Gu are the true essences of heaven and earth. Mortal Gu contain a thread of the principles and laws of the Dao, while Immortal Gu are fragments of the Great Dao.
Refining Gu involves the fusion and collision of the laws of the Great Dao. It is more profound than chemical changes and more dangerous than handling gunpowder.
Fang Yuan stood high in the sky. After observing for a moment, more than a dozen Mao Min failed in their Gu refinement and were injured, with several dying on the spot.
He couldn't help but sigh to himself. "As the operation expands, the problem of losses among the Mao Min is becoming increasingly prominent."
Mao Min slaves are the most expensive of all slaves, even more expensive than human Gu Masters!
This is somewhat unbelievable. How can the price of a human be lower than that of a Mao Min?
It's actually quite easy to understand. Humans are the spirit of all things; their minds are fickle and hard to control. Variant humans, on the other hand, are relatively simple in their thinking. Fang Yuan can control so many Mao Min, making them refine Gu day and night. He only gives them limited time each day. Apart from eating and sleeping, they have absolutely no entertainment.
If these Mao Min were replaced with human Gu Masters, it would be almost impossible.
Human Gu Masters engaging in this high-risk, intensive labor for a long time without rest or entertainment would surely be filled with resentment and harbor thoughts of rebellion.
The simple setup of the Stone Nests definitely couldn't contain human ingenuity. They would surely find ways to secretly sabotage things and quickly connect with each other. When they thought the time was right, they would revolt or directly resort to armed force.
That's why Fang Yuan would rather buy the most expensive Mao Min slaves than mess with human Gu Master slaves.
That's also why Fairy Li Shan tried every possible means to obtain Mount Fangcun. Not only does Mount Fangcun have rare refining materials, but it is also the main stronghold of the Little People Tribe. Controlling the Little People Tribe brings tremendous benefits. Otherwise, the old fox Dong Fang Chang Fan wouldn't have formed an alliance with the Little People Tribe.
"I didn't notice the heavy losses of Mao Min before because the scale was small. Now with three Stone Nests and the heavy workload of Gu refinement, it's becoming increasingly obvious. If this continues without any changes, it's not something I can let slide," Fang Yuan thought rapidly.
At this moment, Hei Lou Lan also advised, "Fang Yuan, your losses of Mao Min are quite serious. In a month, probably over a hundred Mao Min will die. When you calculate it, it's really a shame. If you can reduce this number, the costs will be invisibly lowered. The Courage Gu trade will earn even more."
If she hadn't been pulled into the Courage Gu business by Fang Yuan, she probably wouldn't have said anything.
But now the Courage Gu trade also concerned Hei Lou Lan's interests, so as soon as she noticed the problem, she brought it up.
Fang Yuan nodded. "To solve this problem, we need to proceed from two aspects. The first is to improve the Gu recipe to reduce risks and make the process more detailed. Make each step safer and increase the success rate. The second aspect is to start raising our own Mao Min tribe instead of spending a lot to buy them."
Hei Lou Lan shook her head. "The first method is too difficult. Gu recipes are already honed to perfection. Improving them on this basis and breaking them down into finer steps is hard, hard, hard! The effort and experimental resources invested would be no small amount."
She wasn't optimistic about improving the recipe at all.
Little did she know that Fang Yuan had the Wisdom Gu. Although he couldn't directly activate it, by relying on the Wisdom Light Halo, he could gain infinite inspiration. For Fang Yuan, the difficulty of improving the recipe lay solely in whether he had enough thoughts in his mind to consume.
Fang Yuan naturally wouldn't say this. He spoke calmly. "The second method is absolutely not easy either. I don't have any experience in raising Mao Min. All the ones sold on the market are male Mao Min. Females and children are very rare. This is specifically done to prevent other Gu Immortals from breeding them."
Raising variant humans like Mao Min is far more difficult than taming fierce beasts or planting crops.
'Governing a country is difficult because the people have too much wisdom.' Although this saying is one-sided, it has some truth to it.
The more wisdom, the harder it is to control. The Mao Min would flee, find loopholes, and gather in groups to make trouble.
Fang Yuan was fully aware that with his background and abilities, attempting to raise Mao Min would definitely lead him to lose everything. His past life memories offered no help in this regard.
He vaguely recalled his life on Earth in his previous, previous life. He had kept goldfish. He didn't change the water often, didn't supply oxygen, and overfed them. One died every few days, and within two weeks, all the goldfish were dead.
Raising Mao Min is naturally far more difficult than raising goldfish. The habits, living environment, and many other aspects of Mao Min that require attention are numerous and complicated.
Fang Yuan had also raised Rockmen. The Rockmen tribe in the Fox Immortal Blessed Land was once quite large.
But that was thanks to the Courage Gu, which could sharply boost the souls of the Rockmen, rapidly split them, and reproduce the next generation.
So this was purely a cheating method. If Fang Yuan really had to raise Rockmen the regular way...
Heh.
In two or three years, no matter how many Rockmen there were, they would probably all be dead!
Of course, the experience and methods for raising Mao Min could be purchased from other Gu Immortals. When Fang Yuan first cultivated Star Fragment Grass, he had bought some basic farming knowledge.
However, the difference in value between these two things was like heaven and earth. The price paid to acquire the experience of raising Mao Min would be extremely heavy.
It would be like a company on Earth acquiring and swallowing up a top Fortune 500 company. How large would the funds need to be? Even if Fang Yuan didn't eat, drink, or consume anything, with his earning speed, he would have to accumulate for many years.
"I only have twenty or thirty Immortal Essence Stones in my treasury now. Although I've obtained the Dragon Fish, the Long Hatred Spider, and the Blazing Dragon Python, and even extracted the cultivation methods from Dong Fang Chang Fan's soul, I still need to invest in construction. Even after building everything, I can't sell them directly in Treasure Yellow Heaven. I have to resell them elsewhere. After all, I still need to lie low," Fang Yuan thought wryly.
In a word, the prospects were bright, but the situation was awkward.
Fang Yuan shook off the distracting thoughts in his mind and said to Hei Lou Lan, "Alright, I've already informed Little Fox Fairy and made the arrangements. I won't see you down. For the time being, you'll eat and live in the Stone Nest. I've already given the order. Currently, all three Stone Nests are refining Air Sac Gu. Please assist them as much as possible. When the Earth Calamity arrives and I need your help, I will call for you."
Hei Lou Lan immediately felt a sense of foreboding. Judging from Fang Yuan's tone, he was completely treating her as cheap labor!