Fang Yuan headed back to the village to rest, as he had been killing stone monkeys the entire afternoon.
Not only was his primeval essence depleted, but Fang Yuan himself was also exhausted.
The next day
Fang Yuan once again stepped into the stone forest, heading towards the central area.
He stepped into the warning zones of the monkey groups; immediately, furious jade eye stone monkeys came out of the stone pillars.
They screeched and pounced upon Fang Yuan.
Fang Yuan's expression didn't change, most of his attention was on that cave at the highest layer of the stone pillar. He was waiting for the stone monkey king to attack.
Fang Yuan slowly retreated while cautiously observing, but the stone monkey king didn't appear.
Fang Yuan remained calm as he knew the monkey king is currently invisible.
Just as he expected the sleeping Spring Autumn Cicada in his aperture suddenly floated into appearance. Its body was trembling as it gave a weak startled cry that resonated only within Fang Yuan's mind.
The vital Gu's warning!
This appeared only when the vital Gu felt there was an intense threat against the Gu Master's life.
In that split second, Fang Yuan's hairs stood up. Without thinking twice, he directly used the White Jade Gu.
A layer of bright white jade light covered his whole body.
In the next instant, the stone monkey king – who was three times bigger than a normal stone monkey – suddenly appeared on the left side of Fang Yuan and fiercely struck out with its sharp claws at Fang Yuan's left shoulder.
Fang Yuan, who was already prepared for it, quickly threw the bag of liquid toward the stone monkey king.
The stone monkey king was exposed and could not rely on the Stealth Rock Gu.
"Now!" Fang Yuan's eyes shone with cold light as the battle's outcome would be decided with this moonblade, his heart cold and calm as ice.
The monkey king was afterall a wild beast, and after having its body exposed, it flew into a panic.
It let out a sharp, piercing cry, summoning the other stone monkeys for aid.
Meanwhile, its body kept darting around erratically, changing direction constantly.
A ghostly blue moonblade shot forward and struck the stone monkey king.
The monkey king howled in agony as its concealment was forcefully broken.
Though its form resembled an ordinary stone monkey, its size was nearly three times larger, and its eyes glowed with a fierce, blood-red hue.
A deep gash ran from its chest down to its left leg, with blood pouring out in streams.
It wasn't dead yet, but the injury was grave—its body already shrouded in the aura of death.
It retreated back into its cave.
Fang Yuan also retreated, as many stone monkeys were blocking his path.
Although it looked like a draw, Fang Yuan had won.
The monkey king's injury could not be recovered shortly. The more blood it lost, the weaker it felt.
But Fang Yuan could use the primeval stones to recover his primeval essence and recover his battle strength.
"The results has been decided." Fang Yuan returned to the rock room, closing the door and replenishing his primeval essence.
A moment later, his primeval essence went back to its peak state, and Fang Yuan opened the rock door, being in the rock forest once again.
The rock forest was still a mess, but better than before.
Fang Yuan trailed along the opened path, invading the rock forest. The stone monkeys who appeared in his way were all exterminated.
Fifteen minutes later, he appeared at the central pillar once again.
The stone monkey king laid on the ground; it had turned into a statue and was already dead.
A jade eye stone monkey was stepping on its corpse, screaming about.
Replacing the title of king, with the death of the former king, a new king takes its place. Regardless of the beast group or human society, this was the cruel elimination system.
"Saved some effort of mine." Fang Yuan slowly got closer.
At that moment, a Gu worm slowly drifted out from the corpse of the stone monkey king, floating toward its successor.
Moonglow Gu!
Fang Yuan acted instantly, sending a moonblade flying to scare off the new stone monkey king before walking up and grabbing the Gu worm.
It looked unremarkable, like a grey stone with a rough surface—neither square nor round.
If dropped on a road, no one would give it a second glance.
But this was no ordinary stone.
It was the essence of rock, a naturally formed Gu worm birthed by the world itself.
Though it appeared lifeless, it was alive, with its own will and awareness.
Just as Fang Yuan expected—it was the Stealth Rock Gu.
In his grip, it struggled wildly, trying to break free of Fang Yuan's demonic hold.
Spring Autumn Cicada.
At his mental command, the Spring Autumn Cicada revealed a trace of its aura within his aperture.
The Stealth Rock Gu instantly froze, not daring to move—like a rat facing a cat.
Fang Yuan channeled his red primeval essence and quickly refined it.
Another Gu in the bag!
He stored the Stealth Rock Gu inside his aperture, letting it settle at the bottom of the primeval sea, resting beside the White Jade Gu.
The surrounding stone monkeys could only watch in dismay.
When they saw Fang Yuan absorb the Stealth Rock Gu, they panicked.
The new stone monkey king jumped around madly, shrieking in protest.
But it had just taken over and lacked authority—many monkeys ignored it.
With another moonblade, Fang Yuan killed a few more, scattering the rest.
The new king stared at him, baring its teeth in fury.
"Scram." Fang Yuan stared at it, saying a word, with his expression cold as ice.
The monkey king trembled under Fang Yuan's overwhelming killing intent.
It stared blankly for a moment, then instinctively gulped and turned to flee—displaying a level of intelligence beyond ordinary beasts.
Fang Yuan didn't bother chasing it.
He quickly made his way to the base of the rock pillar, driving away the remaining stone monkeys in his path.
Upon approaching, he noticed a small cave beneath the pillar.
From within, a set of stone stairs led down into the darkness.
Without an investigative Gu, he couldn't determine what lay below. However, he knew what was down there.
It was completely dark underground. Step by step, Fang Yuan walked on for a long while before reaching the end of the stairs.
A crude artificial stone door was in front of him.
Even though it was completely dark, Fang Yuan knew where the Earth Treasury Flower was buried. He crouched down and touched the ground; the soil was wet. He began to dig the soil and indeed, he found an Earth Treasury Flower.
He gently parted the petals and retrieved a Gu worm nestled at the center of the flower.
It was an unusual one.
Shaped like a human ear but much smaller, it had a yellowish-brown hue and appeared shriveled and lifeless.
When he held it in his palm, it felt like a dried radish — withered but faintly warm.
Thin root-like tendrils, similar to ginseng, extended from its sides.
This was the Rank two grass-type Gu — Earth Communication Ear Grass.
The Earth Communication Ear Grass was a scouting Gu, and its timing couldn't have been better — it was just what Fang Yuan needed.
Its biggest advantage lay in its range, able to detect up to three hundred paces away. For a Rank two investigative Gu, this was among the top tier. It was also easy to maintain, feeding only on ginseng roots.
The Southern Border was filled with lush forests and mountainous terrain, making ginseng relatively easy to come by. Hunting families often collected them during their trips.
More importantly, ginseng was easy to store. Once dried and properly sealed, it could be preserved for a long time at room temperature — unlike moon orchid petals, which wilted in just a few days.
Earth Communication Ear Grass was very outstanding and could compare with many Rank three investigative Gu worms. However, heaven was fair, and using the Earth Communication Ear Grass didn't end with just refining, it still needed a certain price.
"After getting this Gu, I will have little to no reason to come here often, as my next visit will definitely be when I have reached Rank three. The food for the White Jade Gu is already settled for quite awhile." Fang Yuan knew that this was most likely the last time this year he would be in the secret cave.
On the way, the pressure intensified but eventually, he endured the pressure as he was chased by hundreds of monkeys, tragically rushing out of the rock forest.
Now Fang Yuan only have to focus on using the Black Boar Gu to gain another boar strength and nurturing his aperture.