From sailboats to star destroyers (Source: Web)

Chapter 19 Heavenly Fire Descends, Fire Spirit Appears in the World

"Haha, coming to Liancheng for university was definitely the right decision, sunshine!... Okay, the sunshine is absent tonight, but the starry sky, the beach, classmates, and a barbecue by the sea are just so youthful."

After military training, all three classes of students majoring in digital media technology tacitly chose to hold a party by the sea.

After all, the next four years are still a long time, and for these young men and women who have been cooped up in high school for so long, it would be better to come to a more relaxed environment if they want to break down the barriers between them.

Miao Meng did not refuse such group activities. Even though he had seen many beaches in "Tales of the Sea", he had never really enjoyed the scenery because he was always focused on fighting.

So apart from two unlucky students who injured themselves during military training and couldn't participate, all 130-plus students in the major were playing on the beach.

The lively atmosphere has now been remotely transmitted to the patient lying in the ward via video call by the enthusiastic roommate, making them envious and jealous, wishing they could immediately take a taxi and fly over.

"Miao Meng, I remember you live locally, so why are you enjoying the beach so much? Shouldn't you be used to seeing this all the time?"

"Yeah, isn't tourism just about outsiders going to an environment that locals are tired of? You're not being a very good local."

Hearing his roommate's teasing, Miao Meng didn't take it seriously. He smiled and picked up a few skewers of meat that had been seasoned from the barbecue grill in front of him.

"I'm not a local either. Even though I live here, I only rented the place two months in advance. I'm from Changshan, which isn't close to here."

"Oh, is that so? Want some? I used to be stricter with my family, so I've never tasted this before."

After hearing this, the roommate gained a better understanding of Miao Meng. He then picked up a can of wheat juice from the ground, ready to try the taste that was forbidden in the house.

"Look! It looks like there's a meteor shower! Quick, quick, make a wish!"

The shouts coming from afar suddenly drew the attention of the people chatting, since meteor showers are a rare astronomical phenomenon.

"Really? The observatory didn't predict any such strange celestial phenomenon tonight. Could it be that one of our satellites broke apart?"

My roommate glanced at the fiery meteors streaking across the sky, casually bringing his beer to his lips, but upon tasting its bitterness, he instinctively spat it all out.

After hearing his classmate's reminder, Miao Meng also turned his attention to the shooting stars in the sky. However, in his eyes, they were not shooting stars, but rather fiery lives.

After seeing the meteor shower, Miao Meng's previous fiery illusions solidified completely this time; those fiery meteors were the attackers that brought fire to the city.

Therefore, upon noticing those fiery meteors, Miao Meng's body froze instantly, not out of fear.

Instead, the combat instincts from the past in dungeons began to awaken, but were forcibly suppressed due to the differences in the current environment, causing the left and right hemispheres to start fighting each other.

"Is it strange, or is it just my imagination? Some of the shooting stars seem to be getting bigger and clearer than before."

The naive yet foolish college students didn't see anything in these fiery meteors. They kept taking pictures with their cameras, mobile phones, and other electronic devices with photo and video recording functions, preparing to record the scene clearly.

Many students were glad they brought professional equipment to record their first gathering at university, and they never expected to encounter such a rare astronomical phenomenon, so they snapped photos non-stop.

It wasn't until a fiery meteor struck the sea in the distance, creating towering waves and jolting the students out of their reverie that they realized something was wrong and began to panic.

Fortunately, some people who were still clear-headed managed to organize the group and retreat away from the ocean. If they had been swept away by the waves, they would probably have been soaked to death by the time they were found, which was late at night.

Then, not all of those increasingly larger fireballs fell into the sea; some even flew over the beach toward the city. However, at this moment, some missiles flew up in the suburbs and intercepted those meteors in mid-air.

After regaining his senses, Miao Meng was originally prepared to retreat with the main force, since the situation was no longer an ordinary attack and required the deployment of the army.

However, when he noticed that several psionicists in his class had quietly slipped away from the main group and stayed on the beach, he also tacitly chose to step back and stand between the main group and the beach.

The psionicists who remained on the beach didn't say much when they saw Miao Meng. They just exchanged a knowing glance and then allowed him to join.

"Let's make this clear first: those who can't withstand high temperatures should withdraw voluntarily. Flame Spirit is immune to conventional physical attacks; ordinary bullets will vaporize just by getting close, so don't fire indiscriminately."

Miao Meng had some recollection of the psionicist who spoke; during the previous military training, this was the one who sweated profusely under the sun, like rain or a waterfall.

"It's lucky that we fell directly into the sea. After being suppressed by the sea, the Flame Spirit's vitality will drop significantly, so we must unleash our full power before it recovers."

Miao Meng could tell that the conversation among these people was directed at him, since they hadn't exchanged a single word before he arrived. It seemed that these people actually had a pretty good attitude and personality.

After glancing at the other four people a few more times, Miao Meng moved to the side of the beach. If all five of them stood together, it would definitely affect their ability to unleash their full power, so it was best to keep a safe distance.

Other meteors intercepted by missiles have also exploded frequently at their impact sites, illuminating the sky over this area near the ocean.

However, the Flame Spirit that fell into the sea seemed to be particularly suppressed. The others had made preparations, either summoning strange monsters or changing their own forms, but they still did not see it appear.

Miao Meng then took out a staff designed to counter fire. The composition of the three skills remained unchanged, but there were some subtle changes in the details.

He replaced the Radiant Crystal, which had high armor penetration and explosive damage, with Frozen Crystal, sacrificing armor penetration for damage that caused a low-temperature effect within a certain area.

This was a choice he made while he was modifying the ship, taking time out of his busy schedule to address his prophetic visions of fire. It just goes to show how authoritative magical artifacts are in this regard.

"Gurgle~ Boom!" The ground trembled, and then a gush of lava suddenly erupted, engulfing the people on the beach.

"Watch out for the ground!"

This warning came too late. After noticing the tremor beneath his feet, Miao Meng had already sprinted forward desperately, but he was still a step too slow and was slammed into the ocean by the surging lava.

"Ah, damn it. The void cracks, and form appears. The Gate of Formlessness follows my will—borrowing shadows to conceal myself, I cleave the void at your command!"

The psionicist, who had originally only transformed into a half-mermaid, became extremely angry after being burned by the lava. He then tore off his own skin and began chanting a summoning incantation.

However, the Flame Spirit, who had dug his way to the beach, did not take the fisherman seriously and did not defend against the attacks of the others. He was focused on watching the coastline.

As a subordinate race of Ktugia, it is not a mindless monster.

On the contrary, the Flame Spirits, to which they belong, possess a unique flame civilization, and their intelligence and knowledge far surpass those of many humans.

Therefore, it naturally wouldn't pay attention to these non-threatening targets. On the contrary, it was the ones that it had previously focused its attacks on and driven to the sea that made it more wary.