The four Rotten Wolves in front lacked intelligence and were still attracted by the fresh blood and flesh before them. Even though Gu Yuan had walked right up to them, this pack of Rotten Wolves showed no reaction.
Gu Yuan didn't hold back. He picked up a sharp stone from the ground and forcefully stabbed it into the abdomen of one of the Rotten Wolves!
If they were ordinary beasts, striking the head to knock them unconscious might be the best solution, but these Rotten Wolves were different.
In his previous life, he and Lin Ao had suffered losses due to misunderstanding the Rotten Wolves; even if their entire head was severed, the Rotten Wolves could still move freely.
This was the unique advantage of the "Evil Demon Creatures," commonly known by the world as Evil Creatures. And like Cultivators, Evil Creatures were also divided into nine ranks.
This Rotten Wolf was a genuine Rank One Evil Creature. For Rotten Wolves, sight was virtually non-existent; they relied entirely on smell and perception to find prey.
And the weakness of the Rotten Wolf was its heart, located in the upper abdomen!
Only by destroying the heart would the Rotten Wolf truly die.
Sure enough, as the sharp stone tip pierced the soft fur of the abdomen, and smelling the putrid stench and feeling the cold liquid leaking from the wound, Gu Yuan applied more force.
Even as it was dying, the Rotten Wolf in front of him continued to gnaw on the meat before it, until it finally collapsed, its wolf mouth still stuffed with chunks of meat it hadn't swallowed... "Ugh..."
Gu Yuan felt a slight retch. The smell was truly unbearable. He recalled how, in his previous life, to curry favor with Lin Ao, he had even personally dug out the Rotten Wolf's heart for him.
That Rotten Wolf heart was indeed a good item. If refined, it could become the material or prototype for a Rank One Poison Dao Magic Treasure.
Its inherent stench and corpse poison were considered superior even among Rank One items.
It was a pity that Gu Yuan was still a Mortal. Even if he had the means of refining the Dao, he had no Spiritual Qi available in his Dantian. Trying to activate a Magic Treasure was like a clever housewife trying to cook without rice.
However, this Rotten Wolf was a treasure trove. Besides the heart, its fangs and hide were much tougher and sturdier than ordinary things.
Using the sharp stone, he cut off a piece of the wolf hide, then pried open the wolf's mouth, holding the hide in his hand, and plucked out a single wolf fang.
The sharp fang was about a finger long. Wrapped in the wolf hide, it made for a decent "dagger."
Relying on this makeshift weapon, Gu Yuan easily dispatched the remaining Rotten Wolves.
Gu Yuan knowing the weakness of the Rotten Wolves was one thing, but without the injured Lin Ao acting as bait, Gu Yuan would not have been able to deal with these few wolves so smoothly.
As for the two far away... he could ignore them for now. Although the Rotten Wolves were stupid, they weren't entirely brainless; they could still distinguish between a tough opponent and easy prey.
In just that short time, the back of Gu Yuan's hand had been corroded by the Rotten Wolf's venom. Large patches of skin peeled off, and faint stings of pain came through, but Gu Yuan remained expressionless.
This minor pain was nothing compared to what he had experienced in his previous life. With the wolf fang, cutting the wolf hide became much easier.
He tucked the completely severed wolf hide between his outer garment and inner lining. Now, ordinary Mortal weapons would have difficulty injuring Gu Yuan's vital areas.
The meat of these Rotten Wolves was highly poisonous and inedible, but it could be made into "Poison Pills" for future defense. Gu Yuan appropriately wrapped some up using the wolf hide.
Gu Yuan checked the time. Shangguan Changqing should be waking up soon... "Cough, cough, cough... Where is this?"
Not long after, Shangguan Changqing slowly woke up, immediately assaulted by a strong smell of blood.
He turned his head and saw a young man about his age hunched over among the wolf corpses, tearing at something... "You..."
"You're awake?"
Seeing Shangguan Changqing wake up, Gu Yuan tidied his clothes. He wanted to wipe the blood from his hands, but realizing he had no cloth, he gave up.
"Where is this place?"
"Senior Shangguan, this place is the Death Prison."
"You call me Senior... Your appearance, wait a moment, it looks quite familiar. Let me think..."
Shangguan Changqing stared at Gu Yuan's blood-stained face. "Are you Gu Yuan, the top scorer on this month's literary ranking list?"
"That's right. I never thought Senior Shangguan would recognize my name."
"Haha, of course. Your talent is excellent, and you left a deep impression on everyone in our cohort."
Shangguan Changqing's father is the current head of the Shangguan Family and the contemporary City Lord of Wuxin City!
The Shangguan Family currently wields immense power and has intricate connections with the Tianyan Martial Sect, one of the Lower Eight Sects. To cultivate talent, they select some Cultivators from outside families every year.
The contemporary Shangguan Family head is also the person in all of Wuxin City most amenable to non-family Cultivators. The fact that commoners can enroll in the academy and become Cultivator Seeds is partly due to the influence of the Shangguan Family.
"I'm truly flattered, but this is not the place for conversation."
"Indeed. Since this place is the Death Prison, it must be fraught with danger... Who is that among the wolves?"
Shangguan Changqing suddenly noticed the unfortunate person among the wolf corpses who had been gnawed beyond recognition. Gu Yuan did not hide the truth.
"That is Senior Lin Ao... Forgive me, Senior Shangguan, but I only woke up a few minutes before you. When I awoke, Senior Lin Ao was already..."
"This..."
Shangguan Changqing sighed deeply, his eyes filled with helplessness and dejection. "Not long ago, I was discussing cultivation insights and sparring with Brother Lin. I never imagined that when we met again, we would be separated by Yin and Yang."
At this, Gu Yuan's eyes reddened.
"Senior Lin Ao and I just met recently, and now this has happened..."
"Alas."
"I... I could only kill these hateful Evil Creatures first to retrieve Senior's remains. But I never expected that this pack of hungry wolves, even in death, would still try to gnaw off a piece of Senior's flesh and skin!"
The more excited Gu Yuan became, the more his bloodshot eyes and hands, corroded by Rotten Wolf blood, attested that Gu Yuan had truly done his best.
Shangguan Changqing did not doubt Gu Yuan.
After all, Gu Yuan had no reason to harm a fellow student, and the matter between Lin Ao and Xiao Mei was unknown to anyone except Lin Ao's closest confidants.
Shangguan Changqing simply assumed that Lin Ao, whose cultivation had advanced, woke up first and tried to leave ahead of time, but was trapped by the pack of wolves and ultimately perished in their jaws.
As for these Rotten Wolves... although the academy did not teach knowledge regarding "Evil Creatures," as the direct descendant of the Shangguan Family, Shangguan Changqing had access to a lot of information concerning the Cultivator level.
The characteristics of the Rotten Wolf were just as Gu Yuan had described; even if its body was mutilated, it could still move... Looking at these incomplete wolf carcasses, Gu Yuan must have exerted a great deal of effort.
This pure heart, wishing to save his Senior, was truly witnessed by Heaven and Earth!
This young man... his sincerity was profound. His father truly hadn't misjudged him.
Shangguan Changqing thought this while examining the wolf carcasses. Then, in front of Gu Yuan, he touched the ring on his hand.
The next moment, a beautifully packaged medicine box flew out of the ring.
"Junior Gu Yuan, this is a Rank One healing medicine. It can alleviate the pain in your hands. Take it and use it first."
"What is that?"
Gu Yuan pretended not to understand, pointing at the ring on Shangguan Changqing's finger. "Could that be a Magic Treasure that only Cultivators can use? Has Senior Shangguan already become a Cultivator!"
"Haha, Junior, stop flattering me. Although this item is a Magic Treasure, it doesn't require Spiritual Qi. Its name is a storage ring."
While speaking, Shangguan Changqing demonstrated again, retrieving two Mortal longswords from it.
"It's a pity that the few Magic Treasures Father gave me haven't been infused with Spiritual Qi yet, otherwise I could use them directly to help us escape."
"Then..."
"We shouldn't delay. Let's first look around to see if there are any others..."
Shangguan Changqing was halfway through his sentence when suddenly, a stone door nearby opened, and a pale golden light emanated from within.
"This is... the exit!"
Gu Yuan shouted, while Shangguan Changqing didn't dwell on Gu Yuan interrupting him, but instead stared intently at the nearby exit.
After a long period of contemplation, Shangguan Changqing finally spoke: "This is... a single-person exit."
As soon as he said this, Gu Yuan fell silent, his face turning pale at times, then twisted and ferocious at others. Shangguan Changqing observed this entire scene.
Before Gu Yuan could speak, Shangguan Changqing said, "You go first."
"How can I do that!"
"You are only the top scorer on the literary ranking list. Don't try to be brave. I am already a half-step Cultivator. You going first is the best option; I have a better chance of surviving than you."
Shangguan Changqing looked as if he had thought things through carefully, revealing a benevolent, elder-like smile. "Although today is the first time we meet, I believe this will not be the last."
There was another moment of silence. Seeing that Gu Yuan didn't move, Shangguan Changqing was about to say more, but he suddenly caught sight of Gu Yuan's eyes, which were as calm as still water.
"No, Senior Shangguan... that is inappropriate."
"What is inappropriate about it?"
"May I ask, Senior, if I go out, what can I do for our fellow students who are trapped in suffering?"
"You can notify Wuxin City to contact..."
"If such a thing needs to be done, wouldn't Senior be much more suitable?"
Shangguan Changqing was stunned, clearly having not thought that far ahead.
Gu Yuan continued, "If Senior leaves first, you will certainly be able to summon more Cultivator Seniors to support this place. In that case, even if I sacrifice myself, it would be a worthy death!"
"Junior... Brother Gu!"
"No need for further words. When I first stepped onto the path of cultivation, I swore that I would never be content to be beneath others, nor would I turn a blind eye to the opportunity to save others, even if it meant sacrifice."
"But how can I abandon you here alone? Why don't the two of us explore together first?"
"Time is pressing. When I think that at this very moment, Seniors like Senior Lin Ao, who treated me like a blood brother, are shedding their heads and spilling their blood for the Juniors behind them, I feel unbearable distress."
Having said this, Gu Yuan resolutely met Shangguan Changqing's eyes. In that moment, Shangguan Changqing felt that Gu Yuan was radiating light.
Gu Yuan... the breadth of this man's spirit was truly admirable!
Since things had reached this point, if he didn't leave now, it would be disrespectful to Gu Yuan.
It wasn't that Shangguan Changqing was afraid of death, but those words were indeed correct. With the power of the Shangguan Family, he could certainly summon Cultivator reinforcements faster!
"I understand..."
No longer indecisive, Shangguan Changqing retrieved three more bottles of good healing medicine and one Mortal longsword from his storage ring and handed them to Gu Yuan. He then packaged Lin Ao's remains to take with him.
"Brother Gu, we shall meet again in the future."
"Brother Shangguan, until we meet again!"
The two exchanged smiles. Once Shangguan Changqing stepped into the light door and left, Gu Yuan immediately wiped the smile from his face.
The kindness from his previous life had been repaid. Now... it was time to freely explore this dungeon. He hadn't gotten the chance to try it in his past life, but this lifetime, he would certainly take the risk.