Chapter 10: The Gu Ming Family (Part 2)

Guo Shier said, “The spells in this world have given me even greater surprises.”
Li Ran replied, “That’s because you’ve never dabbled in the field of spells or cultivation, which is why you’re so surprised and fond of them. Once you go to the Greater World, you’ll realize that the true strong ones there… those are the real strong ones—none of us can compare to them.”
Guo Shier smiled bitterly. “Even with your strength… we can’t compare?”
Li Ran shook his head. “With my strength, which surpasses that of the ninth-tier altar, I can only be considered strong, but there’s still a gap compared to true strong ones. It’s not because spells are weak, but because the Greater World and the Small World are completely different. There are many places that can nurture experts, and after countless generations of exploration, they have their own methods of cultivation and evolution.”
Guo Shier suddenly remembered an important question. He asked, “If we leave the Small World and go to the Star of Sacrifice, will our strength decline?”
Li Ran said, “I don’t know. We’ll have to find out when we get there.”
Guo Shier shuddered and said, “What if… in the Greater World, the power of spells and soul energy is useless? Then we’re done…”
Li Ran smiled. “I don’t know about others, but I’m sure you won’t have any problems.”
Guo Shier asked, “How come I won’t have problems?”
Li Ran replied, “Even if you die, you can be reborn as a human. You just need to cultivate again. It’s uncertain whether you can rebuild the altar, but… you can take another path and still become strong. You should know that one of the criteria for being strong is having a powerful soul. You’re born with that, and I think any strong person will be interested in you.”
Guo Shier smiled bitterly. “Damn, it’s so dangerous!”
Li Ran whispered, “Your greatest advantage isn’t your vast and pure soul, but that Soul Scripture. It can keep your soul from perishing, allowing you to be reborn smoothly even after death. That’s your foundation! As you keep being reborn, you can learn countless things. The only real danger… is getting trapped in the Small World and reborn there. Then you’ll never be able to reach the Greater World or the Greater Universe. That’s your true weakness.”
Guo Shier was shocked. Living several lifetimes in the Small World wasn’t a problem for him, but if he kept being reborn there, he might go crazy. It would be too boring and lonely—definitely not what he wanted.

Li Ran continued, “As I guess, if one can’t leave the small world from the start and their soul already possesses the characteristics of the Spell World, leaving would be extremely difficult. We can’t take risks, so we must leave this lifetime at all costs—even if it means dying outside.”
Guo Shier could tell from Li Ran’s tone how serious he was and knew he was right. Perhaps following Li Ran out of the Spell World this time was his only chance.
“Brother Li Ran, don’t worry. Once I reach the eighth or ninth level of the altar, we’ll leave the Spell World.”
Li Ran smiled and said, “It would be best to get in touch with your real sister. Hmm, it would be even better if we could meet up and discuss how to leave.”
Guo Shier nodded. “No problem. The two of you should have enough strength to leave, right?”
Li Ran nodded. “I don’t think there will be much of a problem…”
Guo Shier was speechless. He asked doubtfully, “Huh? You’re not very confident?”
Li Ran replied, “I haven’t really tested it yet. Hehe, don’t worry. I believe we can succeed.”
Only then did Guo Shier realize that leaving the Spell World wasn’t as easy as he thought—it might be dangerous. At this point, he was ready to go all out, thinking that even if he died, he could be reborn, which gave him great confidence.
After flying for most of the day, Mingwudeng fell behind and said, “It’s about to get dark. We need to stay here overnight. The mutated spell beasts on this continent are very fierce, so it’s better to be careful.”
Haimiluo asked, “How much farther until we reach our destination?”
Mingwudeng replied, “Another half day. If we travel all night, we can arrive by the middle of the night… But I think it’s safer to rest here first and set off again tomorrow morning.”
Seeing Li Ran nod slightly, Haimiluo said, “Okay. Let’s each take defensive measures and stay in touch if anything happens.” He led the other ancestors toward the nearby forest, distancing themselves from the Gu Ming family ancestors led by Mingwudeng. Since the two families were only cooperating temporarily, there was no need to get too close, so everyone could feel at ease.
Haimiluo said, “You guys go take care of that. It’s a rare chance to rest—make the most of it!”
Fengmiluo nodded. “No problem. This time, we’ll leave the supplies with Juehu. Juehu, you take care of it.”
Although Juehumi Luo had come with Guo Shier, his level was the lowest, only at the fourth level of the altar, so he was responsible for logistics. He unleashed his sacrificial treasure, and with a loud noise, cleared out a large area. Then he used spells to reinforce the ground and set up a row of hidden houses.

Guo Shier found that this row of Hidden Talisman Houses was much more advanced than his own. These Hidden Talisman Houses didn’t seem very large at first—similar to camping tents from his past life—requiring one to crouch down to enter, but once inside, they turned out to be quite spacious. Equipped with two layers of talisman enhancements, he couldn’t help but marvel when he stepped in.

Eagle Demon and Luo Zhan followed in. Even if talisman houses were assigned to them, the two would refuse them, preferring to stay close to Guo Shier.

The interior of the talisman house was simply furnished, but simplicity didn’t mean shoddiness. The floor was covered with thick furs from mutated talisman beasts, and there was a stove enhanced by fire talismans, with water in a large copper basin on top. Once the talisman house was activated, the fire talismans came into effect. Luo Zhan went over, poured out the water from the copper basin, and filled it with spring water.

Besides the furs on the floor, neatly arranged fur bedding was also placed in the corners, making the entire room very clean and fresh.

Li Ran also came in. Smiling, he said, “Not bad talisman house, hehe.” He sat down next to Guo Shier, took out two talisman bottles, and said, “Here, this is purified blood from the Abnormal Giant Roc—about a thousand jin. This bottle contains blood from the Thunder Eagle, in roughly the same amount. There are also a few drops of essence blood, extracted from the heart of an 18th-level mutated Thunder Eagle.”

Guo Shier smiled and put them away. Given their relationship, there was no need for formalities. Their bond had grown even closer since they exchanged their soul scriptures.

Li Ran then gave Eagle Demon and Luo Zhan some materials, all extracted from mutated Thunder Eagles and Abnormal Giant Rocs and purified by his spirit priests in the altar.

Guo Shier said, “Let me cook some talisman food.”

Li Ran replied happily, “Great! I love talisman food—you know my taste.”

Guo Shier immediately understood that this guy wanted Earth-style cooked food. He said, “No problem, I’ll cook it.”

There was a grand meal: eight cold dishes, eight stir-fries, and a large pot of mixed stew. Li Ran raved about it. Eagle Demon and Luo Zhan loved the mixed stew the most—filled with meat from various talisman beasts, cultivated vegetables, plenty of wild mushrooms, along with chili peppers and various spices. Guo Shier tried a bite himself and found it extremely delicious.

After eating for a while, several high-ranking members from families like Hai Miluo, Feng Miluo, and Fang Miluo came in. Hai Miluo exclaimed in surprise, “There’s talisman food… Haha, we’re lucky—we don’t have to chew on dry rations!”

They sat down and started eating without hesitation.

After eating their fill, Li Ran smiled and said, “What? Do you feel something’s off?”

Hai Miluo said, “Yes, the Gu Ming family… I’ve heard of them for the first time. I don’t know which continent they’re from. Something feels off about them. This guy backtracked too easily during negotiations, not fighting for many important things—that’s not normal.”
Guo Shier laughed and said, “It seems they still have people left behind. Their strength should be on par with ours. Of course… not counting Brother Li Ran.”
The others couldn’t help but laugh. This was a sneaky tactic—having a master beyond the Ninth-Level Altar hidden in their ranks. When the opponent discovered it, who knew what expression they’d wear?
Li Ran waved his hand and said, “If they dare to attack, I have no problem collecting some Soul Beads.”
Guo Shier added, “And the stuff on their bodies… hehe.”
Hai Miluo broke out in cold sweat. These two guys looked like they were waiting to rob someone. If the opponent really dared to attack, their fate would be tragic. Feng Miluo said, “We need to be careful of the talisman arrays they set up. I guess… they won’t attack directly but will use the Silver-Striped Spotted Dragon.”
Guo Shier said, “That’s inevitable… They don’t want to lose any of their men and just want us to be cannon fodder. We should plan accordingly. Hmm, it’s best if everyone is prepared, otherwise… if caught off guard, we might suffer heavy losses.”
Feng Miluo nodded and asked, “What are everyone’s thoughts?”
The old foxes gathered together and murmured for a while before coming up with several plans. Hai Miluo laughed and said, “If we don’t fight, fine. But if we do, let’s try to wipe them out completely!”
Fang Miluo said, “I’ll go inform everyone.” She stood up and left.
Li Ran said, “Be careful tomorrow. The Level 16 Abnormal Talisman Beast is equivalent to a Mutated Talisman Beast of Level 20 or higher. And it’s a Dragon-type Abnormal Talisman Beast. I don’t know how strong it is—only a fight will tell.”
Guo Shier said, “We must eliminate the Gu Ming family first; otherwise, we can’t fight.”
Li Ran replied, “We’ll adapt as the situation unfolds. We still don’t know how they’ve set things up. We’ll find out tomorrow. No need to worry too much.”
…
Guo Shier sat on the altar, observing carefully ahead. They had set out in the morning and flown for half a day before arriving at this small peak. There was an invisible spiritual pressure ahead, coming in waves. Though subtle, they were all master-level experts with highly sensitive souls, able to sense the threat posed by these spiritual fluctuations.
Li Ran’s expression looked somewhat serious. Guo Shier asked softly, “Brother Li Ran, what do you think of the strength of that Abnormal Silver-Striped Spotted Dragon?”

Li Ran said softly, “Very strong, extremely strong…”
Guo Shier asked, “How is it compared to you?”
Li Ran shook his head. “I’ve never fought him… I don’t know. No wonder the people of the Gu Ming family need help; even I’m terrified.”
Ming Wu Deng said from not far away, “That Silver-Striped Spotted Dragon is right ahead. We can see it if we go any further.” His eyes sparkled with anticipation as he glanced at the elders from time to time.
Guo Shier couldn’t help but sneer. The more he was here, the more he felt this guy was suspicious.
Hai Miluo asked, “Ming Wu Deng, how do you plan to fight?”
Ming Wu Deng smiled broadly. “You guys take the bigger share, so you should put in a bit more effort.”
Guo Shier thought to himself, “Here we go. I’m curious to see how you’ll use sweet words to lure us into a trap.”
A mocking sneer appeared on Li Ran’s lips.
Volume 34: The Great Abyss Pool