Feast

When the world was just formed, it was a land of savage wilderness. Among the wild beasts that walked the earth, the first man appeared. He was known as Ren Zu, eating raw meat and drinking blood, and living a difficult life. 

In particular, there was a group of wild beasts called Predicaments. These wild beasts loved the taste of Ren Zu and longed to eat him. 

Ren Zu did not have a body as strong as mountain rock, nor did he have the sharp teeth and claws of a wild beast. How could he fight with the Predicaments? His source of food was unstable, and he had to hide all day. He was at the bottom of nature's food chain and could barely survive. 

At this moment, three Gu came up to him and said, "As long as you use your life to provide for us, we will help you through this difficulty." Ren Zu had nowhere to go, so he could only agree to these three Gu. 

He first gave his youth away to the biggest Gu among the three. That Gu then granted him strength. With strength, Ren Zu's life began to change. He started to have a stable source of food and was able to protect himself. He fought bravely and ruthlessly, defeating many Predicaments. But soon he suffered defeat while fighting many Predicaments at once, and finally realized that strength was not everything. It needed to be improved and cultivated, not spent freely whenever he felt like it. Not to mention when facing the entire group of Predicaments, his strength alone was too small. 

Ren Zu reflected on this lesson bitterly and decided to give his prime middle years to the most beautiful Gu among the three. And thus, the second Gu gave him wisdom. 

With wisdom, Ren Zu was able to learn how to think and reflect. He began to accumulate experience and found out that many times when he used wisdom, it was more effective than using strength. By relying on wisdom and strength, he was able to conquer all the goals that he formerly could not and killed many Predicaments. He ate the meat of Predicaments and drank the blood of Predicaments, surviving with tenacity. 

But good things do not last, and Ren Zu grew old. This is because he gave away his youth and middle years to keep the strength and wisdom of Gu. 

"Human, what else can you give us? You don't have anything else left to provide for us," the strength and wisdom Gu said as they realized this. They left him immediately afterward, abandoning him to his fate. 

Without wisdom and strength, Ren Zu was once again surrounded by Predicaments. He was old and could not run, his teeth had fallen out, and he could not even chew wild fruits and plants. 

As he fell weakly onto the ground surrounded by Predicaments, his heart was filled with desperation. It was at this time the third Gu said to him, "Human, take me up. I will help you escape Predicament." 

Ren Zu tearfully replied, "Gu, I don't have anything else left. See, the strength and wisdom Gu have abandoned me. I only have my old age left! While it is not as worth my youth and middle age, if I give you my old age, my life would immediately end. Even though I am surrounded by Predicaments right now, I will not die immediately. I wish to live a little longer, even if just a second more. So you should leave...I have nothing else to provide for you." 

But the Gu said, "Among the three, I have the smallest needs. Human, if you just give me your heart, it will be enough." 

"Then I will give you my heart," Ren Zu said. "But Gu, what can you give me in return? In this situation, even if the strength and wisdom Gu returned to my side, it would change nothing." 

When compared to the strength Gu, this Gu looked frail and was just a tiny ball of light. When compared to the wisdom Gu, this one was only able to give out a dim white light, not beautiful in any way. 

But when Ren Zu gave it his heart, this Gu suddenly gave out endless light. In this light, the Predicaments screamed in horror: "This is the Hope Gu, withdraw! We Predicaments are most afraid of hope!" 

The Predicaments retreated suddenly. Ren Zu was speechless, and from that day onwards, whenever he faced a predicament, he would give his heart to hope... 

(-Legends of Ren Zu - chapter 1 ) 

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As Qin moved through the tranquil waters, each step he took sent out gentle ripples that danced across the surface, creating a mesmerizing pattern of undulating waves. The ripples seemed to echo his calm demeanor, spreading outwards with quiet grace, momentarily disrupting the stillness of the river before fading back into the serene embrace of the water.

Like all those who had walked through the river before him, Qin felt a subtle pressure enveloping his body. This pressure emanated from the spirit spring deep within the flower sea. The spring produced primeval qi, and its richness caused the pressure to build, creating a sensation of increasing weight. 

But soon, from the flowers beneath his feet, small lights began to ascend, illuminating the water around him. These glowing orbs surrounded his entire body before gradually merging with him, their soft radiance suffusing him with a warm glow.

These were all ranked 1 Hope Gu! One of the only go that could be used to allow a mortal to awaken his Aperture. As they infused a mortal, they fortified his human chi, enabling him to withstand the pressure. Still, it was more accurate to say they unlocked the human chi already present within each mortal's body. 

Driven by the external pressure, the hope gu entering his body rapidly amassed in his abdomen, forming a cluster of light three inches below his navel. 

Qin sensed the pressure easing as he continued to advance. With each step, a new Hope Gu emerged from the sea of flowers, darting into his body to join the luminous cluster. The ball of light swelled, its brilliance intensifying with each addition.

As they observed the ragged boy surpassing the ten-step mark, many of the youths couldn't help but sigh with envy. They, the ones devoid of talent, found themselves saddened by the unfairness of it all. Why was someone like him, who appeared so filthy, granted the privilege of becoming a Gu master? Were the heavens truly so unjust?

But as he approached twenty steps, a murmuring buzz swept through the crowd. Some exchanged curious glances, while others leaned in to get a better view. 

20 steps were equivalent to C grade, and while such a talent was not extraordinary by any means of the word, how many out of the 100 youths present could boast in front of one? 

Gu Yue Mo Bei, and Gu Yue Chi Chen, both *cough* with a B-grade talent. And of course, Gu Yue Fang Zheng with his heaven-gifted talent. 

Apart from them... None! Only three out of a hundred could boast a talent exceeding that of a C-grade. Half of those 100 youths would even give their right hand in exchange for such a ,,meager,, talent!

And as Gu Yue Qin surpassed the 20-step milestone, a murmur rippled through the crowd, and the indifferent gazes of the clan elders suddenly sharpened with interest. The reason for their sudden attention was the lingering presence of Hope Gu still swirling around Qin, indicating that his potential had not been fully exhausted! Clearly, it didn't rival Fang Zheng's abundance, but it appeared almost comparable to Mo Bei and Chi Cheng's.

This sparked a glimmer of hope among the elders, who dared to entertain the possibility of another B-grade talent emerging. Instantly forgetting their thoughts about the boy's poor appearance, they silently rooted for him as he marched on through the water.

Alas, who knew what expressions they would show if they knew that Qin's aperture had been formed ever since he reached his 17th step?

Indeed, the moment Qin made his 17th step, the ball of light formed by the Hope Gu reached its limit and exploded with a dazzling burst of energy.

In that fleeting moment, the explosion was contained within Qin's body, invisible to the outside world. Only Qin himself felt the earthshaking reaction occurring within his stolen body, as if the very core of his being had been shaken to its foundation.

But he gritted his teeth and held back from showing any outward reaction of the explosion of energy from within him. His focus remained unbroken despite the feeling of every hair on his body standing on end and his pores constricting. His mind concentrated on the simple task of placing one foot in front of the other, refusing to yield to the instinctual urge to relent under the mounting pressure.

This was a sight never before witnessed in the Gu world, and yet not even Fate itself was aware of this event...

Common sense dictated that a mortal's aperture formed in accordance with their talent, under the effects of Hope Gu. When the aperture formed, the purpose of the Hope Gu had been fulfilled, leaving nothing left to do but accept the outcome, whatever it might be.

Indeed, ever since the 17th step, despite entering Qin's body, no Hope Gu approached his aperture.

Instead, they were derailed towards his soul!

The Fate Devouring Soul Gu.

To comprehend how this was possible, one must first grasp the three sources of nourishment available to this Gu.

The first source was souls, as despite its nature as a gu, it could still be cultivated and it's foundation strengthened.

The second source, as the name implied, was Fate itself, specifically the threads that encompassed everything in the world. Devouring and absorbing those was the Gu's main objective, but weren't these threads just extremely small pieces of Heaven Path Dao Marks under the control of Heaven's Will? Indeed, they were! These threads could be considered Heaven Path materials, and as a result, the Fate Devouring Soul could consume any such materials.

And the last option, the most astounding of them all... this Gu could devour the very essence of Heaven and Earth... Gu themselves! It was a Gu that could feed on other Gu...

And the Hope Gu, peacefully residing near the Gu Yue clan's spirit spring, were unwillingly turned into its feast...