people of Original Sin."
"Why hide from the people of Original Sin?
What, do other people of Original Sin want to kill your disciple?"
"What the people of Original Sin want to kill isn't just my disciple, but all Tribulation-Bearers who bear the True Mandate. Moreover, I can tell you that over the ten thousand years of the Present-Ancient Era, those Tribulation-Bearers have died by the hundreds, if not thousands. Two of the Tribulation-Bearers who bore the True Mandate have also died."