Chapter 9: Ancient Yan Characters (Part 2)

Guo Shier couldn’t help but laugh and said, “Alright, forget it. By the way, how do we start constructing the altar?” He had inherited a lot from the Gu Miluo family and knew how to build an illusory altar, but he still wanted the old man to make the decision. After all, the old man had been an expert in seven-layer altars in his lifetime. No matter what he did, his knowledge and skills far surpassed his own, so it was wise of him to leave the initiative to the old man.
The old man smiled and said, “You’re lucky. With me here and Gu Mo Lian, you can start building a tangible altar right away. Hehe, the illusory altar stage can be skipped.”
Guo Shier was stunned and exclaimed in surprise, “Ah? There’s such good news?”
The old man said, “You’ve obtained two natural basic runes in total. Using these as a basis, you can build a fire altar and a gold altar. In other words, if successful, you can directly reach the level of two-layer altars.”
Guo Shier scratched his head and said, “It feels unreal… Um, I’m not dreaming, am I?”
The old man scolded, “Useless! Two-layer altars are just the beginning. There’s still a long way to go… Kid, don’t get too proud… Although you can now challenge those above you, you still can’t withstand truly skilled altar masters. Back in the day… Never mind, let’s not talk about it.”
Guo Shier muttered, “I’m just shocked, okay? I’m not proud at all… This old man’s going crazy again.”
The old man asked, “What did you say?”
Guo Shier jumped in fright and quickly said, “Nothing, I didn’t say anything. Hehe, I was praising you… You’re amazing!”
The old man said, “Enough nonsense. Let’s start the refinement. Come here and sit in front of me.”
Guo Shier flew to the top of Gu Mo Lian and sat cross-legged. The old man placed his hand on top of Guo Shier’s head and transmitted a portion of the inheritance into his soul. He said, “Kid, work hard to digest this inheritance. The two of us need to cooperate in the refinement. Without this process, you won’t truly master this altar.”
Guo Shier understood. After all, it was his altar, not the old man’s.
The old man said, “First, study the inheritance. I still need to purify some materials and craft a few small items. It will be done soon.”
Guo Shier nodded and immediately began to study the inheritance given by the old man. It consisted of three steps: the first was to transform Gu Mo Lian into a true altar, the second was to create an illusory altar, and the third was to turn it from illusory to tangible, ultimately forming a tangible altar.

After examining it carefully, Guo Shier felt his scalp tingle. A sacrificial altar, even if it was just an illusory one, required tens of millions of spells to be cast and countless talisman arrays to be set up—its complexity far exceeded his imagination. He couldn’t help but exclaim, “Damn, it’s this complicated?”
The handsome old man smiled and said, “It’s not that complicated. I’ve taken on part of the work. If you had to handle it all by yourself, the complexity would double! By the way, you need to get familiar with all the spells first. Try to make as few mistakes as possible during the process. Making one mistake can lead to a lot of trouble in fixing it.”
Guo Shier had been full of confidence, but after hearing what the handsome old man said and seeing the inheritance, he became uneasy. This task seemed rather torturous. He said, “Okay, I’ll try my best…”
…
Yuan Kaocheng ordered, “Find out which faction that little guy who bid against me belongs to.”
A Grand Sage replied and turned to leave. He Daming stepped forward and asked, “Brother Yuan, do you want to cause trouble for that kid?” Fahua and Mo Sidu stood by, watching with a smirk.
Yuan Kaocheng said, “I just want to find out. What, do you know that kid?”
He Daming nodded. “Yes. He saved one of my subordinates. Moreover… that kid is also a master at the altar level, just like us. He defeated Old Salt.” A sharp glint appeared in his eyes when mentioning Old Salt.
Yuan Kaocheng was surprised. “What? He’s an altar-level master? Are you joking?”
Fahua and Mo Sidu also showed surprise. They had seen Guo Shier before—he was clearly a high-level Grand Sage. They were confident they hadn’t misjudged him, but He Daming didn’t seem to be joking at all.
He Daming nodded. “My subordinate, He Dabiao, was almost killed by Old Salt. Several of our Grand Sages died in the Starlight Secret Realm. Damn Old Salt! If not for that kid stepping in to rescue him, my subordinate would have died in that realm too.”
He Daji came over and asked, “Brother, are you talking about the kid who bid against me?”
He Daming said, “That’s right, Daji. Don’t try to take revenge on that kid. His strength isn’t any weaker than yours!”
He Daji dismissed it. “Just a high-level Grand Sage.”
He Daming grew serious. “Just a Grand Sage? A high-level Grand Sage can defeat Old Salt? That kid must have used some trick to hide his true strength… Be careful!”
Yuan Kaocheng said, “I remember Old Salt also came to Daqian Fort.”

He Daming nodded and said, “I know. Hmph, that bastard… It’s a shame we can’t fight in Daqian Fort. Otherwise, I would have torn off his head. Just wait—I won’t let him off.”
Yuan Kaocheng nodded, gave an order to have those investigating Guo Shier return, then said, “Brother He, shall we go talk?”
He Daming smiled and said, “It’s a good chance to get together. We haven’t seen each other in a long time.”
Yuan Kaocheng also invited Fahua and Mo Si Du, who gladly agreed. The altar masters formed their own small circle and were quite familiar with one another. After exchanging a few words, they left together.
…
Guo Shier kept trying out spells, practicing little by little, learning step by step—this was a necessary stage. The old master also ignored him, focusing solely on refining materials. Gu Mu Lian hovered about ten centimeters above the ground in the talisman-making hall. Both of them were very busy.
According to the traditions, Guo Shier not only had to become familiar with numerous spells but also learn how to construct an altar—tasks he had to carry out personally, without relying on the old master. Guo Shier studied very diligently, as this would determine how far he could go in the future.
As for what Li Ran had mentioned—once he reached the rank of a high-level Great Sage, he should go look for him—that was now impossible. Guo Shier had tried the coordinates Li Ran gave him many times, but they were useless. He understood that it was because the location was too far away.
“Shaping… Arranging the layout… Setting up the hidden talisman space… The sacrificial altar…”
Guo Shier muttered to himself. Only then did he realize how complex it was to construct an altar—it was like building a house, where all functional areas had to be considered. An altar also required dividing it into different zones; for example, a separate area for sacrificial offerings, or where spirit beasts were placed, had to be created independently.
Once the altar was built, it became like a labyrinth, enormous in size, and could even have dedicated storage and breeding spaces. No wonder altar masters wouldn’t starve even if trapped. With proper preparation, an altar master could never die in captivity—unless their altar was destroyed.
Only now did Guo Shier truly understand altars, filled with awe—this thing was incredibly powerful. Once the altar was successfully constructed, his soul could be greatly enhanced. Originally, the body served as the container and the soul as the liquid. But once the altar was built, the altar itself became the container, leading to a significant boost in soul power.

Whether a spellcaster can achieve greatness depends crucially on this stage. Constructing an altar is extremely difficult—it requires not only materials but also a good lineage and a strong soul. Otherwise, even if construction is successful, insufficient soul power to control it will lead to failure. Thus, many people get stuck at this stage even after reaching the rank of Grand Sage.

Without the handsome old man and the Ancient Ink Lotus, it would be unknown how long Guo Shier would have to wait to advance to the altar level, as there is so much to learn. But with the Ancient Ink Lotus and the handsome old man, these are no longer problems. Following the old man’s steps, constructing an altar is no longer a difficult task.

Finally, after more than three months, Guo Shier became familiar with the three stages of the lineage. He studied and practiced day and night before finally mastering them. The handsome old man had also prepared all the materials and completed several small items needed, so they could begin crafting their soul altar.

Guo Shier went out first to inform Nan You, Eagle Demon, and Luo Zhan that they would be staying in Great Depth Fortress for a long time and asked them to wait patiently there.

Nan You said, “It’s fine. I can take the other two to explore some nearby areas; maybe we can find some good materials.”

Guo Shier thought it made sense. Once he was trapped underground crafting the altar, he wouldn’t come up for a while, and it was uncertain how much time it would take to complete it. He nodded and said, “That’s good. Be careful, and bring back the return talismans. If you encounter danger, return immediately.”

Nan You patted his chest, guaranteeing that nothing dangerous would happen.

After finishing his instructions, Guo Shier began a long period of seclusion to craft the altar.

……

Time passed like water, and Great Depth Fortress remained as peaceful as ever.

Two years later, Nan You, Eagle Demon, and Luo Zhan were idly chatting in the courtyard. Over the years, the three had become good friends—more precisely, Eagle Demon and Luo Zhan had become close friends with Nan You. Nan You hadn’t left on his own either; he had stayed with Eagle Demon and Luo Zhan, waiting for Guo Shier. During that time, the three often went out exploring together.

Luo Zhan had advanced to the rank of Senior Grand Sage during these two years. This was thanks to Nan You’s help, as he found a great place where he could rapidly enhance his soul power. After practicing there for a few months and returning to Great Depth Fortress, Luo Zhan had already reached the rank of Senior Grand Sage.

The wait was long; over the two years, Guo Shier only came out once, and it was clear he was in good spirits. None of the three knew what he was doing underground, and Guo Shier didn’t tell them either. With Nan You present, he didn’t mention that he was constructing an altar, and moreover, a physical one.
Fortunately, his followers never asked what their master was doing; they just needed to follow.
Luo Zhan said, “Since Shier still hasn’t come out, why don’t we explore the nearby area again?”
Eagle Demon shook his head and said, “Forget it. What places in this vicinity haven’t we visited yet? Further away… we don’t dare go. Who knows if we might get lost? The Eight Paths Vast Heaven is simply too huge.”
Luo Zhan sighed and said, “It’s so boring. It would be great to find someone to fight.”
“Uncle Luo, who do you want to fight? Count me in!”
Guo Shier slowly walked out of the room.