This was not the first time Da Xing the Mad Monk had discussed this matter with Gu Qingfeng.
And each time the discussion ended, it left him utterly frustrated, his heart half-chilled, and filled him with profound worry for the future.
Because he had long since staked everything on Gu Qingfeng. He wasn't betting on the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth, nor on the Daoless Age, but on a future.
Therefore.
Gu Qingfeng's attitude determined the outcome of this gamble, and it determined that future.
As for what Gu Qingfeng's attitude was, the answer was: he had no attitude. Not a shred of one.
Putting it nicely, it was 'going with the flow'.
Putting it bluntly, it was 'leaving it to fate'.
It had been that way before, and it remained so now.
Earlier, when they discussed how the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth was the Great Nature, and the Great Nature was the Great Dao, Da Xing the Mad Monk had been quite pleased. He felt Gu Qingfeng shared his view, which gave him some measure of hope for the future.
But when the topic shifted to one's attitude towards life, it ruthlessly extinguished the hope that had finally kindled in Da Xing's heart.
Ever since pinning his hopes on Gu Qingfeng, Da Xing the Mad Monk had been trying to change Gu Qingfeng's attitude.
To that end.
He had revealed secrets he could tell and secrets he shouldn't. He had hinted, insinuated, analyzed the situation from all angles... To make Gu Qingfeng change his attitude, he had even embellished and spread some rumors.
He thought with his abilities, he should be able to make Gu Qingfeng change his attitude. Even if he couldn't, he should at least be able to influence it, so it wouldn't be as resolute as before.
What drove Da Xing the Mad Monk to despair was that Gu Qingfeng's attitude never changed. No matter what he said, what he did, whether he spoke plainly or hinted subtly, nothing could influence Gu Qingfeng's stance in the slightest.
Da Xing the Mad Monk was deeply disheartened and began to doubt whether he had made the wrong bet.
Should he not have staked everything on Gu Qingfeng?
Thinking back now, he didn't know why he had gotten so carried away and decided to gamble everything on Gu Qingfeng.
To say he didn't regret it would be a lie.
But the bet was already placed; regret was useless. The moment he decided to stake everything on Gu Qingfeng, he had cut off his own retreat. Extricating himself was no longer possible.
If Gu Qingfeng was a pirate ship, then Da Xing the Mad Monk had already boarded it with all his worldly possessions. He had originally thought to ride this pirate ship to escape the Sea of Bitterness and reach the Other Shore.
Little did he know that Gu Qingfeng's pirate ship had no intention of reaching the Other Shore. The damn ship didn't even have oars, just drifting aimlessly in the Sea of Bitterness.
Drifting wherever the fierce winds and waves of the Sea of Bitterness took it. Where was it headed? He didn't know. Could it drift to the Other Shore? That was up to the heavens.
What the hell kind of pirate ship was this?
Get off?
Getting off meant the Sea of Bitterness. The reason Da Xing the Mad Monk had boarded Gu Qingfeng's pirate ship with all his belongings was precisely to escape the Sea of Bitterness and reach the Other Shore. Getting off now would mean all his efforts were for nothing.
Even though Gu Qingfeng's pirate ship sailed the Sea of Bitterness not by oars but by drifting, even though whether this ship could reach the Other Shore depended entirely on fate.
At least he was still on board for now.
The only thing that gave Da Xing the Mad Monk some solace was that he wasn't the only one who had boarded Gu Qingfeng's pirate ship with his belongings. Also on board were Lady Blackwater, the Old Beggar, Demon Emperor Blood River, Cang Yan, Genggu Wuming, and many, many more existences who, like him, had brought their all onto this ship.
If Gu Qingfeng's pirate ship was swallowed by the raging waves and sank into the Sea of Bitterness, everyone on board would sink with it.
Well.
At least the road through the Sea of Bitterness wouldn't be lonely.
Da Xing the Mad Monk comforted himself this way.
At this point, that was the only comfort he had left.
The two of them continued deeper into the void of Li Palace, much like drifting aimlessly with the waves in the Sea of Bitterness.
Suddenly.
Da Xing the Mad Monk noticed Gu Qingfeng had inexplicably come to a halt.
"Kid Gu, what's wrong?"
Gu Qingfeng did not respond. The man who had been chatting and laughing just moments ago suddenly turned serious, his expression growing grave, his brow furrowing.
"Kid Gu?
You...
What in the world is going on?"
Seeing Gu Qingfeng's strange state, Da Xing the Mad Monk's heart immediately grew uneasy. He clearly remembered that before, Gu Qingfeng had also suddenly stopped like this, his expression serious, and then that Demonic Thought Beyond the Great Dao had emerged.
Now he was like this again. Could it be that wisp of Demonic Thought Beyond the Great Dao was stirring once more?
"Kid Gu?
Are you alright?"
Da Xing called out again. Gu Qingfeng seemed to snap back to attention, glanced at him, and replied nonchalantly, "What is it?"
"'What is it?' Nothing's wrong? Impossible. The way you look right now doesn't seem like 'nothing's wrong' at all."
"Just now, for a moment, I suddenly felt something was off."
"Damn it! Could it be that wisp of Demonic Thought Beyond the Great Dao is getting restless again?"
Gu Qingfeng shook his head. "No. The Demonic Thought Beyond the Great Dao has already merged with me, becoming one. If it were restless, it would mean I am restless. But the feeling just now wasn't like that."
"Then could it be the Divine Sense and Demonic Thoughts of the three Sons of Original Sin—the Evil Asura, Bitter Descent, and Blood Glutton—stirring?"
"That's not it either!"
"This..." Da Xing the Mad Monk's face darkened. "Kid Gu, tell me honestly. Besides the three Sons of Original Sin and the Beyond the Great Dao entity, do you have any other Divine Sense or Demonic Thoughts on you?"
"Probably not?"
Gu Qingfeng answered, but his tone was far from certain.
"'Probably not?' Don't you even know if you have other Divine Sense or Demonic Thoughts on you?"
"Shouldn't have. At least, I don't recall having any others."
"Then what the hell was that just now?"
"I'm not too sure either. Maybe it was just an illusion."
Gu Qingfeng didn't elaborate further. He patted Da Xing the Mad Monk on the shoulder and continued deeper into the void of Li Palace.
He called it an illusion.
But Gu Qingfeng knew it definitely wasn't.
He was also certain it absolutely wasn't the Demonic Thought Beyond the Great Dao stirring, nor was it the three Sons of Original Sin—the Evil Asura of Avici, Bitter Descent, and Blood Glutton—getting restless.
For a moment just then, he felt as if he had heard a sound.
As for what kind of sound, or where it came from, he didn't know.
It was like a dream.
After waking, the details of the dream fade, impossible to recall, only knowing you had dreamed.
Where did that sound come from?
Right then, Gu Qingfeng felt he heard a sound again.
Very ethereal and elusive, dreamlike and illusory, giving a profoundly unreal sensation.
He tried to locate the source of the sound.
Searching as if entering a dream.
It felt closer.
Closer and closer.
"They...
have discovered..."