Chapter 274: Chapter 272: Master Gu! Immortal Dao and Witch Dao

"Peerless" meant one-of-a-kind, a singular treasure unmatched throughout history.

The conditions required for a Celestial Horned Centipede to form were incredibly demanding; only one had ever been recorded in all of history.

Zhu Ge didn’t dare hope for one.

However, the Hurricane Centipede was also very powerful. The astral wind it could summon would strip the very flesh from a person’s bones.

Beyond its raw power, Zhu Ge was more interested in the "hurricane" part of its name.

His progress in the Wind Refining technique for his Great Sun Glaze Body had stalled because he lacked winds that were strong enough.

Even practicing the Wind Refining for his Great Sun Glaze Body during gales couldn’t meet his needs.

But things would be different with a Hurricane Centipede.

When the time came, the Hurricane Centipede could blast him directly with its hurricane winds, guaranteed to take his Wind Refining to the next level.

’The Hurricane Centipede it is, then!’

With a wave of his hand, Zhu Ge guided the blood-red Centipede into his palm.

He studied it with great interest.

The Centipede wasn’t large—only about the size of his thumb. Its body was as crimson as blood, and its carapace was faintly etched with intricate patterns, like ancient runes.

Though its horn was tiny, the tip was sharp as a needle and held a cold, eerie glint.

Its six clawed legs gripped Zhu Ge’s skin tightly, trembling slightly as if to acclimate to its new surroundings.

In the moonlight, its carapace reflected a dull red glow, like congealed blood, inevitably calling to mind the slaughter on a battlefield of corpses and blood.

And yet, it was so tiny. The thumb-sized creature resting in his palm had a strange, delicate beauty, like a work of art carved from ruby.

"What a beautiful bug," Liu Jianjian said, leaning in to cautiously examine the blood-red Centipede in Zhu Ge’s palm.

She was normally afraid of bugs, but this Centipede was so small and exquisitely formed that her fear subsided a little.

"Master, what’s it called?" Liu Jianjian asked curiously.

"A Hurricane Centipede," Zhu Ge said. "But it’s still just a larva. It’s a long way from maturing into a true Gu Insect."

Liu Jianjian reached out a finger, wanting to poke the Centipede’s carapace.

The Centipede’s horn lifted slightly and aimed at her fingertip. A wisp of pale-blue energy, as fine as a hair, shot from the horn and struck her.

"Hiss—"

Liu Jianjian snatched her hand back. A tiny white mark had appeared on her fingertip, and it stung. "It bites!"

Zhu Sisi poked her head out from Liu Jianjian’s shoulder. Staring blankly at the Centipede, she chewed on the mulberry leaf in her mouth and mumbled, "Looks tasty."

The Centipede seemed to sense Zhu Sisi’s ill intent. Its clawed legs tightened their grip, and it aimed its horn at her, emitting a low hum.

"Alright, Sisi, stop it. You’re a herbivore, don’t go scaring him," Zhu Ge said with a smile, shaking his head before returning to his careful examination.

The Centipede crawled slowly across his palm, its six clawed legs moving with a light yet steady, precise gait.

Its horn twitched intermittently, as if sensing its surroundings.

The patterns on its carapace flickered in the moonlight, looking like ancient, breathing script.

Zhu Ge infused a wisp of Witch Power into the Centipede. Its body began to glow faintly, the patterns on its carapace lit up with a dark red light, and a tiny stream of pale-blue energy shot from the tip of its horn.

The energy swirled in the air for a moment before dissipating.

’It has a spirit,’ Zhu Ge thought, satisfied.

He tried communicating with the Centipede using his Heart Spirit, sending a wisp of thought into its mind through a nascent connection.

It was a wondrous connection, one formed by his Witch Power.

The Centipede’s antennae twitched a few times. Then it raised its head and gently nuzzled Zhu Ge’s thumb with its horn.

The gesture was incredibly light, like a kitten nuzzling its master’s hand.

Zhu Ge’s heart softened, and he infused it with another wisp of Witch Power.

The Centipede’s glow intensified. It released its grip and levitated just above Zhu Ge’s palm.

It aimed its horn at his palm, and a hair-thin stream of pale-blue energy shot out, landing on his skin. The energy then transformed into a gentle breeze that caressed his arm.

"Is it fanning you?" Liu Jianjian’s eyes went wide. "Did it just evolve?"

"It’s not fanning me, it’s testing me," Zhu Ge said. "It’s using its astral wind to sense my aura."

’Gu Insects truly are wondrous things!’

It clearly hadn’t matured into a Hurricane Centipede yet, but it was already developing in the exact way Zhu Ge had hoped.

CHITTER... RUSTLE...

The Centipede’s antennae twitched gently, as if confirming something.

After a moment, it retracted the astral wind and settled back into Zhu Ge’s palm. Its six clawed legs gripped his skin tightly as its body trembled slightly, emitting a low hum.

The hum was soft, like the beating of a mosquito’s wings, yet it possessed a strange rhythm—like both a summons and a reply.

"What is it saying?" Liu Jianjian asked, her curiosity piqued.

"It’s saying..." Zhu Ge closed his eyes, carefully sensing the thoughts the Centipede was transmitting. "It’s calling me ’Master.’"

Liu Jianjian stared for a moment, then laughed. "What a smart little bug."

Zhu Ge opened his eyes and looked at the Centipede in his palm, a strange feeling welling up inside him.

This tiny insect had emerged from a battle royal among countless Gu Insects, devouring the flesh and blood of all its rivals just to survive.

Its carapace was stained with the blood of its kin, and its astral wind carried the resentful spirits of the numberless dead.

But the creature itself was just a newborn larva, ignorant and innocent, knowing only to nuzzle its master’s hand gently with its horn.

"From now on, I’ll call you ’Blood Armor Immortal,’" Zhu Ge said with a smile. "For your blood-colored armor and your immortal spirit."

CHITTER... RUSTLE...

The Centipede’s antennae twitched, and it let out a low hum as if in reply.

Zhu Ge brought it closer to his face, carefully examining its carapace.

In the moonlight, fine golden patterns had appeared on the dark-red carapace, spreading across its surface like veins. The patterns flickered, and one could faintly sense Spiritual Qi flowing within them.

Zhu Ge infused a wisp of Spiritual Power into the Centipede. The golden patterns immediately lit up, absorbing the Spiritual Power completely.

"It’s absorbing your Spiritual Power!" Liu Jianjian cried out.

Zhu Ge raised an eyebrow, also somewhat surprised.

"It doesn’t seem to be absorbing it so much as storing it."

’It must need Spiritual Power to nurture the seed of astral wind within its body. Once that seed sprouts, will it be able to unleash a true astral wind?’

’Excellent. This Centipede was originally wind-aspected, which makes it perfect for becoming a Hurricane Centipede.’

"Oh, is that it?" Liu Jianjian said, nodding as if she only half-understood.

Zhu Ge let the Centipede return to his palm and retrieved a wooden box from his Self Realm.

He had found the box in Hongmi Immortal’s Self Realm. It was made entirely of thousand-year-old peach wood, and its inner walls were inscribed with Array Patterns that could nurture a Gu Insect.

He placed the Centipede inside. Its six clawed legs gripped the bottom of the box, and its horn trembled softly as it adjusted to its new environment.

"From now on, this will be your home," Zhu Ge said, gently closing the lid and slipping the box into his sleeve.

Liu Jianjian watched him and couldn’t help asking, "Master, are you going to keep it with you all the time?"

"Yes," Zhu Ge nodded. "It needs to be nurtured with Spiritual Qi every day for at least forty-nine days. Once the seed of astral wind inside it sprouts, it will no longer require daily care."

"And how long will it take to mature?"

"At least a year," Zhu Ge guessed. "In a year, it should mature from a larva into an adult. Then it can be used in combat."

"A year..." Liu Jianjian sighed. "That’s so slow."

"It’s not slow at all," Zhu Ge chuckled. "Which Demon Beast reaches the Third Realm in less than a hundred years? For this one to go from larva to adult in a single year is already incredibly fast."

Liu Jianjian thought about it and figured he was right, so she asked no more questions.

The carriage continued on its way, venturing deeper into Shujiang.

「That night」

Zhu Ge sat cross-legged in the carriage. He took the wooden box from his sleeve and opened the lid.

The Centipede lay at the bottom of the box, its six clawed legs gripping the peach wood, its horn quivering gently.

It sensed Zhu Ge’s presence, and its antennae twitched as it let out a low hum.

"Hungry for some Spiritual Power?" Zhu Ge asked as he infused a wisp of it into the Centipede.

CHITTER... RUSTLE... The Centipede’s body began to glow faintly, and the golden patterns on its carapace lit up, absorbing the Spiritual Power completely.

’Just as I thought. The Witchcraft and Gu Dao is quite compatible with the Immortal Dao.’

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