Chapter 116: The Golden-Bodied Expert Emerges, the Great Elder of Penglai, Killing Intent Surges!

There were more than ten sea vessels in total.

The number of people was substantial, and the aura radiating from within them was remarkably powerful. Elder Ji could clearly sense that there were inevitably existences among them far more formidable than himself. Their original plan had been to first rescue the Pure Yang Little Heavenly Master and his companions, then capture Zhao Yuan and the others, and subsequently reinforce the area with additional troops to guard the shores of the Bohai Sea. In this way, even if the opposing side possessed more and stronger Awakened ones, they could at least keep the people of the Three Immortal Islands contained at sea and prevent them from landing, provided the arrangements were properly made.

However, they had not anticipated that the enemy would arrive so quickly. With so little time, the elite troops from various regions had not yet been mobilized. Once a full-scale battle broke out, the situation would be dire, potentially resulting in catastrophic losses. Therefore, at this moment, both Elder Ji and Elder Yun wore grim expressions.

"Hahaha! Our fellow disciples and mentors have arrived, and they are about to land. When they do, the tide will turn, and you will all pay the price!" Zhao Yuan, who had initially prepared to retreat into the sea, felt a surge of adrenaline upon seeing the fleet of ships approaching from behind. He stopped his retreat and intensified his efforts, batting away the incoming bullets. Having reached the Shackle Realm, he was like a king among beasts; such conventional weaponry could not harm him, though it was certainly a nuisance. Now, however, there was no need to worry—reinforcements had arrived.

"I will give you one chance now: stop immediately, admit your errors, and agree to my conditions." Zhang Yun also spoke, her tone cold. "If you do this, perhaps we can continue to coexist peacefully. Otherwise, it will be too late for regrets." Because of the arrival of their mentors, they felt sufficiently emboldened and now demanded that Elder Ji and the others stand down, completely shedding the fear they had displayed moments ago. To them, the weapons on land were indeed strong, but they were ultimately incapable of threatening those in the Shackle Realm. Furthermore, they were convinced that this was the strongest hand their opponents had to play, whereas their own mentors from the three sects were entirely fearless. Under these circumstances, if no stronger individuals appeared on the land, their opponents would have no choice but to compromise and accept the terms.

But did they really have no one beyond the Shackle Realm? This was the source of their confidence.

"Don't even dream of it." Elder Yun spoke, his tone grave. "Even if it leads to war, don't expect us to agree to your so-called conditions." The two sides were already at war, and even if the situation had not escalated this far, the demands for territory and population, combined with their arrogant posturing, were things he could not tolerate. This had crossed the line. He had never intended to negotiate with them from the start, and what did it matter if even stronger people arrived?

"Pass the order: increase firepower and block those ships from landing." Elder Ji did not waste any more words and issued the command directly. Upon hearing this, the battlefield commander in the rear did not hesitate. Soon, more armed helicopters took to the skies, and rows of self-propelled artillery moved into position. When the authorities decided to use heavy weaponry, the firepower far exceeded what Longsheng Genetics could have mustered.

Boom, boom, boom!

The next moment, the attack resumed, but this time it was aimed at the distant ships. On the shore, Zhao Yuan and his group were left to be handled personally by Elder Ji and Elder Yun, while small arms fire provided suppression and cover. It could be said that the authorities were truly furious. A barrage of heavy weapons poured out with even greater intensity than before, aiming to prevent the landing of the ships.

However, before long, figures began to appear on the ships. By the colors of their robes, it was easy to identify them as people from the Three Immortal Islands. Stepping to the bows of their vessels, more than ten individuals in the Shackle Realm stood together, intercepting the artillery shells mid-air. Others unleashed supernatural abilities, summoning massive waves and stirring up storms to neutralize the heavy weapons. Some even leaped from the ships to destroy the hovering helicopters.

Awakened ones possessed extraordinary power. Once they reached the Shackle Realm, most conventional weapons became essentially useless. With over a thousand Awakened ones on the ships, their intervention rendered the shore-based weaponry largely ineffective. At the same time, the dozens of ships picked up speed, closing in on the coast. It was clear that the authorities could no longer suppress the reinforcements from the Three Immortal Islands. At this rate, they would land sooner or later.

"Elder Ji, Elder Yun," the commander in the rear called out, "this isn't working. I request permission to use rocket artillery." This was a higher scale of weaponry, with immense destructive power approaching that of various guided missiles. There was no choice; against the more powerful and hostile Three Immortal Islands, they had to deploy stronger measures. As for triggering a full-scale war? Had it not already begun?

"Proceed," Elder Yun said. He parried a strike from Zhang Yun, then retreated to a safe position with Elder Ji. On the other side, the pre-staged rocket launchers and self-propelled artillery—hundreds of units in total—lined up. At the signal, they roared, entering a mode of total saturation bombardment.

Boom, boom, boom! Boom, boom, boom!

In an instant, massive explosions thundered across the shores of the Bohai Sea. The terrifying firepower caused the surrounding temperature to rise. Zhao Yuan, Zhang Yun, and the dozens of ships in the rear were all within the target zone. The world around them erupted in a deafening roar; the beach was cratered, reefs were pulverized, and smoke billowed into the air. On the sea surface, the sheer power of the rockets and artillery sent the water churning into massive swells. This was the strength of modern heavy weaponry—with enough firepower, it could destroy a city overnight. Of course, Elder Ji and Elder Yun were not fully prepared, or the display would have been even more devastating. But they did not need much; they only needed to stop the landing, which would buy them more time to prepare. If they succeeded, it was not impossible to keep the people of the Three Immortal Islands contained at sea.

Thus, Elder Ji, Elder Yun, and the younger generation, including the Ice Fairy, watched the scene nervously. Under such firepower, even ordinary Shackle Realm experts would be terrified, and everyone was anxious to know the result. The key was whether the ships could truly be held back.

The heavy bombardment continued for over ten minutes. Finally, feeling it was enough, Elder Yun ordered a pause. As the smoke cleared, the beach was left in ruins, the sand charred black. Amidst it, Zhao Yuan, Zhang Yun, and the third disciple were crouched on the ground, gasping for air, disheveled and wounded. The Shackle Realm was indeed powerful, but they could not withstand such terrifying, concentrated firepower. Had it lasted any longer, they would surely have been obliterated.

Yet, no one was looking at them. All eyes were fixed on the distance. The dozens of ships remained, completely unscathed. It was not because of their structural design, but because a massive figure stood before them, blocking every single incoming attack. It was a giant, standing in the seawater, glowing with a brilliant purple light and towering dozens of meters high. It looked down upon everyone, radiating a powerful, terrifying aura. In front of this figure stood a man in mid-air, with black beard and white hair, dressed in purple robes, looking immensely powerful.

"A Golden Body manifestation... is that an Awakened one at the Golden Body Realm?"

"Do the Three Immortal Islands really have people at the Golden Body Realm?"

"What... what are we going to do?"

The officials on the shore watched this scene, shock etched on every face. According to their research, once a human evolved to the fourth stage—the Golden Body Realm—the shackles within their body were broken, their potential fully unlocked, and they gained a supernatural ability: the Golden Body manifestation. It was exactly like the one displayed by the Divine Monkey of Mount Tai. Analogously, it was like the 'Law of Heaven and Earth' from myths, albeit not quite as strong. More importantly, upon reaching this stage, humans gained the ability to fly and became largely immune to modern weaponry. Even nuclear weapons would struggle to kill them.

Now, a Golden Body expert from the Three Immortal Islands had appeared, blocking all attacks and exerting an overwhelming sense of oppression. The ships began moving forward once more, finally docking at the shore. The man then retracted his Golden Body manifestation and walked over. Seeing the state of the three disciples, his brow furrowed.

"It is the Great Elder of Penglai." Upon seeing the Golden Body expert, Zhao Yuan burst into laughter, ignoring his injuries as he stepped forward. "Disciple greets the Great Elder." The Three Immortal Islands still maintained the ancient sect hierarchy, and the Great Elder was second only to the Sect Master. Zhang Yun and the disciple from Mount Fangzhang also rushed toward their respective elders. The three of them recounted everything that had happened.

"These people on land are too despicable," Zhang Yun cried out at the end of her tale. "Not only did they refuse to cooperate with our conditions, but they also used underhanded sneak attacks to kill many of our fellow disciples. Please, elders, seek justice for us!" She felt no fault in her previous attitude, nor did she consider their conditions harsh; she cast all the blame on the others. Beside her, Zhao Yuan also embellished the story for the Great Elder, claiming they had been polite and wanted to negotiate in good faith, but the people on land were simply too treacherous.

The Great Elder of Penglai swept his icy gaze across the group, his voice filled with chill: "Very well. Very well indeed." In truth, he could roughly guess what had happened, but what did it matter? Regardless, his disciples were injured. No matter what had transpired before, the fault lay with those on land.

He walked forward, accompanied by the elders from Fangzhang and Yingzhou. Looking at Elder Ji, Elder Yun, and the others, he spoke slowly: "Do you admit your guilt?" Like Zhao Yuan and the others, he maintained an arrogant, overbearing posture. He did not ask for the truth or listen to both sides; he simply arrived to condemn them. As he spoke, a murderous intent surged from his entire body, completely unconstrained.