Gu Qingfeng's words were nothing short of audacious.
The three characters 'Da Lao Ye' (Great Lord) were interpreted by him as an ancestor, a heaven, and himself as the greatest under heaven and earth.
It was truly as grand as could be.
No one dared to utter such wildly arrogant boasts.
No one.
Absolutely no one.
Even when bragging about oneself, one wouldn't dare to boast this grandly.
This was simply a great disrespect to heaven and to the universe. More importantly, the one asking the question was Mo Baiyu, who bore the Immortal Dao's Edict Mandate. For Gu Qingfeng to answer like this in his presence also meant he did not take Mo Baiyu seriously.
This was a mockery.
A blatant mockery.
Disrespecting heaven and earth might not incur heavenly punishment.
But disregarding the Immortal Dao's Edict Mandate, openly mocking the Immortal Dao's Edict Mandate, was also a disrespect to the Immortal Dao.
And disrespecting the Immortal Dao.
In this current era where the Immortal Dao dominated heaven and earth, this was a grave crime.
Sure enough.
After Gu Qingfeng finished speaking, the group of Immortal Beings who had arrived on the deck with Mo Baiyu began to angrily denounce Gu Qingfeng's crimes.
"How dare you!"
"You are merely a Human Dao Edict-bearer, yet you dare to mock Immortal Shenghui, which is to mock the Immortal Dao! I think you're looking for death!"
"A mere Human Dao Edict-bearer dares to be so insolent! We cannot let you off today!"
"Mocking the Immortal Dao is a great disrespect to our Immortal Dao!"
Those angrily denouncing Gu Qingfeng's crimes were not only the Immortal Beings who came with Mo Baiyu, but also Shangguan Feixing and Shangguan Dong.
After all, they too were Luo Supreme Immortals conferred by the Nine Heavens Immortal Dao.
They had the responsibility and obligation to uphold the dignity of the Immortal Dao.
More importantly.
From the moment he stepped onto the deck, Shangguan Dong had already taken a dislike to Gu Qingfeng. Especially Gu Qingfeng's inappropriate behavior towards Yunyan Xianzi had infuriated him even more.
Although he looked down upon the Human Dao from the bottom of his heart, considering everything about it to be mere ants, and the so-called Human Dao Edict-bearers nothing special.
However.
Back in the Jinyang Heavenly Domain, he had personally witnessed Gu Qingfeng annihilate a demonic beast with just a casual wave of his hand.
Even if he didn't want to, he had to admit that deep down, he was particularly wary of Gu Qingfeng's presence.
It wasn't just him who was wary.
The group of Immortal Beings on the deck were also quite wary of Gu Qingfeng's presence. Otherwise, these usually aloof individuals, upon seeing someone disrespect the Immortal Dao, wouldn't dare only to shout angrily without taking action.
They were all waiting.
Waiting for one person.
Waiting for Mo Baiyu, bearer of the Immortal Dao's Edict Mandate.
As long as Mo Baiyu gave the word, they would have the confidence.
But Mo Baiyu simply stood there quietly, one hand behind his back, the other in front, a faint smile on his handsome face. Not only did he not angrily denounce Gu Qingfeng like the others, but he also didn't seem angry—at least, that's how it appeared.
The atmosphere within the area also grew deathly silent following Gu Qingfeng's treasonous words. Lei Lie, standing nearby, was so frightened his face turned pale, not daring to even breathe loudly.
He wasn't unfamiliar with bold individuals.
Nor was he unfamiliar with those who cursed heaven or mocked the Immortal Dao.
But those were all done in private.
To curse heaven and mock the Immortal Dao in front of so many Immortal Beings, even in the presence of an Immortal Dao Edict-bearer—even if Lei Lie were given ten thousand times the courage, he wouldn't dare.
Perhaps someone dared.
However.
Lei Lie believed that someone like Gu Qingfeng, who so mockingly disrespected the Immortal Dao in front of an Immortal Dao Edict-bearer, yet sat idly in his chair, eating spirit fruit, drinking wine, with a smiling, carefree expression—such a person absolutely did not exist.
He couldn't even imagine how much courage a person must have to be as unrestrained and lawless as Gu Qingfeng.
Beside him.
Yunyan Xianzi still sat properly, her coldly beautiful face expressionless as ever, as if everything happening here had nothing to do with her.
The beautiful youth named Yi Shangxing wore a sinister, charming smile at the corner of his mouth, raising his cup and saying, "Great Lord truly lives up to the title. Not only is your face grand, your tone is also grand enough. I, your little brother, truly admire you greatly! Come! Great Lord, let your little brother toast you a cup."
"Easy, easy!"
Gu Qingfeng laughed heartily and clinked cups with Yi Shangxing, drinking together.
The Old Daoist opposite him drank his wine while squinting at Gu Qingfeng, saying, "I say, your lad's courage really isn't small. As for people who spout wild boasts and mock the Immortal Dao, this old Daoist has seen plenty. People who disrespect and mock the Immortal Dao in front of an Immortal Dao Edict-bearer, this old Daoist has also seen a few. But someone like you, lad, who curses heaven, mocks the Immortal Dao, yet remains cheerful and treats it as nothing—this old Daoist is seeing it for the first time. I must say, you lad really are uncommonly arrogant."
"Hey! Old Daoist, wine you can drink freely, but words you cannot speak carelessly. I did not curse heaven, nor did I disrespect the Immortal Dao. What mockery of the Immortal Dao? When did this lord ever mock the Immortal Dao?"
Gu Qingfeng looked at Mo Baiyu and the group of Immortal Beings, explaining, "This lord was merely joking just now, with no intention of mocking the Immortal Dao, nor any disrespect towards it. Everyone, please don't misunderstand. This lord, when drunk, likes to brag a bit for fun. Everyone, please don't take it seriously. If those words just now truly constituted great disrespect to the Immortal Dao, then I am truly sorry. How about this: this lord will punish himself with three cups, as an apology to everyone and incidentally to the Immortal Dao."
Having said that.
Gu Qingfeng drank three cups of fine wine in succession.
The Old Daoist opposite seemed unable to watch any longer. He turned to Mo Baiyu, who had remained silent not far away, and said, "Lad, you can tolerate this?"
The Old Daoist pointed at Gu Qingfeng, saying, "Do this lad's words sound like an apology? Isn't it utterly lacking in sincerity? Who apologizes while calling themselves 'lord' with every breath? This isn't an apology; it's more like he's showing off his dominance to you. Listening to his tone, it feels like he's the lord and the Immortal Dao is his grandson. What's even more shameless is, this lad apologizes and then has the nerve to 'punish himself' with three cups. Is there such a good deal? Why doesn't he punish this old Daoist with three cups? If great disrespect to the Immortal Dao can be settled by drinking three cups of fine wine, why would this old Daoist bother exorcising demons and capturing monsters? If I cursed the Immortal Dao all day long, wouldn't I get to drink fine wine with every meal?"
Seeing Mo Baiyu still silent, the Old Daoist simply stood up and scolded, "You, lad, are, after all, an Immortal who bears the Immortal Dao's Edict Mandate. You represent the lofty Immortal Dao. Now someone is mocking the Immortal Dao right in front of you. How come you're acting like a mute gourd, not even letting out a fart? Are you even an Immortal? Are you even a real man? If you are, then teach this arrogant fellow a lesson!"
He then pointed at the group of Immortal Beings behind Mo Baiyu, saying, "And you lot of so-called Immortal Beings! The Nine Heavens bestowed upon you the Great Sun Radiance bloodline so you could uphold the dignity of the Immortal Dao, not so you could just bark uselessly! What's the use of barking? Why don't you damn well take action? Don't just thunder without raining!"
"Take action! Why don't you take action! Don't just stand there! Gang up and finish him off!"
"What the hell are you afraid of! This lad has neither cultivation nor destiny! What are you afraid of? Afraid he's some so-called Human Dao Edict-bearer? Let me tell you, whether this lad is even a Human Dao Edict-bearer is an unknown. Taking a step back, even if he is, so what? Are you, so many of you, afraid of him?"