On the ground, several people were rolling around. It was clear that the attackers were talismans, though these fire talismans were much weaker than the violent ones Ling Tian used.
The one releasing these fire talismans was not Ling Tian, but Ling Tian's junior brother, Ai Yao, another direct disciple of Celestial Master Dao Yuan.
This young man was very talented in talismans. He would draw talismans on the mountain whenever he had free time. The backpack he carried was filled with over a hundred various talismans, accumulated over the years.
However, at this moment, Ai Yao felt dizzy, his steps were unsteady, and his body swayed.
Just then, a strong arm supported him, and then some true essence was injected into his body through that arm.
This surge of internal energy instantly revived Ai Yao. He turned to look, overjoyed.
"Senior Brother Ling Tian, is that you? Why are you back?"
"You brat, you've gotten brave, huh? You're ignoring everything Master taught us!
I remember Master telling us many times that even when using talismans, a lot of mental power and true essence is consumed.
When fighting, you must always hold something back, ensuring you have sufficient true essence and mental power.
What were you doing, boy? Were you still capable of fighting just now?"
Celestial Master Dao Yuan's view was indeed very scientific. It was like mages in online games; although they could unleash incredibly powerful spells, once their mana bar was empty, they were at the mercy of others.
And Ai Yao was only 17 years old this year, with limited cultivation and even more limited true essence within his body.
On the way here, Second Master Monk Jie Nu had instructed him to use talismans to ambush these invaders, causing them to scatter in chaos.
Once these people were dispersed, it would be much easier to defeat them one by one.
Second Master hadn't asked for too much, only for him to cast spells and break the enemy's formation.
However, Ai Yao was still young and impetuous. Opportunities like this, where he could freely hurl fire talismans at people, were not very common for him.
So, the kid showed off, releasing over ten talismans at once. This had severely exceeded his body's capacity, completely draining his true essence.
Ling Tian, with Ai Yao under one arm, swayed through the night and quickly brought him a thousand miles away. Then, he gracefully ascended and tossed him onto a tree with a fork over ten meters high.
"Stay put here honestly. I'll come for you after the battle is over!"
"Senior Brother, I feel like I've recovered quite a bit. I can fight too, don't treat me like a burden..."
"Enough, with your little trickery, don't embarrass yourself. The enemies this time are no ordinary foes!
Stay on the tree and cultivate, recover quickly. You're still in the foundational stage. Overdrawing your true essence is not a good thing for you; be careful not to leave any after-effects!"
"Uh... alright, Senior Brother, I'll listen to you!"
The disciples on the mountain respected and admired their senior brother Ling Tian without exception.
Each of them, the disciples of Dragon Pan Mountain, had their own specialized fields. They were all well aware that there was an even more formidable senior brother on the mountain who excelled in all areas and could crush other disciples.
Moreover, these children were all orphans. They came to the mountain at a very young age, and it was primarily this senior brother who guided them, helped them overcome their fear of the place, and provided them with meticulous care.
Therefore, in the eyes of the disciples of Dragon Pan Mountain, their senior brother Ling Tian's status was no less than that of the masters. They also followed Ling Tian's commands resolutely and without hesitation.
At this moment, the Onmyoji Onokono Kenta stood in panic. Around him, there were no other Black Dragon members to be seen. This was the effect of the formation; once they separated and put distance between themselves, it was difficult to find others quickly.
A moment ago, a fireball had flown directly towards him, scaring him half to death.
Onokono Kenta knew very well that he was not skilled in physical combat. It would be almost impossible for him to dodge the explosion radius of these fireballs with his movement techniques.
So, before the fireball arrived, he had almost exhausted all his remaining magical power and released a technique similar to a shield.
A large amount of air around him was compressed and then sprayed outwards, blowing away the high-temperature flames from the fireball's explosion.
Despite this, he deeply felt the high temperature generated by the fireball's explosion just now. Even the fine hairs exposed on his skin were scorched.
Just then, with a "whoosh," an alloy arrow flew from the night sky and directly hit Onokono Kenta's left shoulder.
The power of this arrow was immense, sending Onokono Kenta flying.
While his body was still in mid-air, a second arrow flew over, hitting his right shoulder. Onokono Kenta was flipped over in mid-air by the impact of the arrows!
At this moment, a third arrow flew over, piercing directly through the back of his neck and exiting through his mouth, pinning Onokono Kenta to a tree!
Onokono Kenta's death was very peculiar. His eyes were wide open, a clear sign of dying with unresolved grievances.
His trip to China, where he had expected to make a fortune, had ended in death. He found it difficult to accept this reality, but reality was indeed that cruel.
The one who attacked was none other than another disciple of Dragon Pan Mountain, Ling Tian's other junior brother, Ma Hu.
This fellow had heard from Second Master that this Onmyoji was very important to the Japanese contingent, so Ma Hu decided to target him first.
His compound bow was very powerful, and ordinary people couldn't draw it. Yet, he could unleash a rapid three-shot with it.
However, at this moment, a large hand suddenly reached out and grabbed his neck. This greatly startled Ma Hu. As soon as he tried to resist, two acupoints on his body were sealed, immediately suppressing his true essence and internal energy. His body went limp, and he was unable to exert any strength.
At this moment, he heard a voice.
"Ma Hu, you little brat, are you itching for a beating again!
What did Master teach you back then?
If you're going to ambush, after the first strike, regardless of whether it hits or not, you must immediately retreat, conceal your presence, and wait for another opportunity to attack!
What were you doing just now, showing off?"
Ma Hu was about to curse, wondering who was meddling, but upon hearing the voice, he immediately put on a smiling face.
"Senior Brother Ling Tian, why are you back? Junior brother misses you so much!"
"Get lost, stop trying to get close to me!"