Chapter 24 - Heading to the Imperial Capital, Re-entering the Wild Forest

“Brother Gu, we’ve finally caught up with you!”

“That’s right! We wanted to visit you earlier, but we were swamped with tasks and couldn’t break free. We hope you won’t hold it against us.”

The family heads of Tianwu City clamored, anxiously avoiding displeasing Gu Han.

Gu Han immediately put up his guard. “What are you trying to do?”

The Zhang family head quickly clasped his hands and smiled. “Brother Gu, we come with no ill intentions!”

“Indeed, Brother Gu! We heard you’re leaving for the Martial Academy, so we came to see you off.”

Beside him, the Wang family head promptly produced a storage bag. “This is a small token of our esteem. It’s not much, but we hope you accept it.”

Gu Han took the bag. Scanning its contents suspiciously, his eyes widened. Inside were over ten thousand neatly stacked essence crystals, which were part of the assets that they had plundered from the Gu family.

Had Liu Yan captured Gu Han earlier, they would’ve kept everything for themselves. However, not only had Gu Han retained his Martial Academy qualification, he’d also forged a connection with the Seventh Prince.

They couldn’t ignore this, especially since Gu Tian and Gu Han had accumulated most of the Gu family’s wealth. Offering the essence crystals was partly to curry favor and ease their consciences.

“How thoughtful of you. I’ll accept this gift.”

Feeling no sympathy for the Gu family, Gu Han stashed the storage bag away without hesitation.

As he was currently in dire need of cultivation resources, he wouldn’t refuse such a windfall.

“

Hahaha!

You are a straightforward man!”

“We wish you a bright future and fame in the imperial capital!”

Amid the flattery, Gu Han resumed his journey. After watching him leave, the group finally relaxed and immediately hurried back.

The big Gu family estate held far more than just these meager gains. This time, every family would profit handsomely.

***

Soon, night fell. Despite spending nearly a day traveling, Gu Han wasn’t exhausted. Nevertheless, he still sought out a secluded spot to rest and go through his resources. Including the resources he’d seized after killing Gu Chang, he currently had over 140 Tier 1 beast cores, more than 50 Tier 2 beast cores, a dozen or so Tier 3 beast cores, a high-grade spirit item, and over 17,000 essence crystals.

Gu Han couldn’t help but sigh.

Ah Sha set down the fragrant roasted beast meat. “Young Master, what’s wrong?”

“Ah Sha, we’re so poor!”

Had outsiders heard this, they would’ve cursed him for his ingratitude. With enough resources to rival the entire wealth of a small family in Tianwu City, how could he still complain about poverty?

However, Gu Han knew better. Given his monstrous consumption rate during cultivation, these resources wouldn’t last long, and he’d be broke in no time. Although the Martial Academy would provide regular resources, it’d be a drop in the bucket for him.

Gu Han smiled bitterly. “If only I had known, I wouldn’t have been so generous.”

Remembering how casually he’d given away a Heaven-tier technique to the Seventh Prince, his heart ached.

Ah Sha suddenly found the beast meat in her hands unappetizing. In a serious tone, she said, “Young Master, I’ll help you earn money!”

Gu Han patted her head. “Good. I believe in you!”

Shaking his head, he temporarily set aside his worries and pulled out a map. With its borders adjacent to the Wild Forest, the Great Qi’s terrain resembled a crescent moon. Tianwu City and the imperial capital sat at the two tips of the crescent.

Taking the direct route meant traversing the Wild Forest, which added unnecessary variables and dangers. Although taking the detour would be safer, it would triple the distance and require passing through numerous checkpoints and cities, consuming significant time.

For a moment, he fell deep in thought.

After finishing her meat, Ah Sha scooted closer. “Young Master, what are you looking at?”

Gu Han explained the situation, then asked, “Ah Sha, if it were you, which path would you choose?”

Without hesitation, Ah Sha pointed to the route through the Wild Forest. “This one!”

“Why?”

“I can help you find spirit herbs. Didn’t you say we’re poor? Those herbs can sell for a lot, right?”

Gu Han laughed. “Clever! Alright, we’ll take this path.”

Ah Sha’s idea aligned perfectly with his own. Having made a decision, he stored the map. Then, he used his cultivation to help Ah Sha unblock some of her meridians, guiding her to sense qi in preparation for future cultivation. Afterward, he began his own training.

***

Early the next morning, Gu Han slowly opened his eyes. He had used a thousand essence crystals to cultivate all night, yet the eighth stage of Meridian Opening remained out of his reach.

His desire to earn essence crystals grew even stronger. Carrying Ah Sha, he reached the fork in the road in half a day and plunged into the Wild Forest.

***

A few days passed in the blink of an eye.

“This is it!”

Harvesting spirit herbs lifted Gu Han’s spirits. Ah Sha watched Gu Han pocket a fist-sized green fruit with a wide grin. In her heart, nothing brought her more joy than being useful to Gu Han. Yes, not even chicken legs!

This area was far from major cities and checkpoints, and Tier 3 demonic beasts roamed freely, leaving it sparsely populated. Over the past few days, he’d only caught a glimpse of two groups of people from afar.

Conversely, spirit herbs were far more abundant here. With Ah Sha’s help, he’d already gathered five spirit herbs, including the green fruit. Judging by their appearance, two of them were even more valuable than the Black Ginseng. Combined with the beast cores from slain demonic beasts, his gains over these few days rivaled half a year’s toil for an ordinary person.

While searching for spirit herbs, he made sure not to neglect his cultivation. He’d now smoothly advanced to the eighth stage of Meridian Opening, consuming over 4,000 essence crystals in the process.

Smiling wryly, he shook his head. “We’re still so poor.”

Ah Sha perked up. She scanned the surroundings tirelessly, determined not to miss a single spirit herb.

Half a day later, Ah Sha, who was weary from prolonged concentration, suddenly lit up.

“

Huh?

Young Master, there's a huge ball of light up ahead! It must be worth a fortune!”

“Where?”

Gu Han’s spirits soared as he sprinted in the direction she pointed. Now, he trusted Ah Sha implicitly. If she said it was valuable, it had to be an extraordinary treasure.

“Here, here!”

Moments later, they found a vine as thick as an arm. It was covered in sharp thorns that were half a cun long.

Ah Sha pointed to a purple flower bud the size of a human head on the vine. “Young Master, it’s inside!”

Gu Han exhaled softly, finally understanding why such a precious spirit herb had gone unnoticed. The Wild Forest teemed with bizarre-looking but worthless plants that were often ignored. Even the vine before them appeared completely ordinary. Without the keen eye of someone like Divine Physician Xue, ordinary rogue cultivators would never spot its uniqueness.

Without hesitation, he gently set Ah Sha down and reached for the flower bud. However, sensing danger, the thick vine shockingly came alive and coiled toward Gu Han like a serpent.

“Young Master, be careful!” Ah Sha cried out in alarm.

Gu Han’s heart leaped with excitement. “It’s sentient?”

This was the first time he’d seen a spirit herb react this way. This proved that the treasure inside the bud was even more valuable than he’d imagined.

A flash of sword light split the vine into several segments, which then writhed on the ground. Deep purple liquid oozed from the cuts, evaporating into wisps of purple mist.

Just a whiff was enough to make Gu Han dizzy and his spiritual power sluggish. Abandoning the herb, he scooped Ah Sha up and dashed far away.

“

Whew...

”

Once safe from the mist, he broke into a cold sweat. Who would’ve guessed that the vine’s thorns were just a mere distraction? The real threat lay in the deadly purple liquid. Considering even he struggled to resist it, a single whiff would’ve been catastrophic for Ah Sha.

A wave of icy clarity washed over him. He’d been careless. The Wild Forest’s dangers were no joke. If a mere ordinary-looking vine was already that lethal, what greater perils lay ahead?

The thought dampened his excitement.

“Ah Sha, wait here.”

Without waiting for her reply, he leaped back into the spreading purple mist that now spanned several

zhang

.

Ah Sha’s heart clenched. “Young Master...”

The moment he entered the mist, dizziness took over him again. Holding his breath, Gu Han swung his sword and severed the flower bud.

Along with a faint, shrill screech, the mist thickened several times over. He made sure not to breathe, but the mist seeped into his pores instead, infiltrating his flesh, organs, and meridians.

As he slowed down and almost collapsed, the silver vortices in his meridians stirred. They drew in the mist, neutralizing its toxins and refining it into pure spirit qi that merged with his power.

What an opportunity!

His mind cleared, and he stepped forward, breaking free of the mist.

Ah Sha finally sighed in relief. “Young Master, a-are you okay?”

“I’m fine.”

Now, Gu Han was certain that his reborn meridians were extraordinary. It granted him a physique immune to most poisons—a gift that inspired envy in everyone.

After calming himself, he finally examined the unremarkable flower bud in his hand. “This thing...”

Just then, someone flashed past him faster than he could react. His sharp spirit senses didn't even have time to tingle with warning. There was only one explanation: this person’s cultivation far surpassed his.

Gu Han broke into another cold sweat. Thankfully, they were just passing by. Otherwise...

Before he could relax, the figure returned and materialized before him. Gu Han could finally see him clearly. The man seemed to be in his twenties, dressed in white, with a longsword on his back. He moved and spoke with polished grace.

Shit!

Gu Han’s heart dropped as he pulled Ah Sha behind him. He guessed this man had returned for the spirit herb. Given the potency of the purple mist, its value likely rivaled the Scorching Sun Fruit.

Should I refuse... or hand it over...

As Gu Han agonized, the young man clasped his fists with a mix of shame and fury. Surprisingly, he didn’t even glance at the herb.

Instead, he said, “Little Brother, help me!”