Yang An didn't know what to say.
Telling him to kill a Visceral Stone Realm True Master was no different from throwing an egg against a rock. It was a suicide mission.
If that was the case, he would rather resist. If he had to die, he would die with dignity.
Seeing the reactions of Mother Divination True Master and Yang An, He Tou let out a strange, mocking laugh.
Fortunately, Elder Life Crane spoke up and stopped its nonsense.
He looked at the terrified Mother Divination True Master and said flatly:
"There's no need for you. The Children under your command will suffice."
Mother Divination True Master instantly breathed a sigh of relief.
"Senior, I can summon as many Children as you require. They are merely my meat slaves. Is ten enough?"
In her eyes, the Glue Insect Children were nothing more than used-up Tripod Furnaces she had already drained dry, so she naturally didn't care about them at all.
'Ten?'
Yang An's eyelid twitched.
'Is this a test to become Elder Life Crane's disciple? Do I have to kill ten Glue Insect Children?'
'What am I supposed to kill them with?'
'My Lighting Technique alone?'
Yang An had always believed that killing Demon Fiends and that Filthy Daoist, Kong Shuai, with his Lighting Technique had been pure luck.
If he had to face creatures like them head-on, he would never achieve the same results.
Although he didn't know how strong these Glue Insect Children were, he definitely couldn't handle ten of them at once.
Yang An could only look pleadingly at Elder Life Crane, hoping he would go easy on him and give him a simpler task.
But to his surprise, the old man's next words were even more shocking.
"Ten? Not enough! I want fifty!"
Then, Elder Life Crane added nonchalantly,
"And they must be at least at the Fake Food Realm."
"..."
Yang An finally understood.
'These two heads on Elder Life Crane's shoulders... don't be fooled by the old man's kind face. Neither of them is any good.'
'One wants me to kill Mother Divination True Master.'
'The other wants me to kill fifty Glue Insect Children, all at the Fake Food Realm Cultivation Level or higher.'
It was as if he had become Elder Life Crane's plaything, to be manipulated at will.
Enjoying the show, Mother Divination True Master couldn't hold back and burst out laughing, her body shaking like a flower in the wind.
He Tou, however, gave Elder Life Crane a disappointed look. "How dull!"
Yang An still mustered the courage to look at Elder Life Crane.
He had to resist. Otherwise, he could already imagine what a horrible death awaited him.
"Senior! Fifty is too many! I think..."
But before he could finish, the huge, ferocious crane head shot in front of him in an instant, its pair of wicked eyes staring him down.
"Little guy, do you think this is a business negotiation? That you can bargain?"
"Either do it, or die!"
GULP.
Yang An swallowed hard. At that moment, he felt a suffocating sense of impending death, leaving him unable to argue.
He Tou gave a cold smirk and retracted its head. Elder Life Crane remained impassive the entire time.
Meanwhile, Mother Divination True Master, still watching as if it were a play, clapped her hands.
CLAP! CLAP!
In an instant, Yang An was once again enveloped by endless darkness. But soon, dozens of Glue Insect Children began to appear one after another around him.
These disgusting creatures were like puppets being manipulated, standing woodenly across from Yang An, waiting for a command to swarm him.
Yang An felt immense pressure and could only grit his teeth.
'I'll risk it all!'
While the Glue Insect Children were still motionless, he took the initiative and released his Bone Relic Buddha Radiance.
A circular Light Wheel appeared behind Yang An's head, emitting a powerful, sacred, and solemn white light.
At the same time, he pressed his left hand against the freshly scabbed wound on his right hand and ripped it downwards. The wound tore open again, and a sharp pain shot up from his hand as blood gushed out.
VMMMM!
A fireball the size of a human head suddenly appeared above Yang An's right hand and began to expand rapidly.
The white light and the red glow of the fire intertwined, illuminating the area several meters around Yang An.
Both the Bone Relic Buddha Radiance and the flames of the Lighting Technique had a common effect: they could repel Evil Demons, or at least keep them from getting close.
The closer they got to him, the more damage they would take.
But Yang An didn't want to just sit and wait for death. He saw his chance, and just as the dozens of Glue Insect Children began to move, he chose a target and charged.
For this battle, his blood alone would be far from enough.
He had to use the blood of these monsters to create even a sliver of hope for survival.
At that very moment, unseen by Yang An, three pairs of eyes watched his every move from within the darkness.
"Is that Buddha's Radiance? How can a mere mortal manifest Buddha's Radiance? Could he be the reincarnation of some Buddhist Cultivator?"
"This Buddha's Radiance has a foul aura. It isn't pure. It must have been manifested with the help of an external object."
He Tou stared at the Light Wheel behind Yang An's head, confused, and stretched its neck to get a better look.
Elder Life Crane, on the other hand, saw through it with just a glance.
Mother Divination True Master, waiting at the side, seemed to have thought of something.
"I heard that the old Monk at the White Buddha Temple, several hundred li away, is trying to create a 'Sacred Buddha'. Perhaps this is related."
"White Buddha Temple? Never heard of it. What backwater temple is this?"
He Tou said with great disdain.
"Behind the White Buddha Temple... might be the Great Virtue Temple!"
"Great Virtue Temple? Heh heh."
Upon hearing that name, He Tou let out a cold laugh.
While the three were talking, Yang An had already managed to charge up to one of the Glue Insect Children. With his left hand, he drew the small knife from his waist and slashed down, but the result was not what he expected.
The body, formed from countless disgusting gooey insects, didn't bleed a single drop when cut by the knife. Instead, even more slime oozed from the surface of the severed insects.
Yang An seized the opportunity to press the flames in his right hand against it, but he couldn't ignite it. The slime splattered onto his hand instead, making a SIZZLING sound.
A burning sensation instantly shot through his hand. He quickly pulled it back, and the high temperature immediately burned the slime into wisps of white smoke.
'It's not blood! I can't ignite it!'
Yang An's heart sank. 'This is bad,' he thought, and quickly retreated.
Many of the surrounding Glue Insect Children were already charging him. They were fast, and with countless globs of slime splattering through the air, they reached him in the blink of an eye.
By comparison, Yang An wasn't fast enough. He was immediately tackled and knocked to the ground by a Glue Insect Child.
Countless mouthparts suddenly appeared on the indistinct mass of gooey insects, and they began to gnaw frantically at his flesh.
If he could have ignited the Glue Insect Children, Yang An might have had a chance to survive. But the earlier result was like a bucket of cold water dumped on him—the Lighting Technique couldn't ignite them at all.
The other Glue Insect Children pounced immediately after, burying Yang An in an instant.
Yang An was instantly overwhelmed by pain from all over his body, as if countless saws were frantically tearing at his flesh and blood.
In just a moment, he could physically feel his life force draining away. His body was covered in countless wounds torn open by the mouthparts, and warm, wet blood was pouring out.
At this rate, he would be dead in a matter of breaths!
"FUCK YOU!"
Yang An, furious and humiliated, grit his teeth. He struggled with all his might to free his right hand and slammed it against his own chest.
'If I can't ignite these things, then I'll ignite myself! At worst, my blood will run dry, and we'll all die together!'
VMMMM!
The next moment, a pillar of fire erupted in the darkness, instantly illuminating the entire area.
The countless Glue Insect Children that had swarmed and piled on top of him were instantly devoured by the suddenly expanding flames. They didn't even have time to scream before they were melted into ash.
In the darkness, the firelight illuminated Elder Life Crane's aged face. A genuine smile touched the corners of his lips.
"Not bad! That's how the Lighting Technique is supposed to be used!"