Refining the Wine Worm Gu

"With my C-grade Aptitude, the primeval sea in my Aperture can store at most forty-four percent. The Gu worm's rate of rejecting True Essence is far faster than my own rate of recovering it. If I want to refine a Gu worm, I must borrow external aid—in other words, consume Primeval Stones."

"The weaker a Gu worm's will, the less it resists, and the easier it is for me to refine it. But any living thing possesses the will to survive. To refine the Moonlight Gu, I would need at least five Primeval Stones, and at most eight." Drawing on his abundant cultivation experience, Fang Yuan estimated the total number of Primeval Stones he would need.

"To refine the Wine Worm Gu now, I would need at least eleven, and at most sixteen Primeval Stones." Though the Wine Worm Gu, like the Moonlight Gu, was a Rank 1 Gu worm, it was undoubtedly much rarer, and correspondingly harder to refine.

In other words, although Fang Yuan now had seventeen Primeval Stones, after refining the Wine Worm Gu, he would have at most six left—and at least, only one.

In the night sky, the bright crescent moon cast down its pure light.

Moonlight, like the soft hand of a fairy maiden, gently caressed Gu Yue village. The bamboo buildings along the way stood like a forest of jade plaques.

The night wind blew softly.

Under this moonlight, Fang Yuan returned to the inn.

The inn's doors had already been shut.

Fang Yuan banged on the door. Bang, bang, bang!

"I heard you, I heard you! Who comes knocking so late at night..." The inn servant muttered as he opened the door, his eyes still bleary with sleep.

But when he saw Fang Yuan at the door, the faint displeasure and laziness on his face immediately changed. He bent at the waist and smiled ingratiatingly. "So it's Young Master. This lowly one is truly fortunate to be able to open the door for Young Master."

Fang Yuan nodded, his face cold and indifferent as he walked into the inn.

That expression only made the servant's smile more obsequious. He asked proactively, "Is Young Master hungry? Shall this lowly one inform the cook to prepare a few small dishes for your late-night meal?"

"No need." Fang Yuan shook his head and merely instructed, "Prepare some hot water for me. I wish to wash up."

"Yes!" The servant nodded hurriedly. "Young Master, please return to your room first. This lowly one guarantees that the hot water will be delivered at once."

Fang Yuan gave a hum and climbed the stairs toward the second floor.

The servant watched Fang Yuan's retreating figure, his eyes gleaming in the lamplight with unmistakable envy.

"So this is a Gu Master. If only I had the aptitude to cultivate too!" He clenched his fists and let out a deep sigh.

Those words drifted into Fang Yuan's ears, and he could not help but laugh bitterly inside.

Gu Masters could possess strength beyond mortals and become people above people, but the price they paid was equally staggering.

The first great problem was financial resources.

Gu Masters needed Primeval Stones for cultivation, Primeval Stones for battle, Primeval Stones for refining Gu, and Primeval Stones for trade.

Without Primeval Stones, how could one cultivate?

As a mere mortal and only an onlooker, the inn servant could not experience such straits.

It was like this evening, when that Young Gu Master, Jiang Ya, had vented his indignation on the hunters while smashing the wine jar: he himself could not bear to spend Primeval Stones on this Green Bamboo Wine, yet these hunters, mere mortals, had spare money for it!

One could glimpse the leopard through a tube; that sentence alone revealed the circumstances of a Gu Master's cultivation.

Gu Masters were powerful and earned more than mortals, but they also spent more. Many times, every Primeval Stone had to be counted grain by grain. This was especially true for low-ranking little Gu Masters.

Do not be fooled by how splendid some Gu Masters appeared on the surface. Behind closed doors, they often lived in great poverty.

"Moreover, as a Gu Master's realm rises, their demand for resources grows ever more immense. Without a backer, a Gu Master's cultivation is difficult indeed." Thinking of his previous life, Fang Yuan felt this deeply.

He returned to his guest room. He had only just lit the lamp when the inn servant brought up a basin of hot water.

There were also towels and other washing supplies, naturally.

Fang Yuan had the servant withdraw, shut the door, slid the bolt into place, washed up, and then climbed into bed.

Though his body was somewhat weary, excitement still lingered in his heart. I finally obtained the Wine Worm Gu. It is even more precious than the Moonlight Gu. In a sense, it is a Gu that can improve a Gu Master's aptitude!

Fang Yuan sat cross-legged on the bed and took out the Wine Worm Gu.

The Wine Worm Gu was still sleeping soundly. It was slightly larger than the Moonlight Gu, plump and white like a silkworm larva.

Under the lamplight, its body was enveloped in a faint radiance, round and lustrous like a pearl. Its two eyes, like two black sesame seeds set into its chubby white head, made it look adorably foolish.

It was not heavy in his hand, roughly half the weight of an egg.

Upon closer inspection, a thread of wine fragrance drifted from its body.

This was not the scent of Green Bamboo Wine, but the fragrance emitted by the Wine Worm Gu itself. It was clear and ethereal, seeming to be there and yet not there. Fang Yuan's nostrils twitched as he drew that wine fragrance into his body.

The wine-scented breath flowed downward and actually entered his Aperture, plunging into the bronze-colored primeval sea.

The primeval sea rippled a bit, then swiftly absorbed and fused with that wine vapor. A thread of incomparably pure True Essence was produced.

The rest of the True Essence was emerald green, gleaming with the metallic sheen of bronze.

But this thread of True Essence was dark green, more condensed than his original True Essence. This was the True Essence only a Rank 1 Mid Stage Gu Master could possess.

Sensing that thread of dark-green Bronze True Essence, Fang Yuan revealed a satisfied smile. "My cultivation is currently only Rank 1 Initial Stage. But with the Wine Worm Gu's refinement, once my True Essence is purified, I can possess the True Essence of a Rank 1 Mid Stage Gu Master. The wonders within this cannot be explained in a sentence or two."

But soon, his smile faded. "However, I have not truly mastered the Wine Worm Gu yet. Only after completely refining it and making it my Destined Gu can I Manipulate it freely, then use it to refine my True Essence with the greatest efficiency."

With that thought, he hesitated no longer and drew out a stream of Bronze True Essence from his primeval sea.

The True Essence tightly wrapped around the Wine Worm Gu, suspending it in front of Fang Yuan as it began invading its body.

The Wine Worm Gu sensed the threat to its life and woke with a start. It began struggling fiercely, mobilizing its own power to drive out Fang Yuan's True Essence.

"This Wine Worm Gu has such powerful resistance." Fang Yuan's expression turned grave. He felt that the rate at which his True Essence was being consumed was more than twice that of refining the Moonlight Gu.

"No matter what, I will refine this Wine Worm Gu." A hint of determination flashed through his eyes as he continued drawing out True Essence and wrapping it around the Wine Worm Gu.

In the room at the inn, the candle on the table burned silently, illuminating a bright patch at the center of the room while the distant corners remained dim.

Candlelight fell across Fang Yuan's face. He had already closed his eyes, concentrating wholly on dealing with the Wine Worm Gu.

An unceasing stream of bronze-colored True Essence drifted from Fang Yuan's entire body like mist, then gathered together and firmly wrapped around the Wine Worm Gu.

The Wine Worm Gu floated in the air, less than a foot from Fang Yuan's face. Surrounded by Bronze True Essence, it struggled with all its strength.

Time slipped away silently.

The candle burned lower and lower, its flame growing dimmer and dimmer. Outside the window, the crescent moon slowly sank, and then a new day arrived.

Morning sunlight streamed through the gaps in the window and into the room, as though it had inlaid the window with a rim of light.

Fang Yuan opened his eyes and looked at the Wine Worm Gu before him.

A hint of bluish-green had appeared on the Wine Worm Gu's white body. This was the result Fang Yuan had obtained only after working for half the night.

But clearly, that bluish-green portion did not even make up one percent of the Wine Worm Gu's body.

Fang Yuan's expression was solemn. This Wine Worm Gu's will was far too tenacious, its resistance immensely powerful, practically exceeding the limits of a Rank 1 Gu worm.

"This Gu worm is very likely Flower Wine Wanderer's Destined Gu. Flower Wine Wanderer was a rank 5 expert, and this Wine Worm Gu had originally been rank 5 as well. But over these years, it had lacked sufficient food, feasting one meal and starving the next, so its rank had fallen. Now it remained only at Rank 1, yet its will was still as unyielding as a rock!"

Fang Yuan had guessed the truth.

This Wine Worm Gu had indeed been Flower Wine Wanderer's Destined Gu. Its original natural will had been thoroughly tempered away by Flower Wine Wanderer, and it had accompanied him through battles north and south as he roamed the martial world.

After Flower Wine Wanderer died, his will as an expert remained within the Wine Worm Gu. Fang Yuan's attempt to refine it now was equivalent to competing against Flower Wine Wanderer's will.

This was far more difficult than refining a natural Gu worm.

Human will was generally stronger than that of natural Gu worms. At the brink of life and death, people could erupt with strength beyond even their own imagination. Moreover, Flower Wine Wanderer had been an expert of the demonic path, traveling alone and roaming the martial world. His will was even more tenacious than that of righteous-path experts at the same level.

"To refine this Wine Worm Gu within a month is already impossible. Unless an expert uses the aura of a rank 2 or Rank 3 Gu to suppress it, pressing the will within the Wine Worm Gu to its lowest point. With such assistance, I could achieve twice the result with half the effort." At this thought, Fang Yuan could not help sighing.

His parents had already died, uncle and aunt were plotting against him, and he had no backer. Where could he find outside aid?

If he had A-grade Aptitude, it might still be possible. But his aptitude was only C-grade. None of the clansmen thought highly of him, so who would be willing to expend such great effort helping him?

More importantly, the Wine Worm Gu's existence could not be exposed.

Gu Yue village had no Gu like the Wine Worm Gu. Fang Yuan would be unable to explain where it had come from.

If it were exposed, it was highly likely that the high-level would notice it and connect it to Flower Wine Wanderer. The two were simply too easy to link together.

"By this calculation, seventeen Primeval Stones will not be enough. I need at least thirty Primeval Stones! What a headache. But no matter how difficult it is, I must refine this Wine Worm Gu." Fang Yuan's will was like iron. He had already resolved to refine the Wine Worm Gu.

A Destined Gu was of tremendous importance and, to a great extent, affected the direction of a Gu Master's future cultivation.

Though the Wine Worm Gu was not the most ideal choice for a Destined Gu in this world, it was far better than the Moonlight Gu. Under Fang Yuan's present circumstances, it was also the best he could attain.

Grrr, grrr...

At that moment, Fang Yuan's stomach rumbled in protest.

He had not slept all night and had devoted all his strength to refining the Wine Worm Gu. Naturally, Fang Yuan was hungry.

"I should fill my stomach first, then think about how to accumulate Primeval Stones." Fang Yuan rubbed his belly and went downstairs.

Upon reaching the dining hall on the first floor, he chose a corner seat and ordered several breakfast items.

He had only just started eating when his younger brother, Gu Yue Fang Zheng, appeared.

"Brother, why are you staying at the inn? Why didn't you come back to sleep last night?" He was far from polite, his tone carrying a note of interrogation.