Chapter 4: Natural Rivals (Part 1)

Boom!
Guo Shieru sat on the altar, holding his head, helplessly watching Li Ran and Qi Wu Zhen fight fiercely. Halechi, standing nearby, sneered, “Your ‘elder brother’… doesn’t he know Qi Wu Zhen is a madman? Haha! I’ve suffered countless times at his hands, and yet he still dares to attack?” As he spoke, he rolled his almond-shaped eyes.
Wang Keer laughed cheerfully, “It’s because he’s a professional who’s surpassed the ninth-tier altar. If Sister Zhen saw him, she’d definitely fight him too.”
Guo Shieru couldn’t believe it—Qi Wu Zhen and Li Ran had barely exchanged a few words when they started fighting, ignoring his cries from the side. Their clash was like thunder and fire; even the slightest contact caused earth-shaking turmoil.
Wang Keer kept glancing at Guo Shieru’s altar, feeling frustrated. That guy had only reached the third-tier altar when he left, but now he was on par with Halechi. With Qi Wu Zhen’s help, she had only reached the sixth tier—how infuriating! Yet, seeing Halechi’s horrified expression upon learning Guo Shieru’s level, she felt somewhat better.
Fortunately, both sides restrained themselves and didn’t use their ultimate moves. Even so, the fight was terrifying. Mountains crumbled, skies darkened, and Guo Shieru and the others activated their strongest defenses while retreating continuously.
Nearby peaks collapsed, vast forests were destroyed, and ponds and lakes in the forests were boiled dry by Qi Wu Zhen’s flames—truly a catastrophe. If such a fight happened over a city, Guo Shieru was sure the entire city would be destroyed. Thankfully, it was in the wilderness.
Guo Shieru and the others kept retreating. The impact of Li Ran and Qi Wu Zhen’s fight was enormous. Luckily, they hadn’t used deadly moves like fire sacrifices or sky burials. Even so, Guo Shieru and the others could barely withstand it. They knew they couldn’t intervene and could only watch helplessly.
The two fought in silence for half an hour before Li Ran suddenly shouted, “So satisfying! So satisfying!”
Qi Wu Zhen responded with a fierce curse, “Satisfying my ass! I’ll kill you!”
Guo Shieru, holding his head, said helplessly, “Sister Zhen is truly mighty!”
Wang Keer couldn’t help but chuckle. Halechi, however, wore a bitter smile. That woman was still as rude as ever, yet he was utterly obsessed with her, unable to leave despite being beaten and scolded repeatedly. Sometimes he thought he was truly stupid.

Li Ran shouted, “Hey, you old woman, that’s enough! Everyone’s at about the same level. If we keep fighting… I’ll get annoyed!”
Qi Wu Zhen cursed, “You’re old… What does that have to do with me?”
Guo Shier also burst into laughter. Qi Wu Zhen’s unreasonable behavior was simply too extreme; his stubbornness left Li Ran without any patience either. He couldn’t possibly explain, “I’m not old—I’m just annoyed.”
The two resumed fighting, moving back and forth, above and below, creating such chaos that the sky and earth seemed darkened, with no light from the sun or moon. Guo Shier and the others, though already thousands of miles away, could still feel the intense shockwaves. All three were utterly exhausted, sitting on the altar with yawns stretching from ear to ear. Wang Keer muttered, “Why isn’t it over yet? Ugh… two boring guys.”
Guo Shier gradually realized that neither of them could defeat the other. Though their fight was spectacular, it posed no real danger. He relaxed, treating it like a spectacle, and took out some snacks along with a bottle of strong liquor. Eating snacks and drinking liquor, he decided not to worry since he couldn’t do anything anyway.
Wang Keer leaned over and said, “Hey, give me some!” No girl could resist temptation. Seeing the pile of snacks on Guo Shier’s altar, her mouth watered.
The snacks included roasted nuts, pickled fruits, and a small amount of meat dried in honey—all made by Guo Shier in his free time. There were many plants in this world that didn’t exist in his past life, and their fruits were quite delicious. Some were hard to preserve, so Guo Shier turned them into snacks.
Packing up a large bundle, Guo Shier threw it over and asked, “Want some liquor?”
Wang Keer beamed with joy. She took the bundle of snacks and said, “No liquor, hehe. Did you make all these by yourself?” She opened the bundle, poured the snacks onto the altar, picked up a pickled fruit, took a bite, and exclaimed happily, “Mm, delicious! I’ve never eaten anything like this before…”
Guo Shier smiled slightly. The food culture in this world was quite poor, somewhat like the West in his past life—mostly meat-based, with mediocre cooking skills. As for snacks, there were hardly any.
Halechi glanced curiously at Wang Keer and said, “What delicious thing is that? Give me some to try too.”
Knowing he was curious, Guo Shier threw him a bundle of snacks and said, “It’s nothing special—just some snacks for fun in your free time. Can’t be eaten as a staple. Want some liquor?”

Halechi hurriedly said, “I want to drink it.” Wine was not common in this world. However, professionals who roamed around could come across it; some continents produced it, while others did not. Even where wine existed, good quality wine was rare. Guo Shier could almost be considered a master winemaker. Here, there were abundant raw materials, plus the Soul Spring, which did not exist in his past life and was the best water for brewing wine.

He tossed a bottle of strong liquor to Halechi and said, “Try the liquor I brewed.”

Halechi grabbed it, opened the bottle cap, and took a big gulp. He exhaled and couldn’t help but exclaim, “What great liquor!” He forgot about his snacks and kept drinking. The bottle contained as much as thirty jin of liquor. The magic bottle for storing liquor was different from those in his past life; with the magic talismans added, it could hold a great deal of liquor.

The three of them leisurely ate snacks, drank strong liquor, and enjoyed the lively atmosphere.

Wang Keer loved honeyed dried meat. She tore off a piece and stuffed it into her mouth, eating it indulgently. Sitting cross-legged on the altar, she stared into the distance and said, “True Sister is happy now… Finally, someone for her to vent on.”

Guo Shier said, “Brother Li Ran is not bad either. It’s still unclear who vents on whom…” He felt awkward after saying that; it sounded wrong no matter how you looked at it. He took a sip of liquor and said, “Sigh, I hope this ends soon. Damn it, those two are like enemies, fighting as soon as they meet.”

Halechi said, “They’re not enemies. It’s me and Qi Wu Zhen who are enemies…”

Wang Keer curled her lips and said, “You don’t even have the qualifications to be an enemy. You’re just delusional!”

Halechi snapped, “Don’t think just because Qi Wu Zhen is protecting you, you can act recklessly. You should respect your elders. Don’t you know that?”

Wang Keer sneered, “I’ll be able to reach the eighth-level altar in no time. You’ve been busy for so long… and you’re still only at the eighth level. Hehe, even Guo Shier has reached the eighth-level altar. You’re so pathetic.”

Halechi turned red with anger and said, “He’s a pervert!” Just thinking about it made him extremely frustrated. After all, when Guo Shier left them, he was only a third-level altar professional. How much time had passed, and yet this guy had reached the same eighth-level altar as him. He had no idea that Guo Shier’s soul strength was even sufficient to control a ninth-level altar. As long as he built the altar properly, advancing further would be as easy as breathing.

Guo Shier said, “Hey, stop arguing and dragging me in… What do you mean by pervert? You old guy is the pervert!” He thought to himself, “Damn it, I get hit even when I’m lying around.”

Halechi could only force a smile. Guo Shier was no longer the low-level altar professional he used to be; he was now a master on par with himself. In this world, professionals of similar strength didn’t want to provoke each other.
A moment later, Wang Keer said, “More…”
Guo Shier asked, “What?”
Wang Keer replied, “Give me more snacks. Why so little? You’ve only had a few bites already. Don’t be such a skimp.”
Guo Shier was speechless. This pack of snacks weighed at least five or six jin—this girl ate too fast. He threw another pack at her and said, “Girl, these snacks are for fun, not as a staple food. Why eat so fast?”
Wang Keer giggled as she took the snack pack and said, “So stingy. Just this little bit? Really…”
Halechi said, “Another bottle of wine!” He spoke as if giving orders to his subordinates, acting as if it were perfectly normal.
Guo Shier was extremely annoyed. He widened his eyes and said, “Damn it, do I owe you anything? I’m not giving any more!”