The group pressed onward toward the roots of the Ambrosial Arbor. Before long, they ca across a statue, under which stood a contingent of Antimatter Legion soldiers.
Pei Guang gestured toward the gathering. "Well, well, look who it is—our old pals. And quite a lot of them, too."
The plaza beneath the statue was crawling with at least thirty enemies. From Stompers to standard soldiers, the variety was impressive.
Stelle: "Ah Guang? Old strategy?"
Jing Yuan: "Oh? You have a tried-and-true thod for dealing with them? Care to teach us?"
Jing Yuan's curiosity and enthusiasm were evident, but Fu Xuan, standing nearby, sighed. She decided to intervene. "General, you might not be fully aware of their... thods. I must caution you that while their approach may prove effective for the entire army, it's also... um..."
Jing Yuan frowned slightly. "Also what?"
Fu Xuan, who was usually blunt, now seed hesitant, which only deepened his confusion.
Jing Yuan's curious gaze left Fu Xuan unsure of how to explain things directly—especially since the explanation itself might sound less than dignified. After considering for a mont, she suggested, "How about this, General? Why don't you observe how they fight first, and then decide whether to recomnd their thods? But personally, I trust Ah Guang—his strategies always work, even if they look… unconventional."
Pei Guang bead. "Don't worry, General! We've spent a long ti perfecting this strategy for dealing with small groups of antimatter troops!"
March 7th rolled her eyes. "A long ti? You ca up with it in five minutes after spotting a mob of enemies and slapping your forehead. Sure, it works, but…"
Pei Guang waved her concerns away. "But it works, and that's what matters!"
Stelle chid in, "But isn't this area too open? Doesn't that make our old strategy harder to use?"
Pei Guang's eyes glead with inspiration. "Of course it's different here! But don't forget—I just picked up two new gold-tier skills. I'm pretty sure these enemies are just here for to test them out. Sa plan as before—I go in first, draw aggro, and see how strong my fire is. If it's not enough, you guys can back up. These pre-boss mobs are never too tough anyway. Besides, we have General Jing Yuan with us. With a powerhouse like him as insurance, we're golden!"
Stelle grinned. "Makes sense. Go for it, Ah Guang!"
Pei Guang paused. "Hold on. Let practice casting this Samadhi Truefire first. Can't have it fizzling out mid-battle—it'd ruin my credibility."
Pei Guang still hadn't noticed that the skill he was so confident about wasn't Samadhi Truefire but Savory Truefire—a single-character difference that completely changed its aning.
When he activated the skill, a small ball of fire appeared, lazily twirling around him like it was showing off. Oddly enough, it radiated no heat, and even those watching up close felt no threat from it.
Stelle squinted. "Ah Guang, are you sure this is a gold-tier skill? It's so tiny—can it even hurt these antimatter soldiers? I doubt it could even singe their armor."
Pei Guang frowned, deep in thought. "Not sure yet. I an, it's my first ti trying this kind of open-world skill system. But the na alone—Truefire—sounds pretty overpowered, right? In most gas, fire like this ignores defenses and deals massive damage. Maybe I'm just not skilled enough with it yet? Or maybe it's stronger than it looks because it doesn't damage allies? Wait—hang on! It actually doesn't hurt allies! That's insane! Gold-tier confird—this thing is busted!"
As Pei Guang inspected the skill further, an additional description appeared—one he hadn't seen before:
"Does not deal damage to allies."
Pei Guang lit up. "Amazing! I always wondered why so many abilities needed a 'no friendly fire' clause. Turns out, top-tier skills co with it built-in! If this trend keeps up, we'll never have to worry about hitting each other by accident again!"
Jing Yuan, who'd been observing quietly, suddenly looked like he'd been hit by lightning. No friendly fire? If only the Reignbow Arbiter had the sa trait, the Luofu wouldn't have had to rely so heavily on restricted dicine from the Alchemy Commission. Imagining an entire battlefield where friendly troops could fire without restraint, he couldn't help but feel envious.
March 7th swallowed nervously. "Are you serious?"
Pei Guang grinned. "When have I ever lied to you? But just to be safe—let's try not to throw this at each other unless we really have to. Better safe than sorry."
Walter adjusted his glasses thoughtfully. "Even if it doesn't harm allies, it's better to be cautious. Still, this skill has another use—it could help us expose infiltrators."
March 7th's eyes widened. "Oh! You're right! If we ever run into another shape shifting enemy like Phantylia, we just need to hit them with this. If they scream and burn, we'll know they're an enemy!"
Pei Guang watched the Truefire float cheerfully around him. "We'll save that for later. For now, let test this out—and the battle BGM skill too. Get ready, everyone. I'm starting the fight!"
Crouching low, Pei Guang began creeping toward the antimatter soldiers. Seeing this, Jing Yuan raised an eyebrow. "Wait, crouching? Is this so kind of preparation for a devastating attack?"
Jing Yuan's curiosity about Pei Guang's combat style made him eager to observe closely. While he was familiar with his reputation, this was his first chance to see the infamous techniques in action.
Hearing Jing Yuan's interest, Stelle puffed up with pride. "Ah Guang's signature move? Stealth! If the enemy has a brain, they won't notice him as long as they can't see him. And if they don't have a brain? Well, it doesn't matter what they try—they'll never spot him."
Jing Yuan raised an eyebrow. "Hmm… From what I know, the Voidrangers of the Antimatter Legion do possess a certain level of intelligence."
March 7th shrugged. "Maybe in Ah Guang's mind, they're just brainless. You have no idea how ridiculous his thought process can be. And the most absurd part? Things always end up working out the way he imagines. I'm starting to suspect he might secretly be so Aeon of Sches or sothing. But then again, what Aeon could possibly be this weak?"
Jing Yuan chuckled. "Who knows?"
anwhile, Pei Guang had already crouched and sneaked up on the Voidrangers. Despite appearing in plain sight, the enemies simply turned to look at him and… didn't attack. Instead, they just stared blankly, much like what had happened back in Herta's Space Station.
Confirming they weren't reacting, Pei Guang decided to test out his Truefire.
A small fla floated around him and then shot toward the nearest enemy soldier. It hit its target, and for a mont, Pei Guang expected devastating damage. After all, this was Samadhi Truefire—one of the strongest techniques in cultivation gas!
Even if his proficiency wasn't high, a gold-tier skill like this should at least deal massive damage, right? After all, he'd been mowing down these enemies earlier with basic attacks.
But then…
The battle BGM started playing.
Pei Guang's expression turned grim as the familiar lody filled the air.
"Wait a minute… is this—Cooking Master Boy?!"
The passive effect of the Battle BGM skill had activated, and the description updated:
[Automatically selects the most fitting background music for the player's current situation.]
And the "most fitting" song? "The Great Wall of China" from Cooking Master Boy.
Pei Guang's instincts scread that sothing was wrong, but before he could process it, he noticed sothing even weirder.
The Voidranger hit by the Samadhi Truefire didn't die. Instead, it was engulfed in vibrant flas, but its health bar barely budged.
For so reason, a phrase popped into Pei Guang's mind—"Slow roast over low heat. Estimated ti: 3 minutes."
His face darkened further as realization hit him. This wasn't a devastating firestorm—it was a cooking process.
And just when he thought it couldn't get any worse, Pei Guang discovered another feature of the skill. He could adjust the fla intensity—low, dium, or high heat—like he was adjusting the knob on a stove.
The fire didn't require his energy to maintain after it was lit, but he had to spend power to tweak the heat.
Pei Guang's voice trembled. "Wait… is this really Samadhi Truefire?"
Before he could sort out his thoughts, the Voidrangers snapped out of their daze. The one Pei Guang had lit on fire scread in fury and charged at him.
Panicked, Pei Guang waved his hand, and the flas spread like wildfire, igniting every enemy in the area. From Stompers to basic soldiers, and even the nearby chanical constructs—everything caught fire.
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