"Absolutely not," Fang Yuan said. There was no doubt going to be a Shang Clan Immortal somewhere near the city, and without a doubt, they would be able to detect the presence of the Dollhouse.
While it was just lying here, it was very hard to detect for an immortal, also because it had no Immortal Gu in it. This was a reason why Fang Yuan had not withdrawn any of the Immortal Gu from his inventory, as its mere aura would attract the attention of any Immortal who happened to come near. But the Dollhouse was a very curious invention, and if someone happened to stumble right into it, they would want it, even without knowing that it could be upgraded to a rank six schoolhouse.
"All right then, I'll consider it," Bai Ning Bing said.
The next day, Fang Yuan announced to the Gu Yue Village that he would be taking on a new title of Supreme Elder, and that Fang Zheng would now be clan head.
Of course, as Supreme Elder of the clan, he could dismiss Fang Zheng at any point in time. His announcement was met with some mixed reactions. No one had ever called themselves that before.
Breaking away from tradition seemed to be Fang Yuan's hallmark, many people felt. Many people naturally felt that it was better if traditions were maintained and stability was preserved in that way. Many of the elders would feel that way, if not all of them. However, these were times in which things would constantly fluctuate, and they had to adapt to these changes.
"Did we not all have to come here for our new spirit spring? If we had stuck to the old ways, how could we have survived?" Fang Yuan told them. They were uneasy, but once again, before his might, they could do very little. Not only did he have himself, but he also had the Rank 4 Gu Master Fang Zheng, Qing Shu, and a few other elders. He was also the main deterrent, preventing the Bei Clan at the base of the mountain from doing something, and keeping the Xiong and the Bai Clans among them in check.
"I know that you must be disappointed to hear this, but I have to leave soon," he said to Fang Zheng.
"What is the matter, Elder Brother?" Fang Zhen asked. Although he was a bit more comfortable in his role, he still relied upon Fang Yuan for things occasionally.
"I wanted to go towards Shang Clan City," Fang Yuan explained. "It is a massive place with many resources that I would need. Although I've reached Rank 5, I do not have a single rank five gu worm." He did not mention the Blood Guillotine or the Ink Dragon, and even if he had, he would still need to visit Shang Clan City to feed the Ink Dragon.
"Not only that, but we have a surplus of Bone Spear Gu and its variants. You can sell them for a good price in Shang Clan City. The merchant caravan wasn't able to buy all of our excess, after all. Those primeval stones will help with the foundation of our clan and building it up."
"If you say so, Elder Brother," Fang Zheng said.
"Not only that," Fang Yuan added, seeing Fang Zheng was a bit hesitant. "A Liquor Worm can also be bought in Shang Clan City. We might be able to find a way to advance your vital gu further." He currently had a Seven Fragrances Liquor Worm, but he had used it for only a few days before it had become obsolete to him.
Fang Yuan knew of a Rank 4 recipe, but that would require multiple more Liquor Gu, something that they could only find after some difficulty within Shang Clan City.
"All right, Elder Brother," Fang Zheng said.
Inwardly, he had realized that Fang Yuan did not really want to become clan leader. One could tell from his behavior - even when he had been class president he hadn't seemed too enamored with the role despite others envying him for it. 'Brother seems to be the type of person who wants to explore the world, sadly, he got chained down here for the clan's benefit...'
Fang Zheng, for that matter, was fine staying on one mountain for the vast majority of his life. He had already found the acceptance he had been longing for his whole life by becoming clan head.
Bai Ning Bing also did her part to ensure that her Bai clansmen would behave while she was gone. The Xiong Clan were the weakest among the village and could not do anything on their own, and even if they tried, the Gu Yue Clan alone had enough strength to crush them.
Fang Yuan had given most of his rank four gu worms to Fang Zheng, the most valuable among them being the Rainbow Cannon Gu. The Rainbow Cannon Gu was something he had gotten from the Xuan Yuan Divine Pheasant, and it fed on prismatic light that was easy enough to obtain using an ice crystal and the sun.
As a last task, Fang Yuan went to check on the Bei Clan. After all, he needed to show them his face so that they would know that he was keeping an eye on their movements before he left. They had noticed the fact that he would be absent from the village from time to time. But, atop their White Form Immortal Snake, they would have no way of striking him or the village during that time.
"Things are going moderately well here," the Bei can head said. The bulk of the mountain's wealth had been taken by the Gu Yue Clan, since they had sold a large amount of Bone Spear Gu and its variants. It left less for the Bei Clan to sell. The Gu Yue Clan had also taken the biggest milk spring, and even though there was a second one, no one would feel happy at being given the leftovers.
Still, it could be said that the Gu Yue Village may have had the meat, but they had still given the broth to the Bei Clan. The Bei Clan would, without a doubt, remember this and seek any opportunity to rise up, but Fang Yuan would not give them such a chance. He still had the Traveling Son Gu and a few other gu worms that he could use to connect with Fang Zhen.
And so, Fang Yuan, Bai Ning Bing, Zhang Xin Ci, and Xiao Die left Gu Village one fine morning.
"Do you really have to go back on that thing?" Xiao Die asked, staring warily at the White Form Immortal Snake. It glared at her, letting out a large amount of steam, and she yelled out in fear, hiding behind Bai Ning Bing.
"There's no other faster way," Fang Yuan said. "However, you can try these gu worms that might help you." He handed Zhang Xin Ci a low-level healing gu worm.
"Xiao Die," Zhang Xin Ci teased. "We managed to survive somehow last time, didn't we?"
Her face already looked like it was turning slightly green from the sight of the flight. However, she couldn't deny its speed and efficacy.
Zhang Xin Ci had managed to refine the Bone Spear Gu after about seven days of trying. It had consumed the two primeval stones that Fang Yuan had given her. Fang Yuan then gave her two more, and gave her a very basic lesson on nurturing her aperture walls.
"All right, then, we'll be off."