Back on Blue Star, at the Haotai Hotel, Chu Xuan found himself once again in this familiar place. He appeared on the rooftop, preferring the open view here to the confines of a hotel room.
No sooner had he materialized than he heard Hu's joyous roars. A robust figure charged towards him like a tank, reaching him in the blink of an eye. The large head affectionately rubbed against Chu Xuan, a peculiar sight to the uninitiated but sincere gesture of affection from a corpse puppet.
Chu Xuan nodded with a smile, "How have you been while I was away?"
Hu's response was an animated mix of roars and gestures. He pointed east, then west, hopped around, and ran about, a picture of expressive enthusiasm.
Of course, Chu Xuan couldn't understand any of it just by looking. It was through their spiritual connection that he grasped Hu's conveyed thoughts.
"As I thought, everything is mostly normal, though there was a minor incident," Chu Xuan murmured with a nod.
Through Hu's thoughts, Chu Xuan learned about a dual-headed python that had appeared in East Lake City. The creature, over twenty meters long, had dominated the area, killing many supernatural beings around it.
A couple of months ago, it had wreaked havoc in East Lake City itself, causing heavy losses to the Black Blade Security Company, which had to call for military assistance from the neighboring Linjiang forces.
The python had also foolishly attempted to enter Chu Xuan's Yin Evil Soul Snatching Array. It had fled shortly after entering, seemingly affected slightly by the array.
Hu had clashed with the python, beating it severely until it fled with a severed tail. Whether it had escaped into the Dragon River or was hiding somewhere deep in East Lake City to recover was unknown.
Now, hundreds of Linjiang soldiers were scouring the waters of East Lake City for any sign of the python. Hu and Bao had encountered them but always swiftly disappeared into the shadows. The soldiers had not even detected their presence.
Chu Xuan found the dual-headed python intriguing. The supernatural creatures of Blue Star seemed quite different from the demonic beasts of Mystic Azure Realm.
A typical demonic beast entering his Yin Evil Soul Snatching Array would have been absorbed as nourishment by the array. Yet, this python had managed to survive, albeit briefly, which was surprising.
Its soul might possess unique properties. If extracted, it could potentially serve as the main soul for his array. However, there was no rush. Since the Linjiang army squad had not yet left East Lake City, it indicated that the python was likely still somewhere nearby. A mere dual-headed python, no matter how strong, could not surpass a Foundation Establishment stage cultivator. When he had time, he would simply capture it, no need to prioritize it as an urgent matter.
"Where is Bao?" Chu Xuan casually inquired.
"Roar, roar, roar!" Hu pointed north.
Chu Xuan nodded, understanding that Bao had gone out to forage. The zombies of East Lake City had been wiped out during the last zombie tide. Over the past year, although other zombies had wandered in from nearby cities, their numbers were relatively sparse. Consequently, Hu and Bao had ventured to neighboring cities like Two Dragons City to feed.
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Chu Xuan was confident in their strength. The real concern was for the zombies in those other cities.
"Stay here and guard," Chu Xuan instructed casually.
"Roar!" Hu thumped his chest solemnly.
Settling down, Chu Xuan began the process of cultivating his lifebound Gu. According to the "Blood Worms Tome," two conditions were necessary for nurturing a lifebound Gu: first, forming a blood worm pouch; second, nourishing the lifebound Gu with blood essence.
Now that the blood worm pouch had formed, Chu Xuan needed to feed the Blood Steel Wire with his blood essence.
"Gangsi, come forth," he called softly.
A slit opened in his palm, and Gangsi wriggled out, affectionately brushing against his arm. Chu Xuan forced out three drops of blood essence, his complexion turning immediately pale.
The Blood Steel Wire, as if sensing a feast, quickly approached and swiftly consumed the blood drops.
"Sigh... The production rate of blood essence is really slow," Chu Xuan lamented. "On average, it seems I can only produce one drop every three days."
He shook his head, resigned. He couldn't afford to give too much blood at once, as it might overfeed the Blood Steel Wire.
A month passed in the blink of an eye. With one drop of blood every three days, plus the initial three drops, Chu Xuan had fed the Blood Steel Wire a total of thirteen drops of blood. The connection between him and the Blood Steel Wire grew tighter by the day.
On the final day, as he fed it the fourteenth drop of blood, Chu Xuan suddenly felt a clarity of spirit. The Blood Steel Wire felt like an extension of his own limbs. With just a thought from him, it knew exactly what to do. It was like directing his own arm!
The lifebound Gu was established. With this, the Blood Steel Wire's combat capabilities were greatly enhanced, and the likelihood of backlash was significantly reduced.
However, should the Blood Steel Wire suffer injury, Chu Xuan would feel it as if it were his own, experiencing significant trauma. This was a similar experience to what Wu Teng endured when his brain-eating mother worm was killed by Huikong, which caused him nearly to faint from the backlash of his lifebound Gu being destroyed.
Chu Xuan gently caressed the Steel Wire, his face breaking into a satisfied smile. "My decision was indeed correct. Cultivating a lifebound Gu takes too much time; it cannot be done in Mystic Azure Realm."
"Regrettably, the Blood Steel Wire egg I previously planted not only failed to hatch but also perished." Chu Xuan recalled the incident with a hint of regret. It seemed there was an inherent defect in the Blood Steel Wire egg. Despite absorbing his blood, it had silently dissolved after a month or two.
"My next Gu could totally be of a different type. Perhaps I could allow Gangsi to mate with a more powerful Gu to produce a new variety of eggs. That's another option."
Having spent time studying the Blood Worms Tome, Chu Xuan was now thoroughly familiar with it. He knew exactly how to cultivate better Gu. His current lifebound Gu's lineage had already far surpassed that of ordinary Blood Steel Wire. If one had to categorize it, it could be considered a mutated Blood Steel Wire.
He could certainly find an opportunity for it to mate with a stronger Gu to produce eggs. Of course, such eggs are not stable—it's essentially like opening a mystery box. A wrong choice could waste much effort and time.
"It's about time to go out and see where that dual-headed python is now."
Chu Xuan stirred his Spiritual Qi, shaking off the dust that had accumulated on his body.
"Roar, roar!" Hu joyously cried out. Over the past month, aside from foraging, he had stayed close to Chu Xuan, pleased that his master needed him. He noticed Bao's roars were not as vigorous, so he hustled over and gave him a forceful nudge, roaring as if to say: "The master is here, and what are you doing?!"
Bao whimpered, seeming to admit his fault.
Chu Xuan chuckled and patted their heads. He had seen Hu's loyalty.
"Come on, let's go for a walk."
"Roar, roar!" Hu and Bao roared excitedly.
Chu Xuan stored them in the Corpse Nurturing Tower, took out his flying sword, and immediately soared into the sky.