Xie Ziyin immediately grasped her meaning: "So you're talking about a love gu?"
Wen Shuangbai nodded eagerly like a chick pecking at rice: "Yes, yes! Do you have any? Lend me a few."
Before Xie Ziyin could respond, Shen Hefeng clicked his tongue mockingly: "Lend? Wen Erbai, would you really return them?"
Wen Shuangbai shot Shen Hefeng an annoyed glance: "None of your business. I’m not borrowing from you."
Xie Ziyin secretly relished the moment but kept a straight face, waiting for her to finish scolding "Shen the Second" before replying, "I don’t have any. I don’t play with bugs."
Good gu larvae were expensive, and raising them required a fortune. Lately, Xie Ziyin had been experimenting with free-range carnivorous plants instead.
Besides, Wen Feng and Lu Ying weren’t ordinary cultivators. The kind of love gu that could affect them wasn’t something you could just buy off the market—most were privately cultivated by seasoned medical cultivators.
Coincidentally, the Qingling Mountain sect’s Medical Pavilion Grand Elder, Old Medical Cultivator Ye, was obsessed with bugs.
Xie Ziyin added, "But Old Ye has some."
Right, right! Wen Shuangbai remembered now.
The last time they’d borrowed tracking butterflies from Old Ye, she’d seen his collection of spiders and gu insects. Xie Ziyin had warned them not to touch them carelessly.
A few bites wouldn’t be a big deal, but if they accidentally killed one of his precious bugs, they’d be paying through the nose.
"Let’s go, let’s go!" Wen Shuangbai beamed, expertly turning toward the courtyard where the old medical cultivator lived. "We’ll borrow some bugs from Old Ye."
"But ever since we borrowed his tracking butterflies last time, he’s been giving us the cold shoulder," Lu Jiayao said with a shudder. "Every time I greet him on the road, he glares at me like I owe him money."
Wen Shuangbai nodded sympathetically. "Yeah, maybe our borrowing method was off last time. Let’s try a different approach."
Last time, they’d taken the butterflies without asking, sending the old man into a rage. He’d scolded her every time he saw her since.
Xie Ziyin and Li Zhuohua weren’t the type to greet people proactively, so they hadn’t experienced the same treatment.
But Shen Hefeng exploded: "That old geezer plays favorites?! Why does he sic spiders on me every time we meet?"
Since Xie Ziyin had warned him how expensive those spiders were, he hadn’t dared fight back—only run.
Lu Jiayao brightened at this. So Old Ye did like him after all! "Probably because I’ve always been popular with elders. The old folks in my village adored me."
Amid the bickering, the five of them soon arrived at Elder Ye’s courtyard gate.
Wen Shuangbai knocked politely, but no one answered after a while.
Li Zhuohua stepped forward. "Let me try!"
The next moment, a relentless barrage of pounding erupted, shattering the night’s tranquility.
Soon, the gate creaked open a sliver, and a white-haired old man poked his head out, bellowing, "What kind of lunatics knock on doors in the middle of the night?!"
Li Zhuohua frowned. "Old Ye, last time you got mad because we didn’t knock, and we got punished by Elder Cao—ten copies of the sect rules and no food for a day. Now we’re knocking, and you’re still mad?"
"You little brat! Just because your surname is Li, you think you’re entitled?" Old Ye’s beard quivered with fury as he tried to slam the door shut. The group immediately threw their weight against it, preventing him.
"Good evening, Elder Ye!" Wen Shuangbai said sweetly, bowing respectfully. "Please don’t close the door—we really have urgent business this time..."
"Scram! No borrowing!!!" After dealing with these troublemakers for so long, Old Ye knew better. They only showed up when they wanted something.
"Elder Ye, it’s truly urgent." Wen Shuangbai quickly explained her gu plan. Given how much the old man despised Wen Feng, she figured he’d sympathize. "So, I’d like to borrow a few love gu from you. I swear I’ll return them. Look, we brought back your butterflies safely last time, didn’t we?"
"Hmph!" The old man stopped cursing but still blocked the doorway. "Using love gu on your own father? What a venomous heart you have. Truly, my spiders have nothing on you lot."
Still, he had to admit—his tastes were peculiar. He liked things with a bit of poison in them. But Wen Feng? That waste of space wasn’t worthy of his precious gu babies.
Old Ye snapped, "Go look somewhere else. I don’t have any!"
Xie Ziyin called his bluff. "That’s not true. You have a pair of century-old mother-child twin gu. I saw them last time."
This gu was a rare breed—incredibly resilient, capable of playing dead, and reusable. They were also the most valuable love gu in Old Ye’s collection.
On the way over, Xie Ziyin had mentally reviewed the old man’s inventory and decided these were the best fit for Wen Shuangbai’s needs.
"......" The reminder only made Old Ye angrier. The audacity! Asking for his most prized possessions right off the bat! "No, no, all my bugs are dead! Get lost before I call Elder Cao to deal with you!"
Wen Shuangbai softened her voice. "Come on, Elder Ye. For Qingling Mountain’s sake, make an exception?"
The old man was stubborn. He’d sooner die than hand over his darlings. Not even the heavens could make him!
"Over my dead—"
Mid-rant, Old Ye’s eyes suddenly darted sideways, his words halting.
Wen Shuangbai seized the moment to slide a flask of Drunken Immortal wine through the gap. "How about for this, then? Just a small exception?"
Old Ye scoffed. "You think my mother-child twin gu are worth a single flask of wine?!"
Wen Shuangbai had originally brought nine flasks—one for each of the six of them, one for her junior sister, leaving two extras.
Gritting her teeth, she added another. "Two flasks, then?"
"Mm..." Old Ye dragged out the sound, watching as Wen Shuangbai pretended to retract the offer. In a flash, he snatched both flasks and stepped aside. "...Fine. For Qingling Mountain’s sake, I’ll make an exception."
The group: "......"
Wen Shuangbai shook her head in amusement.
Drunken Immortal wine truly was the Xuantian Continent’s universal currency—nothing worked better as a bribe.
It was expensive, and there were purchase restrictions: you had to spend at least 30,000 spirit stones in a single visit to the Drunken Immortal Pavilion to qualify.
A shame she’d given both extras to Old Ye. But then again, she hadn’t paid for the wine herself.
And once her plan succeeded, she could always coax her father into more Drunken Immortal Pavilion trips—with Lu Ying footing the bill!
---
Before long, Wen Shuangbai had the century-old mother-child twin gu in hand.
Aside from Xie Ziyin, who remained unfazed, the others curiously gathered around to examine the legendary gu worms under the lamplight.
To their surprise, the supposedly invaluable gu worms weren’t plump and white, nor were they gleaming gold—instead, they were tiny, pitch-black creatures.
Li Zhuohua remarked, "So small! I could crush them with a single finger!"
"Too ugly," Shen Hefeng said with disdain, turning to Old Medical Cultivator Ye. "Old man, are you sure you didn’t mix them up in your senility?"
Furious, Old Ye flung a few spiders at Shen Hefeng. "I should’ve let you die back then instead of wasting my skills on you!"
"I don’t know, I think they’re kind of cute," Lu Jiayao cooed, cradling her face as she gazed at the worms, utterly smitten. "They remind me of silkworms when I was little."
Wen Shuangbai didn’t care whether the worms were ugly or adorable—she only wanted to know if they were genuine.
She glanced at Xie Ziyin, who met her gaze and gave a slight nod, confirming their authenticity.
"Bunch of ignorant brats," Old Ye grumbled, shoving Shen Hefeng aside before settling at the table. His expression softened into something almost paternal as he looked at the worms. "This is what the Twin-Life Gu looks like. Don’t judge them by their appearance—their plainness is exactly what makes them so easy to plant."
He tossed Wen Shuangbai a vial of pills. "These contain Twin-Life Flower essence. Just one tiny pellet dissolves in water—colorless, odorless. Feed it to your ‘dear father,’ then release the mother gu. It’ll find its way into him on its own, undetectable even by the heavens."
"One more thing," Old Ye added. "With the Twin-Life Gu, not only will the host of the child gu develop deep affection for the mother gu’s host, but their lives will also be bound together."
Wen Shuangbai’s eyes lit up.
Perfect.
After memorizing the instructions, she eagerly took the gu and left with her companions.
The five of them spent the night strategizing. By dawn, they split into two groups to execute their plan.
Xie Ziyin, carrying the child gu, teamed up with their contact Lu Jiayao to seek out Bai Lijue.
Soon, the three set off for Wuzhou to plant the gu in Lu Ying.
Bai Lijue insisted he could handle administering the drug alone, but Wen Shuangbai didn’t trust him enough. She sent Xie Ziyin along to supervise and safeguard the child gu.
Meanwhile, Wen Shuangbai played her part when Wen Feng came knocking. Just like before, she warmly invited her scumbag father to a meal.
Wen Feng sneered inwardly.
Here we go again. His daughter was truly dense, just like her dead mother.
Did she really think he’d fall for the same trick twice?
This time, he wouldn’t let the little brat slip away without paying.
To his surprise, Wen Shuangbai didn’t take him to the lavish Drunken Immortal Pavilion. Instead, they ended up at a cheap street stall, where she ordered the cheapest wine.
Wen Feng frowned. "You feast on delicacies at Qingling Mountain, yet this is what you offer your father?"
You’re lucky I’m not feeding you garbage, Wen Shuangbai thought venomously. Outwardly, she smiled sweetly, pouring wine for him. Her green sleeve fluttered in the breeze, momentarily obscuring the cup. "I’m broke, remember? I still owe a mountain of debt. Bear with it for now—once I’m flush, I’ll treat you to the finest!"
"Liar," Wen Feng scoffed, downing the wine. "Has your senior brother finished his seclusion?"
"Not yet," she answered innocently.
"And your junior sister?"
"Training at the sect." Wen Shuangbai lied effortlessly. "Want to visit her?"
"Why would I?" Wen Feng snapped. Qingzhou was crawling with his creditors, and Qingling Mountain no longer shielded him. Returning would be suicide.
The meal was meager—one dish, a jug of wine, two bowls of rice.
Before Wen Feng could demand more, Wen Shuangbai rushed to pay the bill—a mere thirty spirit stones—then turned to leave.
"Wait!" Wen Feng called after his unfilial daughter. "I’m not done."
"Go ahead," she said, eyes half-lidded as if listening intently while secretly tracking the tiny gu worm. It darted across the ground, scaled Wen Feng’s shoe, and vanished into his ankle in a blink.
"Well?" he pressed.
"Hmm…" Wen Shuangbai smiled apologetically. "The Rainbow Fate Pavilion isn’t mine alone—Senior Sister Zhuohua owns a share too. I can’t just withdraw funds; we’re waiting for returns before she distributes profits. As the sect leader’s daughter, she doesn’t take orders from me. But if you need 100,000 spirit stones, I’ll borrow it! Give me three days—I’ll deliver it personally!"
After a few more empty promises, she seized an excuse and bolted.
She still had to spread the word across the Xuantian Continent—Wen Feng’s creditors needed to know he was in Dizhou, ripe for the taking.
