Chapter 18 – Beyond the Battlefield
Stable Fortune Gu trembled slightly within Li Tianyu's aperture.
A faint, invisible fluctuation spread across its surface.
Somewhere far away...
A Wisdom Path Gu Master had attempted to divine his location.
The result...
Failure.
Stable Fortune Gu had successfully resisted the divination.
Li Tianyu wasn't surprised.
After destroying the battlefield's kill-point mark and traveling such a great distance, ordinary mortal Wisdom Path Gu Masters had little hope of tracking him.
As for Gu Immortals...
Li Tianyu's value simply wasn't high enough.
At least...
Not yet.
He had only demonstrated the ability to steal Rank One Gu worms.
Nothing more.
The one-million-primeval-stone bounty placed upon his head might appear enormous, but it mostly attracted the attention of Rank Three and Rank Four Gu Masters.
It was nowhere near enough to persuade a Rank Five Gu Master to personally intervene.
Much less a Gu Immortal.
A proper Wisdom Path Gu Master's time and favors were far more valuable than that.
Even hiring a sufficiently capable Wisdom Path Gu Master would require an enormous price.
The bounty simply wasn't enough for those Rank Three and Rank Four Gu Masters to spend their hard-earned favors on hiring a proper Wisdom Path Gu Master just to track down Li Tianyu.
After all...
There was no guarantee they would even succeed.
Many of those interested in Li Tianyu's wealth were Rank Three and Rank Four Gu Masters from the super clans.
They possessed status.
They possessed confidence.
And most importantly...
They possessed powerful backing.
Thus, despite all of Li Tianyu's contributions on the battlefield...
They had still dared to brand him a demonic Gu Master.
But that no longer mattered.
He had already left.
...
The reason Li Tianyu had been able to erase the battlefield mark was actually quite simple.
Distance.
The battlefield formation's mark was extraordinarily powerful within its effective range.
However, before leaving, Li Tianyu had used several expendable Rank Three Gu worms to suppress and conceal the mark.
Then...
He traveled as far away from the battlefield as possible.
As the distance increased...
The connection between the mark and the battlefield formation gradually weakened.
The mark became increasingly fragile.
Eventually...
The suppression from the expendable Rank Three Gu worms, combined with the enormous distance, weakened it to the point where even a Rank One killer move was enough to destroy it.
And now...
He was already far beyond the battlefield's range.
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The super clans would have an extremely difficult time locating him.
Li Tianyu continued traveling.
The scenery gradually changed.
The familiar signs of human civilization became increasingly scarce.
Dense forests replaced roads.
Mountain ranges stretched across the horizon.
Wild beasts began appearing everywhere.
He had finally returned to the wilderness.
...
Suddenly—
A terrifying roar echoed through the forest.
Li Tianyu's expression changed slightly.
A massive rhinoceros-like beast charged directly toward him.
Its body was covered in thick black scales.
Two enormous horns protruded from its head.
The earth trembled beneath every step.
"Black Horn Rhino."
Li Tianyu's eyes narrowed.
A Hundred Beast King.
Comparable to a Rank Two Gu Master.
The beast lowered its head.
Boom!
It charged.
Li Tianyu's crystal-green copper primeval essence surged through his aperture.
He activated his killer move.
"Fire Path Killer Move..."
"Flame Shadow Steps."
Flames erupted beneath his feet.
His body instantly transformed into a streak of crimson light.
The Black Horn Rhino's massive body passed through the place where he had been standing.
Li Tianyu easily avoided the charge.
The Black Horn Rhino immediately turned around.
Its enormous body swept through several trees.
Li Tianyu had already completed another killer move.
"Fire Path Killer Move..."
"Crimson Soul Snatch."
Several crimson fireballs erupted from his palms.
They flew through the air like meteors.
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
The fireballs struck the Black Horn Rhino one after another.
Explosions shook the forest.
The beast let out a furious roar.
The flames didn't merely burn its flesh.
They invaded its soul.
The Black Horn Rhino's eyes became bloodshot.
It endured the pain and prepared to charge again.
But then...
Five crimson fireballs suddenly emerged from its body.
Each fireball contained a Gu worm.
The five Gu worms flew directly toward Li Tianyu.
His aperture opened.
All five entered.
Rank One wild Gu worms.
The Black Horn Rhino's speed visibly decreased.
It had lost every Rank One Gu worm within its body.
But its rage only intensified.
It roared and charged again.
Wind began gathering around its horns.
Whoosh!
Several sharp wind blades shot toward Li Tianyu.
Li Tianyu calmly activated another killer move.
"Fire Path Killer Move..."
"Blazing Sanctuary."
A field of crimson flames instantly spread around him.
The incoming wind blades entered the flaming field.
Before they could reach Li Tianyu...
They began burning.
The wind blades gradually weakened.
Then...
They completely disappeared.
Not a single attack touched him.
Li Tianyu immediately counterattacked.
"Crimson Soul Snatch."
Several more crimson fireballs flew forward.
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
The Black Horn Rhino was repeatedly blasted by the explosions.
Its body trembled.
Its soul was continuously damaged.
A few seconds later...
A crimson fireball emerged from its body.
Inside it...
Was a Rank Two Wind Path Gu.
Li Tianyu's eyes brightened.
"Finally."
The Gu flew directly into his aperture.
The Black Horn Rhino possessed only one Rank Two Gu worm.
And now...
It had lost it.
Li Tianyu didn't hesitate.
"Burning Ember Gu."
The Rank Two Gu immediately vanished into a crimson flame.
Its Dao fragments were absorbed into the Dao Repository.
Li Tianyu didn't keep it.
Rank Two Gu worms were simply too valuable.
Unlike Rank One Gu worms...
They were difficult to obtain in large quantities.
Even low-value Rank Two Gu worms were worth considerable amounts of primeval stones.
If he kept them, he wouldn't be able to exchange them for enough worthless Rank Two Gu to replicate what he had done with Rank One Gu worms.
Especially now that he was far away from the battlefield.
The battlefield had been a massive concentration of resources, with countless Gu Masters, clans, merchants, and contribution exchanges operating there.
The wilderness was completely different.
Resources were scattered.
Rank Two Gu worms were rare.
And their prices were generally high regardless of how useful the Gu itself was.
Even if he gathered enough low-value Rank Two Gu worms to exchange for them, the difference in value wouldn't be large enough to make the process worthwhile.
This would become even more troublesome at higher ranks.
Rank Two was only the beginning.
As for keeping them...
That presented another problem.
Wild Gu worms were different from refined Gu.
Wild Gu could survive by absorbing the natural primeval essence and Dao essence of Heaven and Earth.
They didn't require him to feed them.
But Gu worms that had been refined by another Gu Master were different.
They possessed a feeding requirement.
Keeping large numbers of them alive would require both resources and time.
Therefore...
Whenever Li Tianyu obtained Rank Two Gu worms, he had no intention of keeping...
He would simply devour it with Burning Ember Gu.
It was the most efficient choice.
Rank One Gu worms were different.
They were common enough that Li Tianyu could acquire them in large quantities.
The wild Rank One Gu worms he obtained in the wilderness didn't require feeding, so he could afford to keep some of them.
For the time being...
He devoured the low-value ones.
Their Dao fragments were absorbed into Burning Ember Gu's Dao Repository.
They could later be used for Rank One deductions if necessary.
As for valuable Rank One Gu worms...
He kept some of them.
If he needed primeval stones for future refinement, he could simply sell them.
But if a Rank One Gu worm had already been refined by another Gu Master...
He would generally devour it immediately.
There was little point in keeping something that would eventually require food, especially when its value was low.
...
The Black Horn Rhino let out another furious roar.
But before it could attack again...
A series of roars echoed from deeper within the forest.
Then another.
And another.
Li Tianyu's expression changed.
Branches shook.
Dozens of rhinoceros-like beasts emerged from the forest.
They had been attracted by the commotion.
"Troublesome."
Li Tianyu immediately activated Flame Shadow Steps.
His body transformed into a crimson blur.
He fled.
The beasts chased after him.
More and more emerged from the forest.
Li Tianyu didn't stop.
As he ran...
He continuously fired crimson fireballs behind him.
"Crimson Soul Snatch!"
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
Ordinary Black Horn Rhinos were heavily injured by the explosions.
Crimson flames invaded both their bodies and souls.
One after another...
Rank One wild Gu worms were pulled from their bodies.
Some flew toward Li Tianyu.
Others fell into the forest.
Li Tianyu didn't stop to collect every single one.
He simply continued running.
His aperture rapidly accumulated more Rank One Gu worms.
The situation was becoming increasingly troublesome.
Every explosion attracted more beasts.
The commotion had already spread far beyond the territory of the original Black Horn Rhino.
Li Tianyu had no intention of allowing himself to become surrounded.
He accelerated.
Eventually...
He managed to escape the territory.
A terrifying roar suddenly echoed from behind.
The sound shook the entire forest.
Li Tianyu glanced backward.
Deep within the forest...
A gigantic beast slowly emerged.
Its aura was far more terrifying than the Black Horn Rhino King.
A Thousand Beast King.
Comparable to a Rank Three Gu Master.
Li Tianyu immediately accelerated.
He didn't dare linger.
A Hundred Beast King...
He could bully.
A Thousand Beast King...
Was another matter entirely.
He could fight an ordinary Rank Two Gu Master.
But that didn't mean he could casually challenge a Rank Three existence.
Especially not in the wilderness.
Here...
There were no allies.
No hunting squad.
If he encountered an opponent he couldn't defeat...
He could only run.
...
After escaping several dozen li...
Li Tianyu finally slowed down.
He looked back at the distant forest.
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"Back at the battlefield..."
"I could practically do whatever I wanted."
"With so many human Gu Masters around, I only needed to worry about stealing Gu."
"But here..."
He shook his head.
"The beasts won't simply let someone plunder their territory."
After all that trouble...
He had only obtained a single Rank Two Gu worm.
And even that...
Had immediately been devoured by Burning Ember Gu.
Li Tianyu sighed.
"The wilderness..."
"Is far more troublesome than the battlefield."
But his expression soon became calm again.
Troublesome...
Didn't mean impossible.
He simply needed to change his methods.
The battlefield had been a paradise for stealing Gu.
The wilderness...
Would require considerably more caution.
Li Tianyu looked toward the distant mountains.
His journey...
Had only just begun.