Jun Xuanji vanished.
After uttering a string of mad ravings, she vanished completely, disappearing without a trace.
Jun Xuanji was lost and bewildered, but at this moment, Gu Qingfeng felt he was even more lost and bewildered than she was.
Gazing in the direction where Jun Xuanji had disappeared, Gu Qingfeng carefully recalled the words she had just spoken.
What did she mean by saying she was Jun Xuanji, yet she wasn't?
What did she mean by saying he had never awakened, and had never slumbered...
What did she mean by never forgetting, and what did she mean by never being lost...
The Sea of Bitterness?
Waiting for me?
Waiting all along?
What in the world was all this!
Gu Qingfeng couldn't understand, nor could he figure it out. At this moment, he had neither the mood nor the energy to ponder Jun Xuanji's nonsensical, rambling madness.
He had to purify the evil nature of the Avici Uninterrupted Evil Asura as soon as possible. Otherwise, it wouldn't just be Jun Xuanji who was lost; Gu Qingfeng himself would also lose his sense of self.
Purifying the evil nature of the Avici Uninterrupted Evil Asura was, for Gu Qingfeng, both difficult and easy.
It was easy because Gu Qingfeng had lost himself many times in this lifetime. He had lost himself due to demonic nature no less than ten times. Finding his way back from being lost might be an unimaginable feat for others, but for Gu Qingfeng, it was nothing extraordinary. Having been lost so many times and having found his way back just as many, he was thoroughly experienced and familiar with the path.
It was difficult because all previous instances were due to demonic nature, while this time it was due to evil nature—and specifically, the evil nature belonging to the Avici Uninterrupted Evil Asura. Although he had once lost himself due to the evil nature of the Avici Uninterrupted Evil Asura before and later successfully regained his self-awareness, that time had been far too perilous.
He had almost completely succumbed, completely lost.
Therefore, this time, Gu Qingfeng did not have absolute confidence that he could regain his sense of self from the evil nature of the Avici Uninterrupted Evil Asura.
Suppress the evil nature?
If the evil nature of this thing could be suppressed, it wouldn't be the Avici Uninterrupted Evil Asura!
After Jun Xuanji vanished, Gu Qingfeng simply stopped suppressing it, allowing the Avici Uninterrupted Evil Asura to devour his consciousness and spirit bit by bit.
Was he afraid?
Was he terrified?
No!
Not in the slightest. He wasn't even worried.
In Gu Qingfeng's personal dictionary, fear and terror had never existed. In his five hundred years of cultivation, he had experienced life-and-death situations far too many times; he had long grown numb to them. As for losing himself or succumbing, he was already accustomed to that too.
He simply waited.
Waited, bored.
As he waited, he recalled the events that had transpired at the Taixuan Stele.
To be honest, even now, Gu Qingfeng didn't know whether the trap at the Taixuan Stele was set by Jun Xuanji or by the Buddhas of the Western Heaven.
It seemed like a trap set by the Buddhas of the Western Heaven. However, Jun Xuanji was far too mysterious and bizarre. Gu Qingfeng had never been able to see through her—not in the past, and even less so now. Coupled with Jun Xuanji's current state of madness after being lost, she was truly unfathomable.
Regardless of whether this trap was Jun Xuanji's doing, at least one thing Gu Qingfeng was certain of: the Buddhas of the Western Heaven wanted him dead.
This.
Gu Qingfeng would not forget.
Originally, having by luck survived the Calamity, Gu Qingfeng had already wanted to stop stirring up trouble. But now, it seemed he truly couldn't avoid it.
What was destined to come would always come...
What needed to be faced would always have to be faced...
As if predestined by fate.
Suddenly, Gu Qingfeng remembered the Old Monk inside the Extinct Bone Jade. He clearly recalled a sentence the Old Monk had said during their last discussion about karma: he had asked Gu Qingfeng to show mercy and leave a way out for the Buddhist sect on his path of seeking karma.
At the time, Gu Qingfeng had been puzzled. Why would the Old Monk, out of the blue, ask him to leave a way out for the Buddhist sect?
Now, thinking back, this Old Monk had known from the very beginning that the Buddhist sect would make a move against him.
Thinking of this, Gu Qingfeng smiled.
He didn't feel surprised in the slightest.
In his impression, the Old Monk inside the Extinct Bone Jade had always been omniscient. What made Gu Qingfeng helpless was that while the Old Monk knew, he never told him. Even when he brought something up, his words were ambiguous, never spelling things out clearly.
Just then, a sigh echoed within his consciousness.
The sigh came from the Extinct Bone Jade. Who else could it be but the Old Monk.
"Well, well, Old Monk, still awake?"
"Amitabha!"
The Old Monk's voice was as heavy as ever. Each word carried the weight of countless years, making one's scalp tingle. It was also as unstoppable as a force of nature, impossible to ignore.
"The evil nature of the Avici Uninterrupted Evil Asura is eroding Layman Gu's spirit and will. Yet, Layman Gu still has the mood to joke with this old monk."
"What else? How about you teach me a method to suppress the evil nature of the Avici Uninterrupted Evil Asura?"
"The evil nature of the Avici Uninterrupted Evil Asura is the ultimate in heaven and earth. This old monk has no method either."
"There you have it. Since it can't be suppressed, might as well let it erode."
"Amitabha..." The Old Monk's chant was filled with helplessness. "In all of heaven and earth, only Layman Gu is worthy of and can bear the title of My Buddha's Great Freedom..."
"My Buddha?
Old Monk, if I recall correctly, you once said you are not a Buddha, or rather, you ceased to be a Buddha long ago."
"Layman Gu, since you know, why ask a question to which you already know the answer?"
Know.
How could Gu Qingfeng not know.
The moment the Old Monk uttered the words "My Buddha," Gu Qingfeng had already guessed that the Old Monk wanted to plead for the Buddhas of the Western Heaven.
Sure enough, the Old Monk's voice continued, "The Dao of Karma is of immense importance. It concerns the lives of all under heaven, it concerns the Three Thousand Great Daos, and it even concerns the very source of heaven and earth. Karma also originated because of My Buddha. My Buddha has the responsibility and the duty to protect karma."
"Layman Gu's existence has made My Buddha uneasy. To be precise, Layman Gu's karma has shown signs of causing chaos in the Dao of Karma..."
"And then?"
Gu Qingfeng was in no hurry, waiting for the Old Monk to continue.
"After the Calamity, the origin of heaven and earth was reborn, order was reorganized, the Great Dao was re-derived. Karma is no exception, and neither is My Buddha."
"My Buddha is still in slumber and has not awakened. The matter of making a move against Layman Gu is unknown to My Buddha. The eight Buddhist sects presiding over the Western Heaven are merely some Buddhist disciples who only know the surface of the Dao of Karma. Their offense against Layman Gu this time was truly foolish and ignorant."
"I understand. The Buddha of the Western Heaven is in slumber due to the Calamity. Those who want to kill me are just some disciples of your Buddhist sect. Your meaning is, you want me to let them off?"
"Although this old monk wishes for Layman Gu to be magnanimous, I also know Layman Gu's principles in life. The eight pure-land Buddhist sects of the Western Heaven have already crossed Layman Gu's bottom line. Even if this old monk tried to persuade you, Layman Gu would not listen."
"Since you know, why say so much?"
"Alas, Layman Gu, why ask a question to which you already know the answer..."
Gu Qingfeng shook his head and replied, "Old Monk, my mind isn't very sharp. I truly don't know what you're talking about."
"The Wrath Incarnation of Great Sun Tathagata is of utmost importance to My Buddha. I hope Layman Gu will return it to My Buddha..."