"What?!" Xiong Lin was stunned.
"Plunder Gu? There is only one person that has this Gu worm in Qing Mao mountain and that is my cousin Xiong Zhan!!" Xiong Jiang's face turned gloomy.
Xiong Li closed his eyes, fierce light flickering in them. Others might be afraid of Bai Ning Bing and even he was afraid, but this fear didn't represent his weakness and cowardice. In his heart, long was there already thoughts of sacrificing himself for the clan; he had the resolution to fight to the death with Bai Ning Bing!
"Bai Ning Bing, is the Plunder Gu in your possession?" He stepped forward and faced Bai Ning Bing, letting Fang Yuan brush past him.
Bai Ning Bing laughed coldly, "So what if it is?"
Xiong Jiang's face was as gloomy as water and asked, "Tell me how did my cousin die? Why is his Gu worm in your hands?"
Xiong Lin also asked, "Bai Ning Bing, I respect you as my senior but you secretly seized our Xiong clan's Gu worm and didn't hand it over. This is an open violation of the alliance treaty!"
After he spoke, he raised a Signal Gu in his hand.
With a bang, bright fireworks burst in the sky.
The colorful light from the fireworks shone upon Bai Ning Bing's face. He laughed, "I have never cared about the dogshit alliance treaty. I only saw someone using the Plunder Gu and thought it was interesting, so I collected it."
Xiong Jiang was unable to hold back his anger when he heard this. He gave a furious shout and charged towards Bai Ning Bing, "Bai Ning Bing, you looked while my cousin fought to death and didn't help. You bastard!"
The five person group was an integral whole. For personal or private reasons, the Xiong Li group were irreconcilable with Bai Ning Bing.
The fight was hard to avoid; the scene immediately turning chaotic.
On one side was Bai Ning Bing facing the Xiong Li group's attack; on the other side, they were surrounded by wolf pack and still had to face their attacks.
Fang Yuan left the battlefield and calmly spectated from far away.
"Bai Ning Bing, you will pay for what you have done!" Xiong Jiang shouted and charged at Bai Ning Bing.
"Hmph, just with you?" Bai Ning Bing coldly smiled. He nimbly jumped back, pulling apart some distance and flung out his left hand, throwing out five finger-sized icicles.
The icicles struck Xiong Jiang's body but Xiong Jiang didn't feel any pain whatsoever. When he turned into a zombie, even if his hands and legs were broken, he wouldn't feel any pain.
The cold aura in the icicles could freeze and slow down ordinary people's movements, but it only felt cool and refreshing to Xiong Jiang. Zombie physique belonged to yin physiques; it had low resistance to fire, lightning and sunlight, but was very powerful against this type of cold aura.
"Bai Ning Bing, you are still playing in this situation? Unleash your true strength!" Xiong Li furiously shouted.
Bai Ning Bing had been suppressing his cultivation base to Rank two from the very beginning and was also mostly using Rank two Gu.
Xiong Li felt like he was being held in contempt, he felt humiliated which caused his anger to burn even more.
"Hahaha, how can you minor characters have the qualifications to make me use my full strength?" Bai Ning Bing coldly laughed; his attacks were becoming more powerful but he was still suppressing his strength and didn't use a Rank three Gu worm.
"It is not that he doesn't want to unleash his true strength, but he cannot use it. Bai Ning Bing, heh, he has Northern Dark Ice Soul physique." Fang Yuan who was spectating from afar with his hands crossed, clearly understood the reason.
In the oldest legends of this world, all humans are descendants of Ren Zu.
But as the saying goes, the dragon has nine unique sons. There are no two absolutely same people, and even twins have differences.
In this world, the most significant distinction lay in one's aptitude.
Those with cultivation aptitude could rise to become Gu Masters, surpassing the common folk. Those without it remained mere mortals—the lowest rung in society—subject to being oppressed and used at others' whims.
Cultivation aptitude was commonly categorized into four levels: A-grade, B-grade, C-grade, and D-grade. This was common knowledge.
However, beyond A-grade, there existed even more exceptional levels of aptitude.
This fact, though, was a well-guarded secret. Clans never revealed it lightly, and only those who had reached a certain status within society would come to learn about it.
Xiong Li and the rest naturally didn't know, even elders and clan leaders might not know. But Fang Yuan naturally was aware of this.
There were ten types of aptitudes above A-grade and they were collectively called Ten Extreme physiques.
"Any one of the ten extreme physiques is superior to A-grade aptitude. The most excellent A-grade aptitude can only store ninety nine percent primeval essence in their aperture. But any one of the ten extreme physiques holds full hundred percent primeval essence in their aperture! However, everything exists in balance; the ten extreme physiques which holds hundred percent primeval essence is too perfect and heavens won't easily allow their existence. For instance, in Ren Zu's story, his ten kids didn't have a long life. In reality, it is difficult for the Gu Masters who hold ten extreme physiques to grow and mature, almost all dying an untimely death. Of course, if they can really grow to become a Rank six, they will be able to sweep through same stage opponents and even perform miracles such as fighting a higher rank! Bai Ning Bing who possesses Northern Dark Ice Soul is the same. With hundred percent primeval essence, his aperture is too stressed out and has the risk of collapsing any moment. To decrease this risk, Bai Ning Bing must cultivate and use primeval essence to nurture his aperture walls and increase its strength to be able to support the hundred percent primeval essence. Thus, his cultivation speed is outstanding and shocking. However, high cultivation means higher quality primeval essence which subsequently increases the pressure on the aperture, instead increasing the risk. Bai Ning Bing is like a victim in a lone boat in the sea; he doesn't have fresh water and can only drink the sea water to relieve his thirst, but the seawater is salty and will absorb the original moisture content of the body instead, making him even more thirsty. The higher his cultivation is, the nearer he is to destruction. Yet he cannot choose not to cultivate, since being from Bai village and the one upon whom the clan's expectations lies, he will also face assassination from Xiong and Gu Yue village. This forces him to continue to grow stronger. Being the possessor of the Northern Dark Ice Soul, he clearly understands his situation. Knowing he doesn't have much time left and his death being certain, he has thus formed this temperament." Fang Yuan sighed when he thought of this.
This was clearly an irony.
An aptitude that was overly exceptional wouldn't necessarily guarantee a Gu Master's rapid rise—in fact, it often became the very reason for their downfall.
Just like how excess can be harmful—people need food and water to live, but overindulgence in either can be fatal.
In any world, true perfection doesn't exist. There is no flawless love, no ideal job.
When something is too perfect, it often invites ruin.
To delay his death, Bai Ning Bing used Gu worms to dilute his Rank three silver primeval essence into Rank two red steel primeval essence, of his own accord. He also rarely used Rank three Gu worms at the same time.
This was the real reason Bai Ning Bing suppressed his cultivation.
If someone had power but chose to restrain themselves and fall into danger, they'd be nothing short of a fool.
Bai Ning Bing was sharp and well-educated—there's no way he'd act so stupidly.
Even so, for someone so young, his bold and unruly nature was quite rare. But when facing death, why bother caring about appearances or rules?
That kind of defiance and fearlessness kept him from being molded by the system and instead cultivated a mindset aligned with the demonic path.
Otherwise, given his environment—endless expectations, elite training, inherited glory, ongoing battles, and a promising future—he would've long been shaped into a model leader within the system.
The battle was still continuing.
In this while, the situation had already changed.
The bold lightning wolf had been slain by Bai Ning Bing, and the remaining wolf pack scattered in defeat. Although Xiong Li's group managed to survive, their healing Gu Master fell under Bai Ning Bing's blade. But Bai Ning Bing didn't walk away unscathed—Xiong Li had landed a fierce punch on his right arm, likely fracturing it, as it hung uselessly throughout the rest of the fight.
Yet, even with such an injury, Bai Ning Bing continued to dominate the battlefield.
Xiong Li stood among the top-tier Rank two Gu Masters, rivaling elites like Qing Shu and Chi Shan. Xiong Jiang was an emerging expert in defense, while Xiong Lin, the clan's talented youth, had also reached Rank two combat strength. Along with one more Gu Master, they formed a formidable team. But despite combining their strength, they were still pushed back and overwhelmed by Bai Ning Bing.
It was important to remember that Bai Ning Bing had already fought a draining battle earlier, expending much of his red steel primeval essence. He had also slain the bold lightning wolf and the healer, which cost him the use of his dominant arm. Forced to switch his ice blade to his left hand, he was temporarily unable to cast his icicles, cutting his offensive power nearly in half.
Even so, he maintained the upper hand—and his control of the battle only grew more absolute.