Chapter 5: Advancing to the Seventh-Level Altar (Part 1)

The handsome old man thought for a moment before saying, “If we move that thing into the Soul Calming Cauldron, you need to be prepared to give up this sacrificial treasure. In other words… you can’t treat the Soul Calming Cauldron as your own life-bound sacrificial treasure.”
Guo Shier said, “It’s better than burying a big bomb in the altar, right?”
The handsome old man agreed, “Yes, well… let’s try together to figure out how to move that thing into the Soul Calming Cauldron.”
Guo Shier pointed at the Soul Calming Cauldron, opened his mouth, and sucked it in before sending it to the altar. He said, “You go ahead. I’ve already placed the Soul Calming Cauldron inside the Ancient Ink Lotus.”
The handsome old man carefully unlocked part of the seal and said, “Activate the talisman array in the Soul Calming Cauldron first. Don’t wait until I put it in there and something goes wrong.”
Guo Shier nodded and carefully controlled the talisman array inside the Soul Calming Cauldron. This was crucial for his safety, so he had to be extremely cautious.
As the Soul Calming Cauldron approached that thing, the black object began to pulse rhythmically. The handsome old man became extremely nervous. He whispered, “Damn, this thing is terrifying… Should we unlock the last seal?” Before he could do so, the black object suddenly emitted intense vibrations, broke free from the seal, transformed into a dark shadow, and rushed straight into the Soul Calming Cauldron.
The handsome old man screamed in fright. He patted his chest and said, “Damn it… Being around this thing will shorten my life by many years. It’s terrifying… Kid, it went in on its own. You take care of it.”
Guo Shier was also surprised. Of course, he understood everything that had happened in his altar. After entering the Soul Calming Cauldron, the black object quickly expanded and then hovered above the swarm of Spirit Beasts. It was unclear what it was doing, but soon it stabilized, and even Guo Shier couldn’t move it.
The handsome old man asked, “How is it?”
Guo Shier replied, “It… it seems to have settled down.”
The handsome old man sighed in relief. “Good, that’s good. We really don’t know what this thing is, but it’s fine as long as it can settle in the Soul Calming Cauldron.” The black object was like a bomb in the altar, but it wasn’t a problem inside a sacrificial treasure—so long as it wasn’t the life-bound sacrificial treasure, it could be abandoned at any time. Although it would be a bit of a shame, it wouldn’t endanger the altar, meaning it wouldn’t be fatal.
The handsome old man mused, “Kid, the cauldron you made… did you refer to this Bone Mountain?” In his eyes, although the Soul Calming Cauldron differed from the Bone Mountain, there were still some similarities between the two.

Guo Shier was slightly stunned and couldn’t help but laugh, “It does seem a bit similar, hehe. But I didn’t refer to this Bone Mountain.” In fact, he had been unconsciously influenced by the Bone Mountain, though he wasn’t aware of it. The Soul Suppressing Cauldron was mostly modeled after the cauldrons from his past life, with all its interior decorations being unique talismans of this world. Guo Shier mainly integrated the two to create a new sacrificial artifact. The ingenuity of his approach earned praise even from Li Ran and Zhen Wuji. By gathering Spirit Beasts, one could not only obtain a large amount of offerings but also use the Soul Suppressing Cauldron to nurture them before sending them into battle. Once thousands upon thousands of Spirit Beasts surged forth, no professional could stop them. Such an extreme sacrificial artifact was truly unique in this world. When the black object floated inside the Soul Suppressing Cauldron, the entire cauldron seemed to change—emitting a powerful aura and its color turning completely black, like an bottomless abyss, giving people an extremely shocking and mysterious feeling. Guo Shier and the handsome old man were both dumbfounded. After a while, Guo Shier flew the Soul Suppressing Cauldron out. It quickly grew massive, hovering above Guo Shier’s head. Before he could give it any command, the entire cauldron began to tremble, followed by waves of vibrations spreading out. Both Guo Shier and the handsome old man knew that these vibrations were the same ones they had felt on the mountain earlier. Instantly, countless Spirit Beasts wandering in the distance flocked over. Although Guo Shier had gathered over a million Spirit Beasts earlier, there were still countless more here. When the vibrations spread, those Spirit Beasts rushed toward the Soul Suppressing Cauldron like hungry wolves smelling blood. Guo Shier was filled with a mix of joy and surprise; he couldn’t describe his feelings. The Soul Suppressing Cauldron had just been completed when it was taken over by the black object. Fortunately, he could still control and use it, so he wasn’t overly disappointed. However, what happened next left him stunned—a brilliant light suddenly spilled from the mouth of the cauldron, and countless approaching Spirit Beasts were sucked into it. The handsome old man poked his head out and said, “Kid… uh, isn’t that too many? How can the Soul Suppressing Cauldron handle so many… Huh, strange…” He was surprised to see that the black object devoured a large number of the sucked-in Spirit Beasts, while ignoring those previously gathered.

Guo Shier was utterly confused—there had been too many changes, and even though he was usually calm, his mind was starting to blur. He sat motionless on the altar, about five meters above the ground, with a huge Soul Calming Cauldron above him. The handsome old man showed half of his body, looking up at the cauldron in a dazed expression.

As time passed, the fluctuations grew more intense, attracting spirit beasts from afar. Groups of them surged over, only to be trapped inside the Soul Calming Cauldron and then devoured.

Guo Shier suddenly snapped out of his daze. He reached out to retrieve the cauldron but hesitated, then stopped and waited quietly. The handsome old man struggled to recover from his shock and said with a bitter smile, “I don’t know if this is a good thing or a bad one. It seems to have become the… new home of that black entity?”

Guo Shier tried casting a spell and instantly seized dozens of high-level spirit beasts, taking them directly from the black entity’s mouth and putting them into the Soul Calming Cauldron. The black entity didn’t seem to care and continued to attract large numbers of spirit beasts to devour. It was like an bottomless pit—no matter how many spirit beasts came, it would wipe them all out.

The handsome old man exclaimed in surprise, “You actually managed to snatch some spirit beasts?”

Guo Shier laughed and said, “Heh, I wouldn’t dare take too many. Who knows if this thing might go berserk… But it’s fine to grab some high-level ones!”

The handsome old man said, “If that’s the case, grab as many as you can. High-level spirit beasts are extremely rare, and having more will benefit you.”

Guo Shier focused his mind, selecting the targets he needed from the crowd of spirit beasts. As the spells were cast, some high-level spirit beasts fell into the Soul Calming Cauldron, escaping the black entity’s devouring. Many of them were rare, and most were Abnormal Symbol Beasts. There were all kinds of spirit beasts, and with Guo Shier’s discernment, he ignored those below level 15 among the Abnormal Symbol Beasts and below level 18 among the Mutated Symbol Beasts.

The black entity, on the other hand, wasn’t picky. Even when Guo Shier forcibly took away some high-level spirit beasts, it showed no reaction. Gradually, the number of spirit beasts in the Soul Calming Cauldron increased by several thousand, all of them powerful high-level ones.

Guo Shier no longer understood what kind of strange ritual artifact he had created. Its power was undeniable, but it was hard to say who controlled it. At least for now, the Soul Calming Cauldron was under the control of the black entity, which actively attracted spirit beasts and could manipulate its colored light. Although Guo Shier had crafted the cauldron himself, the colored light he could control was not as powerful as that of the black entity.

Elder Shuai sighed and said, “This black thing… I always feel it has life and a soul, but I don’t know what it is.”
Guo Shier said, “Even Brother Li Ran can’t figure it out. We shouldn’t try to understand it for now. But, Elder Shuai, I think… the black thing has no ill intentions toward us.”
Elder Shuai asked, “How do you know?”
Guo Shier gave a wry smile and said, “It’s just a feeling; there’s no reason.”
Elder Shuai snorted, “Nonsense! I thought you had some discovery… Feelings are the least reliable thing there is!”
Guo Shier said, “I don’t need certainty. As long as the black thing isn’t a threat, that’s enough for me.”
Elder Shuai said, “Well, I hope so. I don’t want the black thing to be a threat either—otherwise, the first ones to suffer will be us two.” Though he argued with Guo Shier, he secretly hoped Guo Shier was right, as he knew well how powerful the black thing was. During the sealing process, he realized that if the black thing resisted fiercely, he wouldn’t be able to seal it at all, and even if he succeeded, it could break free.
Gradually, the fluctuations emitted by the black thing weakened. The Spirit Beasts in the mountain valley were almost wiped out, with only a few left—perhaps tens of thousands—scattered across the open areas of the valley. But the black thing clearly no longer showed any interest.
Guo Shier said, “It’s calmed down.”
Elder Shuai felt frustrated because neither he nor Guo Shier could truly control the black thing. It was too strange, and they could only passively accept it. As the black thing gradually settled down, Guo Shier and Elder Shuai saw it descend to the bottom of the Soul-Calming Cauldron and merge into it.
Guo Shier and Elder Shui exchanged glances, both asking in confusion, “What’s going on?”
Elder Shuai shook his head with a wry smile and said, “Anyway, it’s no longer in the altar. You figure out a way to control it yourself. If danger arises… you still have one last resort: throw away this sacrificial treasure.”
Guo Shier groaned in frustration, “Abandon the Soul-Calming Cauldron? No, never! We’ve put so much effort and used so many materials for it—I’ll never give it up!” He was a money-obsessed man; how could he give up such a valuable sacrificial treasure?
Elder Shuai said, “Will you still keep it when it threatens your life? Kid, wake up!”
Guo Shier snapped angrily, “Stop talking nonsense! I have an understanding with it!”

The handsome old man was amused and said, “Forget it. There’s some kind of understanding between us? Heh, it’s you who’s talking nonsense, you brat. Come to your senses—don’t get carried away… This thing is a huge hidden danger; who knows when it might erupt?” He was stating the facts objectively, but Guo Shier didn’t see it that way, so of course he wouldn’t agree.
Guo Shier said, “At least so far, the black object hasn’t caused us any harm. So… we shouldn’t worry too much. Otherwise, how will we be able to control the Soul-Calming Cauldron in the future? This sacrificial artifact… is the first one I carefully designed. Don’t expect me to give it up!”
The handsome old man thought it made sense—the black object not only hadn’t posed any danger to them but had even brought many benefits. He said, “Should we keep arguing here?”
Guo Shier realized his mistake and quickly said, “Alright, let’s go up quickly. They’ve been gone for days—who knows what’s going on outside?”