Chapter 13 – The Battlefield's Thief
The battle within the forest continued.
Neither side had any intention of retreating after a single clash.
This battlefield...
Was a war of attrition.
Small battles like this would continue for days or even weeks before either side finally withdrew.
...
Compared to the Gu World of the previous era...
The current Gu World had changed beyond recognition.
All of the cultivation paths pioneered throughout history still existed.
Strength Path.
Wisdom Path.
Theft Path.
Dream Path.
And countless others.
Yet the upper limit of the current world had risen dramatically.
If a Gu Master of the current era fought a Gu Master of the previous era at the same rank...
The result would be almost completely one-sided.
The Gu Masters of the old era simply lacked the endurance.
In the past...
Primeval essence recovered slowly.
A Gu Master could only activate their Gu a handful of times before exhausting themselves.
Battles often ended within moments.
The current era was different.
Primeval essence recovered continuously every second.
Furthermore...
As cultivation advanced through the Initial, Middle, Upper and Peak stages...
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The purity of one's primeval essence increased.
The same Gu consumed progressively less primeval essence in the hands of a stronger cultivator.
Because of this...
Battles lasted far longer.
Victory depended not only upon Gu worms...
But also aptitude...
Recovery...
Combat experience...
And endurance.
...
Across the battlefield...
Neither the human Gu Masters nor the beastmen possessed an overwhelming advantage.
Most clashes reached a temporary stalemate.
Gu worms flashed.
Killer moves collided.
Explosions echoed throughout the forest.
Only time would reveal which side possessed the greater reserves.
...
Li Tianyu had no interest in prolonged duels.
His goal remained unchanged.
Gu worms.
Nothing else.
Swift Gale Gu activated.
His body became as light as the wind.
He disappeared from his previous location.
Moments later...
He appeared behind a cat-eared beastwoman who was locked in combat with a human Rank One Gu Master.
She never noticed him.
"Compound Killer Move..."
"Blazing Pilfering Palm."
A crimson flaming palm shot forward.
It pierced through her defenses and entered her aperture.
Moments later...
Two Gu worms appeared inside Li Tianyu's own aperture.
They instantly became quiet.
His Primordial Flame Physique immediately suppressed and refined the ownerless Gu.
Without even glancing at the beastwoman...
Li Tianyu turned to leave.
Suddenly—
Boom!
The ground where he had been standing exploded.
A tiger-eared beastwoman landed heavily, leaving behind a deep crater.
Her attack had missed by a hair's breadth.
Li Tianyu's eyes narrowed.
Without hesitation...
He activated another compound killer move.
"Heavenly Wind Barrier."
Layers of compressed wind surrounded his body.
The tiger beastwoman punched forward.
Boom!
The barrier shattered.
The terrifying impact hurled Li Tianyu dozens of meters away.
He smashed through several trees before finally stopping.
Dust filled the air.
Li Tianyu slowly stood.
His breathing remained steady.
Only minor injuries covered his body.
Without the strengthened Heavenly Wind Barrier...
That single blow would have left an ordinary Rank One Gu Master crippled.
He calmly activated another killer move.
"Spring Rebirth."
Gentle streams of water flowed through his body.
His bruises rapidly faded.
The cracked bones healed.
Within moments...
He had completely recovered.
Even the nearby Rank Two Strength Path Gu Master paused for a brief moment.
A Rank One...
Had survived her full-powered attack almost unharmed.
...
Before she could attack again...
A human Rank Two Strength Path Gu Master intercepted her.
The two immediately resumed their fierce battle.
Li Tianyu took advantage of the opportunity.
"Compound Killer Move..."
"Blazing Gale Steps."
Flames burst beneath his feet.
His speed instantly increased severalfold.
He vanished once more.
Throughout the battlefield...
His figure appeared and disappeared like a ghost.
Whenever an opportunity presented itself...
A Blazing Pilfering Palm would strike.
Another beastman would lose a Gu worm.
Again and again.
Soon...
Several Rank Two beastmen began targeting him specifically.
Their killing intent was obvious.
Li Tianyu simply smiled.
He had no intention of fighting Rank Two opponents head-on.
But escaping them...
Was effortless.
His astonishing primeval essence recovery allowed him to use Blazing Gale Steps repeatedly without concern.
The high primeval essence consumption of his compound killer moves, which was a burden to ordinary Gu Masters, had instead become his greatest advantage.
He darted across the battlefield at incredible speed.
Stealing.
Retreating.
Stealing again.
Every beastman who noticed him gradually developed the same expression.
Hatred.
And fear.
To a Gu Master...
Losing one's Gu worms was far worse than suffering injuries.
...
The battle rose and fell repeatedly.
Neither side was able to gain a decisive advantage.
Rank One Gu Masters continued battling Rank One Gu Masters.
Rank Two fought Rank Two.
Above them...
The Rank Three experts remained locked in fierce combat.
From time to time...
Another Gu Master fell.
Another beastman collapsed.
The fighting only became more intense.
By this point...
Li Tianyu had already stolen a total of sixty-three Rank One Gu worms.
It was an astonishing harvest.
Yet...
Compared to the millions of Gu worms he would eventually require...
It was merely the beginning.
Li Tianyu glanced toward the deeper regions of the forest.
Countless more battlefields awaited them.
They would continue hunting here for many days before returning to camp.
A faint smile slowly appeared on his face.
"Much faster than refining them one by one..."
"This battlefield truly is the right place for me."
The war...
Had only just begun.