This was one of the highest aspirations of the Refinement Path — to synthesize diverse killer moves into a single Gu Insect!
To illustrate, consider the mortal-level killer move My Force.
This was a Strength Path killer move created by Su Xian'er, a Gu Immortal of the Northern Plains, for her daughter Hei Loulan. Its core lay in the Strength Path, but it also touched upon the Soul Path and the Qi Path. Once activated, it could project a phantom of human force — a vivid image born from the Gu Master's subconscious intent.
Moreover, this Strength Path phantom could automatically pursue its target, imbued with a keen awareness of its own.
The killer move was composed of forty to fifty Gu Insects.
According to the supreme refinement principles Fang Yuan now comprehended: any killer move, whether mortal-level or immortal-level, could be considered an incomplete Gu recipe.
In other words, the My Force killer move could be continuously refined — adding or removing various Gu materials until it eventually coalesced into a complete Gu recipe for a My Force Gu.
Once the recipe was perfected and the My Force Gu refined, activating just this single Gu Insect would unleash the Strength Path phantom!
The benefits were self-evident.
The killer move was condensed into a single Gu Insect, slashing the required number from dozens down to one. When the Gu Master activated it, not only was it far more convenient and dramatically faster, but the True Essence consumed was also significantly less than what the original killer move demanded.
To take another example: the immortal-level killer move Myriad Self.
This was a move unique to Fang Yuan in this lifetime — a fusion of the Slavery and Strength Paths, synthesized from the Dragon Horse Spirit, Three Heads and Six Arms, Rat Plague, Thunderstorm, Leopard Charge, Horse Trample, Three Hearts Unite Souls, Beast Shadow Encirclement Kill, Six-Arms Heavenly Corpse King, and numerous other killer moves.
Its core immortal Gu were My Force, Mountain Raising, Tide Turning, and Soul Purification. The auxiliary Gu Insects included All-Out, Hard Labor, Borrowed Strength, Self-Reliance, Refine Essence Into Spirit, Double Effort, Earth Force, Fire Water Wind Lightning Force, Heaven Rich Treasure King Lotus, Hidden Soul Beast Garment, Breath Concealing, Collective Force, and various mortal-path Soul Gu.
Clearly, this killer move encompassed an enormous amount of content, and activating it was extremely cumbersome.
It was only because Fang Yuan had practiced it to the point of bone-deep mastery, honing it into pure instinct, that he could deploy it with fluid ease in actual combat.
But in truth, it encompassed thousands of components and was staggeringly complex.
What if this killer move could be refined, elevated, and condensed into a single Gu Insect?
The Myriad Self Immortal Gu!
Obviously, that would be immensely convenient! Incredibly efficient!
Fang Yuan would only need to pour in Immortal Essence and activate this one Gu Insect to unleash tens of thousands of Strength Path phantoms — both convenient and swift.
In the past, Fang Yuan had been entirely unqualified to attempt this. But now, having become a Quasi-Supreme Grandmaster of the Refinement Path, he possessed the full capability to achieve exactly this!
To distill diverse killer moves into single Gu Insects!
Fang Yuan's heart stirred with excitement, but he did not lose his composure. He remained thoroughly calm, continuing to think deeply.
"I now have the ability to elevate various killer moves into Gu Insects."
"However, some killer moves can be condensed into a single Gu — such as the Myriad Self killer move — while others cannot. For instance, the Purple Blood Pioneering Formation, Burning Will Flying Stones, and similar techniques: if condensed to their absolute limit, they would still yield several immortal Gu. In the future, activating these Gu in combination would allow me to successfully deploy the killer move."
"But this approach has its advantages and disadvantages."
"The advantage is that it becomes far more convenient and swift, dramatically reducing the strain on the mind and spirit. But there are drawbacks as well. First, take the Myriad Self killer move — once condensed into a single Myriad Self Immortal Gu, it might require consuming other immortal Gu as materials during the refinement process. Moreover, activating the Myriad Self Gu alone might not necessarily match the full power of the Myriad Self killer move."
The Myriad Self killer move required activating so many immortal Gu and auxiliary mortal Gu, but the Myriad Self Gu would be just one. If its level were only Sixth Transformation or Seventh Transformation, its Dao Marks would naturally be limited, and insufficient power was to be expected.
"There is another concern. Once a Gu Insect becomes singular, it becomes easier to counter. Though a killer move may be complex, the difficulty for others to deduce and dismantle it is also far greater."
Killer moves could also be continuously adjusted and improved. The Myriad Self killer move, for instance, had variant forms — the Strength Grand Palm Seal and the Reverse Flow Protection Seal.
But if the Myriad Self Gu were a single Gu, this kind of upgrade path would be lost.
"Of course, all things considered, condensing and elevating into a single Gu offers more advantages. Because it can serve as a core immortal Gu, around which new killer moves can be constructed. This way, power can be enhanced, and it won't be easily countered or anticipated."
"Even if some immortal Gu are consumed as materials during refinement, I can simply re-refine them!"
This ability would be enormously helpful to Fang Yuan.
Setting everything else aside, take the Myriad Self killer move for instance — his Reverse Flow Protection Seal was a variant of it. For a long time, activating the Reverse Flow Protection Seal had been extremely troublesome for Fang Yuan, requiring a lengthy preparation phase with tedious steps. The slightest error in activation could cause the move to backfire, leaving him severely injured.
But with the Myriad Self Immortal Gu, Fang Yuan could completely revamp the Reverse Flow Protection Seal, undeniably simplifying the steps and enabling him to unleash it at incredible speed.
In that case, his combat power would leap upward by a massive margin!
Fang Yuan calculated — he commanded a vast number of killer moves, but only a select few were truly useful in practice.
The Myriad Self killer move could be condensed and elevated. The Purple Thought Insight Spirit Star Ray could be reduced to a handful of immortal Gu. The Ancient Sword Flood Dragon Transformation killer move could also be condensed into a single Gu Insect. Combined, the Myriad Self Immortal Gu and the Ancient Sword Flood Dragon Immortal Gu — just those two Gu alone — could unleash the Myriad Flood Dragons attack!
The Divination Turtle Transformation, Pure Body Integrity, Hundred-Eighty Slaves, Battle-Conquering Subjugation Slave, and others — all could be condensed and elevated.
As Fang Yuan delved deeper into this line of inquiry and contemplation, a sudden insight struck him.
"Wait — whether it is killer moves or Gu refinement, they are fundamentally applications of the Dao."