Chapter 3: The Xiao Lei Realm (Part 1)

Zhou Xiaoling said, “It seems to be a chain… I can’t see clearly. There’s a long object tied to the bottom of the altar. Strange—how could something be tied there?”
Guo Shier said, “It appears to be a golden chain!”
Eagle Demon said, “Hmm, I saw it too… faintly. At first, I thought it was the trace of lightning.”
Guo Shier said, “A three-layer solid altar… This is the third true professional expert I’ve seen!”
Zhou Xiaoling asked in surprise, “The third?”
Guo Shier replied, “It should be called the third-ranked… The strongest is Brother Li Ran. He has a six-layer solid altar. The second is the founder of your Fire Sect; he also has a three-layer solid altar… But what is this person doing?”
Zhou Xiaoling exclaimed in shock, “Six layers?” She certainly knew that the more layers a altar had, the stronger its owner was. Yet she had only ever seen professional experts with three-layer solid altars, who were already extremely terrifying—top-tier professionals who could dominate any sect.
Guo Shier said, “Let’s go! We can’t stay here for long.”
“Four kids, don’t leave yet! Wait!”
Guo Shier was startled. The person in the lightning had already noticed them. Seeing that the four of them wanted to leave, he immediately spoke to stop them.
Eagle Demon asked, “What should we do?”
Guo Shier said, “An expert with a three-layer solid altar wants us to stay. There’s no way we can escape… Let’s wait and see first.” Such a powerful person must not be defied. They might not bother killing, but once angered, they would kill as easily as slaughtering chickens.
Eagle Demon replied, “Understood.” Others might not know the strength of an expert with an altar, but he had witnessed it with his own eyes—Ban Xilong wasn’t even as strong as this person, who could easily crush them, let alone this individual. Even if they tried to resist, there was no hope—just like a newborn baby having no chance against a grown man.
The four of them didn’t dare leave and hovered above the water, watching as the person kept rising and falling, with the altar going up and down alternately.
After waiting for two full days, the dark clouds in the sky gradually dispersed, revealing the entire highland clearly.
The person said, “Come in!” His voice rang directly in their souls, shaking the four of them so much they almost fell into the water.
Guo Shier said, “Let’s go in.”

The four of them flew into the high ground and then discovered that the conical stone pillars were actually made of metal. Their surfaces were uneven yet shiny, reflecting a metallic luster, and they were adorned with numerous runes. They were not naturally formed but rather part of an artificially arranged rune array. None of Guo Shier and the others recognized this rune array.

In the center of the high ground, there was an irregular platform, on which a young woman was sitting.

The four of them were stunned because from the voices they had heard earlier, it was impossible to tell that it was a woman’s voice. Accompanied by thunderous sounds, that voice penetrated straight into their souls, emitting a terrifying resonance that made it impossible to distinguish whether it was male or female. Even after the thunder stopped, the voice that told them to come in was transmitted through vibrations in their souls, which was extremely shocking.

“Do not enter the Thunder Platform. Wait outside.”

The voice was clear and pleasant. Guo Shier and the others immediately stopped and landed beside a metal cone.

The woman sat quietly for a while before getting up and appearing before the four of them in an instant. This kind of teleportation was truly instantaneous, leaving no time for anyone to react.

“Which family’s disciples are you?”
Guo Shier replied, “We are disciples of the Gu Miluo family.” In this place, the name of the Gu Miluo family should be quite effective, and they weren’t pretending either, as they all had identity tokens from the Gu Miluo family.

The woman said, “Disciples of the Gu Miluo family? How dare you come to the Minor Thunder Realm? You four are really bold!”

Guo Shier asked, “Who are you, senior?”

The woman replied, “I am Yan Ruodai from the Gu Dai family.”

The Gu Dai family was one of the four ancient rune magic families. Guo Shier knew it was a family dominated by women. He never expected that the first professional from the Gu Dai family he met would be a super expert with a three-layer solid altar.

Guo Shier bowed according to ancient customs and said, “Guo Shier from the Gu Miluo family.”

Yan Ruodai showed a hint of surprise because, according to the rules of the ancient rune magic families, if one was a core disciple of the Gu Miluo family, their name should be Guo Shier Miluo or Shier Miluo—those were the proper titles. Only those who were vassals could not use the surname Miluo.

Of course, Guo Shier knew this rule, but he didn’t want to add the surname Miluo. Even calling himself Shier Miluo would be unbearable for him. With a calm expression, he said, “These three are my companions: Uncle Eagle Demon, Uncle Luo Zhan, and Zhou Xiaoling.”

Yan Ruodai stared at the four of them strangely. After a long while, she said, “How did you enter the Minor Thunder Realm? This coordinate… Professionals who haven’t reached the Virtual Spirit Mirror level are in great danger here. They might get trapped forever.”

Guo Shier was stunned. He remembered a lightning strike on the talisman gate when they first entered, confirming that this place was indeed dangerous. He knew the interdimensional talisman wasn’t damaged and just needed time to recover, but the peril of this place was already evident.

Yan Ruodai looked like a young woman in her twenties, but Guo Shier and the others knew she was at least several hundred years old. Just like Li Ran, who claimed to be 600 years old—Guo Shier had never believed him at first, only to realize later that professionals here could truly live for a very long time, and it was impossible to tell from their appearance.

Guo Shier said with a wry smile, “We didn’t know this was the Minor Thunder Realm either. We got a coordinate by chance and thought it was just an ordinary secret realm, so we came in… Who would have thought that as soon as we entered, the talisman gate was struck by lightning and can’t be used for now. We can’t get out, so we have to wait here for a while.”

Yan Ruodai couldn’t help but laugh. “Poor kids. Thunderstorms are the most common thing in the Minor Thunder Realm. The professionals who come here do so to use lightning to temper the altar. You won’t get anything by coming here. If you encounter mutated talisman beasts related to lightning, hehe, that’ll be fun.” Her tone carried an air of schadenfreude.

Guo Shier and the others were speechless.

Yan Ruodai asked, “By the way, did you bring any food?”

Guo Shier replied, “Yes, we did. Do you need any, senior?” He was secretly puzzled. Professionals usually carried plenty of food with them, and even if food ran low, their skills made hunting easy.

Yan Ruodai replied calmly, “I’ve lived in the Minor Thunder Realm for ten years, so don’t be surprised. No matter how much food there is, it runs out eventually.”

Ten years!

The four were shocked. This woman was truly remarkable—having lived in this place for a full ten years.

Guo Shier said, “Yes, we brought a lot of food.”

Yan Ruodai said, “Follow me!”

Not far from the thunder platform, there was a beautiful talisman house, made of some unknown material, resembling a crystal palace. It wasn’t large, with only two floors—the upper floor was Yan Ruodai’s bedroom, and the lower floor had a large room serving as a living area.

The walls contained various beautiful flowers, looking so lifelike as if they had just been picked. The floor was covered with a patterned carpet woven from the fur of mutated talisman beasts. Entering the room was like stepping into a garden, giving a sense of freshness and tranquility. Zhou Xiaoling couldn’t help but exclaim, “Wow, it’s so beautiful…”

Yan Ruodai casually swiped on the ground, revealing a low table, and then produced five round objects similar to cushions. She said, “Sit down. Since you’ve come here, you can be considered my guests.”
Guo Shier said, “Please wait a moment, senior. I’ll go prepare some talisman food.”
Yan Ruodai was surprised. “You know how to make talisman food?”
Guo Shier thought to himself, Is it that rare to know how to make talisman food? He nodded and said, “Yes, I do!”
Yan Ruodai was overjoyed. “That’s great! I haven’t eaten talisman food in ages… Hehe, go quickly! Cook it right at the entrance of the Talisman House, hehe!” At that moment, she didn’t resemble a senior at all but rather a greedy little girl.
Zhou Xiaoling said, “Shier, let me help you.” She followed Guo Shier outside.
Guo Shier was not only a food lover but also a cook. Though his skills were average, having access to all sorts of strange ingredients in this world—especially the meat from mutated talisman beasts and insects, along with various peculiar plants—made it hard not to create delicious dishes.
Through frying, stir-frying, and boiling, Guo Shier prepared eight dishes plus a large pot of soup, as well as a pot of rice made from Jingming rice purchased in Bibo City. He also brought out a few bottles of rice wine. He had bought quite a lot of this rice wine earlier because both Eagle Demon and Luo Zhan loved it, and he liked it too, so there wasn’t much left now.
The eight dishes were placed in eight large bowls. Guo Shier had no choice—this was how cooking had to be done in this world. If he used small dishes like in his past life, it wouldn’t even be enough for two people here. Sometimes he found it amusing that the people here, including himself, ate even more than pigs in his past life.
When the bowls of dishes were carried in, Guo Shier was stunned when he carried in the last one. He saw Eagle Demon and Luo Zhan staring at Yan Ruodai with wide mouths, utterly astonished, while Zhou Xiaoling also stood there in shock. Yan Ruodai said with a smile, “It’s really delicious… Ah? There’s another bowl! Bring it here quickly!”
Guo Shier set down the bowl and glanced at the low table, then froze as well. Of the seven bowls, aside from the one he had just brought in, all the others were completely empty, not even a drop of soup left. He looked at the delicate Yan Ruodai, then at Eagle Demon and Luo Zhan, and finally at Zhou Xiaoling.
Zhou Xiaoling gave Guo Shier a wry smile and nodded, signaling, “You guessed right. All these dishes were eaten by this delicate beauty. We didn’t even get a bite!”

Next, Guo Shier saw with his own eyes how Yan Ruodai ate her food. It was a remarkable sight—the chopsticks leaving a trail behind them as they moved. It was the first time he had seen such a thing. In just over ten seconds, the entire bowl of food was gone. This seemingly delicate woman turned out to be an extreme eater; Guo Shier felt he couldn’t compare to her. This was food meant for five people. In his past life, even five pigs wouldn’t have been able to finish it, yet Yan Ruodai ate it all by herself.