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Three days later, the seriously injured Yan Yong returns to his tribe and wakes the hibernating rockmen. He tells them that a male immortal, a demon, wanted to enslave them and take their beautiful men as playthings. They injured the immortal and beat him into retreat, he says, but of the rockmen who fought, only he returned. The immortal, he claims, swore to lead his fox army and annihilate the tribes. Yan Yong then loses consciousness, and the eight tribes fall into chaos, since their leaders have died at Fang Yuan’s hands. ch. 413
Fox groups attack as he said, and the eight tribes ally and retreat underground. The foxes pay a disastrous price every time yet keep coming. Yan Yong wakes with his injuries mostly healed and leads counterattacks. He raises morale by proclaiming the immortal injured, a mere paper tiger. He adds that the old white rock tribe leader died in his arms and entrusted the whole tribe to him. ch. 413
The rockmen, wanting a strong and brave leader, ask him to lead. He inherits his own tribe’s leadership and then white rock tribe’s, and over a month later becomes joint leader of the eight rockmen tribes. Half a month later he drives out the fox groups. He then urges an attack on Dang Hun mountain, and some rockmen hesitate, since their population has decreased greatly. He answers that the old white rock tribe leader secretly told him before death that the mountain holds gutstones that would strengthen the tribes. ch. 413
On these supposed last words, the rockmen form an expedition. Fang Yuan has deliberately posted a few fox groups as a weak defensive line around Dang Hun mountain. He stages a great battle with the rockmen and kills many. Yan Yong cites the immortal’s alleged injuries and paper tiger immortal essence, then fights him in a feigned decisive battle. With the fox groups wiped out, Fang Yuan feigns defeat and flees, shouting that he will return after gathering immortal essence from the water and fire. The rockmen cheer, and Yan Yong tells them to collect gutstones and leave within three days. With the gutstones, guts Gu expand their souls until the overflow forms little rockmen. ch. 413
Three days later, in Dang Hun palace, Yan Yong kneels and reports to Fang Yuan. The tribes have gained six thousand little rockmen, and the population is three times what it was before the battle. Fang Yuan gives three months to dig a great river across the eastern and northern areas. Yan Yong protests that rockmen need sleep to nurture their souls and would tire themselves to death. Fang Yuan laughs that they will not die completely, for over two hundred will remain of the ten thousand. If no river appears, he will tell the tribesmen the truth before killing Yan Yong. Trembling, Yan Yong rolls away. ch. 413
The land spirit tactfully objects that a huge price was paid to bring in the rockmen. Fang Yuan answers that they are still of great use and easy to increase. He takes from his aperture Hu Immortal’s leftover burial soul toad, a rank four Gu that stores only souls. With it he collected the souls of the rockmen who died fighting the fox groups. He placed them on Dang Hun mountain to breed new gutstones. Part of the yield made his soul six times stronger than a normal person’s, and the rest went to the rockmen. The rockmen have no idea that their stronger souls all came from their companions’ deaths. ch. 413
