He hadn't slept a wink, and the moment dawn broke, Fang Yuan stepped out the door to make extensive purchases.
The rented room was shabby, the bedding worn and tattered. If he lived here long, the cold would seep into his body and he would surely fall ill.
Although Fang Yuan's Yuan Stones had already been mostly depleted, he still needed to buy the basic necessities of life. These were things he couldn't skimp on.
First was bedding — large quilts filled with fresh cotton, at least two. Besides those, bed sheets and a mattress pad.
He needed to buy another oil lamp for adequate lighting, and at least two full pots of lamp oil.
Fang Yuan thought for a moment. Though the rented room wasn't large, there was still enough space for a small table and chair, so he might as well buy those too.
Most importantly, the stove.
In the dead of winter, without a stove for warmth, sleeping inside, he would still be frozen awake in the middle of the night.
Besides these, Fang Yuan also bought some dry provisions and prepared enough water to last him seven days.
The winter sun rose slowly, casting its languid light.
Guye Jiao San and three other Gu Masters stood at the stockade's north gate, already growing anxious.
"This isn't right. We agreed on this location and time last night. But it's already been a quarter of an hour — why hasn't this Fang Yuan shown up?" said a female team member.
"Patience. Let's wait a bit longer. It's not unusual for newcomers to be late." Jiao San smiled. He'd been looking for an opportunity to suppress Fang Yuan, and here the boy was practically handing him one on a silver platter.
"It's one thing for us to wait. But to make the team leader wait with us? This kid has some nerve!" Guye Kongjing scoffed indignantly.
However, after half an hour, Fang Yuan still hadn't appeared.
A shadow of displeasure fell over Jiao San's face.
"That little brat — could he have gotten the location wrong? We clearly said to gather at the north gate," Kongjing said suspiciously.
"I'll keep waiting here. The rest of you, check the other gates." Jiao San gave the order. The three team members had no choice but to comply.
A short while later, they returned to Jiao San empty-handed.
"Could this Fang Yuan have already seen through our plan and simply left the team?" one of the female Gu Masters asked.
"You think too highly of him. Even if he placed first in the end-of-year exam, he's still just a teenager. Just look at his age," Kongjing said dismissively.
Jiao San's expression was dark as water. "Whether he saw through us is secondary. The key right now is to find him. My only worry is that he's abandoned us and is attempting to break through to Second Transformation on his own. Once he reaches Second Transformation, he can voluntarily abandon a mission and apply directly to the Internal Affairs Hall for a branch family assignment. Find him — find him for me! The stockade is only so big, and there are only so many rental rooms. We absolutely must find him and cannot give him time to break through to Second Transformation!"
"Yes, sir!"
...
In his room, Fang Yuan sat cross-legged on the bed.
Before him lay several open coin pouches containing all the Yuan Stones he possessed.
"Yuan Stones are running low." Fang Yuan let out a sigh, his expression somewhat grave.
Yuan Stones were the fundamental driving force for a Gu Master's advancement. Without them, True Essence recovery would rely solely on one's own natural regeneration, drastically slowing the pace of cultivation. At the same time, if food supplies ran short, the Gu Insects would starve.
Fang Yuan's Yuan Stones, during his days studying at the Academy, had once numbered over a thousand. But that amount couldn't withstand the accumulated drain of daily expenses.
Gu Masters of his same cohort, up to this point, had only three Gu Insects at most.
Yet Fang Yuan, after placing first in the end-of-year exam, had entered the Gu Room and selected an additional Little Light Gu for free.
He had to choose it — refusing would have aroused suspicion.
But as a result, the number of Gu Insects in his possession had now reached seven!
Without question, this was a heavy financial burden.
"If this continues, it will only last two months. So I must reclaim the inheritance — that would be the best financial support. But to reclaim the inheritance, the first step is to advance to Second Transformation." Fang Yuan's gaze was distant and deep.
For Fang Yuan, advancing to Second Transformation was no easy task.
In Gu Master cultivation, resources came first, aptitude second. Without good aptitude, cultivation became far more arduous, and future achievements would be correspondingly lower.
Aptitude ranged from low to high: Grade D, Grade C, Grade B, and Grade A.
But this was only a rough classification.
In reality, each grade of aptitude had detailed gradations.
Take Grade C, for instance. The maximum capacity for True Essence storage in the Empty Orifice ranged from a minimum of forty percent to a maximum of fifty-nine percent.
Fang Yuan's actual True Essence was only forty-four percent — within the Grade C range, he was merely in the lower-middle tier.
Breaking through to Second Transformation required at least fifty-five percent dark green True Essence. For Gu Masters of Grade A and Grade B, this was hardly an obstacle. For Grade C Gu Masters whose True Essence sat at fifty-five, fifty-six percent and beyond, even up to fifty-nine, it could be passed through with ease.
Therefore, most Grade C Gu Masters, once their accumulation reached a certain threshold, would successfully advance to Second Transformation. Only a very small fraction could ever reach Third Transformation.
Thus, once aptitude was measured, most people's lifelong achievements could already be foreseen. Fang Yuan's cold reception was no fault of the world's prejudice.
"My Grade C aptitude, though only forty-four percent — to break through the crystalline wall, shatter the old to build anew, and reach Second Transformation is not without methods. The most fundamental way is to find a Gu Insect that can enhance one's own aptitude. The next best method is to obtain auxiliary Gu Insects like the Wine Worm, which can also help a Gu Master break through barriers. And the third way is to seek a mentor's help, though using Alien True Essence carries significant aftereffects — unless one can later find a Jing Shui Gu to wash away the alien aura."