Gu Qingfeng merely smiled without speaking, for Da Xing the Mad Monk's words were precisely what he himself had been thinking.
He truly suspected that he might be a pawn in Venerable Wu Dao's hands, intended to make the Great Dao Heaven and Earth mistakenly believe he was the True Lord of Original Sin recorded in the Book of Fate. That way, all the schemes aimed at preventing the Daoless Age from opening would target him. Then, at the critical moment, when the real True Lord of Original Sin emerged, the Great Dao Heaven and Earth would be too late to stop it.
For instance, this transformation of the Li Palace was precisely that critical moment of the Original Sin Cataclysm.
Thus, Taiji Boundless had emerged at this juncture. Once they obtained the Spirit of Original Sin within the Li Palace's Primordial Source, they would be only a step away from claiming the title of True Lord of Original Sin—it could even be considered a foregone conclusion.
As for whether they could stop Taiji Boundless from seizing the Spirit of Original Sin... that was likely extremely difficult.
Just think: if the True Lord of Original Sin recorded in the Book of Fate were so easy to kill, Gu Qingfeng would never have survived until now.
Precisely because he was hard to erase, many old monsters had laid schemes upon Gu Qingfeng, even weaving Karma around him.
If even Gu Qingfeng—this fake True Lord of Original Sin—couldn't be killed by those old monsters, how much more so the real True Lord.
Perhaps weaving Karma could stop them.
The problem was:
Everyone mistakenly believed Gu Qingfeng was the True Lord of Original Sin recorded in the Book of Fate, and they had all woven their Karma upon him. No one had ever woven Karma upon Taiji Boundless. If the True Lord of Original Sin recorded in the Book of Fate wasn't Gu Qingfeng, but was truly Taiji Boundless, then it would probably be impossible to stop them from seizing the Spirit of Original Sin.
Gu Qingfeng shook his head, letting out a helpless, bitter laugh as he sighed, "It seems I've really been taking the fall for others my whole life."
Beside him.
Da Xing the Mad Monk curled his lip and advised, "Kid Gu, this might not necessarily be a bad thing for you."
"How so?"
"After all, you never intended to claim the title of True Lord of Original Sin, and you have no interest in the Daoless Age. Besides, if you really were the True Lord of Original Sin recorded in the Book of Fate, you'd definitely be a Karma incarnation of Venerable Wu Dao. Even if you claimed the title, you'd just be preparing the wedding dress for Venerable Wu Dao, ultimately reduced to nothing but a fragment of his memory, that's all."
Da Xing the Mad Monk continued, "If you're not the True Lord of Original Sin recorded in the Book of Fate, then you can avoid the threat to your life and also not worry about being someone else's Karma incarnation. Wouldn't that be wonderful?"
"Heh!
Wonderful?
Wonderful your grandpa!"
Gu Qingfeng sneered coldly, "Da Xing, I'm afraid you haven't grasped the crux of the problem. The issue now isn't the threat to my life, nor is it whether I'm Venerable Wu Dao's Karma incarnation."
"Then what is it?"
"It's that I've been taking the damn fall for others my whole life!"
Hearing this.
Da Xing the Mad Monk finally understood—so Gu Qingfeng couldn't swallow this injustice.
Thinking carefully, it wasn't hard to comprehend.
Since his youth when he began cultivating, Gu Qingfeng had lived every day with his head on the line. The mortal world couldn't tolerate him, neither could the Heavenly Domain; the Immortal Dao couldn't tolerate him, nor could the Demonic Dao; the Nine Heavens couldn't tolerate him, and neither could the Nine Nether. He was either being judged by this faction or condemned by that one.
The reason the Great Dao Heaven and Earth and all the myriad realms couldn't tolerate him wasn't because he had committed some heinous, unforgivable deeds, but solely because his existence was the greatest variable of Original Sin, believed to be the True Lord of Original Sin recorded in the Book of Fate.
In Gu Qingfeng's own words: if he really were the True Lord of Original Sin recorded in the Book of Fate, then so be it—at least taking this fall wouldn't be unjust, and he'd accept it.
But if, in the end, the True Lord of Original Sin recorded in the Book of Fate wasn't him, but someone else, then it would mean Gu Qingfeng had been taking the fall for another his entire life.
This injustice—not to mention Gu Qingfeng couldn't swallow it—even if it were Da Xing the Mad Monk in his place, he wouldn't be able to swallow it either.
Suddenly.
Da Xing the Mad Monk sensed something amiss.
The acupoints all over Gu Qingfeng's body were madly devouring the all-pervading Original Sin Breath.
And the earlier sense of "going with the flow" that had surrounded Gu Qingfeng had long vanished without a trace, replaced by an aloof, domineering aura—and this feeling was growing stronger and stronger.
Whether it was an illusion or not, Da Xing the Mad Monk vaguely sensed a very strange feeling emanating from Gu Qingfeng.
What this feeling was.
Da Xing the Mad Monk couldn't quite put it into words.
The only thing he knew was that this feeling from Gu Qingfeng frightened him.
Yes!
Frightened!
Feeling a chill run down his spine, Da Xing the Mad Monk forced himself to endure the creeping sensation and asked, "I say, Kid Gu... I can completely understand you not being able to swallow this injustice, but then... what do you plan to do? You're not going to fight Taiji Boundless, that hermaphroditic Yin-Yang person, for the Spirit of Original Sin, are you?"
If Da Xing the Mad Monk had been the one taking the fall for others his whole life, although he wouldn't be able to swallow the injustice either, he wouldn't go seeking redress for it.
This kind of redress was hard to obtain.
And he wouldn't even know who to seek it from.
It seemed that seeking this redress from anyone would lead to a bad end.
Since there was no longer a threat to his life, why bother throwing away his own skin?
Unfortunately.
The one who had taken the fall for others his whole life wasn't Da Xing the Mad Monk—it was Gu Qingfeng.
Da Xing the Mad Monk might not seek redress for a lifetime of taking the fall, but that didn't mean Gu Qingfeng wouldn't.
The Gu Qingfeng who hadn't found his True Self might not have either, but now that Gu Qingfeng's fighting spirit had returned, his physical body revived, and he had found his True Self—this redress, he would definitely seek.
Moreover.
Based on Da Xing the Mad Monk's understanding of Gu Qingfeng, this guy either wouldn't seek redress at all, but once he decided to seek justice for himself, he would spare no one.
Whoever made him take this fall.
Whoever laid schemes upon him.
Whoever couldn't tolerate him back then.
He would spare none of them.
Da Xing the Mad Monk thought for a moment. He felt that if Gu Qingfeng really intended to seek redress, then he would not only confront the Three Thousand Great Daos, but also confront Original Sin and Wu Dao.
Because it was Original Sin and Wu Dao who made him take this fall, and it was the Three Thousand Great Daos who couldn't tolerate him back then.
Such an act—others might not be capable of it, but Gu Qingfeng definitely was.
Others wouldn't have the guts either—only Gu Qingfeng did.
Thinking this, Da Xing the Mad Monk's heart couldn't help but pound wildly, and he felt a sense of vertigo. He very much wanted to open his mouth to persuade Gu Qingfeng, to tell him that not being the True Lord of Original Sin recorded in the Book of Fate was a good thing for him. Since he'd already taken the fall, he might as well accept it. There was no need to seek this redress; this redress was hard to obtain and almost impossible to achieve.
But just as the words reached his lips, Da Xing the Mad Monk found he couldn't utter them no matter what. Deep down, he clearly understood: if Gu Qingfeng hadn't found his True Self, he might still listen to his persuasion. But now that Gu Qingfeng had found his True Self, he would no longer listen to his advice—not only would he not listen, but if he said too much, he might even provoke Gu Qingfeng's wrath.
Sure enough, while Da Xing the Mad Monk was still hesitating, the silent Gu Qingfeng suddenly spoke, "Da Xing, I know what you want to say. However, I advise you to save your breath. I've said it before—this fall, I can't take it blindly for a lifetime, and I can't just let it go. After taking it for so many years, it's about time to return it to them."