Chapter 47: Capturing the Stronghold (Please keep reading, please vote)

Wang Yu couldn't help but wonder: was the previous team developing under these exact conditions? Combat actually provided significant benefits to a cultivator's strength.

If they continued fighting like this every day for five years, it wouldn't be surprising if everyone reached the late stages of Qi Refinement. The weak would die early, while the strong would naturally become increasingly elite, their cultivation speed accelerating rapidly.

The sect mission required each person to mine ten thousand catties of Bone Wood to fulfill their quota; if it were second-tier Bone Wood, a hundred catties would suffice.

This was a five-year supply, so there was no need to rush.

After investigating the intelligence, Wang Yu felt a deep headache coming on. Before next April, he would certainly have to clear multiple strongholds where second-tier Bone Wood grew, and they had to be ones with bone sacs.

The higher up they were, the better their growth state. Second-tier Bone Wood was almost entirely concentrated in the top dozens of layers, becoming increasingly sparse as one went down. For instance, an entire layer at the two-hundredth level might contain only a single second-tier Bone Wood, and even that was occupied by a swarm of bees.

When he returned to the surface, Gu Zhengshun and the others were controlling twenty-one bronze-armored corpses, burying array eyes at pre-selected points as triangular black flags were lowered one by one.

The bottom thirty layers of Mount Xuangu were shrouded in a layer of black mist, covering only the area where the disciples of Heavenly Corpse Peak lived and practiced daily.

"Is this to defend against Liu Jinxian and Situ Hong?"

"Otherwise?" Gu Zhengshun retorted, adding with a sigh, "We are few in number and must be cautious. I, Gu, have no desire to contend with them. Including Junior Brother Wang, there are only twenty-two of us. These three hundred layers of Mount Xuangu are enough for every one of us to eat our fill; why bother fighting for more?"

Insatiable greed often leads to misfortune; it was better to guard one's own small patch of land. Gu Zhengshun's realization earned Wang Yu's silent admiration, and his impression of the man improved significantly.

Avoiding trouble was good; Wang Yu didn't want trouble either. Five years of quiet cultivation would be enough to allow him to undergo a complete transformation and reach a new level.

*Clap, clap—*

After clapping his hands to gather everyone, Gu Zhengshun arranged the upcoming plan. He said

"Forget about the Bone Wood mining for now. Before next April, you must take down ten locations containing second-tier Bone Wood with bone sacs. The rest belongs to you. Understood?"

Hearing this, Wang Yu's expression shifted. "Senior Brother Gu, do you mean...?"

"Hehe, Junior Brother Wang, there is no need to worry. Just take care of yourself and don't worry about me. They are all just consumables sent by my Gu family to serve me; they still have value even if they die. Since you and I have a prior cooperation, we shall... settle our accounts separately."

"That works," Wang Yu raised an eyebrow, somewhat satisfied with this arrangement. It was better to rely on himself. "In that case, I shall take my leave first."

"Good—"

Wang Yu sat upon the black silk cloth once more and flew upward. He was alone; even if he took down lower levels, they were too sparse. He was aiming for the top layers.

He sought areas where second-tier Bone Wood grew densely, where bee swarms were few, and Bone-Wracked Lions were many.

His abilities were better suited for dealing with Bone-Wracked Lions. Occupying two layers would be enough for him. As for whether Gu Zhengshun would go back on his word later and have his men steal his fruits—based on his observations during this period, he wouldn't.

Gu Zhengshun was a man who knew how to read the situation. There was a high probability that the battle at the Corpse-Nurturing Land with that Xu Jiaojiao had been observed by him. Unless he was absolutely certain he could kill him, this man would not act.

Shortly after Wang Yu departed.

A talisman letter flew toward the newly established array. A disciple retrieved it and delivered it to Gu Zhengshun, who muttered to himself

"Situ Hong and Liu Jinxian are inviting me to gather at the camp between the three Xuangu Mountains? A gathering of Mountain Lords? It makes sense for newcomers. However, sigh—I'm not going."

With a flick of his finger, he burned the talisman to ash and continued with his work.

Meanwhile.

At the central camp, the elegant and handsome Situ Hong sat opposite Liu Jinxian. He said, "It seems that pig Gu Zhengshun refuses to come out. What does Senior Sister Liu think?"

Liu Jinxian had a head of green hair and a face that was quite pretty, except for her nose, which looked as if it had been gnawed by insects, leaving two dark, hollow holes. It looked both ridiculous and disgusting.

A few gray woodlice crawled within the holes, making her look like a corpse. When she opened her mouth, a cloying, sweet scent wafted out, inducing waves of hallucinations.

"He won't come? If he won't come, then kill him. I want all the Corrosive Poison Bee swarms from the three Xuangu Mountains!"

Hearing this, Situ Hong said somewhat speechlessly, "He has set a maze. Can Senior Sister break it?"

"It is simple enough. Are you coming or not?"

"I'll pass. I'm busy selecting suitable Bone Wood."

"Hmph, coward."

Such a blunt attempt at provocation was completely ineffective against Situ Hong. He even felt like laughing. Having just arrived, it was far from the blooming period of the Profound Essence Flowers. Why would he do something that offered no immediate profit?

"If Senior Sister wants to do it, go ahead. I shall take my leave."

The two failed to reach an agreement and disbanded indifferently.

***

Mount Xuangu, the 290th layer.

Wang Yu stood beneath a second-tier Bone Wood tree. His left hand radiated an ice-blue spiritual energy as he gripped the throat of a Bone-Wracked Lion.

*Crack—*

Snapping its neck and tossing it carelessly to the ground, Wang Yu found the task surprisingly easy. An adult Bone-Wracked Lion possessed strength comparable to a ninth-level Qi Refinement cultivator, making its realm even stronger than Xu Jiaojiao's.

However, such low-intelligence wild beasts lacked diverse spells and powerful magical artifacts, and they were solitary hunters.

With Wang Yu's strength, applying a perfected Night Hiding Incantation combined with the binding of the Nether Spirit Chains, a single throat-grip from his corpse-arm left the beast with no chance of resisting his immense strength.

His combat power was formidable, but his diverse methods were his true foundation.

His newly added trump card, the Divine Power Corpse-Arm, provided immense assistance even without utilizing that deathly aura.

Judging by the strength displayed by the Bone-Wracked Lions, an outer disciple of the Spirit-Reversing Blood Sect at the sixth level of Qi Refinement could kill one in a one-on-one fight, which wasted the advantage provided by their cultivation realm.

This was the difference between having a sect's foundation and growing wildly in the wilderness.

In truth, he should thank the thief who sold him to the Spirit-Reversing Blood Sect; otherwise, he wouldn't have grown to this level in just over three years.

On this 290th layer, there were roughly twenty second-tier Bone Wood trees, four Bone-Wracked Lions, and three Corrosive Poison Bee swarms. Only four second-tier Bone Wood trees possessed flower buds, though there were over a hundred first-tier Bone Wood trees showing signs of growing Profound Essence Flowers.

Having temporarily captured a stronghold, Wang Yu began to set up an array he had purchased from the sect called the [Blood Mist Spirit-Hiding Array], a typical top-grade first-tier maze.

It could completely mask spiritual energy fluctuations within a hundred meters, shielding the area from outside scrutiny and isolating internal and external movements to prevent disturbances.

This set of array flags was not cheap, costing a full two thousand spirit stones. Once activated, it required one spirit stone per day, and the consumption would double when encountering external enemies.

Wang Yu happened to have plenty of spirit stones, so he didn't mind the cost.

His cooperation with Zhao Shang had earned him at least ten thousand spirit stones from the Ice Snow Pavilion. Together, a few of them had swallowed no less than fifty thousand spirit stones from the pavilion, which was a mere pittance to True Disciple Su.

But if he continued like this, he would eventually be discovered.