Chapter 96: The Evil Gu Master

Although they had finally gotten a lead about the missing children, everyone’s faces were darker than before.

Qi Cheng had said the Gu master captured the children to extract their innate spiritual energy.

Spiritual energy had no other use beyond cultivation—so if that was true, it could only mean the Gu master was practicing some kind of forbidden art.

And if that was the case, those ten or so children were likely already doomed.

They moved quickly, using Instant Movement Talismans.

In less than half a stick of incense, they arrived at the dilapidated temple Qi Cheng had described.

The temple was ancient and crumbling, barely recognizable—just a few broken walls left standing amid overgrown weeds.

One glance was enough to see the entire place, yet after searching carefully for a while, they found nothing.

“Daoist Yun, where do you think the Gu master might be hiding?”

Perhaps because she had seen through Qi Cheng’s lies so easily, everyone now instinctively turned to Yun Jiao for direction.

Yun Jiao shook her head. “I don’t know. But he can’t be far. A Gu master must live somewhere remote, and since he’s been taking children from this village, it’s likely nearby.”

But strangely, even after they used tracking talismans, they still couldn’t find a trace of the children.

Frustration began to prickle under Yun Jiao’s skin. After a pause, she turned to the man standing silently behind her like an elegant, expressionless ornament.

“Mas—” she stopped herself mid-word, remembering there were outsiders present, and corrected, “Do you have a way to make that Gu master come out?”

(Preferably something… edible-level effective.)

Ye Yuan—her ancestor—turned his calm gaze toward her. “You just want him to come out?”

“Uh?” Yun Jiao blinked. The question sounded… suspicious, but she nodded anyway. “Yes.”

“Alright.”

With an expression that clearly said ‘Fine, I’ll humor my disciple’s grandchild,’ he lifted his hand. A golden talisman appeared between his fingers.

Before Yun Jiao could even get a clear look at it, he flicked it toward the ground.

Yun Jiao froze, a terrible sense of foreboding crawling up her spine.

Wait—

“Don’t tell me that’s—”

Before she could finish, there was a flash of blinding white light, followed by a BOOM! that split the sky.

The talisman exploded on impact like a divine missile.

The earth quaked violently; not only did the ruined temple vanish, but even the small hill behind it was blown apart. Rocks, dirt, and tree fragments rained down like a storm, coating the ground in dust and debris.

When the shaking stopped, nothing remained but a gaping crater that stretched farther than the eye could see.

Yun Jiao: “…”

The old man: “…”

The four exorcists: “…”

Who are we? Where are we? What just happened?

The temple? The mountain? Gone.

w(Д)w

Ye Yuan stood there as calm as ever and said flatly, “He’s out.”

Everyone blinked, stunned. They turned to look at the crater just as the rising dust began to settle—and saw a massive spread of black substance seeping out from below, spreading like a tide.

“What the— Did the ancestor just… blow up an oil field?!”

No, that was impossible. Oil was buried thousands of meters underground.

Yun Jiao shook off the ridiculous thought and narrowed her eyes. The “liquid” was moving—alive.

“Those are… Gu worms!” one of the exorcists shouted in horror.

The tide-like blackness was indeed a swarm of insects—countless, writhing, pouring up from the earth like a living flood.

“Old man! Block them off—don’t let them reach the village!” Yun Jiao shouted. She herself grabbed her formation flags and began setting up a barrier.

The others reacted instantly, pulling out their spiritual tools and talismans to hold back the encroaching mass.

Yun Jiao quickly traced formation lines, trying to remember which barrier could restrain such creatures.

But these weren’t spirits or ghosts—they were living Gu. Normal sealing formations might not work.

“Use the Fire Barrier Array,” Ye Yuan said calmly.

Yun Jiao’s eyes brightened. Right—fire! Other formations might fail, but the Fire Barrier could work.

She immediately got to work. In less than half a quarter of an hour, the array was ready.

“Old man, now!” she called.

“On it!” Bai Yu (the old man) instinctively retreated to the indicated spot, channeled spiritual energy into the node—and the formation ignited.

A burst of flame roared to life.

Crimson fire raced along the circle’s edges, surrounding the entire pit in blazing light. The sea of Gu worms was trapped inside as the fire intensified, spreading faster and faster until it engulfed the swarm completely.

The air filled with the crackling of fire and the horrifying hiss of burning insects. The smell of charred flesh hung thick and acrid in the air. The entire sky glowed red with the reflection of the flames.

“What… what is this place?” one exorcist murmured, trembling as he stared at the scorched crater.

“Why are there so many Gu worms?!”

Normally, even an experienced Gu master would only have a handful of Gu. But here—they covered the ground in swarms.

“This must be a Devouring Gu Pit,” Yun Jiao said grimly.

Everyone gasped. “A Devouring Pit?!”

The most common way to breed Gu was to trap poisonous creatures together and let them fight to the death—the strongest survivor became the Gu.

But a Devouring Pit was far worse: it was a place where fully formed, deadly Gu were thrown together to devour each other repeatedly. The more they consumed, the stronger the final Gu became.

Which meant—

“Someone’s raising a Gu King!” Master Chen blurted out.

Before they could even process that, a furious voice roared from the pit:

“You dare destroy my Devouring Pit!”

They all turned toward the sound. From the crater’s depths emerged a blackened figure.

His clothes were caked in blood—or maybe crushed insects—and his body was covered in wounds. One of his arms was gone entirely, the wound still raw and burnt.

Judging from its shape, it had probably been blown off by Ye Yuan’s “summoning” talisman.

“The Gu Master!” the old man exclaimed. He immediately recognized the man Qi Cheng had described.

“You’re the one who took the children?” Master Chen shouted angrily. “Where are they?!”

“Children?” The Gu master sneered, his eyes filled with disdain. “They were perfect materials for cultivating Gu. Do you think I’d just keep them around?”

The group stiffened, horror flashing across their faces. They had suspected as much—but hearing him admit it so casually still sent chills down their spines.

“You monster!” someone roared.

“Hmph. Enough chatter!” the Gu master spat. “You destroyed my Devouring Pit, so now your spiritual energy will feed my Gu King!”

As he spoke, the ground began to tremble.

A thunderous roar erupted from below, and the earth split open once more. From the depths rose an enormous creature—an insect the size of a building, jet-black and hideous, with a gaping maw lined with jagged teeth.

The wind from its roar snuffed out the blazing Fire Barrier in an instant.

“What… what is that?!”

Everyone gaped in shock.

The Gu King. It was already fully grown.

Their hearts sank. They gripped their weapons tightly, bracing for the fight of their lives.

The Gu master’s lips curled into a sinister grin. “Useless. No one in this world can withstand my Gu King. Once it devours you, my Yin-Yang Gu King will be complete!”

He raised his remaining hand and shouted, “Eat them—!”

BOOM—

He didn’t get to finish.

A violet bolt of lightning cracked through the sky without warning, striking the Gu King squarely in the head.

The enormous creature didn’t even have time to screech before it turned to smoking charcoal and collapsed lifelessly into the pit.

The stench of burnt chitin filled the air.

Ye Yuan lowered his hand, his tone flat as a blade slicing through silence.

“Too noisy.”

Yun Jiao: “…”

The old man: “…”

The four exorcists: “…”

The Gu master: “…”

…Huh?

So… the ancestor had just single-handedly proven the eternal truth:

Villains die because they talk too much.

(⊙_⊙)

(End of chapter)