Chapter 9: The Path of Illusory Spells (Part 1)

For ten consecutive days, Guo Shieru devoted himself entirely to studying, delving into new knowledge without the slightest delay. Kuumu was also busy in the spellcraft hall.

Guo Shieru learned a set of new exercises designed to improve finger dexterity—a skill essential for using spells. When one must perform hundreds of gestures in a minute, finger agility becomes crucial. This was just the basics; a sage like Kuumu could make thousands of gestures with both hands in a minute, which would be impossible without strong, flexible hands.

Kuumu came over to Guo Shieru, gave him some brief guidance, and after observing his practice, seemed satisfied. He said, “Shieru, I’ll take you to a place today. You’ll need to visit there often… Well, it’s something that doesn’t exist in your lower-level Spell Continent. Let’s go.”

Guo Shieru was curious but didn’t ask questions and followed his master outside.

…

Chenxiao Sect.
The Path of Illusory Spells.

Guo Shieru saw a glowing path with many people walking slowly along it. Some were sitting cross-legged on the path, seemingly resisting something silently. Upon closer inspection, he could see floating spell symbols flickering and disappearing in the air. It was an open-air circular path with six loops, winding inward layer by layer.

Looking at the signs by the path, Guo Shieru asked, “Master, what is the Path of Illusory Spells? What are those people doing?”

Kuumu replied, “There are two such paths inside the Chenxiao Sect—one for spellcasters and another for martial spell users. We can clearly see the people on the path now, but they can’t see outside. This path is used for practicing spells, with six loops in total.”

“Each loop represents a stage. The outermost loop corresponds to a spell novice, the second loop to a spell practitioner, and so on. Remember, your first time on this path is the most important—it will lay a solid foundation for you. The longer you persist, the better the results.”

Guo Shieru wondered, “Is that all? No other instructions?”

Kuumu said, “You’ll find out once you enter. No matter how much I explain, it won’t be as useful.”

At the entrance, a large crowd stood, most of them dressed in silver-white robes; they had come to guide their disciples into the Spell Maze. There were also a few in purple-red robes, among whom was Zhu Juan, whom Guo Shier had seen before. His huge frame stood out everywhere. Though his eyes were small, they were sharp, and he immediately spotted Ku Mu and Guo Shier.

“Ku Mu, bringing your disciple to walk through the Spell Maze? Tsk tsk, it’s your first time going through the Maze, right? It’s a great experience. Hehe, just keep going forward as far as you can… Don’t go too fast. Walk slowly—it will bring unexpected benefits.”

Guo Shier said, “Thank you for your advice, Uncle Fat.”

Zhu Juan laughed loudly, “Ah, I like this kid. What a polite child!”

Ku Mu said coldly, “Fatso, what are you doing here for no reason?”

Zhu Juan replied, “If you, a mere stick, can come here, why can’t I? It’s all for my two little disciples… They’ve already tried three times but still haven’t met the requirements to become Spellcasters. They’re stuck in the outermost circle and can’t get in. Look… they’re still sitting there.”

Ku Mu said, “You take on people with such potential? You deserve to suffer!”

Zhu Juan was furious and shouted, “My disciples have excellent potential! They’re only fifteen this year and can already strive to become Spellcasters. What more potential do you want?”

“Shier! What are you doing here?”

Guo Shier turned around, quickly tugged at his master’s sleeve, and with a pure and adorable smile, said, “Hello, Master.”

Monier responded cheerfully, picked up Guo Shier, and said, “Shier, my dear, have you come to walk through the Spell Maze too?”

Guo Shier smiled bitterly inwardly and said, “Yes, I’m about to go in. My master is telling me the precautions.” Although he didn’t like Monier hugging him so often, thinking of himself as a ten-year-old child, he didn’t mind anymore. He could see Monier’s affection for him—a genuine affection for a child.

Monier said, “This Spell Maze is a path that combines learning, testing, cultivation, and inheritance. Spellcasters can only reach the outermost circle. Once they enter the second circle, it means they’ve advanced to Spellcasters. The third circle is for Great Spellcasters, the fourth for Mad Spellcasters, the fifth for Holy Spellcasters. And the last circle, the sixth… is for the Supreme Spellmaster. Those who can reach the last circle… hehe, that’s really difficult.”

Guo Shier stared at the sixth circle, which was only a dozen meters long and empty. The fifth circle was also empty, the fourth had quite a few people, and the third had even more—hundreds of them, all great spellcasters. Considering that across the entire North Spell Gate, only a few people possessed such strength, it was astonishing to see hundreds here. As for the first and second circles, they had an even larger number of people.

Monier said, “Entering the Spell Maze has a daily quota. The first circle can hold up to a thousand people, the second eight hundred, the third five hundred… The quota for the first circle is the tightest. However, your master has one quota that he can use at any time.”

Kumu said, “Alright, Shier, get ready to go in.”

Monier set Guo Shier down and said, “I’ll take you there.”

The first circle was mostly filled with teenagers, a few children as well, aged around twelve or thirteen, with some being fifteen or sixteen. In the North Spell Gate, that would be the age of apprentices, but here these children had already advanced to spellcasters. A small number of teenagers could also be seen in the second circle—they were exceptionally talented youths, key disciples being nurtured by the Chenxiao Sect.

Upon arriving at the entrance, there were guards. An old man in purple robes was in charge, assisted by five or six people in silver-white robes, along with a dozen inner sect disciples maintaining order. Hundreds of disciples were lined up waiting to enter. Kumu said, “Old Yan, Yan Ziling, I need an entry quota!”

The old man in purple robes opened his eyes and saw it was Kumu. He said, “Kumu, what do you need a quota for? You don’t have any disciples.”

Kumu replied calmly, “I do now. Stop talking nonsense and give me a quota.”

Yan Ziling was surprised. “You, a cultivation fanatic, are willing to take disciples? Heh, I wonder who your disciple will be.”

Kumu said, “Shier, come and meet your uncle master Yan.”

Guo Shier stepped forward and said, “Greetings, Uncle Master Yan.”

Yan Ziling asked, “Is this your first time entering the Spell Maze?”

Guo Shier realized that everyone who met him asked this question. It seemed that being there for the first time was really important—he had to hold on. He said, “Yes, this is my first time seeing the Spell Maze. I never knew about it before.”

Yan Ziling nodded. He said a few words to a person in a silver-white robe beside him and then smiled, “Good. We’ll arrange for him to enter right away. Someone will come out soon… Alright, I’ll take you in. Hold this talisman. If you feel you can’t hold on, crush it. Understand? Here, let me hang it around your neck.”

Monier cried, “Guo Shier, go for it!”
Kumu said nothing, only giving him a deep look. Guo Shier sensed the encouragement in it, nodded, and stepped into the Path of Illusory Talismans.
As soon as Guo Shier stepped onto the Path of Illusory Talismans, he stopped immediately. He was extremely cautious, refusing to be reckless; he wanted to thoroughly experience this peculiar path.
The moment he entered the path, everything around him suddenly became quiet. He looked around in confusion. Everything was white, but there were guiding markers formed by talismans on the ground, emitting a faint glow that led forward. He understood that as long as he followed the markers, he would be on the right path. Not a single person was in sight; it was utterly silent.
Guo Shier carefully took another step forward. When his foot touched the ground, dozens of talismanic patterns floated up from the ground, glowing faintly in white light. After circling in the air, they quickly merged into his body. In that instant, he felt some extremely subtle talismanic patterns appear in his soul, which were then drawn to his life talisman sphere and began orbiting it.
Guo Shier was greatly surprised. He closed his eyes and tried to understand better. He seemed to grasp some principles, but there were too few talismanic patterns. Unable to resist, he took another step, and again, dozens of patterns floated up, quickly drawn into his soul and entering his body. He suddenly realized this was a special method of inheritance that allowed one to quickly learn about talismans.
From the moment Guo Shier stepped onto the Path of Illusory Talismans, Kumu, Monier, Zhu Juan, and Yan Ziling had been watching him. On his first attempt, one could see a child’s potential—both in terms of perseverance and learning ability. From outside, they could clearly see the person inside.
After entering, Guo Shier stood at the entrance for a full minute before taking a step forward. He moved very slowly, clearly being cautious, unlike some children who rushed forward desperately. Yan Ziling said in surprise, “This child is really careful. Good, good. With this time, it’s enough to adapt to the talismanic patterns entering his body.”
Monier watched anxiously and said, “Keep walking like this, don’t stop… It’s okay to move slowly; as long as you keep going forward, it’s beneficial.”
Guo Shier continued to walk slowly but steadily. With each step he took, more talismanic patterns floated up. The rotation of his life talisman sphere gradually accelerated, and it began to draw external talismanic patterns into his body, absorbing almost all of them without exception.
Before he knew it, he had completed the outermost circle.

Kumu knew Guo Shier’s strength and understood that his ability far exceeded that of a spellcaster, so he watched calmly. Monier, on the other hand, was very nervous. Although she knew Guo Shier had remarkable potential, she had no idea of his actual strength—potential did not necessarily equate to real ability.

Yan Ziling was extremely surprised. Few children could complete the first lap on their first try; most gave up halfway. He never expected Guo Shier to go so far, and judging by his unhurried pace, it seemed he wasn’t struggling at all.

Zhu Juan exclaimed in amazement, “So amazing! He’s entered the second lap!”

Guo Shier continued to walk at a steady pace. Aside from stopping for a minute when he first arrived, he kept moving forward slowly—neither fast nor too slow, maintaining a consistent rhythm of about thirty steps per minute. Even in the second lap, his speed remained the same.

Yan Ziling murmured, “This… how is that possible?” He turned and asked, “Kumu, how old is this child?”

Kumu replied, “Ten years old!”

Yan Ziling gasped and said, “Ten years old? It’s unbelievable! Where did you find this disciple?”

Kumu didn’t answer at all. He just stared at Guo Shier, his face showing satisfaction.