The stone forest within the mountain was still steeped in a dim crimson light. Great stone pillars hung from the cavern ceiling like inverted ancient trees, a magnificent sight.
"It's been over a month since I was last here," Fang Yuan thought, feeling a little helpless.
After the alliance of the three tribes, they had been constantly sweeping the wolf packs in the area. This meant that Gu Masters were regularly coming and going near the secret crack cave. Under these circumstances, even with his Hidden Scale Gu concealing him, Fang Yuan risked exposure.
Fang Yuan was naturally cautious. Five hundred years of life had honed his patience to an edge. All this time, he had exercised restraint and stayed away.
Only when winter passed and spring arrived, the last wolves swept clean, and the traffic of Gu Masters reduced, did Fang Yuan take a long detour around the outer sect. Using the Hidden Scale Gu, he concealed himself and came here.
Over the past month, some groups of stone monkeys had migrated into the tunnels he had previously cleared.
Luckily, their numbers were relatively few.
Fang Yuan spent some effort killing his way through the monkeys, finally arriving again at the very heart of the stone forest.
Beneath the shadow of a colossal stone pillar, a cave entrance—clearly man-made—appeared before him.
Rough stone steps led down from the mouth of the cave into the darkness underground.
Fang Yuan activated the White Jade Gu. A layer of faint jade light covered his whole body as he carefully picked his way down the steps.
His left hand held a torch aloft, while in his right palm shone a gentle moonlight radiance—the Moonlight Gu was ready and waiting.
Complete darkness surrounded him. Even with the torch, he could only illuminate the area within five paces.
In a situation like this, a beacon Gu would have been a huge help. Unfortunately, Fang Yuan's assets weren't quite that extensive yet.
Step by step. He walked for a while before finally reaching the bottom of the stairs.
A crudely made stone door stood before Fang Yuan.
"Death lies within the Golden Centipede Cave, use Earth Listener to avoid the grave." Fang Yuan raised his torch, discovering some words engraved on the door.
Earth Listener...
Golden Centipede...
Fang Yuan narrowed his eyes. Light glimmered in them for a moment before an understanding dawned.
"If I'm not mistaken..." He crouched down, brushing the ground with his hand. Soon, he found a patch of damp soil right in front of the stone door.
"Found it." A flicker of joy surfaced in his heart. Digging into the earth with his hands, he discovered an Earth Treasury Flower.
Carefully parting its petals, he retrieved a Gu worm from the heart of the flower.
This Gu was quite peculiar.
It looked like a human ear, but much smaller, and was completely colored a dull, earthy yellow. Withered and muted. Held in the hand, it felt somewhat shriveled, like a piece of dried pickled radish, emanating a slight, gentle warmth.
Around the edges of the ear, root-like tendrils extended outward. There were dozens of these slender, long roots, looking just like the whiskers of a ginseng plant.
This was a second-turn Grass Gu, known by the people as the Earth Listener Flesh Ear Grass.
Looking at the Earth Listener Flesh Ear Grass in his hand, Fang Yuan's gaze flickered a few times.
This Earth Listener Flesh Ear Grass had arrived just in time. It could be used for reconnaissance. It was perfectly suited to him.
It had one huge advantage—its reconnaissance range was a full three hundred steps. This distance was exceptionally outstanding among second-turn reconnaissance Gu worms.
Furthermore, it was easy to feed.
Its food was ginseng whiskers.
The Southern Border of this world was a vast area of deep mountains and old forests. Ginseng was far more abundant here than on Earth. Hunters going up the mountains would pick some from time to time.
Most importantly, ginseng was easy to store. As long as it was thoroughly dried and sealed, it could be kept for a long time at room temperature.
Moon Orchid petals would wither within a few days, but ginseng roots could be stored for ages.
"Raising Gu, using Gu, refining Gu. These three aspects are profound and marvelously intricate. The Earth Listener Flesh Ear Grass is easy to raise, but tricky to use," Fang Yuan mused. Pinching the grass between his fingers, he silently channeled his true essence, and in an instant, he had refined it.
The Earth Listener Flesh Ear Grass was quite excellent. In terms of scouting range, it could rival many third-turn Gu worms. But the heavens were fair. To use it, mere refinement wasn't enough; a certain price had to be paid.
Take the Zombie Gu or the Wood Essence Gu, for example. They had to be used alongside other Gu. Otherwise, used alone for too long, a Gu Master's body would erode, turning them into a real zombie or a tree man.
"Many Gu worms can't be used immediately even after successful refinement. They require special conditions. This Earth Listener Flesh Ear Grass is the same. If I have this Gu, I can probe the situation and navigate the wolf tide with ease. I might even be able to use this wolf tide to accomplish some of my goals..."
Fang Yuan thought it over and decided to adopt the Earth Listener Flesh Ear Grass.
The gains already outweighed the losses. Even if he had to pay that price, it was nothing for the sake of the future.
"In any world, no gain without giving." Fang Yuan sneered inwardly, storing the Earth Listener Flesh Ear Grass into his aperture.
He took a deep look at the stone door, turned, and left.
If he was not mistaken, danger awaited on the other side of the stone door. He would need the Earth Listener Flesh Ear Grass to avoid it.
Fang Yuan exited the secret cave. He didn't rush back to the village, but circled outside a few times. He hunted some lone wolves, obtained a few pairs of wolf eyeballs, and only then returned.
On the merit board, he was still dead last. As he walked down the street, some Gu Masters who recognized him cast sneering, contemptuous glances his way.
Fang Yuan didn't care. He continued to act as he pleased.
Over the next few days, he used his meager merits to exchange for ginseng whiskers, properly fed the Earth Listener Flesh Ear Grass, and let it return to a state of full vitality.
Most of the clan's attention was absorbed by the wolf tide. No one paid attention to Fang Yuan. In the past, his uncle and aunt might have made a fuss, but ever since Fang Yuan had transferred the family property to them, they had gone completely quiet.
Open affairs are hard to accomplish; dark deeds are easy to do.
Soon, Fang Yuan quietly and smoothly completed his preparations.
This night, the moon was bright and the stars were few.