Wen Yin was a bit confused, but she nodded anyway.

'Since Senior Brother said so, I'll trust him.'

"Right, stay away from that man. Don't get close to him."

Yang An had originally planned to return to his residence, but he turned back to remind Wen Yin as he was walking away.

'Getting close is no good. Who knows what those guys are capable of? It's always better to be cautious.'

"Okay!"

Wen Yin understood Yang An's meaning and agreed.

Only then did Yang An leave, relieved. He quickly hurried back to his residence to continue preparing for his cultivation.

'Anyway, I refuse to believe that old bastard won't show himself.'

'If he really doesn't come out, he won't just be an enemy of the Great Virtue Temple, he'll also offend the Golden Thread Pavilion. Then he can just wait for death.'

In fact, things turned out exactly as Yang An had expected.

Barely half an hour had passed when he immediately sensed the Qi Seal he had left on the old bastard, which was rapidly appearing within the Life Crane Sect. 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

Yang An stopped what he was doing, a smile instantly spreading across his face.

'That son of a bitch really was secretly monitoring the sect!'

'I was right. This was the only way to force him out.'

As soon as Elder Life Crane returned, he immediately headed for the main hall where the man from the Golden Thread Pavilion was.

To Yang An's surprise, the Qi Seal on that man was still present. The guy was actually still waiting there. He was quite patient.

'Since he's willing to wait, this must be a big deal. As I thought, it all depends on what the old bastard wants.'

Yang An didn't know what the two of them discussed.

Before long, however, the man from the Golden Thread Pavilion left the Life Crane Sect, and the Qi Seal on him vanished, becoming impossible to sense.

「Meanwhile」

Inside the unnamed main hall of the Life Crane Sect.

Elder Life Crane stood with his hands behind his back. His gaze no longer followed the man who had just left; instead, it turned in another direction.

The place he was looking toward was precisely where Yang An's chosen residence was located.

"You're right. He can't be allowed to stay! He's already a traitor. Keeping him is useless!"

"The Magic Stele isn't fully repaired yet! I need more flesh and blood! You old fool, you shouldn't have come back. It's a waste of time!"

He Tou seemed to have regained much of his sanity, but his expression was still grim.

"Heh heh. To achieve our goals, we must first secure our footing here. We have no conflict with the Golden Thread Pavilion, so what does it matter if we feign compliance and submit for now?"

"All of this will be ours sooner or later!"

"So you're just going to stand here and waste my time, is that it? I want flesh and blood! I want more flesh and blood! Get moving already!"

"Once the Magic Stele is repaired, he's a dead man!"

He Tou seemed extremely impatient; it didn't want to wait another moment.

Yang An was different from the other disciples. It could already feel the threat he posed.

No one had ever been able to damage the Magic Stele before. Yang An was the first!

A threat must be eliminated!

But Elder Life Crane slowly shook his head.

"We still need time! But before that, we can't let him stay in the sect. For now, let's have him make a trip to Jinzhu City."

Jinzhu City was the capital of Zichuan State.

He had already agreed for the Life Crane Sect, as a new sect in Zichuan State, to submit to the Golden Thread Pavilion.

All sects that established themselves here had to do so; otherwise, the Golden Thread Pavilion would never allow such a sect to exist within its sphere of influence.

The man who had just visited was the City Lord of the Golden Thread Pavilion's San Valley City. The Life Crane Sect's current location was within San Valley City's jurisdiction.

The destruction of the Jade Flesh Sect and the establishment of the Life Crane Sect were matters that required reporting to the City Lord of San Valley City, a subordinate of the Golden Thread Pavilion.

It wasn't as simple as occupying the Jade Flesh Sect's territory and setting up shop.

There was a prerequisite: they needed to obtain the Golden Thread Pavilion's approval.

Therefore, someone had to be sent to the capital of Zichuan State to pay respects to the Golden Thread Pavilion's State Lord there and obtain a token called the "Golden Thread Sect Seal."

Only by possessing this token would they be considered a power truly recognized by the Golden Thread Pavilion.

Naturally, Elder Life Crane couldn't go himself. This task would, of course, be given to one of his disciples.

And Yang An was, naturally, the most suitable candidate.

First, the strength Yang An had displayed was already a threat to him.

Second, the Magic Stele still needed repairs.

Only by temporarily transferring him away from the Life Crane Sect could Elder Life Crane feel at ease.

"You've really taken on a fine disciple! A real freak!"

He Tou knew this was necessary for now and could only choose to endure it.

It had never felt so aggrieved, and the killing intent in its heart could no longer be concealed.

"This is normal. Since we've chosen this path, we're bound to encounter some unexpected situations."

"It's not like we haven't encountered them before. We have in the past, we are now, and we will in the future."

"But they all ended up as shattered pieces in our hands."

Elder Life Crane indeed seemed accustomed to it, his tone icy yet full of confidence.

"The final outcome is always the same. The Magic Stele is in our hands, and the Cultivation Technique is in our hands. They can never surpass us. They can only exist beneath you and me!"

"Cut the fucking crap! Just get on with it!"

He Tou couldn't stand to listen anymore and cursed furiously.

...

Back in his residence, Yang An sensed Wen Yin's aura approaching.

Soon, Wen Yin's voice came from outside.

"Senior Brother, Master summons you to the Dangerous Life Pavilion!"

'Dangerous Life Pavilion?'

'Is that the name the old bastard gave to that unnamed place?'

'What... shitty taste! What kind of nonsense is that!'

'But the old bastard suddenly summoning me can't be anything good.'

Their relationship was already at the point of a showdown. Yang An knew without even thinking that the old bastard was definitely going to target him.

'But I have to go. I need to get a close look at the old bastard's current condition to prepare.'

'If there's nothing wrong with his condition, then dealing with him anytime soon will probably be impossible.'

'But if his condition is abnormal, then that means it's just as I expected. That day isn't far off.'

After responding to Junior Sister Wen Yin, Yang An quickly left his residence and headed for the main hall.

Before long, Yang An arrived outside the main hall. He could already sense the malicious aura emanating from the old bastard.

Yang An didn't rush into the hall. Instead, he slowed his steps, carefully sensing the old bastard's aura.

However, he couldn't detect anything unusual. The old bastard seemed the same as always.

This made him hesitate.

'The day the old bastard left, something was clearly wrong. I must have inflicted an unrecoverable injury on him.'

'Could he have recovered so quickly?'

'Should I go in or not?'

Looking at the doorway before him, Yang An was filled with suspicion.

Just then, Elder Life Crane's voice came from inside.

"Disciple, since you're already here, why don't you come in?"

Yang An gave a slight smile.

"Without hearing your summons, Master, how could I dare enter? But since you wish to see me, I will."

'First, I'll assess the situation!'

Yang An made up his mind.

He prepared to summon the Unidentified Arrow from his Meat Burial Talisman at a moment's notice.

Although the Unidentified Arrow was not yet at Perfection, it wasn't far from it.

If not for the fact that his progress with the Celestial Gnomon Body and the Nine Forces Shocking Dragon hadn't reached a satisfactory level, he wouldn't be so wary.

On his guard, Yang An finally stepped into the main hall and saw Elder Life Crane facing him.

A faint smile was on Elder Life Crane's face, as if the two of them hadn't already torn all pretense away.

But He Tou, standing to the side, stared at him with undisguised, unrestrained killing intent.

"Master!"

Yang An's eyes were fixed on the old bastard. Even as he went through the motions of bowing, he didn't lower his guard.

"The Golden Thread Pavilion sent someone. I need you to go to the capital of Zichuan State, Jinzhu City, immediately! Go to Jinzhu City and retrieve the 'Golden Thread Sect Seal'!"

Elder Life Crane got straight to the point.

"What is the Golden Thread Sect Seal?"

Yang An asked, but not Elder Life Crane. He was asking the Bow Lady in his mind.

He didn't trust the old bastard.

The Bow Lady quickly explained the item to him.

"My Cultivation Level is low. I fear I won't be able to complete the task you've entrusted to me. Why don't you go yourself, Master?"

Yang An said, probing him.

Although he knew it wouldn't be so easy to sound out the old bastard's true condition, fundamentally, what did this have to do with a mere disciple like him?

"I have other important matters to attend to. You must go in my place this time. When you return, I will have another reward for you. How about I let you enter the Earth Spirit Stele once?"

Elder Life Crane said slowly.

But a trace of disdain appeared on Yang An's face.

'Back when we were outside the state, the old bastard said there would be a reward once we found a new Mountain Gate for the Life Crane Sect in the Treasure Temple Domain.'

'So... where's the reward?'

'Besides, he and the old bastard were already just feigning compliance with each other. How could the old bastard honestly let him enter the Earth Spirit Stele? He was probably too busy guarding against me to even consider it.'

Nevertheless, he nodded and agreed.

"Alright! I will go at once."

Hearing Yang An's response, a smile immediately appeared on Elder Life Crane's face.

"Then don't delay. Go quickly and return quickly."

"I will take my leave."

Yang An slowly backed away.

But just as he was about to exit the main hall, he stopped and his gaze suddenly shifted to He Tou.

"Master, why do you look so grim upon seeing me? Could it be that you don't wish to see your disciple?"

"..."

Yang An's sudden words stunned Elder Life Crane for a moment.

Neither Life Crane nor He Tou had expected him to say something like that.

Before Elder Life Crane could stop it, He Tou seemed to go berserk, suddenly transforming into a massive black shadow that lunged at Yang An.

BOOM!

A large hole instantly appeared in the newly built doorway of the main hall, but Yang An's figure had already vanished without a trace.

"I'll kill you! I'll kill you!"

Its attack having missed, easily dodged by Yang An, He Tou completely lost control and began to roar madly.

Meanwhile, a kilometer away, Yang An looked back at the spot and couldn't help but laugh.

'Just as I thought! Something's wrong with the old monster!'

'I sensed it!'

'There's nothing wrong with Elder Life Crane. The problem is with He Tou!'

'It must have been the last battle that caused this abnormality. He Tou's behavior is completely different from usual.'

'I don't know what's wrong with the old monster, but this is an absolutely perfect opportunity!'

'Looks like I need to hurry up!'

As for the task the old bastard had given him, he had only agreed verbally to make the old bastard lower his guard.

'Go to Jinzhu City in Zichuan State...'

'Go to hell!'

'You're a dead man! You son of a bitch!'

Yang An's gaze sharpened, and he quickly headed away from the Life Crane Sect.