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Fang Yuan turned a deaf ear, multitasking.

While absorbing the natural true essence from the primeval stone, he kept a close watch on his aperture.

The true essence sea in his aperture, which had previously receded, began to slowly rise again with the continuous infusion of natural true essence.

This recovery was slow, but Fang Yuan was in no hurry.

Cultivation is about accumulation and cannot be rushed.

The one truly anxious was the middle-aged servant outside the house.

After about half an hour, Fang Yuan's bronze true essence sea once again reached the limit of forty-four percent.

But this was not the end.

At this moment, the true essence sea presented a greenish color, which was only the bronze true essence of a Rank One initial stage.

The true essence Fang Yuan used to nurture the aperture wall earlier was not the initial stage true essence but the mid-stage true essence refined by the Wine Insect.

"Wine Insect." With a thought, the Wine Insect in the yuan sea immediately flew up and hovered in mid-air, curling into a white dumpling shape.

Swoosh.

He mobilized ten percent of the initial stage true essence and poured it into the Wine Insect, which quickly absorbed it completely.

Then, a rich, fragrant mist emanated from the surface of the Wine Insect, condensing into a cloud.

Fang Yuan mobilized another ten percent of the true essence and poured it into this wine mist.

After the wine mist was completely consumed, the original ten percent of the initial stage true essence shrank by half and changed from green to dark green.

This was mid-stage true essence.

"Ordinary students use Rank One initial stage true essence to advance their cultivation, but I use mid-stage true essence, which is at least twice as efficient. Moreover, using mid-stage true essence to activate the Moonlight Gu results in stronger moonblades than those activated by initial stage true essence."

Only when all the true essence in the yuan sea was refined into Rank One mid-stage true essence did Fang Yuan open his eyes.

Time flies during cultivation, and it was already the early morning hours.

The sky was no longer purely black but a deep dark blue.

The moon had already disappeared, leaving only a few remaining stars.

The door had been open almost all night, and the bottom edges of the wooden door were damp, showing black stains from water damage.

The school dormitories had this drawback—they were not as comfortable as ordinary stilted bamboo houses, being directly on the ground, making them more susceptible to dampness.

Coming back to his senses, Fang Yuan felt a chill enveloping his body. After sitting cross-legged for so long, his legs felt numb.

He opened his right hand, releasing a handful of gray-white stone powder.

This was the residue left after the natural true essence in the primeval stone was completely absorbed.

"After a night's cultivation, I used up three primeval stones," Fang Yuan calculated silently.

With only C-grade aptitude, he had been using primeval stones to replenish his true essence to speed up his cultivation. More importantly, he refined mid-stage true essence using the Wine Insect.

This greatly increased the consumption of primeval stones.

"Although I acquired another batch yesterday, consuming three stones in one night means that no matter how many stones I have, they won't last long at this rate of cultivation... But pursuing speed and efficiency in cultivation naturally comes with a price."

Fang Yuan looked outside.

He saw that the strong servant named Gao Wan was squatting in a corner, curled up as if he had fallen asleep.

"It seems that Rank Two female Gu Master left long ago and left Gao Wan here to guard me. Heh." A cold smile appeared on Fang Yuan's face. He got out of bed and began to quietly stretch his limbs.

As his body warmed up, he stepped out of the dormitory.

"Brat, you finally decided to come out. How about you surrender and come with me to apologize to my lady?" Gao Wan's ears twitched as he caught Fang Yuan's footsteps and stood up abruptly.

He was almost twice Fang Yuan's size, with bulging muscles. His slender eyes, under his upward-slanting eyebrows, gleamed with a cruel and vicious light, like a hungry hyena.

Fang Yuan's face remained expressionless as he continued walking towards him.

"Brat, you should have come out earlier. Do you know how much I've suffered standing guard here for you?" Gao Wan sneered as he approached Fang Yuan, his expression malicious.

At this moment, Fang Yuan suddenly let out a sharp cry, leaping forward with raised fists to attack Gao Wan.

"Brat, you're courting death!" Gao Wan's face twisted in anger. He was already fuming, and now he swung his massive fist, as large as a sand pot, towards Fang Yuan.

The punch was powerful, breaking through the air and even producing a whistling sound.

Fang Yuan's eyes were clear as water. Watching the punch come at him, he shifted his feet and dodged to Gao Wan's side.

He extended his fingers and jabbed at Gao Wan's waist.

Gao Wan swung his arm to block, and Fang Yuan's jab hit Gao Wan's left forearm instead.

Fang Yuan felt as though his fingers had struck an iron plate, causing pain and numbness.

"This Gao Wan is at the peak of mortal martial arts. I only have the Moonlight Gu to fight with, and without other Gu worms to assist, I can't match him in hand-to-hand combat!" Fang Yuan's eyes flashed with realization. He wisely abandoned the attack, retreated several steps, and widened the distance between them.

In Gu Yue Village, only members of the Gu Yue clan had the right to cultivate as Gu Masters.

Other non-clan members, regardless of their aptitude, were not allowed to participate in the opening ceremony.

However, these mortals could practice martial arts.

Just like Gao Wan in front of him, although he wasn't a Gu Master, he must have rigorously trained in martial arts. His fundamental skills were solid, and as a middle-aged man, he was in his physical prime.

Aside from the Moonlight Gu for combat, Fang Yuan was merely a fifteen-year-old boy. In terms of strength, agility, and endurance, he was no match for Gao Wan.

A martial artist like Gao Wan was capable of killing a Rank One initial stage Gu Master. Even a mid-stage Gu Master would find him a threat.

"This brat is too ruthless!" Seeing Fang Yuan pull back to create distance, Gao Wan still felt a lingering fear.

The waist is a vital part of the body. A forceful jab there can cause severe injury, and if too powerful, even fatal harm.

Gao Wan had spent most of the night outside in the cold and damp, slowing his reactions. He had narrowly avoided Fang Yuan's strike thanks to his habitual training, where his body's instincts had overridden his mind's reactions, just in time to block Fang Yuan's attack.

"I can't be careless anymore. This brat is a wolf cub, striking with vicious and ruthless moves. One slip and I'd be in big trouble. No wonder the young master was knocked out by him twice." Gao Wan wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, discarding his previous contempt and taking Fang Yuan seriously.

"Catching this brat would earn me great merit. The young lady will surely reward me! A Rank One initial stage Moonblade is just a small knife. As long as it doesn't hit a vital spot, it's only a superficial wound."

With this thought, Gao Wan's heart burned with anticipation. He extended his iron-clamp-like hands and grabbed towards Fang Yuan.

Bang, bang, bang.

Fang Yuan was unafraid, meeting Gao Wan head-on in close combat. In an instant, fists and feet clashed, offensive and defensive moves switched, and the dull thuds echoed continuously.

When robbing students, he only used his palms, focusing on controlling the situation. But now, fighting Gao Wan, he held nothing back.

He alternated between gouging at eyes, jabbing at throats, striking chins with the base of his palm, chopping the back of his head, kneeing his groin, and elbowing his waist.

Gao Wan was sweating profusely.

Fang Yuan's moves aimed directly at Gao Wan's vital spots, each strike ruthless and deadly, seemingly intent on killing Gao Wan.

Gao Wan, being a mortal, couldn't endure such attacks. Even though he had trained in martial arts, his vital spots remained vulnerable. A mortal couldn't make their eyelids as tough as steel, revealing the limitations of mortal martial arts.

In contrast, Gao Wan didn't dare to kill Fang Yuan.

Fang Yuan was a member of the Gu Yue clan. Killing him would incite public outrage, and Gao Wan would be executed, with the Mo family being the first to purge him.

Thus, his plan was to capture Fang Yuan alive and make him suffer during the capture.

One side was constrained, while the other harbored killing intent. Remarkably, Fang Yuan was overwhelming Gao Wan in the fight!