Chapter 1: Snow Talisman Wolf (Part 1)

Wild Wind Old Poison said, “What’s there left to fight about? We’ve fought before—this was Xu Cheng’s idea; it has nothing to do with us.” Xu Cheng was the great sorcerer captured by Qi Nan Shan. He acted rashly without assessing the situation, which led to his misfortune.
The Wild Wind Trio were not Xu Cheng’s followers; they were partners with him, which was why they ignored him so much. If they had been followers, the three of them would surely have rushed in to fight alongside him.
Luo Jie, having reached the level of a top professional, was not someone easy to deal with. He never showed mercy toward his enemies. He stepped up to Xu Cheng and reached for his life talisman book.
Qi Nan Shan shouted at Xu Cheng, “If you dare move, I’ll take your life!”
Xu Cheng knew this wasn’t just a threat—it was a genuine threat of death. What was terrifying was that killing someone here would go unpunished. Even if Qi Nan Shan and his men killed someone from the West Talisman Sect, no one would intervene, as this was inside a secret realm where no one cared to meddle. He immediately stopped struggling and glared angrily at Luo Jie.
Luo Jie showed no hesitation. He flipped through the pages of Xu Cheng’s life talisman book, searching through it thoroughly.
Xu Cheng’s face turned redder and redder until he finally fainted. Qi Nan Shan said disdainfully, “Overestimating oneself.”
After finishing his search, only an empty shell of the life talisman book remained, floating above Xu Cheng’s chest. Qi Nan Shan bent down, grabbed the book, and crushed it with force. With a loud explosion, the book turned into countless silver dots that scattered across the ground.
Guo Shier understood Qi Nan Shan’s intention. If Xu Cheng regained consciousness, relying on this empty talisman book, he might still have a chance to recover, posing a serious threat to everyone. Offending a master was no good, so Qi Nan Shan decided to eliminate the threat by crushing his life talisman book.
The Wild Wind Trio’s faces turned pale as they said, “We’re leaving!” and left in shame.
Only the two beast warriors beside Xu Cheng stayed. One picked up Xu Cheng, while the other asked, “Can we go now?”
Guo Shier said, “Go ahead…”
The two beast warriors carried Xu Cheng and left. Guo Shier wondered, “How is it that a great sorcerer only has two beast warriors with him? What kind of situation is this?”
Luo Jie replied, “This man must also be a disciple of the North Talisman Sect, and someone who committed a crime there. Eagle Demon—am I wrong?”

Eagle Demon said, “Yes, though I don’t know this man personally, I’ve heard of his reputation—he’s a ruthless and cruel fellow.”
Guo Shier said, “Alright, let’s settle down. Grandpa Qi Nanshan, you take care of assigning people for duty and surveillance. Uncle Eagle Demon, you arrange the rooms. Xiao Hong, you handle the dinner for tonight.” After arranging everything, he turned to the beast warrior at the supply station and said, “Heat some water for bathing. Once we enter the mountains… we won’t have the chance to bathe again.”
The beast warrior agreed repeatedly and left with the wolves at his side.
Tan Laoxi felt a chill in his heart. He had seen with his own eyes how wary the Three Brothers of the Wild Wind were of Guo Shier—this kid was terrifying. He regretted bullying Guo Shier at first. If he had known, he would have tried to flatter him instead. It was only then that he truly began to fear Guo Shier.
There was no conversation that night. Early the next morning, everyone left their warhorses behind and entered the mountains on foot.
This time, Guo Shier had a large number of people at his disposal. He sent several great talisman warriors to scout ahead, and even Eagle Demon and Luo Jie were dispatched. With Qi Nanshan in charge, the team was as steady as a rock.
Guo Shier frowned as he looked at the simple map and said, “Master, we must go deeper. There’s a high chance we’ll encounter other teams here, which will interfere with our hunt for talisman beasts. It will not only cause conflicts but also waste a lot of time.”
Luo Jie said, “You’re the commander; it’s your call.” He handed over complete control.
Guo Shier said, “Alright, let’s go deeper to this location.” He pointed to a spot on the map. Luo Jie was surprised and said, “This is already close to the area with mutated talisman beasts… Heh, I see. You still haven’t given up on mutated talisman beasts. You want to… test them?”
Guo Shier smiled and said, “The mutated Earth Dragon is indeed powerful, but… Senior Li Ran said it’s a level-seven mutated talisman beast. So there should still be level one to six mutated talisman beasts… We don’t need to hunt high-level ones. If we can find level one to three mutated talisman beasts, with the strength of our nine masters, we still have a chance to win—just by being careful.”
Qi Nanshan nodded and said, “No matter how many talisman beasts we hunt, they’re not as good as one mutated talisman beast. If another team catches one, we lose. Shier is right. We should look for mutated talisman beasts.” Since advancing in strength, his confidence had grown.
Luo Jie nodded and said, “That’s true. Then let’s go.”
Guo Shier called out, “Mr. Tan…”

Tan Laoxi frowned and said, “Twelve, just call me Grandpa Tan. Calling me Mr. Tan… it sounds so damn awkward, sigh…”
Guo Shier looked at him with a half-smile and asked, “Do you even act like an elder?”
Everyone burst into laughter; Guo Shier wasn’t polite at all. Tan Laoxi forced a smile and said, “Okay, okay, I promise to act like an elder… Hehe, Twelve… I promise not to use foul language. If I do, I’m not even human!”
Everyone was stunned. Even Guo Shier was defeated by this guy’s cheekiness. He said, “Forget it, I’m too lazy to argue with you, Uncle Tan…”
Tan Laoxi was almost in tears—this wasn’t easy. He resolved that even if it meant offending ten Luo Jies, he would never offend Guo Shier. He quickly replied, “Hey, I’m here! I’m here… Twelve, what’s the matter?” He thought to himself: An uncle isn’t bad either; at least he’s an elder.
Guo Shier shook his head with a bitter smile. This guy had skin as thick as a city wall. He said, “We’ll take this road. Do you have any suggestions? You should know this area best.”
Tan Laoxi took the simple map, examined it carefully, and said, “This road… it’s best not to take it. It’s better to go around here.”
Guo Shier wondered, “This road is the shortest. Why take a longer route?”
Tan Laoxi replied, “That road goes through a cliff face, where there’s a group of Thunder Symbol Eagles. They’re extremely troublesome. Several teams have been wiped out there. According to those who escaped, there are hundreds of Thunder Symbol Eagles on that cliff. Any team that goes in is doomed.”
Guo Shier asked, “Then why is this road so clearly marked?”
Tan Laoxi laughed and said, “Hehe, Twelve, you’re smart. What do you think the reason is?”
After thinking for a while, Guo Shier cursed and said, “Fine, we’ll take the road you suggested!”
Luo Jie also couldn’t help but say, “That’s ruthless…”
They reached a fork in the road. Tan Laoxi said, “The left path leads to the territory of the Thunder Symbol Eagles. The right path allows us to go around.”
Guo Shier said, “Let’s go around.”
The road wasn’t easy to walk on, filled as it was with low thorny bushes. They used two long talisman knives to clear a path. Guo Shier asked, “Uncle Tan, how long has no one walked this road?”
Tan Laoxi replied, “I haven’t been here in twenty years.”
Guo Shier said, “Twenty years—quite a long time.”

The progress was extremely slow, and Qi Nanshan grew impatient. He suggested, “It’s better if we carry them on our backs. This speed… is too slow.”
Guo Shier cheered and immediately jumped onto the back of the Eagle Demon, smiling. “I’ve had this plan for a while. I just didn’t want to say it. Haha, Uncle Eagle Demon, thank you for your help.”
Qi Nanshan carried Luo Jie on his back. Tan Laoxi asked, “Who will carry me?”
Lan Tianbao also stood there awkwardly. Guo Shier began assigning people, and in the end, Luo Zhan carried Lan Tianbao, Luo Jing carried Tan Laoxi, Xiao Feng carried Chen Hong, while the three other Symbol Warriors carried Huo Bao, Chen Bing, and Hong Shi. Since the children were lighter, they were left to be carried by the Symbol Warriors.
The group’s speed increased dramatically. There was no need to use symbol knives to clear a path; they simply forged their way forward with their strong physiques.
Tan Laoxi said, “There’s a small pond not far ahead. We can rest there.” Having someone familiar with the terrain to lead the way saved Luo Jie’s team a lot of trouble. Only then did Guo Shier understand why his master had brought along this foul-mouthed Tan Laoxi.
After a while, the group heard the sound of flowing water. After turning a mountain foothill, they saw a small pond not far away—a pool formed where a stream was blocked.
This was the first day of camping in the mountainous area. It was only a one-day journey away from the exit, making it a relatively safe zone. Therefore, Guo Shier felt confident enough to camp here. If it had been another day’s journey further in, he would have been much more cautious. People often came here to hunt, and the Symbol Beasts near the mountains had been nearly wiped out.
Everyone used simple tents. Since horses couldn’t enter the mountains, most of the supplies were left outside. Each person carried only a few symbol pouches.
Guo Shier, Luo Jie, Qi Nanshan, and Tan Laoxi discussed their plans for the next day. Tan Laoxi was kept behind because he knew the area well.
“Uncle Tan, this area is what we’ll be passing through tomorrow. Please point out any dangerous spots.”
Tan Laoxi replied, “I haven’t been here in many years, so I don’t know if anything has changed. The Symbol Beasts here have one characteristic—they mostly act alone and rarely form groups. I hope no large groups of them have migrated to this area.”
Guo Shier said, “Solo Symbol Beasts aren’t scary. Well, as for those that live in groups, we should try not to disturb them. So the scouts’ role tomorrow is crucial. Grandpa Nanshan, you’re the strongest. I’m afraid we’ll have to trouble you despite your age.”
Qi Nanshan nodded slightly and said, “No problem.”

Guo Shier said, “We can’t let go of the talisman beasts we encounter along the way. After all, they come from the Wild Beast Secret Realm. We should hunt as many as possible. Whether we can catch mutated talisman beasts or not, we must not miss a single one. Otherwise, if we end up without any mutated talisman beasts and only a few regular ones, that would be disastrous.”
Qi Nanshan said, “It happens to be a good chance for me to test my skills. Hehe, I can use this to assess my strength.”
Tan Laoxi said in surprise, “Test your strength? What the hell does that mean?”
Qi Nanshan replied, “It’s nothing. I just feel like hunting…”