Within the Lotus Hall.
Whether they were Great Dao Ancestral Patriarchs or Original Sin Ancestral Patriarchs, after listening to Cang Yan's words, they all fell into silence. Cang Yan's words echoed in their minds like thunderclaps.
On Blackwater Mountain, the Old Beggar was especially affected.
He might not know how the other Patriarchs felt after hearing Cang Yan's words, but he was acutely aware of his own feelings. It was no exaggeration to say it was like a sudden enlightenment, a revelation that cleared away the fog to reveal the bright moon, leaving his heart profoundly shaken.
Before.
He had always believed this Calamity was simple, as simple as those Great Dao Destinies.
Great Dao Destinies were all born of circumstance—whether Imperial Authority, Emperor's Seal, or Throne Star Lord. Whoever could seize these Great Dao Destinies would become a Great Dao Overlord.
The Old Beggar thought the Original Sin True Master was also born of circumstance. The only difference was that whoever could seize the Original Sin True Master could slaughter the Three Thousand Great Daos; whoever could open the Era Without Dao could become the Dao-less Sovereign who dominated heaven and earth.
That's what he believed, which was why he had contaminated himself with Original Sin in the Desolate Ancient Era, scheming for the Original Sin True Master.
As he sank deeper into this Calamity, he gradually began to realize it wasn't so simple, because this Calamity also involved Fate.
He thought this Calamity was a struggle between the Great Dao and Fate, with Original Sin merely being the incarnation of Fate—Fate incarnating as Original Sin to slaughter the Three Thousand Great Daos.
Later, he felt it wasn't a struggle between the Great Dao and Fate, but between Original Sin and Fate. The Great Dao was merely the incarnation of Fate; Original Sin wanted to slaughter the Three Thousand Great Daos to open an Era Without Dao devoid of Fate.
Gradually.
He began to feel this Calamity seemed to have little to do with Fate. The Book of Fate merely recorded prophecies of this Calamity, nothing more. Original Sin wasn't the incarnation of Fate, and the Three Thousand Great Daos certainly weren't either.
The Old Beggar then thought this Calamity was a struggle between Original Sin and the Great Dao.
It wasn't until Da Xing the Mad Monk drunkenly revealed the truth of this Calamity that the Old Beggar realized it wasn't a struggle between Original Sin and the Great Dao either, but a struggle between the Great Dao and the Three Thousand Sources.
Original Sin was the Great Dao's Original Sin, and also the Great Dao's incarnation. The purpose of Original Sin's existence was to slaughter the Three Thousand Sources. It was precisely because of the existence of the Three Thousand Sources that the Great Dao became riddled with holes and decayed. In other words, the Three Thousand Sources were the root cause of the crime.
Only by slaughtering the Three Thousand Sources could the Great Dao break and then be reborn, undergoing nirvanic rebirth.
The Old Beggar thought this was the truth of the Calamity, its meaning.
However.
Only after listening to Cang Yan's words did he finally understand: the truth of this Calamity might indeed be slaughtering the Three Thousand Sources so the Great Dao could break and be reborn, undergoing nirvanic rebirth.
But this was merely the truth of the Calamity.
The meaning of this Calamity was to redeem the Ego, transcend the Original Self, and seek the True Self.
This was true for the Great Dao.
And it was true for all present: the Original Sin Variables, the Calamity-Destined Constants, the Great Dao Destinies, the Sons of Original Sin, and the Ancestral Patriarchs of the various blessed lands and cave heavens.
Just as Cang Yan said, the Great Dao had lost its Ego. Perhaps it had lost its Ego the moment it gave birth to the Three Thousand Sources. In this long process of being lost, as the Three Thousand Sources grew increasingly decayed, the Great Dao gradually realized that giving birth to the Three Thousand Sources was a mistake.
Only by slaughtering the Three Thousand Sources could it redeem its Ego. Only by redeeming its Ego could it transcend its Original Self. Only by transcending its Original Self could it seek its True Self. And only by slaughtering the Three Thousand Sources could the Great Dao undergo nirvanic rebirth.
For figures like Floating Life Emperor, Changfeng Great Emperor, Lady Wuyue, Empress of Tianzong, and others, they were born of the Three Thousand Great Daos, grew up within them, and were shaped by them.
They owed the Three Thousand Great Daos a debt of gratitude.
Now that the Three Thousand Great Daos were destined to be slaughtered, they had come to repay that debt.
They could not save the Three Thousand Great Daos, nor would they try. The only ones they could save were the Great Dao Ancestral Patriarchs gathered here.
Because these Great Dao Ancestral Patriarchs carried the hope of the Three Thousand Great Daos. Only if these Patriarchs survived could the Three Thousand Great Daos continue to be passed down after this Calamity.
The Immortal Dao was not a sin. The Demonic Dao was not a sin. The Buddhist Dao, the Heavenly Dao, the Sage Dao—none were sins. The sin lay only with the Great Dao's Three Thousand Sources.
The so-called Era Without Dao did not mean the absence of the Dao.
The Dao, vast and majestic, would endure eternally, immortal, passed down since antiquity.
The Three Thousand Great Daos would also continue to exist. It was only the Three Thousand Sources that would be gone.
This was the Great Dao returning to its origin.
He understood.
The Old Beggar finally understood.
After understanding, the Old Beggar's heart held an indescribable feeling—part self-mockery, part lament.
He mocked himself for being too ignorant, too foolish, too overestimating his own abilities, thinking he had seen through the puzzle when from the very beginning he had been nothing but a frog at the bottom of a well.
He lamented, lamenting how truly insignificant he was, as insignificant as an ant.
That was exactly how he felt.
Especially when looking at existences like Floating Life Emperor, Changfeng Great Emperor, and the various Empresses. They had long since seen through the puzzle of this Calamity, penetrated its truth and meaning. And himself? In this Calamity, he was like a blind man—not only unable to see through or penetrate it, sometimes he couldn't even understand what he heard.
For example, right now. Cang Yan had already laid out the truth and meaning of this Calamity in full, yet the Old Beggar still had many things he couldn't figure out.
He had never been able to understand why Calamity-Destined Constants like Floating Life Emperor and the various Empresses all swore so vehemently that the Spiritual Awareness and Demonic Thoughts on You Di could not be touched.
How exactly did they see that?
Why were they so certain that no one could scheme for the Spiritual Awareness and Demonic Thoughts on You Di?
And how were they so sure that the Great Dao's Three Thousand Sources would definitely be slaughtered?
How did they know that severing karma with the Three Thousand Great Daos could redeem the Ego, transcend the Original Self, and seek the True Self?
Could it be they deduced it all long, long ago?
Since the various Empresses could plant karmic seeds on You Di, it showed their deduction abilities were extremely formidable. If they said they deduced the truth and meaning of this Calamity, it wasn't impossible.
But what about Floating Life Emperor, Changfeng Great Emperor, and Xuanyang Imperial King?
They hadn't planted karmic seeds on You Di. How then did they determine that the Spiritual Awareness and Demonic Thoughts on You Di could not be touched?
That the Great Dao's Three Thousand Sources would definitely be slaughtered?
How did they know severing karma with the Three Thousand Great Daos could lead to seeking the True Self?
Could it be simply because they were Calamity-Destined Constants?
Hard to say!
Really hard to say.
If the truth of this Calamity was indeed to redeem the Ego, transcend the Original Self, and seek the True Self...
Then these so-called Calamity-Destined Constants were probably destined for a Calamity of Redemption, a Calamity of Transcendence, a Calamity of Seeking.
Perhaps these Calamity-Destined Constants, as they sank deeper into this Calamity, gradually comprehended its truth and meaning, and also comprehended the tribulation they themselves were destined to face.