Water Shell Gu
On the unnamed island, Earth Trench black oil suppresses all other paths’ resources. Human path lets the strong grow stronger, while heaven path takes from surpluses to fill deficits and keeps all beings in balance. Because of the oil, the fishing village has stayed small for centuries, with only single digits of Gu Masters. Several days later, in the village head’s house, Fang Yuan, wearing Chu Ying’s appearance, defeats a middle aged rank two Gu Master without moving from his spot. A few days earlier Fang Yuan had entered the village openly as a rank four traveling Gu Master, and since such Gu Masters are taken to be strong, the villagers grew very alert. At the first meeting he claimed he needed to feed his Gu and asked the old village head for Gu materials, and the head, whom Fang Yuan had soul searched, dared not refuse. ch. 1654
After the spar the middle aged Gu Master privately asks the head why they must hand their Gu materials to Master Chu. He adds that in days Master Chu nearly emptied stores built over generations. The head answers that traveling Gu Masters usually exchange, that local forces seldom refuse them, and that the village should treat this as a chance encounter. The man retorts that Master Chu exchanged nothing, then, when the head asks what they can do, sinks into bitterness. Fang Yuan supervises the whole talk, having gone into the deep sea for black oil before deciding that Paradise Earth’s true inheritance matters more and that he should disguise himself to test the situation. ch. 1654
The next day Fang Yuan tells the head he is leaving, and the head hides his joy and urges him to stay. Fang Yuan jokes that the Gu Masters might otherwise risk their lives to fight him, and says he dislikes bullying the weak and will leave something behind. The head, a little suspicious, declines, but Fang Yuan has him call all the Gu Masters. All come but the middle aged one, who the head says is at sea. In truth he has hidden this future successor in a secret location, afraid that Fang Yuan means to wipe them out. ch. 1654
Fang Yuan shows a rank two mortal Gu, white and blue and shaped like a seashell, and names it water shell Gu. It forms a layer of water around the body against the sea’s pressure and lets a Gu Master go six li deep. The Gu Masters try it and are overjoyed that it also uses very little primeval essence. Fang Yuan hands out almost ten, enough for everyone, and gives the last to the head for the absent man. The head, very moved, apologizes and calls Master Chu truly magnanimous. ch. 1654
Fang Yuan then gives the Gu Masters ten copies of the water shell Gu recipe, which stuns them, since a recipe is entirely different from a Gu worm. They find that its core material is the spiral seashell on the island’s beach and that the other materials are on the island too. Fang Yuan says he created it for the village after sparring and inspecting the island, and that they must accept. The head kneels and kowtows, ashamed that he misjudged Master Chu’s kindness. Fang Yuan helps him up, saying a droplet received in need is repaid with a whole spring and that their meeting is a fortune to treasure. Since the Gu is new and its value unknown, he asks for a few people to enter the sea with him and test it on black oil, and they agree. ch. 1654
