Gu Human

Gu Human

Only by fighting the Golden Silkworm Gu to a draw could it be considered fully mastered, I thought to myself. The Golden Silkworm Gu was so powerful that it would probably take a very long time. I had to find a way to refine the Three-Corpse Snake Gu and try to shorten that time.

I thought of the Grudge Spirit sealed inside the jar.

"I'll definitely make the Three-Corpse Snake Gu into a powerful Gu insect!" I clenched my fist and said through gritted teeth.

Xiao Yudao said softly, "During the day, I flipped through the old books the great Gu master left behind. I was planning to come find you at noon, but my dad stopped me. These are a few herbs I wrote down. Take a look..."

Xiao Yudao handed me a sheet of white paper with more than a dozen medicinal herbs written on it. I carefully considered the function of each one, then nodded and said, "They really are worth trying. I know all these herbs. I'll go into the mountains to gather them myself."

Xiao Yudao watched me drink every last bit of the thin porridge.

Gratefully, I said, "It's getting late. I'm going back to rest. Tell your dad that I'll obey Master's last wishes. From now on, I'll live in that corpse-rearing cave."

I chose to stay in Camellia Village because I had promised Xiao Yudao that I would help her get rid of the Golden Silkworm Gu and the Golden Silkworm Deity. Before that was done, I would not leave.

But if I wanted to refine the Three-Corpse Snake Gu properly, living inside the Miao stockade definitely would not work. More importantly, the corpse-rearing cave was outside the village. If I lived there alone, it would be extremely convenient.

Xiao Yudao glanced at me, wanting to speak but stopping herself. After a while, she said, "The weather is gradually cooling down. Be careful not to get sick. After some time, I'll bring you a quilt."

I put away the black cloth bag and slowly walked out of the courtyard.

Ma Erlei rushed out from the shadows, watching me warily as he asked, "Brother Xiao Kunlun, where are you going? If you're heading out of town, I'm going to stop you!"

I forced a smile and said, "Erlei, Uncle Huo Xin told you to guard here because he was afraid I'd get impulsive and run off, didn't he? Don't worry. I won't leave Camellia Village for now. Go back and rest."

"You saw right through me!" Ma Erlei gave a simple, honest laugh. "You cried for a long time just now. I heard it all. This time, I'm definitely carrying you back to the cave." Without allowing any argument, Ma Erlei stepped forward and hoisted me onto his back.

Ma Erlei was sturdy and walked very quickly. As he walked, he said, "When my grandpa passed away, I cried really hard too. But if you get a good sleep, things will pass in the end."

I said sincerely, "Erlei, thank you."

Before long, we were back at the cave. I thanked Ma Erlei again and again. After he left.

I shouted for Master at the cave entrance. His ghost had come here before, but unfortunately, no matter how I shouted, there was no sign of Master.

I held back my tears, found the yellow jar, and patted the mouth of the jar a few times. "Grudge Spirit, come out. I have something to say to you."

After a few seconds, a wisp of scarlet baleful qi burrowed out of the jar, gradually transforming into a child with blood seeping all over his body. His face was white, his eyes were red, and he stared straight at me. "Well? Have you thought it through now?"

I said, "There's no way to verify all those things you told me. But I can promise to help you take revenge. However, I also have one condition."

The Grudge Spirit giggled and said, "Fine!"

I said, "You have to help me refine Gu and make the Three-Corpse Snake Gu grow stronger."

The Grudge Spirit stared at me with wide eyes. After hesitating for a moment, he said, "I don't understand the Gu arts of the Dong People. What I can do for you is find you a Gu Spirit."

I frowned and asked, "A Gu Spirit?"

The Golden Silkworm Deity was the Gu Spirit of the Golden Silkworm Gu. From the look of it, the Three-Corpse Snake Gu also needed a Gu Spirit.

Seeing my surprise, the Grudge Spirit said, "A so-called Gu Spirit is a spiritual body a Gu master finds to protect both himself and the Gu insect he raises. One of the criteria for judging whether a Gu master is skilled or not is whether he has a Gu Spirit."

I nodded as if understanding something and said, "Fine, then hurry up and find me a Gu Spirit. Do we need to find a graveyard and catch an evil ghost back? But speaking of which, I don't know how to catch ghosts."

A Gu Spirit was a spiritual body, so this thing definitely had to be found among graves.

The Grudge Spirit clenched both hands into fists, and the baleful qi inside the cave grew even denser. "What you seek is far on the horizon yet right before your eyes. Why go to some graves? You're far too stupid. A spiritual body like me is much more powerful than the wandering souls over a graveyard."

I widened my eyes and looked at the Grudge Spirit, stammering, "You... you yourself can be my Gu Spirit? What should I do?"

The Grudge Spirit stepped forward, knelt on one knee, and said, "My name is Blood Infant. Bite open the index finger of your right hand and drip three drops of fresh blood onto the top of my head to form a blood pact. That way, I will become your Gu Spirit. From then on, we live and die together. In the future, once both our great hatred has been avenged, the blood pact will dissolve on its own."

The Grudge Spirit's tone was extremely resolute, and the blood seeping from his body flowed rapidly.

I took two steps forward, bit open my finger, and dripped three drops of fresh blood onto the Grudge Spirit's head. The three drops of blood rolled a few times over his head, then instantly seeped in.

The Grudge Spirit Blood Infant, whose skin had originally been rippling, released a plume of black mist from all over his body. When the black mist dispersed, Blood Infant had changed into a different appearance.

The fresh blood on his body faded away, turning into a long black robe. The features on his face also became distinct. He was a very good-looking little boy, though his face was still pale, and his eyes were still frighteningly red.

Black robe, white face, red eyes—Blood Infant's appearance had changed drastically. He was no longer as terrifying as when I first saw him, no longer so forbidding that people kept their distance.

I cried out in surprise, "So this is what you look like. You're actually pretty handsome."

Blood Infant said, "Don't tease me. Now that I've become your Gu Spirit, I'll protect you at the right times and keep you from harm. We're not that close." Though his appearance had changed, his way of speaking was still cold and heartless.

I did not want to force Blood Infant either, so I said, "Then from now on, when I need to ask you to come out and help, how should I summon you?"

Blood Infant said, "I'll sleep inside the yellow jar. Just call my name. This Three-Corpse Snake Gu of yours has been jostled around with you when it hasn't even been a full month since the jar was sealed. You need to let it rest quietly. When the time is right, it will naturally be of use to you."

I asked Blood Infant, "Then when will the time be considered right?"

Blood Infant shrugged and shook his head. "I don't know. You still have to figure that out yourself. Now that you have a Gu Spirit, you count as a Gu master. What's the point of asking me?" Immediately afterward, his body swayed and burrowed into the jar.

"Why hide before you've finished talking?" I patted hard a few times, but Blood Infant did not pay any attention to me at all.

For now, I could only let the Three-Corpse Snake Gu rest quietly for a while. Once it had recovered, I would think of other methods.

I took out the iron jar again and observed the Black and White Twin Insects inside. After watching for a long time, they finally turned over once. From the look of it, they were growing weaker and weaker. Helplessly, I said, "Black and White Twin Insects, I brought you along because I originally wanted to find Master and ask him to treat you. But Master can't come back now, and I don't know what to do anymore."

After mentioning Master, my eyes reddened again. I had to hold back with all my strength to keep from crying. Inside the jar, the Black and White Twin Insects seemed to understand my words and turned their bodies a few more times, showing that they still had some strength left.

I could not help smiling as I said, "Xiao Yudao wrote me a prescription to cure the Golden Silkworm poison. Once I've rested, I'll go into the mountains to gather herbs and get some medicinal herbs to heal you along the way. Auspicious insects have the heavens on their side. You'll definitely be all right."

I took out the five medicinal ingredients from the black cloth bag and looked them over. Back then, Master had said there were seven medicinal ingredients, but now two were missing, and he had not told me their specific names. Fortunately, the Innate Insect had been fairly obedient lately, so I did not need them for the time being. I could only hope that I would be able to find the remaining two medicinal ingredients in the future.

After everything went quiet, I couldn't sleep no matter what I did.

In all the vastness under heaven, the only place that could let me, Xiao Kunlun, go on living was this one shabby cave.

I felt as if a piece of my heart had been hollowed out. No matter how I tried to patch it back together, life still seemed to hold little hope.

The sky gradually brightened, and the long night was finally about to end. My heart ached, and my whole body grew more and more exhausted, but I still couldn't sleep. After the sun rose, I sat in the sunlight and let it shine over me, hoping it would drive away the sorrow clinging to me.

"Big Brother Xiao Kunlun, Uncle Huo Xin asked me to bring you something to eat." Ma Erlei had a bamboo basket of things on his back, and he took another packet of candy from his pocket. "This is candy I saved up. Eat a few pieces. When you're in a bad mood, eating candy will make you feel better."

I looked up at Ma Erlei and said blankly, "Erlei, just put the things down. I'll eat in a bit. You don't need to worry about me. I'm fine. I'm very strong."

Ma Erlei set the bamboo basket down, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and said, "Big Brother Kunlun, your eyes are frighteningly red. You didn't close them at all last night, did you? Hurry up and eat something, then go to sleep. Once you've slept well, you'll feel much better."

I lifted my heavy eyelids and said with a bitter smile, "I really want to sleep, but the moment it gets quiet, I can't fall asleep no matter what. Don't mind me. Let me sit in the sun for a while."

Ma Erlei took an earthen jar from the bamboo basket. When he opened it, the aroma of meat soup wafted out; it was still warm. He poured a bowl, walked forward, pinched my mouth open, and said, "Sorry, Big Brother Kunlun. Drink this meat soup, then hurry inside and sleep."

Ma Erlei's arms were powerful. Once he clamped me down, I had no way to break free at all, and the meat soup was poured into my stomach. Ma Erlei peeled another piece of candy and tossed it into my mouth.

As I struggled, my clothes tore open, exposing the black scales beneath. A flicker of panic flashed through Ma Erlei's eyes, but he quickly calmed down again.

I said, "Erlei, hurry and go. The way I am, don't let me scare you." As I spoke, I shoved Ma Erlei away.

Ma Erlei rolled to the side and froze for a long moment. Then he took off his top and said, "Big Brother Kunlun, look at me like this. Am I scary enough?"

Ma Erlei's chest, back, and both arms were all covered in black scales, exactly the same as mine. Under the sunlight, the black scales were deeply unnerving.

"They all call me a Gu Human!" Ma Erlei said with a bitter smile. "But I've already gotten used to it. Living alone isn't so bad either, is it?"

I was stunned by the sight before me and hurriedly asked, "What is a Gu Human? With so many black scales, did they not take your life? Was this caused by the Golden Silkworm?"