Section Forty-Seven: Jia Jin Sheng, I Actually Didn't Want to Kill You

The rain poured down.

The sky was covered with dark clouds, and the distant mountains stretched out, merging into a mass of ink.

The curtain of rain wove heaven and earth together.

Crack!

The sky suddenly lit up, a lightning bolt streaking across it like a silver snake, then vanishing just as quickly.

Summer was approaching, and this late spring downpour seemed to carry a hint of summer's intensity.

On Qing Mao Mountain, large swathes of verdant spear bamboo stood tall, resisting the wind and rain. Their stalks remained straight as spears, their tips pointing directly at the heavens.

In Gu Yue village, countless stilted houses stood in dense rows, heads bowed as they endured the washing of the heavy rain. Outside the village, the merchant caravan had already set off again.

"The rain is heavy, watch the road."

"Don't fall behind. Gu Masters, keep your Gu worms in check, especially the fat beetle Gu, don't let them get stuck on the mountain path!"

"You mortal martial artists, keep your eyes peeled and watch over the goods. If a single item is lost, you'll be held accountable!"

Shouts rose and fell from within the caravan.

After a three-day stay in Gu Yue village, the caravan departed, following the mountain path of Qing Mao Mountain towards its next destination.

The heavy rain washed over the land. The roads around the village were paved with cobblestones, which was fortunate. However, beyond five hundred meters, the path turned into a muddy, narrow mountain trail.

The proud camel-ostriches, their heads now drooping, their vibrant plumage soaked and matted by the rain, had truly become drowned rats.

The fat beetle Gu wriggled its bulky body, moving forward with great slowness. Raindrops struck its black carapace, forming streams of water that slithered off to the sides.

The furry mountain big spiders were also drenched, their greenish-black fur clinging together.

Only the toad Gu, however, let out joyful cries, hopping along the mountain with their cargo and Gu Masters.

The winged snakes had already retracted their wings. Their thick, serpentine bodies slithered happily through the mud and water.

To protect their cargo from the rain, the Gu Masters each displayed their unique abilities.

On several large, bulky fat beetle Gu, Gu Masters stood in the middle. They held their hands high, and about an inch above their palms, a One Qi Golden Light Gu floated.

Bronze true essence rose like mist, pouring into the One Qi Golden Light Gu. The entire Gu worm shone with a golden light, like scattered beans, projecting a vast, pale golden energy shield from its center.

The hemispherical shield was quite large, completely covering a fat beetle Gu with plenty of room to spare.

Raindrops that struck the shield were repelled, as if hitting an umbrella.

However, this One Qi Golden Light Gu continuously consumed true essence, and after a while, a Rank 1 Gu Master could no longer sustain it.

Indeed, after a short while, a Gu Master cried out, "I can't do this anymore, my true essence is almost depleted. Who can take over for me?"

"I will!" Almost immediately, a Gu Master rushed over, taking his place.

Some Gu Masters pulling carts or controlling mountain big spiders activated the Green Silk Gu within them.

Under the power of the Green Silk Gu, the Gu Masters' hair grew wildly.

A normal person has at least a hundred thousand strands of hair. Each strand, five to six meters long, intertwined and tangled together, enveloping the Gu Master's body and the Gu worm they sat upon, forming a temporary, waterproof cloak of black hair.

The Green Silk Gu was a Rank 1 Gu worm, often used by Gu Masters for defense. It consumed thirty percent of their bronze true essence in one go, unlike the One Qi Golden Light Gu that required continuous true essence output.

If this Green Silk Gu were merged and refined with a Rank 1 Black Boar Gu, it would advance to become the Rank 2 Black Mane Gu.

When the Black Mane Gu was activated, it wasn't just hair; all the body hair would become thick and black, growing into a patch of black mane armor on the Gu Master's body within a few breaths.

If the Black Mane Gu advanced further, it could become the renowned Rank 3 Steel Mane Gu.

In addition to the One Qi Golden Light Gu and the Green Silk Gu, many Gu Masters in the caravan chose the Water Spider Gu. It could be seen that these Gu Masters were covered in a thin layer of pale blue water clothing.

Water constantly flowed on the surface of the water clothing. Raindrops that hit it immediately merged with the clothing.

As the Gu Masters were continuously rained upon, the water clothing grew thicker. Every so often, the Gu Master would have to activate the Water Spider Gu to expel the excess water from the clothing. At this point, the thick water clothing would be reduced to its original thin layer.

As for the mortal martial artists, they scurried back and forth on the muddy roads, tending to the goods. Most of them wore straw raincoats, but in their haste, the raincoats offered limited protection, and they were all soaked through.

"This cursed weather!" the martial artists cursed inwardly.

In the rain, the mountain paths were even more difficult to traverse.

In such weather, no matter how strong a martial artist was, they were still mortal. Being completely drenched and overworked made them extremely susceptible to catching a cold. A serious illness was the least of it; they might suffer lingering effects, or those gravely ill might be abandoned by the Gu Masters along the way.

If they encountered a landslide or rockfall on the mountain path, or were attacked by wild beasts or Gu worms, they could very well lose their lives.

Although the caravan was large and had many Gu Masters, there were always significant casualties during each journey. Mortal martial artists died the most, but Gu Masters also suffered injuries and deaths.

If the caravan unfortunately encountered a large beast migration, a complete annihilation was also possible.

In fact, besides these natural disasters, there were also man-made ones.

The villages along the way did not always welcome the arrival of caravans. Some villages enjoyed robbing outsiders.

"We're leaving, see you next year!" some Gu Masters, seated on their Gu worms, waved goodbye to Gu Yue village as they turned their bodies.

At the large entrance outside the village, many people gathered, watching the caravan depart.

"Be sure to come back next year!" the children shouted reluctantly.

The adults' gazes, however, were much more complex.

"The future is uncertain, and the times are difficult. I wonder how many familiar faces will still be around to visit the mountain stronghold next year?"

"Whether it's traveling merchants or those living in the village, making a living is no easy feat."

The caravan traveled further and further away, and the crowd gradually dispersed.

The lively and festive atmosphere of the market disappeared without a trace. The area where tents had been set up and stalls had been laid out was left in a mess.

The grass had been trampled down to its roots and soil by the endless stream of people. The rain that fell on it immediately formed mud, along with countless puddles of murky, stagnant water.

In addition, a considerable amount of household waste remained.

Fang Yuan stood alone on a secluded hillside, gazing at the caravan from afar.

The caravan was like a plump, colorful python, slowly burrowing into the dense mountain forest along the narrow mountain path under the gray, heavy rain.

"What perfect timing for the weather..." Fang Yuan sighed softly.

He held a yellow oil-paper umbrella, standing quietly in the rain.

He wore the most ordinary linen clothes, his build was slender, his skin pale like that of a fifteen-year-old boy, and his black hair was cut short and neat. The tips of his hair trembled slightly under the umbrella in the wind.

While others cursed this terrible weather, he was grateful for the timely rain.

He had killed Jia Jin Sheng last night and dealt with the scene, but due to the suddenness of the event, there were still some imperfections. Especially the smell of blood, which was difficult to remove because the secret cave was not well-ventilated.

This heavy rain would wash over the land and cleanse the air, greatly weakening detection methods that relied on smell. Water must be dripping down from the cracks in the rocks, and once diluted by the fresh moisture in the air, it would be almost impossible to detect for a short period.

Of course, the longer the time passed, the greater the possibility of exposure.

In this world, there existed all sorts of wondrous Gu worms, and detection methods were diverse and colorful. Even Fang Yuan only knew some of them.

Raindrops hit the surface of the yellow oil-paper umbrella, making a pattering sound. Then, along the umbrella ribs, streams of water dripped down, hitting the bluestone beneath Fang Yuan's feet, splashing up little sprays of water.

Watching the caravan turn the corner and disappear completely into the dense mountain forest, Fang Yuan felt no joy. Instead, his expression became solemn.

"Although Jia Jin Sheng's cultivation was weak and his aptitude poor, his status was special. Everyone in the caravan was overwhelmed with their tasks, so they hadn't noticed his disappearance for a short time. But it won't be long before someone does. When that happens, Jia Fu will definitely come to investigate, and the real challenge will begin."

"The Jia family patriarch deliberately arranged for Jia Jin Sheng and Jia Fu to lead the caravan together. This move has deep meaning. In terms of cultivation, Jia Jin Sheng is worlds apart from Jia Fu. In terms of intellect, the former is far behind. The Jia family patriarch made this arrangement precisely to let Jia Jin Sheng suffer a blow, to make him recognize reality and live a quiet life from now on. At the same time, it was also to test Jia Fu's character. If the blow was too severe, and he couldn't even tolerate his own brother, how could he possibly give him the position of Jia family patriarch?"

"Jia Jin Sheng never truly understood his father's well-intentioned efforts. Although he had some intelligence, he only cultivated an outer shell, which is truly a pity. What a waste of such a good pawn."

Fang Yuan sighed inwardly. With his five hundred years of experience, he had long seen through the superficiality and perceived the deeper essence of the matter.

When he saw the complex relationship between Jia Jin Sheng and Jia Fu during the dispute last night, a vague plan formed in his mind on the spot.

In his plan, Jia Jin Sheng was a very suitable pawn. His cultivation was weak, but his status was high. Although he had some cleverness, his experience was too shallow, and he could be completely controlled.

Once this pawn was controlled, it would be very useful.

First, he could establish a stable channel for selling stolen goods through Jia Jin Sheng, preparing for future killings and treasure hunting.

Second, Fang Yuan could stay behind the scenes, using Jia Jin Sheng and the shadow screen to provoke conflicts among the three major mountain strongholds on Qing Mao Mountain, triggering a civil war, and benefiting from it himself.

Third, by relying on him, he could infiltrate the Jia family. The future Gu competition triggered by the Jia family's inheritance dispute was a major event. With many benefits, Fang Yuan could completely seek the greatest advantage from it.

"My current cultivation is too low, and I'm restricted in doing things. If I had a pawn to use, I could do things that I can't personally handle. It would not only be convenient but also greatly reduce the risk. If I were exposed in the future, I could simply discard the pawn and remain free."

"The people around me are all well-known and loyal to the family, making them difficult to manipulate. Only outsiders like Jia Jin Sheng can break the situation more easily. It's a pity that I didn't anticipate that the Flower Wine Wanderer would leave behind a power inheritance."

The Flower Wine Wanderer was a rank five Gu Master, so his legacy was naturally more precious than a pawn like Jia Jin Sheng.

Of course, it would be best if he could have both. But faced with such a treasure, Jia Jin Sheng was already beyond his control, so he had to be abandoned.

"Eight out of ten things in the world are unsatisfactory," Fang Yuan shook his head and sighed.

The emergence of the Flower Wine Wanderer's inheritance disrupted Fang Yuan's original plan. After the shadow screen mutated, all previous scenes disappeared, and only a line of blood text appeared, prompting Fang Yuan to break the shadow screen to reveal a cave entrance. Following the entrance down would lead to the power inheritance.

The blood text only appeared for a few breaths before vanishing. The shadow screen also reverted to the most ordinary mountain wall.

Fang Yuan had been busy dealing with the murder scene all night yesterday and had no time to break the shadow screen.

"Killing Jia Jin Sheng in haste has many after-effects, which have not yet manifested. Although I successfully destroyed the body and covered my tracks, there will surely be a lot of trouble. This way, the method of exposing the wine Gu needs to be modified. I also cannot go to the secret cave by the stone crevice for now. I will have to stay in the mountain stronghold for the time being, guarding against the upcoming investigation."

Fang Yuan turned around, holding his umbrella, and walked back towards the mountain stronghold in the rain.

"But this is good. During this recent period, I have consumed a large amount of primeval stones and refined my true essence to the intermediate level. With intermediate true essence, I can nourish my aperture and break through to the intermediate level soon. Once I reach the intermediate level, my strength will double. Then, inheriting the Flower Wine Wanderer's legacy will also be more assured."

The inheritance of demonic path cultivators is not as gentle as that of righteous path cultivators; it usually involves dangerous trials. If the trials are not passed, the price paid is often one's life.

"Things are unpredictable, but that's precisely what makes them interesting," Fang Yuan's lips curled into a cold smile.

The green mountains under the heavy rain stretched endlessly, appearing a dull, oppressive gray-green.

A gust of wind blew, and the raindrops slanted, hitting Fang Yuan's shoulders, bringing a chill.

He thought of Jia Jin Sheng again.

He sighed in his heart, "Jia Jin Sheng, actually, I... didn't want to kill you."

What a waste of a good pawn.