Capítulo 96: Screams in the night
"So, are you all the ones who were meant to arrive, I assume?" Chen Wei looks at the sixteen beautiful ladies before him, who display various expressions ranging from nervousness, excitement, and helplessness.
These women in front of him vary in age, with the oldest being just over forty and the youngest not even fifteen. One thing they all have in common is that, by the standards of this small village, they are breathtaking beauties.
"Yes, young master..." The girl who responds to his question is the maid who had called him to Li Xin's banquet a few days ago.
It was quite fruitful for Chen Wei, who used pure pressure and promises of benefits to make Li Xin reveal as much information as he knew about the Huo clan and the surrounding clans and mountains to aid in his plan to take over the Huo clan.
Of course, this plan is a mere lie, and he does not he care much about Li Xin's loyalty to keep it a secret, as he plans for the village of Yu to be bathed in an endless tide of blood before the sun sets on this very day.
"Well, it seems my wait was worth it!" Chen Wei speaks with an enthusiasm that the ladies might interpret as lust, but for him, it's just a desire to finally increase his arsenal of Gu and leave this village or what remains of it.
Naturally, his brief stay here was not without its fruits, as in in these few days, he managed to obtain a significant amount of information about the Huo Clan from various sources in the village. Although most of it is superficial information that only mortals think matters, it is still better than nothing.
Moreover, it was also a necessary stop for Wang Mei, who, late in her pregnancy, needed some rest and to consult with a midwife to check on the baby's health, which, fortunately, was confirmed to be good according to the midwife.
More importantly, he managed to stock up on a large amount of supplies for the journey ahead, as well as acquire a large number of "gu materials"—or more precisely, mortal materials that, when used in precise quantities, can be used to refine rank 1 gu.
And if you're wondering how he obtained so much without money, it's simple: he just politely asked for the items, either in the name of the village leader or his own, and found no one who refused to offer him these gifts.
"Well... First, all virgins step forward!" Chen Wei speaks with authority, his gaze indicating that he will not tolerate any of them trying to deceive him.
Upon hearing his voice, six young-looking girls, all appearing under twenty, step forward, trembling with nervousness, some displaying fear and helplessness while others show hope and excitement.
This is not without reason, as becoming a concubine of a powerful Gu Master is the easiest and quickest way for these girls to climb the social ladder to the top of the world. So why would they be disheartened by this opportunity?
And if anything is demonstrated by the luxurious dresses and excellent physical condition of Chen Wei's "wives" behind him, it's that at least he is not a sadist who enjoys tormenting his women.
Of course, among these girls, some have long-time lovers and are unwilling to give themselves to just any man, or perhaps they are simply scared because of the horrifying stories they've heard about demonic Gu Masters.
"Poor girls..." Yu Lian, just behind Chen Wei, sighs as she tries to suppress the pity in her heart, knowing that these emotions will be of no use now.
But she can't help feeling guilty when she sees the looks of fear or hope on the girls' faces. Even knowing the cruel and horrible death they will face, she can't muster the courage to oppose Chen Wei and argue for their lives.
"Six? Ah, well, this will do, right, Mei'er?" Chen Wei turns to Wang Mei, who has an impassive look, especially towards the girls with excited expressions.
"I-I think it will do..." Wang Mei stammers a bit, still nervous despite trying to hide it with her impassive expression.
But she knows this is what needs to be done, and for the sake of their child and to protect Chen Wei as he protects her now, she must perform this act even if it is cruel and heartless.
She keeps repeating this in her mind ever since Chen Wei decided with her to use these girls to refine a vital and powerful Emotion Path Gu called Ladie's Torment Gu.
Moreover, Chen Wei intends to use this opportunity to refine one of his most useful Gu and his former vital Gu, Blood Cut Gu. Of course, this is a different version of this Gu after several improvements, even though it bears the same name as his first Gu.
As one of the girls who stepped forward, the youngest here, hears the entire exchange while remaining silent, her anxiety growing, as she always thought something so important should be special, but now it is being decided by a demonic Gu Master she doesn't even know.
"Well, if it's not enough, we still have an entire village of pure ladies who can be used as refining materials anyway..." Chen Wei says nonchalantly while looking at Wang Mei, who nods her head.
"Young master? What do you mean by Gu materials--!" The young maid who had called him to the banquet starts to speak, only to be abruptly interrupted by a black blood that advances and binds her body tightly, preventing even the slightest movement.
"Well, what did you expect? I need Gu materials," Chen Wei looks at the shocked expressions of the sixteen women and girls, who are being restrained by thick, putrid black blood.
"What did you think? That a great Rank 4 Gu Master was just a fool driven by lust and fucking girls?" Chen Wei walks slowly, putting on the act of a sadistic Gu Master.
The reason for this act is, of course, the Ladies' Torment Gu, which he wants to help Wang Mei refine. According to her, for it to be successful, the victims or refining materials need to be in the highest state of horror, fear, and emotional turmoil.
"Hmm!! Hmm!!" One of the older women struggles fiercely, trying to break free from the putrid black blood bindings while glaring at Chen Wei with pure rage.
Seeing this, Chen Wei just waves his hand, and a large strip of putrid black blood pierces the woman's chest precisely, ripping her heart out of her body and making it come out through her back while she remains impaled on the blood stake.
All the girls, seeing this, feel the greatest terror and despair of their lives taking over their hearts and, without exception, begin struggling with all their might against the black blood restraining their bodies, not caring about the bruises from the struggle. Nevertheless, it is futile as none can free themselves, not even a little.
"Feng Hua, you can bring me the blood now..." Chen Wei says beside Wang Mei, standing calmly in front of the desperate women.
"Blood of wolf, bear, coyote, dog, lizard, falcon, piranha, snake, and other carnivorous and deadly animals..." Feng Hua quickly approaches Chen Wei with several bottles filled with the blood of various animals. "...I wonder how the village leader would feel knowing this is what you're using the blood for."
"To feed my Gu or to refine new Gu, I don't think he would dare deny me even if he knew what I was doing," Chen Wei speaks calmly while inspecting the blood in the bottles.
In truth, the only reason he hasn't slaughtered the entire village to use their blood as refining material is that he needed to rest, replenish supplies, and consult a midwife. Now that these needs have been met, they no longer have any value to them alive.
"Are you ready? We can't afford any mistakes, so no error can be tolerated, understand?" Chen Wei has a serious look, gazing deeply at Wang Mei, who breathes deeply, trying to calm herself.
"I... I will do what is necessary!" Wang Mei says after trying to calm her heart, but she still feels great fear and dread for what she is about to do.
Trying to ignore these emotions, she takes a liter of Calm Heart Wine, known for its ability to calm the heart to some extent, making it a priority for her to obtain as it has Emotion Path properties. Fortunately, she obtained it directly from Li Xin who had a collection of "expensive" wines.
"The broth of nightmare herbs..." Wang Mei speaks weakly, and Yu Lian brings her a purple liquid in a bowl full of herbs.
"Well, you seem to have your things in order..." Chen Wei releases the mouths of the six virgin girls who stepped forward and focuses his attention on the ten who remain behind.
"Please, I beg you!!"
"I don't know if he's forcing you to do this, but have mercy, please!!"
"I swear I can give you everything to spare my life! My family is very wealthy!!"
Every desperate cry begging for mercy feels like a deep cut to Wang Mei, who never thought she would be capable of such cruelty.
For Yu Lian, who also feels great sorrow for this, she merely sighs with pity and helplessness as she brings a small portable "grill" and places it in the middle of the room before lighting it.
Wang Mei quickly pours the broth of nightmare herbs into the wine, which starts to change color from water-transparent to green even before she puts the wine to boil in a pot placed on the grill.
"Tears of pure ladies in torment..." Wang Mei murmurs, trying to mentally detach herself from her actions as she approaches the six girls with a vial to collect the tears falling continuously from their eyes.
"Blood path... Emotion path... at this point, I don't even know which is more demonic..." Feng Hua, observing everything from the outside, simply murmurs as she watches Chen Wei piercing the hearts of the remaining nine women using the black blood under his control.
Wang Mei, who was bringing the vial full of tears and pouring them into the boiling pot, hardly can care about Feng Hua's words, even though they are painful to her. She focuses on the wine that changes color from green to light blue, an important process in the refinement.
But it doesn't end there. She takes a branch from the tree of lamentations and, with pain in her heart for what she has to do, pierces the chest of each of the six girls, looking deeply into their eyes to understand their emotions of fear, terror, and hatred as they die cruelly, screaming and begging for mercy.
Even though Wang Mei wants to give this mercy, and not doing so also hurts her, Chen Wei has made it very clear that they have no choice and that both he and she need to do whatever is necessary for the safety of their child still in her womb.
So, still feeling turbulent emotions, she brings the pot of wine and begins to add to the mixture the blood of the six girls who are now dead, with expressions of horror and pain on their faces that she is sure will give her nightmares for many nights.
As soon as she finishes and the wine has cooled enough, she suppresses her tears that start to fall from her face and, amidst the urge to vomit, begins to drink the wine that tastes so horrible it feels like drinking mud.
But this is not the worst part. Shortly after, she feels an almost infinite amount of emotions of torment, horror, and fear flooding her chest to the point that she needs both Yu Lian and Feng Hua to comfort and hold her, preventing her from killing herself due to the immense suffering she feels in her heart.
At the end of the process, which seems to have lasted for hours, she finally regains full consciousness and control of her body, finding herself lying in bed in Chen Wei's arms, who appears to comfort her gently. As she feels a deep connection with a new Gu happily swimming within her aperture in the primeval essence.
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*Chen Wei POV* *A few minutes earlier*
"It looks like Mei'er will need your help while I refine my Gu, so take care of her," Chen Wei says to Feng Hua and Yu Lian, who are dragging a desperately crying and out-of-control Wang Mei.
"Yes, we'll try!" Yu Lian says, as she and Feng Hua hold Wang Mei down on the bed.
Chen Wei, hearing this, just nods while mixing all the animal blood he has into a large ginseng jar, then adds ground bones from horns, teeth, claws, or any sharp parts of ferocious beasts.
"I have three chances for this, so as long as my luck isn't terrible, I should succeed at least once..." Chen Wei focuses his full attention on the three hearts being brought to him using black blood stakes.
Chen Wei takes the three hearts one by one and squeezes them hard with his own hands, causing the blood to ooze between his fingers and fall into the ginseng jar with a wide mouth.
But Chen Wei doesn't stop there. He takes a small insect, the size of his pinky nail—it's a dead grass-crawling queen ant, which he easily obtained from some of the village children.
"Now it's a matter of luck, but there shouldn't be any problems since nine out of ten times it will succeed--!" Chen Wei is interrupted when the refinement fails, causing him to fall to his knees on the ground, coughing up blood.
*Cough* *Cough* "Damn... it seems I'll have to pay for the recent good luck I've had," Chen Wei uses his wrist to wipe the blood from his mouth while using the Blood Orchid Gu to heal himself.
"Unfortunately, there's nothing I can do for the injury to my soul..." Chen Wei weakly stands up, looking at the completely destroyed ginseng jar in a bloody mess on the floor.
Despite the feeling of nausea and dizziness from his damaged soul and a body that feels like it's been through a whirlwind, Chen Wei forces himself to move forward, grab another ginseng jar, and start the process again, which seems much more arduous than the first attempt.
But things in life often require perseverance in the face of failure. Just a few minutes later, Chen Wei finds himself on his knees again, coughing up blood uncontrollably, in an even worse state than after his first failed refinement.
"Ahh, what are the chances of two consecutive failures? Well, I can only try one more time, so be it..." Chen Wei says in a hoarse voice, struggling to get another ginseng jar.
His gaze is determined as he heals himself using the Blood Orchid Gu, preparing to physically endure the last refinement his soul can handle if it fails, and he has enough resources for a lot more attempts.
Fortunately for him, after mixing all the different animal blood as well as the ground bones of their fangs into the ginseng, along with the squeezed blood from the three women's hearts and a large dead queen ant, he is left with a Gu in the form of a dark red ant.
"Blood Cut Gu..." Chen Wei inspects the Gu of the same name, though it is a different and improved version of his first Gu.
Seeing his success, Chen Wei slowly walks over to the bed where Wang Mei is lying, still crying in her half sleep state.
"Is she okay?" He asks Feng Hua, who is sitting on the bed next to Wang Mei.
"Yes, but not thanks to her trying to kill herself every chance she got," Feng Hua says with a tired expression on her face, her body showing several bruises from struggling with Wang Mei.
"Will it take long for someone to come here after all the commotion...?" Yu Lian asks Chen Wei, who slowly lies down on the bed next to Wang Mei.
"I told Li Xin not to worry if he heard screams or anything like that... so it might take a while, but they will come at some point," Chen Wei says as he tries to rest his body, while still staying alert so as not to fall asleep, which would put him in great danger.
"Well, now we just wait while we rest..." Chen Wei says as he gently strokes Wang Mei's head and looks around the room, relieved that he won't have to clean up the bloody and messy aftermath.
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