In Da Xing the Mad Monk's mind, if Gu Qingfeng could detect Taotie with his divine sense but could not detect Qiongqi, then this Cauldron of Qiongqi was almost certainly claimed.
Moreover, its master should be, like Gu Qingfeng, an Original Sin Anomaly.
Because only the existence of an Original Sin Anomaly could prevent others' divine senses from detecting it.
And only the existence of an Original Sin Anomaly could subdue Qiongqi's divine consciousness and demonic thoughts.
The more he thought about it, the more plausible it seemed.
Initially, when the Cauldron of Qiongqi had inexplicably appeared in the void, Da Xing the Mad Monk had harbored this suspicion.
Under normal circumstances, the Cauldron of Qiongqi could not simply appear in the void, and its manifestation should have been accompanied by some omens.
In contrast, this Cauldron of Qiongqi had not only appeared out of thin air in the void without any warning, but it had also immediately begun devouring the Breath of Original Sin in the Li Palace void upon appearing.
This Cauldron of Qiongqi was almost certainly claimed.
However.
There was another possibility.
That was Qiongqi had been reborn through a fragment of divine consciousness and demonic thought, reborn as an Original Sin Anomaly.
And whether Qiongqi had merged with an Original Sin Anomaly or had itself been reborn as one, neither possibility boded well.
Within the scene.
That Cauldron of Qiongqi still floated in the void, devouring the omnipresent Breath of Original Sin, standing there like a towering mountain peak.
Since Huli Great Immortal had taken the lead and plunged inside, several dozen shadows had followed suit one after another, but after entering, there had been no further movement.
What exactly was happening inside?
Whether those who had charged in were alive or dead, no one knew.
Because everyone's divine sense was unable to probe the Cauldron of Qiongqi, let alone discern the situation within.
Near the Cauldron of Qiongqi, there were still several hundred Original Sin individuals watching intently, waiting for an opportunity.
Most of these Original Sin individuals possessed Original Sin Dharmakayas acquired through later possession, though some were true Original Sin Dharmakayas.
Although they also wished to charge in.
It was merely a wish.
They lacked both the courage and the strength.
Not all Original Sin individuals possessed Original Sin Fragment Bodies; even acquiring one through possession was no easy feat.
Even among those Original Sin individuals who did possess Original Sin Fragment Bodies, not everyone could afford the loss or bear the consequences.
The Original Sin within those Original Sin Patriarchs was unfathomably deep, and they had nurtured many Original Sin Fragment Bodies. Thus, losing one or two was no great matter to them; they could afford the loss and withstand the damage to their true bodies.
However.
The Original Sin individuals near the Cauldron of Qiongqi were different.
They could neither afford the loss nor bear the consequences.
In the distance.
Da Xing the Mad Monk had been staring fixedly at the Cauldron of Qiongqi.
He looked and looked, but saw no movement from the cauldron.
This truly made him anxious.
"Damn it all!"
Da Xing the Mad Monk's heart felt as if scratched by cat claws. He had deployed his divine sense but could not probe the Cauldron of Qiongqi, leaving him completely in the dark about the situation inside. He was so agitated he wished he could plunge headfirst into it himself.
Just then.
Boom!—A deafening explosive roar rang out, and the Cauldron of Qiongqi began to shake violently.
The several hundred Original Sin individuals nearby were frightened into retreating.
Roar!
Immediately after, a fierce and domineering tiger's roar was heard.
A tiger-headed, human-bodied monster emerged from within the Cauldron of Qiongqi.
It was none other than Huli Great Immortal, who had taken the lead and plunged inside earlier.
Huli Great Immortal only revealed half his body, appearing as if trapped within.
"You little brat!
You dare dream of devouring this venerable one?"
Huli Great Immortal's thick arms firmly grasped the two sides of the Cauldron of Qiongqi. With an angry roar, a terrifyingly powerful surge of Original Sin Power erupted, causing the omnipresent Breath of Original Sin to violently disperse and making the void itself seem to distort. Even some of the nearby Original Sin individuals were shaken until blood sprayed from their mouths and noses by the Original Sin Power Huli Great Immortal unleashed.
The nearby Original Sin individuals no longer dared to linger, nor did they dare harbor any further hopes for the Cauldron of Qiongqi.
With another explosive boom.
Huli Great Immortal leaped upward, finally springing out from within the Cauldron of Qiongqi.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Over a dozen Original Sin Bodies followed closely behind Huli Great Immortal, springing out from within. After emerging, these Original Sin Bodies did not pause for even a moment, directly vanishing without a trace.
And then?
There was no 'and then'.
Apart from Huli Great Immortal and the dozen or so Original Sin Bodies that had charged out, no other Original Sin Bodies emerged. The Cauldron of Qiongqi also ceased its shaking, gradually calming down.
Everyone had seen clearly earlier: after Huli Great Immortal plunged into the Cauldron of Qiongqi, a full seventy or eighty Original Sin Bodies had followed him in. Why had only a dozen or so charged out now? What about the remaining Original Sin Bodies?
"Great Immortal, what happened inside?"
Old Immortal Qingmu, who had been waiting outside, saw Huli Great Immortal emerge from the Cauldron of Qiongqi looking rather disheveled and asked, "What about the others?"
"Hahaha!
They've all been devoured, damn it all!"
Huli Great Immortal grinned, his tiger eyes fixed intently on that Cauldron of Qiongqi.
Huli Great Immortal's words not only startled Old Immortal Qingmu but also horrified Da Xing the Mad Monk, who had been hiding in the shadows all along.
Others might not know.
But Da Xing the Mad Monk knew that those existences who had followed Huli Great Immortal into the Cauldron of Qiongqi earlier, though mostly Original Sin Fragment Bodies, were the fragment bodies of Original Sin Patriarchs or of certain Great Dao overlords. Their strength was absolutely incomparable to the so-called Original Sin Dharmakayas nearby.
For example, the fragment body of Demon Emperor Xuehe, or the fragment body of Western Heaven Buddha-Emperor Miao Rulai—each was more powerful than the last.
And those fragment bodies of the Original Sin Patriarchs were certainly no weaker than them.
Now Huli Great Immortal was saying that these fragment bodies of Original Sin Patriarchs had all been devoured by the Cauldron of Qiongqi?
Wasn't this Cauldron of Qiongqi a bit too terrifying?
If even Old Immortal Qingmu and Da Xing the Mad Monk were badly frightened by Huli Great Immortal's words, let alone those Original Sin Dharmakayas nearby.
If they had still held some hope for the Cauldron of Qiongqi before, the last shred of hopeful fantasy in their hearts now vanished like smoke.
They no longer dared to harbor any hope for the Cauldron of Qiongqi!
The Original Sin Power Huli Great Immortal had unleashed earlier had already shaken them until blood sprayed from their mouths and noses. If even a powerhouse as formidable as Huli Great Immortal had nearly been devoured by the Cauldron of Qiongqi, how could they dare to hold any hope for it?
"Damn it all!
This time, this venerable one was truly careless, almost perishing inside!"
Huli Great Immortal swept his gaze across the void, noticing that the dozen or so existences that had followed him out had all vanished without a trace. He immediately began cursing loudly, "A bunch of spineless cowards!
You followed this venerable one in, and you followed this venerable one out. You're clever as monkeys, damn it all! Don't think this venerable one doesn't know who you are. Just you wait, this venerable one will settle accounts with each of you one by one!"
Having said that.
Huli Great Immortal, his imposing manner undiminished, pointed at the Cauldron of Qiongqi and shouted with a stream of curses, "You little brat, come out! Let your granddaddy see your true face!"