Da Fuzi was Gu Qingfeng's benefactor.
He was also a senior whom Gu Qingfeng held in the highest esteem, a very, very old senior—so old that he didn't even belong to Gu Qingfeng's era.
In Gu Qingfeng's memory, Da Fuzi had always been detached from worldly strife, his heart as still as water, living the life of a hermit. Back when Gu Qingfeng founded the Chixiao Sect, it had taken immense effort to invite this old senior to emerge from seclusion. That the Chixiao Sect was able to rise rapidly, traverse the world, wage war across the lands, overthrow the Immortal Dynasty, and then withdraw unscathed—at least half the credit belonged to Da Fuzi.
Hearing now that the Red Gang was established by Da Fuzi filled Gu Qingfeng with deep puzzlement.
Of course.
Puzzled though he was.
Gu Qingfeng harbored no suspicion. Based on his understanding of Da Fuzi, if the old master had established the Red Gang, there must have been another reason.
"After the Monarch eradicated the Immortal Dynasty," Old Sen began, his face filled with reverence, his eyes sparkling with fervent admiration, "although the order of this world fell into chaos, out of respect for the Monarch's august might, no one in all the lands dared to act recklessly. Not the great sects, great gangs, or great families; not the demons; not the ghosts and monsters; not even the Immortals of the Nine Heavens. For a time, the world was at peace."
"To benefit all living beings, the Monarch, with supreme means, defied the heavens, seized the creation of nature, raised the radiance of the great sun, and bathed the world in the Light of Life. Furthermore, he cleaved the Yunxiao, opened the Spirit River, and irrigated the world with Yunxiao Spirit Rain for three full years."
"Back then, what fell from the great sun was the Light of Life; what descended from the heavens was Yunxiao Spirit Rain. Across the world, all things revived, spring returned to the earth. Gaining this heaven-sent fortune, people broke through, became Immortals, ascended. There was no one under heaven who did not bow in worship to the Chixiao Monarch."
As he spoke these words, Old Sen's face was full of veneration, his eyes shining with excited worship. But soon, the reverence in his expression faded, the admiration in his eyes dissipated, replaced by regret and anger.
"Alas, it did not last long. Three years later, after the Monarch buried the Chixiao Sect and vanished following the judgment of the Immortal Dao, the order of this world began to descend into chaos."
"Sects fought sects, gangs fought gangs, families fought families, slaughtering each other for resources, seizing mountains to proclaim themselves kings. Demons, ghosts, and monsters also seized the opportunity to emerge into the world, wreaking havoc."
Old Sen bowed his head, recalling that era, shaking his head with a sigh while simmering with anger.
He sighed for the Monarch's departure.
He raged at the desires of mortals.
"Back then, this world was in utter chaos, the people plunged into misery, voices of resentment rising everywhere. To quell the calamity and restore peace to the world, Da Fuzi and the others had no choice but to step forward. They originally intended to rebuild the Chixiao Sect, but before vanishing, the Monarch had decreed that no one was to use the name 'Chixiao' to exist. Therefore, Da Fuzi and the others took the character 'Chi' from 'Chixiao'. First, this did not violate the Monarch's injunction. Second, we who were once of Chixiao, now and forever in lifetimes to come, will always be people of Chixiao."
At this point, Old Sen's tone became forceful, filled with righteous indignation.
"Third, and more importantly, to warn all under heaven: do not think that just because the Monarch has vanished and Chixiao is gone, you can commit evil deeds. The Monarch may have vanished, the Chixiao Sect may have been destroyed, but the Monarch's Chixiao spirit endures forever."
"Da Fuzi and the others gathered all the Chixiao brothers under heaven, reorganized the Red Gang, and marched out once more. In the name of 'Chi', they quelled the chaos, suppressed the demons, and restored peace to the world."
After saying this, Old Sen's emotions took a long time to settle.
Inside the pavilion.
Gu Qingfeng drank his wine, listening attentively to every word Old Sen said.
When he heard that Da Fuzi had formed the Red Gang, he had more or less guessed this was the reason.
Only if the world fell into great chaos would Da Fuzi act in such a way.
He still clearly remembered when he bid farewell to Da Fuzi after burying the Chixiao Sect.
Da Fuzi had urged him not to bury the Chixiao Sect, not to vanish.
If he buried the Chixiao Sect and vanished, the world would surely fall into great chaos.
Back then, Gu Qingfeng had not believed it. For that reason, he had braved incurring a body of sin to defy the heavens, seize the creation of nature, raise the radiance of the great sun, bathe the world in the Light of Life, cleave the Yunxiao, open the Spirit River, and bring down the Nine Heavens Spirit Rain.
He did this to make up for the indirect harm and losses caused to all living beings during the years of waging war across the world.
He also wanted to stabilize the people, benefit the world, and allow everyone to achieve Immortality and attain the Dao.
Back then, Gu Qingfeng had thought that after he did this, everyone would abide by their duties and cultivate, seeking the Immortal Dao.
Thinking back on it now, he had been too naive.
It was all thanks to Da Fuzi reorganizing the Red Gang to pacify the chaos, otherwise...
His sin would have been immense.
"After quelling the chaos and stabilizing the world's order, Da Fuzi originally intended to disband the Red Gang. It was only after we pleaded bitterly that he finally agreed. Da Fuzi told us that when the Monarch buried the Chixiao Sect back then, it was also because he did not wish to implicate us. If the Red Gang wished to continue, it must adhere to governing by non-action, contending not for fame or profit, seizing not power or influence, suppressing demons and monsters, guarding the borders."
Gu Qingfeng nodded in approval, praising Da Fuzi's concept of non-action.
And he understood even more clearly that Da Fuzi had spent his entire life contemplating those two words: non-action.
Since the Red Gang existed because of non-action, he was much more at ease.
"How many of the brothers from the old Chixiao Sect days remain now?"
"I do not know."
Old Sen shook his head in response. "When we were quelling the chaos back then, we did not lose many brothers. It was during the Great Calamity, while defending the world's peace, that many were injured, many died...
Alas, as for how many brothers from the old Chixiao Sect days remain, I do not know."
As if remembering something, Old Sen sighed again. "After the Great Calamity, the old brothers of the Chixiao Sect all entered seclusion for various reasons. Many brothers have yet to emerge even now. Some are in quiet recuperation...
Others are in seclusion..." Gu Qingfeng could hear a trace of helplessness in Old Sen's tone and asked, "What is the reason?"
Old Sen did not respond immediately. Instead, he looked up at Gu Qingfeng, then lowered his head again, hesitating for a long time before slowly speaking. "When Da Fuzi led us to quell the chaos back then, it was not smooth sailing. Although the Three Sect Overlords, the Six Path Kings and Marquises, the Great Hall Generals and Ministers, the Heavenly Gang and Earthly Fiends were all heroes of that generation who beheaded Immortals and slaughtered Demons... the departure of the Monarch was a devastating blow to everyone. The spirits of the various overlords were very low..." "To quell the chaos, Da Fuzi had no choice but to expand the Red Gang's numbers...
Even though Da Fuzi knew these people each had their own selfish motives, for the sake of the world's peace, he could only accept it for the time being. These people were fine for a while at first, only..." "Only what?"
Gu Qingfeng listened intently, asking softly.
"Only...
After the Great Calamity, as Da Fuzi went into seclusion, and we brothers of the Chixiao Sect died, were injured, or entered seclusion... those newcomers gradually began to forget the Monarch's spirit, forget the purpose of the Deficit Head, forget that the Red Gang existed because of non-action...
Especially the descendants of these people, who even flaunt the name of the Deficit Head..." Old Sen did not finish, sighing once more. "If the Monarch were still here, how would these people dare..."