Gu Qingfeng and Mo Wentian were indeed deliberately ignoring Da Xing the Mad Monk, and the two of them had even very tacitly played a joke on him.
However, it was just a joke.
After the joke, Mo Wentian began to inquire about the specific situation. Da Xing the Mad Monk gave a general overview and specifically stated that they currently did not know who the traitor scheming for the Chan Sect's treasure was, nor did they know whether the traitor had colluded with the eight Buddhist schools or some other existence. Most crucially, the Chan Sect disciples now suspected each other, with no one trusting anyone else. If this matter was not handled properly, not only might the Chan Sect's treasure be snatched away, but the Chan Sect itself could face a catastrophic disaster, even to the point of possibly being erased from the Western Pure Land.
Da Xing the Mad Monk asked Mo Wentian if he had any countermeasures. Mo Wentian shook his head in response. "This matter is of great importance. I can't think of any good countermeasures off the top of my head. Moreover...
You seeking out Brother Gu and me for help this time wasn't the best strategy. It's not that I don't want to help, but Brother Gu's and my identities aren't very suitable. After all, we are outsiders to the Chan Sect. Especially now, when your sect members are all suspecting each other. Bringing the two of us in at this time won't help; it might even make things worse..." Gu Qingfeng nodded, thinking what Mo Wentian said made sense. "Da Xing, you shouldn't have sought our help. You should have sought out someone from the Buddhist community, preferably a Buddhist Ancestral Patriarch with a transcendent status and position."
"Exactly so," Mo Wentian said. "Given your Chan Sect's current situation, if you could invite a Buddhist Ancestral Patriarch, this matter would be much easier to handle."
"Are you two the only clever ones?" Da Xing the Mad Monk retorted. "Do you think this old monk doesn't know that inviting a venerable Buddhist Ancestral Patriarch would make things easier?
The problem is, the Patriarchs capable of suppressing this matter are either still in slumber and haven't awakened, or this old monk doesn't trust them, or they're simply not suitable."
Da Xing the Mad Monk tilted his head back and took a swig of wine, then continued. "This old monk called you two over. It definitely wasn't a spur-of-the-moment, random decision. It was after careful consideration. Let me tell you, for this matter right now, no one is more suitable than you two."
Gu Qingfeng was puzzled. Mo Wentian also looked rather confused.
"Know why?"
Both Gu Qingfeng and Mo Wentian shook their heads.
"The reason is simple. You share a common trait: you're both loners."
Da Xing the Mad Monk looked at Gu Qingfeng. "Especially you, kid. You're too arrogant. After all these years mixing in the Great Desolate, you've offended everyone under heaven and earth—be it the Great Daos like immortals, demons, monsters, and Buddhas, or the major powers of the Great Desolate like the blessed lands and grotto-heavens. On top of that, your existence is rather special, so special that all factions are eyeing you covetously. Saying you're intolerable to heaven and earth is no exaggeration."
"You say I'm a loner. I won't deny that, and I have nothing to say about it," Gu Qingfeng said. "But to say Brother Mo is also a loner? That's a huge joke. Everyone knows Brother Mo has numerous friends, spread across all realms and worlds, spanning the Great Desolate heaven and earth, transcending past and present, inside and out. How could he be a loner?"
"Yes, yes, yes! What you say is true. Mo Xiaozi does indeed have friends all over the realms and worlds. However... hehe!" Da Xing the Mad Monk changed his tone and continued. "It's precisely because Mo Xiaozi is a veritable loner that his friends can be spread across all realms and worlds. If Mo Xiaozi had joined the Nine Heavens, he definitely wouldn't have made many friends in the Nine Nethers. Similarly, if this kid had joined the Nine Nethers, he definitely wouldn't have made many friends in the Nine Heavens. Forget the Nine Heavens and Nine Nethers; even if Mo Xiaozi had just joined some blessed land or grotto-heaven, no matter which major power he belonged to, his friends wouldn't be spread across all realms and worlds."
"Since ancient times, the relationships between the Great Daos, between the major powers, between the Nine Heavens and Nine Nethers, between grotto-heavens and blessed lands, between sacred grounds and forbidden lands—the forces of all these existences have been intricately intertwined and exceptionally complex. They are either engaged in covert struggle or outright confrontation. Take this old monk, for example. I hail from the Western Pure Land's Chan Sect. Those who hold enmity towards our Chan Sect will also hold enmity towards this old monk. Those who cannot tolerate our Western Pure Land Chan Sect will also not tolerate this old monk. Those who wish to eliminate our Chan Sect will likewise wish to eliminate this old monk."
"To put it bluntly, since this old monk was born from the Western Pure Land Chan Sect, my life has been bound together with the Chan Sect's survival or destruction, its glory and humiliation, and so on. I can't shake it off. This old monk is like this, and nine out of ten beings among the Great Daos and all living things across the realms and worlds are the same. Because most people cannot choose their origins. That's not the important part. The important part is, to survive in the Great Desolate, everyone has to find a backer for protection. Otherwise, you won't even know how you died."
"Not everyone can be like you two, standing firm in the Great Desolate alone, relying on your own abilities." As he said these words, Da Xing the Mad Monk's expression looked very serious and sincere. "You two have never been bound to the survival or destruction of any existence in your lives. So, you two can do whatever you want without any reservations."
"I see," Gu Qingfeng laughed. "You sought us two out because you saw we're both loners, without any baggage, so we can help you with our hands completely free when the time comes. Even if we kill someone, others can't find our doorstep, right?"
"Can you stop twisting this old monk's meaning, kid!"
"Isn't that it?"
"Of course not!" Da Xing the Mad Monk glared at Gu Qingfeng with displeasure and explained. "This old monk's meaning is, the Present-Ancient Era is too chaotic. With this Great Revival of All Things, no one knows how many Great Dao Ancestral Patriarchs have revived, nor does anyone know what these revived Patriarchs actually intend to do. With this Cyclical Tempest, no one knows how many great powers have reincarnated, and similarly, no one knows what schemes these reincarnated great powers are harboring."
"In other words, there's hardly any trust to speak of in the Present-Ancient Era anymore. Truth and falsehood, reality and illusion—you might not even know if the person beside you is still the one you recognize. This includes those few revived Ancestral Patriarchs of our Chan Sect. This old monk doesn't dare trust them completely now."
Hearing this, Gu Qingfeng asked, "Really? You don't even trust your own Chan Sect's revived Ancestral Patriarchs? What, could your Chan Sect's Patriarchs betray your Chan Sect?"
"It's not a matter of betrayal or not."
"Then what is it?"
"Gu Xiaozi, Mo Xiaozi, have you two ever heard a saying?"
"What saying?" Gu Qingfeng and Mo Wentian asked simultaneously.
"Heaven and Earth are not benevolent; they treat the myriad things as straw dogs. The Sages are not benevolent; they treat the common people as straw dogs."