He had no idea how much time had passed.
Gu Qingfeng truly didn't know. When he discovered his physical body was beginning to awaken from its slumber, he gradually regained sensation.
When he opened his eyes, there was only darkness; he couldn't see a thing.
After a long while, the darkness gradually dispersed, turning hazy and blurred until it grew clearer and clearer.
He tried to sit up, feeling his entire body soft and limp, without a shred of strength.
This wasn't Gu Qingfeng's first Nirvana Silence Rebirth, so he wasn't surprised. Every Nirvana Silence Rebirth left one utterly debilitated. This weakness wasn't of the physical body, but a depletion of essence, energy, and spirit that required long years to recover.
Fortunately, Gu Qingfeng was already accustomed to it.
He didn't feel particularly uncomfortable either.
Upon opening his eyes, the first thing he did was roll up his sleeve and look at his left arm. Sure enough, his left arm was covered in mysterious crimson-gray patterns, like vascular imprints. He tried moving it and felt nothing amiss; his wrist and fingers responded well enough.
He wondered if this Original Sin arm of his was also in a chaotic state due to the Nirvana Silence Rebirth?
He didn't know.
Gu Qingfeng couldn't be bothered to trouble himself over it.
He looked around. This seemed to be a bedroom.
The bedroom was very simple.
Apart from a bed and a meditation cushion, there was nothing else.
However, the spiritual energy within the bedroom was quite abundant. Gu Qingfeng observed that the room was enveloped by two formations: one was a Spirit-Gathering Formation, and the other was actually a Vitality-Gathering Formation.
The Spirit-Gathering Formation was a must-learn formation for every cultivator; with such a formation in place, one could safely absorb the natural spiritual energy.
As for the Vitality-Gathering Formation, this was used for healing injuries and replenishing vitality.
And Gu Qingfeng was the only one in the bedroom.
Clearly, these were arranged for him.
"Seems I've met a kind soul."
Although Gu Qingfeng possessed the heaven-defying ability of Nirvana Silence Rebirth,
it was merely an ability he possessed.
As for where his physical body would undergo Nirvana Silence Rebirth, he didn't know and couldn't control it. While he wasn't worried about his reborn body encountering danger, running into a kind soul was, after all, good luck and something worth being happy about. At least he didn't have to worry about being mistaken for a fellow creature and trampled by some beast.
Getting off the bed, Gu Qingfeng stretched his limbs, then walked over and opened the door.
Outside.
The sunlight was bright, rather glaring.
The weather seemed quite nice.
In his chaotic consciousness, Gu Qingfeng had no concept of time at all, nor did he know how long he had slept this time. He only felt it shouldn't have been short.
Looking around, he found this was a private garden.
Within the garden, birds sang and flowers bloomed.
The scenery was pleasant.
Gu Qingfeng originally intended to release his divine sense to investigate, but after some thought, he decided against it. Having just awakened, his essence, energy, and spirit were utterly depleted; it wasn't suitable to use divine sense. Observing carefully, he surmised the owner of this private garden must be someone either wealthy or noble. If nothing else, just the multiple formations enveloping the garden indicated this was no ordinary cultivator.
Strolling around a bit more solidified his inner guess. Moreover, he discovered this wasn't a private garden at all, but an extremely imposing mansion.
What puzzled Gu Qingfeng even more was that he kept feeling this place was somewhat familiar, as if he had been here before, yet he couldn't recall it for the moment.
He wanted to find someone to ask,
but discovered such a large mansion actually had not a single person.
He wandered through several private gardens in succession, all empty.
This was truly strange.
Gu Qingfeng returned to the original private garden and sat on the stone stool in the pavilion. He originally intended to take out some fine wine for a couple of sips, but when he willed it, there was no response. Looking down, he realized there was no storage pouch at his waist. Thinking it over carefully, he couldn't help but shake his head and smile.
This robe of his was refined back in the day using the Nine Nethers Ancestral Flame along with numerous heaven-and-earth treasures and his own blood essence. It had long since fused with his physical body, so naturally, he didn't need to worry about it during Nirvana Silence Rebirth.
But the storage pouch was different.
Although he had also refined it, it was, after all, just a storage pouch.
It could neither withstand the judgment of heaven and earth, nor could it be reborn along with his physical body's Nirvana Silence.
Therefore, before the judgment of heaven and earth descended, he had handed his storage pouch to Xiao Jinr for safekeeping.
Thinking of Xiao Jinr, Gu Qingfeng's mind involuntarily conjured the image of that innocent, well-behaved, and adorable little girl.
"I don't know what year it is now, nor how Xiao Jinr is doing..." Gu Qingfeng knew Xiao Jinr's existence was special, so special that even he didn't know exactly what kind of existence the little girl was.
Of course.
He didn't care.
Just for Xiao Jinr's innocence, her well-behaved cuteness, and that one call of "Big Brother" was enough. Especially when the judgment of heaven and earth descended, Xiao Jinr had said very seriously that she would wait for him, until the end of time.
Even now, remembering it filled Gu Qingfeng's heart with emotion.
He was an orphan, without father or mother, and had no concept of familial affection since childhood. Growing up, apart from fighting and killing, there was still fighting and killing, and nothing more. Xiao Jinr's appearance made him feel something akin to familial affection.
This feeling was beautiful, so beautiful that Gu Qingfeng would not easily let go, nor abandon it, and would not allow anyone to destroy it.
Just as he was sighing with emotion,
footsteps approached.
Gu Qingfeng turned to look. A person walked into the private garden.
It was a tall, strapping young man, broad-shouldered and thick-waisted, wearing only a pair of long pants, his bare upper body covered in firm, sinewy muscles. Especially his two arms, the bulging muscles seemed to contain explosive power, quite eye-catching.
This bare-chested fellow held a double-ringed broadsword, as if he had just been practicing some fierce martial art, drenched in sweat.
When he entered the private garden and saw Gu Qingfeng sitting there, his expression also froze. A pair of tiger-like eyes widened in surprise as he said, "Little brother, you...
you're awake?"
"That's right, I'm awake."
Gu Qingfeng looked the imposing, majestic man up and down, discovering this fellow's cultivation was quite good—he had cultivated a Nascent Soul Dharma Aspect, and what's more, a Dharma Aspect of great fortune. Focusing his gaze, he thought, *Well now, it's actually the rare Vajra Great Dharma Aspect.*
This was a Buddhist Great Dharma Aspect.
And Buddhist Dharma Aspects weren't something just anyone could cultivate; it required Buddhist affinity. Those without affinity with Buddhism, no matter how high their talent or comprehension, could not cultivate it.
Clearly.
This man had affinity with Buddhism.
And it was genuine affinity.
Because Gu Qingfeng not only saw that this fellow possessed a Buddhist Nascent Soul Dharma Aspect, but even his treasure body was a Buddhist treasure body—the Buddhist Immovable Mountain Treasure Body. This thing was even rarer and harder to come by. It was said that with such a fortunate treasure body, the physical strength might not be particularly powerful, but the toughness of the physical body was like a Buddhist mountain; no matter how great your strength, you could hardly shake it in the slightest.