The Crevice Holds Hidden Secrets

The Wine Bug is shaped like a silkworm larva, emitting a pearl-like white light all over its body. It's a bit plump and very cute in appearance.

It feeds on wine and can fly through the air. When flying, it curls its body into a ball and is quite fast.

Although it is a Rank 1 Gu worm, its value is more precious than some Rank 2 Gu worms.

If used as a life Gu, it would be much better than the Moonlight Gu.

At this moment, such a Wine Bug was clinging to a Qing Mao bamboo, only about fifty to sixty steps away from Fang Yuan.

Fang Yuan held his breath, not daring to approach rashly, and slowly retreated.

He knew that although the distance was close, directly capturing the Wine Bug would be extremely difficult, if not impossible, for him as a newly awakened Gu Master.

Even though Fang Yuan's eyesight couldn't clearly see the Wine Bug's appearance at this moment, he could vaguely sense its wariness towards him.

Fang Yuan retreated very slowly and gently, trying his best not to startle the Wine Bug.

He knew that if the Wine Bug decided to fly away, his speed would be no match for it. He could only hope to capture it when it got drunk and its flight speed slowed down.

Seeing Fang Yuan retreating further and further, the Wine Bug on the bamboo stalk couldn't help but stir.

The strong scent of wine ahead tempted and attracted it, making it yearn for it. If it could drool, a large puddle would have formed by now.

But the Wine Bug's vigilance remained high. It wasn't until Fang Yuan had retreated two hundred steps that it finally contracted its body and leaped into the air.

As it floated in the air, it curled its body into a ball, resembling a small, white glutinous rice ball.

The "rice ball" traced a smooth arc through the air, landing on the grass where Fang Yuan had sprinkled the Qing Zhu wine.

With the delicious food right before it, the Wine Bug's guard lowered significantly. It eagerly crawled to the flower bud containing the wine, sticking its head in and leaving its plump tail outside.

It was extremely hungry, and the Qing Zhu wine was so delicious. It slurped greedily, quickly immersing itself in the exquisite taste of the food and forgetting Fang Yuan entirely.

It was at this moment that Fang Yuan began to cautiously approach.

He saw the Wine Bug's tail outside the flower bud. The tail was like a silkworm's, plump and round, with a halo that evoked pearls.

At first, its tail hung outside, motionless.

Then, after a while, the tail began to twitch, clearly indicating the Wine Bug was enjoying its drink.

By the time Fang Yuan was within ten steps, its tail was swaying left and right, with a cheerful rhythm.

It was completely drunk!

Seeing this, Fang Yuan almost laughed out loud.

He didn't advance further but waited patiently. If he were to pounce now, he would have a considerable chance of capturing the Wine Bug. However, Fang Yuan also wanted the Wine Bug to lead him to the remains of the Flower Wine Wanderer.

After a short while, the Wine Bug withdrew from the flower bud. Its body had plumped up by a circle, and its head was swaying unsteadily, like a drunkard. It was completely oblivious to Fang Yuan's presence.

It then crawled onto another tender yellow wildflower, resting in the stamen and feasting on the wine dew.

After this drink, it finally felt full. Its body slowly curled into a ball on the petals, then it slowly took flight, rising to a height of about 1.5 meters from the ground before leisurely flying towards the depths of the bamboo forest.

Fang Yuan quickly followed.

The Wine Bug was already tipsy, its flight speed reduced to half of its usual pace. But even so, Fang Yuan had to run at full speed just to keep up with it.

The night was clear, and the young man darted through the bamboo forest, chasing a speck of pearl-like snow in the distance.

The moonlight was gentle, and a soft breeze blew. The bamboo forest was as clear and bright as accumulated water. The green Qing Mao bamboos flashed past Fang Yuan's eyes, falling behind the young man.

On the ground were lush green grasses, dotted with wildflowers.

There were also small stones covered in moss, and tender yellow bamboo shoots that hadn't fully grown.

Fang Yuan's faint silhouette also moved rapidly across the ground, passing through the straight black lines cast by the Qing Mao bamboos.

He kept his eyes fixed on that speck of white, breathing in the fresh mountain air amidst the faint aroma of wine, his legs moving to keep pace.

Due to the rapid movement, the moonlight below seemed like water, with light and shadow flickering, as if he were galloping through water filled with aquatic plants.

The Wine Bug flew out of the bamboo forest, and Fang Yuan rushed out after it. A large patch of dazzling white flowers with slightly yellow centers scattered petals around his legs, carried by the strong wind.

A flock of Longwan crickets flowed past like a moving poem. Fang Yuan charged straight through them, and with a rustle, red clouds bloomed before his eyes, scattering a swarm of crimson fireflies.

A quietly flowing mountain stream, paved with pebbles, its murmuring surface reflecting the spring moon of the night sky. With a few splashes, Fang Yuan waded through it, shattering the water into countless silver ripples.

Alas, the stream's beauty was broken like shattered jade.

Fang Yuan pursued relentlessly, staying close behind the Wine Bug.

Following the mountain stream upwards, he could already faintly hear the sound of a waterfall. Turning past a sparse patch of trees, he saw the Wine Bug fly into a crevice between two giant rocks.

Fang Yuan's eyes suddenly brightened, and he stopped.

"So it was here." He panted heavily, his heart pounding. Stopping, he felt sweat all over his body, and a surge of heat coursed through him with his accelerated blood flow.

He looked around and found himself in a shallow riverbed.

Large and small pebbles covered the ground, and the river water was only about a finger's depth above the pebbles. There were also large gray-white rocks scattered randomly.

The back mountain of Qing Mao Mountain had a large waterfall.

The waterfall's water flow changed with the weather. It plunged down a thousand feet, creating a deep pool. Beside the deep pool was the Bai family village, with a powerful influence, no weaker than the Gu Yue village.

The waterfall also had branches. Clearly, Fang Yuan was facing a branch of a branch.

The riverbank was dry under normal circumstances. However, a heavy rain had recently fallen for three days and three nights, causing a shallow stream to accumulate here.

The source of the flowing water was the large rock where the Wine Bug had burrowed.

The massive rock leaned against the sheer cliff face. A slender, miniature waterfall, branched off from the main cascade, descended like a giant silver python clinging to the cliff, striking the boulder. Over time, this had carved a crevice in the center of the rock.

At this moment, the waterfall cascaded down, its flow roaring softly. It was like a pure white curtain, completely obscuring the crevice in the boulder.

While observing and assessing the situation, Fang Yuan's breathing had stabilized. A determined glint flashed in his eyes as he walked to the edge of the boulder, took a deep breath, and plunged headfirst into it.

The crevice in the boulder was quite wide; two adults could walk side-by-side without issue. Moreover, Fang Yuan's body was only that of a fifteen-year-old boy.

As soon as he entered, the rapid current pressed Fang Yuan's body down, and the icy water instantly drenched him from head to toe.

Fang Yuan endured the water pressure and moved forward rapidly. After walking dozens of steps, the water pressure gradually lessened.

However, the gap between the rock walls also narrowed, forcing Fang Yuan to walk sideways.

The roaring sound of water filled his ears, a bright white expanse was above his head, and a deep darkness lay further within the boulder.

What lay hidden in the darkness?

Perhaps a slimy venomous snake, perhaps a highly poisonous gecko, perhaps the traps of the demonic cultivator Flower Wine Wanderer, or perhaps nothing at all.

Fang Yuan continued to squeeze into the darkness, sideways.

The water flow from above had stopped. The stone walls were covered in moss, which felt extremely slippery against Fang Yuan's skin as it brushed against his body.

Fang Yuan was completely engulfed by darkness, and the stone crevice grew narrower, gradually preventing his head from turning freely.

Fang Yuan gritted his teeth and pressed onward.

After walking more than twenty steps, he noticed what seemed to be a red light in the darkness.

At first, he thought it was an illusion, but after blinking and looking again, he confirmed that it was indeed a light!

This discovery invigorated him.

After walking another fifty to sixty steps, the red light grew brighter, gradually expanding in Fang Yuan's retinas into a long, vertical slit.

His outstretched left arm suddenly felt the stone wall ahead give way and curve inward.

Fang Yuan was overjoyed, realizing that the boulder indeed contained an inner space. He quickened his pace and finally squeezed into this illuminated gap.

His vision cleared abruptly, and a space of about eighty square meters unfolded before Fang Yuan.

"I've traveled such a long distance, I must be past the boulder and inside the mountain wall now," he mused, stretching his limbs and flexing his body as he surveyed the hidden space.

The entire space was filled with a dim red light, the source of which was unknown.

The surrounding stone walls were damp and covered in moss, but the air here was surprisingly dry.

Along these walls, withered vines clung to them. The vines were intertwined, weaving across more than half of the four walls. They were adorned with withered flower stems and roots.

Looking at these remnants of flowers and leaves, Fang Yuan felt a sense of familiarity.

"It's the Wine Pouch Flower Gu and the Rice Bag Grass Gu," he suddenly realized, recognizing the dead stems and vines.

Gu came in many forms. Some resembled minerals, like the Moonlight Gu, which looked like blue crystals. Others were insect-like, such as the silkworm-like Wine Bug. And then there were those in the form of plants, like the Wine Pouch Flower Gu and Rice Bag Grass Gu that Fang Yuan saw before him.

These two Gu were both Rank 1 natural Gu. They would grow simply by infusing them with primeval essence. Once grown, their flower hearts would secrete nectar-like wine, and their grass sacs would produce fragrant rice.

Following the root system of the vines, Fang Yuan shifted his gaze and indeed found a clump of withered roots in the corner, bulging outwards.

The Wine Bug lay dormant atop this pile of dead roots, sleeping soundly, within easy reach.

Fang Yuan walked over, first tucking the Wine Bug into his embrace. Then, he squatted down, pushed aside the dead roots and withered vines, and discovered a skeleton wrapped within.

"Finally found you, Flower Wine Wanderer." A smile touched his lips as he saw this.

Just as he was about to reach out and strip away all the withered vines, at that very moment!

"Try moving something?" a voice filled with killing intent suddenly boomed from behind Fang Yuan.