Chapter 5: The Secret Ocean (Part 1)

After ascending to the rank of Great Sage, Qi Nanshan’s personality and temperament changed somewhat. Perhaps influenced by the inheritance, he was clearly less composed than before. His soul seemed to have been reborn, and his overall demeanor underwent a significant transformation.

Guo Shier said, “In the past, whenever we discovered a secret realm, we would go in to explore, hoping to find something valuable. But since arriving on the Star Continent, I’ve hardly felt any interest in exploring secret realms.”

Monier replied, “That’s because there are too many secret realms. Things become rare only when they’re scarce… Since we can’t leave for a while, let’s see what’s in this secret realm. Maybe we can find some useful materials. It would be even better if we could discover an ancient soul altar.”

Qi Nanshan said, “Ancient soul altars can be found in many secret realms, but most of them are incomplete, with very few being useful. I’ve only seen two— one is the basic soul altar in the Altar Secret Realm, but that one is also on the verge of failure… The most complete one is the ancient soul altar of the Black Sigil People.”

Guo Shier nodded. “I know. Hehe, after receiving the inheritance of the ancient soul altar, I realized that such altars are actually created by spellcasters who possess their own soul altars. After their death, there’s a certain chance that their soul altar will manifest, allowing them to pass on their profession… The Void Mist Path of our Chenxiao Sect seems to be a type of soul altar as well.”

Monier nodded. “Indeed, the Void Mist Path is essentially a soul altar… though it hasn’t fully developed into one. Unlike those ancient soul altars, the Void Mist Path of our Chenxiao Sect can only pass on skills up to the level of Great Sage. That’s why our sect can only become an intermediate Spellcasting Continent, not an advanced one.”

Guo Shier understood that Zhu Jiamao and the Demon Maiden in the Bloodthirsty Secret Realm were probably at that level—capable of passing on basic skills of an advanced Great Sage, but unable to create their own soul altars. Li Ran and Chou Mo were far stronger; both possessed their own soul altars, which would allow them to leave behind true soul altars after their deaths.

Chou Mo’s reason for going to the Bloodthirsty Secret Realm was also to explore and understand the mysteries of ancient soul altars. Li Ran’s soul altar was even more powerful than those ancient ones, so he readily traded it to Chou Mo.

Guo Shier couldn’t help but marvel inwardly. If he hadn’t gone out for experience, he would never have known just how powerful the spells in this world could be. If he had stayed on the lower continents, perhaps after reaching the rank of master, he would only have been able to muddle along in his sect, at most advancing to the rank ofmad master master, with no further path ahead.

The four of them flew deeper into the secret realm. This time, they didn’t need to hide and flew directly at high altitude.

It wasn’t until they flew past the rocky beach that Guo Shier could clearly see where they were. He exclaimed in surprise, “The rocky beach we passed just now must be the result of a collapsed mountain!” They had reached a very high altitude, and from up there, it was evident that this was a mountain range—part of it had been shattered into a rocky beach, with visible signs of splitting at both ends.

Yet the size of this rocky beach was astonishingly large. It was so vast that they couldn’t tell it was a collapsed mountain while inside it. Only by flying high and looking from the edges did they uncover its mystery.

Qi Nanshan pondered, “How much power must it take… to collapse a mountain?”

Monier sneered, “It might not have been collapsed intentionally; it could have fallen naturally!” She genuinely wanted to pick a fight with Qi Nanshan. For some reason, she found him displeasing no matter how she looked at him.

Guo Shier said, “Masteress, it must have been collapsed!”

As soon as Monier saw Guo Shier, all her anger vanished. She asked softly, “Why?”

Guo Shier pointed to the distance and said, “Do you see those ravines? There are… um, seven ravines… all of the same width and depth. Those must be the traces left from destroying the mountain.”

Monier nodded. In truth, she had objected just because she disliked Qi Nanshan.

Qi Nanshan didn’t take it to heart and said, “Let’s keep flying forward and see what’s there.”

Gradually, a vast forest appeared below. About half an hour later, they heard the sound of waves. Monier exclaimed in surprise, “Is there a lake? No, it’s the sea!”

An endless ocean appeared before their eyes. Guo Shier was incredulous and asked, “Is there also an ocean inside the secret realm?”

Qi Nanshan and Eagle Demon stared in astonishment. Both knew what an ocean was, but they had never seen one before. Qi Nanshan said, “I heard that the Eastern Seal Sect is located by the sea, but I’ve never seen the ocean in my lifetime.”

Guo Shier had seen the ocean in his past life and even ridden on a sea ship, but this was his first time seeing the sea in this life, and that too in a hidden realm, which he found utterly incredible. This world had long shattered his previous understanding of it—there were many things he had never seen or heard of before.

Along the vast coastline lay extensive beaches, deserted except for occasional wild beasts. White seabirds circled above the shore, calling out as they flew, creating a wild and picturesque scene.

Though desolate, Guo Shier admitted that the beauty of this place was beyond anything he had seen in countless lifetimes. He exclaimed excitedly and dived swiftly downward.

In just a few moments, Guo Shier landed on the beach. A leopard-like wild beast jumped back in shock, then stared intently at Guo Shier, seemingly assessing whether he posed a threat. If not, he would make a delicious meal.

Guo Shier paid no attention to the beast and walked a few steps toward the beach. In his past life, without a weapon at hand, it would have been hard for him to remain so calm. The leopard-like beast, perhaps thinking Guo Shier posed no threat, roared and charged at him.

Monier landed just then and slapped the beast on the forehead with her hand, inserting a virtual talisman. Instantly, the beast’s head exploded. She asked, “Baby, do you want to go into the sea?”

Guo Shier turned to look at the dead beast and smiled, “We’ll have grilled meat in a while.”

Eagle Demon also landed. The scent of grilled meat delighted him greatly. He first met Guo Shier because of the aroma of grilled meat, enjoying the most delicious meal of his life. After following Guo Shier, he had eaten grilled meat countless times, so he always remembered the meals Guo Shier prepared.

“I’ll skin and cut the meat.”

Qi Nanshan also landed and said, “Great, I haven’t eaten Shier’s grilled meat in ages.” He hadn’t eaten anything since advancing to his current level, so he was already very hungry.

Guo Shier quickly took out a grill, grabbed a pack of charcoal, and lit it with a talisman flame. Within seconds, flames erupted. Eagle Demon used large leaves to hold the freshly cut meat and helped Guo Shier thread it onto copper skewers.

After a while, the aroma of grilled meat filled the air.

Guo Shier quickly grilled several skewers and let everyone eat first. Monier, having tasted Guo Shier’s cooking, also liked it very much. Eagle Demon took a bite and said, “It’s far inferior to the meat of mutated talisman beasts. Well, it’s passable.”

Guo Shier took the freshly roasted meat, took a bite, and said, “Hmm, it’s not as good as the meat of mutated talisman beasts.” He added with enthusiasm, “I’ve tried the meat of many mutated talisman beasts, and most of them are delicious, each with its own merits. Only a very small number have too much tendon and too little meat, with a strong fishy smell; they’re not tasty at all unless processed. But overall, the meat of mutated talisman beasts is better than that of ordinary talisman beasts, which is slightly worse than wild animal meat. The worst is the meat of domesticated poultry and beasts—it’s completely incomparable.”

Qi Nanshan asked, “Shier, why do you bother studying this?”

Guo Shier replied, “Life is short, and it’s not easy to enjoy good food. Of course, I need to study it thoroughly.”

Qi Nanshan said, “Life is short? You’re already a sage. As long as you’re not killed, you can live for hundreds of years. Moreover, your strength… will only grow stronger in the future. How can life be short for you? You can’t just focus on eating without having ambitions.”

Monier immediately became upset and said, “My baby will never be killed! If anyone dies, it’ll be you! Besides, my baby’s ambitions are definitely greater than yours!” Then she snorted and added, “What’s wrong with wanting to eat? You eat more than anyone else!”

Guo Shier was at a loss whether to laugh or cry. As an elder, Qi Nanshan saying a few words to him wasn’t a big deal; he didn’t feel resistant. He understood that some words were spoken out of concern and care—otherwise, who would want to get involved in such trivial matters?

“Hehe, Brother Nanshan… uh, never mind. I’ll just call you Grandpa Nanshan. I’m just not used to it… Grandpa Nanshan, I just like to eat. Being a good cook was once my greatest wish.”

This time, not only did Qi Nanshan roll his eyes, but Monier was also speechless. Such an ambition was rather absurd. Of course, this was just his wish from his past life. Guo Shier’s goal in this life was to grow as strong as possible, protect his family, and then leave this world peacefully to be reborn in the next.

Guo Shier was eager to take his soul skills from this life to the next, but he wasn’t sure if he could do that. What he feared most now was dying suddenly. If killed, whether he could be reborn was uncertain—a matter that couldn’t be predicted or tried.

Soon, everyone finished eating the roasted meat. Guo Shier packed up his things and, gazing at the sea, said, “How about going to the sea? I think there must be many things in the sea.”

Monier said, “The sea is also dangerous, and we’re not familiar with it.”

Guo Shier replied, “Let’s just explore the nearby coastal areas. We won’t go deep into the sea… I guess even powerful mutated talisman fish won’t be in the shallow waters.”

Qi Nan Shan had just been promoted and was full of confidence in his own strength. He said, “Alright, let’s go into the water and have some fun.”
Guo Shier released the Giant Perch Dragon. This dragon had reaped numerous benefits in the Bloody Secret Realm, and with Guo Shier continuously refining its essence over the past two years, it now possessed the strength of a Level 9 mutated talisman beast, its body having shrunk to about ten meters in length. Although it wasn’t as massive as before, its body was as solid as solid matter.