"Kid Gu! Old Monk hopes you'd best be mentally prepared."
Looking at Gu Qingfeng, who was leaning casually against a large rock, sitting on the ground and still leisurely drinking his wine, Da Xing the Mad Monk spoke with a complex tone.
His meaning was simple, just as he said: he wanted Gu Qingfeng to be mentally prepared.
Prepared for what?
To put it nicely, prepared for battle. To put it bluntly, prepared to await death.
From all current indications, Gu Qingfeng's situation was dire, utterly disastrous.
To say he was doomed would be optimistic; even saying he had a slim chance of survival was overly hopeful.
Yes.
Da Xing the Mad Monk had this feeling, and it was a strong one.
Previously, those besieging Gu Qingfeng were merely some Ancestral Patriarchs of the Great Dao and Original Sin. Although these patriarchs were not weak, they were far from possessing the power to obliterate Gu Qingfeng. Most importantly, these patriarchs each had their own agendas, lacked a central leadership, and were like a scattered mess, posing no real threat to Gu Qingfeng.
This time, however, was different.
This time, those who had come were old monsters like Black Mountain Old Monster, Qingdeng Patriarch, and Liao'e Patriarch, who coveted the position of True Lord of Original Sin, as well as terrifying existences like Miao Rulai, who was both a Fixed Tribulation Variable and an Original Sin Variable. Perhaps even they did not possess the absolute power to obliterate Gu Qingfeng, but for Gu Qingfeng, they were undoubtedly a significant threat, especially Miao Rulai, whose existence was, if anything, even more formidable than Gu Qingfeng's.
Moreover, this time, there were also those representing the Great Dao Mandate and Fixed Tribulation Variables: Great Emperor Changfeng, Great Emperor Peacock, the Nine Holy Sons of the Sacred Grounds, the Nine Holy Sons of the Heavenly Dao, the Floating Life Emperor who stood peerless under heaven, the Great Sun Shining Emperor whose radiance illuminated the world, Xuanyuan Wuji whose hand could blot out the sky, and Dugu Qizhan who stood equal to the heavens...
These existences posed a fatal threat to Gu Qingfeng.
If they were determined to obliterate Gu Qingfeng today, then Gu Qingfeng would absolutely be in grave peril.
Even though many Original Sin Patriarchs hoped Gu Qingfeng would ascend to become the True Lord of Original Sin and supported him from behind the scenes, once Gu Qingfeng fell into a desperate situation, how many of those supporting Original Sin Patriarchs would step forward?
The answer was certain: very few.
The fundamental reason those Original Sin Patriarchs supported Gu Qingfeng was because he was the most likely candidate to ascend to the True Lord of Original Sin. When Gu Qingfeng fell into a desperate situation, this so-called greatest hope would become the smallest hope; the greatest chance of victory would become the greatest chance of defeat.
At that time, those Original Sin Patriarchs supporting Gu Qingfeng would likely place their hopes on other Original Sin Variables. After all, for them, who ascended to become the True Lord of Original Sin was not important; what mattered was whether the Dao-Less Era could be opened.
What gave Da Xing the Mad Monk the biggest headache was this: if Gu Qingfeng wanted to live, perhaps there was still a sliver of hope, however faint. But at least there was hope.
The problem was that Gu Qingfeng only wanted to end all of this as soon as possible. As long as it could end, life or death didn't matter. Under such circumstances, Gu Qingfeng had no possibility of survival.
To put it harshly.
Even if Gu Qingfeng truly was the Incarnation of Causality of Genggu Wuming, and even if Genggu Wuming did not want Gu Qingfeng to die here, even if Genggu Wuming were to devour Gu Qingfeng's consciousness right now and take control of Gu Qingfeng's physical body, she might not be able to leave this place alive.
Furthermore.
When Da Xing the Mad Monk deduced through Divination that the changes in the Li Palace would affect the Original Sin Cataclysm, he also realized another issue.
That was, perhaps Gu Qingfeng was not the Incarnation of Causality of Genggu Wuming, but rather the Incarnation of Causality of the Dao-Less Venerable.
In Da Xing the Mad Monk's thoughts, if even he could deduce that the changes in the Li Palace would affect the Original Sin Cataclysm, it was impossible for Genggu Wuming not to have deduced it. She might have deduced it long ago; it was even possible that all of this was a setup arranged by Genggu Wuming.
If Gu Qingfeng truly were the Incarnation of Causality of Genggu Wuming, she would not possibly allow him to fall into a desperate situation, let alone allow him to die here. She would not even allow the situation in the Li Palace to affect the Original Sin Cataclysm. Otherwise, what would be the point of nurturing Gu Qingfeng as this Incarnation of Causality?
Therefore, Da Xing the Mad Monk believed that perhaps Gu Qingfeng was not the Incarnation of Causality of Genggu Wuming, but rather the Incarnation of Causality of the Dao-Less Venerable.
All of this might be a scheme laid by Genggu Wuming, with the goal of obliterating Gu Qingfeng, this Incarnation of Causality of the Dao-Less Venerable.
Taking a step back, even if Gu Qingfeng truly were the Incarnation of Causality of Genggu Wuming, he could not possibly be the only one. There might be other Incarnations of Causality, such as Miao Rulai.
It was possible that Genggu Wuming had long since deduced that the Li Palace situation would affect the Original Sin Cataclysm, and thus used Gu Qingfeng, this Incarnation of Causality, as bait. Sacrificing Gu Qingfeng as the bait to protect the true Incarnation of Causality would allow her to deceive heaven and cross the sea, achieving her goal without anyone knowing.
Since deducing that the changes in the Li Palace would affect the Original Sin Cataclysm, Da Xing the Mad Monk had pondered many, many possibilities. And regardless of which possibility, Gu Qingfeng's hope of survival was extremely slim.
Even if all the possibilities favorable to Gu Qingfeng were combined, his hope of survival remained extremely slim.
To be honest.
Da Xing the Mad Monk did not want Gu Qingfeng to die here.
Firstly, he had staked everything on betting a future on Gu Qingfeng.
If Gu Qingfeng died, he would lose.
However.
For Da Xing the Mad Monk, losing was just losing. He would accept fate; he was not someone who couldn't afford to lose. At worst, it would be like an empty, joyful dream.
The real reason he did not want Gu Qingfeng to die here was more purely because he did not want to lose a friend like Gu Qingfeng, someone who shared his eccentric tastes and temperament.
Compared to the bet he had placed on Gu Qingfeng, Da Xing the Mad Monk cared more about the camaraderie forged through their banter, nonsense, and mutual teasing.
If it were in the past.
Da Xing the Mad Monk would certainly have urged Gu Qingfeng not to give up, not to give up even if there was only a sliver of hope.
This time.
Da Xing the Mad Monk did not open his mouth to persuade. Instead, he told Gu Qingfeng to be mentally prepared.
Because he knew that the current problem was not whether Gu Qingfeng would listen to persuasion or whether Gu Qingfeng would give up or not. Even if Gu Qingfeng listened to his persuasion, did not give up, and exerted every ounce of his strength in a desperate struggle, what then?
Facing the encirclement and suppression by the top experts of Original Sin and the Great Dao from ancient times to the present, Gu Qingfeng simply had no hope of survival.
"I say, Da Xing," Gu Qingfeng tilted his head, glanced at Da Xing the Mad Monk, and said, "Judging by your tone, it seems this lord might not make it through this hurdle?"
Da Xing the Mad Monk opened his mouth, hesitated, then raised his head and gulped down an entire jar of wine in one go. Sitting down beside Gu Qingfeng, he said, "Since things have reached this point, Old Monk won't hide it from you anymore. Before this, Old Monk thought of many possibilities, but regardless of which possibility, you, kid, are in grave peril this time."
"You mean, this lord is doomed this time?"
"Old Monk doesn't want to admit it, but...
Alas."
As he spoke, Da Xing the Mad Monk shook his head and let out a deep, heavy sigh. "Enough said. Come, Old Monk will drink with you."