139: Chapter 139 Don't use lightning magic! That's just adding food to someone else's buffet!

At the end of the passage was a half-open bronze door.

The waves of shrill screams and chaotic explosions were coming from behind that door.

"Help! What the hell are these things?!"

"Master Zhang! Hurry, use Lightning Arts! Strike them to death!"

"I... I'm trying! But it's useless! The more I strike them, the more there are!"

Su Yang led the three women to the doorway, peeked inside, and immediately felt amused.

This was a circular burial pit, filled with long-decayed chariots and weapons.

At this moment, a "battle between man and insect" was unfolding at the bottom of the pit.

The protagonists were none other than the arrogant Young Master Wang from the capital—Wang Kai, whom they had met at the "Dragon Gate Inn" earlier—and that unlucky disgraced disciple of Maoshan, Master Zhang.

Besides the two of them, there were seven or eight fully armed mercenaries.

However, they looked extremely disheveled and pathetic right now.

They were surrounded by a swarm of beetles, only the size of a fist, but with golden bodies and large mandibles.

These beetles were densely packed, surging like a golden tide, numbering at least a thousand.

"By the urgent order of the law! Five Thunders Strike! Command!"

Master Zhang was drenched in sweat, clutching the last few lightning talismans in his hand, frantically throwing them into the swarm of insects.

Boom! Boom!

Lightning flashed and exploded.

However, a bizarre scene occurred.

After being struck by the lightning, those beetles not only didn't die, but they seemed to have taken stimulants; their golden carapaces became even more dazzling, and they even grew a size larger!

Zzzzt!

They vibrated their wings, emitting a shrill buzzing sound. As their mandibles opened and closed, they actually spat out small arcs of electricity, shocking the group of mercenaries and making them scream in agony.

"Idiots."

Su Yang leaned against the doorframe, shaking his head while peeling a wild walnut he had picked up on the road.

"Those are Thunder-Swallowing Golden Beetles."

"They are exotic insects from ancient times specifically used to guard the Thunder God Temple. They are usually in a dormant state and only awaken when they sense the power of lightning."

"Their favorite food is lightning."

"You're blasting them with lightning talismans?"

Su Yang tossed the walnut kernel into his mouth and crunched it loudly.

"How is that any different from serving them a buffet?"

"And a deluxe, extra-large portion at that."

"Who?! Who's making sarcastic remarks over there?!"

Hearing the voice, Wang Kai at the bottom of the pit snapped his head up.

When he saw Su Yang standing at the high vantage point watching the show, he was stunned at first, then, as if he had seen a lifeline, he became so excited that snot bubbles even came out of his nose.

"Big Boss! Big Boss Su!"

"Save me! Please, save me!"

"As long as you save me, I'll give you money! I'll give you shares! I'll give you half of the Wang family's fortune!"

"Half of your fortune?"

Su Yang raised an eyebrow, but the next second, he sighed.

"Forget it, I'm not interested in money."

"Besides, look how enthusiastic these little cuties are; how could I bear to disturb their meal?"

"No—! Don't go! I beg you!"

Seeing Su Yang making a move to leave, Wang Kai completely broke down.

Just then, a Thunder-Swallowing Golden Beetle broke through the defensive line and jumped directly onto a mercenary's face.

Snap!

The sharp mandibles instantly bit through the gas mask, followed by a hair-raising chewing sound.

"Ah!!!"

The mercenary clutched his face and rolled on the ground, going silent in less than three seconds.

And that beetle, after consuming human blood, saw its carapace turn a bizarre dark red.

"Is this... berserk?"

Su Yang's eyes narrowed slightly.

It would be fine if these bugs only ate lightning, but once they tasted human blood, they would become extremely aggressive.

If they were allowed to evolve into Blood Beetles, cleaning them up would be quite troublesome.

"Alright, stop yelling."

Su Yang brushed the walnut crumbs off his hands.

"Considering we are all fellow countrymen, I can help out once."

"However..."

Su Yang pointed at the beetles.

"The corpses of these bugs belong to me."

"They're yours! Everything is yours! Even I can be yours!" Wang Kai shouted incoherently.

"Get lost, I'm not interested in men."

Su Yang rolled his eyes at him in disgust, then turned to look at Mary behind him.

"Mary, don't just stand there."

"Although these bugs eat lightning, they are afraid of fire."

"How many of those incendiary grenades do you have left?"

"Two cases left!"

Mary's eyes lit up; she immediately understood her boss's intent.

She took two red spheres from her backpack; these were modified high-temperature napalm grenades.

"Hehe, time to make some teppanyaki for them!"

"Throw!"

Whoosh! Whoosh!

The two incendiary grenades traced a beautiful arc and landed precisely in the densest part of the insect swarm.

Boom—!

With a loud explosion, a sea of crimson fire instantly spread across the bottom of the pit.

"Screeech—!"

The Thunder-Swallowing Golden Beetles, which had been so arrogant just a moment ago, immediately descended into chaos upon encountering the high-temperature flames.

Metal conducts heat quickly.

Their indestructible golden carapaces, at this moment, became a fatal flaw.

Crackle, pop!

Like roasting beans, the beetles were burned until they burst open, emitting a... surprisingly delicious charred aroma, somewhat like roasted crab roe.

"Little White Strip, don't just watch."

Su Yang watched the beetles trying to fly away.

"Alternating between hot and cold makes them easier to shatter."

"Cool them down!"

"Roar!"

The Little White Strip on his wrist roared and exhaled a breath of cold air.

Sizzle—!

The beetles, which had just been scorched red by the fire, encountered the extreme cold and instantly emitted a series of crisp cracking sounds.

Crack! Crack!

The originally incredibly hard carapaces were instantly covered in cracks, shattering into golden dust with the slightest touch.

In just one minute.

The insect swarm that had been so desperate was wiped out by this simple "Ice and Fire" combo.

All that remained were limbs and debris scattered on the ground, and scorched earth still emitting smoke.

"It's... solved just like that?"

Master Zhang sat slumped on the ground, staring at the insect corpses covering the floor, his face blank.

His Lightning Arts, which he was so proud of, were simply a joke in front of this young man.

He didn't even have to do it himself; he just moved his lips, ordered his subordinate to throw two bombs, and wiped out this group of monsters?

Is this the gap?

"What else?"

Su Yang jumped into the bottom of the pit, completely ignoring the admiring gazes of the survivors.

He bent down and picked up a piece of golden carapace from the ground that hadn't completely shattered yet.

"Ding! Obtained Materials: [Thunder-Swallowing Golden Armor] x1 (Top-grade lightning-conducting material, can be used to upgrade Magical Artifacts or craft lightning rods)."

"It really is good stuff."

Su Yang nodded with satisfaction.

"Mary, Chu Ling, come down and clean up the battlefield."

"These kinds of all-natural spiritual Materials can't be bought outside even with money."

"Yes!"

The two women immediately jumped down and began collecting the carapaces.

Su Yang walked over to Wang Kai, who was still slumped on the ground, and looked down at him.

"Young Master Wang, it's safe now."

"Shouldn't we talk about that 'half of your fortune' now?"

"Although I'm not interested in money, my subordinates here... are quite expensive to maintain."

Wang Kai swallowed hard, looking at Su Yang's menacingly friendly smile, and then at Mary, who was playing with a blood-dripping dagger nearby.

He had no doubt.

If he dared to renege on his debt, he would become a bug corpse on the ground in the next second.

"I'll give it! I'll give it!"

Wang Kai tremblingly took out a jade pendant engraved with a Dragon pattern from his pocket.

"This... this is the token to open the Wang family's treasury..."

"Also, I know there's a shortcut ahead that leads directly to the main hall!"

"Oh?"

Su Yang took the jade pendant, a glint of light flashing in his eyes.

"A shortcut?"

"It seems you little ground rat aren't completely useless after all."