Legends say that in this world, there exists a River of Time that supports the flow of this world. And by utilizing the power of the Spring Autumn Cicada, one can travel upstream and return to the past.
Regarding this rumor, the people of the world hold diverse opinions. Many do not believe it, while some remain half-believing and half-doubting.
Almost no one is truly certain.
Because every time the Spring Autumn Cicada is used, one must pay with their life, sacrificing their entire body and all their cultivation as the driving force.
This price is truly too costly, and what makes it even more unacceptable is—often after paying with one's life, the outcome remains unknown.
Even if someone obtained the Spring Autumn Cicada, they would not dare to casually use it out of boredom.
What if the rumor is false and it is just a scam?
If Fang Yuan had not been backed into a corner, he would not have used it so quickly either.
But now, Fang Yuan completely and utterly believes it.
Because the ironclad truth is set before his eyes, allowing no refutation. He has indeed been reborn!
"It is just a pity about that good Gu. Back then, it took the effort of nine bulls and two tigers, slaughtering hundreds of thousands of people, incurring the wrath of heaven and the resentment of men, going through untold hardships before it was refined…" Fang Yuan sighed inwardly. Although he was reborn, the Spring Autumn Cicada had not been brought along.
Humans are the spirit of all living beings; Gu are the essence of heaven and earth.
Gu come in all strange shapes and sizes, too numerous to count. Some Gu completely dissipate after being used once or two to three times. And some Gu, as long as they are not overused, can be reused repeatedly.
Perhaps the Spring Autumn Cicada is that kind of consumable Gu worm that can only be used once.
"But even if it is gone, I can just refine another one. If I could refine it in my past life, how could I not do it in this life?" After the pity passed, a wave of lofty ambition could not help but surge up in Fang Yuan's heart.
Being able to be reborn himself, the loss of the Spring Autumn Cicada is completely acceptable.
Moreover, he still possessed a treasure; he was not left with nothing.
This treasure was his five hundred years of memories and experiences.
Within his memories existed numerous treasures that had yet to be opened by anyone today. There existed major events, allowing him to easily grasp the pulse of history. There existed countless figures; some were secluded seniors, some were heaven-defying geniuses, and some were not even born yet. There also existed the heavy experiences of bitter cultivation and rich battle experiences from these five hundred years.
With these, he undoubtedly grasped the overall situation and the initiative. As long as he operated well, roaming the human world and recreating the demeanor of a demonic overlord would absolutely be no problem. He could even go a step further and charge toward a higher realm!
"Then how should I operate this…" Fang Yuan was very rational. He quickly gathered his emotions and began pondering deeply while facing the night rain outside the window.
Thinking about it like this, he felt overwhelmed by the multitude of clues.
After pondering for a moment, his brows furrowed deeper and deeper.
A span of five hundred years is indeed somewhat long. Let alone those memories that had already blurred and could not be recalled, even those remembered secret troves, immortal master opportunities, although numerous, were mostly either tens of thousands of miles away or required opening at specific times.
"The most crucial thing is still cultivation. Right now, my primeval sea has not opened; I have not stepped onto the cultivation path of a Gu Master yet. I am fundamentally a mortal! I must begin cultivating as soon as possible, increase my cultivation, and race ahead of history to seize as much initiative and reap as many benefits as possible."
Furthermore, for many secret troves, if one's cultivation is insufficient, they would not be able to digest them even if they obtained them. Instead, they would become hot potatoes, bringing about the crime of harboring treasure.
The first difficult problem placed in front of Fang Yuan was cultivation.
He had to raise his cultivation as fast as possible. If he acted sluggishly like in his previous life, the day lily would be cold.
"To raise my cultivation as quickly as possible, I must borrow the clan's resources. With my current situation, I fundamentally do not have the ability to traverse the perilous mountain ranges; an ordinary mountain boar could claim my life. If I can reach the cultivation of a Rank 3 Gu Master, I will have the basic ability to protect myself and trek across the mountains and rivers in this world."
Viewing it through the eyes of a demonic path giant tempered by five hundred years, this Qingmao Mountain was truly too small, and Gu Yue Village was more like a cage.
However, while a cage imprisons freedom, a sturdy cell often represents a certain kind of safety.
"Hmph, for the short term, I will just flex my fists within this cage. As soon as I advance to a Rank 3 Gu Master, I will leave this remote wasteland. Fortunately, tomorrow is the Awakening Ceremony, and shortly after that, I can officially start my cultivation as a Gu Master."
At the thought of the Awakening Ceremony, the dust-covered memories buried deep in Fang Yuan's heart floated up.
"Aptitude, huh…" Looking out the window, he could not help but sneer three times.
Right at this moment, the room's door was gently pushed open, and a youth walked in.
"Brother, why are you standing by the window out in the rain?"
This youth had a skinny build, slightly shorter than Fang Yuan, and facial features that heavily resembled his.
Fang Yuan turned his head to look at this youth, a trace of complex emotion flashing across his face.
"It is you, my twin brother." He raised his eyebrows slightly, his expression returning to its usual coldness.
Fang Zheng lowered his head, looking at the tips of his toes; this was his signature move: "I saw that brother's window was not closed, so I wanted to quietly come in and close it. Tomorrow is the Awakening Ceremony. If brother still is not resting this late, uncle and aunt might be worried if they find out."
He was not surprised by Fang Yuan's coldness, because growing up, his older brother had always been like this.
Sometimes he would think that perhaps geniuses were just different from ordinary people like this. Even though he possessed a highly similar appearance to his brother, he felt as ordinary as an ant.
Born from the exact same womb, why was heaven so unfair? It endowed his brother with diamond-like talent, while he was as common as a pebble.
Everyone around him, when mentioning him, would say, "This is Fang Yuan's younger brother."
His uncle and aunt also often educated him, telling him to learn from his older brother.
There were even times when he looked in the mirror, watching this face of his, and felt a hint of disgust!
These thoughts had existed for many years, accumulating deep within his heart day by day. Like a giant boulder pressing on his chest, Fang Zheng's head dropped lower and lower over the years, and he became increasingly taciturn.
"Worried…" Thinking of his uncle and aunt, Fang Yuan let out a silent sneer in his heart.
He remembered very clearly that the parents of this body both perished due to a clan mission. At the age of three, he and his younger brother became orphans.
Under the name of raising them, the uncle and aunt brazenly usurped the inheritance left by their parents and treated him and his brother harshly.
Originally, as a transmigrator, he had planned to hide his capabilities and bide his time. But the hardships of life forced Fang Yuan to choose to display "talents" different from ordinary people.
The so-called genius was actually just the rationality of a mature soul, along with a few timeless Tang and Song poems from Earth.
Just by showing his skills slightly like this, he was regarded as a heavenly being and received widespread attention. Under external pressure, the young Fang Yuan was forced to choose a cold expression to disguise and protect himself, reducing the chances of exposing his secrets.
As time passed, coldness actually became his habitual expression.
Thus, the uncle and aunt could no longer treat him and his brother harshly. As he grew older and his future prospects looked better, their treatment also increased accordingly.
However, this was not love, but an investment.
It was ridiculous that this younger brother had not seen through this truth; not only was he deceived by the uncle and aunt, he also harbored resentment toward him. Do not look at how obedient and honest he is now. In his memory, after being tested with A-grade aptitude and heavily nurtured by the clan, the hidden hatred and jealousy were released, and he targeted, made things difficult for, and suppressed this biological older brother of his quite a bit.
As for his own aptitude…
Hehe, the highest is just a C-grade.
Fate always loves to play jokes.
Twins from the same womb: the older brother's aptitude was only C-grade, yet he exclusively enjoyed the title of genius for over a decade. The younger brother remained unknown, but actually possessed A-grade talent.
The results of the Awakening Ceremony would cause the clan members' jaws to drop. It would also completely invert the brothers' situations and treatments.
The younger brother would be like a sleeping dragon ascending to heaven, while the older brother would be like a young phoenix falling to the ground.
Following that would be multiple instances of difficulties from his younger brother, cold stares from his uncle and aunt, and disdain from the clan members.
Hate?
In his previous life, Fang Yuan hated. He hated his inadequate aptitude, hated the clan's heartlessness, hated fate's unfairness.
But now, using five hundred years of life experience to review this journey, his heart was unruffled, containing not a single shred of hatred.
What was there to resent?
Putting himself in their shoes, he could understand his brother, his uncle and aunt, and those powerful orthodox enemies who besieged him five hundred years later.
The weak are prey to the strong, survival of the fittest; this has always been the fundamental nature of this world.
Moreover, everyone has their own ambitions, all striving for that sliver of heavenly opportunity. What is there to not understand about suppressing and killing each other?
Five hundred years of experience had long allowed him to see through all of this; only the Great Dao of Eternal Life remained in his heart.
If someone obstructed this pursuit of his, no matter who it was, it would simply be a fight to the death.
The wild ambition in his heart was too immense. Stepping onto this path meant being destined to be enemies with the whole world, destined to wander alone, and destined to face heavy tribulations of slaughter.
This was the realization condensed from five hundred years of life.
"Revenge is not my plan, and the demonic path has never contained the word compromise." Thinking up to here, Fang Yuan could not help but laugh involuntarily. He turned his head and gave this younger brother a faint glance, saying, "You may leave."
Fang Zheng felt his heart palpitate involuntarily. He felt his brother's gaze was as sharp as an ice blade, as if it pierced through to the deepest part of his inner heart.
Under such a gaze, he felt as if standing naked in the snow; there were no secrets to speak of.
"Then see you tomorrow, Brother." Not daring to speak further right now, Fang Zheng slowly closed the room door and retreated with compliant obedience.