The Path of Immortality: Starts With Creating Water Bear Gu-Chapter 505: A New Plan

Long Xuan leapt out from the ruins the moment he could. Seeing the horde of Tu Clan Gu cultivators charging madly toward him, he couldn't be bothered to waste time on these small fry. He simply commanded his puppet army to meet them in battle.

The Tu Clan was merely a minor clan. Having just lost four Gu Kings, they had no other Gu Kings left aside from the old patriarch. How could they possibly be a match for the puppet army?

In just a brief moment, countless Tu Clan Gu cultivators were slaughtered under the blades of the puppets. The scene was total chaos. What was supposed to be a grand birthday banquet had suddenly become a blood-soaked massacre.

As more and more clan cultivators were butchered, Tu Gang's eyes nearly burst from their sockets. He could no longer hold back. Drawing a jagged broken blade from his storage ring, he charged directly at Long Xuan.

“You old bastard! I don’t care who you are—today, you die!”

With a furious roar, Tu Gang slashed straight for Long Xuan’s face.

Long Xuan’s eyes lit up as he recognized the broken blade—the Tu Clan’s ancestral treasure, the Demon-Slaying Blade. He responded by drawing his own renowned Blade, which had long lain dormant, and stepped forward to meet the attack.

Though this old man was at mid-stage Gu King, Long Xuan showed no fear.

After all, the Ten Absolute Physique was most renowned for its ability to fight across realms. So long as the opponent wasn’t some protagonist-level "Child of Destiny" genius, defeating someone of a higher level was no difficult task.

How could Long Xuan possibly take this obvious side character seriously?

The two clashed in an instant. Blades flashed across the rubble, their speed blurring into afterimages. Both were masters of the blade, and their fight quickly grew intense and hard to call.

Yet despite being only at early-stage Gu King, Long Xuan was clearly gaining the upper hand. Tu Gang, the Tu Clan patriarch, was being thoroughly suppressed.

Whether in terms of blade technique or physical strength, Long Xuan had a clear advantage.

Under Long Xuan’s ferocious assault, Tu Gang was soon wounded and bleeding.

Seeing this, the crowd of guests cried out in shock, their faces filled with disbelief.

“Who the hell is this guy? He’s beating a mid-stage Gu King while only being early-stage himself!”

“Tsk tsk… Gu cultivation becomes more difficult to surpass with each level. Fighting across realms might be possible at lower stages, but at the Gu King level? Almost unheard of! This guy’s background must be extraordinary.”

“Ha! Looks like the Tu Clan really kicked a steel plate this time. At this rate, this man alone could exterminate the entire Tu Clan. So much for their so-called Tu Alliance.”

The crowd buzzed with chatter, many wearing schadenfreude expressions. They were eager to see the Tu Clan fall.

Though the banquet had drawn a large number of guests, not a single one stepped in to help—all of them merely watched the drama unfold like spectators at a show.

“Ten Absolute Physique?” Tu Gang exclaimed, stunned, his pupils contracting as he stared at the old man he was fighting.

“What?! He’s a Ten Absolute Physique cultivator? No wonder he can fight across levels! With that kind of physique, it’s not surprising anymore.”

Long Li also looked solemn, then muttered in disbelief, “That can’t be. In this era, the Ten Absolute Physique has an extremely slow cultivation rate—it’s not suited for Gu cultivation at all.”

“For him to reach the Gu King realm with that physique… how the hell did he do it?”

“If someone with the Ten Absolute Physique can truly reach the Gu King realm, that’s terrifying. If he makes it to the peak of the Gu King realm, there’d be few in the entire Gu world who could rival him.”

A fiery light blazed in Long Li’s eyes. Delighted, he said, “It looks like the Long Clan has birthed a monstrous genius. If this man can truly rise, it’ll be a great blessing for our clan.”

Long Kun nodded, his voice trembling with excitement. “His talent is of strategic importance to our Dragon Soaring Empire. No matter the cost, we must bring him into the Empire.”

He clenched his fists tightly.

Back on the battlefield, Tu Gang stared at Long Xuan with a savage expression and roared, “You damn old man! You leave me no choice!”

“I don’t care who you are—slaughtering my clansmen means you die today!”

With a furious shout, Tu Gang’s aura suddenly surged. In the blink of an eye, his cultivation rose to late-stage Gu King.

This unexpected turn of events stunned everyone present.

“Oh no! This old bastard had been hiding his true cultivation all along. He’s been late-stage Gu King from the start! We were all fooled!”

“This is bad! Fighting one level up is already monstrous. Two levels? Impossible! That genius is probably going to die here.”

Gasps of alarm spread throughout the crowd. Just as everyone thought the battle’s outcome was sealed—another twist occurred.

Before everyone's shocked eyes, Long Xuan let out a furious roar. Dark spots began to form on the right side of his face and arm, and his eyes slowly turned red.

His aura surged in an instant. In the span of a single breath, his cultivation rose from early-stage to mid-stage Gu King.

He had been dominating a mid-stage Gu King while only at early-stage—so now at mid-stage, it was only natural for him to suppress a late-stage Gu King.

A dramatic reversal unfolded before them. Despite Tu Gang being at late-stage Gu King, he was once again completely overwhelmed by Long Xuan—who had only just broken into mid-stage, and whose true cultivation was still early-stage.

A chill swept through the crowd. Everyone could no longer stay calm.

Beating a late-stage Gu King while only early-stage? It was beyond absurd. No one would believe it unless they saw it with their own eyes.

“Hisss! Fighting across two levels and still completely dominating… how is that even possible?” Long Li gasped, his voice full of disbelief.

“It looks like the Dragon Soaring Empire is about to produce a war god,” Long Kun said, his voice trembling. “Someone who can fight across two levels in the Gu King realm—if he ever reaches the peak, I don’t even dare imagine how terrifying he’ll become. Who in this world could stand against him?”

“Who the hell are you?!” Tu Gang stared at his opponent in shock and horror.

His body was now riddled with deep blade wounds—each one cut to the bone—while Long Xuan hadn’t even lost a single hair. To be so thoroughly crushed by someone two entire stages below him, Tu Gang felt as if he were in a nightmare.

“Heh… I don’t have the habit of revealing my name to the dying.”

Long Xuan’s lips curled into a smirk, and his assault became even fiercer.

This was his first time using the power of the Curse Seal Gu in battle, and it was working quite well—it had granted him the absurd strength to fight two realms up.

After all, his Curse Seal Gu was an improved version created using Seven-Tone Resonance Music, and the boost it provided was far beyond a single realm—at least a realm and a half.

Under such power, how could Tu Gang possibly win?

Not long after, Tu Gang could no longer withstand the assault and had his head cleaved off in a single strike. His soul had just escaped from his physical body when a bolt of Heavenly Tribulation Lightning struck from behind, obliterating him into ash without even allowing time for a scream.

At the same time, the vast army of puppets had nearly wiped out all of the Tu Clan’s Gu cultivators. On this day, the Tu Clan was truly erased from existence.

“As expected of a divine artifact’s power. Truly terrifying. If it weren’t for the Remnant Demon-Slaying Blade, taking down that old man would not have been so easy.”

Long Xuan discarded the once-renowned blade, now dulled and chipped by the Demon-Slaying Blade’s strikes. He picked up the fallen black Demon-Slaying Blade, toyed with it lovingly for a moment, and then stored it in his storage ring. He also picked up the storage ring from Tu Gang’s corpse and retracted the surrounding puppets he had been controlling before calmly leaving the scene.

Silence engulfed the entire area. Tu Gang, who had just moments ago been lofty and arrogant, was unexpectedly slain by a mysterious cultivator across two realms of difference. Not only that, but the Tu Clan, once at its zenith, was annihilated in one stroke. Who could’ve foreseen such an outcome?

Many of the guests were still utterly dumbfounded.

“Looks like we’re not needed anymore. Someone already took care of it. A Gu King realm cultivator at the early stage was actually able to wipe out an entire mid-tier cultivation clan? If I hadn’t witnessed it with my own eyes, I wouldn’t believe it.”

Long Kun curled his lips into a smirk and turned toward Long Li, saying, “Let’s follow him. We must recruit this person.”

As soon as he spoke, the two of them flew off in the direction Long Xuan had disappeared.

Right after they left, the crowd seemed to awaken from a dream and surged madly toward the Tu Clan’s core compound.

Greed glinted in everyone's eyes—they were clearly intent on looting the Tu Clan's treasures.

With all the Tu Clan’s combat-capable Gu cultivators wiped out, this was the best time to act.

The previously polite and gracious guests now resembled a swarm of bandits.

However, they were obviously a step too late. While searching for the Demon-Slaying Blade in the hidden chambers, Long Xuan had already taken all the valuable treasures. Only worthless items were left behind.

After a fruitless search, the guests became furious. The surviving Tu Clan members were thus scapegoated. Screams echoed from various chambers as the remnants of the clan were ruthlessly tormented.

Long Xuan had only eliminated the combat-ready Gu cultivators of the Tu Clan. The elderly, the weak, women, children, and numerous non-cultivating clan members had been spared.

But the Tu Clan had long committed too many atrocities and offended far too many. Without the protection of their Gu cultivators, their end was inevitable.

Far away, Long Xuan looked at the two approaching figures and said calmly:

“If you two have business with me, speak directly.”

He already knew they were Gu cultivators of the Long Clan—one at the peak of the Gu King realm, the other in the late stage. Their purpose in hiding within the Tu Clan was unknown.

The elder, without the arrogance expected of a peak Gu King, smiled courteously:

“This old man is Long Kun, Grand Commander of the Dragon Soaring Empire, and this is my Deputy Commander, Long Li.”

“You should be of Long Clan blood, though I don’t know which branch you hail from.”

“Still, all members of the Long Clan share a common ancestor. We would like to formally invite you to join the Dragon Soaring Empire.”

“Given your ability to fight far above your realm, you will surely be valued highly by the Dragon Emperor. Your rank and position will not be low.”

“And if you have any demands—speak them freely. Whatever it is, the Dragon Soaring Empire will do its utmost to meet your needs.”

Long Xuan fell silent, deeply considering their offer.

He barely registered the first half of the speech, but the second half piqued his interest greatly.

“Anything I want…?”

In that case, he would directly ask for advancement materials for all his Gu insects—perhaps he could evolve them all in one go.

This was a rare shortcut. The Dragon Soaring Empire was vast and resource-rich. They might really be able to gather everything.

The materials he needed were far too rare. If he had to rely solely on himself, it was impossible to know when he would gather them all.

Motivated by this thought, Long Xuan began considering a journey to the Dragon Soaring Empire.

Being a rogue cultivator had its perks, but joining a powerful empire also came with massive advantages. As long as the benefits were great enough, he didn’t mind aligning himself with a powerful faction.

At worst, he could simply vanish mysteriously after acquiring all the materials. Right now, the priority was to upgrade all his Gu insects as fast as possible.

He took out a materials list from his storage ring and handed it to Long Kun.

“Can the Dragon Soaring Empire gather the materials listed here?”

Long Kun accepted the list and, after glancing through it, smiled:

“The Dragon Soaring Empire is currently establishing itself in the Central Region and is actively clearing the Demonic Night Forest. Our legions battle countless spirit beasts daily.”

“So the twelve kinds of Beast King materials will be relatively easy to acquire.”

“As for the other materials, they are indeed extremely rare, and we do not have them at the moment. But once you join, the Dragon Soaring Empire will marshal its resources and gather them for you at the fastest possible pace.”

“As long as you're willing to join us, these materials will be given to you free of charge.”

Upon hearing this, Long Xuan was visibly surprised. He hadn’t expected the Dragon Soaring Empire to value him this highly.

“This list’s total value is far from low. Can you really make that call?” he asked, testingly.

“Haha! While I haven’t spoken to the Dragon Emperor directly, he is a visionary leader. I'm certain he would pay this price to recruit a genius like you.”

“Judging from the materials on this list, I take it your Gu insects have just reached the Gu King realm and require advancement materials, correct?”

“Once you join us, the Empire will spare no effort to strengthen your power. The stronger you are, the more benefit you bring to the Empire. I assure you, the Dragon Emperor will do everything in his power to collect these materials.”

Long Xuan nodded:

“If the Dragon Ascension Empire is willing to gather these for me, then I have no problem joining.”

“Contact the Dragon Emperor now. If he agrees to my terms, I’ll head to the Central Region immediately.”

Having now advanced to the Gu King realm, Long Xuan naturally wanted to cultivate in a more resource-rich land. The current region was far too limiting.

Even without this event, he had long intended to go to the Central Region.

Upon hearing his agreement, Long Kun could not contain his excitement. He was certain that this man would become the future War God of the Dragon Soaring Empire. To bring such a genius into the fold was a contribution of unimaginable scale. With this man’s joining, the empire’s fortunes were destined to transform.

“Excellent. I’ll contact the Dragon Emperor immediately.”

Smiling broadly, Long Kun retrieved a Sou Gu Hut from his Insect Pouch, placed it on the ground, and quickly wrote a letter, which he inserted into the tiny Gu-crafted structure.

Moments later, a new letter emerged from the Sou Gu House. After reading it, Long Kun burst into laughter:

“The Dragon Emperor has agreed—he has accepted all your conditions.”

“However, given our current technology, the Sou Gu Hut cannot transmit someone of Gu King realm cultivation.”

“I also cannot personally escort you back due to my own duties, so you will need to travel to the Central Region alone.”

Long Kun spoke apologetically.