That night.
The moonlight was dim, the stars faint and sparse.
On a desolate mountain range, a man in white stood at the peak, gazing at the full moon in the night sky, drinking wine, one cup after another.
The wind at the summit was fierce, his sleeves flapping wildly in the roaring gale, his long hair dancing chaotically across his stern face.
The night was desolate, the moon cold and lonely, the man solitary.
The wine was peach blossom wine.
The man was Gu Qingfeng.
However, this Gu Qingfeng lacked some of his usual laziness and leisure, some of his carefree ease. Instead, there was more loneliness, more solitude, a sense of hesitation, bewilderment, and countless doubts.
Although he cultivated the Buddhist Great Freedom, he could not achieve true Great Freedom.
Often, he was not free.
Such as now.
He could disregard so-called Karma.
But.
Facing Jun Xuanji's loss, facing Yun Nishang's soul burial, facing Feng Zhuyue's slumber, he could not bring himself to not care.
In the end, he was ultimately a mundane man.
This point, Gu Qingfeng had never denied.
Even now, he could not understand just how terrifying the Karma between him and them was, to the point that it made them so fearful they lacked the courage to face it.
Sea of Bitterness?
What was the Sea of Bitterness?
Curse?
And what kind of Curse was it?
Gu Qingfeng had always thought he was just an ordinary person, merely a bit luckier. But as he encountered more people and events, he increasingly realized his existence was probably not ordinary. Perhaps from the moment of his birth, he was destined to be inseparable from the so-called Previous Life. Or perhaps, the Karma of his Previous Life had destined his birth.
He did not want to deal with the Karma of his Previous Life.
He only wanted to settle the Karma of this life, then wander the world.
It wasn't that he didn't want to, but rather he truly lacked the heart for it.
He was a sinner, and not just a sinner of the Immortal Dao, but also a sinner of the Buddhist Dao and the Heavenly Dao. When he was in the Heavenly Realm, he had conflicts with the Three Thousand Great Daos; calling him a sinner of all Daos was not an exaggeration.
That wasn't important. What was important was that Gu Qingfeng had always been clear that the Three Thousand Great Daos regarded him as a thorn in their side. Now that they knew he was still alive, they would definitely not let him off easily. Who knew when the Three Thousand Great Daos would make a move against him.
This was certain!
It was only a matter of time.
The Three Thousand Great Daos already gave him a headache. Where did Gu Qingfeng have the heart to stir up the Karma of his Previous Life?
Especially since his own Karma was related to that mysterious Daoless Age, involving Karma black holes and cursed Seas of Bitterness. Just hearing about it gave him a headache.
Before, he had contemplated, if he could avoid one calamity, he would avoid it; if he could have less trouble, he would have less.
However.
Now he finally realized: the cause from the Previous Life, the effect in this life, were fundamentally inseparable. The Karma of this life was also the Karma of the Previous Life; the Karma of the Previous Life was also the Karma of this life. Even if he didn't want to, he now had no choice but to face it.
"The eternal calamity born of heaven and earth, three cycles of reincarnation appearing through the ages, the Karma of Previous Life and this life revealed, whose fate belongs to whom depends on heaven."
Gu Qingfeng lifted the peach blossom wine and drank it all in one gulp. Gazing at the night sky, he said, "Since the Karma of the Previous Life and this life cannot be separated, then let's simply not separate them. Since that's the case, let's start from today. This old man wants to see just how terrifying the cursed Sea of Bitterness Karma is, and by the way, witness what kind of deity my Previous Life was. Let's see who has a longer life, or whose life is tougher!"
"Whether it's the Three Thousand Great Daos or the Karma of the Previous Life, let whatever is coming come. You'd better try your damnedest to torment me to death. If you don't torment me to death, this old man will stop at nothing and slaughter you all!"
Inside the Extinct Bone Jade.
Within the ethereal space, there was an ethereal mountain. On the ethereal mountain stood an ethereal temple. Inside the ethereal temple lived an Old Monk Gu Qingfeng had never seen before.
"Sigh!
Karma, Karma, the Karma that cannot be avoided. Obsession, obsession, the obsession that cannot be let go."
The Old Monk's voice was also ethereal, so ethereal it seemed as if each word spanned ten thousand years, having passed through countless ages.
"With such a thought, the fate of all Great Daos will change because of it, the fate of heaven and earth will also change because of it, and I'm afraid even the fate of Karma will be filled with unknown transformations."
The Old Monk's voice was filled with hesitation and bewilderment, and also with anxiety and fear.
At that moment, a soft chuckle suddenly echoed through the ethereal spatial world of the Extinct Bone Jade.
The laughter was even more ethereal than the Old Monk's voice.
The Old Monk's voice was like each word spanning ten thousand years, as if passing through countless ages, with the vicissitudes of life flashing by in an instant. Yet when this laughter came, time seemed to stop flowing, as if there was no time at all.
It was a woman's laughter, filled with mockery and sarcasm.
As for this sudden woman's laughter, the Old Monk did not seem the least bit surprised, almost as if he recognized it. He asked, "Female Benefactor, it has been a while. I trust you have been well."
"Hehehehe..." The mysterious Female Benefactor did not respond, but continued laughing, her laughter even more mocking.
"I wonder why the Female Benefactor mocks this old monk."
"Why?
Hehehe...
I laugh at you...
Laugh at you for toiling in vain for so long, for all these years of earnest persuasion and guidance, yet in the end, you still couldn't stop him. He has ultimately decided to set foot on this path...
Your Buddhist Great Freedom still couldn't withstand the obsession in his heart, could it?"
"My Buddha's Great Freedom does not fail to withstand the obsession in his heart, but fails to withstand a single word: 'love'."
The Old Monk added, "The word 'love' is the greatest variable between heaven and earth. This has been true since ancient times."
"Whether it's for obsession or for love, is there any difference?
In any case, he has decided to set foot on this path."
"Him setting foot on this path holds no benefit for you, Female Benefactor."
"Not only does it hold no benefit for me, if he sets foot on this path, it holds no benefit for anyone. Not only does it hold no benefit, it will instead make things even worse."
"Since that is the case, why is the Female Benefactor so happy?"
"Things were already very bad, so bad that no one could predict or imagine. Since that's the case, let's simply make things even worse. Perhaps then there will be a chance for a turn of events."
"Sigh..." The Old Monk sighed, seeming utterly speechless.
"You know?
Old Monk, among all the Daoless variables, the one I admire most is him. This fellow is lazy, hopelessly lazy, the kind of laziness that seeps into the bones. All the other Daoless variables have ambitions as high as the heavens, only he lacks that heart. He only wants to live freely, unconstrained, plain and ordinary, without any pursuit, not even the slightest bit."
"However, lazy as this fellow is, his laziness has its own distinct character. He either doesn't do something, but once he resolves to do something, he will do it thoroughly, regardless of consequences, leaving no room for retreat, never stopping until he's dead!"