The Demon with Holy Radiance-Chapter 179 - 163: Fu Ming! Are You the 100,000 Whys?

This scene, coupled with Elder Life Crane's words, instantly made Yang An's scalp tingle.

'What are you waiting for? Run!'

He didn't hesitate for a second. He summoned the Buddha's Radiant Wheel, and several streams of Golden Radiance instantly drilled into his chest, churning his organs. Driven by the searing pain, he immediately unleashed his Light and Shadow Escape Technique at full power, covering a thousand meters in the blink of an eye.

'The old bastard is done with his Raising Gu experiment! He's starting the final reckoning!'

Even though he had seen what happened to Jin Tong and Ji Bu—swallowed by He Tou in an instant without any resistance—and their fate was a clear warning, Yang An had no choice but to flee.

'Who could have expected the old bastard to suddenly turn on them!'

But just as Yang An fled several thousand meters in a few blinks of an eye, about to reach the edge of the Life Crane Sect, he didn't see the old man make a move against him. Instead, a familiar voice suddenly echoed in his ear.

"Little disciple, why are you running?"

"I still have things to entrust to you later. Be a good boy and stay put!"

It was He Tou!

The moment he heard the voice, all of Yang An's movements came to an abrupt halt.

It wasn't that he wanted to stop; an invisible force had suddenly frozen him in place, making it impossible to move.

His mind could still think, but his body was as stiff as a stone. The Mana within him felt frozen, completely unresponsive.

'This is bad!'

'Is this old bastard saving me for last, like some kind of dessert?!'

Unease filled Yang An's heart. Fortunately, he could still use the Celestial Gnomon Light; Mana wasn't the only power within his body.

But when Yang An immediately activated his Celestial Gnomon Body, bathing himself in a searing white light, he still couldn't break free from the invisible shackles.

He couldn't move an inch. 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

Not only could he not discern what kind of power was restraining him, but he couldn't even sense the slightest aura of power. This meant it wasn't some kind of Technique.

'Could it be the Power of Rules from a Forbidden Artifact Fragment?'

That was the first thing that came to Yang An's mind.

The old bastard's Cultivation Level was at least at the Zombie God realm, so he must have control over many Forbidden Artifact Fragments.

It was the only explanation that made sense.

With his Mana locked and unable to even open his Secret Seal Space, Yang An had no way to escape. He could only extend his senses to monitor the situation where the old man was.

Meanwhile, after Yang An had fled, only Elder Life Crane and Fu Ming remained amidst the ruins of the Heavenly Respect Pavilion.

Fu Ming hadn't run. He just looked at Elder Life Crane and suddenly started to laugh, coughing as he did.

"I knew it... I knew it!"

"Master, we are master and disciple. I served by your side for a full hundred years! Did you never once think of letting us go?"

As Fu Ming spoke, word by word, fleshy tentacles covered in black fuzz began to sprout continuously from the ground. The ruins of the Life Crane Sect quickly transformed into a forest of flesh and tentacles.

Elder Life Crane seemed in no hurry to finish off Fu Ming. After hearing his words, he couldn't help but laugh as well.

"Disciple, I know what you're thinking. You're a clever one. You sensed my intentions from the very beginning, didn't you?"

"Over all these years, I've seen everything you've done. You were an obedient child, and I was very pleased with your disposition."

"But your secret actions have disappointed me greatly. I never stopped you. If you had just been obedient, I could have let bygones be bygones."

Life Crane spoke slowly, word by word. It seemed his feelings for Fu Ming were indeed different from the others.

But this immediately drew He Tou's dissatisfaction.

"What crap are you spewing, you old bastard? Showing off your mercy? How much is your mercy worth?"

"If you won't do it, then let me! Just shut your mouth and stay quiet!"

After scolding Elder Life Crane, He Tou turned his cold gaze to Fu Ming.

"You sickly weakling! You spent decades planting an Array in the Life Crane Sect. We knew everything you were doing, but do you know why we didn't stop you?"

At this, a derisive sneer spread across He Tou's face.

"Because you're too weak!"

"Did you think enveloping the entire Life Crane Sect in an Array would be enough to deal with us?"

"Did you think the old bastard was really taking pity on you with all that talk?"

"No!"

"We just wanted to personally shatter everything you've arranged, to show you what a true gap in power looks like."

"You're just a Corpse Transformation! A piece of dreg! And we are Zombie Gods!"

"The strongest Zombie Gods!"

"In the face of true power, all your plans are pathetically weak! This is a chasm you can never cross! HAHAHAHA!"

He Tou let out a wild laugh, filled with wanton arrogance and disdain.

The moment he finished speaking, he transformed into a black shadow and shot toward Fu Ming, appearing before him in an instant.

He Tou had suddenly expanded, becoming a bird head several zhang large. It opened its beak wide, attempting to swallow Fu Ming in a single gulp.

But at that very moment, Fu Ming's body suddenly dissolved into countless bits of flesh and blood, melting into the ground below and dodging the attack.

This was the same attack that even Jin Tong and Ji Bu couldn't dodge.

Seeing that he had failed to swallow Fu Ming, He Tou's eyes widened, and his expression suddenly turned ugly.

'He dodged it?!'

'Fu Ming actually dodged it! How is that possible?!'

The reason even Jin Tong and Ji Bu couldn't evade that bite was because it contained the Power of Rules from a Forbidden Artifact Fragment.

Each Forbidden Artifact contains completely different Rules, and while a Forbidden Artifact Fragment is just a piece with only a small portion of that power...

...against a Cultivator below the Zombie God realm, it is an irresistible force.

But now, Fu Ming had easily dodged it...

WHOOSH—

He Tou instantly returned to Elder Life Crane's shoulder.

"Something's not right! This guy..."

"He has a Forbidden Artifact Fragment!"

Only the Power of Rules can fight Rules! And only a Forbidden Artifact can fight a Forbidden Artifact!

'But Fu Ming is just a Corpse Transformation! A Corpse Transformation can't fuse with a Forbidden Artifact Fragment!'

'A mere Corpse Transformation would undoubtedly die the moment it came into contact with the power of a Forbidden Artifact Fragment!'

'Then he...'

Elder Life Crane's expression also turned grim. Fu Ming's performance had completely exceeded their expectations.

To be precise, it had gone beyond their control!

"HAHAHAHA! Master! I bet you never expected this!"

At that moment, a laugh suddenly echoed throughout the sky above the Life Crane Sect. It was Fu Ming's voice, and it had no discernible source, seeming to come from everywhere at once.

As the voice appeared, a breeze suddenly kicked up, swirling clouds of dust from the ruins of the Life Crane Sect.

Suddenly, the ground covered in fleshy tentacles began to glow with streaks of red light, as if red lines were suddenly appearing.

They grew denser and denser.

The red light blazed across the entire Life Crane Sect, even reaching Yang An's position.

It covered the entire grounds of the Life Crane Sect, dyeing the whole world red.

Seeing this, Yang An, who was thousands of meters away near the edge of the Life Crane Sect, felt his expression change.

'If he wants me to stay put, he should at least guarantee my safety.'

But what was happening now also included him, and his sense of crisis intensified.

'Who could've thought that Fu Ming had this trick up his sleeve!'

But he was completely unable to break free of the old bastard's restraint. If he got caught in the crossfire, it would be a disaster!

Right now, he couldn't even speak, let alone call out to the old man. His only hope was for the old man to release the restraint on his own initiative.

But it was as if the old bastard had completely forgotten about him, paying him no attention at all.

'Damn it! That old bastard really screwed me over!'

Yang An's mind raced. The red light intensified until his entire field of vision turned blood-red, even more vibrant than when it was shrouded in the blood mist earlier. A strange aura suddenly permeated the entire Life Crane Sect.

He grew more and more anxious. He had to find a way to break free immediately.

In this moment of crisis, as his mind spun, Yang An's eyes suddenly lit up. He had an idea.

'The Tree of Flesh and Blood! The Workshop Master!'

Until now, he only knew that the Workshop Master was the owner of the Jade Refining Workshop and the founder of the Scripture Defector Association. Everything else about him, including his Cultivation Level, was a mystery.

Based on his past interactions, he suspected the Workshop Master's Cultivation Level was likely at the Zombie God realm or even higher.

If he could contact the Workshop Master, perhaps he could help.

It seemed to be his only option.

His consciousness was still active; his thoughts weren't restrained. He immediately submerged his consciousness into the Tree of Flesh and Blood in his mind and sent a message to the Workshop Master.

Yang An: "URGENT! URGENT! Workshop Master, help me! I've been immobilized by a Forbidden Artifact Fragment. How do I get free? Waiting online! It's extremely urgent!"

As soon as the message was sent, a fruit representing He Tou and the Light Wheel grew on the Tree of Flesh and Blood.

When he saw the fruit appear, a few bloody scratches quickly formed on it, and Yang An's heart burned with anxiety.

He didn't know if the other members of the Scripture Defector Association were gloating over his misfortune, but he had no time to worry about that now.

Just then, a fruit resembling a striped mask appeared. The Workshop Master had replied.

"What happened? Who did you provoke? Why are you immobilized by a Forbidden Artifact Fragment? What kind of Power of Rules is it?"

'Are you asking me twenty questions?!!'

Yang An received the message, which was a barrage of questions.

Although he knew the Workshop Master needed this information, he couldn't help but feel frantic. But this was a critical moment; there was no time to waste.

"An invisible power, with no aura of a Technique, just pure restraining force. I can't move, only my consciousness is free!"

"The situation is critical! Workshop Master, just tell me, is there a way to leverage this Power of Rules and let me escape? Urgent! Very urgent!"

Yang An gave a brief description and sent the message again.

Soon, the Workshop Master's reply came.

"Yes!"

"..."

...

The red light enveloped the entire Life Crane Sect. It wasn't merely light; it looked more like countless interwoven and fused lines.

In other words, it wasn't light, but lines!

Countless red lines!

The jungle of fleshy tentacles on the ground began to swell, connecting to one another to form a gigantic net that covered the entire Life Crane Sect.

A SLITHERING sound was heard as a body of flesh and blood quickly condensed from a section of the fleshy net.

It was Fu Ming!

But Fu Ming's appearance had changed drastically. His entire body was covered in black fuzz, and he was connected to countless fleshy tentacles. Blood flowed down these tentacles, dripping onto the ground and instantly evaporating into a blood mist.

His original facial features had vanished, his face now a blur, but one could almost see a smile on it.

"Master! You could never imagine what I've endured all these years to fuse with this Forbidden Artifact Fragment!"

"And you'd even less imagine that I'm not actually a Corpse Transformation!"

"I... am also a Zombie God!"