"No!
You don't understand!"
Empress Wuyue stood in the void, her expressionless gaze fixed on Gu Qingfeng as she said, "Whether he is the True Lord of Original Sin recorded in the Book of Fate is not important at all. What matters is that his changes are influencing this Original Sin Cataclysm."
Though no one wanted to admit it, they had to acknowledge that Empress Wuyue was speaking the truth.
If the deduced changes of the Li Palace actually referred to Gu Qingfeng's changes, then whether he was the True Lord of Original Sin recorded in the Book of Fate indeed no longer mattered. What mattered was what kind of influence Gu Qingfeng's changes would bring to this cataclysm.
Would he ascend as the True Lord of Original Sin, slaughter the Three Thousand Great Dao, and usher in the Daoless Age?
Or would he slaughter the True Lord of Original Sin and strangle the Daoless Age in its cradle?
Everyone was bewildered.
They were all somewhat dazed.
Empress Wuyue's words not only plunged the Original Sin Ancestral Patriarchs into deep contemplation but also left the Great Dao Ancestral Patriarchs utterly conflicted, unsure whether to believe her or not.
Originally, both the Original Sin Ancestral Patriarchs and the Great Dao Ancestral Patriarchs had prepared themselves. They would wait for the Li Palace Primordial Source to emerge, confirm who was the True Lord of Original Sin recorded in the Book of Fate, and then join forces to eradicate that person.
Now, Empress Wuyue was saying that even if the Li Palace Primordial Source emerged, it could not prove who was the True Lord of Original Sin recorded in the Book of Fate. This was because the deduced changes of the Li Palace, from the very beginning, were not changes of the Li Palace itself, but rather that Gu Qingfeng's changes would influence this Original Sin Cataclysm.
For the Original Sin Ancestral Patriarchs, they no longer knew whether they should move against Gu Qingfeng.
What would be the point of acting?
Setting aside whether they could even eradicate Gu Qingfeng, even if they did, how would they then scheme for the True Lord of Original Sin?
They did not know.
As for the Great Dao Ancestral Patriarchs, they faced a similarly bewildering predicament.
They also did not know whether to move against Gu Qingfeng, nor what the point of acting would be. No one knew if eradicating Gu Qingfeng could stop this Original Sin Cataclysm.
As the saying goes, plans cannot keep up with changes.
The shifting situation had left both the Original Sin and Great Dao factions of Ancestral Patriarchs at a loss for how to respond.
Now, they could only wait.
They could only watch and see how things developed.
They would see whether the Li Palace Primordial Source would truly emerge, and if, after emerging, it could prove who was the True Lord of Original Sin recorded in the Book of Fate.
If the Li Palace Primordial Source could not prove the True Lord of Original Sin recorded in the Book of Fate, it would mean Empress Wuyue's words were true. The deduced changes of the Li Palace were indeed not changes of the Li Palace itself, but rather Gu Qingfeng's changes.
In the void.
Gu Qingfeng paused, casting a meaningful glance at Empress Wuyue. "If I didn't know you had planted a Karmic Seed on me, I'd really suspect you were a mind-reading worm in my gut."
Gu Qingfeng now had no secrets left. Even the thoughts in his heart were seen clearly by Empress Wuyue.
He had long realized that the so-called changes of the Li Palace were not changes of the Li Palace at all, but his own changes. He also realized that even if the Li Palace emerged, it absolutely could not prove who was the True Lord of Original Sin recorded in the Book of Fate.
It was less a realization and more a feeling.
However.
Gu Qingfeng did not know if this feeling was truly his own, or a feeling produced under the influence of the Karmic Seed.
Deep in his heart, he was growing increasingly lost, increasingly adrift, and simultaneously walking further and further down this path of losing himself.
"If your goal was to make me lose myself, then congratulations, your goal has been achieved. I have already begun to lose myself..." Changing the subject, Gu Qingfeng added, "However, I think the original intent behind you planting a Karmic Seed on me was not to make me lose myself. If I become lost, the Karmic Seed you planted on me would be wasted."
A single Karmic Seed could subtly influence a person's decisions without them noticing. But if Gu Qingfeng became lost, the so-called Karmic Seed could no longer influence any of his decisions. Because a lost Gu Qingfeng would have lost even his sense of self, and a Karmic Seed would naturally become useless.
Empress Wuyue met Gu Qingfeng's gaze and said softly, "I am not the only one who planted a Karmic Seed on you. So, the wasted Karmic Seed will not be limited to the one I planted."
It was not hard to infer from Empress Wuyue's words that her actions today were indeed deliberate, and precisely to make Gu Qingfeng lose himself.
Gu Qingfeng said, "So, you deliberately made me lose myself, just for a mutually destructive outcome?"
"Whether the fish dies, I do not know. I only know this net will certainly break."
Indeed.
If Gu Qingfeng became lost, then all the Karmic Seeds on him could no longer influence him. The net of Karma enveloping Gu Qingfeng would also dissipate like smoke.
"If this net breaks, it doesn't sound like it brings you any benefit."
"But it brings no harm either, does it?"
"Heh, true enough."
Gu Qingfeng chuckled and said, "Can I understand it as this chess piece—me—has lost its use value to you, so you don't want others to use this chess piece either? Might as well go for mutual destruction. There's an old saying, how does it go... 'If the dog's food bowl is overturned, no one gets to eat.'"
"If you insist on understanding it that way, I can't help it."
Empress Wuyue also smiled, responding, "It seems...
you haven't lost yourself yet. At least, not now."
"Haha!"
Gu Qingfeng shrugged. "I haven't lost myself yet, but it's getting close."
After speaking.
Gu Qingfeng asked again, "Why are you the only one who came out? Where are they?"
"You shouldn't ask me that question. You should ask them."
"Is that so!
I'm curious. You alone came out to break this net of Karma on me. Why didn't they come out to stop you?"
"That's because they all know this net of Karma on you will certainly break open. It is destined to break open."
"I believe that."
Gu Qingfeng continued walking towards the Li Palace Primordial Source, chatting idly with Empress Wuyue as if no one else was present. "All of you motherfuckers are too greedy. Every single one of you planted a Karmic Seed on me. You could have at least discussed it—plant just one, or two, even three would be fine. But every one of you motherfuckers planted a Karmic Seed on me. With so many planted, who the hell am I supposed to believe?
Every Karmic Seed pops up with a different thought. Even if my will is incredibly strong, I can't withstand you all tormenting me like this!"
"The fact that I've held on until now without being driven mad by your torment, I'm quite impressed with myself."
"This broken boat of mine simply can't carry so many of you. And the result?...
It's fucked, isn't it? This broken boat of mine is about to sink, and all the Karmic Seeds you motherfuckers painstakingly planted are going to be motherfucking wasted."
"If you don't think it's a pity, I feel sorry for you all on your behalf."