Chapter 26 Success? Or Failure?

Elder Luo had assisted Xuanyuan in purchasing the Gu and Gu materials required to refine his Shadow Eyes Gu into Nine Eyes Shadow Gu. A Gu which didn't just strengthen Xuanyuan's own shadow, but also add additional qualities to it, giving it the characteristic of "nine eyes".

It was a comprehensive enhancement, like most Shadow Path Gu were. While most transformation type Shadow Path Gu focused on beast type transformations, they were not as widely accepted in the Ten Great Sects in comparison to the Transformation Path itself.

These permanent changes to the shadow changed the physical body as a result. While it didn't create a new race of Variant Humans, these additional beast-like characteristics were reminiscent of Beastmen, Hairy Men and even Mermen to some degree. 

They were not considered inherently evil or demonic, just looked down upon by mortal Gu Masters.

Xuanyuan didn't share the opinion, knowing that Variant Humans carried within them natural Dao Marks and a far greater innate lifespan than Humans, knowing that despite their innate talent being lower than humanities, they possessed other qualities that bridged the difference.

Long Hair Ancestor lived for more than 300,000 years, while Primordial Origin Immortal Venerable, the longest living Venerable lived for barely 25,000 years. While it was true that the existence of a Venerable would decrease the amount of Lifespan Gu in the Gu World, Long Hair Ancestor lived during the time of Thieving Heaven and Giant Sun!

And yet, he still lived ten times the length of Primordial Origin! 

Variant Humans were also things that Xuanyuan desired to explore. He knew that Human Path could be cultivated using both Humans and Variant Humans, and wanted to see the difference between using just Humans, just Variant Humans, and both together.

"At any rate, the Outer Sect new disciple tournament is just a week away. If I can refine the Nine Eyes Shadow Gu, the potency of my Shadow Path Gu will increase, albeit to a certain point. I wanted to see if I could purchase Expanding Shadow Gu, but I think I reached my limit in terms of Master's generosity. He already spent a few thousand primeval essence stones on all my Gu and Gu materials, and this was for multiple copies of everything, just to ensure I had backups".

Xuanyuan planned on refining his Shadow Eyes Gu into Nine Shadow Eyes Gu before the tournament. It would be one of his trump cards in the tournament, alongside Dense Shadow Blade Gu and Bright Red Light Gu.

Shadow Stinger Gu and Silhouette Strings Gu were also viable, and his main offensive damage source considering they required less primeval essence.

Elder Luo had promised to watch over Xuanyuan during his refinement, and he agreed to let Elder Hu and Elder Kong know about the Gu recipe Xuanyuan had deduced. Apparently, both would be present, alongside Elder Gong from the Refinement Soul Hall.

Hearing that Elder Gong would be present, Xuanyuan unconsciously sweated a little bit, knowing that Elder Gong didn't know Xuanyuan was the disciple of Elder Luo, instead of a potential member of the Sky Soul Hall under Elder Kong.

He had told Elder Luo about his encounter, alongside the fact that he had deduced the recipes for Shadow Stinger Gu and Formless Shadow Gu and handed them both into the Sect. His Master muttered something about "monsters" before patting him on the shoulder, waving him off.

"I'll handle Elder Gong, but you should have told me earlier. That old fart will hound me to the moon and back for you Little Yuan. If I had known you had a talent for the refinement path earlier, I would've done something about it as well".

Refinement Path Gu Masters distinctly lacked combat strength. The depth of their power lied within the refinement of Gu, and subsequently, the refinement of Immortal Gu. Immortal Gu were the strength behind Gu Immortals, and without them, the combat power of Gu Immortals dropped significantly.

It gave Elder Luo a little bit more confidence in Xuanyuan completing this refinement, considering he had done it at least twice before.

Gu refinement was extraordinarily difficult, as there were as many ways to combine Gu or Gu materials as there were Gu and Gu materials. Even unique Immortal Gu, which were formed from the Heavens and the Earth or through Immortal Ascension were considered a type of Gu refinement, although were governed by Heavens Will.

Xuanyuan wasn't a Master, so he relied heavily on Shadows As Thought Gu to speed up his deductions, creating a seemingly infinite number of Shadow Thoughts to chase down every possibility and increase every chance that his refinement would be a success.

Xuanyuan also wanted to see what effect Nine Eyes Shadow Gu would have on Shadows As Thought Gu. The latter was a Rank 5 Gu, but dwelled within his shadow and not his primeval essence sea. If something... changed, or in this instance, was added to Xuanyuan's shadow, how would Shadows As Thought Gu react?

Little Shadow only had this to say.

'I am a big shadow. I don't have to listen to what a baby shadow has to say!'.

And that was the end of that conversation.

Xuanyuan spent the rest of his day meditating, not using his primeval essence or Shadows As Thought Gu to create more Shadow Thoughts. He wanted his mind pure and undiluted by external influences while he was refining Gu. Not an emotion, thought or piece of will out of place.

Xuanyuan, through Shadow Eyes Gu, could see that Elder Hu, Elder Kong and Elder Gong had arrived within Elder Luo's residence. Letting out a deep breath of turbid air, Xuanyuan exited his study before making his way to Elder Luo's personal refinement room.

The four Elders just followed Xuanyuan silently, Elder Gong in particular understanding that Xuanyuan wanted his mindset to be as calm and controlled as possible, projecting that image into his Gu refinement.

Glancing at Elder Luo, Elder Gong just gnashed his teeth knowing that Xuanyuan had tricked him, and that there was no way that Elder Luo would give up this precious disciple of his. After hearing about this refinement from Elder Kong, the Refinement Soul Hall Elder dug a little bit in Xuanyuan's background, and realized that Xuanyuan had been directly recruited by Luo Yu.

'He's a Shadow Path Gu Master, and that old fart of a Space Path Gu Master wants to teach him about Refinement!? Such a precious genius in the Refinement Path needs to be nurtured and taken care of! He's wasting his talent under Elder Luo! I know that Elder Kong might not approve, but if I petition Immortal Gong then perhaps I can recruit Xuanyuan into the Refinement Soul Hall!'.

Elder Gong showed a devious smile, which was caught by Elder Hu and Elder Kong. The Refinement Soul Hall Elder was harmless, but knew that the old man had a number of tricks up his sleeve. 

If Xuanyuan failed, he could come to his aid and help him refine the Gu recipe further. If he succeed, it gave him all the more reason to bring him into the Refinement Soul Hall.

It was a win-win situation either way.

Elder Hu rolled her eyes at the old man, showing a small smile her attention still focused on Xuanyuan through the one-way window into the refinement room. Elder Luo had to commission this window solely to watch Xuanyuan refine his Vital Gu, and had asked his fellow Elders to accompany him in order to make sure nothing went wrong.

The four Rank 5 Gu Masters watched as Xuanyuan prepared his Gu and Gu materials for almost an hour before muttering something almost imperceptible under his breath.

"There is nothing more I can do to prepare myself", he whispered.

The Elders watched as all the light in the refinement room vanished, leaving nothing more than the faint glimmer of Lunar Light Gu to illuminate the room. The faint trickle of moonlight fell down from the ceiling like a veil of silver water, bathing Xuanyuan in the faint light.

Elder Luo didn't move his eyes away from Xuanyuan, watching as he smeared Gu material after Gu material on his body, not missing a single piece of skin, muttering something quietly to the other three beside him.

"You three all saw the Gu recipe he came up with right?".

Elder Hu nodded first. Her eyes not moving away from Xuanyuan's figure.

"It was... hard to believe that a fifteen year old Gu Master came up with it. Despite showing us the memory of Xuanyuan explaining it to you, such a raw talent from someone so young, it makes it hard to believe that he is just a boy".

Elder Guo nodded as well.

"He understands the essence of the Human Isolation Style of Gu Refinement. Refining Gu within the body, even if it is a Rank 1 Gu is extraordinarily ambitious. Even with a Vital Gu, the back lash could be enough to potentially maim him. Despite this however, it gives him the greatest amount of control over his materials and Gu. In fact, because it is his Vital Gu, I dare say this is why Xuanyuan came up with such a strategy".

"How so Gong Yang?", Elder Luo asked.

"The relationship between a living being and their shadow is a reflection, that much I understand. Whatever happens to one, is reflected in the other, to a degree at least. The Human Isolation Style refines Gu within the body, but what Xuanyuan is trying to do is use Gu to refine the body. Each nurture the other, not just one pulling the other along. This Nine Eyes Shadow Gu that Xuanyuan has come up with... is quite an interesting little Gu".

The other three Elders remained silent at that. Needless to say, if this refinement was a success, it would be the start of Xuanyuan's legacy. His own Gu, refined with his own hard work an ingenuity. A Rank 2 Gu Master creating a Gu.

Such a thing had only been done by those who had founded a Path, or those few who had become... become Venerable.

None of them wanted to presume such a thing. But in the face of such extraordinary talent, none of them could not help but think of the fabled Rank 9. There had been prophecies relating to future Venerables, the most famous of which being the Prophecy of Three Venerables, which predicted the coming of Spectral Soul Demonic Venerable, Paradise Earth Immortal Venerable, and Great Dream Immortal Venerable.

Yi Yan, who had predicted the next three Venerables, had currently being correct on two counts. His prophecy had been taken as gospel by some Gu Masters, leading them to research anything relating to Dreams, hoping to become the next Great Dream Immortal Venerable. Other Wisdom Path Gu Immortals had tried to deduce future Venerables, but failed, the only exception being a mysterious Gu Immortal from the Southern Boarder.

This mysterious Gu Immortal had been born after Paradise Earth Immortal Venerable had passed, and spread his own prophecy about an Era of numerous Venerables, each region giving rise to a Venerable, one after the other.

Some dismissed the claim as ridiculous, not daring to take it seriously.

But... this particular Gu Immortal had given hints into the Paths that each Venerable would walk.

"Great Dream; Blessed By Fate; Thou Shall Rule Over The Heavenly Court. Guided By Love; Thou Shall Become The Mother Of Life And Death".

"Divine Rain; Boundless Water Stretching Beyond The Nine Heavens; Flourishing Yellow Apricots Shall Blossom Throughout The Five Regions"

"Archfiend; Thou Shall Carry The Weight Of Nine Suns, Pulling Them Towards Moon In Thy Heart. Inheritor Of Two Venerables"

"Cold Annihilation; The Descent Of A Transcient Eternity, Freezing the Nine Seas and Swallowing Nine Million Souls"

"White Shadow; Comprehending Heaven And Earth, Thou Shall Proclaim All Things In the Universe As Shadows".

Most didn't take the claim seriously, considering it to be a hoax, however...

'... It has to be a lie, it just has to be! An Era Of Five Venerables!? There has only ever been a maximum of three during any given Era, and now people believe that multiple Venerables will exist in the next few hundred thousand years!? Other than Primordial Origin and Star Constellation, no Venerable has ever met another Venerable face to face'.

'What does this mean for the Ten Great Sects? What does this mean for the Heavenly Court?! What does this mean for the rest of the Five Regions?! Great Dream was prophesized to appear after the birth of Paradise Earth Immortal Venerable, but what about the others, are they Demon Venerables or Immortal Venerables?'.

'Just the names Archfiend and Cold Annihilation seem similar to Limitless and Reckless Savage. Are they perhaps similarly fated to become Demon Venerables? And what of Divine Rain and White Shadow, are they fated to become Immortal Venerables?'.

Elder Kong shook his head, remaining silent as he watched Xuanyuan continue with his refinement.

The young man was a paragon of the Shadow Path. His talent exceeded anything that Elder Kong had ever seen. Even if Xuanyuan wasn't the future White Shadow Immortal Venerable, even if the alternative prophecy wasn't true, and even if his destiny didn't allow him to become an Immortal, he would still be a pioneer of the Shadow Path.

And so long as his legacy stayed within the Ancient Soul Sect, they could use it to attract the future Great Dream Immortal Venerable, if she was born within the Central Continent.

Elder Kong watched with baited breath as Xuanyuan reached the final stages of his refinement.

The essence of more than seventy different kinds of Gu materials had been absorbed into his body. Night Blood Essence. Crackling Light Flower. Argent Rabbit blood. Night Hunter Rabbit bones. Blinding Anglerfish eyes. Weeping Moon Petals. Freezing Shadow Worms. Blacklight Butterflies. Golden Shadow Essence. All these materials had either being swallowed or absorbed into Xuanyuan's body.

His body burned on one side and felt as though it was freezing on the other, feeling the interaction between Dark and Light within himself. 

Black Bones Gu coated his bones in a dense, anti-corruption material which increased their durability several times that of a mortal. Xuanyuan couldn't see them, but he could feel the faint traces of Dark Path Dao Marks within his bones, coursing through them.

On the other hand, the light from Heart Light Gu bloomed throughout the rest of his body, illuminating his veins, blood vessels, skin, flesh and bones in a dull golden light. The strength of Xuanyuan's heart reflected the strength of Heart Light Gu, and his resolve was unbreaking despite the pain he was going through.

Shadows were created within Xuanyuan's body, a combination of Black Bones Gu and Heart Light Gu projecting countless tiny shadows all throughout his flesh, veins and organs. The shadows were sometimes vicious and cruel, biting into Xuanyuan, while others were kind and nurturing, trying to heal the damage other shadows caused.

'This was it', Xuanyuan thought.

Xuanyuan reached for his Vital Gu, Shadow Eyes Gu deep within his primeval essence sea. He could see that the little Gu was currently asleep despite the pain that he was going through and just smiled, before activating Shadow Hand Gu, Push Gu, Moon Prison Gu, Formless Shadow Gu, and a couple other Gu within his own body.

In the space between his eyes, a small cage of light appeared, Xuanyuan's Vital Gu appearing within. Shadow Eyes Gu, lifted its tiny head and peered at the walls of the cage, looking around, noticing it was alone.

Xuanyuan gritted his teeth, feeling all of the Gu activate at once. His blood and organs churned, Formless Shadow Gu accelerating the shadows within him towards the cage of light, Shadow Hand Gu and Push Gu assisting in the compression of shadows, Gu materials and primeval essence.

The pain that coursed through Xuanyuan's body slowly started to build up in his head. His eyes turned crimson as the sudden increase in pressure caused the blood vessels in his nose, eyes and ears to pop, creating trails of blood dripping from each of them.

But Xuanyuan persevered, like Ren Zu and Fang Yuan, he continued, regardless of the pain, and regardless of whether or not his refinement would be a success.

The inside of his mouth tasted of blood, but he watched as the shadows tried to resist the pull of his other Gu, each of them pulling on a Gu material that he had coated himself with, failing and pulling it along with them.

A seemingly endless swirl of shadows and Gu materials condensed within the tiny cage of light. Shadow Eyes Gu seemed energetic at the presence of so many shadows, and under Xuanyuan's command, started to devour these shadows, still holding onto their Gu materials.

Seconds seemed like minutes, and minutes seemed like hours to Xuanyuan before-.

A resounding boom echoed throughout the refinement hall, and Xuanyuan, like a doll whose strings had just been cut, fell to the ground, unmoving.

Elder Luo and Elder Kong went wide eyed, and blast through the one-way window carefully making sure that no glass touched Xuanyuan's body. The former immediately appearing at his disciples side, placing a hand on his wrist and checking for vital signs.

"Little Yuan! Little Yuan are you okay!?".

Elder Luo could feel a pulse, but detected no change in Xuanyuan's condition. His primeval essence sea was only about 30% full, and other than the burst blood vessels, he could detect nothing wrong with his disciple.

Elder Kong narrowed his eyes at Xuanyuan for a moment, glancing at the boy before noticing something strange. Despite the fact that the boy was lying down, completely unconscious, his shadow was standing upright, currently... waving at him?

The Sky Soul Hall Elder let out a small breath of relief, before pointing at the shadow, letting the other Elders know the result of the Gu refinement.

"It seems that Xuanyuan succeeded. He succeeded in creating his own Gu".