Chapter 340: Long Yao

“Crimson Blood Armor!”

The Miaojiang woman’s expression changed slightly.

The Crimson Blood Armor was an extremely insidious type of Poisonous Insect. It emitted no aura, and when inactive, its carapace could change color to blend perfectly with its surroundings. Only when it attacked would it reveal its crimson hue.

Once its horn pierced the body, it would instantly corrode a person’s Qi and Blood. When the Gu poison reached the heart meridian, not even the gods could save them.

‘I was too careless,’ she thought. ‘As a Gu Master, I assumed entering the Ten Thousand Gu Hall would be like a fish returning to water. I forgot to use my scouting Poisonous Insects to constantly check my surroundings.’

She had assumed that since there were swarms of Ghost Needle Mosquitoes, no other Poisonous Insects would be present. She had forgotten that with the Crimson Blood Armor’s stealth capabilities, even the Ghost Needle Mosquitoes wouldn’t be able to detect it.

“I am Long Yao, a Miaojiang Gu Master. Many thanks for your help, Master Chen.”

This time, Long Yao’s cold expression finally vanished, and she bowed sincerely to Chen Yuan.

“You know who I am?”

“Master Chen, you single-handedly fought five prodigies from the Hidden Dragon Rankings outside the Heaven-Reaching Tower. How could I not recognize you?”

Long Yao gave a wry smile. “I am just a nobody from the Miaojiang Land. It’s only normal that Master Chen wouldn’t recognize me.”

A thought struck Chen Yuan. ‘She’s a rare Miaojiang Gu Master. If I team up with her, we could gain much more here in the Ten Thousand Gu Hall.’

“Anyone who can make it into the Heaven-Reaching Tower is no nobody.”

Chen Yuan said in a low voice, “Miss Long, as a Miaojiang Gu Master, there must be many Poisonous Insects in this Ten Thousand Gu Hall that you desire, right?”

“But on your own, I doubt you can capture so many of them.”

“How about we team up? I’ll help you capture other Poisonous Insects, and in return, you just need to help me find one rare Poisonous Insect.”

Long Yao was tempted.

It was true she was a Gu Master, and it was also true that she was like a fish in water inside the Ten Thousand Gu Hall.

But being a Gu Master didn’t mean she could ignore so many vicious Poisonous Insects. For instance, she hadn’t even noticed the Crimson Blood Armor just now.

‘This Chen Jiutian’s strength is astounding,’ she thought. ‘And I’m an expert on the habits of Poisonous Insects. Teaming up with him would be no loss for me.’

“What kind of rare Poisonous Insect is Master Chen looking for?”

“The Blood Spirit Celestial Eye Moth.”

“Master Chen actually knows of a Poisonous Insect like the Blood Spirit Celestial Eye Moth?”

Long Yao was slightly astonished.

A rare Poisonous Insect of the Blood Spirit Celestial Eye Moth’s level hadn’t been seen in Miaojiang for two thousand years. It was likely long extinct.

Even among Miaojiang Gu Masters, some were unaware of the Blood Spirit Celestial Eye Moth’s existence. To think that an outsider like Chen Jiutian would know of it was unexpected.

Long Yao shook her head gently. “Master Chen, if you’re looking for the Blood Spirit Celestial Eye Moth, I’m afraid it will be very difficult. That Poisonous Insect is exceedingly rare. Even if the Ten Thousand Gu Hall had them in the past, it doesn’t mean they are here now.”

Chen Yuan waved his hand dismissively. “It doesn’t matter. If I find it, it’s my fortune. If I don’t, it’s my fate.”

“We’ll search the central area of the Ten Thousand Gu Hall. If it’s not there, so be it. I won’t insist.”

“That’s good to hear.”

Hearing Chen Yuan say this, Long Yao also breathed a sigh of relief.

If Chen Jiutian had insisted on finding the Blood Spirit Celestial Eye Moth, she really wouldn’t have been able to agree.

Having reached an agreement, the two headed straight for the center of the Ten Thousand Gu Hall.

They encountered some Poisonous Insects along the way, but Chen Yuan and Long Yao dealt with them all. Long Yao didn’t collect many.

According to Long Yao, most Poisonous Insects weren’t worth refining and could only be used as fodder for Raising Gu.

She carried a small pouch filled with Poisonous Insects, but its space was limited, so she only collected the finest specimens. Miaojiang had no shortage of the fodder-type Poisonous Insects.

“By the way, Miss Long, are you from the Gu God Sect?”

The Gu God Sect was one of the Fish and Dragon Six Sects. Almost half of all Miaojiang Gu Masters came from the Gu God Sect.

But as soon as Chen Yuan mentioned the Gu God Sect, Long Yao exploded.

“I would never associate with that bunch of shameless bastards from the Gu God Sect!”

Long Yao then felt her reaction was a bit extreme. She took a deep breath and said in a low voice, “Don’t take it personally, Master Chen. I wasn’t aiming that at you.”

“I am not a member of the Gu God Sect. On the contrary, I have a great feud with them. I wish I could skin them alive and eat them raw!”

“I don’t come from a Major Sect. So… does Master Chen still wish to team up with me to explore the Ten Thousand Gu Hall?”

Chen Yuan chuckled and shook his head. “In here, even the Heir of the Divine King, Jiang Mu, and the Saint Heir, Si Bai, can only rely on their own strength. What does it matter which sect you come from?”

“However, with the Heaven-Reaching Tower open, the Gu God Sect should have sent people to participate. With such a great enmity between you and them, have you not thought of settling the score inside the Tower?”

Long Yao snorted coldly. “They couldn’t make it. I already settled the score outside the Heaven-Reaching Tower!”

“The people from the Gu God Sect who were qualified to enter the Heaven-Reaching Tower… I killed them all in Miaojiang and fed them to my Poisonous Insects. The rest are just trash.”

“The Gu God Sect also knew that sending that trash into the Heaven-Reaching Tower would just be a waste of Poisonous Insects, so they didn’t send anyone to the trial this time.”

Chen Yuan stroked his chin, somewhat surprised.

‘This Long Yao looks quite beautiful, but her killing intent is surprisingly heavy. And her strength is clearly not weak.’

She had single-handedly wiped out the entire younger generation of the Gu God Sect and even managed to escape the pursuit of their experts to participate in the Heaven-Reaching Tower’s trial. This was a testament to the power of her Gu Technique.

However, Chen Yuan didn’t ask Long Yao about the details of her grudge with the Gu God Sect.

It would be inappropriate to ask deep questions of a new acquaintance. They had only just met, and Chen Yuan wasn’t about to ask such nosy questions.

Just then, Long Yao suddenly stopped, her eyes fixed ahead without blinking.

“Master Chen, your physical body is powerful. Could I borrow a drop of your Qi Blood?”

Chen Yuan didn’t ask why. He directly forced out a drop of Qi Blood, as viscous as mercury, wrapped it in True Qi, and handed it to Long Yao.

Long Yao formed a Seal Technique with her hands, and from a leather pouch at her waist, a golden Poisonous Insect flew out.

The Poisonous Insect was surprisingly cute. It was chubby, covered in fine, interwoven golden and silvery-white fuzz, with two transparent wings on its back that were comically small and disproportionate to its plump body.

The Poisonous Insect stared with its two round eyes. Upon seeing Chen Yuan’s drop of Qi Blood, its eyes lit up, and it immediately darted toward it.

Long Yao snatched the Poisonous Insect in her hand, gently stroking its fuzz as she whispered, “Be good. I’ll give you this drop of Qi Blood later.”

As she spoke, Long Yao formed another Seal Technique and pointed forward. The chubby Poisonous Insect immediately took Chen Yuan’s drop of Qi Blood and flew ahead.

“Master Chen, please act as my Guardian in a moment and intercept the attacking Poisonous Insect.”

Chen Yuan nodded.

Just as the chubby Poisonous Insect flew into the woods ahead, a streak of blood suddenly shot out.

The chubby Poisonous Insect seemed clumsy, but its wings now beat as fast as lightning. It instantly dodged the blood streak and flew back toward Chen Yuan and Long Yao.

The next moment, accompanied by a sharp shriek, a strange Poisonous Insect charged straight at the pair.

The Poisonous Insect had enormous, butterfly-like blood-red wings, a spindle-shaped body, and a barrel-shaped mouthpart at its front, covered in countless tiny pores.

Streaks of blood, imbued with immense power, shot toward Chen Yuan and Long Yao like a sudden, violent storm.

Chen Yuan formed a Seal Technique, and a Buddha Light bloomed around him. As he unleashed the Six Paths of Vajra Mantra of Master Padmasambhava, a Brahma Sound boomed through the void, sending out ripples that directly shattered all the blood streaks.

Long Yao also formed a Seal Technique. A dense swarm of silk threads erupted from her pouch and, before the Poisonous Insect could react, instantly wrapped it into a cocoon.

“Done. A Blood-winged Celestial Butterfly. These things are completely extinct in the outside world.”

A hint of joy appeared in Long Yao’s eyes.

A Poisonous Insect of this level would be something the Gu God Sect would go into a frenzy for in the outside world, yet here in the Ten Thousand Gu Hall, it was easily obtained.

“Master Chen, your chances of finding the Blood Spirit Celestial Eye Moth were slim before, but now, I’d say they’ve increased by thirty percent.”

Long Yao said, turning her gaze to Chen Yuan.

“Why is that?”

Long Yao explained, “One of the necessary conditions for a Blood Spirit Celestial Eye Moth to be born is that it must grow on the chrysalis of a Blood-winged Celestial Butterfly before it metamorphoses. If there are no Blood-winged Celestial Butterflies here, then there’s a one hundred percent chance there are no Blood Spirit Celestial Eye Moths.”

“Now that we’ve found a Blood-winged Celestial Butterfly, the possibility of a Blood Spirit Celestial Eye Moth existing is finally on the table.”

“I never imagined the birth of a Poisonous Insect was so complex. It seems that among the countless great Daos, none are simple to master to their peak,” Chen Yuan remarked with emotion.

Long Yao smiled and asked, “Master Chen, what did you previously think Gu was?”

Chen Yuan thought for a moment and replied, “The ancient texts say: ‘Gather many creatures like insects and snakes, place them in a vessel, and let them devour one another. The single creature that remains is called Gu, which can then be used to bewitch people and bring them disaster by following their food and drink.'”

Long Yao shook her head. “That is the view of you Central Plains People, who see the Gu Technique as an Evil Dao. All living beings under heaven are equal. When the Human Race was born, Poisonous Insects also appeared in the world, both having evolved from the essence of heaven and earth.”

“In the heritage of our Miaojiang Gu Master path, there are ten categories of life: Heaven, Earth, Gods, Humans, Ghosts, the Shelled, the Scaled, the Hairy, the Feathered, and the Armored.”

“Humans belong to one of these ten categories, and so do Poisonous Insects. The ‘Armored’ refers to insects with shells, the predecessors of Poisonous Insects.”

“The so-called Gu Dao is a great Dao for controlling another category of life. It involves the evolution of life and death, advancement and sublimation. How could it possibly be a simple Evil Technique?”

As Long Yao spoke of the Gu Dao, her tone was filled with indignation.

In the Jianghu, the only major power related to Gu Technique was the Gu God Sect, which was classified as one of the Fish and Dragon Six Sects.

None of the Fish and Dragon Six Sects focused on the Martial Dao, so their status on the Jianghu Wind and Cloud Rankings had never been high.

The Corpse-Driving Sect and the Gu God Sect, in particular, were considered sects that cultivated low-class Evil Techniques.

But the Gu Dao lineage was different from low-class powers like the Corpse-Driving Sect, which studied Corpse Refining. It was a formidable power that the Human Race had gained by forging a pact with another essence of the world, back when they were still ignorant and vulnerable in the age of Primordial Chaos.

Yet, tens of thousands of years later, it had been relegated to a low-class path. The Gu God Sect, which supposedly represented the Gu Dao, was full of despicable bastards who even allowed the outside world to stigmatize their entire tradition. This left Long Yao feeling both furious and helpless.