Tonight, the moon was bright and stars were few.
The moon hung high above like a jade plate and the gentle darkness of the night was like a yarn, covering Qing Mao mountain.
Fang Yuan firmly shut the door and windows. Inside the rented room, he stood completely naked. In front of him was a table, holding a basin of warm water. Next to it, a white towel lay neatly folded, and a gleaming dagger rested atop it. Even the floor beneath his feet was covered with a thick cloth.
Moonlight slipped through the gaps in the window shutters, casting silvery beams over the tabletop. Fang Yuan's face remained calm as he picked up the dagger. Its blade shimmered with a cold luster, sharp enough to reflect a clear image—like a mirror.
In the dim glow, the young man's emotionless face was reflected in the steel.
To use this Earth Communication Ear Grass, the price he needed to pay couldn't amount to anything.
Thinking of this, Fang Yuan let out a cold smile.
His fingers gently traced the icy blade as he softly hummed—
Moonlight chills the frosty night, the dagger gleams with frozen might.
Without the cruelty of winter's bite, who would yearn for spring's delight?
Without hesitation, his hand moved.
The dagger flashed downward. Blood splattered.
A piece of flesh fell on the table—
Fang Yuan had cut apart his whole right ear and blood was spurting out of it.
He first felt a slight chill before a sharp wave of pain surged through him. He gritted his teeth and sucked in a breath.
He braced against the agony as he summoned the Earth Communication Ear Grass from his aperture. He had already restored it to full vitality.
Compared to its withered, lifeless state when first extracted from the Earth Treasury Flower, it now looked completely different.
It was plump, warm, and the size of an adult's palm. It was elastic, resembling the Buddha's drooping ear made of earth.
Fang Yuan pressed it against the bleeding wound on the right side of his head and channeled red steel primeval essence into it.
The Gu's roots immediately sprang to life and burrowed into his flesh. Another sharp stab of pain shot through him.
It felt like dozens of earthworms were crawling through his skull. The sensation was not only excruciating but also deeply nauseating.
Most Gu Masters would use Gu worms to numb the pain at this point. But Fang Yuan had no such luxury. He relied on sheer willpower to endure it. Though his body was still that of a youth, his soul was tempered by centuries of hardship.
Still, he felt his limbs weaken, his body beginning to sway under the stress. The roots extended further, digging deep and binding to his wound.
Slowly, the Earth Communication Ear Grass merged with his head, forming a new right ear.
The bleeding stopped. There wasn't even a scar. But Fang Yuan's face was pale. The pain hadn't faded completely and continued to torment him. Veins bulged on his forehead as his heart pounded rapidly.
He was nearly finished, but his body still needed time to adjust to the Gu.
He picked up a mirror and examined himself under the moonlight. His pale face and tightly furrowed brow stared back at him. His new right ear was more than twice the size of his left. It looked almost deformed. Fang Yuan didn't mind.
After checking for problems and seeing none, he nodded with satisfaction.
He set the mirror down and picked up a towel. He dipped it into the basin of warm water and began wiping away the blood on his body. With no clothes on, it was easy to clean.
Some blood had dripped onto his feet, but the thick cotton cloth spread across the floor absorbed it.
After wiping himself down, Fang Yuan reached out and picked up his severed right ear from the table.
He used the Moonglow Gu, slicing his own right ear into meat paste and completely destroying it.
Fang Yuan placed the basin of diluted blood beneath the bed, dropping a lump of coal into it.
Only after completing this final step did he finally lie down to rest.
The worst of the pain had faded, but a dull throbbing still pulsed in his head.
It matched the rhythm of his heartbeat, refusing to let him forget the wound.
Time passed in silence.
Eventually, exhaustion overcame the lingering pain, and Fang Yuan drifted into a deep sleep.
When Fang Yuan awoke, it was already midday.
The headache had faded entirely. The sharp pain from the night before had completely vanished.
He instinctively touched his ear. Its texture felt no different than before. It was as though last night's self-surgery had never happened.
Getting out of bed, he found a mirror to inspect himself. The reflection showed a young man—ordinary in appearance. Yet his deep, abyss-like eyes exuded a quiet, chilling charisma that set him apart from the average man. Both ears appeared perfectly normal.
Just last night, after grafting the Earth Communication Ear Grass, his right ear had been swollen and drooping near his jawline. Now, there was no visible trace of that grotesque transformation. His body had already adapted to the Gu.
With a simple thought, red steel primeval essence flowed from his aperture. It coursed through his body and rose toward his right ear.
Instantly, his hearing sharpened dramatically. He could now hear footsteps echoing.
"This way, I have a recon-type Gu." Fang Yuan wore his upper shirt, taking out a water basin from under his bed and went on to continuing his normal day.
Time passed quickly, and summer replaced spring.
Unknowingly it was the scorching summer again already.
Fang Yuan spent every second of his time cultivating diligently. Using the red steel Relic Gu, he instantly caught up to Fang Zheng's cultivating speed.
He did not have a special Gu that could hide his middle stage aura. A day later, his cultivation level was exposed.
Only then did the clansmen realize—it was Fang Yuan who had acquired the red steel Relic Gu.
At the same time, he deliberately revealed the Black Boar Gu.
Having sold off so many of his assets just to obtain these two Gu, Fang Yuan left many confused. People couldn't make sense of his actions and started labeling him with names like 'fool,' 'madman,' 'reckless idiot,' and 'short-sighted.' These quickly became his new nicknames.
With a rise in attention, Fang Yuan had to reduce the number of times he ventured into the Flower Wine Monk's inheritance, but in fact Fang Yuan himself no longer has to ventured into the Flower Wine Monk this entire year, or until he reaches Rank three.
He continued to nurture his aperture as he steadily moved towards Rank two upper stage. At the same time, he used the vitality leaf to earn primeval stones, sustaining his cultivation.
July, the start of autumn.
At the foot of the mountain near the village, a wild Rank five Gu suddenly appeared, causing a huge tremor at Gu Yue Village!
A solemn and serious atmosphere filled the conference hall.
A group of elders silently sat on their seats; their faces were either indifferent, gloomy or serious.
Clan head Gu Yue Bo was sitting on the main seat, his gaze also filled with unconcealed worry, "Three days ago, a River Swallowing Toad appeared near the village by the foot of the mountain. This toad flowed along with the Huang Long River and accidentally reached here. Right now, it is blocking up a river channel and sleeping there. If we ignore it, the village will constantly be in danger. So I would like to ask the elders if you have any good ideas to drive this toad away?"
The elders looked at each other; for a moment, no one spoke.
River Swallowing Toad was a Rank five Gu; it had an enormous might and could spit out a river. If this was not handled properly and it was provoked, over half of the Qing Mao mountain could be submerged with water and the whole village would be destroyed.
After a long silence, Gu Yue Chi Lian spoke, "The situation is grave, and we need to resolve this as quickly as possible. If this news gets leaked, we can't say for sure if those with evil intentions might not secretly go and intentionally provoke this River Swallowing Toad to entrap our Gu Yue clan."
"Elder Chi Lian is right." Gu Yue Mo Chen nodded in agreement. Although he and Gu Yue Chi Lian were political enemies, but at such a critical time for the village, he let go of his past prejudices.
He continued speaking after a moment, "There is another more serious problem. If the River Swallowing Toad floods the Qing Mao mountain, the wolf lairs will be submerged and for their survival, the wolf hordes will move up the mountain. At that time, the wolf tide will break out before its time. And we will have to fight with countless wild beasts to fight for the space at the top."
The elders' complexion turned pale when they heard this.
Gu Yue Bo spoke with heavy tone, "Everyone, don't forget the foundation of our village. The first generation ancestor set up the village in this place because of the underground spirit spring. If Qing Mao mountain gets flooded, this spirit spring might also be destroyed."
"What should we do?"
"Sigh….even if we withstand the beast tides and survive at the mountaintop. After the flood subsides, the spirit spring will have disappeared, many beasts will have died, our surroundings will turn to a wasteland and we will be lacking cultivation resources."
"If we are to die, then why not ask help from Xiong and Bai villages? We are three boats tied with one rope, I don't believe they won't help!"
"It is too premature to ask for help now," Gu Yue Bo shook his head and denied this idea immediately. "It is not the most challenging period now. When the first generation ancestor had just established the village, a Rank five Blood River Python attacked the village, but the first generation clan head killed it. Compared to the Blood River Python, the River Swallowing Toad is just so much more adorable."
"It has a warm temperament and is harmless to ordinary people. Only if it senses the aura of other Gu will it be alert. If it receives serious injuries, it will be angered and spit out a river. By chance, I heard the previous clan head talk of a rumor about the River Swallowing Toad…."
Gu Yue Bo's composed and calm voice resounded within the conference hall.
"He is really worthy of being the clan head. He calmed their hearts with just his words." Gu Yue Yao Ji sensed the change in the atmosphere. She gave a profound look at Gu Yue Bo and praised him inwardly.