5 A week later

A week had passed since the start of the academy and the elder was still talking about the Gu and the world in front of the students. Fang Yuan was leaning against the window and sleeping while Mo Bei sat among the attentive listeners.

"Look, he's still sleeping," someone whispered.

"He's been depressed for a week straight, how is that even possible?" another chimed in.

"I heard he was wandering in the night, drinking himself to sleep" a third voice added.

These people were obviously talking about Fang Yuan, the shining swan that turned out to be a duck. However, none of it had anything to do with him. If Fang Yuan had been a 500-years-old demon, he would have killed him already, getting rid of potential problems. In a way, the fact that he was just an otherworldly demon like him saved his life.

Rather than enjoying the dramatic mockeries on the poor teenager, Mo Bei was working hard to improve his own strength by using the White Boar Gu for 15 minutes every day. It was not very difficult, but he could feel his strength rise every time he used the white boar Gu. Unlike other Gu, the white boar Gu was a Strength Path Gu, which permanently raised the strength of the Gu Master who owned it.

As the class came to an end, the elder announced, "We will select a Gu worm from the treasury, and whoever can refine their vital gu first will be rewarded with 20 primeval stones."

Excited murmurs rippled through the room, and Mo Bei quickly scanned the available options, eventually settling on the Moonlight Gu. Although 20 primeval stones was not enormous in comparison to the 576 primeval stones he possessed in his personal savings, he needed to be self sufficient in primeval stones if he wanted to rise in the future. The more primeval stones he possessed, the faster his progress would become.

In the treasury, Mo Bei hesitated slightly not knowing which Gu he should choose. There were rare Gu, but in the end, Mo Bei chose the [Moonlight Gu]. It was the symbol of the Gu Yue Clan, its manufacturing process kept secret for the past hundreds of years. Although Mo Bei knew that it possessed medium range and medium offensive power in comparison to other Gu, it was actually a well-balanced Gu which was very effective in battles, which helped the Gu Yue Clan survive all these years.

Furthermore, there was another reason why Mo Bei decided to use this Gu. As a clan with a lot of history, there was only a few path for advancement past rank 3. Mo Bei wanted to reach the pinacle of strength, and he would not be feeling satisfied over average rank 3 Gu. He knew he was meant for higher heights. And the only rank 4 Gu recipes available in the clan were based off the Moonlight Gu.

Returning home with the moonlight Gu, Mo Bei sighed in satisfaction.

As Mo Bei sat in his room, he stared at the small creature in his palm. The [Liquor Worm], as it was called, was shaped like a silkworm but gave off a beautiful pearl white light. Mo Bei couldn't help but find it cute, despite its purpose.

He had been studying the Liquor Worm's ability for some time now. As a Rank 1 Gu Master, he had been fortunate enough to obtain one of these creatures in the inheritance from the Flower Monk. Its ability to refine and condense green copper Primeval Essence had already proven useful to him, allowing him to store much more of the precious substance.

The [Liquor Worm] worked in a simple way. It allowed him to increase his Primeval Essence by one sub-realm. This meant that as a rank 1 initial stage Gu Master, he was actually as strong as a rank 1 Middle stage Gu Master. And what made it even better was that the Primeval Essence being refined was his own, not an external one. This meant that using the Liquor Worm's mortal form to nurture his aperture had no repercussions or risks, providing a much better nurturing effect, thus increasing his cultivation speed twofold.

However, Mo Bei also knew that the Liquor Worm had its limitations. It could only be used by Rank 1 Gu Masters and had no effect for those of Rank 2 and higher. It was a shame, but he knew that he had to make the most of what he had. Furthermore, he knew how to refine it to the second rank, as he possessed the recipe from the book.

As Mo Bei continued to study the Liquor Worm, he couldn't help but feel a sense of excitement. With such a powerful tool at his disposal, he knew that he could make great strides in his cultivation. He just needed to be careful and use the Liquor Worm wisely.

With green copper primeval essence, refining the moonlight Gu was easy, only taking him one hour.

Claiming his reward of 20 Primeval stones, the name of Mo Bei quickly spread. Although he did not have A-grade talent, he still possessed B-grade talent and seemingly aptitude for cultivation. Everyone could predict that he would become a core member of the clan in the future.