In a chaotic stone forest behind Black Blood Stockade, a grey figure shuttled rapidly among the rugged rocks.
It was Lin Mu.
At this moment, no dazzling Primeval Essence light surrounded him.
But beneath his inconspicuous grey cloth robes, the dark green Primeval Sea within his aperture was churning like boiling magma.
After days and nights of refinement by the Liquor Worm, although his cultivation had just broken through to Rank 1 Middle Stage, the quality of his Primeval Essence had already reached the shocking standard of Rank 1 Upper Stage.
This was the confidence that allowed him to attempt developing tactics beyond his level.
"Swift Ant, rise!"
With a low shout in his heart, dark green Primeval Essence instantly flooded his legs.
The Swift Ant Gu, parasitic in the meridians of his calves, awakened instantly. It was like installing two high-horsepower engines on his legs.
A violent force rushed from the soles of his feet straight to the top of his skull, propelling his body out like a cannonball.
But this force was too fierce, too straight.
Although the Swift Ant Gu had strong explosive power, the side effects were extremely obvious—his leg meridians ached unbearably under high pressure, and turning was extremely stiff.
A moment of carelessness would mean crashing into a rock, ending with broken bones and snapped tendons.
Just as Lin Mu was about to smash into a giant boulder.
"Red Mud, protect!"
Thoughts flowed, and another wave of dark red Primeval Essence surged out.
The Red Mud Gu did not spit out a large mass of mud to cover his whole body as usual. Instead, under Lin Mu's refined control, it transformed into rings of viscous, dark red mud.
These rings clamped precisely onto his force-bearing nodes: ankles, knees, waist, and abdomen.
The moment these mud rings solidified, they displayed astonishing toughness.
His originally stiff legs, under the binding and cushioning of the mud rings, incredibly twisted into a bizarre angle.
Screech—
Lin Mu's soles rubbed violently against the rock.
Borrowing the rebound force of the mud rings acting like high-elastic bandages, he forcibly completed a ninety-degree right-angle turn during high-speed movement!
Wind whistled. He pulled a residual image through the stone forest.
His speed was even three points faster than an ordinary Rank 1 Upper Stage Gu Master.
Even better, the faint heat poison contained in the red mud seeped into his muscles through his pores, stimulating his blood flow and keeping his neural reactions in a state of extreme excitement.
An hour later, Lin Mu stopped, panting heavily.
Although his legs were still somewhat numb, the agonizing pain of tearing meridians had been perfectly absorbed by the mud rings.
"Success."
Lin Mu looked at the rings of dark red mud on his legs—ugly, but extremely practical. A satisfied arc curled at the corner of his mouth.
"High-grade Primeval Essence as fuel. Swift Ant for explosion. Red Mud Gu for shock absorption and protection."
"The combination of these three is no longer a simple stacking of Gu worms, but a rough yet complete combat system."
"Although crude, this counts as the first Mortal Killer Move I have created in this world—let's call it 'Earth Ring Body'."
Speed, defense, and explosive power in one. This was currently Lin Mu's greatest trump card.
The next morning, the sun rose.
The Jia Clan Caravan, having bustled for several days, finally pulled up camp.
The once boiling market now held only garbage covering the ground and rotten wood that hadn't been dismantled in time.
What needed to be bought was bought; what needed to be sold was sold. Even the greediest itinerant merchants began packing their bags to hit the road.
Lin Mu arrived at the corner of the market at the last moment.
His Primeval Stone bag had bottomed out. Those expensive Gu materials and finished Gu worms had long been unrelated to him.
He came here to pick up the final "leak": Information.
Since there were still months before Fang Yuan's rise, he naturally had to grasp this period well.
In this Southern Border, inheritances were countless, but dangers were also countless. Only the brave could peek at a glimpse.
What the current Lin Mu lacked most were those widely circulated rumors, and those "opportunities."
In front of a stall specializing in recycling waste books, Lin Mu spent a few fragments of Primeval Stones to buy two yellowing old books: "Southern Border Miscellaneous Talks" and "Records of Strange People and Events (Fragment)."
These books were worthless in the eyes of Gu Masters. Most were absurd anecdotes written by mortals during their travels, hard to distinguish between true and false.
But in the eyes of Lin Mu, who knew the original work well, the clues hidden in these few words might be the snake in the grass and the gray line of this world.
Back at the dormitory, Lin Mu couldn't wait to flip through them.
Soon, he saw an inconspicuous old news item in "Records of Strange People and Events (Fragment)":
"...A hundred years ago, there was the 'Blood Hand Mad Doctor.' His nature was insane, delusionally claiming 'the human body is like a Gu, blood can wash the aperture.'"
"In his later years, he went deep into a deadly silent valley in the West shrouded in red mist year-round, desiring to refine a peerless strange Gu. He eventually died as the blood poison attacked his heart."
"Later generations who strayed into that place often saw human shadows moving in the red mist. Touching it caused the whole body to ulcerate and turn to pus. No one survived..."
"West. Red mist. Eating people."
Lin Mu's heart moved. The "blood poison" and "ulceration" in this description had a vague homologous connection with the Red Mud Gu's characteristics of "eating filth, spitting mud, and heat poison stimulation."
"This might be an inheritance site regarding a variation of Blood Path or Earth Path."
"Although my strength is low and I dare not investigate deeply now, the location is in the West. That is worth noting."
Immediately after, he saw records regarding the Qing Mao Mountain area in "Southern Border Miscellaneous Talks."
The book mentioned that near Qing Mao Mountain, there was once a Demonic Path Gu Master named "Flower Wine Monk." He single-handedly defeated several strong experts of a certain clan, leaving behind a romantic affair before disappearing without a trace.
"Flower Wine Monk... the timeline matches."
Lin Mu closed the book, light flickering in his eyes.
This once again verified his previous deduction: Fang Yuan should have just been reborn not long ago, possibly still worrying about his first Liquor Worm in the Gu Yue Academy.
And the record in the book about "hunters in an old forest somewhere in Southern Border seeing flying zombies covered in long hair sucking the blood of wild beasts" gave Lin Mu a more intuitive understanding of the danger of this world—besides Gu Masters, there were zombies, beast tides, and countless unknown weirdness.
Just as Lin Mu was organizing the intelligence, the muffled sound of a horn came from outside the stockade.
The Jia Clan Caravan, laden with goods, left Black Blood Stockade in a mighty formation.
As that massive "Jia" character flag disappeared at the end of the mountain road, Black Blood Stockade seemed to have its spine pulled out instantly.
An atmosphere named "Depression" rapidly shrouded the entire stockade.
The carnival ended. The chill of early spring had not yet faded, but the clan's 'harvest' had arrived first.
Mere half a day later.
A supreme order from the Council Hall sank the hearts of all branch family disciples to the bottom.
Clan Leader Lin Cang obtained the ten catties of Blood Jade Marrow as he wished and immediately announced a death seclusion to fully charge for Rank 4.
This was good news, and also bad news.
The good news: If the clan produced a Rank 4, their status would be solid as gold soup.
The bad news: To purchase these strategic materials, the clan's liquid capital was thoroughly dried up.
The Elder Council immediately issued a "War Preparation Austerity Order."
Led by Lin Ze's lineage which controlled finances, the entire stockade entered a state of resource control. Bearing the brunt were branch family members like Lin Mu who had no background.
"Suspend monthly stipends for branch disciples below B-grade. All branch family members of appropriate age above Rank 1 Middle Stage must complete a 'Field Collection or Hunting Mission' within this month."
"All materials obtained must be turned over to the public treasury to fill the warehouse deficit!"
When the news reached the academy, wails filled the air.
Everyone had counted on the monthly stipend to survive the winter. Now, not only was the money gone, but they were also forced to sell their lives in the wild.
"They are treating us as consumables..."
In the dormitory, several classmates looked ashen.
Lin Mu, however, looked calm. When he heard the words "Field Mission," not only did he not panic, but he also took out a beast skin map he had prepared long ago.
"Mission Location: Black Wind Ridge."
"Target: Turn in ten complete Wind Wolf pelts, or twenty catties of Ironhide Boar blood."
Lin Mu's finger slid across the map.
Black Wind Ridge, located to the west of Black Blood Stockade, was a forest teeming with Wind Wolves and Ironhide Boars.
Although dangerous, as long as he didn't go deep into the core area, with his current methods, he had the strength to fight.
More importantly...
"In early spring, Wind Wolves gather for warmth. The mountain forest has hidden rocks, making ordinary Gu Masters slip easily. But the mud rings of the 'Earth Ring Body' prevent slipping and grip the ground—this is geographical advantage."
"Ironhide Boars have thick skin and flesh; ordinary methods struggle to break their defense. But if the Red Mud's heat poison seeps into wounds, it breaks their defense perfectly. And killing them provides hot pig blood to feed the Red Mud Gu—sustaining war with war."
Furthermore, Lin Mu's gaze looked further west on the map.
There was an unknown foggy area, but the direction vaguely aligned with the "Red Mist Dead Zone" he saw in the book.
"Borrowing the opportunity of this forced mission, I can scout the path to the western periphery. If I can find a few traces, it might lay the layout for my Rank 2 path in the future."
Crisis was often a turning point.
While others were crying to heaven and earth about losing their stipends, Lin Mu had already packed his bags.
He sealed the precious Liquor Worm in a red mud ball and hid it in the deepest part of his aperture. Then, he rose quietly and pushed open the dormitory door.
The chilly spring wind, rolling with grass clippings from the mountain stream, blew in, lifting the corner of his washed-white clothes.
A dragon lurking in the depths would one day soar.