Jiang Ya noticed Fang Yuan was about to head out and hurriedly blocked his path. "Lord Fang Yuan, a wise man doesn't fight when the odds are against him. This Manshi is very strong — he's someone who once managed to escape with his life from Bai Ningbing. You absolutely must not underestimate him!"
"Treating defeat as a badge of honor to brag about — what is there to fear in such a person?" Fang Yuan chuckled lightly, reaching out to press Jiang Ya's shoulder. "Just sit here and drink."
"My lord—" Jiang Ya opened his mouth to press further, but met Fang Yuan's icy gaze.
The frost in those eyes made his heart shudder.
He stammered into silence, helplessly pressed back into his seat by Fang Yuan. Meanwhile, Fang Yuan took a few long strides around the screen partition and walked into the main hall.
There, at the central square table, a Second Transformation Gu Master stood with one foot planted on a long bench and the other on the tabletop.
His stature was somewhat short, but his waist and arms were thick and sturdy. A dense black beard extended from both cheeks all the way down, converging at his chin. His entire body seemed to radiate an aggressive, overwhelming aura.
On the ground nearby lay shattered wine jar fragments. Most of the wine had seeped through the cracks between the stone bricks and into the earth.
Only two or three puddles remained on the surface of the green bricks or pooled inside the jar shards.
The elderly man serving as shopkeeper hung his head low, apologizing with a trembling voice: "Please calm yourself, my lord. If you are unsatisfied with this jar, our humble shop will freely serve you another jar of our finest brew!"
"Hmph, I don't want wine! Your wine tastes awful — why do you even bother running a tavern? Compensation! You must compensate me! My perfectly good mood has been ruined by you lot. At least five hundred Yuan Stones!" Manshi made an outrageous demand.
"This is already the third time. Looks like this tavern has offended someone."
"Sigh, it's probably best not to come drinking here anymore."
"Let's go, quickly. When Gu Masters fight, we ordinary folks suffer."
The surrounding patrons rose from their seats one after another. Only a handful of Gu Masters remained seated, chatting amongst themselves.
"I heard this tavern belongs to Fang Yuan. Who exactly has it out for him so badly?"
"Oh! That orphan who inherited a fortune and got rich overnight?"
"No wonder someone's jealous. Even I'd be green with envy. We fight tooth and nail — and for what? To accumulate enough wealth for a comfortable life. And that newcomer Fang Yuan just gets it all handed to him?"
"Exactly. Sure, his ancestors may have left behind blessings for their descendants, but times have changed. The clan's resources are limited, and everyone only gets their small share. Why should someone with Grade C Aptitude enjoy such wealth at his young age? It's outrageous."
"Isn't Manshi trying to provoke him into a Gu battle? If they really fight, Manshi might just carve off a nice chunk of meat."
Someone shook their head. "Heh, do you think those Elders are fools?"
Someone else nodded. "But you never know. The clan's policies are right there — haven't you figured it out by now? They tacitly permit us to compete to a certain degree. The strong should receive more resources, shouldn't they? If the weak can't hold onto their assets, they have no one to blame but themselves. It's all for the strength of the clan!"
"Hmm, that makes sense. But let's wait and see — the waters run deep here. I've heard Manshi has some retired elder backing him." Someone lowered his voice.
"Nobody's going anywhere! All of you, stand right there — nobody leaves!" Manshi suddenly barked from atop the table.
The ordinary patrons had already reached the door, but not daring to disobey a Gu Master, they froze in place, silent as cicadas in winter. Many passersby had noticed the commotion and gathered at the entrance to watch.
"So it really is just causing trouble on purpose!" Fang Yuan watched the scene with an indifferent expression, a flash of icy light in his eyes.
Manshi spotted him.
"Hmm? So you're that Fang Yuan. Junior, you run quite the tavern — trying to swindle money from me. But since you're new, I'll give you a chance to publicly apologize. That way no one can say I, Manshi, am using my seniority to bully a young junior. Hahaha!"
Manshi laughed several times. "All you have to do is say sorry, bow once, and this whole matter is settled. I, your elder, keep my word — my promises are ironclad!"
He slapped his chest with a resounding thud, putting on a display of magnanimity and righteousness. But his true intentions were not lost on the observing Gu Masters.
"Manshi's move is insidious."
"Exactly. If Fang Yuan really apologizes, he'll never be able to hold his head up again. Everyone will come running to trample over him, bullying him for his weakness. But if he doesn't apologize, that's disrespecting a senior — he'll be branded arrogant and rebellious, and the entire circle will shun him."
"Yeah, he's caught between a rock and a hard place… What the—!!"
The Gu Masters were whispering among themselves when suddenly one of them gaped wide enough to swallow a duck egg.
The other onlookers were no better.
Some stared so hard their eyes nearly popped from their sockets.
Some spat out the wine in their mouths.
Some looked on with utter, incomprehensible shock, frozen like statues.
They had been watching the whole time, expecting an entertaining show.
But Fang Yuan not only delivered on their expectations — he gave them a massive surprise. The young man simply flicked his hand and unleashed a Moon Blade.
Swoosh!
It was the Moon Blade from the Moonblade Gu!
A deep blue crescent arc shot through the air, as large as a washbasin. A square table in its path was cleaved in two as cleanly as a hot knife through butter.
"Hmm?!" Manshi's laughter cut off abruptly. His pupils contracted sharply as a Moon Blade rapidly expanded in his vision.
In the blink of an eye, the deep blue moonlight had already illuminated his face, rendering every single hair of his beard in perfect detail.
A powerful aura of death bore down on him. In that critical moment, Manshi roared in panic: "Bedrock Gu!"
Instantly, a deep gray glow enveloped his entire body. His skin swelled upward, forming a thick layer of stone.
But before the stone skin could fully form, Fang Yuan's Moon Blade had already viciously imprinted itself on his chest.
A soft *pfft*, and the stone skin cracked. A long, diagonal wound instantly appeared on Manshi's chest, blood spraying out in a thin stream.
"AAARGH—!" Agony shot through his nerves. Manshi screamed in terror, his voice filled with shock and disbelief.
He had never expected that Fang Yuan would say nothing at all and simply attack.
He actually dared to attack!
Within the stockade, openly using Gu Insects against a fellow clan member!
Never mind Manshi — even the other onlookers wore expressions of jaw-dropping disbelief.
"What the hell is this? Is this kid a lunatic?!"
"He didn't say a word and just went straight for the kill! Isn't he afraid that if he actually kills Manshi, the Punishment Hall will arrest him and demand his life?"
"Young people — always so impulsive."
"Did you see that Moon Blade just now? That was definitely not Moonlight Gu — it was a Moonblade Gu. I can't believe Fang Yuan has already refined and fused a Moonblade Gu."
"Fang Yuan, what do you think you're doing?!" Manshi stood atop the table, his face twisted in a savage grimace, his roar like a clap of thunder.
His entire skin had swelled and thickened into stone, even deeper than before. The wound was now covered by the stone layer, but large volumes of blood still gushed out — it just no longer sprayed like before.
Fang Yuan's face remained cold and expressionless as he walked forward at an unhurried pace. He said nothing — or rather, he had no intention of speaking.
He responded to Manshi with a single gesture.
Another Moon Blade!
Swoosh.
The Moon Blade crossed the short distance in an instant.
"You—!" Manshi had no time to speak. He hurriedly raised both arms to shield his head and chest.
Both arms were covered in thick, deep-gray stone blocks, as though they were hands carved from rock — rough and massive.
The Moon Blade struck his arms, carving out deep gashes as countless small stone fragments scattered in all directions.
The force accompanying the Moon Blade sent Manshi's body tilting backward.
He was encased in heavy stone, his weight having increased dramatically. The square table beneath his feet could no longer bear the load, and with a crack, it completely collapsed.