Chapter 7: Reunion of Old Friends (Part 2)

That voice made Guo Shier’s hair stand on end—it was a female voice again! Zhang Yaojin’s normal speech was fine, but his laughter or expressions of surprise always came in a woman’s voice, which felt very strange. However, he didn’t say much and asked, “You’re not planning to keep us talking in mid-air forever, are you? Let’s take a look at your residence.”
Zhang Yaojin patted his chest and said, “Ah, I’m so happy I forgot everything. Please! Follow me.” Just as he was about to fly off, he turned to the several beautiful women in the patrol team and said, “I owe you all my thanks,” bowing politely.
The beautiful women chuckled and left.
Zhang Yaojin’s residence was built on a cliff, with a thin waterfall cascading beside it. Stabilized by spells, the building extended from the side of the cliff and had two floors—the lower floor for living, and the upper floor as an observation deck—integrating seamlessly with the cliff without any sense of dissonance.
“This is specially prepared for the guest elders of our clan…”
Guo Shier asked, “Does the clan’s founder also live in this area?”
Zhang Yaojin replied, “No. We are just guest elders. Although this area is a decent place to live in Qingdai City, it’s not the best. The best areas are reserved for the high-ranking members of the Gudai clan. Even the guest elders can’t live there.”
Nanyou asked in confusion, “Why?”
Zhang Yaojin smiled and said, “Because the high-ranking members of the Gudai clan are all women!”
They landed on the upper platform. Near the waterfall, they could hear the sound of rushing water, and a moist, fresh breeze blew towards them. Guo Shier took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, as if all his frustrations had gone with it, leaving him in a much better mood.
The floor was actually wooden, but unlike in his past life, it was covered with runes that repelled water and dust. The wood itself was special too—covered with a thin layer of resin that filled in any uneven spots. It was a deep coffee color, smooth and smooth, with the mist in the air unable to stick to it at all.
On the platform by the waterfall, there were several tables and chairs. Such items were quite rare; most people in this world sat on the ground and rarely used tables or furniture.
Everyone sat around the tables. A few low-level professionals came over, carrying plates with various fruits and delicacies—all exquisite spell-based foods. Yingmo couldn’t help but whistle. All of these low-level professionals were beautiful women.
Zhang Yaojin frowned slightly and said, “Eagle, since when did you learn to be flirtatious?”

Eagle Demon was stunned. Guo Shier laughed heartily, while Luo Zhan said, “Spring has come for the eagle…”
Nan You looked at Eagle Demon in confusion. As far as he knew, Eagle Demon was like a piece of wood—when had he ever shown any romantic interest? Come on, this guy had never even thought about such things before.
Only Guo Shier understood that Eagle Demon was mocking Zhang Yaojin.
Eagle Demon said, “How dare I be presumptuous… I’m just envious of you, haha.”
Zhang Yaojin said seriously, “They’re all my little sisters. Don’t bully them, or I won’t agree.” There was even a hint of tenderness in his voice.
Guo Shier no longer understood him at all, and Eagle Demon and the others were even more baffled, not knowing how Zhang Yaojin had changed so much. Back then, this guy had been as cunning as a fox, tenacious, and quite brutal. Now it seemed like a different person—there was not the slightest trace of a murderous aura about him.
Seeing everyone’s confusion, Zhang Yaojin smiled and said, “Don’t be surprised. I feel like I’ve found a home. Hehe, after receiving the inheritance from the Gudai family and getting their support, I was able to build the Virtual Form Altar. I consider this place my home, and they’re all my sisters.”
Guo Shier suddenly remembered that Zhang Yaojin had received the inheritance from the Gudai family. When he got his inheritance, Xian Ruidai couldn’t understand it at all, because it was meant to be passed down to women. Maybe that inheritance had changed him? Could it be that this guy’s past life was a woman?
The atmosphere became a bit awkward. Guo Shier changed the subject and asked, “Lao Zhang, where has Dingding gone?” He knew that Zhang Yaojin could no longer leave the Gudai family.
Zhang Yaojin replied, “Dingding has also advanced to the Virtual Form Altar, just like Xian Ruidai. Hehe, if it weren’t for the various materials provided by the family, it would be difficult to advance. Sigh, only after joining the Gudai family did I realize that it’s really hard to gather all the materials needed for advancement, especially for building an altar.”
After expressing his thoughts, he continued, “Dingding and the others have gone to the Guxilong family. Many people went this time. I heard there’s a major incident at the Guxilong family. Although the four ancient families often compete with each other, they still come to help when there’s a serious crisis.”
Guo Shier asked, “A major incident? What kind of incident?”
Zhang Yaojin said, “I’m not sure about the details. I only know that the Gudai family’s headquarters issued a call for volunteers, assembling experts above the rank of chief elders from various branches. More than a hundred experts were sent from us. Xian Ruidai and Dingding are among them.”
Guo Shier nodded and asked, “On which continent?”
Zhang Yaojin replied, “The Guxilong Continent.”

Guo Shier said in surprise, “Hey, that’s the continent where the Gu Xi Long family’s headquarters is located.” He had been there before; from what he remembered, it was a closed continent that required a teleportation array to reach. He had left the coordinates there before and asked again, “How long have they been gone?”
Zhang Yaojin replied, “It’s been some time—well, about half a year.”
Guo Shier asked, “Has there been any news sent back?”
Zhang Yaojin said, “There should be…”
Ying Mo asked puzzledly, “If there is, there is; if not, there isn’t. What does ‘should be’ mean?”
Zhang Yaojin said awkwardly, “Sorry, I rarely pay attention to such things. Since I moved here, I’ve basically never left. Now… I’m only in charge of the city’s security.”
Guo Shier shook his head, picked up a fruit, took a bite, and asked, “Lao Zhang, do you plan to go back?” Although he knew Zhang Yaojin wouldn’t return, he couldn’t help asking.
Zhang Yaojin said, “Why go back? I’ll never go back.” He hated his hometown deeply—both its people and its sect. If forced to return, he might well start killing indiscriminately.
Guo Shier said, “We’ll be going back soon. This time, heh, we almost didn’t make it back. If it weren’t for a senior’s help, who knows how much longer we would have wandered outside.”
Zhang Yaojin asked, “Where did you go?” He vaguely sensed that these people must have had many adventures; otherwise, Guo Shier wouldn’t have reached the third-tier altar.
Guo Shier casually mentioned the places he had been to. Zhang Yaojin wasn’t interested in the others, but he was very curious about Ba Qi Da Mi Tian. He said, “I’ve heard of this place. Ba Qi Da Mi Tian… The Gu Dai family once sent a group of experts there. They only returned a few years ago with great gains. If I get the chance, I’ll go there too.”
In Qing Dai City, Guo Shier and his group took a short rest and spent a few days exploring the mountain city before bidding farewell and leaving. They headed straight to the Gu Xi Long continent. Guo Shier used the Great Cross-Realm Talisman and easily entered the core continent of the Gu Xi Long family.
…
Guo Shier stepped out of the talisman portal, followed by Ying Mo and the others. As soon as they stepped out, they were stunned by the scene before them.
A wasteland.
Ying Mo exclaimed in shock, “This… this is Ban Xi Long’s castle!”
Guo Shier said, “It’s Xing Bao. It seems… we were able to enter not because of the power of the Great Cross-Realm Talisman, but because their Wu Chen Talisman Pillars were broken. The talisman arrays that sealed the continent became completely ineffective. Otherwise, even with the Great Cross-Realm Talisman, we wouldn’t have been able to enter.”

Most of Xingbao had collapsed. There were countless broken flying cars on the ground, along with numerous corpses.
Eagle Demon sighed, “Good heavens, who did this?”
Guo Shier said, “It seems the entire core continent of the ancient Xilong family has fallen. Uncle Eagle Demon, Uncle Luo, Nanyou—check if there are any survivors.”
The group dispersed and used their souls to scan the land.
A moment later, Nanyou called out, “Shier, over here! There’s someone alive here…” Then he added, “But they’re almost dead.”
Guo Shier and the others rushed over. They saw a flying car lying on its side, its front completely shattered, with only the rear section still intact. Eagle Demon said, “Huh, isn’t this Sakhi Long’s flying car?” He and Guo Shier had ridden in this car before, when Sakhi Long brought them to the ancient Xilong continent, and they used it to reach Xingbao.
Luo Zhan asked, “I wonder who they fought against? It’s so tragic.”
At the entrance of the car’s cabin, a person was lying on the ground. Nanyou kicked him, turning him over so he was face up.
Guo Shier flew down. At first glance, he was stunned and said, “Huh, I know this person. His name is… what was it again… Ah, Yiqiao Xilong! Sakhi Long’s chief steward!”
Eagle Demon followed and said, “That’s right, it’s Yiqiao Xilong.”
Luo Zhan, who had never been here before, asked, “Yiqiao Xilong? What does he do?”
Guo Shier replied, “He’s the manager of Xingbao. We’ve met before.” He bent down, touched Yiqiao Xilong’s neck, and said, “There’s still a chance to save him.” He took out a talisman pill and put it in his mouth, saying, “Maybe we can get some information from him.”
A moment later, Yiqiao Xilong trembled. As a great sage, he had strong vitality, but Guo Shier noticed that his soul was severely damaged, making recovery extremely difficult. He patted Yiqiao Xilong’s cheek and said, “Wake up! Yiqiao Xilong! Hey… wake up! Hey…”
Yiqiao Xilong’s eyes moved beneath his eyelids. After a while, he opened them and stared at Guo Shier blankly, his lips trembling as he said, “Wh… where is this?”
Guo Shier didn’t have a bad impression of Yiqiao Xilong. Back then, he hadn’t bullied anyone and had been polite to Guo Shier, Eagle Demon, and Zhou Xiaoling. He said, “This is behind Xingbao. Yiqiao Xilong, do you still recognize me?”
Yiqiao Xilong’s gaze was unfocused for a while before it sharpened slightly. He stared at Guo Shier for a long time and asked, “Who… who are you?”

Guo Shier was familiar with Yi Qiaolong, but this guy was the chief administrator of Xingbao and met many people every day—how could he remember him? He said, “I once came to Xingbao with Ban Xilong, and it was you who received us.”
Yi Qiaolong looked around in confusion. When he saw Eagle Demon, he was momentarily stunned before suddenly remembering and saying, “It’s… it’s you guys. I remember now.”
Eagle Demon smirked.
Guo Shier asked, “What happened here? Who destroyed Xingbao?”
Extreme fear appeared in Yi Qiaolong’s eyes.