Of course, even if Uncle had come to the conclusion that he had to kill Fang Yuan, he would not go through with it himself. For one, he had sold most of his gu worms to cut down on the cost of maintaining them. Not to mention he lacked the skillset after being idle for so long- and if he was caught, the punishment would be severe. To be tortured for seven days and nights before being killed- that was the punishment for trying to kill a fellow clan member! After all, blood was thicker than water, and in this world it was through clan ties that one could survive in this world.
As such, those who tried to kill fellow clan members were the lowest of the low- lower than scum! And if he was killed, his wife would be executed summarily as well. She was a mortal after all, and only through her affiliation with him did she have some veneer of protection.
Above all, he was not an experienced fighter even when he had been younger. He was not someone like Fang Yuan who had taken countless lives. He feared that when the time came to strike, he might hesitate with giving the final blow. Especially given this was after all, his own nephew.
The solution, then, obviously, was to get someone else to do it for him?
But who? Who could he trust? He was so secretive with this idea of his that he had not even informed his wife of what he was plotting. You couldn't just go around with a signpost saying 'assassin wanted.' How did people even arrange for these kinds of things?
However, after searching for several weeks in the seedier parts of Gu Yue Village, he was able to find out from a drunkard about how to get in contact with someone who would do something- anything- for the right price. A demonic cultivator who functioned as muscle-for higher. The drunkard didn't even remember the conversation the next day, but Uncle had found out how to contact the man.
And so, one month, under the light of a crescent moon, he wandered out of the village to its outer boundaries, whereupon, an hour later, a shadow jumped out of the darkness behind him.
Uncle froze, feeling the chill of death behind him. "Is... is it you?"
"Yes," a voice said, as someone walked out of the shadows. The aura of a Rank 3 Gu Master emanated from this figure who was dressed from head to toe in black rags. "I do not know you stranger- though the fact that you're here means that you are up to no good."
"Who.... who are you?"
"I go by many names. Dark Claw. Night Shadow. Black Dagger. The Gu Master Formerly Known As Dark Claw after that other demonic Gu Master accused me of stealing his name. For now though, I simply call myself Noir Wings!"
"...never heard of you..." Uncle said.
"Yes, well, I keep changing my name, hoping to find something that's cooler than the last, something that leaves a lasting impression, you know," Noir Wings said. "Something more mysterious..."
"I need a job done," Uncle said, getting to the point.
"Then you have come to the right place," Noir Wings said.
"It's a tough job- and risky."
"I am no stranger to risk," Noir Wings said. "When I was a child, my village underwent a famine, and my parents abandoned me in the wilderness. There, I was adopted by a pack of wolves who took me in as one of their own; but then who also abandoned me two weeks later. Then, I managed to find the inheritance of a Rank 3 Gu Master, but then a Gu Master discovered it too and then beat me up before tossing me aside. But when he did so, I managed to find the inheritance of a Rank 5 Gu Master, and I cultivated until I was Rank 3. I then went to go take revenge on my village for abandoning me, only to see that it had already been destroyed by wolves six months earlier. I then went to go take revenge on the Gu Master who beat me, only to see that he had already been killed by another Gu Master. I then went to go take revenge on the wolf pack for abandoning me, but they had been chased out and killed by a pack of bears. Since then, I have wandered this world, a lone demon on a journey looking for purpose. An odyssey over a phantom sea filled with perils and nightmares, only my own wits and judgement to guide me-"
Noir Wings was stopped in his tracks as there was a loud noise.
"What was that? A bear?" Uncle wondered.
"No, that was my stomach- I haven't eaten anything in several days," Noir Wings said. "Do you have anything to eat?"
"...there's some beef jerky I brought along..."
"Many thanks," Noir Wings said. "Being a demonic cultivator isn't easy... I need food... and oftentimes can't get it... so what is this job you need?"
Uncle gulped, scared to even say it. Were there eyes or investigative gu watching him right now? If so, he would be heavily implicated in a crime. "I need you to kill someone."
"Fine, but my only rule is that I don't do children- unless the child in question is a jerk, for which I'll make an exception," Noir Wings said.
"This is him," Uncle said, handing Noir Wings a sketch of Fang Zheng- which was a sketch of Fang Yuan for all intents and purposes. "Five days from now, there will be an examination out in the fields. He'll be vulnerable then."
This would be the best and only opportunity to strike at Fang Yuan. He had a tendency to wander the village, but no one could get to him there obviously. When he wandered outside of the village, Uncle would not know where and when he was going out. Once he graduated it would be even more difficult as he would gain access to more powerful gu worms, and would be accompanied by teammates. An 'accident' could always happen then, but one could not rely on that. And that would mean collaborating with a few other people, which he absolutely did not want to do.
"The exam will be guarded, but mostly by Rank 2 Gu Masters," Uncle said. "Are you up for the job?"
"Definitely."
"Oh, and one thing- make sure that you target Fang Yuan and not Fang Zheng. They look alike, being twins, but Fang Yuan will have a golden moonlight gu pin on his chest, not silver, understood?"
"Now... about payment..."
"Here," Uncle said, handing over five hundred primeval stones. "This much now, and the rest later."
"Whoa- that's a lot of primeval stones," Noir Wings said, his voice changing as he broke character for a moment. He would've been willing to do it for half of this amount. Being a demonic cultivator really was hard and one had to scrounge and scrape for resources.
"Oh Lord..." Uncle said, beginning to think that he had made a mistake- not in trying to kill Fang Yuan, but hiring this guy to do it. The fact that he was this shocked by that amount proved that he was likely quite hopeless. He had been willing to pay more of course, but
"Wait, say that again?"
"Oh?"
"No, after that."
"Lord?"
"Yes, wait," Noir Wings said. "Lord... I wanted a mysterious name... Lord... Mysteries... Mysteries... Lord.... I feel like there's a really cool name there, but just on the tip of my tongue..." Noir Wings said. "I know! Mysterious Lord! Aha! Yes, that's what I'll call myself now!"