Bai Shou carefully folded the pair of crimson bat wings. She'd used the movement gu worm to bait Wang Nan and feign weakness in the most decisive moment of the battle. However, it resulted in the gu worm being injured due to Wang Nan's offensive killer move. She felt it twitch and experienced slight pain every time she moved the wings.
After a moment, Bai Shou controlled the left wing and bent it forward.
Flying was a sophisticated profession with different types of flying-type movement gu worms requiring dedicated methods of control and tactics. Previously, Bai Shou used Rank 4 Griffin Wings Gu Worm. The wings created by that gu boasted an amazing degree of flexibility and control. Compared to that, the Crimson Bat Wings were slightly slower. Instead, they could be controlled to an even greater degree.
She had purchased this gu worm because she intended to replace Sky Griffin's phantom with an Ash Bat's phantom.
Frowning, she observed the wound on the gu worm.
Bai Shou retrieved a rank 2 gu worm from her aperture. It looked like a red maggot. Calmly placing the maggot on the gaping hole through the left wing, she controlled the rank 2 gu worm near the wound.
The maggot wriggled and began to nibble at the edges of the wound, causing Bai Shou considerable discomfort. Most wings formed using the gu worms were attached to the user's nervous system, offering intimate control if trained enough. So, injuries to the wings also shot waves of pain through the gu master's system.
Several tiny scars began to appear on the maggot's surface as it nibbled around the injury. Once it completed a rotation, the gu worm bloated and splattered into tiny pieces. From the impact also glittered several sparkling particles that caught the light in the room before vanishing as if they never existed.
Different injuries needed different methods of healing.
While Bai Shou's Self-Reliance Gu Worm was outstanding for a strength path gu master, it could only heal oneself. She needed to form an extraordinary killer move to achieve the act of sharing her strength and healing others. In tandem with the Rank 5 Multiply, Self-Reliance was enough to heal Bai Shou from Wang Nan's injuries.
However, an injured gu worm was a different matter.
Wang Nan's methods were cruel and vicious. His attacks left several sword path dao marks on the body, obstructing one's healing gu worms. But the same thing on a gu worm was a more complicated mess.
Bai Shou had to use the rank 2 gu worm to remove the remnants of the sword path dao marks on the wings. Subsequently, the healing process became less complicated. Soon, Bai Shou controlled a pair of healed bat wings, observing the reaction time and control she had over the gu worm before nodding in satisfaction.
Settling down, she began going through her gains. Adding the Rank 5 Beating Refinement in her gu set had been a remarkable decision since she didn't spend more than five minutes to refine Wang Nan's gu worms.
Wang Nan's demise also caused his vital gu to perish. So, Bai Shou did not obtain the Rank 5 Sword Leap Gu.
Still, her gains were… luxuriating.
She couldn't help but smirk at the loot.
Wang Nan did not have a single rank 3 gu worm. And if he had any life-saving treasures, they must be rare because Bai Shou preserved the man's corpse, and it hadn't moved an inch.
Feeling giddy, the Chained Wanderer began inspecting her loot one gu at a time.
First was the Rank 4 Hidden Blade Gu. It concealed the presence of one's gu worms. Wang Nan probably used this gu worm in almost all his attacks because Bai Shou hadn't sensed most of his killer moves except for the ones using the rank 5 gu worm.
Next was one of the more troubling gu worms in Wang Nan's arsenal, the Rank 4 Cut Strength Gu. As Bai Shou experienced before, the Cut Strength Gu directly targeted one's physical status and couldn't be avoided. Unlike the more indiscriminate Expend Strength, which created a dome of influence to impact friends and foes alike, the Cut Strength Gu was the opposite and could be used with precision. Unfortunately, Bai Shou wasn't a sword path gu master.
Wang Nan had a surprisingly outstanding defensive gu worm. It was Rank 4 Scatter Sheath Gu. This gu worm was best used against physical attacks, preventing any damage to the user. But it was useless against formless impacts. That was why Wang Nan was forced away like a ragdoll whenever Bai Shou struck the man but ultimately failed to injure him until she surpassed the scope of the rank 4 gu worm's ability to scatter after increasing her output by a considerable margin.
The Rank 4 Sword Qi Gu was different from Bai Shou's Strength Qi Gu. The Strength Qi Gu increased the power of one's attack by four times after expending four times the primeval essence. Furthermore, when used alongside the strength path beast phantoms, it breathes life into the phantoms and turns them corporeal.
Meanwhile, Sword Qi Gu offered a solid long-range option. Those lasers and sword phantoms must have used this gu worm. Furthermore, several of Wang Nan's attacks could be broken with enough strength, but they would turn into strands of sword qi and struck Bai Shou every time.
Rank 4 Longsword Gu worm was a slightly more… usual gu worm. Still, it was an outstanding gu worm. It rested in one's hand and created a brand-new longsword with enough primeval essence.
Bai Shou had already plundered the Rank 4 Lightsaber Gu beforehand.
Surprisingly, there were no gu worms related to one's eyes. Recalling those beams of sword qi from the eyes, Bai Shou speculated that Wang Nan had already refined his body and eyes, using that enhancement alongside the Rank 4 Sword Qi to achieve that attack. Furthermore, there were no gu worms related to one's mind or soul, much to Bai Shou's disappointment.
Instead, she was greeted by Rank 4 Split Swords and Merge Swords Gu Worms. Although only possessing ordinary level attainment in the sword path, Bai Shou realized these two gu worms were probably the key to several of Wang Nan's killer moves. The former must have been used for more spread-out attacks, like those hundreds of sword phantoms. And the latter was probably the glue that formed Wang Nan's more destructive killer moves.
That wasn't it.
Wang Nan also used Rank 4 Slash Wound Gu to heal from his injuries.
And one of the most annoying gu worms in his set was the Rank 4 Lingering Shard Gu. It was a sword path gu worm that left sword path dao marks on the injuries!
Bai Shou also got Wang Nan's storage gu worm, the Rank 4 Bountiful Sheath.
Finally, Bai Shou looked at the last, unidentified gu worm.
It was also a rank 4 gu worm, but it had a striking appearance.
This gu worm looked like a steel sword hilt without any blade.
Although curious, Bai Shou first inspected the storage gu for clues.
'Pretty rich.'
She nodded. Constant cultivation took a toll on her finances. Even someone with Bai Shou's wealth couldn't continue her research and investment in her aperture in the traditional way for long. Still, there was nothing unusual in the storage gu. In fact, Wang Nan had less than usual primeval stones and didn't even have a single Primeval Elder Gu. Instead, he invested more in his gu set's feed and a few rare materials. The lack of any written material was also quite disappointing.
'So?' Bai Shou held the mysterious sword gu worm. 'What do you do?'
Despite her ordinary attainment in the sword path, Bai Shou didn't intend to keep Wang Nan's inheritance. It was nothing but more burden to her. Furthermore, just a few rank 4 gu worms didn't warrant the risk for Bai Shou to use them for her Dreamer Gu. Instead, she wanted to get more materials for the Preservation Gu Worm and optimize her refinement path gu set. Or even better, she wanted to get most of the material needed to modify her beast phantoms at once using this inheritance!
Wang Nan's inheritance couldn't be underestimated.
Due to how complete the gu set was, save for the necessary body refinement gu worms, any interested party could instantly equip a sword path powerhouse!
Bai Shou already knew many parties who would be interested in such a set, especially with the sudden chaos spreading throughout the sect. However, the current changes didn't bother her.
She focused on the unnamed sword gu worm.
After a moment, she transformed into the Little Giant Emperor. She cautiously poured her essence into the gu worm before noticing it releasing an ethereal, luminous blade tinted in a mystical purple glow.
Frowning, Bai Shou waved it around aimlessly but discovered nothing.
No matter the primeval essence she poured in, the sword remained constant. She tried cutting through different objects, but the sword phased through them all, leaving the items untouched.
'What kind of gu worm is this?'
Bai Shou lifted an eyebrow, curious.
'Does it attack the soul?'
Thinking of this, Bai Shou took out one of the more useless rank 1 gu worms in her aperture and waved the sword. There was finally a change.
Bai Shou lost her connection with the gu worm.
Humming, she refined the gu worm again.
'A gu worm that severs the connection between a gu master and gu worm?'
She shook her head after a moment.
Why didn't Wang Nan use this gu worm against Bai Shou and incorporate it in several of his killer moves? She did not believe the gu worm had such a use based on her understanding of her fallen opponent.
However, she did understand that the unnamed gu worm affected one's will.
'If it didn't sever my connection… could it be that it consumed the will inside the gu worm?'
Bai Shou could scheme and find out about the gu worm from other interested parties. However, that was left as a last resort. She wanted to make her move quickly, and designing such schemes wasn't worth the effort if she could figure things out on her own.
Carefully, Bai Shou drove the sword against her left index finger.
A sharp pain shot through her body the second the glowing purple blade touched her finger. It still phased through, but beyond the pain was a sudden string of scripts and memories!
'It's called Piercing Knowledge Gu…'
Bai Shou threw her head back and laughed.
Her gambit paid off!
It was Wang Nan's actual inheritance!
Consumption of knowledge spent thoughts and will. The will inside the previous rank 1 gu worm was not enough, but Bai Shou's mind was the source of her thoughts and could accommodate a lot of information at once. The Rank 4 Piercing Knowledge Gu was the work of a demonic gu master, leaving his inheritance behind. Using this gu worm was the last step. The more the critical areas one stabbed themselves with, the more information they attained from the gu worm. However, they also had to endure the phantom pain of being stabbed in that region.
Bai Shou reverted her transformation and recalled the spot one must stab themselves with to acquire all the wealth of information hidden inside the gu worm.
The heart.
Bai Shou traced her hand near her chest.
Heart…
She smirked coldly—
'It's already dead.'
—and drove the sword through her heart in one elegant motion.
<<<>>>
Jirou Yi had trouble breathing as he sat under suffocating pressure and silence, his eyes begging to shift and avoid the near bottomless pit of malice within Bai Shou's brown hues. Being an inner disciple of the ancient sect, Jirou Yi had encountered his fair share of malicious parties, particularly outside on the main continent. Most demonic gu masters developed cold and ruthless personalities due to their experiences, always indifferent. Yet, the woman seated before him was slightly different.
Jirou Na's son could almost envision the ways Bai Shou wanted to murder him. Her eyes were not an endless abyss of darkness but pools of ruthless activity, constantly scheming. Perhaps that was what she wanted to relay with her silence, or she might also be truly wondering the best method to dispose Wang Nan's in-laws.
"I… I had nothing to do with it, Senior Bai."
A wise man submitted to the circumstances. Wang Nan's attack on Bai Shou was merely one of the more notable events in the sect's hallowed grounds since everyone was on the high alert for the traitor who released a group of vicious criminals from the Disciplinary Hall. Jirou Yi also couldn't ignore Bai Shou since she had beelined to the former's residence without a notice.
She tilted her head as the suffocating pressure vanished without a trace.
"I know that, Brother Jirou."
Bai Shou smiled warmly. "Wang Nan was a demonic gu master. His actions should not implicate your character. I've come here to discuss the modification of our business."
Jirou Yi blinked. Slight color returned to his face before he nodded. He was aware of the trade Bai Shou referred to. His group would get the priority in gu refinement as long as they sold Bai Shou the hearts of the Dragonfish Emperors at a 20% discount.
Wang Nan's demise removed that easy access to these beast groups.
"What do you suggest, Senior Bai?" Jirou Yi changed the way he addressed Bai Shou after this incident, no longer unable to look down on her skills. He had also lost a pillar of support in Wang Nan.
Bai Shou was silent. She stared into the distance as she took a swig from her signature white gourd imprinted with a white lotus blooming within a golden sun.
Others might expect that Jirou Yi lost his use or should even be considered an enemy and be treated inconsiderately. However, Bai Shou had learned a truth about the society, as individual-centric as the Gu World's.
As long as the opposing party wasn't thoroughly demented, coexistence was never off the table.
Wang Nan wasn't demented, but he had decided to take Bai Shou's life and nothing could have changed that save for a gu worm capable of directly toying with the former's mind.
Meanwhile, Jirou Yi was the opposite.
With the chaos threatening to take a pound of flesh from the sect, Bai Shou wished to keep her enemies closer than ever.
"I have a proposition, Brother Jirou." She began with slight enthusiasm. "Let us return to our previous deal. I recall offering you decent control of my operations within the Giant King's Refinement Stall. Wang Nan had stopped us before, and now we know it must be due to his inherent blood lust and envy for us, the followers of the righteous path."
"You will get a say in the disciples allowed access to my services, with slight adjustments, based on the corpses of the beasts you offer."
Jirou Yi's expression stiffened.
"Corpses?" He questioned. Bai Shou only demanded the hearts of the targets before. Offering the entire corpse meant leaving nothing for their faction!
"Hmm." Bai Shou hummed serenely. "My research achieved a qualitative breakthrough, and I need more materials than ever. As such, I will commission your faction to hunt beasts for me. For every 100 ordinary beast corpses of my choice, you can ban an ordinary disciple from commissioning my services, granted they aren't my previous customers. For every mutated beast corpse, the ability to ban extends to the inner disciples."
"We both cannot afford to offend Legacy Disciples or the Elders." Bai Shou spoke with slight whimsy, having already offended an Elder for a gourd of top-quality wine from Di Qing.
"So, you can use the corpse of a Beast Emperor to extend your reach to Elite Disciples."
Jirou Yi's smile was strained as he was internally furious!
This deal was extremely one-sided and favored Bai Shou. She was openly shameless in creating a prominent loophole.
Since Bai Shou would not ban her previous customers, did it not mean any other interested party, banned or otherwise, could contact these previous patrons and access Bai Shou's skillset?
"Oh. And I hope our current deal ends favorably. I have a few different things I'd like to discuss aside from this business proposition."
Jirou Yi thinned his lips, appearing hesitant. After a long while and dozens of helpless sighs, he nodded as they jotted out the details before moving on.
The next topic pleasantly surprised Jirou Yi.
<<<>>>
"Did you break off the engagement?" Jirou Na questioned calmly with a rare affectionate tone. Sitting across her wasn't her most favored son, Jirou Meng Hou. Surprisingly, it was Jirou Yi who sat across the Internal Affairs Hall's Elder.
"Yes."
Jirou Yi sighed. "To think Wang Nan would fail…" He shook his head, stating, "I publicly delivered Wang Nan's corpse to his daughter before taking advantage of her volatile emotions, using a few gu worms to initiate the cancellation from her side. Nobody can blame my side for being cruel, and even more groups of inner disciples sympathize with Wang Nu."
"Hmph." Jirou Na snorted. "They won't be able to sympathize with others for long."
Jirou Yi's expression turned grim as he couldn't help but speak.
"Was it a correct decision to directly contact each other, Mother? You planned for your reputation for a very long time. We brothers understand your plight and never let the distance between us truly become a subject of tension or hatred."
Jirou Na sighed softly and shook her head.
"You are all filial children." Love bled into her voice before her gaze hardened. "Don't worry. Such changes must not have escaped the Supreme Elders' notice. It is why I'm confident that this conflict is not a bad thing but a great opportunity."
Having fled from the Northern Plains to free herself from that continent's oppression against the fairer sex spoke a fair bit about Jirou Na's ambition.
"Le Tao and Shu Zhe had a falling out."
Jirou Yi almost gasped audibly at the news as his mother continued.
"I also called for your other brothers outside the sect. It is time we reunited."
"You mean…"
Jirou Na nodded with a proud smile.
"Yes. A Sect's Leader cannot have her children running around. We need to set the record straight before recruiting allies so that our history cannot be used against us."
Becoming a Sect Leader wasn't Jirou Na's grand ambition but merely a step in the right direction.
"I created this reputation of estrangement to have my enemies contact you three. Until now, we dealt with several malicious factors both inside and beyond the sect's blessed land. But the coming time of conflict will not afford us such a scattered mindset."
"I understand, Mother."
Jirou Yi nodded before smiling. "It will also allow you to meet your other grandchildren."
Jirou Na also smiled.
"Hmm. Now tell me what Bai Shou had to say. I hope you managed to maintain your connection with her. She can be useful to us, too."
As Bai Shou expected from others, Jirou Na also wasn't above making up with individuals of interest.
<<<>>>
Unlike Wang Nan, Wang Nu was neither anti-social nor demonic. She was pure and innocent, one of the many well-known flowers of the inner disciples. Like several Spirit Affinity House members, she used water path gu worms and was somewhat talented. However, every method at her disposal came from the sect.
Despite her mother's passing, Wang Nu was always cheerful because Wang Nan never let any harm befall her. She grew up in a protected environment, and most missions she accepted from the sect were never challenging enough to stir anything new inside her.
But Wang Nan's demise changed that.
The world suddenly felt dull, and her peers appeared hateful.
The first thing she did was break off her engagement with Uncle Jirou Yi's son. They had been good friends before the engagement, but she had heard her fiancé speaking ill of her late father behind her back. The rejection for such a man was an instant for Wang Nu.
Though she felt guilty after how understanding Uncle Jirou Yi had been. The loss of her father almost made Wang Nu expect some form of repercussion from Jirou Yi's side. However, he assured her, helped her with the funeral arrangements, and even lashed out and chided his son for his insensitive remarks.
Still, with all things said and done, Wang Nu was left alone.
She watched the ashes of her father's remain drift with the wind, her gaze hollow and desolate.
'I should go inside.' Wang Nu thought finally. The Sect's blessed ground wasn't safe at the moment. Someone had broken into the Disciplinary Hall and released many ruthless monsters it held. Although many of them were crippled or possessed no gu worms, they could not be underestimated. After all, every escaped prisoner was still at large.
'And that Bai Shou…'
Her heart burned with fury. How could the sect's higher-ups do nothing?! Bai Shou killed one of the disciples, and she was still free!
That monster killed her father!
'I will grow strong and avenge you, Father. I will—'
*Bang*
Wang Nu fell on the ground, her head struck by a thick pavement brick.
Still, the force was not enough to kill or crack her head open.
She was a gu master with a protective father with enough experience to have her invest in several passive defensive options and life-saving gu worms.
"Easy pickings."
"You should have hit her harder." Another feminine voice derided coldly. "You could barely split her skin open. She is still breathing despite your best efforts. Are you even a man?"
The first voice snorted.
"I'd show you how much of a man I was if we weren't so slim on time."
"You dare?!" The woman hissed.
"Quickly snatch her gu worms before she wakes up. Refining her set will be challenging… but we can plunder her and force her to help us refine her gu worms."
The woman grew quiet before speaking worriedly.
"Do you think she would agree?"
"Hmph! The might of the Ancient Sect is a farce. They might have been the most concentrated spot for the talented to gather, but that is also why they don't care about such losses. Look at this girl. So lost and defenseless. Who would miss her? Hurry! You pick the feet, and I'll get her chest."
"Hey!"
"Shut up, woman! I'm doing us both a favor by not going anywhere near her lower body!"
Wang Nu was abducted just like that.
***
Alternate Title: Healing the Gu; Crimson Bat Wings; Ash Bats; The Maggot Method; Different Methods of Healing; The Loot; Wang Nan's True Inheritance; The Best Method of Gaining an Inheritance; Piercing the Knowledge Through the Heart; Bai Shou Can Indeed Suffocate, Heh; Jirou Yi's Plight; The Modified Transaction; The Chaos; Released Prisoners; Meanwhile, the Third Elder Inside the Prison: What About Me?; Selling Shares in the Gu World; How I Reincarnated in the Gu World to Share My Stocks; Wolf of the Gu Street; The Gu Stock Exchange; Jirou Na's Relationship; Family Reunion; The Funeral; Pure and Innocent Wang Nu; Freaky Prisoners; Uncle Jirou Yi Being Wholesome as Usual; Breaking Off the Engagement; No Mc was Hurt in this Annulment; Abducted; No Mario to Save the Day; The Traitor?
***
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