Translator: CinderTL

"With Miss Yue’s endorsement, how could this old man possibly refuse?" Feng Mu replied.

"Then this junior thanks you, Senior," Mi Man said, producing a storage pouch and handing it to Feng Mu. "Here are sixty high-grade spirit stones, the participation fees for Senior Brother Feng and myself. Please accept them."

"How could this old man possibly accept Miss Yue’s spirit stones!" Feng Mu protested, but his hand reached out to take the pouch, casually brushing against the delicate back of Mi Man’s hand.

Mi Man showed no sign of displeasure at Feng Mu’s presumptuous gesture.

Song Wen, standing nearby, finally realized that attending this so-called exchange conference required a substantial fee—thirty high-grade spirit stones per person. With dozens of participants, Feng Mu would collect two to three thousand high-grade spirit stones, a remarkably profitable venture with no investment.

However, the exchange conference must possess some unique value; otherwise, attendees wouldn’t willingly pay such exorbitant fees.

After exchanging a few more pleasantries with Feng Mu, Mi Man excused herself and led Song Wen into the plaza, where they found two adjacent empty tables and sat down.

Mi Man then produced a gu cauldron, from which a palm-sized butterfly emerged.

The butterfly glowed with an ethereal blue light, its body radiating an eerie phosphorescence. Its wings, as thin as cicada’s wings, seemed to ripple with a hazy mist as they opened and closed.

A single glance at the butterfly was enough for Song Wen to recognize it as a mind-altering gu insect.

However, this gu insect was only at the third-tier, making it seem like a useless trinket for Mi Man, who was at the Divine Transformation Stage.

"Senior Brother Feng, what do you think of my Thousand Illusion Butterfly?" Mi Man asked softly, tilting her head.

"Junior Sister Yue’s gu insect is undoubtedly a rare spiritual object in this world," Song Wen replied.

A flicker of mockery flashed in Mi Man’s eyes, as if scoffing at Song Wen’s blatant lie.

"Senior Brother Feng, what about your gu insect? Show it to me too, please?"

Suddenly, a jade bottle appeared in Song Wen’s hand.

He tilted the bottle, pouring out an insect egg the size of a chicken’s egg.

The translucent egg revealed a centipede-like creature coiled within.

This gu insect egg had been obtained from Xiao Ying, but Song Wen had never hatched it.

"I don’t have any Gu insects, only these newly acquired insect eggs. Since I’ve never practiced Gu rearing before, I wanted to seek guidance from some Gu masters."

Song Wen presented the insect eggs as a pretense, hoping to keep the Shadow King Gu hidden from too many eyes.

Mi Man glanced at the insect eggs without comment, then closed her eyes to meditate, seemingly uninterested in either the people or the Gu insects present.

Time passed slowly. After about half an hour, Feng Mu, who had been guarding the entrance, suddenly produced an array disk and activated a formation.

Instantly, an invisible barrier rose from the depths of the Mist, signaling that no further entry would be permitted.

Feng Mu strode to the center of the plaza, his gaze sweeping over the cultivators seated at the low tables on either side. He announced in a clear voice, "Esteemed Gu masters, I’ve organized this exchange conference to foster communication among fellow practitioners, sharing knowledge of Gu rearing techniques, Gu insects, Pill Formulas, and more. As the host, I recently acquired several rare Gu insect eggs, which I’ll now present for your appraisal. If any fellow daoist is interested, they may inquire about purchasing them."

As he spoke, several insect eggs materialized mid-air before Feng Mu.

He then proceeded to introduce each egg in turn.

The rare items Feng Mu mentioned failed to pique much interest. Only three nascent soul cultivators inquired about details, but none made a purchase.

Feng Mu’s displeasure was evident, his gaze turning noticeably colder.

Yet in an instant, he regained his enthusiastic demeanor, inviting others to step forward and present items for sale or trade.

Over the next hour, Song Wen witnessed a bewildering array of bizarre Gu insects.

There were Spirit-Devouring Gu, capable of shattering mana shields; Stealth Gu, adept at concealment and tracking; Heart-Peering Gu, able to probe others’ memories; Bloodline Gu, parasitic creatures that infested hosts; Bone-Corroding Gu, whose venom could dissolve flesh; and even Spring Returning Gu, which could heal injuries.

Song Wen found these Gu insects uninteresting.

In comparison, he still considered the Shadow King Gu, with its ability to extend divine sense perception and excel at concealment, far more valuable.

Beyond Gu insects, there were also various pill formulas and spirit herbs specifically targeting them.

Song Wen spent a thousand high-grade spirit stones to acquire a pill formula called the Dragon Gu Pill.

According to the seller, this pill could enhance the strength of fifth-rank Gu insects and was effective against the vast majority of Gu species.

The Pill Formula, with its remarkable efficacy, was priced at only one thousand high-grade spirit stones. This was because the seller hadn’t sold it exclusively to Song Wen but to over a dozen others, instantly earning over ten thousand high-grade spirit stones, making Song Wen somewhat envious.

Ever since subduing the shadow void, Song Wen, who had previously never lacked spirit stones, had found himself increasingly strapped for resources.

The shadow void consumed spirit stones at an alarming rate.

After it advanced to the mid-seventh-tier, Song Wen had already invested no less than three hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones into it, yet it still showed no signs of reaching the late-seventh-tier.

Xiao Ying’s Gu Rearing Manual also contained two Pill Formulas capable of enhancing fifth-rank gu insects. Song Wen briefly considered selling them.

After some deliberation, he abandoned the idea.

He didn’t want to attract too much attention. Moreover, he wasn’t certain if the two Pill Formulas he possessed were truly rare. If they were merely common formulas, they likely wouldn’t fetch a good price.

Once the trading session concluded, Feng Mu returned to the center of the plaza.

"Next is the private exchange period. You may freely seek guidance from others, but coercion is strictly prohibited. I implore you all to grant me this small favor and avoid any conflicts."

With these words, Feng Mu sat down at an empty low table nearby.

Immediately, several cultivators stepped forward to seek guidance.

The others gathered in small groups, whispering among themselves.

Seeing this, Song Wen approached a lone figure sitting apart.

This person wore a ghost-faced mask, radiating an icy aura that warned others to keep their distance.

According to Shadow Void’s perception, this individual possessed the highest cultivation level among those present, second only to Song Wen himself—late-stage Void Refinement.

"This humble one is Feng Xin, greetings, fellow daoist. I have a question and would be grateful for your guidance."

Because the other party deliberately concealed their aura and appearance, Song Wen, despite displaying a Divine Transformation Stage cultivation level, could only address them as "fellow daoist" to avoid revealing that he had seen through their true cultivation.

"This venerable one does not rear gu insects. Do not waste your time here," the Ghost-Faced Cultivator replied.

His voice was hoarse and genderless.

Song Wen paused briefly before continuing, "Then I shall not disturb you further, fellow daoist."

With that, Song Wen turned and left. After scanning the plaza, he approached Feng Mu, who stood at the center.

As the event’s organizer, Feng Mu was likely highly skilled in gu rearing.

However, Feng Mu was surrounded by a crowd, forcing Song Wen to wait patiently.

After waiting for the time it takes to brew two cups of tea, the crowd around Feng Mu finally thinned, giving Song Wen an opportunity to speak.

"Senior Feng Mu, this junior humbly seeks your guidance. When a gu insect advances to the fifth-tier, it ceases to obey commands and instead attacks its master. Is there any solution to this?"

(End of the Chapter)

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