At this depth, the seawater was practically pitch-black.
However, in Fang Yuan's field of vision, everything was a murky green.
"Good, this newly acquired Gu is quite useful. With it, I can barely make out my surroundings in the deep sea," Fang Yuan thought with a hint of satisfaction.
Conditions in the deep sea were complex. More often than not, one couldn't recklessly emit light—no one knew what kind of predators it might attract.
Amid the murky green, there were several streaks of deep black.
The black oil, naturally.
These patches of black oil interwove and tangled with one another, resembling a cluster of bizarre giant serpents. They were nearly motionless, yet still gave off a powerful visual impact.
Fang Yuan took a deep breath. The gills on both sides of his cheeks fluttered continuously, filtering air from the seawater and supplying it to sustain him.
Settling his mind, Fang Yuan cautiously approached the black oil. He extended both hands slowly, and stopped when he was still a foot away from it.
Then he activated his Gu. A bright blue glow gradually condensed in the center of each palm, each forming a tiny beam of light that shone down onto the black oil. Bit by bit, clump by clump, the black oil was drawn out along these miniature blue beams, all of it flowing into the palms of Fang Yuan's hands.
Fang Yuan's palms were like two bottomless pits, ceaselessly absorbing the black oil.
Time trickled by. Fang Yuan maintained a high state of vigilance at every moment.
He was not only monitoring his surroundings, but also keeping track of the True Essence reserves within his own Empty Orifice.
Because he was simultaneously activating several Gu, Fang Yuan's True Essence was being consumed at a considerable rate. Before long, it had reached the warning threshold.
"Time to stop and head back to the surface to recover. Sigh, my aptitude isn't enough—if I had Grade A aptitude, I could have kept going for much longer!"
Fang Yuan silently lamented, then decisively ceased activating his Gu and began to withdraw.
But in the final moments of his retreat, something unexpected happened.
Without warning, an enormous force surged through the calm seawater, sending Fang Yuan flying.
"Damn it—a collision current!"
A chill ran through Fang Yuan's heart as he hastily activated his Gu, trying to escape the danger.
Collision currents looked no different from ordinary seawater, but the moment they encountered a living being, they would unleash a tremendous impact force.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
During his attempt to flee, Fang Yuan was struck by the collision current again and again. Four or five bones fractured across his body, and blood seeped from his nostrils and the corners of his mouth.
Fang Yuan gritted his teeth. His eyes were wide open, shot through with red veins. Thoughts raced frantically through his mind as he desperately searched for a way out.
But he was not in optimal condition to begin with—he had already burned through a great deal of True Essence. On top of that, the collision current this time was massive in scale. Fang Yuan had no means to counter it and could only rely on luck to dodge.
Before long, Fang Yuan's True Essence was completely depleted, and a collision current slammed him into the band of black oil behind him.
"So this is where I die?" Fang Yuan couldn't break free. All he could do was watch as the black oil firmly adhered to him, then gradually spread across and engulfed him.
His True Essence was entirely exhausted. Fortunately, the gills were a product of Transformation-path Gu and could still sustain him for a little while.
But this was nothing more than the last, pathetic gasp of a dying man.
"These are the final moments of my life… Sigh. Here I was, planning to gather as much black oil as I could, stockpile wealth, and trade at the sea market for a way to deal with the black oil corrosion eating at me… Well, no matter now. I don't have to worry about any of it. Heh heh heh…"
Fang Yuan laughed bitterly, sinking into deep despair.
In the end, he was completely covered by the black oil, his body gradually swallowed beneath its surface.
"Am I about to die…"
Death approached, yet Fang Yuan's heart was perfectly calm.
Or perhaps more accurately, perfectly indifferent.
He was equally indifferent to his own life and death.
"Fine, then… if I die, I die."
"Coming to this world, all these years, wandering from place to place—it's truly been exhausting."
"Who can escape death?"
"Then I might as well get some proper rest."
Fang Yuan closed his eyes.
He didn't know how long had passed before he gradually began to regain some sensation.
Through the haze, he heard people speaking beside him.
"Holy Maiden, why did you bother saving this mere mortal Gu Master? Have our people not suffered enough humiliation at the hands of humanity all these years!"
"That's right, Holy Maiden. This Gu Master is clearly an oil-harvesting Gu Master, and these waters are the territory of us Jiaoren. He's nothing but a shameless sea rat stealing our black oil. We should simply let him die and be done with it."