Qianye Immortal King said softly, "Is there a difference? If the heart changes, the person changes too. There's no real distinction between the two."
"Perhaps."
"If..." Qianye Immortal King hesitated for a moment before asking, "If they really do move against You Di this time, what about you... will you act?"
Gu Changfeng responded without even thinking, "Yes."
Qianye Immortal King's heart skipped a beat, and she pressed urgently, "Will you act to help him, or to kill him?"
"To help him!"
"I knew that would be your answer."
Gu Changfeng explained, "I've said it before—there's only one scenario where You Di and I become enemies on the battlefield: I am determined to guard the Great Dao, and he is determined to ascend as the True Lord of Original Sin. Aside from that, he is Gu Changfeng's friend."
Gu Changfeng's meaning was clear: not only had he not yet decided to guard the Great Dao, but even if he had, as long as Gu Qingfeng did not contend for the title of True Lord of Original Sin, Gu Qingfeng would not be his enemy.
"Husband, have you considered the consequences?"
In Qianye Immortal King's view, if those Original Sin overlords and Great Dao overlords truly resolved to eradicate Gu Qingfeng this time, and Gu Changfeng stepped forward to aid him in battle, only three outcomes were possible.
The first: Gu Qingfeng dies here, Gu Changfeng dies with him, and even in death, they would be condemned by thousands and reviled by tens of thousands.
The second: Gu Qingfeng dies, but Gu Changfeng survives. Yet Gu Changfeng would inevitably be disgraced and ruined for aiding Gu Qingfeng.
The third: Neither Gu Qingfeng nor Gu Changfeng dies. Gu Changfeng would certainly be isolated by the Great Dao because of this incident. And if Gu Qingfeng ultimately ascended as the True Lord of Original Sin and slaughtered the Three Thousand Great Daos, then Gu Changfeng, whether dead or alive, would bear the infamy of being a traitor to the Great Dao.
Of these three outcomes, regardless of which one occurred, whether life or death, they held nothing but harm and no benefit for Gu Changfeng.
"Is it worth it, just for the so-called friendship between you and You Di, that is both adversarial and amicable? Isn't the price too great?"
Seeing Gu Changfeng remain silent, Qianye Immortal King continued, "The situation is so chaotic now. We must tread carefully with every step we take, and every step sows Karma. This Karma could alter future destinies. And besides..." Just as she was speaking, Gu Changfeng suddenly cut her off, turned to gaze at her, and said, "Ye'er, I've listened to your words my entire life. Since I met you, whatever you said, I did. If you told me to go east, I never went west. If you told me to go into seclusion, I went into seclusion. If you told me to cultivate, I cultivated. But this time, I want to make my own decision. Is that alright?"
"I..." Gu Changfeng's words left Qianye Immortal King momentarily stunned, feeling both awkward, somewhat annoyed, and a little amused. She opened her mouth but didn't know how to refute him.
After a moment, Qianye Immortal King said with a light laugh, "It's not that I want to dictate your decisions. It's just that... I feel you've suddenly changed. Changed so much that you've become a stranger, so unfamiliar I hardly dare recognize you."
Qianye Immortal King raised her head, staring intently into Gu Changfeng's eyes, and said solemnly, "Changfeng... be honest with me. Have you... already... already... already..." Qianye Immortal King repeated "already" several times, but the words that followed simply wouldn't come out.
It wasn't that she didn't know what to say, nor that she didn't want to say it—she was afraid to voice it.
She was scared.
Scared it might be true.
Ever since noticing Gu Changfeng's change, Qianye Immortal King's heart had been filled with anxiety and fear. She suspected that Gu Changfeng might have awakened the memories of his Previous Life.
Such a thing wasn't impossible. Awakening a Previous Life often required a catalyst—a catalyst that could be a certain person or a certain event. As long as one's state of mind shifted, perhaps the catalyst would appear, and from then on, the Previous Life could awaken.
If it were merely awakening the memories of a Previous Life, Qianye Immortal King could still accept it.
But what if Gu Changfeng wasn't awakening memories of a Previous Life? What if it was another possibility—that the Gu Changfeng she had once loved was merely someone else's Karma Incarnation, and now the true self had come, silently devouring Gu Changfeng's self-awareness?
If the change were slight, Qianye Immortal King wouldn't have such suspicions. But the truth was, Gu Changfeng's change was far too great. It was as if he had become a completely different person. She felt that even if her own confusion about Karma and destiny had influenced Gu Changfeng, causing a shift in his state of mind, it shouldn't have changed him to such an extent.
Most importantly, Qianye Immortal King was also well aware that the saying, "In the Primordial Cataclysm, heaven and earth evolve; in the endless cycle of reincarnation, past lives appear; in the meeting of Karma between past and present lives, whose fate is whose depends on heaven," was not merely a simple legend.
If this saying were just a legend, those Great Dao Patriarchs wouldn't be testing the Great Dao overlords and the destined calamity-bearers everywhere in the Primordial Nine Palaces. If it were just a legend, the Profound Heaven Immortal Dao wouldn't distrust the Great Sun Yao Emperor so much, and the Sacred Ground wouldn't ostracize Dugu Qizhan.
Precisely because everyone knew this saying wasn't a legend, no one could guarantee who wasn't a so-called Karma Incarnation.
Although Qianye Immortal King didn't say it outright, Gu Changfeng seemed to guess what was on her mind. He raised his hand and gently tapped Qianye Immortal King's nose, smiling slightly. "Ye'er, you're overthinking it. I haven't awakened any memories of a Previous Life, nor have I had my self-awareness devoured by someone else. I am still me, still Gu Changfeng. I was before, I am now, and I won't change in the future. As long as I live, I will always be your Gu Changfeng. If I were someone else's Karma Incarnation, and the true self came to devour my consciousness, I would rather die than let him have his way."
"Really?"
"Of course it's true. When have I ever lied to you?"
"But... but how have you changed so much? Could it really be because of my influence? That can't be, can it?"
"I can't clearly explain the specific reason. Perhaps it is, perhaps it isn't. I only know that after you expressed your confusion about Karma and destiny earlier, I had a very strange feeling—like a sudden enlightenment, instantly understanding many, many things..." At this point, Gu Changfeng shook his head again. "But it wasn't exactly like sudden enlightenment. It was more like suddenly discovering a door leading to another world. What exactly the feeling was, I can't quite describe it. In short, I became like this in a muddled, inexplicable way."
Hearing this, Qianye Immortal King said worriedly, "Your situation clearly sounds like awakening memories of a Previous Life."
"I've suspected that too. But I'm very certain I haven't awakened any memories of a Previous Life. To this day, I have no impression whatsoever of any past life. Perhaps I really have awakened something, but it definitely isn't memories of a Previous Life."
"If it's not memories of a Previous Life, then what else could you have awakened? Heavenly Mandate? True Destiny? As far as I know, whether it's Heavenly Mandate or True Destiny, you've already awakened them, haven't you? You yourself have already received the Great Dao's Heavenly Mandate and the True Destiny of the Calamity. Wait..." As if realizing something, Qianye Immortal King, who had been worried, suddenly exclaimed in surprise, "Heavens! Could it be that your Azure Heaven Destiny has awakened?"