But because he had the Spring Autumn Cicada, what he lacked most was precisely time. And if he wasted time, missing certain opportunities, his advantage of rebirth would be rendered meaningless.
"Those three chances are indeed extremely precious. But hoarding them all for later use might seem like making the most of them, when in reality it would only delay my progress. Every situation demands its own analysis — I can't simply imitate the Heaven-Stealing Demonic Venerable, and Ma Hongyun's choices were far too wasteful of these three chances."
After deliberating for a good while, Fang Yuan finally made his decision.
"Earth Spirit, I've made up my mind." Fang Yuan said slowly. "This time, please refine a Star Portal Gu for me. As for the remaining two chances, we'll save them for later."
"You truly want me to refine a Star Portal Gu? Do you realize you're giving up a precious opportunity to refine an Immortal Gu? Perhaps you should take a gamble. Use that Blood Avatar secret recipe you just obtained." The Earth Spirit tried to persuade Fang Yuan instead.
He was very fond of secret recipes, and although the Blood Avatar recipe was incomplete, he still wanted to add it to his collection.
Fang Yuan shook his head. Once he had made a decision, he would not waver: "No. Refine the Star Portal Gu."
"So be it. In this world, there is no strongest Gu — only the Gu most suited to oneself. You can't use Immortal Gu, but this Star Portal Gu seems to be of extraordinary use to you. I'll refine it for you right now."
As the old Earth Spirit spoke, with a mere thought he teleported five Gu Immortals before him.
These five Gu Immortals — one hideously ugly, one ruddy-faced, one in green robes, one in yellow garments, and one in a pink skirt — were none other than Ghost King and his party.
They had attacked Langya Blessed Land, hurling their Green Grape Immortal Essence to deplete Langya's White Lychee Immortal Essence.
But it turned out the Earth Spirit had deliberately feigned weakness, leading them into a thorough trap.
Within Langya Blessed Land there was an Eighth Transformation Heavenly Essence Imperial Lotus, so White Lychee Immortal Essence had never been in short supply. Ghost King and the others had not a single Immortal Gu among them. After the Earth Spirit lured them into the Blessed Land, once the five charged before the Cloud Pavilion, the Earth Spirit sealed away their Fifth Transformation Gu.
Realizing the dire situation, Ghost King and the others hastily expended all their Immortal Essence, but it still wasn't enough against the Langya Earth Spirit.
Without even summoning a single Desolate Beast, the Earth Spirit had captured all five Immortals alive.
Having cultivated to this level, all five Immortals were pragmatic enough to know when to bend. They immediately chose self-preservation, submitting themselves under the Earth Spirit's command.
Upon realizing they had been teleported here, they quickly caught on. One by one they bowed to the Earth Spirit, declaring in unison: "Your subordinates pay respects to Lord Langya Earth Spirit!"
"Mm..." The Earth Spirit stroked his snow-white beard, reverting to the otherworldly sage-like demeanor Fang Yuan had first seen.
"This is Chang Shanyin, the inheritor of the Heaven-Stealing Demonic Venerable. Pay your respects to him as well," the Earth Spirit introduced.
"The inheritor of the Heaven-Stealing Demonic Venerable?!" The five Immortals exchanged stunned glances, each seeing shock reflected in the others' eyes.
Their previous contempt for Fang Yuan's mortal status vanished in an instant. What manner of person was the Heaven-Stealing Demonic Venerable? He was a Ninth Transformation Gu Immortal!
From the Primordial Era, through the Ancient Era, the Antiquity Era, the Middle Antiquity, and the Late Antiquity — all the way to the present — the history of humanity had produced no more than ten Gu Immortals in total.
The inheritor of a Ninth Transformation Gu Immortal...
This identity left the five Immortals not only shocked but consumed by envy and jealousy.
"How come I never had such good fortune? To become an inheritor?"
"This kid's luck is insane — utterly heaven-defying! He actually became the inheritor of the Heaven-Stealing Demonic Venerable!"
"The Heaven-Stealing Demonic Venerable once established many inheritances. They say the greatest one lies within the Empty Cave. I wonder how many he's inherited?"
Waves of emotion surged through the five Immortals as they all bowed to Fang Yuan.
Gu Immortals bowing to a mortal — it was like elephants kneeling before ants. But the five Immortals did not feel humiliated.
And Fang Yuan accepted it all with equanimity. Even if a Ninth Transformation Gu Immortal knelt before him, he would not feel particularly honored. Reversed — even if he himself had to prostrate before a mortal beggar, he would not feel humiliated.
In his view: All things that can die are equal. The only difference lies in dying sooner or dying later.
The so-called statuses and classes, nobility and baseness — nothing but elaborate tricks played by a group of fools who are all waiting to die. These tricks, through comparison, make some of those fools feel that they're living quite well, living rather nicely.
In truth, those who consider themselves noble and distinguished are merely deceiving themselves. And those who consider themselves lowly and base are even more pathetic. Are kings and generals born to their station? All things are born equal — why should anyone bow their heads to another?
"Only immortality — only immortality — is worth pursuing! Without immortality, what difference is there between a Ninth Transformation Gu Immortal and a pile of shit in a cesspit?! I too am a colossal fool, but I'm a fool who refuses to be shit..."
These inner reflections, these ambitions of the heart, were far too inappropriate to voice to outsiders — and he would never deign to voice them anyway.
Facing the five Immortals' bow, Fang Yuan accepted it impassively, then turned his gaze to the Langya Earth Spirit: "Earth Spirit, aren't you going to refine the Gu yourself?"
"Of course I'll refine it myself. Using these five as assistants is just putting waste to good use," the Earth Spirit chuckled darkly.
Being called waste, and being so thoroughly ignored by Fang Yuan, turned the five Immortals' expressions ugly.
Their hearts burned with fury, but imprisoned as they were, they could do nothing about it. They could only swallow their resentment and follow the Earth Spirit's orders.
But the first attempt at refining the Gu, personally led by the Earth Spirit — the manifestation of Old Ancestor Changmao — with five Immortals assisting, ended in failure.
"Hmph, this Star Portal Gu is difficult to refine. The failure wasn't due to any mistake on our part — the recipe simply has a fixed success rate," the Earth Spirit explained briefly, then turned to Fang Yuan. "Don't worry. The Star Portal Gu is only Fifth Transformation — I'll definitely succeed in refining it for you."
"We'll see about that." Fang Yuan reclined halfway onto the cloud bed, completely unhurried.