Chapter 30

Wen Yan said, "They cannot understand the master's strength..." If they don't understand, they won't be afraid.

Du Hongchen's expression improved slightly. It was normal for such a small place and a small bandit stronghold not to know of his existence. If it weren't for hearing that there was someone with lightning-element single-wheel imprint qualifications here, he wouldn't have come. Whether to destroy or preserve Hucliff Castle was unimportant to him; what he needed was Thunderstar Peak.

Ying Dafei returned and said, "Senior, they refuse."

Du Hongchen said, "Get lost, Chiyaz, lead the cleanup squad and attack!"

Zhichiya nodded and said, "Alright, it's better to attack openly. Sneaking around is too frustrating." He firmly believed that with two Wheel Masters, one Wheel True Person, and a team of Thousand Wheel Masters, taking down such a small Hucliff Castle should be easy.

Du Hongchen said, "I'll give you a hand!" He turned and said, "Bring me several dozen steel spears!"

Immediately, someone collected sixty to seventy steel spears from the Eagle Chief's hunters and piled them in front of Du Hongchen. Everyone was puzzled, not knowing how he would help. Could he throw the steel spears at the people on the cliff top? That would be too difficult. From the bottom of the cliff, the figures on top were no bigger than ants, and only their small heads were visible.

Du Hongchen didn't explain. He picked up a steel spear and said, "Chiyaz, which path will you take?"

Zhichiya said, "The same path as before, the others are harder to climb."

Du Hongchen nodded and suddenly threw the steel spear. The steel spear whistled sharply as it left his hand.

Ding!

The steel spear was nailed to the cliff wall. Du Hongchen continued to throw steel spears, and the sound of dings continued, forming a ladder of steel spears. Zhichiya clapped and said, "Uncle, impressive!"

The people on the cliff top noticed and were a bit frightened. Hu Cangya shouted, "There's nothing to be afraid of! Just throw big rocks down, and they'll be gone! Mark the positions, stack the rocks, and make them high and heavy!"

With many people, the hunters had great strength. They could carry several hundred pounds of rocks, and even a thousand pounds of rocks could be carried by two people. Soon, over a dozen piles of rocks were stacked on the cliff top, along with logs, some two feet in diameter, and even some a meter thick.

Under a dozen large pots, flames burned fiercely, and the water boiled.

Zhichiya shouted, "Follow me!" He held a huge shield in one hand and climbed up the steel spears nailed to the cliff wall. Ten Thousand Wheel Masters followed behind him.

Du Hongchen said, "You two, go up too!"

Ying Xiao and Ying Dafei dared not disobey. They exchanged glances, gritted their teeth, and followed. Thirteen people in total climbed towards the top of Hucliff Castle.

Hu Cangya said, "Stay calm, wait for my command, and no one move!"

The steel spears extended from the bottom of the cliff to three-quarters of the way up. Du Hongchen couldn't nail them all to the cliff wall, as the top was too high. Shooting people might be possible, but nailing them into the stone wall was difficult.

With the help of the steel spears, Zhichiya climbed very quickly. He soon reached the place where he had been defeated before. There were three steel spears here, allowing him to easily overcome this obstacle. The others followed closely, and through the shield, Zhichiya could see the figures moving on the cliff top. He was overjoyed, knowing he was about to succeed. He shouted, "Follow me, prepare for battle!"

"Release!"

Hu Cangya was startled, thinking, "How could they be so fast!" He immediately ordered the release of the rocks.

Several hunters pried the levers under the rock piles, and countless rocks rolled down the cliff.

Zhichiya shouted, his body glowing. The huge shield protected him diagonally, and the thuds made his body tremble. His strength was enough to withstand the impact of the rocks, but the steel spears under his feet were not as sturdy. They cracked, and the stone wall split.

A thousand-pound rock hit the shield, and the sudden force dislodged the steel spear under his feet. Zhichiya cursed loudly and had to use both hands to grab the cracks in the stone, abandoning the shield. At that moment, a gushing sound came from above, and boiling hot water poured down, instantly creating a white mist. The hot water posed no threat to Zhichiya, but the mist made him a bit frantic.

The third wave of attacks arrived, with logs being dropped from the cliff top. This attack finally had an effect.

Screams of pain echoed as the Thousand Wheel Masters were knocked off by the logs. Even Zhichiya couldn't avoid them. He jumped around on the cliff wall, trying to dodge, but finally, he gave up. Knowing he couldn't continue, he quickly descended the cliff. With the remaining steel spears, he easily found support and escaped to the bottom in a moment.

Two people died from the fall, four were injured, and the rest were fast runners.

Du Hongchen's face was dark. He said, "Very well! Very well! Since you dare to resist, you will face my complete destruction. From now on, Hucliff Castle will cease to exist!"

Zhichiya came to Du Hongchen and said, "Uncle, I can't go up."

Du Hongchen hesitated. If he acted personally, the cliff wall would be no problem, but he couldn't do it. As a True Person, attacking a civilian area would damage his reputation. If the news spread, it would affect his status in the Great Hong Cave.

If they continued the attack, what could they use to block the attacks from the cliff top? He understood that even a Thousand Wheel Master could easily kill all the hunters in Hucliff Castle, but the natural cliff wall had managed to hold off so many experts, even forcing him to consider acting.

...

Leixingfeng and his grandfather and granddaughter found two thunderstorms in total. However, the old man's recovery was not ideal, always falling short. He didn't know the reason. If he couldn't fully recover, he couldn't advance further. The hope was right in front of him, but he couldn't grasp it. The old man's temper flared, but fortunately, after decades of calm, he could control his emotions well.

Leixingfeng noticed the old man's anxiety. Since he first met the old man, he had never seen him like this, like a bomb ready to explode. He comforted him, "Grandpa, we're not in a hurry. To recover to this extent is already very good. We have plenty of time."

The old man nodded and said, "I know, it's not that I'm in a hurry, but at this level of cultivation, I naturally become irritable. Don't worry, I won't take it out on you and your sister..."

Leixingfeng was speechless. He knew the old man wouldn't take it out on him; they had a good understanding after years together. He was simply worried about the old man's state.

The old man continued, "Let's find one more thunderstorm. If it doesn't work, we'll go back."

Leixingfeng nodded and said, "Alright, actually, the best lightning is from a thunderstorm in the warm season. Thunderstorms in the cold season are much worse."

The old man said, "Each has its advantages. Lightning is different, and I only recently realized this..." He suddenly slapped his head and said, "I'm such an idiot!"

Leixingyao, surprised, bit her finger and said, "Grandpa, why did you hit yourself? Doesn't it hurt?"

The old man said, "It doesn't hurt, it doesn't hurt... Ha, I understand, I understand..."

Leixingfeng smiled bitterly and said, "Grandpa, what do you understand?"

The old man said, "As long as we find another thunderstorm, I'm confident I can fully recover and even advance further! Ha!"

Leixingyao said, "That's great, that's great! When Grandpa is better, we can find Mom and Dad!" She said it casually, but it made Leixingfeng and the old man silent.

After a while, the old man forced a smile and said, "Yes, when Grandpa recovers, I'll take you to find Mom and Dad."

Leixingyao, curious, asked, "Where did Mom and Dad go?" To her, Mom and Dad were just symbols, purely out of curiosity, with almost no emotional attachment. If she had to choose between her parents and Grandpa and her brother, she would choose the latter without hesitation.

Neither Leixingfeng nor Leixingyao knew that their parents had been driven away by the old man, and even he didn't know where they had gone, hence the awkward expression.

The old man said, "We'll look for them when the time comes. We should be able to find them." He said it without much sincerity.

Leixingyao didn't notice the敷衍, but Leixingfeng understood clearly. However, he didn't care. Since he opened his eyes in this life, it was just his little sister and Grandpa. He didn't care about others. If they treated him, his sister, and Grandpa well, he wouldn't mind treating them well. If not, he would turn and leave. He had no deep feelings for anyone.

About two days later, the three of them finally encountered another thunderstorm. At the beginning of the cold season, thunderstorms were relatively common, but once the weather became completely cold, they would disappear.

This was a small thunderstorm, much weaker than the previous two. They could hear the thunder but hardly see any lightning.

The clouds were thick, and the snow was heavy. Leixingfeng and Leixingyao habitually found a giant tree and hid in a tree hollow to wait. This time, Leixingfeng didn't cultivate because his progress was too fast, even scaring the old man. The old man told him to stabilize his progress and temporarily stop cultivating, as he had already advanced to the Ten Thousand Wheel Master level.

The old man, knowledgeable, had never seen anyone reach the Ten Thousand Wheel Master level at just sixteen. At Leixingfeng's cultivation speed, he believed the young man might advance to the Wheel Master level before turning seventeen. He was unsure whether this was good or bad.

Leixingfeng was always obedient. He knew the old man was doing it for his own good, so he followed the old man's advice and stopped cultivating during the thunderstorm.

The old man enthusiastically went to find lightning. He had found a solution and was eager to see the results.