Chapter 350

Ah, this…

Tian Dan Zhi Yuan Wu froze for a moment, her face turning instantly pale—she hadn't considered this at all, too focused on her craving.

But… the system only notified me of attribute gains; it never said I was poisoned.

After waiting a while and seeing no further system prompts and feeling no discomfort, she said: "It seems… it seems fine. This thing really is edible, and look, how fragrant it is!"

Saying this, Tian Dan Zhi Yuan Wu grabbed another handful of 【Oil-Eating Worms】 from the wooden barrel and ate them—she'd previously despised them as insects and refused to touch them, but now that she discovered their flavor, she instantly changed her mind.

The escort team members watching Tian Dan Zhi Yuan Wu gobble them down without any ill effects grew tempted, especially since the aroma was overwhelming; seeing her lips slick with grease, they swallowed hard.

"Wu Wu, is this thing really edible?"

"Yes! Believe me! I ate it and I'm fine!"

Though no one else was harmed, Tian Dan Zhi Yuan Wu was still frustrated, for she realized the 【Oil-Eating Worms】 didn't grant 0.1 attribute points per single worm, but required a group of ten or dozens to yield 0.1 points.

And as she ate more, it seemed she now needed over a hundred worms to gain even a single point.

Fortunately, the worms were small enough to snack on—each bite swallowed a dozen or two, so she could gain attribute points in just a few bites, and thus she didn't dwell on it.

Seeing Tian Dan Zhi Yuan Wu eat the 【Oil-Eating Worms】 without harm, one of the onlookers stepped forward.

"Give me one to try."

"Sure thing!"

Tian Dan Zhi Yuan Wu casually handed him one; he took it, swallowed it whole, chewed slowly, then his face lit up with bliss—he clearly found it delicious.

But before he could ask for a second, he suddenly stiffened, eyes bulging, and collapsed straight to the ground, foaming at the mouth, his body convulsing violently.

"Tian Tian!"

"Brother Tian?!"

"Hey! Are you okay?!"

The crowd, who had just been considering trying the 【Oil-Eating Worms】 after seeing Tian Dan Zhi Yuan Wu unharmed, now screamed in shock at the man's collapse.

The Blood Hunter rushed to his side at once, checking his condition, only to find him unconscious.

He ordered the man carried onto the wagon for care.

He summoned the traveling physician to examine him.

Though this physician lacked the extraordinary skill of Divine Doctor An Shenyi, he could handle common injuries and illnesses.

But soon, the physician emerged and shook his head slightly to the Blood Hunter: "Acute high fever, limbs rigid—this is a strange illness. I don't know how to treat it."

It was essentially a death sentence.

Everyone's faces darkened; some cast glances—deliberate or not—toward Tian Dan Zhi Yuan Wu, whispering among themselves.

At the same time, they were filled with dread: thank heaven they hadn't acted impulsively, or they'd be the ones lying on the wagon, waiting to die.

The Blood Hunter assigned someone to care for the man, then stepped out of the wagon, ordered everyone to disperse and rest properly, and walked toward Tian Dan Zhi Yuan Wu, who was still standing dazed.

"I—I didn't mean to! I didn't know this thing was poisonous! I ate it and was fine, but he—he…"

Seeing the Blood Hunter, Tian Dan Zhi Yuan Wu panicked, her words tumbling out incoherently.

The Blood Hunter patted her shoulder and spoke calmly: "Don't panic. We all know you didn't mean it. Later, go get checked by the physician—you ate these worms too; there might be hidden dangers still lurking."

Hearing this, Tian Dan Zhi Yuan Wu felt like crying but had no tears left; the 【Oil-Eating Worms】 still clutched in her hand suddenly lost all flavor.

She tossed the worms back into the barrel and trudged toward the physician, head down, glancing back every few steps, clinging to a faint hope: "Blood Hunter… could it be that man has an allergy to worms? Maybe normal people eating them are fine?"

"... Go get checked. Don't overthink it."

After Tian Dan Zhi Yuan Wu went to see the physician, the Blood Hunter returned to Fang Yue, who sat with vacant eyes.

"If Ye Ge were here, how would he handle this?"

The Blood Hunter pondered, then, as rest time ended, ordered the team to resume travel, following the village path onward.

This time, the journey remained completely unobstructed—even no traces of the strange oil remained on the ground.

As if they had somehow avoided the oil's cursed path entirely.

After traveling all night, before the sunrise had risen.

In the distance, Luoye Cun was already visible.

This meant they were one step closer to Gu Yue Cun!

After passing Luoye Cun, then Man Shui Cun, the next village would be their final destination—Gu Yue Cun.

It was at this moment that Fang Yue woke up.

"Ye Ge!"

The Blood Hunter cried out in surprise—he'd thought Fang Yue would remain unconscious for another long stretch, like before.

Others, hearing his shout, hurried over.

Tian Dan Zhi Yuan Wu, eyes red, burst into tears and flung herself onto Fang Yue, who pushed her face away with clear disgust.

"What happened?"

He'd only taken over Bai Xiaoya's night watch duty in reality for the second half of the night—why was everyone reacting like this now? Had something gone wrong?

After asking carefully, Fang Yue learned what had occurred, and his expression turned stunned.

"You ate it and were fine—he ate it and collapsed?"

"Mm-hmm…" Tian Dan Zhi Yuan Wu nodded miserably.

Fang Yue thought for a moment, checked the time—the effect of 【Night's Breath】 was still active, not yet fully daytime.

He walked to the wooden barrel holding the 【Oil-Eating Worms】, picked one up, and, amid others' gasps, swallowed it whole.

Fang Yue reasoned: if Tian Dan Zhi Yuan Wu's stomach could handle it, his couldn't possibly fail.

One bite down, Fang Yue licked his lips—taste was genuinely excellent, like salted dried fish, but with a smoother, silkier texture.

Then, he felt his stomach begin to ache.

But the sensation came fast—and vanished just as quickly.

Before the pain could spread, 【Night's Breath】 suppressed the injury.

System Prompt: Congratulations, you have consumed the cooked meat of the strange 【Oil-Feeding Worker Beetle】; your Control Power has subtly increased.

System Prompt: You have entered the state of 【Parasite: Filament】.

System Prompt: The state of 【Parasite: Filament】 has been removed.

Three system prompts sounded almost simultaneously.

Fang Yue's lips twitched slightly; he now understood what the first person to eat a crab—no, the second person to eat a crab—had gone through.

Parasites are indeed troublesome, especially when they strike acutely.

But this thing seemed powerless against 【Night's Breath】.

He casually grabbed two more handfuls and swallowed them down.

System Prompt: Congratulations, you have consumed the cooked meat of the strange 【Oil-Feeding Worker Beetle】; your Control Power has subtly increased.

System Prompt: Congratulations, you have consumed…

The system prompts flickered several times—all showing subtle increases in attributes; Fang Yue knew this stuff had no effect on him anymore.

Eating an entire bucket of 【Oil-Feeding Beetles】 might not raise his Control Power by 0.1.

(End of Chapter)