Part 40: Effort begets results

Ren Zu and Great Strength True Martial started to travel together. Great Strength True Martial asked, “Father, where are we going now?” Ren Zu replied: “My son, you still do not know the situation. I will explain it to you. I originally wanted to save your brothers and sisters, but Fate Gu arranged everything, not allowing us to have a reunion. Right now, we need to break free from fate's control in order to be with our family again.” After hearing the story, Great Strength True Martial could not help but shout in anger, “This Fate Gu is too wicked!” At the same time, Strong Gu also shouted in his heart, “Experts hate restraints, especially fate.” Ren Zu patted Great Strength True Martial's head and consoled, “Don't worry, I have already thought of a way. I will use Self Gu to gain strength and wisdom, after which, I will obtain Freedom Gu and break free from Fate Gu's control. Now, let us go to a place called Qian Kun Crystal Wall; we will search for Wisdom Gu there.” Great Strength True Martial nodded, “Let us go there then.” Ren Zu and Great Strength True Martial walked and walked; the road was uneven, with many upslope and downslope roads. Strong Gu encouraged Great Strength True Martial, “Oh human, walk on the Upslope Road. Even though it is a harder journey, there are often good things there.” Great Strength True Martial nodded, “Experts like to walk on the Upslope Road.” Great Strength True Martial took great effort to walk up the Upslope Road. He looked around and called out, “There's nothing here at all.” “No, it is right by your feet; pick it up now,” Strong Gu instructed. Great Strength True Martial squatted down, searching the ground with his

hands. As expected, he found something hard; it was an invisible Gu. “I found something good,” Great Strength True Martial laughed. “So it is Effort Gu.” Ren Zu found it strange, “My son, how did you find out its name? We can't see what it looks like.” Great Strength True Martial scratched his head, “The moment I obtained it, I saw Effort Gu's appearance. As for why I know this is Effort Gu, well, every expert should know what effort is. This is natural; there is nothing strange about it. After all, you cannot see the effort of other people.” The pair of father and son set off again. “This is great; now that I have Effort Gu, it will help me greatly,” Great Strength True Martial walked as he looked at Effort Gu, feeling very happy. He continued to choose the Upslope Road. Ren Zu asked curiously, “Is Effort Gu really that amazing? Can it allow you to achieve success?” Great Strength True Martial shook his head, “Effort might not necessarily lead to success, but effort will give you a result. Regardless of the result, whether you put in effort or not will show a difference.” Ren Zu was very worried, “Oh son, you have just been born. Don't be deceived by the Gu. I had once been deceived by Wisdom Gu. I see that you are covered in sweat and pant heavily each time you walk on the Upslope Road. I do not see Effort Gu helping you at all. I've heard of such rumours too; Effort Gu can sometimes lie to you.” Great Strength True Martial shook his head as he wiped the sweat off his forehead, “Father, because you cannot see the effort I put in, you misunderstood things. You cannot understand the amount of effort I put in to walk this Upslope Road. Actually, the result of my effort is below my feet; every step, I move higher and further. There are many good things on the Upslope Road; humans cannot obtain them without effort.” “Is that really the case?” Ren Zu was half convinced and suspicious. Ren Zu and Great Strength True Martial continued on their journey. Great Strength True Martial kept walking on the Upslope Road; he continued to move up higher. He obtained Authority Gu and Fortitude Gu. In the later part of the road, he found Humility Gu and Forgiveness Gu as well. These two Gu worms took the initiative to follow Great Strength True Martial. Great Strength True Martial asked for the reason while they replied matter-of-factly, “Because humility (forgiveness) is the authority of an expert to begin

with.” Because Great Strength True Martial walked on the Upslope Road, an ability Gu suddenly appeared within him. Great Strength True Martial held Ability Gu as he said to Ren Zu, “Look father, this is the result of Effort Gu. It awakened my potential; I have my own ability now.” Ren Zu asked, “Then what is the use of this Ability Gu?” Great Strength True Martial shook his head, “I am not sure. People will only know their abilities and their strength after they use them. But it is definitely useful; it can last my entire lifetime.” Ren Zu shook his head; he still felt that his son was deceived by the Gu. Ren Zu and Great Strength True Martial continued walking, and the situation on the road was getting worse. The Downslope Road was easier to walk on, but it was getting rarer, and there were more and more segments of the Upslope Road. “Isn't there an easier road to walk on?” Ren Zu was helpless. Cognition Gu flew towards Ren Zu, “Oh human, there is no other way. The more valuable thing you try to pursue, the more segments of the Upslope Road you need to walk on, and the more Predicaments you need to overcome.” Ren Zu and Great Strength True Martial had to continue on their way. Indeed, as Cognition Gu had said, they encountered more and more Predicaments, and their road was completely blocked. Ren Zu said, “Don't be afraid of the Predicaments; we still have our hope.” “But hope alone cannot defeat the Predicament; at this time, you will need me,” Great Strength True Martial's Ability Gu spoke. Great Strength True Martial used his ability, defeating many Predicaments. Ren Zu sighed at long last, “My son, your Ability Gu is too amazing; it can actually do this. It seems I have underestimated your effort and ability.” Great Strength True Martial smiled, “Often, we humans do not lack abilities; we lack the opportunities to display them.” Strong Gu shouted in his heart with great ambition, “Kill them all; let's eat them all! That way, we can become even stronger.” Great Strength True Martial killed many Predicaments, and he started to eat the Predicaments' heads. “So this is a bitter head? It is really bitter. But I can feel myself getting stronger.” He started to eat the Predicament's loss. Great Strength True Martial immediately spat it out, “Experts do not like to swallow losses.”

He also ate the Predicament's flesh. Strong Gu got bigger, and Great Strength True Martial also became more muscular than before. Strong Gu was very satisfied with this change, “In this world, only by becoming stronger can one avoid getting bullied.” Great Strength True Martial gave some of the meat to Ren Zu, “Oh father, eat something; you are too skinny.” Ren Zu was so thin he looked like a rack of bones. Eventually, Great Strength True Martial tossed Ability Gu into the tribulation. Ability Gu went through great hurdles and difficulties, but it got larger and stronger as well. All sorts of tribulations and difficulties were prime opportunities to train one's ability, to develop one's ability, and to increase one's ability.