The time it took for Bai Bing Yi's corpse to fall to the ground… felt unnaturally long.
As if the moment itself had stretched.
Everything slowed down.
The blood scattering through the air, the staggering body, the dull sound of impact as it hit the ground…
All of it passed before Jian Long's eyes like a brief eternity.
As for him—
he stood frozen in place.
Just one second…
Yet within that second, he fully grasped what had happened.
He had… killed him.
In a single strike.
Without resistance.
Without any chance of survival.
But that moment did not last long.
His senses quickly returned, as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over his head.
His pupils contracted.
His body moved abruptly.
He was about to rush straight toward the rock, push it aside, and enter the passage without hesitation.
Escape—
was the safest option.
The most rational one.
But—
before he could take his first step…
he stopped.
A fleeting thought crossed his mind.
When a Gu Master dies…
the Gu worms he possesses do not disappear.
Unless he destroys them himself before death, they remain.
And they may fall into the hands of whoever killed him.
Jian Long looked at the corpse lying on the ground.
His eyes narrowed slightly.
"He died instantly…"
he thought calmly.
"He didn't have time to destroy his Gu."
At that moment—
desire ignited within him.
A reward.
An opportunity.
A new Gu worm…
It might be exactly what he lacked, and it could very well be the difference between life and death in this harsh wilderness.
But—
on the other side, another thought rose.
"I need to leave… now."
"The other man could return at any moment."
"Any delay here… could mean death."
His jaw tightened slightly.
His gaze shifted between the corpse… and the rock.
Between opportunity… and danger.
The struggle did not last long—
but it was sharp and swift.
Like two blades clashing inside his mind.
"The Gu… is more important than primeval stones."
"But… none of it matters if I die."
He fell silent.
For a fraction of a second.
Then—
the decision was made.
"Fine…"
he muttered under his breath.
"It'll only take a few seconds."
اJian Long quickly bent down and reached toward Bai Bing Yi's corpse lying on the ground.
He placed his palm on his abdomen.
In the next moment, he sent his consciousness inward.
The Aperture…
was in a state of collapse.
Its walls had begun to crack slowly, like fragile glass fracturing under invisible pressure. The waves of primeval essence within were unstable, gradually losing cohesion with each passing moment.
But—
it was not too late yet.
Under normal circumstances, the complete collapse of an Aperture would take anywhere from half an hour to an hour.
Which meant—
what lay inside was still retrievable.
"I still have time…" Jian Long thought.
Without wasting a moment, his consciousness plunged deeper.
Inside Bai Bing Yi's primeval sea—
he saw them.
Three Gu worms.
They floated above the surface, still alive, not yet extinguished with their master's death.
At that moment—
Jian Long's eyes lit up.
A faint joy passed through him.
"Three…"
He did not hesitate.
Extending his will, he wrapped it around the Gu worms one by one, then forcefully pulled them out of the collapsing Aperture.
In an instant—
they were in his possession.
He quickly examined them.
Although his knowledge of cultivation was limited…
he was not completely ignorant.
He had once lived as a mortal affiliated with the Bai clan, and was already familiar with some of their Gu worms.
And indeed—
he recognized one of them immediately.
"Lightning Moon Gu…"
he muttered inwardly.
It resembled a silverfish, but its back was metallic and solid, with sharp protrusions jutting out like spikes.
This Gu…
was a symbol of the Bai clan.
As for the second worm—
it was strange.
Its body resembled a small porcelain jar, smooth and white, with a face on its surface…
a twisted, sinister smile.
Jian Long observed it briefly…
but could not identify it.
As for the third—
it was even more peculiar.
It looked like a crystalline gem,
transparent and sky-blue in color.
It remained completely still…
yet within it, there was a faint glimmer, as if a living light pulsed deep inside.
"…."
Jian Long's eyes narrowed slightly.
He did not recognize this one either.
But—
this was not the time to think.
Jian Long rose to his feet instantly there was no time.
All he had to do now… was escape.
The pit… the tunnel… then the inner cavern.
A clear and simple plan.
Only a single step separated him from carrying it out—
But…
Before he could move—
His eyes drifted, unintentionally, toward the cave entrance.
And in that instant—
His pupils shrank to their limit.
He froze.
As if time itself had come to a halt once more…
In fact, he could almost swear—
that his heart had stopped beating.
There—
stood Bai Xiang.
Blocking the entrance with his very body.
Like an unscalable mountain.
Lightning coiled around him, writhing like savage serpents, flashing in sharp bursts that illuminated the cave with a cold, merciless glow.
At that moment…
He no longer looked human.
But like a god of lightning descended from the heavens.
His aura was heavy… suffocating.
As if even the air itself had solidified.
A single glance from his eyes—
was enough to crush an ordinary man's soul a hundred times over.
A deadly chill seeped into Jian Long's body.
He felt as though the blood in his veins had evaporated.
As though his heart…
had forgotten how to beat.
There was no time to think.
No time to fear.
Faced with such danger—
only one thing remained.
Instinct.
Jian Long's body moved on its own.
Without hesitation.
Without thought.
He raised his hand—
and pushed his primeval essence to its limit.
In an instant—
three metal spears shot forth.
They tore through the air with a sharp whistle, heading straight toward Bai Xiang with lethal speed.
But—
before they could reach him—
a barrier of lightning appeared.
A single flash.
A dull explosion.
The three spears halted… then shattered.
As if they had struck an impenetrable wall.
And in the next moment—
Bai Xiang vanished.
Not gradually…
but as if he had been erased from existence.
Then—
he appeared.
Right in front of Jian Long.
The distance between them—
gone.
Before Jian Long could even process what had happened—
Bai Xiang's hand shot out.
Grabbing his right wrist.
Just one grip—
yet it crushed all resistance.
Then—
with a simple motion—
crack.
The sound of bone breaking echoed through the cave.
Bone pierced through flesh.
His hand twisted into a grotesque shape.
But it didn't end there—
Bai Xiang pressed harder.
Crushed.
The bones turned into paste within the flesh.
And in the next moment—
he tore it off.
Jian Long's hand separated from his body.
Falling to the ground…
with a heavy thud.
The pain…
was so intense that it surpassed all limits of endurance.
The kind of pain that would make any normal person scream in madness.
But—
Jian Long…
did not scream.
His expression did not change.
He did not tremble.
In fact—
he wasn't even aware of his right hand that had just been torn off.
As if it no longer belonged to him.
Because in that moment—
everything else disappeared.
The pain… his body… the world…
all of it faded away.
And only one thing remained in his awareness.
A fist.
Bai Xiang's fist.
It was heading straight toward his head.
Slow—
yet terrifying.
But in his eyes—
it was faster than lightning.
Every instinct within him screamed.
Warned him.
Told him one undeniable truth—
If that fist struck his head…
everything would end.
His skull would shatter in an instant.
Death.
Immediate.
Absolute.
And in that tiny fraction of a second—
that separated life from death—
Jian Long's mind worked…
like never before.
Thoughts surged forward.
One after another.
Escape? Impossible.
Defense? Useless.
Attack? Suicide.
Every possibility appeared…
then collapsed.
There was no path.
No escape.
No survival.
But—
in that deadly void—
something strange happened.
Something beyond calculation.
Even Jian Long himself—
was caught off guard.
His mouth opened.
Instinctively.
Without thought—
he spoke.
A single word.
A word…
that held no meaning in this moment.
"Spirit Spring…"
A brief pause.
Then—
he continued, his voice low, yet clear:
"I… know where the Spirit Spring is."