Chapter 14 Gu Refinement Lessons

Here are today's questions:

1. How many rank 4 Gu masters do you think exist in the Gu world?

2. How many clones do you think Spectral Soul had in the five regions at the height of Shadow Sect's power?

3. If you were reborn in the Gu world without any cultivation talent, what would you do?

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Zhao Wen's POV

The following week.

Gu Refinement Hall, the personal refinement room of the refinement hall elder.

During the last day he could use the ascension formation, Zhao Wen had gained various insights into potential future development directions for his phantom path cultivation.

Although he couldn't feel any sort of intuitive understanding of the phantom path like someone with master attainment, Zhao Wen was fairly certain that he now possessed at least ordinary attainment in the Phantom Path.

He didn't think he had reached quasi-master attainment as he thought he would be able to feel some kind of major difference if he had.

[Hmm, attainment is the representation of our understanding of a part of the Dao. It can only be gathered by steady accumulation or by absorbing someone else's understanding via true meaning.

That I gained ordinary attainment after a few months in this world is already good and a sign that I might have high talent for the phantom or rule paths.]

Casting his gaze into his aperture, Zhao Wen observed his Gu worms playing around, resting, or exploring. As he observed the scene, his expression became somewhat serious thinking,

[Man is the spirit of all living beings, Gu are the essence of heaven and earth.

If we ignore the first part of Primordial Origin's famous quote and only consider the latter part, then we have to realize that these living beings, these Gu worms, are carriers of fragments of the greater Dao.

Nurturing, refining, and using Gu, the basics of Gu cultivation, is in essence the utilization of the Dao.

I need to remember that Gu masters are not in essence beast tamers; Gu masters use Gu as tools to manipulate the Dao. Gu are in essence the intermediary between man, heaven, and earth.]

While Zhao Wen was contemplating his latest insights, he was also waiting for Lord Han to begin his lesson on Gu refinement.

Although Zhao Wen had some impression of the refinement path, most of his knowledge was too high-end to be useful in refining basic mortal Gu.

While it was nice knowing that all Gu refinement was in essence combining various dao marks to solidify a part of the greater Dao into the form of a Gu, this knowledge didn't really help him with basic refinement techniques.

He had attempted to learn about this vital part of Gu cultivation from the texts contained in the Han branch's library and from Phantom Fiend's inheritance, but Zhao Wen still wanted a teacher to help him understand this part of Gu cultivation.

Seeing Zhao Wen's eager expression to learn, Lord Han said,

"Alright, for four hours a day I will be teaching you about Gu refinement. We will start with the basics and move our way upwards until I feel that you are capable of refining a rank 1 Gu with a sufficient success rate.

Our lessons will start out with theory before moving to assisting me in refinement and finally moving to you refining Gu without my help. This week I will be teaching you about the basic knowledge you need to start refining Gu."

Seeing Zhao Wen hold a rank 1 information path Gu to record this lesson, Lord Han gave him an encouraging smile and asked,

"To begin with, I would like you to tell me what you think Gu refinement is. Tell me your honest thoughts on the subject."

Hearing Lord Han's question, Zhao Wen showed a contemplative expression as he considered the question

[What is Gu refinement?]

As Zhao Wen thought about this seemingly simple yet extremely complex question, he kept frowning and moving his eyes around, trying to come up with a sentence or two that could explain this fundamental concept of Gu refinement.

Although Zhao Wen knew that Lord Han didn't expect a complete answer and only wished to gauge Zhao Wen's foundation, he still couldn't help but look for an answer.

An ordinary youth wouldn't understand the profoundness of this question, but Zhao Wen did; he had what could be considered an incomplete inheritance of a refinement path venerable in his memory—the book Reverend Insanity.

As Zhao Wen kept silent for over 5 minutes, Lord Han finally acted, saying,

"It's fine if you don't know. If you don't dare to ask, then how will you improve? Come on, tell me what you think Gu refinement is."

Hearing Lord Han's reminder, Zhao Wen answered earnestly,

"I think that refinement is the process of creating a Gu worm."

"-"

Seeing Lord Han's expression, Zhao Wen continued,

"As Gu are the essence of heaven and earth, refinement is the process of forming the Dao or essence of heaven and earth into a fixed form that we call a Gu worm."

Seeing Lord Han's expression shifting, Zhao Wen continued,

"Didn't Primordial Origin say that man is the spirit of all living beings, and Gu are the essence of heaven and earth? If Gu are the essence of heaven and earth, aren't we manipulating heaven and earth when we refine Gu?"

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Lord Han's POV

As Lord Han listened to Zhao Wen's answer, he couldn't help but feel a chaotic mix of emotions.

What insight was this? Lord Han, as an experienced quasi-master in refinement, was thoroughly impressed by Zhao Wen's short yet insightful definition.

Observing the youth before him, the experienced old man couldn't help but compare his younger self to the youth in front of him.

[What was I doing at his age? What was my understanding of Gu cultivation when I was 19?]

Asking himself these questions, Lord Han only grew more impressed with the youth he had recruited as a backup if his plan regarding Xie Lian failed.

[What kind of talent is this? Even Lord Chen didn't understand cultivation to this extent at this age… This kid, to think that the barbaric and savage heir to the Zhao family had this kind of talent.]

With a growing sense of solemness, Lord Han concluded,

[I need to test him. If this show of insight was a fluke, then so be it, but if little Zhao's talent truly is as monstrous as I suspect, I need to nurture him properly.

Didn't he want that Hatred Gu? If he is truly a genius, it wouldn't do to create unnecessary animosity. The last thing I want is for the Fang clan to poach another Ye clan genius like they did 60 years ago.]

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Zhao Wen's POV

As Zhao Wen's last lesson for the week came to an end, Lord Han reminded Zhao Wen,

"Next time we will be refining that rank 2 Gu you asked for. You will be observing me as I refine the Gu and assisting me with those steps I deem you capable of performing.

After we have refined the Gu, your next assignment will be to act as my assistant while I refine Gu. We will do this until you leave for the mission.

Little Zhao, you have great talent in the refinement path. If you apply yourself earnestly to Gu refinement, you can probably achieve quasi-master attainment in the refinement path in 10 to 20 years. You have the potential to reach master attainment in your lifetime if you cultivate diligently."

Hearing Lord Han, Zhao Wen bowed, thanked him for the praise, and then left the refinement room and walked out of the refinement hall.

[I have talent in the refinement path? Hmm, if that old man is correct that I can potentially achieve master attainment in the refinement path, does that mean I should switch over to cultivating refinement path?

If I get his inheritance, then wouldn't I have a complete rank 4 refinement path inheritance to cultivate?

Well, if nothing else, this means I have another alternative if my talent in Rule Path and Phantom Path is lacking. Although I would probably need a lifespan Gu if I want to become a refinement path immortal, it is at least an option now.]

Walking towards the pavilion where he usually trained his killer moves and techniques, he thought,

[My obsessive study habits from my last life are at least proving themselves useful. That and the fact that I can acquire magical abilities is pushing me to cultivate whenever I am not eating, sleeping, or shitting.]

Entering the pavilion, Zhao Wen took a deep breath, centering himself for the coming few hours of training. He was making steady progress in his utilization of his Gu worms.

Nurturing, refining, and using Gu were the basics of Gu cultivation. Zhao Wen was endeavoring to understand these three concepts, although his current understanding could only be considered shallow at best compared to the true experts in this world.

[For refining, I have Lord Han to teach me the basics, while my training can be considered my attempt to understand the utilization of Gu worms.

Where I am truly lacking is the nurturing aspect of my Gu. Although I have the resources needed to feed my Gu worms, I am relying on the Han branch for this.

Although this isn't a problem at the moment, if I eventually choose to leave the Ye clan, I will have problems feeding my Gu.]

In the periods when he was recovering his primeval essence using primeval stones, Zhao Wen thought about how he might fix this weakness in his cultivation approach.

[The nurturing aspect of Gu cultivation, as far as I understand it, is the acquiring of cultivation resources. Because I don't have enough personal funds or a stream of income, I am reliant on the Han branch for this aspect.

This isn't such a large problem for me at the moment, but what about in the future? With my 68% primeval essence, I can reach rank 4, but acquiring appropriate resources to refine and nurture my Gu at that rank will be challenging if I stay in the Ye Clan.]

---

When the following day arrived, Zhao Wen eagerly made his way towards the refinement hall. Today he would assist in the refining of the rank 2 Gu Phantom Pellet.

Phantom Pellet Gu was an offensive type rank 2 Gu worm that shot out Phantom Pellets when activated. These Phantom Pellets were fast and illusionary, being very hard to spot with the naked eye.

Phantom Pellet's advantage was its attacking speed and the small primeval essence cost of shooting out Phantom Pellets, with its disadvantage being that these Phantom Pellets could not interfere with physical matter, only damaging phantoms.

[Phantom Pellet Gu will cover up my weakness in lengthy battles and in long-ranged attacks. Most of my attacks with Phantom Pellet Gu will be distractions. By using Condense Phantom on a few Phantom Pellets, I can force my enemy to dodge every Pellet unless they are willing to take the risk of being hit.

It's a pity I only have the recipe for the rank 1 to 2 Phantom Pellet Gu. If I had the rank 3 recipe, I could use this Gu all the way to rank 4. When I become a rank 4 Gu master, a rank 2 Gu like Phantom Pellet will become useless to me unless I find a way of increasing its rank.]

As Zhao Wen entered the refinement hall, he noticed the hall seemed busier than normal. There were Gu masters moving around in a hurry with the atmosphere inside seeming to be anxious yet excited.

[That's right, the Fang Clan's Feathermen Caravan will be arriving soon. Damn it, I will be missing out on the opportunity to browse its wares as I am going on that mission.

Can I ask that old man to purchase some Liquor worms for me?

No, I am already suspicious about taking those two liquor worms as compensation. If I start buying more, I will alert the Ye clansmen that I know something.

Even if they don't suspect that I can refine higher-ranked liquor worms, they might try to confiscate my liquor worms with the excuse of helping my juniors in the academy.]

Moving past the excited Gu masters, Zhao Wen entered the hallway leading to the refinement room they would be using.

When he arrived, Lord Han was already there waiting, having prepared the room for the coming refinement.