Chapter 130: 守株待兔

Gu Chuwinter felt a pang of worry, but Sang Tu Gong's eyes lit up. "If the attack on the Snow Ridge Twin Immortals wasn't accidental, that would be excellent," he said.

Gu Chuwinter asked, puzzled, "Why?"

Sang Tu Gong explained, "If our speculation is correct, and the Chang Gui is indeed secretly refining the Heart-Stealing Gu King, then the deaths of Master Tie Qin and Sect Leader He follow a pattern.

"The Heart-Stealing Gu develops in three stages: first, the Heart-Stealing Gu; second, the Golden Heart-Stealing Gu; and third, the Heart-Stealing Gu King. The transition from the Golden Gu to the Gu King involves three processes. The first is a battle among the Golden Gu, which requires a large amount of vital essence and culminates in five victorious Golden Gu. The second process involves nurturing these five Golden Gu into Five-Element Golden Gu. This requires the vital essence from the hearts of five master martial artists, or the vital essence from the hearts of five virgins with extremely yin destinies, born on yin months, yin days, and yin hours. Crucially, all of them must correspond to the Five Elements.

"Comparatively, it's far more difficult to find five virgins with extremely yin destinies corresponding to the Five Elements than to find five master martial artists whose internal cultivation corresponds to the Five Elements. Furthermore, the Five-Element Golden Gu nurtured by master martial artists cultivating five different elemental attributes are also more powerful.

"Clearly, given the current situation, the Chang Gui has chosen five master martial artists as sacrifices. The Five Elements encompass everything; though martial arts styles are as numerous as fish in a river, they all ultimately fall within the framework of the Five Elements.

"Master Tie Qin practiced the Shi family's Falling Star Art, which corresponds to the Metal element. Sect Leader He practiced the Bronze Ox Sect's Protective Art, Profound Simplicity Art, which corresponds to the Wood element. Therefore, the killer's next targets will be individuals whose internal cultivation corresponds to Water, Fire, and Earth. The Snow Ridge Twin Immortals are highly probable candidates, as the Snow Ridge Manor's Icy Chill Art corresponds precisely to the Water element."

Gu Mo pondered for a moment. "I do have a question," he said. "If this is the case, why would the Chang Gui wait for these people to gather in Cangshan Town before acting? Wouldn't it be easier to eliminate them one by one on their way here?"

Sang Tu Gong shook his head. "This brings us to my second clue. If our first inference, about the Chang Gui refining the Heart-Stealing Gu King, is correct, then we can deduce a second clue: the Chang Gui must be within Cangshan Town.

"Because there's a crucial condition for refining the Five-Element Golden Gu: it must be done quickly. The Golden Gu cannot be too far from its host, and simultaneously, the heart cannot be removed for too long. At most, it will lose its vitality within the time it takes an incense stick to burn, rendering it ineffective.

"Furthermore, there's another extremely critical condition: once the refining of the Five-Element Golden Gu begins, the time interval between the refining of each subsequent Gu must not exceed twelve hours. If the time limit is exceeded, all preparations will be wasted. Therefore, the Chang Gui must wait for its chosen Five-Element sacrifices to gather in one place."

Gu Mo nodded. "So, according to this, excavating the heart and refining the Gu must be done by the Chang Gui itself, or even if someone else assists, the Chang Gui wouldn't be far away. This confirms that the Chang Gui is currently in Cangshan Town."

Sang Tu Gong nodded. "Which means, anyone in Cangshan Town right now could be the Chang Gui!"

Gu Mo slowly said, "Essentially, if we can find the Chang Gui's next target, we just need to wait and observe to uncover the Chang Gui's whereabouts?"

"Precisely," Sang Tu Gong affirmed. "However, all of this hinges on our initial deduction being correct, that the Chang Gui is indeed refining the Five-Element Golden Gu. Moving forward, we simply need to identify the individuals who have been targeted and covertly protect them.

"This task is easy to investigate. The master martial artist sacrifices required for refining the Five-Element Golden Gu demand extremely high internal cultivation; someone like Sect Leader He is already considered the minimum requirement. Therefore, there aren't many people in Cangshan Town who fit these criteria. And now that victims corresponding to the Metal and Wood elements have already appeared, we can narrow our search to the Water, Fire, and Earth attributes, making it even easier.

"The Five-Element Golden Gu has strict time requirements; there will certainly be further action within twelve hours."

Sang Tu Gong demonstrated strong initiative.

He quickly began to discreetly identify and assess the various master martial artists.

After dawn,

A heavy rain suddenly began to fall over Cangshan Town.

The downpour arrived abruptly and intensely.

Sang Tu Gong rushed back to the inn, slapping rain off his clothes and grumbling, "This accursed weather in Lingnan! It just rains when it wants to, and thunders when it wants to!"

As if in response to Sang Tu Gong's words,

No sooner had he spoken than a flash of lightning illuminated the dim Cangshan Town, instantly brightening it, followed by a rolling thunder.

Another person was with Sang Tu Gong.

It was Daoist Qingyun from Xiandu Temple.

The two walked together, quickly went upstairs, and entered a room.

Inside the room, Gu Mo was seated, drinking tea.

As soon as Daoist Qingyun entered, he hastily cupped his hands and bowed. "Hero Gu, Elder Sang said you wished to see me?"

"No rush, others haven't arrived yet," Gu Mo replied.

A moment later, footsteps were heard outside the door. It was Gu Chuwinter, accompanied by the Snow Ridge Twin Immortals.

Upon entering, Ye Lingsu immediately asked, "Hero Gu, what's so urgent? You called us here in such a hurry, and I still need to catch up on sleep!"

Gu Mo smiled slightly. "Elder Sang, why don't you explain?"

Sang Tu Gong immediately cupped his hands and said, "The reason for calling you all here so urgently is that we have new information regarding the deaths of Master Tie Qin and Sect Leader He." As he spoke, Sang Tu Gong bowed towards Ye Lingsu and Daoist Qingyun. "It concerns both of you!"

Both Ye Lingsu and Daoist Qingyun were greatly startled.

"Is there a wound on the Chize acupoint of both your left arms..."

Sang Tu Gong then began his explanation.

After he finished detailing the Soul-Capturing Gu and the Heart-Stealing Gu,

Ye Lingsu and Daoist Qingyun both wore expressions of disbelief and shock.

"Elder Sang, are you saying that both Daoist Qingyun and I have had Soul-Capturing Gu planted in our bodies?" Ye Lingsu asked, full of surprise.

Sang Tu Gong nodded. "Immortal Lingsu, your Icy Chill Art is a Water-attribute cultivation method, and Daoist Qingyun's Mountain Quelling Art is a typical Earth-attribute cultivation method. Both of you primarily focus on internal cultivation. Sect Leader He and Master Tie Qin also specialized in internal cultivation, which perfectly matches the criteria for the Five-Element Golden Gu sacrifices."

Daoist Qingyun, however, remained calm, showing no emotion. "Regarding the Heart-Stealing Gu, I have heard of it. It is said that during the process of refining the Five-Element Golden Gu, the deeper the internal cultivation of the sacrificed individual, the more powerful the resulting Five-Element Golden Gu will be. Theoretically, there is no upper limit, which is why there are legends of Gu evolving into immortals or achieving daylight ascension."

"Exactly," Sang Tu Gong confirmed. "Finding individuals with extremely yin destinies corresponding to the Five Elements as sacrifices is merely the minimum requirement. Master martial artists as sacrifices are the superior choice."

Daoist Qingyun explained, "On my way down to Cangshan Town, I encountered a group of Moon Worship Cult scoundrels. During our skirmish, my Chize acupoint was injured. At the time, I thought it was an accident, but now it seems I've been ensnared in their scheme."

Ye Lingsu's face was grim, and she said angrily, "So, my attack at Kongming Temple was also an early sign that I had secretly been marked as a sacrifice by someone! This is simply an insult, as if I'm nothing to them!"

Gu Mo, who was sitting nearby drinking tea, smiled slightly. "Immortal Lingsu, don't be angry. From another perspective, isn't this also a recognition of your cultivation? After all, if your cultivation were mediocre, you wouldn't even qualify as a sacrifice, would you?"

Ye Lingsu retorted irritably, "So, I should thank him for his 'recognition'?"

Gu Mo simply smiled, saying no more.

Ye Lingsu then asked, "What about the fifth one? According to you, there should be five Five-Element sacrifices. Master Tie Qin, Sect Leader He, plus Daoist Qingyun and me, that's only four people. Where's the one corresponding to the Fire element?"

Sang Tu Gong shook his head. "I've carefully calculated it. There are only about ten master martial artists in Cangshan Town who meet the criteria. I just finished discreetly checking, and only the two of you have injuries on your Chize acupoints.

"I couldn't openly screen everyone. After all, apart from those of us here who are certainly not the culprit, anyone else could be. If I conducted a public screening and the culprit noticed, our 'luring the tiger out of its den' plan would fail.

"Even the two of you need to maintain a bit of disguise. Immortal Lingsu is fine, as you are already staying at Yuelai Inn. But Daoist Qingyun is different; you don't reside here, and suddenly staying here could easily arouse suspicion. For now, we'll use the excuse of examining Sect Leader He's body as a cover."

Daoist Qingyun said, "That's easy. I'll have one of my disciples feign illness and send them to you for treatment later. Then I can legitimately stay at Yuelai Inn. As for the disciple feigning illness, you can rest assured; they are absolutely trustworthy and could not possibly be colluding with the Chang Gui."

"Then there's no problem."

Sang Tu Gong cupped his hands towards Gu Mo. "Henceforth, the safety of Immortal Lingsu and Daoist Qingyun will entirely depend on Hero Gu."

Gu Mo waved a hand. "It's not that exaggerated. When the culprit reveals themselves, the true power lies in all the masters from various sects gathered together. As for me, I can only say I'll do my best!"

Ye Lingsu pouted. "Hero Gu, please don't just 'do your best'! You have to ensure absolute success! I'm here as bait, and once the Soul-Capturing Gu activates, I'll be a lamb to the slaughter. If you don't protect me, won't I be dead for sure?"

Having said that, Ye Lingsu looked at Sang Tu Gong again and asked, "Elder Sang, does the Soul-Capturing Gu truly have no other side effects?"

Sang Tu Gong nodded. "Immortal Lingsu, rest assured. I, Sang Tu Gong, guarantee with my head that this Soul-Capturing Gu truly has no significant effect on a master martial artist like yourself. When the time comes, a loud shout will be enough to instantly awaken you.

"In fact, the Soul-Capturing Gu was not originally called the Soul-Capturing Gu; it was known as the Flower-Plucking Gu, used by certain lecherous villains for their exploits. This is because individuals affected by the Soul-Capturing Gu have no memory of the period from the Gu's activation to its conclusion. The victim also experiences no discomfort and feels no different from their usual self, except for their mind being controlled when the Gu acts up.

"However, there's no need to worry. Once the culprit is found, I will certainly remove the Gu from you. The Soul-Capturing Gu is not very difficult to remove."

Ye Lingsu nodded. "Alright, for the sake of the Canglan Sword Sect, I'll tentatively trust you!"

Subsequently, the group stood up and departed.

The room instantly fell silent.

Outside the window, strong winds raged and rain poured down, with some rainwater blowing into the room on the slanting wind.

Gu Chuwinter hurried over to close the window. Just then, a streak of lightning flashed across the sky, momentarily illuminating the dim heavens, followed by bursts of thunder, as lightning crisscrossed within the dark clouds.

"Brother, the rain is really heavy today. I wonder how long it will last."

Gu Mo smiled. "This is just Lingnan's climate. I've gotten used to it since I arrived; it thunders and rains every other day."

"But today's thunder is especially frequent!"

"Indeed, the rain is also exceptionally heavy today."

After finalizing the plan to wait and observe,

Daoist Qingyun carried out the instructions. Shortly after returning to their Xiandu Temple encampment, he sent a disciple to seek medical treatment, and then naturally took up residence in Yuelai Inn to wait quietly.

Meanwhile, Gu Mo remained in his room, fully concentrated, with his senses wide open.

The Snow Ridge Twin Immortals and Daoist Qingyun were staying in the rooms to his left and right, allowing him to perceive their movements at any time.

"Brother, the master martial artist corresponding to the Fire element hasn't been found yet. What about that person?"

In the room, Gu Chuwinter, who was with Gu Mo, thought for a long time but couldn't quite grasp it. "What if the Chang Gui's target this time isn't Daoist Qingyun or Sister Lingsu, but that master martial artist with the Fire attribute? Wouldn't that person be..."

"Then that person would be unlucky," Gu Mo said calmly. "Ye Lingsu knows, Daoist Qingyun knows, and Sang Tu Gong also knows, but none of them mention it. That's because if, by sheer coincidence, out of three candidates, two are here and the only one not here is chosen, then it's simply that person's misfortune. But it also means that the fourth target will certainly appear between Ye Lingsu and Daoist Qingyun."

"Oh, I see. I understand."

Night gradually fell.

Under the lightning, thunder, strong winds, and heavy rain, Cangshan Town was exceptionally quiet that day.

Everything remained calm.

It wasn't until the beginning of the Zi hour (around midnight) that Gu Mo suddenly heard two faint gong sounds, as if a night watchman was striking the gong in the distance.

The sounds were just two ordinary strikes, then silence.

The door of the adjacent room opened.

Ye Lingsu slowly emerged from the room, her movements slightly stiff. However, unless one was prepared for it, no abnormality would be noticed; it would simply appear as a normal nighttime awakening.