The youth, his breakout attempt failed, roared in anger and disbelief. He, the dignified Mad Berserker (Mad Dog), had stumbled and capsized in a ditch, pummeled into helplessness by a group of rogue cultivators.
This was illogical, this was fishy, this was a conspiracy!
He was a warlike madman, but not a fool. He realized now that not a single one of these people was inferior to him. If he continued fighting, he would surely die.
Crucially, dying here wouldn't be a sacrifice, wouldn't earn him any merit, and no one would avenge him. Even the Five Elements Hall wouldn't hold these individuals accountable.
How could his pride endure this?
Yet, he couldn't win, and he was unwilling to seek help from other Five Elements Hall disciples; that would be too shameful. If his fellow disciples found out he was defeated by a few rogue cultivators, he would never be able to hold his head up in the Five Elements Hall again.
Warlike fanatics were all fiercely proud individuals. He would rather die fighting than flee or beg for help. Such humiliation was unbearable.
While fighting, the youth's thoughts raced. After a moment, he made a decision. He sheathed his long saber, took out a sphere from his storage bag, and pressed it gently. The sphere whirred, rotated, and then the youth tossed it towards his enemies.
"Retreat quickly!"
Wan Qianxin, who was leading the charge, shouted an alarm upon seeing the sphere and immediately pulled Bao Bao back with him.
Seeing this, Wan Lei unhesitatingly pulled Fang Xiaoyu away. Before they had flown more than a few zhang, the sphere exploded with a deafening roar, and a massive wave of flames swept towards them.
Everyone, including the youth, was sent flying.
The youth, being the closest, sustained the most severe injuries. Fortunately, he finally had an opportunity to break free from the encirclement.
Without hesitation, the youth retreated, healing himself with spiritual energy. He picked up a cannon and fired at Wan Lei without mercy.
Wan Lei dodged, but the cannonball seemed to have eyes, relentlessly pursuing him and exploding on his person.
Wan Lei was once again blasted away.
"Since you're using technological weapons, don't blame us!"
Xia Yubing shouted angrily, producing a quad-barreled cannon.
This time, Wan Qianxin didn't intervene. After all, the other side had been unsportsmanlike.
Not only did he not intervene, but he also took out a weapon from his storage bag. The weapon was slender, resembling Fang Xiaoyu's laser gun, but its muzzle was thicker, and instead of a dark opening, it had a hemispherical glass sphere.
Han Xiaoyun now held a six-barreled laser gun.
Bao Bao also retrieved her quad-barreled cannon.
Wan Lei and Fang Xiaoyu, seeing this, also produced their own technological weapons, seized as spoils from Suo Shisan.
A single-barreled rocket launcher and a single-barreled laser gun.
Clearly, their weapons were far inferior to those of the "four little ones."
Technological creations in the Immortal Realm were imbued with cultivation Dao rhymes. Any weapon used by an immortal could easily tear apart a planet.
The disciple of the Five Elements Hall's eyelids twitched as he saw the weapons in everyone's hands.
Damn it, he didn't want to use technological weapons and intended to defeat his enemies with his own strength, but his opponents were too formidable, forcing him to bring out his trump cards to try and turn the tide. Yet, just as he unveiled his ultimate weapon, the other side produced so many technological weapons that were infinitely more advanced than his own.
How was he supposed to fight this?
Looking at the opposing firepower, the youth's scalp tingled.
The youth no longer hesitated, turning to flee and calling for reinforcements as he ran.
Pride, honor, face – in that moment, seeing the formidable array of firepower, all of it became insignificant.
His life was paramount!
"Fire!"
Wan Qianxin bellowed. All six technological weapons spat flames. Cannonballs and lasers flew, while the six-barreled gun in Han Xiaoyun's hand spun madly, unleashing countless energy bullets like mini-cannons.
This barrage of firepower directly reduced the youth to ashes.
"The poor rely on tactical insertions; the rich rely on overwhelming firepower. The ancients were truly wise!"
Xia Yubing blew on the muzzle of her cannon and put away the quad-barreled weapon.
"Firepower saturation!"
Bao Bao echoed with a charming shout.
Everyone remained composed and flew towards where the youth had exploded.
Dada was the fastest, directly picking up the youth's technological gun. He hadn't had a technological weapon during the barrage, which had made him incredibly envious.
Fang Xiaoyu collected the youth's storage bag, as per the setting, no matter how fierce the firepower or intense the battle, storage bags remained undamaged.
Meanwhile, Wan Lei spotted a spiritual slip slowly sinking into the lava sea not far away.
He beckoned, drawing the spiritual slip towards him. It indicated that a call was still in progress.
Wan Lei brought the spiritual slip to his ear, and a voice came through.
"Hello... hello... Mad Dog, how are you? What was that explosion just now? Hello?!"
"Hello!"
Wan Lei also called out.
There was a moment of silence on the other end, followed by a question:
"Who are you?"
"I am Wan Lei. Mad Dog is dead. I am here to solemnly warn all disciples of the Five Elements Hall: do not provoke me, or you will bear all consequences. Suo Shisan and Mad Dog are your precedents. I have said all there is to say!"
On the other end, there was another pause, then a voice replied:
"Wan Lei, my name is Chai Yan. I am the strongest disciple in this batch from the Five Elements Hall, and the provisional captain.
Our disciples from the Five Elements Hall in the Lava Death Domain officially declare war on you, fighting for the honor of the Five Elements Hall and for the Five Elements Hall disciples who died by your hands.
This time, you must die. Not even an Immortal Venerable can save you. I declare it!"
Beep... beep... beep...
"Heh heh."
Wan Lei chuckled and crushed the spiritual slip, its screen, mainboard, and circuits shattering and falling into the lava, consumed by flames.
"This technological weapon can be used, it's really unlocked,"
Dada's voice carried from a distance. He was as happy as a child who had received a million gifts.
"Xin Xin, how much do you know about the disciples of the Five Elements Hall?"
"Not much, but some of the more famous disciples can be found on the spiritual net."
Xin Xin took out her spiritual slip and tapped on it a few times.
"You said that person's name was Chai Yan, right? Here, you can find his information."
Everyone immediately looked over. The screen indeed displayed Chai Yan's information and a portrait (photo).
Chai Yan, male, one hundred and thirty-two years old, born in the Twin Dragons Kingdom of the Great Tang Empire. He broke through to the Immortal realm at fifty-six, joined the Five Elements Hall at sixty-two, becoming a disciple of the Fire Hall. He ranked among the top hundred Tai Xu realm disciples of the Fire Hall, was in the thirteenth stage of the first level of the Creation Tower, and mastered Void True Fire.
Chai Yan's information was not extensive, only a hundred characters, but they all concisely described his formidable prowess.
"He became an immortal in his fifties and is now ranked among the top hundred Tai Xu realm disciples of the Fire Hall at just over a hundred years old. He cannot be underestimated; he is a powerful prodigy,"
Dada muttered beside them.