Chapter 5: The Binding of Gu Worms

Shen Li flipped through the pages of the Anchelopedia for Gu Worms, his fingers tracing over the eerie illustrations of bizarre creatures. The book detailed a vast array of Gu worms—living parasites that, once embedded in a cultivator's body, could grant supernatural abilities. Some enhanced physical attributes, strengthening skin, muscles, or bones, while others refined internal functions, bolstering Qi circulation, perception, or even healing.

But alongside their benefits came the grim reality—once a Gu worm was placed inside the body, it could never be removed. The host and the Gu were bound for life. And like all living beings, these creatures needed sustenance. If their nutritional needs weren't met, they wouldn't hesitate to devour their own host from the inside out. Their diets varied wildly—from consuming Qi-rich herbs and minerals to feeding on raw flesh, insects, or even the host's own blood.

Shen Li's eyes lingered on a particular entry—White Tiger Gu.

"This Gu bestows the divine strength and speed of a tiger upon its host. Upon binding, the host's muscular structure will shift, mimicking the elasticity and density of a great beast. However, the host's food intake will triple, and a strict protein-based diet must be maintained. Should the host fail to consume sufficient protein, the Gu will turn inward—devouring its own master's flesh, leading to an agonizing death."

Shen Li's expression darkened. So that's how it is… even the strongest Gu comes with a fatal price. He flipped through the pages, finding more terrifying entries—Iron Beetle Gu, which hardened the skin into an unbreakable carapace at the cost of bodily flexibility, and Serpent Bone Gu, which made bones flexible yet dense, enhancing agility but increasing the risk of internal ruptures if overexerted.

After skimming through the encyclopedia, Shen Li turned his attention to the Gu Worm Cultivation Manual—the book that held the true secrets he was looking for. His eyes gleamed as he found the passage describing how to bind a Gu worm.

"To claim dominion over a Gu, the cultivator must first offer their blood to the Cauldron of Refinement. The victorious Gu that emerges from the cauldron will develop an innate attachment to the cultivator, recognizing them as its master. However, this bond is not absolute. A Gu worm's instincts may still override its loyalty, requiring careful observation for several months before true stability is ensured. Additionally, even a stable Gu may enter a berserk state under certain conditions—hence, it is inadvisable to bind more than three Gu worms to one's body. Once a Gu is implanted, it cannot be removed except through death. Many Gu take root in the heart, making extraction impossible."

Shen Li's brows furrowed. Forty-nine days? His gaze drifted to his own massive cauldron, which had been refining Gu worms within minutes rather than weeks.

"Either this cauldron is a supreme treasure… or something unnatural is happening here."

The book further elaborated on extreme cases—instances where Gu worms didn't just accumulate poisons but instead awakened their ancestral bloodline, evolving into something beyond their original species.

Shen Li's gaze instinctively flickered toward the large frog sitting in the corner of his room. Its black and green skin, its massive bulging form, and its highly enhanced slime secretion—this wasn't normal. The Anchelopedia clearly stated that such mutations were "virtually nonexistent."

"Then why is it happening to everything I refine?"

His grip on the book tightened. He turned his attention back to his cauldron. The engraved battle scene of endless devouring still churned across its metallic surface, a testament to its unnatural origins. It was far too large, capable of accommodating thousands of Gu at once. More importantly, it didn't follow the rules of ordinary Gu refinement.

Shen Li took a deep breath. He needed to confirm something.

Shen Li grabbed two bugs from his previous experiments—ones he had already refined through his cauldron. He tossed them inside and watched as the lid clamped shut like the mouth of a great worm.

This time, he cut his palm, allowing his own blood to drip onto the cauldron lid. He observed how the red liquid seeped into the engraved channels, following intricate paths like veins pulsing with life.

For a moment, nothing happened.

Then—

The engravings glowed faintly, the battle on the cauldron's surface intensifying as if responding to his blood. Within seconds, the lid creaked open, and one victorious bug crawled out—but something was different.

Shen Li's eyes widened.

He felt it.

A connection.

Not the instinctive recognition of a parent-child relationship, as described in the manual. No—this was absolute control.

"Move right," Shen Li thought.

The bug crawled to the right.

"Move left."

It obeyed without hesitation.

A shiver ran down Shen Li's spine. This wasn't a Gu recognizing its master—this was something far deeper, far more unnatural.

"What… is this cauldron?"

Shen Li sat cross-legged, the dim glow of candlelight flickering against the ink-stained pages of the final book. His fingers traced the aged parchment as he read through Gu-infused body refinement methods. Unlike ordinary cultivation techniques, which focused on internal circulation of Qi, this method required implanting a single Gu worm into the body and allowing it to develop alongside one's flesh.

Unlike traditional martial artists who slowly refined their skin, muscles, bones, organs, and blood through rigorous training, Gu refinement relied on the symbiosis of man and parasite.

"The first refinement is the hardest. The Gu must fully integrate with the skin, consuming old impurities and reshaping the body's foundation."

A cold sweat ran down Shen Li's back as he read further.

"Once a Gu is placed within the host's body, it cannot be removed. The worm feeds off the host, requiring strict dietary conditions. If neglected, it will turn on its master and consume them from the inside out."

His fingers paused on the page.

"A technique where failure results in death… No wonder the Shen family has no Gu cultivators."

Shen Li's eyes flickered toward the frogs he had refined earlier. The mutated Gu, their unnerving growth, and the sheer power they gained from his cauldron—if he implanted a Gu refined within this cauldron into his body, what would happen?

Would it be a blessing or a curse?

Shen Li took a deep breath and kept reading.

his gaze locked on a single entry—Hellseed Gu.

The description alone sent a chill down his spine.

A small, ember-cracked parasite, capable of burrowing deep into a cultivator's skin, muscles, bones, and organs, fusing them with hellish flames that hardened flesh, tempered muscles, and calcified bones.

"A living forge," Shen Li muttered, his voice tinged with fascination.

Unlike traditional Gu, which merely enhanced a user's physique, Hellseed Gu took over the entire body refinement process, scorching away weakness and reforging strength.

Theoretically, this Gu accelerated the journey through Skin, Muscle, Bone, Organ, and even Blood Refinement—but the risk was devastating.

If it wasn't fed properly, it would consume the host from the inside out.If it wasn't controlled, it would turn the cultivator into a walking inferno, unable to regulate their own power.If it had to be removed, the cultivator would be crippled for life.

He turned to the power tiers described in the book.

"Low-Grade Hellseed Gu cultivators experience mild acceleration, strong but manageable heat, and minor reinforcement."

"Mid-Grade cultivators develop a 'Fiery Surge'—a sudden burst of raw strength that can temporarily elevate them beyond their natural limit."

"High-Grade cultivators walk the line between power and destruction. Their bones glow with suppressed heat, their blood boils with infernal vigor, and their mere presence radiates a killing aura."

Shen Li licked his lips.

"No wonder the great sects controlled this so tightly."

The book even mentioned how sects used it as a tool for absolute loyalty—because once you bonded with the Hellseed Gu, removal was impossible without crippling yourself.

"It's a golden leash," Shen Li realized. "Power at the cost of total dependence."

But… what if he had a method to refine it beyond its limits?

His gaze flickered toward his mysterious Gu Cauldron.

That thing…It ignored normal Gu refinement limitations.It mutated every Gu that passed through it.It created monstrous evolutions.

"If I refine a Hellseed Gu inside my cauldron… what will it become?"

For the first time, a truly insane idea took root in Shen Li's mind.

A Dangerous Experiment

Shen Li snapped the book shut and immediately began preparations.

Step one: Find the Gu.

Hellseed Gu didn't exist naturally—it had to be cultivated.The process was long and arduous, requiring a unique combination of fire-attributed insects, beast essence, and tempering materials.

Luckily, he already had his cauldron—and from his earlier experiments, he knew that it could accelerate Gu evolution unnaturally.

"If the normal process takes 49 days… mine might take mere hours."

A shiver ran down his spine.

"Am I making a mistake?"

Shen Li leaned back against the wooden wall of his room, his fingers tracing the old, worn cover of the Gu refinement book. His mind swirled with conflicting thoughts.

Gu cultivation was insane.

Unlike body refinement techniques, which required pain, training, and patience, Gu cultivation was disturbingly simple.

If you obtained a high-quality Gu Worm, all you needed to do was feed it properly.If you maintained it well, it would refine your body automatically—without needing to cultivate yourself.

With the right Gu, a man with no talent, no work ethic, and no drive could reach the peak of Blood Refinement in a few decades—a feat that even the most talented martial artists would struggle to match.

At first glance, it seemed perfect.

But Shen Li wasn't stupid.

"You wouldn't be cultivating anymore. Your Gu would be cultivating for you.""You wouldn't be building strength. You'd be feeding something else's strength.""You wouldn't be a warrior. You'd be a living tree… nurturing the thing inside you."

His fingers clenched the book tighter.

"A living tree."

The idea disgusted him.

Unlike martial artists, who could recover from injuries or retrain after setbacks, Gu cultivators lived in constant fear of their own power.

If something disturbed their Gu Worm, it could enter a frenzy, tearing their body apart from the inside.If they couldn't meet the Gu's needs, it would devour them for sustenance.If their Gu was destroyed or removed, they would instantly lose all cultivation.

For a man who had once dreamed of forging his own power, this path felt like a prison disguised as strength.

Shen Li liked the supernatural aspects of Gu worms, but he hated the thought of giving up his own ability to cultivate.

"I refuse to be shackled."

He wanted the power—but he would not become its slave.

Sitting cross-legged on the wooden floor, Shen Li slowly flipped open the 13 Blood Vein Technique, the foundational body refinement manual practiced by most patrol members of the Shen family.

Unlike other martial arts, which focused on qi circulation or external exercises, this technique was brutal—designed to refine the body through blood itself.

The pages detailed the first stage of cultivation: Skin Refinement.

"The skin is the first barrier—the shell that protects the flesh and bones beneath it.""Weak skin is like rotten bark; it cannot withstand wind, rain, or fire.""To forge a strong body, one must first forge the outer layer—through the baptism of blood."

Unlike ordinary martial artists who used herbs, ointments, or qi circulation to temper their skin, the Shen Family's method was both primitive and violent.

The cultivator must soak their skin in blood—both their own and that of another living being.The "clash" between the internal and external blood creates a forging effect, strengthening the outer flesh.Over time, the skin becomes denser, tougher, and more resistant to both blades and impact.

The key principle behind this technique was friction.

The body's own blood, infused with one's will, would push outward—rejecting the foreign blood introduced from an external source.

This constant conflict forced the skin to adapt, making it as resilient as tempered iron.

"The stronger the opposition, the greater the refinement."

Inside his dimly lit room, Shen Li dragged a large wooden tub into the center, its aged surface creaking under his grip.

He had spent the morning collecting several buckets of fresh beast blood—a mixture of frogs, fish, and a few unlucky birds he had managed to catch near the shore.

This was the first step in Skin Refinement.

Shen Li placed a hand on the largest wooden bucket, inhaling deeply before tipping it over.

A dark crimson tide splashed into the tub, mixing with the lukewarm water inside. The entire surface rippled with sickly red hues, a grotesque yet oddly mesmerizing sight.

The scent of raw iron filled the room.

He could feel the warmth of fresh blood wrapping around his skin even before he stepped in.

Shen Li removed his clothes without hesitation, stepping into the tub completely bare.

The moment his feet sank into the mixture, a sharp tingling sensation spread up his legs.

As he slowly lowered himself into the murky, crimson pool, his skin began to itch, burn, and tighten all at once.

The foreign blood seeped into his pores, creating an intense opposition with his own internal circulation.

Inside, his own blood pushed outward—rejecting the foreign invader.Outside, the beast blood tried to invade—forcing its way in.

This was the core principle of the technique: friction.

His own life essence and the essence of beasts clashed violently, stimulating the outer layers of his flesh.

Shen Li exhaled, sinking deeper into the thick liquid until only his head remained above the surface.

Closing his eyes, he began circulating his blood, forcing it to move just beneath his skin.

Immediately, the burning intensified.

His body fought against the intruding force, rejecting it, breaking it down, and forcibly absorbing the nutrients hidden within.

Pain spread across his body.Goosebumps covered his arms.His heartbeat pounded violently—like a drum echoing inside his ribs.

"This is… insane."

His entire nervous system screamed as the friction between his inner and outer blood reached a breaking point.

Minutes passed.

Sweat mixed with red streaks ran down his forehead.

The technique demanded he endure this feeling—this war between his own body and the foreign blood.

Each second stretched endlessly, but Shen Li refused to move.

He had already committed to this path.

The blood bath wouldn't last forever.After an hour, his body would either adapt… or break.

His muscles twitched involuntarily.

His breath grew ragged.

An hour later, Shen Li finally stood up, his entire body steaming with residual heat.

The water had darkened—turning a murky black, filled with impurities that had been drawn out during the refinement.

His skin felt different.

Not dramatically stronger—not yet.

But there was a slight tightness, a subtle firmness beneath his flesh.

He exhaled, gripping the edge of the tub as he muttered to himself:

"This is just the beginning."