Do You Want a Dead Disciple?!

The flames shooting into the sky lasted for two breaths before quickly dwindling, until only a faint remnant of fire remained.

Yang An panted violently. The Lighting Method he had cast himself could not burn him within a short period of time.

So although he appeared to be at the center of the flames, he had not actually suffered any burning.

Instead, because he had ignited all his wounds, the rapid loss of blood had left him at his weakest.

There was not a shred of strength left in his entire body, as if he had been drained dry.

The black stains left behind by his scorched blood made him look a complete mess, like a corpse wrapped in black mud.

Although the flames had instantly destroyed the Muckworm Children crushing him, the situation was still far from optimistic.

At least half of the Muckworm Children around him remained unharmed, staring at him like tigers eyeing their prey, ready to pounce again at any moment.

Yang An summoned all his strength and tried to climb up from the ground, only to find that even moving a finger was difficult.

Hoo—

He let out a long breath and finally gave up struggling.

Come on! All of you!

Face me head-on!

The remaining Muckworm Children observed him for a while. Once they confirmed that Yang An had no strength left to resist, they swarmed toward him again.

A foul wind struck his face. Yang An simply closed his eyes. Things had already come to this—what else could he do but keep lying there?

But at that moment.

Clap! Clap!

A crisp sound of applause rang out in the darkness.

The Muckworm Children that had been lunging at Yang An vanished without a trace in an instant.

"Boring!"

Crane Head shot Mother Diviner True Person a vicious glare. It knew Old Man Fate Crane had deliberately told Mother Diviner True Person to stop at the right point.

Yang An had been preparing to meet death, thinking, My life ends here, yet nothing happened afterward.

When he opened his eyes again, Old Man Fate Crane had somehow appeared before him, squinting at him with that kind and benevolent face.

Yang An could not say a word. He was already at death's door and could only stare helplessly at Old Man Fate Crane.

What else did this old man want?

"Tsk tsk, that's all you've got? Too fragile!"

Crane Head poked out from the side, disdainfully tossing out cold sarcasm.

"Not bad, but not enough."

Old Man Fate Crane smiled faintly, then stretched out his withered, aged hand and slowly touched Yang An's chest beneath his gaze.

His black fingernails, like beast claws, gently pried open one of Yang An's wounds.

Though Yang An could not move, a sense of foreboding suddenly rose in his heart.

Buzzz!

The next moment, Yang An was once again engulfed and devoured by flames soaring into the sky.

The endless red blaze seemed determined to drain every last drop of blood from his body, leaving nothing behind.

Yang An's eyes widened. He had never expected this old man to pull something like this right before his death.

That devilish smile seemed to pierce through the flames and stamp itself directly onto Yang An's heart.

Fuck—your—mother!

Yang An trembled all over, gathering his final shred of strength to glare viciously at Old Man Fate Crane through the firelight, letting out a soundless roar.

Crane Head began cackling sharply, as though the sight delighted it beyond measure.

The flames, like a final flash before death, lasted only two breaths before swiftly extinguishing. But Yang An's consciousness had completely grown muddled, and he was only one step away from death.

He was now like a completely desiccated corpse, as if he could shatter into pieces at any moment.

But just then, Old Man Fate Crane's delighted laughter reached his ears.

"To remain rational for so long within the Lighting Method as a mere mortal—this old man has never seen the like. This boy is no ordinary person!"

"It seems I have finally found a disciple who satisfies me! Hahaha!"

The threshold for the Lighting Method was very low. Anyone could learn it, but that did not mean everyone was qualified to use it.

Those with fragile minds might fall completely mad after using it only once.

Even those with resolute minds would rapidly descend into madness after consuming too much of their own blood, eventually suffering the backlash of the Lighting Method.

That was why Old Man Fate Crane had deliberately spread the Lighting Method far and wide.

Only those who could remain rational under the Lighting Method's effects for long enough were qualified to become his disciples and inherit his legacy.

Yet Yang An had not been affected from beginning to end. Even after all the blood in his body had been exhausted, he could still remain rational and unaffected.

He was the only person Old Man Fate Crane had seen in all these years who could achieve such a thing!

And he was absolutely the person most suited to cultivate the Fate Crane Sect's lineage!

"..."

Yang An lay silently on the ground. Though he had heard Old Man Fate Crane's words, he was not happy in the slightest.

Because he was about to die!

If he had the strength to speak right now, he would have used every ounce of strength in his body to question the old man before him:

If you don't save me soon, the corpse will be cold. Do you want a dead disciple?!

Perhaps Old Man Fate Crane sensed Yang An's urgency. He chuckled, then looked toward Mother Diviner True Person.

"Mother Diviner, lend me two egg yolks!"

Without waiting to see whether Mother Diviner True Person agreed, a pained grunt suddenly came from her mouth.

The next moment, two fleshy eggs still streaked with blood appeared in Old Man Fate Crane's hand.

He crushed the fleshy eggs, and the golden egg fluid fell straight into Yang An's mouth.

At that moment, Yang An felt a warm current in his mouth, as though someone had poured steaming, thick bone broth down his throat, accompanied by an unfamiliar exotic fragrance.

The warmth entered from his mouth and quickly spread through his limbs and bones, as though it had filled his entire body in an instant.

It was like someone who had frozen in ice and snow for three days and three nights suddenly entering a warm, air-conditioned room.

No one knew how much time passed.

Hah—

With his chest rising and falling and his heart beating clearly, Yang An suddenly drew a sharp breath and shot upright from the ground.

He gulped down the seemingly foul air of the darkness. At that moment, his mind returned to complete clarity, and that despairing sensation of suffocation that could strike at any moment finally left him. He could no longer feel it.

Looking down, he saw that aside from his clothes, which were riddled with tears and holes, every wound on his body had vanished. He had recovered as though nothing had happened.

Yang An only felt that his condition had never been better. He was brimming with inexhaustible strength and vigor.

"Congratulations to Senior Fate Crane on accepting such an excellent disciple!"

Mother Diviner True Person's timely flattery came from beside him.

Only then did Yang An belatedly raise his head and look at the figure standing before him, at that face which had remained kind and benevolent all along.

Crane Head looked at him as if to say that it was a pity.

"This kid looks like an idiot to me. How about you let me eat him?"

"..."

Hearing that, Yang An felt that if he did not do something now, Crane Head might really eat him.

He immediately sprang up from the ground, then dropped to his knees and bowed to the figure before him.

"This disciple greets Master!"

Seeing Yang An move so swiftly, Old Man Fate Crane was immediately overjoyed and burst into hearty laughter.

For a time, the air seemed filled with cheerful delight.