Chapter 53: Isn't This Just Ridiculously Over-the-Top?

"What is a grenade?"

Elder Luo asked, a puzzled look on his face. He had only ever heard of talismans with explosive properties, and this was the first time he had ever heard of a grenade.

"Elder Luo, let's head inside first!"

After leading Elder Luo into the laboratory, Liang Chuan took out a pile of items from his storage ring.

Even Elder Luo could easily recognize that the materials laid out before him clearly included fragments of Flaming Snake bones, spirit stones, and pieces of Iron-Boned Ox bones.

Yet, he still could not fathom what Liang Chuan intended to do with them.

Without a word, Liang Chuan took out a sheet of thin iron and began grinding the Flaming Snake bones into a fine powder.

Instantly, a pungent odor filled the laboratory.

He placed the powder onto the iron sheet, mixed in crushed spirit stones and the Iron-Boned Ox bone fragments, and then wrapped the entire mixture tightly within the iron sheet. Finally, he pasted a low-grade detonation talisman onto the exterior.

"Done."

With that final touch, an intensely bizarre-looking iron ball rested before Elder Luo's eyes.

"What... is this?"

Had he not known of Liang Chuan's capabilities, Elder Luo would have assumed Liang Chuan was simply playing a practical joke on him. After all, it looked far too childish.

"This is the grenade I mentioned."

Without offering any further explanation, Liang Chuan led Elder Luo to an open area behind the mountain.

Activating the detonation talisman pasted on the surface, Liang Chuan hurled the iron ball straight out into the distance.

The next second—

Boom!

The iron ball, which had rolled into the wooded area, erupted with a dazzling flash of light. A terrifying shockwave surged outward; had Liang Chuan not advanced to the Foundation Establishment stage some time ago, he likely would have been blown away by the ferocious blast of wind.

As the smoke and dust gradually settled, Elder Luo stared dumbfoundedly at the scene before him.

The surrounding trees had been completely blasted apart by the iron ball, and even the trees farther away were deeply embedded with densely packed fragments of Iron-Boned Ox bones.

Witnessing such terrifying destructive power sent a chill straight down his spine. He dared not imagine what would happen if he were completely ignorant of this weapon's purpose. If he saw an enemy hurl a simple iron ball toward him, he wouldn't even raise his guard. Even if one managed to avoid the direct blast, one would undoubtedly end up riddled with holes like a sieve!

"Sect Master, you truly manage to pull out things that exceed my expectations every single time."

After a long silence, Elder Luo finally managed to utter these words.

***

"Elder Luo, you've already seen how it's made, so the production will be left entirely in your hands!"

After saying this, Liang Chuan did not forget to add a crucial instruction: "Have the alchemy disciples temporarily halt their pill refining and focus entirely on mass-producing these grenades!"

With the orders arranged, Elder Luo hurriedly rushed to the alchemy chamber and brought the disciples back to the laboratory.

Meanwhile, Liang Chuan instructed Liu Ruyan to organize the disciples and form a specialized squad for training. Naturally, every member of this squad would be fully equipped with firearms.

Meanwhile, back in the modern world.

Liang Xin pushed open her front door and casually placed her grocery backpack on a nearby table.

Though she now possessed a vast amount of spirit stones, she had never considered moving to a new home. This was the place where she had grown up, and she still felt a deep reluctance to leave it behind.

"I wonder if Dad wrote me a letter today?"

She walked briskly into the utility room and opened the letter.

However, upon reading the contents, her brows furrowed slightly.

"Dad actually wants me to get him a heavy sniper rifle?"

With a troubled expression, Liang Xin bit her lower lip.

Although the letter noted that it didn't matter if she failed to acquire one, she was well aware of Liang Chuan's current predicament. Even if he hadn't explicitly stated it, needing so many weapons could only mean that the ancient realm was fraught with extreme danger.

She had previously checked the price of a heavy sniper rifle, and a single one cost as much as a hundred million. Because heavy sniper rifles required sixth-tier beast bones and Frost Mithril to forge, they were not even widely issued within military forces.

"If I do this, I'll have no choice but to expose myself."

Liang Xin bit her lower lip as she thought to herself.

Though she had managed to procure and send over quite a few items recently, practically everything Liang Chuan requested had been purchased from entirely different sources. Even items like firearms, which were relatively common, had been bought across various shops in different cities, all out of a fear that observant individuals might notice something amiss.

Yet, purchasing a heavy sniper rifle would require shelling out a hundred million spirit stones all at once, drastically increasing the risk of drawing unwanted attention. While she indeed had plenty of wealth now, it primarily consisted of various cultivation techniques or extinct spirit beast bones. To afford the rifle, she would have to liquidate those assets beforehand. This wasn't a minor sum of a few million; a transaction of this scale would instantly involve tens of millions!

Seeing the postscript in the letter advising her not to expose herself and to liquidate those assets gradually only added to her dilemma.

"No, I cannot just stand by and watch Dad fall into hardship!"

Liang Xin's gaze gradually hardened. "Dad has always been the one protecting me, and I refuse to become a drag on him!"

She picked up her small backpack and strode swiftly toward the door.

Before long, she arrived at the Sect Registration Administration.

In the modern world, registering a sect required formal procedures, which were not much different from establishing a school. The only distinction was that schools catered to younger students, whereas sects encompassed a much broader demographic. Furthermore, sects were required to issue spirit stones to their disciples, making them function somewhat like bounty-posting organizations.

"Little beauty, what brings you here?"

The receptionist at the front desk noticed Liang Xin walking in hurriedly and stepped forward with a welcoming smile. She figured this must be someone's daughter, likely looking for a relative.

"I'm here to register a sect."

At these words, the receptionist froze completely.

The girl looked to be only sixteen or seventeen years old—and she wanted to register a sect?!

As she well knew, registering a sect required verified capital.

After repeatedly confirming the request, the receptionist had no choice but to take Liang Xin to check her account balance.

Yet, when she laid eyes on the digits displayed on the screen, her very first thought was simply how absurd the disparities between human beings could be. At merely sixteen years old, this girl had such a massive fortune stashed away in her card.

Moreover, the registered capital required for the sect she was setting up amounted to a staggering thirty million spirit stones!

With the sufficient funds verified, the subsequent procedures proceeded with absolute smoothness.

Clutching the newly issued certificate, Liang Xin walked out through the gates of the Administration.

"I must never drag Dad down!"

She clenched her fists tightly, a resolute determination shining in her eyes.

Upon returning home, she immediately used a short-form video platform to publish an official recruitment announcement.

One million for a Lower-Grade Spirit Root, five million for a Middle-Grade Spirit Root.

The moment this announcement went live, the entire internet was thrown into utter shock.

This sect...

What on earth was going on here?!

Were they just throwing money around like water?

How could they possibly be this wealthy?