The Path of Immortality: Starts With Creating Water Bear Gu-Chapter 440: Water Path

"This is..."

Staring at the uniquely shaped toad, Shui Juanyun's eyes narrowed, revealing a look of curiosity.

This was the first time he had ever seen such a Gu insect—there was no historical record of such a creature.

Where exactly did Long Xuan get so many strange and rare Gu insects?

First, it was the white clouds of insect, and now this Gu insect that could move mountains—both were completely unknown to him.

How many more hidden cards did Long Xuan have that he was unaware of? Shui Juanyun's expression grew even more serious.

As he watched, the toad rapidly expanded, growing to the size of a towering mountain. Yet, it showed no signs of stopping.

Looking up at the enormous creature, Shui Juanyun's mouth fell open, his heart filled with shock.

"Is this the Three-Legged Golden Toad of the Qian Clan Chamber of Commerce?" He quickly shook his head. "No, it doesn’t look like it. The Three-Legged Golden Toad has three legs—this shape is completely different."

The ability of this Gu insect was likely similar to the Three-Legged Golden Toad, or perhaps even superior. Shui Juanyun pondered deeply, his expression growing graver by the second.

At that moment, the Heaven-Devouring World Toad finally stopped expanding. Suddenly, it opened its massive mouth, unleashing a terrifying suction force.

Beneath it, rocks, dust, and all kinds of debris were sucked into its cavernous maw. The ground below was engulfed in a whirlwind of flying dust and stones.

Shui Juanyun's face turned pale with fright, and he quickly covered his eyes.

"This is..."

As the suction force grew stronger, he felt himself being lifted off the ground, on the verge of being pulled into the beast's mouth. His face turned white with fear.

At this point, he dared not linger any longer. He sprinted away at top speed, terrified of being swallowed by the monstrous creature. Who knew what fate awaited those consumed by it?

"Boom!"

A deafening sound suddenly erupted behind him, followed by an earthquake-like tremor that nearly made him lose his footing.

Shui Juanyun instinctively turned around—only to see the colossal Gravity Mountain being uprooted entirely. It was slowly being drawn toward the toad’s gaping mouth.

His eyes widened in disbelief.

A creature capable of swallowing an entire mountain... it was terrifying beyond words.

Before his stunned gaze, the mountain gradually lifted into the air, finally disappearing into the toad’s mouth, swallowed whole.

After consuming the Gravity Mountain, the toad let out a satisfied burp, patted its round belly, and looked content.

Then, as if deflating, its massive body quickly shrank back to normal size before hopping into Long Xuan's insect bag, vanishing from sight. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

Shui Juanyun suddenly felt his body lighten. It was as if thousands of pounds of weight had been lifted from his shoulders. The oppressive gravity disappeared, leaving him feeling incredibly relieved.

"This is..."

Just as he was about to speak, Long Xuan interrupted him.

"The gravity of this mountain range has now vanished. Without its constraints, many Gu Kings will be able to escape the pursuit of the puppets."

"With their speed no longer hindered by gravity, they'll reach this place soon."

"They will definitely come here to investigate. This place is no longer safe—we must leave immediately."

With that, Long Xuan turned around and swiftly moved forward.

Shui Juanyun's eyes flickered as if deep in thought. Seeing Long Xuan walking away, he quickly followed.

Meanwhile, in the Water Path...

"What the hell is going on? Why are there Blood Mosquitoes here? There have never been Blood Mosquitoes in this place before!"

Jiu Kang’s face was ashen as he looked at the blood-drained corpses scattered across the ground.

Once Blood Mosquitoes formed a swarm, even a Gu Master at the Spiritual Sea Stage couldn’t resist them. This kind of trial was far beyond what they were supposed to face. In all the previous openings of the River God’s Secret Realm, such creatures had never appeared.

Not long after they entered the Water Path, they were suddenly besieged by a swarm of Blood Mosquitoes that blotted out the sky. Only Gu Kings had the power to deal with such a swarm, but the Gu Kings present had their cultivation suppressed. How could they possibly stand a chance?

Under the relentless assault of the Blood Mosquitoes, both Gu Kings and Spiritual Sea Stage Gu Masters perished one after another. In no time, nearly everyone who entered the Water Path had been wiped out.

It was only because there were so many participants in this expedition that the Blood Mosquitoes eventually drank their fill and left. Otherwise, Jiu Kang couldn’t be sure if he would have survived the massacre.

Now, only a dozen people remained alive, barely escaping death. They sat slumped on the ground, their faces pale, panting heavily. The recent ordeal had left them shaken to the core—it was as if they had just walked through the gates of hell.

"This isn’t normal! Something major has changed in the River God’s Secret Realm!" Cha Shan clenched his fists and shouted.

"You think I don’t already know that?" Jiu Kang turned toward him with a grim expression. "What I want to know is why the River God’s Secret Realm has changed so drastically. Something must have caused this!"

Cha Shan shook his head, exhaustion evident in his voice. "I don’t know either, but if the Water Path has undergone such a drastic transformation, then the other seven paths can’t be safe either."

"They’re probably facing unprecedented dangers as well. In fact, they might be even worse off—more people might have died there."

Upon hearing this, the others looked even more grim. A heavy silence filled the air.

Finally, He Jiong broke the silence, narrowing his eyes. "I suspect someone tampered with the river, which caused this drastic change in the River God’s Secret Realm."

"You mean... someone secretly added a higher-quality offering to the river?" Jiu Kang lifted his gaze to him.

"Exactly. The offerings we put in the river couldn’t have triggered such an extreme change."

"The trials in the River God’s Secret Realm have suddenly become much harder. That can only mean someone secretly poured in wine and tea of a far higher grade than ours. That person has truly caused us great suffering!" He Jiong clenched his fists, his face dark.

"Impossible! The Ten-Thousand-Year Monkey Wine is already the finest wine in the Gu world. How could there be an even higher-grade wine in existence?"

"And even if such a wine does exist, it would need to be accompanied by tea of the same level to increase the difficulty of the River God’s Secret Realm. Otherwise, no matter how fine the wine is, it wouldn’t matter. Are you saying that an unknown divine tea was also used in the Tea Tasting Ceremony?"

Cha Shan raised an eyebrow in disbelief.

The champion tea from this year’s Tea Tasting Ceremony was already top-tier. He found it hard to believe that something even better existed.

Jiu Kang suddenly recalled the mysterious wine he had encountered at the Wine Tasting Ceremony. His expression grew somber.

"I think I know what wine caused this change. And if I’m right, the tea of the same level must have also come from the same person."

"That person was clearly disguised. After trading for the Ten-Thousand-Year Monkey Wine, he used instant teleportation to vanish—I have no clue who he really was."

"But that doesn’t matter to us now. What we need to figure out is how to leave this place alive."

"The Blood Mosquitoes only left because they had drunk their fill. If we delay, they’ll digest their meal and come hunting again. If that happens, we’re dead for sure!"

Jiu Kang’s words sent chills down everyone's spines. The exhausted survivors immediately scrambled to their feet—there was no time to rest.

"He’s right. There’s no point in discussing this further. The situation is what it is. What matters now is staying alive."

"I’m recovered. Let’s move immediately. This place is far too dangerous to stay in."