It was not until over ten days later that he truly returned to the secret cave in the stone crack.
Late summer night.
The light rain had just stopped, bringing a hint of autumn.
In the sky, a golden moon, round like a plate, hung high.
The faint howls of wolves in his ears mingled with the lingering chirps of cicadas. Fang Yuan, hidden, stood on a hillside and looked back.
In Gu Yue Village, countless lights were lit. The broken village walls had been patched up again and again, already losing their former atmosphere of peace and tranquility, as if they were a giant beast that had experienced countless battles, lying on the ground panting.
“After rebirth, even the progress of the wolf tide has changed a lot. In my memory, Section 162: Heavenly Origin Treasure Lotus, the Thunder Crown Head Wolf arrived three days ago. But now there is no trace of it.”
Fang Yuan glanced and then looked away. Tonight was a time he had painstakingly managed to secure, and he had to make good use of it.
A moment later, he entered the secret cave in the stone crack again.
The dust he had intentionally scattered at the cave entrance was undisturbed, with no footprints appearing, indicating that this place had not yet been discovered.
This minor method of detection seemed unsophisticated, but in Fang Yuan's experience, it was surprisingly effective.
Of course, he didn't set up just this one measure. After several checks, he confirmed that the secret cave was still safe for the time being.
He breathed a slight sigh of relief. Since his rebirth, more and more things had changed. Especially during the wolf tide, Gu Masters were frequently dispatched. It was possible someone might discover this place.
He walked into the passage, entered the second secret room, pushed open the stone door, and came to the stone forest within the mountain.
In the stone forest, many jade-eye stone monkey groups had migrated onto the path that had once been cleared.
But now, Fang Yuan was already a third-turn Gu Master. Although the Blood Moon Gu was not excellent in attack among third-turn Gu, it was certainly far better than the second-turn Moonlight Gu.
Fang Yuan spent three hours destroying nearly ten monkey groups and reopened the path.
He arrived at the very center, stepped onto the rough stone steps of Section 162: Heavenly Origin Treasure Lotus, and went deep into the third secret room. A stone door blocked his way. On the door was engraved: 'If you encounter deadly disaster in the Golden Centipede Cave, use Earth Listening to avoid calamity.' Last time, he had stopped right here.
But this time, he resolutely pushed open the stone door and stepped inside.
He held a torch, illuminating ten paces around him.
This Golden Centipede Cave was spacious. The main tunnel was at least three meters high and two meters wide. There were also many narrower side passages branching off, leading in all directions.
Wherever Fang Yuan went, the firelight shone and darkness retreated. At first only his footsteps echoed in the cave, but soon rustling sounds surged from all directions.
The sounds merged into one, continuous and unending. At the edge of the firelight, countless centipedes soon emerged.
They were full of ferocity, but temporarily hindered by the bright firelight, they did not attack Fang Yuan. However, Fang Yuan knew that as time passed, more and more centipedes would gather, pushing from behind, and this stalemate would soon be broken.
But he didn't care.
If he were still at the second-turn, with only the White Jade Gu for defense, he would never have intentionally caused such a disturbance to provoke the centipedes. But now that he had advanced to third-turn, the defensive power of the Celestial Canopy Gu was enough to withstand the biting of the swarm; the only thing he had to worry about was the insect king here—the Sawtooth Golden Centipede.
It had already appeared!
Fang Yuan deliberately mobilized a strand of silver true essence from his aperture, letting it flow out of his body, revealing his aura as a third-turn Gu Master.
This aura made the Sawtooth Golden Centipede feel a strong threat. To it, Fang Yuan, a powerful 'beast' that had stepped into its territory, had to be killed immediately by it.
Fang Yuan faced it.
This Sawtooth Golden Centipede was over a meter long, with a body as wide as two fists. At first, it stayed at the edge of the firelight, coiling its body like a python lurking in the shadows waiting for an opportunity.
But then, it slowly moved, supporting its body with countless legs, gradually pressing towards Fang Yuan.
Fang Yuan's third-turn aura made it vigilant but not fearful. If it were a fourth-turn Gu Master, it probably wouldn't have actively advanced. If it were a fifth-turn, as soon as the aura leaked, it would have turned and fled.
Fang Yuan held the torch high, the flames burning, illuminating the surrounding cave with flickering light.
In the firelight, the Sawtooth Golden Centipede's dark golden carapace gleamed faintly. Its body was lined with silver saw-like teeth. As it slowly advanced, the saw-teeth also rotated slowly, like slowed-down chainsaws, emitting a buzzing sound.
The other small centipedes gathered around Fang Yuan from the ground and walls.
Some centipedes climbed to the ceiling and then fell onto Fang Yuan's shoulders and back.
Fang Yuan was completely unconcerned. He activated the Celestial Canopy Gu, and a thick layer of white crystal light appeared all over his body, with the faint outline of armor, securely enveloping him.
The centipedes' venomous limbs could do nothing to this layer of white crystal armor.
The squirming centipedes, some crawling on his cheeks and ears, might have been disgusting, but Fang Yuan's mental fortitude had long made him ignore them. In his previous life, when he was down and out in the wild, he ate anything; he had even eaten non-venomous centipedes raw. Actually, they tasted quite good; at first they were a bit strange, but he got used to it after eating them.
He only focused his attention on the Sawtooth Golden Centipede.
The Sawtooth Golden Centipede slowly advanced, the distance between them growing shorter.
When it was three or four steps away, Fang Yuan stopped the outflow of silver true essence, which suddenly weakened his aura.
The Sawtooth Golden Centipede keenly sensed this, and its speed immediately soared, like a golden thread.
Whoosh!
In the blink of an eye, it closed the distance and coiled around Fang Yuan's calf.
Its speed was truly fast; when it didn't move, it was still, but once it moved, it was just a flash of golden light.