After convincing the Earth Spirit, Fang Yuan had rushed straight to Chou Jiu and knocked him down with just a few moves.
Chou Jiu was ugly to look at. His hair was a tangled mess like withered yellow straw. His forehead bulged out, one eye was bigger than the other, his cheekbones jutted high, his nose bridge was flat, and a large clump of nose hair protruded from his nostrils. His mouthful of yellow teeth bared outward.
But his gaze was shrewd and keen, carrying a depth of cunning rare among ordinary people.
"Young Beast King, I know of you. You're a prodigy — a mere wanderer who grew to such heights. I truly admire that. Compared to you, I've only lived a few years more without achieving even half of what you have. Someone like you is a dragon among men, destined to soar above the clouds and roam the world. I have no wish to be your enemy. If possible, I'd like to buy my life with information about the Gate of Life and Death."
Fang Yuan had previously killed four Fifth Transformation Gu Masters. Among them, some were shocked, some furious, some terrified — but Chou Jiu had remained remarkably calm.
Once he understood his situation, he immediately lowered his stance and began flattering Fang Yuan.
He lay on the ground, motionless, as if he had given up all resistance.
But at that moment, the Earth Spirit suddenly transmitted a voice: "Kill him quickly! He's desperately activating his token and Gu Insects. I'm doing my best to suppress them, but all of this is accelerating the consumption of Immortal Essence!"
Yet Fang Yuan's eyes widened — he almost thought he'd misheard. "The Gate of Life and Death?"
The Gate of Life and Death was no ordinary place. It was recorded in the Records of the Human Ancestor, an ancient forbidden site, similar in nature to the River of Time and the Abyss of the Ordinary.
After Tai Ri Yang Mang died, the Human Ancestor had traveled to the Gate of Life and Death to try to revive him.
Legend had it that within the Gate of Life and Death lay the mysteries of life and death. Whoever could comprehend them could control both life and death itself.
"Chou Jiu actually knows the location of the Gate of Life and Death!?" Fang Yuan was inwardly shocked, his face turning cold as he warned in a frigid tone, "Chou Jiu, if you activate so much as one more Gu Insect, I'll kill you on the spot."
Chou Jiu's expression changed instantly, his pupils contracting. Slowly, he sat up and looked at Fang Yuan. "You were able to sense me using my Gu?"
A glint of calculation flashed through his eyes. "You can use Gu freely, but when I desperately tried to activate mine, nothing happened. Sigh… there's only one possibility — the Earth Spirit is still alive and has already submitted to you. So this Blessed Land held such a secret. How regrettable. Back then, the Three Kings got here first, yet none of them truly mastered this Blessed Land. Now it's fallen to you. But this Blessed Land is on the verge of collapse — no amount of help can save it. The Earth Spirit must be ancient and decrepit, otherwise these Gu Masters would have been expelled long ago. Why would it need you to personally come and eliminate us?"
Although Fang Yuan hadn't mastered this Blessed Land, after he had revealed his identity, the Earth Spirit — in order to assist him in refining Gu — had indeed, to a certain extent, obeyed his commands.
Chou Jiu was a man who had lived over a century, old and cunning in his calculations. His guess was remarkably close to the truth.
"Since you control the Blessed Land, I'll stop wasting my efforts. As long as you spare my life, what you gain will exceed your wildest expectations." As Chou Jiu spoke, he truly ceased his fidgeting.
Fang Yuan smiled noncommittally. "Tell me about the Gate of Life and Death. You know its location? The Gate of Life and Death is a top-secret forbidden zone no less significant than the River of Time — its space is immeasurably vast, spanning the five regions of east, south, west, north, and center. Legend says there are many unique natural Gu Insects within, such as Life Gu, Death Gu, and others."
Chou Jiu nodded. "I know the location of the Gate of Life and Death. More than that, I've ventured deep inside several times, capturing Life Gu and Death Gu from within, and ultimately refining them into the Life-Death Gu. I placed this Gu inside the Gate of Life and Death. Every time someone dies because of me, it absorbs the power of that death and converts it into life force. It's precisely because of this life force that my healing abilities are so extraordinary. This is the secret behind how I became one of the Southern Border's Four Great Physicians."
The Murder Doctor revealed his own secret to bolster his credibility.
"Oh? So that's how it is." This was the first time Fang Yuan had heard such inside knowledge. Though he possessed memories from his previous life, he couldn't possibly know everything.
"In that case, tell me. Perhaps I can spare your life." Fang Yuan promised.
But Chou Jiu shook his head. "The secret of the Gate of Life and Death is far too significant. Long ago, I swore an oath before the Ocean Oath Gu, vowing never to reveal it to outsiders. If I break that oath, I'll be reduced to ash — utterly annihilated. However, if you join the Shadow Sect, then you'd be one of us, and I could tell you."
"Ocean Oath Gu? Shadow Sect?" Fang Yuan frowned.
The Ocean Oath Gu was a Sixth Transformation Immortal Gu, famous in ancient times, often mentioned alongside the Mountain Covenant Gu. The Mountain Covenant and Ocean Oath Gu functioned similarly to the Poison Oath Gu — except the Poison Oath Gu was a single-use consumable, while these two Immortal Gu could be reused.
Fang Yuan had heard of the Ocean Oath Gu and knew a thing or two about it. But the "Shadow Sect" was entirely foreign to him.
From the name, it sounded like a Gu cultivation sect. If that was the case, then Chou Jiu — who always acted alone — actually had a hidden power backing him?
Fang Yuan felt a flicker of wariness. Things were spiraling beyond his expectations.
Killing Chou Jiu now would be easy, but his complete ignorance of this Shadow Sect left him feeling insecure.
"That's right. My sect is the Shadow Sect. The founding ancestor of the Shadow Sect was an Eighth Transformation Gu Immortal from the Primordial Era. He was the one who discovered the Gate of Life and Death and relocated it into a Blessed Land. Since then, the Shadow Sect has produced many Gu Immortal over the generations. Joining the Shadow Sect — the benefits are too numerous to count."
Chou Jiu then rattled off an enormous list of advantages, his silver tongue weaving an elaborate tapestry of promises.
Fang Yuan's expression wavered for a moment, then hardened. "Heh heh heh. Chou Jiu, you've worked out quite the scheme. If I join the Shadow Sect, not only would your life be spared, but I'd have to acknowledge you as my senior brother. Sects from the Primordial Era take hierarchy extremely seriously. Once I joined, I'd certainly have to swear oaths, and there would be all manner of other restrictions. And in the end, I'd probably even have to hand over everything I obtained from Three Peaks Mountain, all under the noble pretense of 'contributing to the sect' — am I right?"
"Shadow Sect?" Fang Yuan let out a cold snort and shook his head. "Setting aside the possibility that you're lying — even if it's all true, so what? A sect that has survived since the Primordial Era to the present day is already a miracle. You claim many Gu Immortal have emerged over the generations — they should all be dead by now, shouldn't they? If not, the Shadow Sect would have long since become a major power in the Southern Border. Why would you still be wandering alone, fighting your own battles?"
Chou Jiu's face turned pale. He couldn't help but re-examine Fang Yuan with new eyes.