Chapter 120: Lifebound Gu
Miao Anji sensed Jiang Li’s fear, and his hands immediately stilled.
Lu Xingye stepped forward to distract her. "Jiang Li, Sister Qinghe is looking for you."
"Huh?" Jiang Li turned her head to look at Lu Xingye.
Seeing her gaze shift away, Miao Anji swiftly yanked the Gu Worm out. His pale fingertips were stained with blood as he stared with a dark expression at the squirming, struggling insect in his hand.
Wu Ming quickly grabbed a tissue to wipe the wound, looking at her with concern. "Let’s go to the hospital. What if it’s poisonous?"
She had heard her master say that Gu Worms were poisonous through and through. ’And this one already burrowed inside...’
Jiang Li glanced at the Gu Worm in Miao Anji’s hand, then at the wound on her own. A small hole was steadily oozing blood.
"Yu Huannian, take Sister to the hospital. I’m going to take care of something," Miao Anji said before turning to leave.
"Hey!" Jiang Li watched Miao Anji’s retreating figure. She got the feeling that the boy was angry—and quite seriously so.
"Xiao Nian, you..."
Before Jiang Li could finish, Yu Huannian grabbed the coat she had left on the side, swept her into his arms, and strode quickly outside, clearly having no intention of listening to her.
"Hey! Wait for me, I’ll drive!" Wu Ming snatched her bag and ran after them.
"Xingye, we have to get back to the station. Forensic Doctor Qin said the recent deaths might be related to this worm, too. We need to hurry back and find the culprit; that’s the only way to guarantee Jiang Li’s safety, isn’t it?"
Zhao Shuo stopped Lu Xingye as he was about to follow. With the department so short-handed, they needed to get back and resolve this matter first.
Lu Xingye had no choice but to head back to the station with Zhao Shuo.
"Xiao Nian, it’s just a minor injury. Besides, Xiao Ji can’t drive..."
Jiang Li glanced outside anxiously. ’It’s so far. Is Miao Anji planning to walk all the way back?’
"It’s fine. Don’t worry about him; he’s not an idiot." Yu Huannian pressed down on Jiang Li’s restless hand and looked at her sternly. "We have to go to the hospital, just in case it’s poisonous."
Jiang Li had no choice but to settle down. She took out her phone to message Miao Anji, transferred him some money, and sent a link for a ride-hailing service, telling him to get a car back.
A moment later, the wound on Jiang Li’s hand began to turn black. Her jaw dropped in astonishment. ’It... It’s really poisonous?’
"It’s okay, it’s okay. You’ll be fine," Yu Huannian comforted Jiang Li, though his words were stiff.
Seeing the panicked look on Yu Huannian’s face, Jiang Li managed a smile and tried to comfort him in return.
"I’m fine, don’t worry. It looks scarier than it is; I can’t feel a thing. Besides, we still have Xiao Ji, right?"
Yu Huannian’s lips were a thin line, his expression tense the entire way. In reality, his heart was pounding in his chest, terrified that something would happen to Jiang Li as well.
Following the Gu Worm’s trail, Miao Anji found a decrepit copse of trees. As soon as he entered, he spotted three shattered Gu jars, but there was no sign of anyone.
The moment he stopped, the Gu Worms hidden in his clothes began to crawl out.
"Find them."
Miao Anji looked at the near-dead Gu Worm in his hand and tossed it to a small snake. "Eat. If you can’t find them, you’re next."
Looking aggrieved, the little snake ate the Gu Worm, then flicked its tongue out in disgust.
A swarm of Gu Worms searched the area, RUSTLING through the undergrowth. Soon, they herded a few Gu Worms with unfamiliar auras before Miao Anji.
Miao Anji sat on a rock, feeling deeply displeased. ’I didn’t want to get involved, but I never thought they’d be this reckless.’
Hearing a stir, Miao Anji glanced over impassively. Several Gu Worms were surrounding a single one, their antennae twitching. His Lifebound Gu climbed onto his shoulder, gesturing with its scorpion-like tail.
"A worm nest? All yours."
The captive worm fell. The Gu on the ground immediately started digging, devouring the nest’s inhabitants the second they emerged.
Once they had eaten their fill, all the insects returned to Miao Anji’s body and hid themselves away. Miao Anji stood up, the silver ornaments on his clothing JINGLING softly.
"Sir, my sister got sick and went to the hospital. Could you give me a ride?"
The man urinating by the side of the road jumped, startled by the voice behind him. He turned to see a boy with an innocent, harmless smile. He looked clean-cut, and his voice was pleasant to the ear.
"The city hospital? Sure, I can give you a ride."
The man pulled up his zipper and got in the car. Miao Anji climbed in, and the vehicle drove off.
After the car drove away, a man emerged from behind a tree, clutching his chest. He raised a hand to wipe a smear of blood from the corner of his mouth. A connection exists between Gu Worms and their master; with so many of them dead, he had suffered a severe backlash.
The man leaned against the tree and let out a long sigh, a look of vexation on his face. It had been far too risky, but he had no regrets. He had to buy more time. There were still three more lives for him to claim.
Miao Anji’s ears twitched. He glanced back, then, after a few seconds, impassively turned his gaze forward again. ’No rush. Seeing Sister is the priority.’