Chu Xuan was no reckless brute.

A moment of cold calculation told him the truth: rescuing a Golden Core Patriarch required at least four Foundation Establishment cultivators to even stand a chance. And right now, Wu Teng was still unconscious, half-dead from his injuries.

"There is one more," Liu Zhenxiong said gravely. "The first Patriarch's personal disciple. He's at the third level of Foundation Establishment."

A sharp glint flashed in Chu Xuan's eyes. "Could it be..."

"Exactly. The disciple with the highest aptitude in our generation. The one most likely to break through to the Golden Core realm—Senior Brother Li Xuanming."

Chu Xuan raised an eyebrow. "He actually survived."

Long before Chu Xuan had even reached Qi Condensation, Li Xuanming's formidable reputation had echoed through the Wuji Sect. His cultivation speed had been monstrous, his momentum absolute. All ten Golden Core Patriarchs had declared him the undisputed heir to the Golden Core realm.

When the Wuji Sect fell, Li Xuanming vanished. Most assumed he was dead. To think he had clawed his way out of that slaughter. Truly worthy of being the Wuji Sect's number one Foundation Establishment cultivator.

"Wu Teng made contact with him," Liu Zhenxiong nodded. "He changed his name and hid his identity within a mid-tier Sect. But to rescue the Master, he is willing to strike. However... his condition is that Master Wan Wuying officially accepts him as his chief disciple."

Chu Xuan smiled faintly.

Of course there were conditions. It was purely transactional, and perfectly logical. The Wuji Sect's legacy was ashes. It made perfect sense for Li Xuanming to demand the status of chief disciple to secure Wan Wuying's true teachings.

"There is strength in numbers," Liu Zhenxiong said, his voice heavy with solemnity. "I hope Junior Brother Chu will join us. I, Liu Zhenxiong, beseech you!"

Without warning, the man dropped to both knees, bowing deeply until his forehead nearly touched the dirt.

Chu Xuan immediately stepped forward, his hands firmly grasping Liu Zhenxiong's arms to hoist him up, playing the part of the loyal junior perfectly. "Senior Brother Liu, I agree."

Relief washed over Liu Zhenxiong's face. "Good, good! With you, our chances of success have increased by several margins!"

"When do we strike?" Chu Xuan asked, his tone shifting to pure pragmatism. "Several Shengang Sect Foundation Establishment cultivators are dead. They will inevitably send reinforcements. Our window is closing."

"We move the moment Wu Teng's condition stabilizes," Liu Zhenxiong replied grimly. "Three days, at most."

"Understood." Chu Xuan nodded. He paused, letting the silence stretch for a second before asking, "Senior Brother Liu, do you happen to have the Soul Forging Incantation and the Blood Bug Tome?"

The Soul Forging Incantation was a Foundation Establishment technique designed to temper the soul, expanding a cultivator's mental capacity to control a larger army of Yin Corpses.

The Blood Bug Tome was equally vital. It detailed the gruesome process of carving out a specialized organ within the cultivator's own body—a Blood Bug Sac—to house Gu insects. It functioned similarly to the Corpse Nurturing Tower, but was exclusively tailored for parasitic Gu. More importantly, successfully forming the sac allowed a cultivator to breed a Lifebound Gu insect and drastically raise their swarm limit.

Ever since Chu Xuan broke through to Foundation Establishment, the lethal edge of his Blood Steel Wire had begun to dull against stronger foes. He had long intended to cultivate a Lifebound Gu, but without the Blood Bug Tome, he lacked the blueprint.

Liu Zhenxiong nodded. "I have both. I heard long ago that Junior Brother Chu is an Expert with Gu insects. Are you planning to walk the dual paths of Gu and Yin Corpses simultaneously?"

"I will use every means available to increase my strength," Chu Xuan replied flatly.

Reaching into his Storage Bag, Liu Zhenxiong withdrew two bound manuals and handed them over. "I transcribed both myself. There are no errors or omissions."

Chu Xuan accepted them with a nod, then tossed a heavy Storage Bag back in return.

"What is this...?" Liu Zhenxiong asked, puzzled. He opened the bag, and his eyes widened in shock. "So many Blood Beads! And quite a few large ones!"

Chu Xuan offered a flawless, self-deprecating smile. "I don't have much else of value. I can only offer these in exchange for the Soul Forging Incantation and the Blood Bug Tome. Please don't take offense, Senior Brother Liu."

Liu Zhenxiong was grinning from ear to ear. "Not at all, not at all! These are more than enough!"

The standard Blood Beads would sustain Xu Ming and the other three disciples, while the large Blood Beads were potent enough to fuel his own cultivation. This single bag perfectly solved their desperate drought of resources. In a life-or-death pinch, they could even be swallowed as makeshift healing Pills, though they lacked the refined efficacy of the real thing.

At the mention of "Blood Beads," a hungry, hopeful gleam ignited in the eyes of Xu Ming and the others. Whatever doubts they might have harbored were washed away, leaving only absolute reverence for Chu Xuan.

Chu Xuan glanced around the cramped space. "I won't stay here. I'll find another cave to cultivate in." He tossed a communication jade slip onto a nearby rock. "Senior Brother Liu, use this to contact me when it's time."

"Alright." Liu Zhenxiong watched Chu Xuan's retreating back, a wave of deep emotion swelling in his chest.

If the Wuji Sect still stood, given enough time, Chu Xuan would have been a genius on par with Li Xuanming. What a pity... what a profound pity.

***

Miles away.

Chu Xuan located a secluded cave currently occupied by a massive, mutated python. The original tenant was politely invited into the digestive tract of his zombie subordinate, Little Dragon. With a casual wave of his hand, a gust of spiritual wind scoured the foul stench of reptile and rotting meat from the cavern.

Only then did he sit cross-legged on the cold stone, his mind already churning through his next steps.

Rescuing a Golden Core Patriarch was inherently suicidal. No matter how meticulous Liu Zhenxiong's plan was, the variables were too chaotic. The chance of failure was high. Therefore, Chu Xuan was already planning his exit strategy.

Crossing the Cloud Mist Mountain Range leads straight into Wu Province, he calculated silently. Wu Province has always been a desolate, untamed wasteland, crawling with venomous beasts and ghostly aberrations. It used to be the Wuji Sect's personal backyard.

Now that the Sect is gone, no other faction wants to claim such a cursed territory. If the rescue goes south, I will immediately abandon them and head straight for Wu Province.

Once I cross that border, I'll be a bird in the open sky, a fish in the boundless sea. Untouchable.

Chu Xuan nodded to himself, his cold pragmatism settling his mind.

He retrieved the Blood Bug Tome. After sweeping his divine sense over the transcribed pages, he quickly deciphered the gruesome mechanics of refining a Blood Bug Sac.

The artificial organ could be carved out anywhere in the body, but the optimal location was nestled directly against the heart. Gu insects were ravenous for blood, and the arterial blood pumping from the heart was the purest, most potent source of nourishment. Furthermore, anchoring the sac to the heart allowed the Gu to use the host's vascular system as a highway, deploying to any part of the body in a fraction of a second.

The side effects, of course, were brutally obvious. The moment the host failed to provide enough external blood, the starving Gu would simply tear into the nearest food source: the host's own heart.

For Chu Xuan, this was a non-issue.

He had slaughtered tens of thousands of Zombies, harvesting a mountainous stockpile of Blood Beads. The bag he had casually tossed to Liu Zhenxiong was merely a drop in the ocean. On top of that, he had recently acquired the corpses of several "enthusiastic and hospitable" Shengang Sect cultivators, all of whom were currently resting comfortably inside his Corpse Nurturing Tower. He had more than enough flesh and blood to satiate an army of Gu and Yin Corpses.

Without a second thought, Chu Xuan decided to carve the Blood Bug Sac directly beside his heart.

The process was agonizing. He had to forcefully manipulate his own internal flesh, tearing and weaving muscle fibers, veins, and spiritual energy to forge an entirely new organ within his chest cavity. Anyone who claimed such a bodily violation didn't hurt was a liar.

Sweat drenched Chu Xuan's robes. It took him six grueling hours to mold the rudimentary, pulsing shape of the Blood Bug Sac. Now, it only required steady reinforcement.

Since the reinforcement phase didn't require his active divine sense, he let his body passively circulate Qi. Meanwhile, he pulled out the Storage Bags he had looted from the dead Shengang Sect cultivators to take inventory.

Suddenly, the Blood Steel Wire slithered out from his palm of its own accord. Its sharp, crimson tip reared up like a cobra, pointing rigidly at one specific bag.

It was Sun Shi's Storage Bag.

"Hmm? Did you sense something?" Chu Xuan muttered, his curiosity piqued. He immediately dumped the contents of the bag onto the stone floor.

The Blood Steel Wire hovered over the pile of loot, swaying back and forth before darting down to tap against a chunk of amber. At first glance, the amber looked entirely unremarkable.

But as Chu Xuan picked it up and held it to the dim light of the cave, he noticed a dark, crimson flaw trapped in its center. It was a single, perfectly preserved drop of blood.

He looked down at the trembling wire. "You want this?"