Who was Bai Ning Bing?
The undisputed top genius of Qing Mao Mountain—a cultivator so talented he could overturn the balance of the three great clans on his own. His cultivation progress was astonishing, outpacing even A-grade geniuses and leaving all who witnessed it in awe. No one questioned his potential; even his rivals were forced to acknowledge that his aptitude was without equal.
Yet now, this same genius was being driven into a miserable retreat.
None of the members of the Qing Shu group could have foreseen such a sight.
What made it even more shocking was that the one pursuing Bai Ning Bing wasn't some outsider—it was a member of their own clan: Fang Yuan.
Their understanding of Fang Yuan was limited, mostly based on his performance in arena matches and the time he forced away the River Swallowing Toad. Ever since he had conceded defeat to Xiong Li, most had drastically underestimated his true capabilities.
"When did Fang Yuan become so powerful?"
The Qing Shu group found this difficult to accept.
Fang Yuan turned around the corner and shouted, "Little brother, you were here! Great! Quickly, stop Bai Ning Bing! He is a heinous murderer who killed the Xiong Li group and even our clan's Gu Yue Man Shi group!" as he spotted the Gu Yue Qing Shu group.
"What?"
"But our clans have signed a treaty!"
"No, nothing is too excessive for Bai Ning Bing."
"So it was like that! No wonder Fang Yuan was able to chase Bai Ning Bing….."
The Qing Shu group was shocked and came to a realization. It seemed that after Bai Ning Bing had fought several intense battles, his fighting power had fallen to its lowest state—allowing Fang Yuan to luckily seize the upper hand.
"Am I really going to die here? No, I have just enough primeval essence to self-detonate the Frost Demon Gu. I still have hope!" Bai Ning Bing thought in his mind. In front of him was the Qing Shu group and behind him was Fang Yuan. The situation was extremely unfavorable.
In truth, there was a rift between Fang Yuan and Fang Zheng, and Fang Zheng naturally wouldn't follow Fang Yuan's commands.
But Bai Ning Bing was unaware of this. As an outsider, he only recognized the resemblance between Fang Zheng and Fang Yuan and quickly made his decision.
He raised his right arm, channeling all the primeval essence he had painstakingly replenished into the Frost Demon Gu nestled in his palm.
His right arm began to change, the flesh turning a pale, icy blue. Within the frozen limb, the white of his bones was faintly visible.
Bang!
With a deafening explosion, Bai Ning Bing's entire right arm detonated on the spot.
A surge of steam and mist billowed out as a bone-chilling cold swept through the area like a storm.
Snap. Crack.
In the sweltering heat of summer, a layer of pure white frost blanketed the narrow mountain trail, quickly encasing the soil and nearby trees as the temperature plunged.
"He sacrificed his entire right arm!" Fang Zheng was aghast by Bai Ning Bing's ruthless move.
"Quick, retreat." Gu Yue Qing Shu grabbed Fang Zheng and hurriedly ran away.
Great amounts of frost rushed towards them like the wolf tide.
It would be very troublesome if they actually got frozen.
Fang Yuan retreated in the opposite direction from the Gu Yue Qing Shu group and thought, "Finally, it's time for me to collect the Gu from the others."
Originally, the mountain path had been full of lush trees, filled with the fragrance of wild plants. Now, it had become a world of ice. The trees were all frozen and there was a thick layer of snow on the ground.
"He…. suicided?" Fang Zheng muttered.
"No!" Qing Shu's expression was very heavy. "Bai Ning Bing has already formed ice muscles, this layer of ice crystals won't freeze him to death and will instead act as his armor, giving him time to recover."
"Wait… where's Fang Yuan?" Qing Shu scanned his surroundings but couldn't spot him.
"The moment Bai Ning Bing self-detonated, he quickly went the other way," replied the recon Gu Master.
Qing Shu began to have doubts about whether Fang Yuan had spoken the truth, but his thoughts were quickly interrupted by Fang Zheng, who couldn't refrain from speaking loudly.
"We should use this opportunity to eliminate Bai Ning Bing. He has already destroyed his right arm, and with the battles he's been through, he's exhausted both mentally and physically."
After all, Fang Zheng was already agitated to begin with. Ever since he saw Fang Yuan chasing Bai Ning Bing, he was already set on ignoring his group leader's instructions and confronting Bai Ning Bing himself. After all, if his older brother—who was only a C-grade and ranked lower—could chase Bai Ning Bing, then why couldn't he, an A-grade genius, finish him off?
With that thought, he was already determined and driven to prove to everyone that he was better than Fang Yuan by killing Bai Ning Bing.
Everyone's hearts were stirred by these words.
"Since Fang Yuan could chase Bai Ning Bing and try to kill him, why can't we do the same?" Several Gu Masters looked at each other and they couldn't help but have such thoughts.
"If we kill Bai Ning Bing, we will become great heroes of the Gu Yue clan!"
"But if we kill him, won't the Bai village start a war in their anger? And now, there is the wolf tide…."
"No, it is exactly because there is a wolf tide that even if we kill Bai Ning Bing, Bai village will just have to swallow their bitterness."
"Right, a dead genius isn't a genius!"
The group members discussed, their minds set on the fame and glory. Only their group leader Gu Yue Qing Shu hesitated.
He undoubtedly understood Bai Ning Bing far better than the rest of the group.
Though he was unaware of the secret behind the ten extreme physiques, he also had no desire for the fame that would come from killing Bai Ning Bing.
Fame and profit meant little to him; once considered the next clan head by Gu Yue Bo, he had willingly stepped aside and passed that position to Fang Zheng.
What truly mattered to him were the clan's interests, and his heart was deeply tied to the well-being of the entire clan.
"Bai village's emergence is completely due to Bai Ning Bing. If we kill Bai Ning Bing, our Gu Yue Clan will remain the number one clan of Qing Mao mountain! Although Bai Ning Bing is a Rank three Gu Master, I have the Wood Charm Gu and the ability to fight with him. Moreover, he just lost his right arm and he will certainly need some time to get used to the absence of a limb. This can be the greatest disadvantage in a life and death battle!" Qing Shu thought.
Gu Yue Qing Shu's gaze turned resolute.
"Fang Zheng, you have to leave." Gu Yue Qing Shu suddenly spoke.
"What?!" Fang Zheng's eyes were wide open.
"As the clan's only A-grade talent, we can't afford to lose you. Bai Ning Bing may have lost an arm, but the battle ahead will still be extremely dangerous. For the clan, we can die—but you, Fang Zheng, must not," Qing Shu said directly to Fang Zheng.
The other four members were all moved.
"Well said!" A bright laughter echoed and an old Gu Master appeared.
"Lord elder." Fang Zheng promptly paid his respects. He recognized this man as a very senior clan elder.
The elder drew near, looking at Gu Yue Qing Shu with praise, "Gu Yue Bo raised a great adopted son. With such feelings of fighting to the death for the clan, why would we have to worry about our Gu Yue Clan not expanding?"
Fang Zheng was still growing up and after the Wang Er's assassination attempt, the clan had sent an elder to always follow Fang Zheng and protect him.
"Fang Zheng, you don't need to take part in the fight. But don't leave; you can just observe from a distance. Isn't it just a Bai Ning Bing? I've always heard about how outstanding he is and how he has the strength of an elder. Hmph, now it seems he is only just a kid. How much battle experience can he have? Mutilating himself, he is really amateurish!" The elder snorted in disdain.
Gu Yue Qing Shu still wished to hold firm to his own beliefs, but going against the elder's judgment would only create unnecessary conflict.
No matter how strong his convictions were, openly refuting an elder's decision in front of others would be considered disrespectful and improper.
As a junior member of the clan, he was bound by tradition and duty—to show respect to his seniors and offer guidance and protection to the younger generation.
Even if he disagreed deep down, how could he so casually raise objections or question the authority of someone older and more experienced?
Doing so would offend the elder's judgment, and that was neither his intention nor something he wished to achieve.