Time passed without slowing for anyone. By the time Fang Yuan paid attention to it, June had already reached its middle.
The summer night pressed down on the green mountain lands.
The moon hung high above, its light spilling across the forest and hills in a dull silver wash.
Wind moved steadily through the trees, leaves brushing against one another with a dry, restless sound.
Cicadas screamed without pause, bullfrogs answered from the lower ground, and from far away came the occasional howl of a wolf, long and thin, quickly swallowed by the distance.
Fang Yuan stood quietly, letting the noise wash over him.
'One month,' he thought.
'Long enough for consequences to surface.'
A month had passed since Wang Da died in the forest.
And the forest itself... showed no trace of that night.
Corpse had burnt in the fire, blood sunk into the soil, footsteps had vanished, and the trees were charred.
Only a few crickets remembered, and even that would not last.
The wine tavern was the first thing he discarded.
Business had already collapsed, and Fang Yuan had no interest in wasting effort on a dead venture.
When Dong Tu approached him, the man's intention was obvious.
"You're really selling everything?" Dong Tu asked, his tone cautious but his eyes betraying anticipation.
"Yes," Fang Yuan replied flatly. "At market price."
Dong Tu did not bargain. He agreed immediately, afraid the offer would be withdrawn.
The transaction was completed cleanly.
Fang Yuan handed over the tavern, the land, and the responsibilities attached to them without hesitation.
After all, a resource that no longer produces value is no different from a liability and keeping it would only slow one's progress.
Meanwhile, inside the house, another problem arose.
His mother had lost the ability to walk and spent her days confined to the bed.
Her body weakened steadily, breath growing shallow, voice fading.
Each day stripped something further away from her, leaving behind only a shell sustained by habit and care.
"Yuan'er…" she called faintly at times.
Fang Yuan stood beside the bed and looked down at her.
"Rest," he said, his tone even.
He understood the situation clearly.
'Her body has reached its limit.'
Whether it is today or next month made no difference to him.
There was no warmth in his tone, no sorrow in his gaze.
Afterall, Death would eventually arrive for everyone... at a measurable pace.
Shen Cui's marriage arrived soon after.
The celebration was loud and crowded, full of forced smiles and hollow congratulations.
Fang Yuan did not stay long.
The ceremony itself held no value.
What followed was more predictable.
After the wedding, Fang Zheng changed.
The forced cheer disappeared. His posture slackened, his eyes lost focus, and his movements became slow and mechanical.
He continued living, but only because life continued pushing him forward.
Fang Yuan observed him from a distance.
"As expected," he thought.
He had seen this pattern countless times.
When desire became the foundation of someone's will, its removal left nothing behind.
Fang Zheng had never developed resilience. He had relied on anticipation rather than strength.
"I merely took him out of the illusion," Fang Yuan concluded.
"There was never anything to lose."
But for Fang Zheng... he lost everything.
Also, the Wild Boar Gu had reached its limit and could no longer provide further improvement.
So, Fang Yuan without hesitation, fused it with the Jade Skin Gu.
The refinement process was steady and controlled, and when it ended, the White Jade Gu took form.
And the final change stemmed directly from Wang Da's death.
Over the course of the month, Fang Yuan refined one of the Gu worms obtained that night, Shadow Follower Gu and fused it with another Gu he already possessed, Black Cow Longhorn Beetle Gu.
The process was dangerous, unstable, and demanded constant focus.
Failure was a possibility.
So was backlash.
But in the end, the refinement succeeded.
A completely new Gu worm emerged, shaped in a form of a black beetle.
Under the moonlight, Fang Yuan reviewed what he now possessed.
Within his aperture rested the Four Flavours Liquor Worm, Liquor Worm, Moonglow Gu, Shadow Beetle Gu, Mudskin Toad, White Jade Gu, Plunder Gu, Love Life Separation Gu, Rank 2 Bear Enslavement Gu, Rank 1 Wolf Enslavement Gu, two Cleansing Water Gu, two White Silver Relic Gu, and two Little Light Gu.