Chapter 7: Qualifications (Part 1)

It was the first time Guo Shier saw a female master, so he asked curiously, “Master, what is her profession?” Luo Jie couldn’t help but laugh and said, “She’s a Great Beast Talisman Master—a famous figure in the West Talisman Sect. She advanced to that rank in her forties and regained her appearance at twenty, becoming extremely renowned in the sect.”
Qi Nanshan said, “She’s not a combat profession, so there’s nothing special about her. We twelve are far stronger than her.” His standard for judging people was their ability to fight; any profession that didn’t involve combat was considered worthless in his eyes.
Guo Shier asked, “What’s her name?”
Luo Jie replied, “She’s from the Wu family and her name is Wu Yanyan.”
Guo Shier exclaimed, “Damn, even her name is more cliché than mine.”
Wu Yanyan was extremely beautiful—her skin was as fair as snow, her lips rosy, and her hair black as clouds. She wore a bright red embroidered silk robe, a specialty of the South Talisman Sect. In the northwest region, only the extremely wealthy could afford such precious clothing.
Wu Yanyan said, “Please invite Master Number One to come and trade.” Someone replied, “Master Number One gives up!” Wu Yanyan smiled and said, “Gives up? Alright, then please invite Master Number Two to trade.”
An old man stood up shakily, supported by two young girls, and slowly walked to the center of the arena. Guo Shier was surprised and said, “This… is this person also a master? He can barely breathe.”
Luo Jie sighed, “This man probably doesn’t have many years left to live.”
The old man said, “I am… from the West Talisman Sect, a Great Beast Curse Master, Zhao Quan.” He slowly took out three items—a stone, a bone, and a foot-long piece of beast skin—and said, “Qingxia Jade, Ancient Talisman Bone, and one foot of Earth Dragon Skin. Please appraise them first.”
Wu Yanyan and another middle-aged man stepped forward to examine them. Wu Yanyan said, “The Qingxia Jade is of top quality; the Ancient Talisman Bone has intact natural ancient runes; the Earth Dragon Skin is of perfect quality and belongs to the rare Earth Dragon series.”
Zhao Quan said shakily, “I hope to exchange for a Beast Spirit Talisman, preferably an attack-type one.”
As the host, Wu Yanyan said, “Those interested may come up and take a look.”
Guo Shier whispered, “Master, these things are quite ordinary.”
Luo Jie laughed and said, “Not everyone has your good luck. This is already quite good… But to exchange for a Beast Spirit Talisman, it’s still a bit short.”

Sure enough, few people came up to take a look. After waiting for a while, Wu Yanyan asked, “Is anyone interested in trading?” She asked three times, but no one responded. She then asked, “Old Master Zhao, do you plan to hold an auction?”
Zhao Quan showed no sign of disappointment. He said, “Then I’ll hold an auction for you.” He handed the three items to Wu Yanyan, and some inner sect disciples stepped forward to take them. These three items would be taken to another venue, where a dozen or so wealthy merchants would compete in the auction—having nothing to do with dealing with the masters.
Guo Shier said, “Heh, anything that can be exchanged for money isn’t really a treasure.”
Luo Jie nodded and said, “He probably isn’t after talismans but after money! He’s just using this opportunity to fetch a high price, preparing for future generations.”
One master after another came up, exchanging the items they needed.
Wu Yanyan said, “Please invite Master number 18 to come up.”
Guo Shier recognized this person. After he came up, he said, “West Talisman Sect, Great Beast Talisman Sorcerer, Chen Zhizhong.” He then took out the item he wanted to exchange—a curved talisman dagger. He said, “A talisman dagger. Heh, this is a dagger made from the teeth of an ancient talisman beast, with natural ancient runes. It’s extremely sharp; ordinary talisman defenses can’t stop its piercing power… I only want rare materials.”
Guo Shier was very interested in the dagger. He already had a pure-steel talisman dagger, but he wasn’t very satisfied with it. He whispered, “Master, let me go take a look.”
Many great talisman warriors were also very interested. Guo Shier stood up and went over as well. Only masters could come up to take a look, so as soon as Guo Shier stepped forward, he caught everyone’s attention.
Wu Yanyan said, “Young man, please go down. Only masters are allowed up here.” She then said to those below, “Please ask your masters to keep their attendants in check and prevent them from coming up casually.”
Chen Zhizhong couldn’t help but laugh. He watched happily as Guo Shier was outdone.
Guo Shier smiled sweetly and said, “Sis, which eye of yours sees me as not a master? You’re already a master—how could I fall behind?”
Wu Yanyan rolled her eyes in exasperation. She said, “Huh, you kid… Who can prove you’re a master?”
Before she could finish speaking, six masters—Luo Jie, Qi Nanshan, Eagle Demon, Luo Zhan, Xiao Feng, and Luo Jing—stood up together and declared, “We can prove it.”

Wu Yanyan stepped back in fright. Chen Zhizhong saw that things were going wrong—if this escalated, the West Talisman Gate would lose face. He hurriedly said, “Yanyan… stop talking. His name is Guo Shier, the youngest grand talisman master in the North Talisman Gate.” He didn’t say “youngest” but “youngest” instead.

All the masters present were shocked. Guo Shier was clearly just a child, yet he had already reached the master level—and that too as a grand talisman master, the most difficult to advance to. The whole place erupted in uproar. Wu Yanyan asked in disbelief, “Grandpa Chen, is this true?”

Chen Zhizhong replied, “I have no reason to lie.”

Wu Yanyan knelt down and hugged Guo Shier tightly, leaving him utterly confused. Then she said, “Oh my, such a young master! I can’t believe it… Little brother, tell your sister how old you are.”

Guo Shier looked very cute in this life. After drinking a drop of the mutated Earth Dragon’s life essence, his little face had become snow-white and delicate, with bright, lively eyes. By the standards of his past life, he was a perfect little boy, capable of arousing maternal affection in adult women.

Before Guo Shier could answer, Wu Yanyan planted a kiss on his cheek. He was stunned, feeling like he had been taken advantage of. He struggled to break free from her embrace, but she held on tightly, continuing, “Don’t be afraid. Tell your sister how old you are.”

Guo Shier thought to himself, “What am I afraid of… Ugh, this woman is so strong.” Helplessly, he said, “Ten years old!” Then he came up with a daring idea and said, “Grandma Wu, let go…”

“Grandma Wu?”

Wu Yanyan’s face turned green instantly. Fuming, she shouted, “Call me sister! Am I that old?”

The whole place burst into laughter.

Wu Yanyan had quite the thick skin. She said, “Call me sister, or I won’t let go!”

Guo Shier was actually quite cunning. Smiling, he said, “Okay, sister. Are you married?” His voice was clear and loud. Wu Yanyan asked in confusion, “Married? To whom?” Guo Shier replied with a playful grin, “Oh, not married? Then do you plan to marry me?”

Wu Yanyan was stunned. She didn’t understand what the kid meant at first and said, “Marry you? How is that possible?”

Guo Shier replied calmly, “Impossible? Then why are you still holding me?”

Wu Yanyan exclaimed, “Oh, you little rascal…”

The crowd laughed again.

Chen Zhizhong said with a wry smile, “Yanyan!”

Wu Yanyan released her hand, and only then did she realize she had been played by the little kid. But she wasn’t angry either, as Guo Shier was too young—no one would take the words of a ten-year-old seriously; it was just amusing. Not only wasn’t she angry, but she also patted Guo Shier’s head and said, “If you want to marry me, wait until your hair grows out fully, hehe.”
Guo Shier was speechless for a moment, thinking to himself, “You’re ruthless! Sigh, kids have no rights—even if they have the strength of a master, it’s the same.”
Chen Zhizhong said, “Alright, please continue.”
The crowd finally calmed down. Guo Shier picked up the dagger and examined it carefully.
The dagger was extremely beautiful, ivory in color, with natural talismanic patterns on it. Its shape was slightly curved, with a flat circular blade and no cutting edge. The tip was very sharp, and the handle was made of rare tough wood, wrapped with fine spider silk ropes. Guo Shier really liked it, and it was clear that many others were also attracted to it.
Returning to his seat, Guo Shier quietly discussed it with his master. Luo Jie, knowing his disciple liked it, said, “No problem, I’ll exchange it for you.”
As long as Luo Jie stepped in, no one could compete with him. He successfully exchanged it for this dagger using several rare materials, along with some other powerful talismanic items.
……
Wu Yanyan stood in the arena and said, “Master number 37, please come up for the exchange.”
Guo Shier walked up calmly and called out, “Grandma Wu…”
Wu Yanyan was both annoyed and amused. She said in a low voice, “The little kid still holds grudges. Call me sister! Otherwise… hmph…”
Guo Shier’s scalp tingled. He didn’t dare tease Wu Yanyan any further. If she played him again, the heroic aura he had cultivated would be completely lost. Being smart, he immediately changed his tone and said, “Sister.”
Wu Yanyan immediately became happy and said, “Alright, it’s your turn.” Guo Shier felt a chill in his heart. Why did those words sound so awkward?
Standing in the center of the arena, Guo Shier said generously, “Hello, everyone, dear guests, and masters!” He glanced around first, then continued, “I am Guo Shier from the Northern Talisman Sect, a great talisman caster, ten years old this year.” This was a necessary procedure, but he added his age as well. As for the fact that he hadn’t officially advanced to a great talisman caster yet, well, it didn’t matter—he had to say it anyway.
Some murmurs arose in the crowd. Due to the minor conflict with Wu Yanyan earlier, everyone knew about this young master from the Northern Talisman Sect.
“Today, I’ve brought three bottles of blood, three taels per bottle, to exchange for spiritual talismans or ancient talismans.”

Immediately, chaos ensued. Blood is the least valuable thing in this world, yet it is also the most valuable. The use of blood in spells is like gasoline in cars from past lives; without various types of blood, spells cannot function as spells.
Guo Shier slowly took out three small crystal vials and said, “This is the blood of a Spell Bear, purified through the Sixteen Spells. This Spell Bear is not one from the grasslands but a giant Spell Bear from a secret realm. There are many master-level spellcasters here who surely can tell the difference.”
Although Spell Bear blood is rare, it can still be found. Even giant Spell Bears from secret realms have been hunted, so Spell Bear blood doesn’t arouse much interest. As for exchanging it for spiritual talismans, that’s almost impossible.
“As for this second vial of blood, hehe, it’s quite precious. It’s from a mutated Earth Dragon in a secret realm… Well, according to a senior, it’s a level-seven mutated spell beast, also purified through the Sixteen Spells…”