Rock Gu

"You don't believe me?" Long Xuan shot him a sidelong glance and smiled. "Whether I exaggerated or not, wouldn't you know if you just tried it?"

"My Cockroach Gu can regenerate severed limbs. Chop off a hand right here and now, then see whether I can reattach it."

Naturally, Old Daoist Li would not agree to chop off his hand. What if the Cockroach Gu did not have the ability to regenerate severed limbs? Wouldn't he become a complete idiot after cutting it off?

"Why would I need to chop off my hand to test the Cockroach Gu's abilities? I'll know as soon as I test it."

Old Daoist Li had been successfully provoked. Whether it was real or fake, he decided to trade for it and test its abilities on the spot.

If Long Xuan's words proved false, they could settle the score right then and there. Could Long Xuan possibly run away beneath his very nose?

Old Daoist Li walked straight to Long Xuan's stall, casually grabbed a Gu jar, opened it without even looking inside, and immediately formed a blood contract with the Cockroach Gu within.

Once one formed a blood contract with a Gu Insect, its owner could clearly learn of its abilities.

As information flowed through his soul, Old Daoist Li's expression swiftly froze. His face changed again and again before gradually revealing utter disbelief.

"How is this possible? It is clearly such a weak insect—how could it possess such a terrifying ability?" Old Daoist Li muttered.

"Alright, since you've already formed the blood contract, hurry up and pay the Spirit Stones. For the sake of being neighbors, I'll only charge you two hundred and ninety-nine Spirit Stones." Long Xuan yawned and kept urging him on.

Old Daoist Li looked at Long Xuan. The way he regarded him was now entirely different. Anyone capable of creating such a Gu Recipe was no ordinary thing trapped in a shallow pond. He had already developed the desire to befriend him.

"Hehe, this old man was blind indeed. I never expected even weak cockroaches could be used to refine Gu. My eyes have truly been opened. One really cannot look down on any insect beneath heaven."

"Still, it is fortunate I did not listen to you and chop off my hand. Although this Cockroach Gu truly can regenerate severed limbs, it is nowhere near as exaggerated as instant recovery."

"Regenerating a severed limb is an extremely slow process and may take several years. If I had really listened to you and chopped off my hand, my troubles would have been immense. In the Gu World, one cannot help but be swept along by circumstance. Who doesn't have a few enemies?"

Old Daoist Li likewise tossed three Mid-Grade Spirit Stones onto Long Xuan's stall and spoke with a smile.

Having made another sale so quickly, Long Xuan's face broke into a delighted smile.

Seeing that Long Xuan did not continue speaking, Old Daoist Li, who wished to befriend him, continued, "I've given you my business. In courtesy, one must return courtesy—shouldn't you patronize my business as well?"

"Though my Gu Insects are not exclusive varieties, they are absolutely the fiercest Gu Insects in this market. Satisfaction guaranteed."

Hearing this, Long Xuan became interested as well and turned to look toward his stall.

Compared to the pitiful single-digit number of goods on his own stall, Old Daoist Li's stall was far more abundantly stocked, nearly filled to the brim with bottles and jars containing all kinds of insects.

However, each of his bottles and jars was smaller than the last, and the insects within were smaller still. They were all Internal Gu meant for parasitism.

Yet his Internal Gu offered no benefit whatsoever to their hosts. They were all meant to parasitize enemies and harm people.

Precisely because they were not for personal use, they did not occupy slots. One could raise as many as one wished, making them consumable items.

It was worth mentioning that the number of Gu Insects a Gu cultivator could use was limited by slots. Every Gu cultivator had a different number of slots, depending on soul talent, though Gu cultivators at the Spirit Gathering Stage averaged around four slots.

Of course, Long Xuan had lived two lives. The number of Gu Insects with which he could form blood contracts might exceed that of ordinary people, perhaps even by more than double.

Most Gu cultivators could form blood contracts with only a very limited number of Gu Insects and had to calculate every choice carefully. Internal Gu used to harm others were the sole type of Gu that did not occupy slots, so nearly every Gu cultivator raised some.

This Old Daoist Li actually enjoyed refining this kind of Gu Insect. He was definitely an old schemer lurking in the shadows. Long Xuan should be wary of him, and he immediately became guarded against the man.

Then, as he read the descriptions of the Gu Insects on the bottles, Long Xuan's scalp went numb.

Rock Gu: Resembling a grain of gravel, it is often placed on roads covered in broken stones. When someone walks past, the Rock Gu jumps into the person's body. Those afflicted will have lower abdomens hard as stone, suffer severe constipation, and grow increasingly thin. They will surely die within half a year.

Rice Grain Gu: Resembling a grain of rice, it is often placed in an enemy's meal. Those afflicted will experience a surging appetite and never feel full, suffer mental derangement, and surely die within a month without a method to remove the Gu.

Wart Gu: Often hidden beneath fingernails, it can be planted in a target through close contact, whether by patting a shoulder or shaking hands. Once the Gu infects the blood, it will devour every internal organ in the target's body. Those afflicted often cannot survive even a day.

Looking at one death more cruel than the last, Long Xuan's expression shifted slightly.

This was the first time he truly understood just how sinister Gu could be in this world. Take this Rock Gu, for example—it looked exactly like a grain of gravel and was simply impossible to distinguish.

And the road back to his Household was covered in gravel. If someone placed a few Rock Gu on his path home, wouldn't that be disastrous?

Thinking of that possibility, Long Xuan could not help but shudder.

He could not tell which were grains of gravel and which were Rock Gu. No amount of caution would be of use.

And this was merely the most ordinary Rock Gu. There were oceans of Gu Insects more concealed than Rock Gu, and the methods of planting Gu came in every strange and varied form. They were impossible to guard against. How was he supposed to defend himself?

After all, he could not even see the progress of bacteria and viruses now, which meant his golden finger was ineffective against things that were too small.

For many insects only a few millimeters in size, he could not see their progress from afar. Only when he came very close could he see it.

Even his golden finger could not help him guard against methods of planting Gu.

Long Xuan was truly afraid now. These were things that could take his life, yet he currently had no means of countering them. If someone secretly planted Gu in him, he truly had no confidence that he could escape disaster.

No, research into the Microscope Gu had to be put on the agenda. No—the second Gu Insect he refined should be the Microscope Gu.

Without the Microscope Gu, those tiny insects used to harm people were impossible to defend against. Once the Microscope Gu emerged, no one would ever be able to plant Gu in him again.

At this moment, Long Xuan had already made up his mind. His second research project would focus entirely on the Microscope Gu.

Having been reborn into this life, he was truly afraid of death. Any factor capable of threatening his personal safety had to be taken seriously.

After casting another wary glance at those Gu Insects, Long Xuan said to Old Daoist Li, "No. I'm not interested in this kind of Gu Insect."

His funds had other uses now, and he did not intend to waste them on unimportant matters.

Besides, even if he wanted such Gu Insects, he intended to obtain them through his own creations.

Once the Microscope Gu was developed, he could research microbial Gu Insects. Microbial Gu Insects were so tiny that they could not be seen with the naked eye. They could openly fly straight into an enemy's mouth without being noticed. When that time came, he could harm whoever he wanted—who could counter him?

In terms of concealment, what Gu Insect beneath heaven could be more impossible to guard against than microbial Gu? Before microbial Gu, Rock Gu was nothing but a little brother.