"Where is Fang Yuan? Tell me, and I can let you die peacefully." Bai Ning Bing walked towards Gu Yue Qing Shu.
"Bai Ning Bing…" Gu Yue Qing Shu sighed deeply, staring at Bai Ning Bing without fear, "You and I have fought over ten times, you are getting stronger, and right now I have to admit that you have surpassed me. But your strength cannot cause me to betray my clansman. Come, fight me!"
"Just you? Hehe." Bai Ning Bing snorted in disdain, turning around to look at Fang Zheng, raising a brow. "That is Fang Yuan's brother?"
Gu Yue Qing Shu's expression changed, taking a big step out and blocking Bai Ning Bing. "Don't think of finding trouble with him!"
Bai Ning Bing's face sank. "You are quite an interesting opponent, keeping you alive can add some colour to my life. But my mood is very bad now, don't take my patience for granted. Tell me nicely, which direction Fang Yuan went."
Gu Yue Qing Shu replied him in the most direct way with action.
He closed his eyes, and opened them again.
Wood Charm Gu!
Under the power of the Rank three Gu worm, Qing Shu's eyes turned into a jade green colour.
At this moment, his aura changed. From a vibrant human, it turned into a deep serene forest feeling.
"Oh?" Bai Ning Bing showed slight shock unknowingly. He pouted in dissatisfaction, "It seems that after a long time, you've gained some interesting new skills."
Icicle Gu.
He willed the Gu, and five sharp icicles appeared out of nowhere.
"Go." Bai Ning Bing's ice hand pointed, and the icicle shot out.
Pow pow pow.
Two vines shot out from Qing Shu's palms, twisting like snakes and effortlessly batting away the icicles.
One icicle shifted course, grazing his shoulder before burying itself deep into the ground, shattering stone and piercing trees.
Qing Shu broke through with ease, rendering Bai Ning Bing's attack useless.
Bai Ning Bing laughed coldly, "Your whipping skills got better, but I want to see, how many icicles can you block?"
Bai Ning Bing's eyes glowed faint blue as ten icicles formed in front of him and shot toward Qing Shu.
Then another ten followed...
Soon, it became a rain of icicles.
Swoosh...
They sliced through the air with a chilling sound.
Qing Shu dodged swiftly, controlling his green vines like extensions of his own hands.
His whip technique, honed through relentless training, flowed with precision and grace.
But there were too many. One icicle struck his shoulder, piercing through and emerging from his back.
Qing Shu gritted his teeth and retaliated.
From the ends of his hair, dozens of jade-green needles burst out—Pin Needle Gu.
They swarmed toward Bai Ning Bing, who quickly activated the Water Shield Gu.
The shield had strengthened, now as tough as a Rank three defense.
The needles slowed inside the currents before being swept away, forcing Bai Ning Bing to halt his attack.
Seizing the chance, Qing Shu yanked out the icicle from his shoulder.
No blood spilled—partly due to the cold, but more so because his body was turning into wood.
Bai Ning Bing withdrew his shield, his eyes narrowing at Qing Shu's wound.
Through the torn fabric, he saw not flesh, but tree rings. The wound healed rapidly, new muscle bearing bark-like lines.
Qing Shu's ears lengthened, hair turning jade green with leaves sprouting from within. His hands darkened, hardening into bark.
For the first time, he had unleashed the Wood Charm Gu without holding back.
It was transforming him into a tree spirit, granting him the ability to sense and absorb natural essence hidden from normal Gu Masters.
He felt immersed in it, like floating in his mother's embrace—pure energy wrapping around him.
His Moonwhirl Gu remained unchanged, but his Green Vine Gu, Pin Needle Gu, and Vitality Grass all surged with new power.
As a tree spirit, his connection to wood-type Gu greatly boosted their effects.
Qing Shu took a deep breath—he had never felt so powerful.
The essence around him fed him endless energy, the true strength of the Wood Charm Gu.
Yet, deep down, fear crept in.
He knew if he gave in to this power too much, he'd eventually become a lifeless tree man.
Everything came with a price.
Gu Yue Qing Shu soon suppressed this fear. He stared at Bai Ning Bing and said two words —"Let's fight."
And so, the fierce battle erupted.
Green vines clashed with ice blades, icicles collided with pin needles.
One side was the Northern Dark Ice Soul physique, recovering primeval essence at an insane rate.
The other, a tree spirit empowered by the Wood Charm Gu, drawing in natural essence as his own.
This fight had far surpassed the limits of normal Rank three Gu Masters.
From the slope, Fang Zheng watched in awe, completely stunned.
He had never witnessed such a brutal, all-out fight.
Normally, Gu Masters rationed their primeval essence carefully, always keeping a reserve.
But here, both Qing Shu and Bai Ning Bing fought as if they had endless reserves, unleashing Gu without hesitation.
The battlefield was torn apart—trees uprooted, boulders shattered, the path left in ruins.
Then finally...
Blue Bird Ice Coffin Gu!
Seizing his moment, Bai Ning Bing opened his mouth, releasing a pale blue bird.
At first the size of a pigeon, it grew into an eagle mid-flight under the boost of his physique.
After circling once, it dove at Qing Shu.
Unable to dodge, Qing Shu braced himself.
Bam.
With a sharp explosion, he was encased in a room-sized block of ice.
"It's over…" Bai Ning Bing sighed as he had not fully enjoyed himself.
He saw the immobile Gu Yue Qing Shu within the ice crystal, and muttered, "Thanks for providing me such an interesting experience, this battle is the most exciting one I've had thus far. Qing Shu, your death has meaning, I will remember it clearly."
"Lord Qing Shu!" On the slope, Fang Zheng shouted loudly.
"Why are you shouting, you mere ant, the next one will be you." Bai Ning Bing snorted, walking towards Fang Zheng.
At this point, the sound of the ice crystal breaking entered his ears.
"How can this be?" He turned around and saw that within the ice crystal, Qing Shu had undergone a massive transformation.
His body expanded, nearly tearing apart his Rank two Gu Master robes.
His hair transformed into green vines, sprouting palm-sized leaves until it became a lush canopy.
His fingers turned to solid wood, limbs reshaping into thick branches—arms and legs reduced to rough outlines.
With a crack, the ice crystal shattered completely.
Gu Yue Qing Shu rose, now entirely transformed.
His once handsome face had become that of a tree spirit—sharp nose, large eyes.
Standing three meters tall, he wore bark armor covered in vines and leaves.
Bai Ning Bing stared, stunned.
Next to this towering form, he looked like a child beside a giant.
"This appearance, did you refine the Wood Charm Gu? This Gu is way harder to refine than my Frost Demon Gu!" Bai Ning Bing found the answer.
"Tree spirit wood charm can use the essence in the air, no wonder Gu Yue Qing Shu had such ample primeval essence." He realized at once, but got more confused.
He asked the question in his heart, "Qing Shu, using the Wood Charm Gu like this, aren't you afraid of turning into a dead treeman? So what if you win me? You're destined to die!"
"Bai Ning Bing…" Gu Yue Qing Shu's voice became low, "I understand you like I understand myself. You and I are both orphans, adopted by the clan leader. Yet we walk on such different paths. A tree dying in a forest is nothing, for as long as the forest exists, numerous trees will continue to grow and rise up. Let's have our final battle, my nemesis!"
Saying so, hundreds of green vines assaulted Bai Ning Bing like giant pythons.
"For the clan? What a fool!" Bai Ning Bing retreated in a rush.
The green vines moved several times faster than before, quickly closing in on Bai Ning Bing.
He maneuvered his body skillfully, dodging as the thick vines whipped past, smashing into the ground and nearby rocks, sending dirt and debris flying.
Water Shield Gu!
Unable to dodge, Bai Ning Bing summoned his shield.
But Qing Shu had already spotted its weakness.
Instead of attacking head-on, he wrapped the vines around the shield and pulled back with force.
The rushing water clashed with the vines, splashing wildly. Under the pressure, the shield began to shrink, straining to hold together.
"Not good! If the water shield breaks and I get entangled in the green vines, I will get killed by Gu Yue Qing Shu!" Bai Ning Bing in the water shield was sure of his situation.
The next moment, the water shield burst apart.
Bam!
An ice blade storm erupted from within, rapidly expanding.
Bai Ning Bing had intentionally dropped his defense—if he couldn't block, he'd counter with pure offense.
The air grew colder as the storm surged forward.
The white ice blades tore toward Qing Shu, slicing through the vines, shredding them into pieces.
"Nice timing." Gu Yue Qing Shu had no fear, his large body bravely entering the ice blade storm.
Bam—he slammed into the white tornado.
Spreading his arms, he wrapped around it tightly.
Crack crack...
The razor-sharp blades tore into him, scattering leaves and bark.
Pain hit him moments later, and he growled through gritted teeth, refusing to release his grip.
Using all his strength, he held on as the ice blade storm slowly began to shrink.
"Damn it! This maniac that doesn't care for his life…" Bai Ning Bing scolded internally. In this situation there was no other way, he could only create more ice blades and rotate faster, competing with Gu Yue Qing Shu.
The ice blades carved into Qing Shu, growing dull over time—but the Ice Blade Gu kept sharpening them again.
The fight had reached a deadlock, beyond either side's control, with no chance to retreat.
It was now a fight to the death—either Gu Yue Qing Shu would slay Bai Ning Bing, or Bai Ning Bing would bring down Qing Shu. Both clashed head-on, their battle fierce and unrelenting.