Chapter 7: Anluo Stone (Part 2)

Guo Shier felt frustrated and said, “Forget it. Let’s talk about it after you all advance. Also, you need to train hard—your physical condition must be strong, otherwise you won’t be able to persevere in the Void Mist Path for long… This is a rare opportunity. If you dare to waste it, I won’t spare you!”
The four immediately agreed respectfully. Guo Shier realized they were already turning into qualified followers, no longer in the friendly relationship they had at first. Realizing this, he felt a bit disheartened.
Huo Bao and the others didn’t want this either, but whenever they saw Guo Shier, they would involuntarily become restrained—something they couldn’t control.
As they advanced in their careers, although Guo Shier was still young, his authority grew unnoticed. This was actually the effect of his soul, something he couldn’t control either.
Guo Shier knew that only when the four grew stronger could he gradually restore their confidence. Clearly, these four children were intimidated by his rapid advancement and could no longer keep up with him.
This was the tragedy of followers—they must never hold back the entire team. In battle, Huo Bao and the others wouldn’t be a help; instead of supporting Guo Shier, they would drag him down. Thus, the four children were under immense pressure, leading to a loss of confidence. Guo Shier had no good solution for now—only after they went to the Chenxiao Sect might things change.
Zhu Juan returned from the market. He didn’t have Monier’s luck and found nothing. Yingmo returned and sat behind Guo Shier—he was indeed a qualified follower.
Zhu Juan held a book and said with a smile, “Monier, take a look at this book. It’s dedicated to the Yanhu Secret Realm. Hehe, it’s quite interesting.”
Monier took the book, flipped through it briefly, and asked, “Are you interested in this secret realm?”
Zhu Juan replied, “It’s a fascinating secret realm with natural talismanic fire. No wonder it’s called the Yanhu Secret Realm. It’s just that they don’t know how to use this fire and instead hunt for fire-based talismanic beasts… What a shame.”
Guo Shier asked, “Talismanic fire? What is it?”
Monier replied casually, “It’s the essence of fire—a rare natural talismanic fire that can be extracted and utilized. It’s very uncommon… And yet, it’s formed into a secret realm here. Hehe, I’m interested. Baby, ask your master to come—he’ll definitely be interested.”
Guo Shier was also interested. Huo Bao said, “I’ll go call him.”
Soon, Kumu came in, asking irritably, “What’s the matter?”

Monier threw the book at him and said, “Read it yourself… you idiot!”
Kumu pretended not to hear, picked up the book, and sat down to read it. After a while, he asked, “When are we going?”
Monier glanced at Guo Shier with satisfaction and said, “Baby, look… this is just how your master is—acting like everyone owes him something.”
Guo Shier wisely kept his mouth shut. When the couple was arguing, he couldn’t interrupt. Zhu Juan also pretended to know nothing.
Kumu stood up and said, “Let’s go take a look.”
Monier wasn’t angry. She was used to Kumu’s cold demeanor and said, “Baby, let’s go together.” Guo Shier nodded and said, “Leopard, you guys don’t need to come. I’ll be back soon. You should get ready; maybe we’ll have to follow me to the Chenxiao Sect soon.”
The four of them agreed.
Kumu said, “Shier, find a guide.”
…
The Yanhu Secret Realm was located 100 kilometers outside the Wildman Pass.
Its entrance was huge, and inside, ice and snow covered everything, which seemed inconsistent with the realm’s name. As soon as Guo Shier entered, he exclaimed, “Hey, isn’t this the Yanhu Secret Realm? Why does it look like an Ice and Snow Secret Realm? We just got through winter, and now we have to endure the cold again. I hate snowy days…”
Monier laughed and said, “It’s not that cold here, baby. Just wear a fur robe.”
Guo Shier had no choice but to put on a thick fur robe. He looked up at the sky, puzzled. This secret realm was truly strange—the weather was completely different from that on the outside continent. He said, “Yanhu Secret Realm? Who came up with that name? I don’t see any fire at all. It’s unbearably cold!”
Soon, Guo Shier was wrapped up tightly. Zhu Juan, who was very fat, wasn’t afraid of the cold at all. He teased, “Wow, Shier, you’re about as fat as me, haha!”
Not only did Monier cover her mouth and laugh, but even the usually stern Kumu couldn’t help but twitch the corners of his mouth, showing a very ugly smile.
Guo Shier looked like a plump lump, with a big fur hat on his small head. It was impossible to tell where his legs were, so he couldn’t walk at all. Fortunately, he had a flying talisman, so he didn’t have to trudge through the snow.

As soon as they entered the Yanhu Secret Realm, they saw groups of inner and outer sect disciples retreating outward. Zhu Juan nodded and said, “Not bad. They’re retreating quickly. If they stay at the entrance and don’t go deep in, it will be hard for anyone to spot them… After all, the entrance is a very small area compared to the entire secret realm. Even people from other continents won’t easily find it if they enter here.”
Kumu said calmly, “If it goes on for a long time, it’s hard to say, but for now, there’s no major problem.”
Guo Shieru understood that if the disciples of the Beifu Sect wandered around in the secret realm and were caught by people from other continents, it would be easy to locate the entrance, and then disaster would strike the Beifu Sect. Now that everyone had retreated, no one from the Beifu Sect could be seen anywhere in the secret realm except at the entrance—this was the best way to ensure safety.
Kumu took off, hovering about ten meters above the ground, and said, “Let’s go!”
Zhu Juan, Monier, Guo Shieru, and Yingmo also flew up one after another. The disciples of the Beifu Sect, who were struggling to make their way forward, were shocked—they had never seen anyone fly before. In just a moment, Kumu and the others disappeared into the snow-filled sky.
Along the way, Guo Shieru saw many Beifu Sect disciples returning. These people didn’t notice the five flying figures and continued to trudge toward the entrance. Kumu flew so fast that Guo Shieru and Yingmo fell far behind. Monier slowed down and said irritably, “This stupid wooden head! He just runs ahead without caring if others can keep up! Baby, let’s fly slowly. Your mentor will accompany you.”
Guo Shieru had a hard time flying. The cold wind in the air was intense, making it even harder for him to fly. Fortunately, Monier slowed down and held onto his sleeve, as she couldn’t find his hand—his small hand was tucked deep in his sleeve to keep warm.
Although Yingmo wasn’t afraid of the cold, his flying speed was slow. If he could reach the rank of Mad Master, his speed would increase, but for now, he could only follow slowly.
Guo Shieru could hardly breathe. The cold wind mixed with snow hit him hard, causing extreme discomfort. He covered his nose and mouth with his sleeve to ease the pain, while also trying to control his flying talisman. He inwardly groaned—this was too unbearable.
Thankfully, Monier held onto his sleeve and guided him through the air; otherwise, he would have surely gotten lost.

It wasn’t until the sky began to darken that Kuumu stopped. Only then did he realize there was no one behind him. With no other choice, he sent a message token. A moment later, a reply came, informing him that they were far behind. Kuumu had no choice but to turn back and look for them.

Monier found a wind-sheltered rock face and set up a tent for Guo Shier to hide in and recover. The little guy was almost frozen solid.

Guo Shier’s tent was quite large, somewhat like the military tents from his past life, but made of magical beast skins that could block the cold. The temperature inside the tent was at least ten degrees higher than outside. By the time Guo Shier lit a fire, set up a large copper pot, and boiled water, the temperature had risen enough to allow him to wear thin leather clothes.

After asking Monier, Zhu Juan, and Eagle Demon to sit down, Guo Shier got to work. He broke large bones into pieces and threw them into the copper pot. He also took out some salted meat that had been pickled earlier, quickly sliced it into thin pieces, and added them to the pot. From his storage of magical herbs, he took out some spices, a few scallions, and a piece of ginger, flattened them, and threw them into the soup.

Monier wondered, “Baby, what are you cooking?”

Guo Shier replied, “Something delicious. Hehe, my dear wife, just wait—it’s going to be amazing…”

Zhu Juan was very curious. Being a connoisseur of good food himself, he squatted nearby, watching Guo Shier work. Guo Shier then took out a pile of dried mushrooms and threw them in as well. Zhu Juan asked, “What’s this again?”

A slight smile appeared on Guo Shier’s face as he said, “Uncle Zhu, don’t tell me… you don’t recognize this?”

Zhu Juan examined it carefully for a while before shaking his head and asking, “What is it?”

Guo Shier looked at him as if he were an ignorant country bumpkin and said with a smile, “Don’t know? You’ll find out once you try it. It’s a shame you’re such a food lover.”

Zhu Juan was too stunned to speak.

As the soup boiled, a strong aroma rose. Zhu Juan sniffed deeply and said, “It smells great… Why is it so fragrant? Ah, I’m hungry…” Just then, he received a message token from Kuumu and laughed, “Kuumu finally remembered to look for us. Haha.”

Monier covered her mouth and laughed, saying, “Tell him to turn back. Who asked him to keep flying forward without care?”

Zhu Juan smiled and sent a message token, saying, “Don’t anger Kuumu.”

Monier glared and said, “How dare he! Stupid Kuumu—he deserved it for flying so fast!”

It was not until the broth turned milky white that Guo Shieru fished out the bones. Just as he was about to throw them away, Eagle Demon grabbed one and started gnawing on the meat on it, saying, “There’s less meat, but it tastes good.” Zhu Juan also grabbed a bone and began chewing it, praising, “Wow, it’s really good—excellent taste.” Guo Shieru ignored the two of them and took out a large roll of dried noodles. In his past life, noodles were a common thing, but here, no one used them in this way. He threw the dried noodles into the pot and began preparing the sauce and toppings. Zhu Juan and Eagle Demon watched eagerly, and Monier was very interested too. A cold wind blew in, carrying with it the chill of dead trees.