Green Vine Gu

After Mu Shan was rebuffed by Lu Qingshan and retreated in disgrace, he pretended to be idle and casually approached another demon hunter.

"Brother, that kid is incredibly slippery. I did as you instructed and provoked him, trying to force him to make a move. Not only did he not reveal any of his secrets, but I also lost a lot of face," Mu Shan grumbled venomously to the cultivator beside him.

If an outsider were to overhear their conversation at that moment, they would surely be astonished.

The cultivator Mu Shan called "Brother" was also a demon hunter, named Wu Xinyuan.

From their conversation, it was clear that their relationship was quite close.

However, before this, Wu Xinyuan and Mu Shan had always acted like strangers who had never met.

Wu Xinyuan frowned upon hearing this, his eyes showing a thoughtful expression.

Mu Shan gritted his teeth and said, "Brother, I know you're cautious, but he's just a young brat. What kind of power could he possibly have? He looks at most seventeen or eighteen, and even if he has a cultivation base of Qi Refining level four or five, that's overestimating him. Why worry about him? Do you really think he can make any significant waves?"

Feeling that he had lost face in front of Lu Qingshan, Mu Shan was filled with hatred and wished he could skin and dismember Lu Qingshan right then and there. Seeing Wu Xinyuan's hesitant demeanor, he quickly tried to persuade him.

Upon hearing Mu Shan's words, Wu Xinyuan considered it and felt that perhaps he was being overly cautious.

Although cultivators possessed techniques to maintain their appearance and could not judge age by outward looks, this applied to high-level cultivators. For Qi Refining cultivators, their appearance generally reflected their actual age. A youth who still looked like he hadn't fully grown up, what kind of power could he possess? He probably just got lucky somewhere and obtained a cultivation method, daring to venture out with a mere Qi Refining level one or two cultivation.

His life of treading on thin ice these past years had made him a bit overly sensitive, Wu Xinyuan mocked himself inwardly.

"Brother, when do we make our move?"

Wu Xinyuan hesitated for a moment before finally deciding, "Then let's make our move tonight. It's better to act sooner rather than later."

He had already thoroughly investigated everything that day.

The Lin family had eleven accompanying cultivators. Besides Lin He, who was at Qi Refining level eight, the others were all minor cultivators below Qi Refining level five. There was also the Lin family's eldest daughter, Lin Yao, who had remained in the carriage and had not appeared. Although Lin Yao had never shown herself in public and was very mysterious, Wu Xinyuan knew her age: eighteen years old. At eighteen, how high could her cultivation base be?

On the demon hunter side, there were a total of ten people, with eight of them being his own men. The lowest among these eight had a cultivation base of Qi Refining level six, and his own Qi Refining level ten cultivation was more than enough to dominate the entire group. Of the remaining two demon hunters, one had been thoroughly investigated – he was at Qi Refining level five, insignificant. The last one was that young cultivator whose background was unknown.

With such a stark disparity in strength, and with them planning while the others were unaware, it was likely they could easily capture them once they made their move. Wu Xinyuan's mind was made up; he felt confident of victory.

Although the difference between day and night was not significant for cultivators, the black rhinos pulling the entire cart of ore still needed to rest.

Lin He carefully surveyed the terrain and chose a leeward slope, an area with no traces of demonic beast habitation, as their encampment. It was called an encampment, but it was essentially just forming a circle with the wagons.

Soon, under Lin He's command, Lin family cultivators, holding formation flags, set up a perimeter alarm formation. Once any demonic beasts invaded, the alarm formation would immediately issue a warning. After setting up the formation, the cultivators leaned against the wagons to take a short rest.

The routes the convoy chose were all established paths, and any demonic beasts along them had already been cleared. Logically, it should have been very safe. However, if people held such a belief and acted recklessly in the wilderness, they often met a terrible end. Low-grade demonic beasts did not have strong territorial instincts and often roamed around to hunt for food. Therefore, even a place that was perfectly safe yesterday might have one or two demonic beasts appear today. Thus, despite the apparent tranquility of the journey, everyone was on edge, constantly vigilant for any disturbance.

Not only did the black rhinos need rest, but these cultivators also suffered significant mental fatigue and required rest.

Wu Xinyuan, holding a waterskin of spirit wine, walked up to Lin He and cheerfully greeted him, "Steward Lin, I have a flask of spirit wine here that can refresh the mind. Would Steward Lin like a couple of sips?"

Lin He smiled and waved his hand, declining, "No, spirit wine is not cheap. Fellow Daoist, you should keep it for your own enjoyment." It was natural to be wary of cultivators one was not familiar with. Lin He dared not drink this wine casually.

Wu Xinyuan did not mind Lin He's refusal and turned to leave. Just then, Mu Shan sidled up, clapped Wu Xinyuan on the back, and loudly exclaimed, "Well, Wu Xinyuan, you're being quite inconsiderate! Why only ask Steward Lin and not us? What, do you look down on us rogue cultivators?"

Perhaps due to the sudden movement, Wu Xinyuan was startled, and the waterskin in his hand slipped and fell to the ground.

The Spirit Wine from the waterskin spilled out, its fragrance filling the air.

Wu Xinyuan looked at the Spirit Wine pooling on the ground, feeling a pang of regret. He grumbled at Mu Shan, "This waterskin of Spirit Wine cost five first-grade Spirit Stones. And now, it's all wasted."

Mu Shan quickly bowed and apologized.

Lin He sniffed the wine aroma permeating the air and exclaimed in surprise, "What kind of Spirit Wine is this? The fragrance is so rich?"

A malicious glint flashed in Wu Xinyuan's eyes. "This wine is called Meng Po's Brew. May that old geezer drink his fill in the underworld!"

Upon hearing this, Lin He's expression changed drastically. "You—"

Wu Xinyuan chuckled, "It's too late to realize now!"

With that, Lin He's movements suddenly stiffened, and a faint green light flashed across his face.

[Green Vine Gu]: A first-grade Gu Worm that emits a peculiar, difficult-to-conceal wine fragrance.

Special Effect: After parasitizing a cultivator, it can release the Green Vine Poison, preventing the host cultivator from using spiritual energy for a period of time.

Among first-grade Gu Worms, the Green Vine Gu is considered quite potent. Its spirit-sealing effect is akin to a killing blow for low-level cultivators who have limited techniques.

However, this Gu's drawback is also obvious: the Green Vine Gu naturally possesses a strong wine aroma, making it difficult to utilize except in special circumstances.

With even the slightest precaution, a fragile poison Gu like the Green Vine Gu would be unable to get close to a cultivator.

But Wu Xinyuan used the scent of the Spirit Wine to mask the Green Vine Gu's own aroma, causing Lin He to fall victim without any defense.

Wu Xinyuan was a Gu Cultivator.

Gu Cultivators are a branch of Beast Cultivators. Due to the strange nature of Gu Worms, the methods of Gu Cultivators are extremely insidious and impossible to guard against.