Relying on the wisdom accumulated from his past life, Fang Yuan became aware of Wang Da's existence.
So just how strong was Wang Da?
Fang Yuan had never met this Wang Da before, but just by looking at the things in front of him, he could analyze plenty of information.
“Courage is built on strength. He collected my information and still dares to retaliate against me. He's so confident, it seems his cultivation must be above Rank 1!”
“For the past three years, he's been surviving in the crevices between these three marked red locations, squeezed between three major tribes, risking discovery and encirclement almost every day. This shows he isn't capable of wandering alone. And wandering alone requires a Gu master's cultivation of—Seventy-fifth section: The Demonic Path's Awakening! —at the very least, Rank 3.”
“In that case, my initial estimation is that his cultivation is Rank 2.”
A cold gleam flickered in Fang Yuan's eyes. “Let's calculate. He went missing three years ago. Now he's cultivated to Rank 2. His aptitude should be between Grade C and Grade B, and the total True Essence in his aperture is within the range of forty to seventy percent.”
“In the past three years, he managed to survive in the cracks. He can live right under Jiang He's nose, inside his own home. Among the Gu he owns, there must be one that works in concealment and stealth.”
Information is the single most important thing in a battle between Gu Masters.
Even though Fang Yuan didn't have a single detection-type Gu, relying on his experience and intelligence, he managed to roughly analyze Wang Da's cultivation and Gu worms.
Soon, in his mind, he outlined the image of a Rank 2 demonic path Gu Master, filled with the towering hatred of a family slain, lying in ambush somewhere to hunt him down.
“If I can kill others, naturally others can kill me. There's nothing so special about that.” Fang Yuan couldn't help but let out a soft laugh.
In this world, everyone has the right to live, and everyone has the chance to die.
He who kills, will be killed.
Since he himself had killed, he had to be prepared to be killed.
Seventy-fifth section: The Demonic Path's Awakening! If he was killed just like that, then let him die. It was no big deal, and he would have no regrets. This was the path he had chosen.
On this point, Fang Yuan had long achieved a profound awakening.
This was the awakening of the demonic path!
“Wang Da wants to kill me, so this midyear exam is definitely the perfect opportunity. Normally, the students live in the tribe. With his Rank 2 cultivation, it's impossible for him to infiltrate the tribe; that would be pure suicide.”
“Maybe he analyzed the possibility that I would come out to hunt. But Qing Mao Mountain is vast. For him to conceal himself and search for my traces alone is too difficult. This is his best chance to strike.”
“He is a Rank 2 Gu Master, a demonic path Gu Master who has struggled to survive for three years, living day to day. With my current strength, I am definitely no match for him. But that doesn't mean I don't have a sliver of a chance.”
Flee!
Fang Yuan instantly decided on this course of action.
There is nothing shameful in living. Since he couldn't win by force, he would run.
Breaking through in the middle of a battle is something that simply cannot happen for a Gu Master. Leaping ranks and fighting is possible, but it relies on the Gu Master having special Gu worms.
Fang Yuan has many Gu worms, but the Spring Autumn Cicada was slumbering on the verge of death and could not be used. The Wine Worm, the White Pig Gu, the Little Light Gu, and the Moonlight Gu were not trump cards that could allow him to leap ranks.
Knowing one cannot win, yet continuing to fight to the death—that is the stupidity named "passion." Even if one wins, it is merely the favor of fate.
Fang Yuan lived his life cautiously. Even if he had a trump card, as long as the odds of victory were low, he would choose to avoid a fight as much as possible.
He liked to control the situation, using every means to maximize his chances of winning. What he liked best was fighting battles he was sure to win.
Only when there was absolutely no other choice would he take risks and fight fiercely.
Therefore, the thing he did most often was bully the weak, plunder resources, and constantly grow stronger. Once he was strong enough to surpass his original enemies, he would come back and get even, which was just another form of bullying the weak.
There's nothing shameful about this. Those who actively challenge others just to prove their bravery, risking their lives against powerful enemies, are the true fools.
But this very value has always been praised and glorified because any organization needs the continuous sacrifice of individuals to protect the interests of the higher-ups.
Think about it carefully: survival is the prerequisite for all activities.
To live on, to realize the ideals in one's heart, that is a person's greatest courage.
To die for an ideal is foolish. To live on in obscurity for an ideal, that is a true warrior!
On Earth, Han Xin endured the humiliation of crawling between someone's legs. Cao Cao had to cut off his beard and abandon his robe while fleeing. King Gou Jian of Yue, just to survive, tasted his enemy's excrement to prove his loyalty...
Fuck dignity, fame, and face!
No matter the world, organizations always propagate this kind of values. The more sacrifice is needed, the more it is promoted. For example, in the military.
“Then which way should I go to minimize the chance of encountering Wang Da?” A map appeared in Fang Yuan's mind.
“Wang Da knows I have the beast-skin map. Now he should be lurking in the forest, searching for me based on the distribution of wild boars on the map. I can't go to those places. Only by doing the opposite can I struggle for a chance to survive.” Thinking this, a slightly crazy retreat route began to take shape in Fang Yuan's mind.
……
The forest in the twilight. The shadows of the trees overlapped, and the weeds grew thick.