"I said to him, a person has a thousand and one reasons to live. Why are you alive, I cannot answer that, only you have the answer. Go find it yourself," Gu Yue Bo said.
"Then clan leader, what is your answer for yourself?" Fang Zheng blinked in confusion, asking.
Gu Yue Bo laughed. In his eyes, Fang Zheng and Qing Shu's images were overlapping, Gu Yue Qing Shu had asked the same question in the past.
Clan leader thought for a moment, recalling the past, then repeating the same answer he gave back then, "An organisation is bound to have sacrifices. From the moment a person is born, death is imminent. Between life and death, humans are fragile, but one thing can warm the heart, and shine upon our souls. That is love—this is my answer."
Sacrifice is common.
Gu Yue Qing Shu is he, Gu Yue Bo's adopted son, and after raising him for so many years, his current sacrifice brought great pain to this foster father.
But as clan leader, he had seen far too many sacrifices.
When one has the resolution of life and death, pain and grief becomes more acceptable.
Fang Zheng lowered his head, keeping silent; it seems he was thinking.
Clan leader laughed, taking a letter from the drawer in his desk. He handed it to Fang Zheng.
"This is Gu Yue Qing Shu's letter. It records the answers to questions he's been thinking about for years, I am handing it to you now, you can take a look. This is his answer."
Undoubtedly, Fang Zheng's current heart had intense attraction to this letter.
He opened it on the spot, and after seeing the first line, his tears could not help but flow out.
It was Gu Yue Qing Shu's familiar handwriting, in his words there was his unique amicable aura.
The starting paragraph recorded his perplexity and pain.
Next was the situations that had given him some ideas through continuously thinking about them these past years.
Fang Zheng looked at the letter, and felt like he had experienced Gu Yue Qing Shu's entire life. He followed Gu Yue Qing Shu's footsteps, until he finished the entire letter.
At the end, this was recorded.
"The clan is like a forest, and we members are like the trees in the forest. The old trees extend their branches and shelter the young from rain and wind. When the young trees grow into large and tall trees, the old trees will turn into the nutrients in the soil, fertilizing the land and nurturing new trees. People will always die, and heaven and earth will not remember us.
But new trees are the proof that the old trees have existed. Under this continuous testament, the clan forest becomes larger and spreads further, walking towards the path of prosperity and flourishment."
"People are bound to die. As Gu Masters, we cannot hide from impending death. Even Rank seven and eight Gu Masters can merely live a little longer. Towards death, I feel fear as well. But I understand deeply, eventually, one day I Gu Yue Qing Shu will die too. I might die of old age, illness, or the battlefield.
But at that moment, I can leave peacefully with no regrets."
At the end of the letter.
"Lord foster father, the question I asked you before, I think I have found the answer."
After seeing the letter, Fang Zheng wept soundlessly.
In his mind, it was filled with memories of Qing Shu. When he committed a mistake, Qing Shu did not blame but instead comforted him. When facing trouble, the gaze of encouragement was given, and when in a loss, the hands of Qing Shu would warmly touch Fang Zheng's head.
Gu Yue Bo kept the letter and said, "In future, when you think of the answer, you can also write a letter and tell me. Go, return and have a rest. The danger of the wolf tide is not over, we need you to contribute your strength as well."
"No." Fang Zheng slowly raised his head, clenching his fists.
"What?" Gu Yue Bo asked.
"I've found my answer." Fang Zheng's tone was filled with indescribable determination as he continued, "I want strength! To protect my family, and protect them from any harm. I want to protect the clan, and strengthen the clan! I want the wolf tide to no longer be able to torture us, I want to see the happiness of joy of my companions! This pain, I do not want it to repeat.
I want to use my pair of hands, my body, my soul, to protect those around me!"
Gu Yue Bo showed an expression of surprise, and at this moment, he felt that he saw Gu Yue Qing Shu.
"Qing Shu, you did not die in vain…" Seeing Fang Zheng's shining eyes, clan leader sighed emotionally in his heart.
An old tree has fallen, and just as it gradually decays away in the soil, a new sprout is already starting to grow rapidly.
…
Ren Zu was unable to endure the heart of loneliness, thus he dug out both eyes, turning them into a son and daughter. This alleviated his sense of loneliness.
But good things do not last, for his children started to crave the scenery of the outside world, forgetting all about their father Ren Zu and always going out to play until they forgot the time, and even forgot to take care of Ren Zu.
Ren Zu could not see anything, it was total darkness.
But at time, he could see a little bit of light.
To this, he felt perturbed, and asked the Attitude Gu.
Attitude Gu told this to him, "Oh, this is the eternal light given out by the Faith Gu."
"Faith?" Bai Ning Bing seeing this, laughed and threw the book that recorded the ancient legends out.
The door was opened at this moment, and the person entering was almost hit in the face by the book.
"Ning Bing, what are you doing?" The one entering was the Bai clan leader.
He frowned, consoling, "I know your mood is bad, but losing your right arm is nothing. In this world, there are many Gu worms that can heal such an injury."
"In the past, I got the clan elders to stay by your side and protect you, but you always rejected it, and even attacked the clan elders. You've finally suffered a loss this time huh?"
"But this is a good thing. Since young you've had too smooth of a path, but as long as it is not death, such a loss is no big deal. Your injuries are already healed, but the wolf tide is getting more ferocious, the clan needs your strength!"
"A bunch of wolf cubs, what can they amount to?" Bai Ning Bing shut his eyes, lying on the bed and answering nonchalantly.
Clan leader's face showed a serious expression, "The situation is not looking good, or rather, it is pessimistic. According to our reconnaissance, there are already three frenzy lightning wolf packs moving near the village. Your failure brought a great influence to our clansmen. I hope that tonight, you can come out and show yourself. As long as you are standing, it can greatly motivate our clansmen.
Do you understand?"
"I get it, I get it. It's a small matter." Bai Ning Bing responded, showing impatience.
If it was any other person acting like this to the clan leader, they would have gotten heavily punished, but Bai Ning Bing was different.
Bai clan leader sighed helplessly, closing the door and leaving.
When the room had only Bai Ning Bing left, he opened his eyes, showing a gaze full of loneliness and perplexity.
He did not tell the others about the problem with his body, and the premonition of death that he was feeling.
From the clan's ancient records, he found out the name of the Northern Dark Ice Soul physique. In that limited information, the ten extreme physiques were also known as the absolute death talents, for when the aperture walls reach their limits, the self-destructive power would be extremely great.
It is true that the Bai clan leader had raised Bai Ning Bing for many years, being so lenient to him. However, if the matter of the Northern Dark Ice Soul physique was exposed, Bai Ning Bing had no doubt that the first person to kill him would be this Bai clan leader.
"What's the point of a person being alive?"
In the past, when he considered this question, Bai Ning Bing would feel lost, feeling emotions like boredom, frustration and anger… all these negative emotions.
But now, his heart felt a sense of peacefulness.
People would grow up, not to mention a genius like him.
In the past, he knew that he was going to die, thus in his despair he longed to live, and he felt a sense of fear towards death deep in his heart.
But now, after he had almost died, he had gotten over it.
Allowing the Rank three white silver primeval essence to nurture his aperture, he was no longer worried.
After all, he was no longer afraid of death.
Even though he was still lost about the meaning of living, he knew where the answer was.
This answer, was already in Fang Yuan's heart.
This feeling was indescribable; it was like an instinct, but he was clear of it.
Moreover, the Stone Aperture Gu was in Fang Yuan's hands.
"Fang Yuan… we will meet again," he lightly muttered, his eyes shining with a brilliant light, like the glimmer of a diamond.
"Stone Aperture Gu…" In the rented house, Fang Yuan held the Gu worm in his hands, falling into deep thought.
Stone Aperture Gu was like a dice, cubic and had a grey white body, extremely sturdy.
This Gu was an expenditure type Gu, gone after one use. Its use was to turn a Gu Master's aperture wall into a sturdy rock wall.
This act completely squeezes the aperture's potential and growth dry, allowing the Gu Master to reach peak stage cultivation.
For example, Fang Yuan was now a Rank two middle stage, so after using the Gu, he can instantly become Rank two peak stage.
But the price is, Fang Yuan would no longer have the possibility to advance to Rank three. At the same time, he would lose the ability to regenerate primeval essence, thus he would only be able to use primeval stones to replenish them.
The Stone Aperture Gu was for some Gu Masters who were at their wits end. For some Gu Master's aperture that suffered an unrecoverable injury, developing cracks and can't be healed, they would have to use this Gu.
Or in special situations, the Gu Master has no hopes of advancing and need to raise their cultivation quickly to live. Thus they will use this Gu.
"The cost of refining this Stone Aperture Gu is very high. Seeing that Bai Ning Bing refined this Gu worm, he probably wants to convert his aperture into a stone aperture to prevent the imminent death. Unfortunately this method can only delay his death, but cannot stop his destruction. If the Northern Dark Ice Soul physique is so easily broken, how can it be called a ten extreme physique?"
This Stone Aperture Gu was useless to Fang Yuan, but the red steel Relic Gu he got from Bai Ning Bing's body as well as the Water Shield Gu were very useful.
As for the Gu worms Fang Yuan extracted from Gu Yue Man Shi and the other's bodies, they were not outstanding, and once he returned to the clan he had them exchanged for large amounts of merit points.
Because of the wolf tide, the issue of Qing Shu and Bai Ning Bing's battle was suppressed by all three clans, controlling their urges. The three clans needed each other's power to survive this ordeal first.
Xiong Lin's report, exposed the fact that Fang Yuan possessed the White Jade Gu. But he used the reason of buying it from the caravan to get through for the time being.