Chapter 7: Secrets (Part 1)

Eagle Demon picked up the large bowl, took a sip of the thin broth, then tore off a piece of bread, stuffed it into his mouth, and chewed loudly, saying repeatedly, “Delicious! Sigh, I haven’t had a proper meal in days.”
Guo Shier didn’t rush either. As he ate, he said, “Wild boar meat is fragrant, but its texture is rough, and it doesn’t taste very good.”
Eagle Demon laughed, “You’re quite picky. When we’re out in the wild, anything to eat is good enough. When there’s no time, we’ve even eaten raw meat, hehe.”
Guo Shier said, “One of the pleasures in life is delicious food—something we shouldn’t give up easily.”
Unfazed by the heat, Eagle Demon finished three large bowls of broth and several pieces of bread in just a few minutes, at such a fast pace that Guo Shier was amazed.
“Hehe, I’m used to it. When eating in the wild, you have to be quick—otherwise, you might fight on an empty stomach if something happens…” Eagle Demon swallowed a big gulp of hot broth and said, “I’ve been to this secret realm before!”
Guo Shier’s eyes immediately sparkled. Having someone familiar introduce them to the situation inside the secret realm could save them a lot of time. Luo Jie and Qi Nanshan immediately came over. Eagle Demon said with a smile, “One more bowl, with more meat… Shier, it’s not that I’m praising you, but your cooking is really good!”
Qi Nanshan said, “Hey, Eagle Demon, hurry up and tell us! Don’t keep us in suspense!”
Eagle Demon said, “Wait a moment, let me finish this bowl of meat first…”
Qin Lang stared at Eagle Demon in disbelief, secretly astonished. Eagle Demon wasn’t at all like the legendary figure—a moody killer who killed on a whim. He seemed quite easygoing.
Eagle Demon ate and drank slowly, completely ignoring Qi Nanshan’s murderous gaze. After finishing, he put down the large bowl and said, “Everyone should know that on the great plains, the most famous secret realm is the Beast Realm. It’s been explored for hundreds of years, yet many areas remain unknown.”
Luo Jie nodded and said, “Mm, the Beast Realm of the Western Symbol Sect is similar to the Yanhuo Realm of our Northern Symbol Sect—both are large-scale secret realms.”
Eagle Demon nodded. “These are fixed secret realms with fixed entrances, suitable for large sects to occupy. But there are countless secret realms in the world, each with its own characteristics. This one is what’s called a restricted realm—limiting the number of people who can enter. Hehe, sixty years ago, when I was still a Symbol Warrior, I entered it once.”
Guo Shier asked, “Is it very dangerous in there?”

Eagle Demon nodded and said, “It was extremely dangerous. Over seven hundred people went in that time… well, to be exact, seven hundred twenty. I was with the Red Demon Horse Team back then and didn’t know there was a limit on the number of people allowed inside. Our team had over two thousand members, but less than half of them made it in before the secret realm closed. It was only when we counted the numbers inside that we discovered this rule.”
“Hehe, a total of seven hundred twenty people went in. Guess how many were left when we came out?”
Guo Shier said, “Did only you come out?”
Eagle Demon shook his head. “It wasn’t that bad. Only a little over five hundred came out; more than two hundred died. But it was during that incident that I advanced to Grand Symbol Warrior! There was a huge altar inside. Unfortunately, we didn’t realize its benefits at the time. I happened to stay at the altar overnight, and after coming out, I found that I had inexplicably advanced.”
Luo Jie was shocked. “An altar? Symbol Sacrifice!” As a Grand Symbol Sorcerer, he naturally knew what that was.
This was a secret deep in Eagle Demon’s heart. He already knew that Luo Jie was a Grand Symbol Sorcerer rather than a Grand Sorcerer. Only a Grand Symbolist or Grand Symbol Sorcerer could explain this mystery. Ever since he had advanced inexplicably, he had been obsessed with that altar—it was his biggest secret.
“What is Symbol Sacrifice?”
Luo Jie’s face turned red from excitement. He said, “It’s a legendary thing. I always thought it was fake… There’s a legend about an altar that can break through the barriers to advancing in one’s profession. No one knows who built it. It’s incredibly mysterious. I never believed it was real, but now I see there really is such an altar.”
Guo Shier said, “Isn’t that cheating? Any professional can advance just by going to the altar? That’s too extreme!”
Luo Jie shook his head. “Not everyone can advance. It must be professionals who are exactly at the bottleneck stage of advancement. Eagle Demon must have been at that stage back then; otherwise, he wouldn’t have advanced.”
Eagle Demon nodded repeatedly. He said, “No wonder… no wonder it was like that. There were three Symbol Warriors of ours who stayed at the altar overnight, but only I advanced.”
Guo Shier fell into deep thought. He intuited that the altar must be related to the soul; otherwise, it wouldn’t have triggered Eagle Demon’s advancement. He said, “Uncle Eagle Demon, why not come with us? Take us to that altar.”

Eagle Demon nodded and said, “I brought a few friends. We’re going there this time to try our luck. It’s a pity I only realized now that it’s most effective when it’s time to advance… Alright, I’ll take you all there. I remember the location of that altar very well.”
Guo Shier asked, “What else is inside besides the altar?”
Eagle Demon shook his head. “I don’t know. We only stayed inside for fifteen days before being thrown out of the secret realm.”
Luo Jie was surprised. “Fifteen days? Such a short time?”
Eagle Demon nodded and sighed. “Yes, the time was too short. We only explored a small part. This secret realm is huge. It seems… it opens once every sixty years.”
Luo Jie and Guo Shier exchanged smiles. Both of them had spirit talismans from the Talisman Sect. As long as they entered once, they could go in countless times thereafter.
Eagle Demon didn’t notice the subtle moves of Luo Jie and his disciple. He continued, “There are many talisman worms inside, including many mutated ones. I guess they’re related to the altar. The last time we entered this secret realm, it was because we encountered three talisman worms. We lost over two hundred people. Although we eventually killed them, we suffered heavy losses.”
Guo Shier said, “The losses were probably all low-level professionals.”
Eagle Demon replied, “Yes. We were lucky not to encounter mutated talisman worms. Otherwise, even more people would have died.”
Luo Jie said, “Eagle Demon, go and bring others here to join us. We should be able to enter tomorrow.”
Eagle Demon put down the big bowl and said, “I’ll be right back.” Then he turned and left.
After Eagle Demon walked away, Luo Jie asked, “Shier, where have you set your coordinate?”
Guo Shier replied, “I set it outside Qin Guang City. Once we return to the Northern Talisman Sect, I’ll change it to my home inside.”
Luo Jie said, “Good. This time when we enter the secret realm, let’s set the coordinate at the altar… Heh, what a great thing! There’s even a talisman sacrifice. This secret realm is more important than anything else. Many of your senior brothers are stuck at a bottleneck and unable to advance.” His face was filled with joy. With a talisman sacrifice, many of his disciples could advance to master level, which also meant his status in the Northern Talisman Sect would rise again.
Guo Shier smiled and said, “Congratulations, master!”
Qi Nanshan couldn’t help but laugh. “Old man, your disciple… is almost becoming a genius, haha!”
Luo Jie affectionately patted Guo Shier’s shoulder and said, “Sigh, I never expected to take on such a young disciple in my old age. Heh, Shier is truly our lucky star.”
Qi Nanshan nodded. “Yes, a quirky little lucky star.”

Guo Shier said, “Hey, Grandpa Nanshan, are you praising me?”
…
Kuangfeng Laodu, along with two great Symbol-Warriors and Fengyuan Mashangdian from the Black Eagle Horse Team, after some arguing and fighting, finally reached an agreement. Since neither side wanted to engage in a deadly battle and both had their concerns, they had to resolve the issue through negotiation.
After all, the Kuangfeng Horse Team had three master-level experts, so they held 50% of the spots; the Black Eagle Horse Team held 40%, with the remaining 10% going to Luo Jie’s team. As for those wandering teams that wanted to enter the secret realm, they were completely ignored, with only Yingmo getting a few spots from Guo Shier.
It was just dawn when Luo Jie’s team was already ready. Guo Shier said, “Let’s go in first. If we fall behind, who knows what might happen.”
Qi Nanshan led the way, with Yingmo and a group of his friends following behind. All of his friends were Symbol-Warriors, numbering over thirty. Luo Jie and Guo Shier were in the middle. They ignored the people from the Kuangfeng Horse Team and Black Eagle Horse Team and headed straight for the entrance of the secret realm. This team had three master-level and one quasi-master-level expert, with the rest mostly being Symbol-Warriors. With such formidable strength, no one dared to stop them.
Kuangfeng Laoxie glared fiercely, his eyes blazing as he watched Luo Jie’s team enter the secret realm. Kuangfeng Laodu said, “Laoxie, don’t be impulsive. Wait until we come out of the secret realm first!”
After all of Luo Jie’s team entered the secret realm, Kuangfeng Laodu shouted, “We’re going in too! Whoever can get in, let them go in. Those who can’t make it in should flee immediately—don’t stay here!”
Fengyuan gave the same order, and instantly, chaos erupted in the camp. Many wandering teams took the opportunity to rush toward the secret realm.
A chaotic battle ensued…
By then, Luo Jie’s team had already disappeared into the woods.
…
This secret realm was composed of countless peaks. Strangely, these peaks were all isolated. If one could fly above the realm, they would clearly see that the land was covered with raised peaks, surrounded by flat ground, like a chessboard, with a peak in each square and flat ground on the edges.
There were various trees on the land—not dense forests, but sparse groves. There were no very thick trees; the thickest trunks were no thicker than buckets, with most being only as thick as fists. The season in the secret realm seemed to be autumn, different from the early winter on the grasslands, with a comfortable temperature and slightly yellowing leaves.
Guo Shier said, “This place is really strange!”

Luo Jie said with a smile, “There’s nothing strange about it. Secret realms come in all sorts of forms. I once visited one that was entirely underground caves—impossible to climb out of. I was trapped there for half a year before being thrown out… Other than finding some minerals, I gained almost nothing. Hehe, secret realms also vary in quality.”
Guo Shier said with a laugh, “Hehe, that must be frustrating. Hopefully, we’ll get more this time.”
Luo Jie replied, “If there really is an altar, then it’ll be worth it.”