Evolution Begins with Elemental Domination

Everything fell into place from there.

"Oh, right. Here’s a shotgun for you, and six hand-made Single-Headed Bullets." Yan Ziqian took the opportunity to hand a gun to Su Chen.

The reason he didn’t make birdshot or buckshot, which contain many small pellets, was that aside from being easier to craft, a Single-Headed Bullet had extremely strong piercing power at close range.

It would be perfect for dealing with that elite, heavy-boned caveman.

Su Chen, of course, didn’t refuse.

He had handled firearms no less than ten times in his life. Besides hunting abroad, half of those times were just for fun at a shooting range. After a bit of discussion, he more or less understood how to operate it.

"Don’t worry, the material is very strong. We used Gray Ore Crystals—that is, Soul Sandstone—to forge the barrel. It can definitely handle the combined power of your Flame Burst and Telekinesis," Yan Ziqian said.

"I can weave three powers together now. I got a Holy Light Rune," Su Chen revealed honestly.

The people around him were momentarily speechless.

Perhaps due to the unique properties of the Soul Sand Ore, the shotgun had a matte, deep gray texture. It was understated and profound, showing no hint of a metallic sheen, yet it felt incredibly smooth and sleek to the touch.

Even the bullets were made of the same special metal, and they were significantly larger than ordinary pistol rounds in both caliber and overall size.

The stock was clearly made from the wood of an ancient tree.

After a simple trigger pull to check the response of the mechanical structure, he didn’t put it in his hiking bag but instead held it in his hand as he moved forward.

No joke, if he could apply a three-in-one Enchantment to a Single-Headed Bullet and use it with the shotgun, it would definitely boost his close-range power significantly.

Of course, forging firearms was clearly not something to be rushed. Even with Gong Jun working through the night to strive for perfection, he had only managed to craft three shotguns after using up all the Soul Sandstone.

One was kept by Gong Jun himself for defense while on guard duty, and of the other two, one was in Su Chen’s hands and the other in Yan Ziqian’s.

"We can test its firepower in a bit." Pang Peng was also getting impatient. In last night’s test, just a Lv4 Thunderstrike Enchantment had been enough to blast through the trunk of an ancient tree. Its firepower was completely trustworthy.

However, after a thorough search of the hunter’s path, the group couldn’t find the third caveman.

After passing through the choke point, they didn’t run into an ambush either.

Xiaoye released two Soul-devouring Dog clones, which immediately plunged deeper into the cavern. After just a few steps, her Phantom Clone also vanished into the darkness.

"I don’t sense anything for now." A faint ripple appeared in Yan Ruoruo’s eyes as she scanned the surroundings.

Cao Yutang, the team’s jack-of-all-trades, seemed a bit listless. The Fire Element sprite beside him was like a bonfire drifting along the ground, providing area lighting for the group.

But their efforts weren’t entirely fruitless.

A caveman was clinging to the rock wall, scurrying deeper into the tunnel as if on level ground. However, Xiaoye had already picked up its trail. After receiving her signal, Su Chen used consecutive Shadow Leaps to close the distance rapidly.

He had already chambered a Single-Headed Bullet.

Its surface was wreathed in a blazing white glow, a crimson flame was forged within it, and with Telekinesis as a guide, the power of three Runes converged thunderously inside the Soul Sand barrel.

BOOM!

A thunderous gunshot rang out.

The Single-Headed Bullet transformed into a dazzling flare of light, precisely striking the back of the caveman’s head.

In an instant, under the force of that terrifying power, its head, along with most of its neck and shoulder blades, was blown to bits. The powerful jet from the bullet pierced straight through and blasted a huge, scorched crater into the rock wall behind it.

Dust and smoke billowed out. Using the shotgun for this was a minor test of its strength, and frankly, a bit of an overkill.

’Not bad.’

’That was with less than half of my Flame Burst’s power, without fully charging my Strong Will, and not even using a critical strike. The damage was clearly overkill, an easy one-shot kill.’

’As expected, the answer to the current meta is the Attached Damage bullet build.’

’Especially a shotgun’s close-range burst. Its piercing and killing power is far greater than a bow and arrow’s.’

"Talk about using a sledgehammer to crack a nut." The team members caught up from behind, one of them sighing in awe at the power. In Su Chen’s hands, this close-range "sprayer" was a superweapon.

"A shame about the corpse,"

Pang Peng sighed. As a sacrifice material, the body needed to be at least somewhat intact.

Yan Ruoruo wasn’t bothered. She extended a slender, jade-like finger, pointing at the Bone Whip in the caveman’s hand. "As long as this evolved part is preserved, it’s fine," she said calmly.

Regardless, Su Chen decided to save his few remaining Single-Headed Bullets for the armored caveman.

Next up was the vertical corridor.

After heading deeper for some time, the group arrived at the entrance to the shaft.

To find more enemies, they would have to risk exploring the cavern below.

From the firelight they’d thrown down yesterday, they knew the corridor was at least two hundred meters deep. But just as they peeked over the edge, a Wind Cannon blast shot up from below.

With a single thought from Su Chen, an invisible, immense force instantly enveloped the Wind Cannon’s path. A gravity-enhancing field erupted, and as it combined with his Telekinesis to crush down on the blast, the two intertwined powers annihilated it, forcibly grinding the Wind Cannon attack to dust.

Su Chen then guided the terrifying, majestic aftershock with his will, turning it into a compressed airburst that poured back down, blasting deep into the corridor.

BOOM!

Two blood-curdling screeches came from below.

Clearly, there was an unexpected bonus.

"I’ll go down first. When I give a signal of three bright flashes, it means it’s safe."

As soon as Su Chen finished speaking, he recalled Xiaoye. Then, with a leap, he plunged unhesitatingly into the black Abyss. The moment he activated his Flying Skill, wisps of Wind Fluff swirled around him. To prevent any accidents, he also fortified his body with a Telekinesis shield.

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