"I... I'm eighteen, how old are you?" Yan Yuning asked with difficulty.

  "Mm... I’m about twenty," Lang Tu furrowed his brows, seemingly uncertain about his exact age.

  "You don’t even know how old you are..." Yan Yuning started to speak, but before he could finish, he suddenly screamed, "Be careful!"

  Lang Tu, startled by the sudden cry, instinctively looked in the direction where Yan Yuning’s widened eyes were staring. He saw a snake as thick as an arm, flicking its crimson tongue, lunging toward him with lightning speed. Its body was adorned with colorful patterns that shimmered eerily in the sunlight, sending a chill down his spine.

  In the face of such danger, Lang Tu had no time to think. He quickly drew a black whip from his waist and swung it forcefully at the vicious snake. Though the whip sliced through the air with a sharp arc, striking the snake accurately, it showed no sign of retreating. Instead, it became even more frantic in its attack.

  "This snake is highly poisonous! Let go of me, or... you won’t survive either!" Yan Yuning said anxiously, beads of sweat rolling down his forehead, his voice trembling.

  "I haven’t married yet, so I’m not ready to die," Lang Tu smiled slightly, showing a confident grin.

  With swift movement, Lang Tu reached down and pulled out a slender silver needle from the side of his boot. The needle gleamed coldly in the sunlight, seeming capable of piercing through any obstacle.

  Lang Tu took a deep breath, and with a powerful swing of his arm, he hurled the silver needle like lightning at the snake.

  With a sharp "whoosh", the silver needle hit its mark, deeply embedding into the snake’s body.

  The snake let out a painful hiss, its body, once agile, became stiff, writhing and twisting on the ground in a futile attempt to break free from the binding, but it was all in vain.

  "Thank you... I’m Yan Yuning," Yan Yuning gasped, his eyes full of gratitude.

  "I’m Lang Tu," he said while looking at Yan Yuning.

  "You won’t lose anything by calling me 'big brother'," Lang Tu grinned wickedly, slowly lying back on the ground, one hand clutching his other arm.

  "You’re so skinny, yet pretty heavy," Lang Tu joked.

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  "Sorry... I... You should stay away from me, I’ve always attracted poisonous creatures," Yan Yuning lowered his eyes, nervously rubbing the corner of his clothes.

  Lang Tu was about to ask something when he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his arm. "Oh?... Ugh..." He couldn’t help but groan as he sprang up from the ground.

  Looking down, he saw a gigantic centipede that had appeared on the spot where he had just been lying! The centipede was as large as a basin, its body shimmering with an eerie black sheen, its countless long legs scuttling rapidly across the ground, making one’s scalp tingle with unease.

  Without a word, Lang Tu swiftly drew a gleaming dagger from his waist and, with a quick motion, stabbed it at the terrifying centipede.

  The moment he struck, a strong wave of dizziness surged through him, and he felt as if the world was spinning, his head swimming with confusion.

  At the same time, his legs seemed to lose all strength, becoming soft and incapable of supporting his body, and he was on the verge of collapsing.

  In that critical moment, Yan Yuning, quick on his feet, reached out and caught him.

  He quickly reached into his robe and pulled out a small, delicate porcelain bottle. He hurriedly opened it and carefully poured a pitch-black pill into Lang Tu’s slightly open mouth.

  Lang Tu instinctively opened his mouth and swallowed the pill in one gulp.

  Yan Yuning’s fingers accidentally brushed against Lang Tu’s soft, warm lips.

  He quickly pulled his hand back as if it had been burned, his face turning slightly red. "Th-this... this is an antidote pill that my master carefully concocted. You... don’t worry."

  Lang Tu, enduring the discomfort, blinked hard, trying to clear his vision.

  Suddenly, he noticed something moving not far away.

  Wait, what’s that?

  He focused and saw a scorpion, the size of a plate, rapidly crawling toward them with its massive pincers raised high, ready to strike.

  Following Lang Tu’s alarmed gaze, Yan Yuning quickly saw the scorpion charging in their direction.

  Not daring to waste any time, he swiftly drew a yellow talisman from his robe and, while chanting something under his breath, threw the talisman accurately at the scorpion.

  In an instant, the talisman ignited like flames and began to burn fiercely, crackling with a sizzling sound.

  "We should head back to the cave we were at earlier. I’ve scattered some medicinal powder there, it should be a bit safer..." Yan Yuning, pale-faced and shaking slightly with fear, suggested.

  "Your leg..." Lang Tu’s eyes had cleared up now, and he furrowed his brow in concern as he looked at the wound on Yan Yuning’s leg.

  "It’s nothing, just a small fall..." Yan Yuning tried to act nonchalant, but before he could finish, a loud "bang" sounded.

  Both of them jumped in alarm and quickly turned around.

  They saw a patch of ground not far away seemingly exploding in fireworks, crackling and burning. Among the flashing light, they could vaguely see a large, colorful spider writhing in agony.

  "A poisonous spider," a steady, slightly authoritative voice sounded.

  It was Master Yan Mingxin, who had appeared at some point. His eyes were sharp as he stared at the struggling spider, then turned to Lang Tu with a solemn expression.

  "Master, you’re here just in time! Quick, help Lang Tu, he was just bitten by the centipede..."

  Before Yan Yuning could finish, Master Yan Mingxin raised his hand to interrupt, his gaze fixed on Lang Tu, and said, "Wolf demon, what brings you to Hengyang Mountain?"