Whether this trap was set by Jun Xuanji or not, Gu Qingfeng did not know, and at this moment, he did not want to know.
Whether it was or wasn't.
Even if it truly was, Gu Qingfeng would still throw himself into it without hesitation, like a moth flying into a flame.
Why?
No reason. Simply because she was Jun Xuanji, that was all.
As for everything else, it was unimportant. What mattered was that Jun Xuanji was sealed within this Taixuan Stele.
That was the only thing he cared about.
"Layman Gu, you ultimately cannot let go of Jun Xuanji. She has long since become the obsession in your heart."
The sighing, regretful voice of the Old Monk from within the Extinct Bone Jade slowly drifted over: "Regardless of who set or controls this trap, it has already succeeded...
If there were only a Yanyang Heart inside the Taixuan Stele, whether Layman Gu would enter might be an unknown. But if Jun Xuanji is also inside, Layman Gu will undoubtedly choose to enter without hesitation."
"Old Monk, I am not a Buddha. I am merely a Human. All Humans possess emotions and desires, and I am no exception. Some people are not ones you can simply forget just because you wish to. Some feelings are not ones you can simply let go of just because you want to."
"The word 'love' is the greatest inner demon for those who cultivate. If Layman Gu does not sever these ties of affection, does not extinguish this obsession, your path of cultivation will inevitably be fraught with countless demonic obstacles."
"I have no interest whatsoever in cultivation. I have never considered myself a cultivator. I said I am merely a Human, and a very, very ordinary one at that. I have no lofty ideals, nor any grand aspirations. I only wish to do what I want to do, nothing more."
"Is this the fundamental reason why Layman Gu once bowed before the Buddha and sought to comprehend our Buddha's Great Freedom?"
"What else did you think it was?"
"Layman Gu comprehended our Buddha's Great Freedom just so you could act as you please?"
"To follow my own path, to act as I wish, to be free and unfettered."
"Sigh...
Great Freedom, Great Freedom... truly is Great Freedom..." The Old Monk sighed once more, as if deeply helpless.
Gu Qingfeng continued to sense.
The Buddha Light grew more resplendent, the sutra chanting grew stronger.
When the sky was filled with Buddha Light, when the sky was filled with sutra chanting, Gu Qingfeng's spirit seemed to enter a mysterious Buddha realm.
Vast, boundless Buddha Light filled the heavens, and solemn, dignified sutra chanting and Buddha sounds also filled the skies.
The Buddha Light filling the heavens seemed to purify everything, absolutely everything.
The sutra chanting filling the heavens seemed to deliver all beings, absolutely everything.
This was a world of Buddha, like a sky full of divine Buddhas, inspiring immense awe.
Especially the ancient, dilapidated Buddha Statue standing in the void, which made Gu Qingfeng's spirit tremble.
Gazing at this ancient Buddha Statue, the awe in his heart grew even more intense, as if innate, or deeply ingrained.
Where was this?
Gu Qingfeng did not know.
An illusion?
Or a secret realm?
Or something else?
He did not know. The only thing he could be sure of was that this place was no longer the mortal world, nor was it within heaven and earth.
Besides the Buddha Light and sutra chanting filling the sky, there was also a sky full of Blood Sea, and a solitary moon slowly rising. Within the solitary moon stood a woman.
Three thousand strands of white hair.
Clad in black robes.
Stunningly beautiful, breathtaking.
Peerless and matchless.
It was Jun Xuanji.
She stood within the solitary moon, stirring up a Blood Sea, as if contending against the Buddha Light filling the heavens.
"What have I forgotten? What am I losing myself in? Who am I...
Who exactly am I..." Jun Xuanji was furious to the extreme. The Blood Sea permeating the firmament surged skyward, devouring everything.
At this moment.
The Buddha Aura grew even stronger, the sutra chanting and Buddha sounds also became clearer. If before it seemed like ten thousand ancient Buddhas were chanting, now it was like a hundred million ancient Buddhas chanting.
"What—have you done to me!
Why have I forgotten...
Why!"
Whoosh!
Jun Xuanji's Blood Sea flooded the entire world, yet it alone could not flood the Buddha Statue standing in the void.
"Let me out—let me out!" Jun Xuanji raged, the Blood Sea churned madly, the blood moon rose wantonly...
But it was useless.
No matter how furious Jun Xuanji was, no matter how the Blood Sea churned, no matter how the blood moon rose, it could never flood that Buddha Statue.
Let alone flood it, it couldn't even touch it.
The ancient Buddha seemed to stand in the void, yet also seemed not to belong to this Buddha realm, which was particularly miraculous.
As the Buddha Aura grew stronger and stronger, as the sutra chanting grew more and more vast, Jun Xuanji's figure grew weaker and weaker.
She was, the Blood Sea was, the solitary moon was.
The Blood Sea dried up within the Buddha Aura, the solitary moon flickered amidst the sutra chanting, until the Blood Sea was exhausted, until the solitary moon dispersed, and Jun Xuanji's figure also fell from the void.
Perhaps she was too weak. When she fell to the ground, a long time passed before her figure gradually stood up, but she was trembling, unsteady on her feet. Just as she was about to fall again, Gu Qingfeng's figure arrived instantly, catching her in his arms.
Her stunningly beautiful face was devoid of any color, deathly pale. Her profound eyes gazed at Gu Qingfeng with complex emotions. She bit her lip lightly, shook her head slightly, and said weakly, "Why...
Why must you come in...
Why must you seek Karma..." "You clearly knew this was a trap, why did you still come in..." "I really want to tell you, but I've truly forgotten...
I can't remember anything. Perhaps...
Perhaps this trap really was set by me..." "Even if it was you, I accept it."
Hearing this, Jun Xuanji's delicate body trembled slightly. The heartbreakingly beautiful expression on her face grew even more complex. Her beautiful eyes gazed at Gu Qingfeng, just gazed, for a long time, before she murmured, "Why?"
"Between heaven and earth, there are many things without reason."
"You...
You can't forget me, can you?"
Just as Gu Qingfeng, holding her, was about to respond, Jun Xuanji's slender jade-like hand was already placed over his mouth. She shook her head slightly, then nestled into Gu Qingfeng's embrace, whispering softly, "I don't want to know the answer. I don't want to know why you came in...
I'm so tired, so tired..." "Where is your true body? Where is your soul?"
After entering, Gu Qingfeng realized that the Jun Xuanji here was, like himself, merely a wisp of spirit. He swept his senses out, but within this world, he found no trace of Jun Xuanji's true body or soul.
Jun Xuanji wrapped her arms around Gu Qingfeng's neck, nestled in his embrace, pressed against his chest, and shook her head in response. "I don't know...
Forgotten...
I've forgotten everything..." Gu Qingfeng looked around, then carried Jun Xuanji to a large tree, intending to set her down. But Jun Xuanji clung tightly, refusing to let go.
"I am here!"
"I'm afraid...
I'm afraid if...
If this trap really was...
Set for you by me..." "It wasn't you."
Gu Qingfeng gazed at the Buddha Statue that seemed to stand atop the dome of the firmament and said, "You are merely the bait."