Chapter 5: Repaying Kindness with Enmity (Part 2)

Opening the interdimensional talisman, the four of them returned to the Star Continent.
Back on the sunny continent, they all seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. The secret realm was too dark and oppressive. Monier gasped for air and said, “I’m not suited for living in dark places. I prefer sunny areas!”
Qin Nanshan replied, “I don’t really care.”
Monier rolled her eyes and huffed without saying anything. Qin Nanshan knew she was annoyed again. For some reason, the two never agreed on anything and disliked each other, but they both held back out of respect for Guo Shier. Otherwise, they might have already fought.
Since ascending to the rank of Great Sage, Qin Nanshan looked entirely like a young man. Though not particularly handsome, he was charming, exuding the aura of a mature man, and acted in a carefree manner.
He never took women seriously. As a cultivation enthusiast, he spent his time thinking about how to improve his strength. In his eyes, Monier was just a professional—a Sage with decent skills. Whether she was a woman or a man didn’t matter to him at all.
Guo Shier knew the two didn’t get along. Even though he tried to mediate, they still argued from time to time, which gave him a headache. He laughed and asked, “Grandpa Nanshan, have you sent any message talismans to the Star Continent?”
Qin Nanshan nodded. “I have. The old man isn’t here. I guess he’s in some secret realm. I’m worried he might leave that realm and head to another continent, making it hard to find him.”
Guo Shier fell silent for a moment before saying firmly, “I need a map of the secret realms in the Star Continent! Otherwise, we can’t find him!”
Qin Nanshan sighed inwardly. They didn’t even dare enter the territory of the Star Sect. How could they obtain a map of its secret realms? That was a sect secret—even lower-ranked disciples couldn’t see it, let alone buy it. He slowly shook his head and said, “It’s practically impossible!”
Monier replied, “How can we know unless we try?”
Qin Nanshan couldn’t help but say, “How do we try? We can’t even go to the Star Sect’s territory. Do we plan to storm it? How naive!”
Monier snapped angrily, “Naive? Fine! Then forget it! It has nothing to do with me anyway. I’m not worried… It’s you who’s anxious if we can’t find him. I’m not worried. If it weren’t for the treasure to find, who would want to accompany you around?”

Qi Nan Shan fell silent immediately. Guo Shier hurried to calm her, saying, “It’s okay, dear, don’t be angry. I’ll think about it again.” As soon as Guo Shier persuaded her, Monier softened her heart immediately and said, “Honey, don’t rush. Take your time.”

There were still many secret realm entrances in the vicinity. After entering and exiting the secret realms many times, Guo Shier gradually gained a better understanding of them. He could now roughly distinguish between ordinary secret realms, large and small secret realms, and special secret realms. Though it was only a vague understanding, it was better than before.

After a quick inspection, Guo Shier said, “These secret realms aren’t worth entering.”

Everyone who had entered so many secret realms had similar insights. Qi Nan Shan nodded and said, “Let’s follow this route downward; maybe we can find some clues.”

“Save me!”

A faint cry for help came through.

Qi Nan Shan turned sharply and said, “Over in that small grove!”

Guo Shier said, “Let’s go take a look!” Then he added, “Grandpa Nan Shan, keep an eye out for traps. Dear, Uncle Eagle Demon, the three of us will go in.” By leaving a top expert outside, Guo Shier wasn’t worried about hidden traps.

Qi Nan Shan smiled in relief. The kid was extremely quick-witted; he had thought of the possibility of a trap even before taking action. He said, “Leave the outside to me. Hehe, I’m sure no one can escape my search.” He dashed into the bushes and disappeared.

Guo Shier, along with Eagle Demon and Monier, quickly entered the small grove. At the edge of the woods, they saw two people. Guo Shier was slightly stunned, but his expression remained unchanged, as he recognized them—the two Star Sect disciples who had been attacked by toads in theFú chóng (Fú chóng) translates toFú chóng. secret realm.

It was unclear how they had escaped. One of them lay on the ground, breathing faintly, while the other leaned against a tree, half-paralyzed, with his legs showing white bones and his hands rotting away. His eyes stared blankly at the sky. After a long while, he weakly called out, “Save me!”

Suddenly, an idea struck Guo Shier. He whispered, “If we save them… could we slip into Star Sect’s territory?”

Monier said, “We can give it a try.”

Eagle Demon said, “It’s up to you to decide.”

Guo Shier immediately decided to take this opportunity to infiltrate Star Sect’s territory and look for clues about his master, Luo Jie. He whispered, “Uncle Eagle Demon, go tell Grandpa Nan Shan that we want to take advantage of this to enter Star Sect’s territory, but he can’t go—only the three of us can.”

Eagle Demon agreed and turned to leave. Guo Shier and Monier revealed themselves and walked over.

Guo Shieru approached the two of them and pretended to be surprised, saying, “Disciples of the Star Sect? What’s going on here?”
The man’s face was filled with bitterness, his complexion pale. He took a deep breath and said, “Friend… save me! I… I’ll pay you…” He was very disappointed to see that they weren’t disciples of the Star Sect. After all, disciples of the Star Sect had a terrible reputation. Disciples from other continents might not kill him, but they often wouldn’t help either, so he could only try to attract them with money.
Guo Shieru asked, “How can I save you?”
The man replied, “There’s a talisman hanging around my waist… You just need to activate it for me.”
Guo Shieru glanced at it and realized it was a message talisman. He didn’t act hastily but asked instead, “Why should I save you? What’s in it for me?” Such a reaction was quite normal in the eyes of a disciple of the Star Sect. The man understood that without some unspoken incentive, the other party might just walk away.
Monier was puzzled. If they wanted to get close, why not just save him directly? In this regard, she wasn’t as thoughtful as Guo Shieru.
The man took a deep breath, lowered his head, and a fierce glint appeared in his eyes. When he raised his head again, he was smiling and said, “Don’t worry. I have enough payment… You definitely won’t suffer any loss.” His tone was filled with pleading.
Guo Shieru actually didn’t care about payment. He just wanted to infiltrate the territory of the Star Sect. Having someone to guide him was better than wandering around blindly. He said, “Alright, I hope you’ll keep your word.” He stepped forward and activated the message talisman on the man’s waist.
The talisman turned into a red glow and vanished in an instant.
The man showed joy on his face and said, “Good. Now take the talisman pills from my belt and give them to me to eat.” His tone had changed to one of command.
Guo Shieru frowned slightly, not understanding why the man’s attitude had changed. But he didn’t overthink it. He took two talisman pills from the man’s belt and said, “Here.”
The man swallowed them, and soon he seemed more energetic. He asked, “Which continent are you from? Which sect are you disciples of?”
Guo Shieru replied, “We’re wandering professionals.” He didn’t mention which continent they came from.
The man showed a look of disdain and said, “Oh… wandering professionals…”
Monier pulled at Guo Shieru’s sleeve. She was already annoyed. Given her temperament, she would have just killed him outright—this man was really detestable.
Guo Shieru sighed inwardly. He hadn’t expected disciples of the Star Sect to be so unpleasant. But to infiltrate their territory, he had to endure for now.

After about twenty minutes, three people descended from the sky. Guo Shier immediately recognized them: one was a junior Grand Sage, and two were intermediate Sages, all disciples of the Star Sect. The leading Grand Sage, who appeared middle-aged, asked as soon as he landed, “Fang Cheng? What happened to you… why do you look like this?” He glanced at Guo Shier and Monier and snapped, “Who are you? Did you hurt him?”

Guo Shier was furious and said in a deep voice, “We saved him!”

Fang Cheng said, “Uncle, they’re rogue professionals… Uncle, we’ve suffered heavy losses this time.”

The middle-aged Grand Sage replied calmly, “Don’t worry, it’s fine. You two… come with us for an investigation.”

Guo Shier sighed and said, “No wonder people say disciples of the Star Sect are despicable. I’ve seen it for myself now.”

The middle-aged Grand Sage shouted, “Dare you slander the reputation of our Star Sect? You’re seeking death!”

Fang Cheng laughed and said, “Rogue professionals are nothing… Uncle, I want half of their stuff.”

Monier said, “Honey, see? No wonder disciples of the Star Sect are notorious. They treat their saviors like this—what else wouldn’t they do?”

The middle-aged Grand Sage said, “Surround them! Don’t let them escape! Hehe, lucky for you, you’ll be compensating us… Let me teach you a lesson: any rogue professional who comes to the Star Continent must either join our Star Sect or never return.”

The ruthless men burst into laughter. They wanted not only their wealth but also their lives.

Fang Cheng laughed and said, “These two are interesting. Uncle, it’s best to capture them. I need two more servants… Of course, if Uncle needs them, I won’t take them.”

The middle-aged Grand Sage glanced at Monier and said, “Good! An intermediate Sage who has reached such a high level as a rogue professional—impressive… I want this woman!”

Guo Shier said coldly, “Is that how you make decisions?”

Suddenly, the middle-aged Grand Sage sensed something was wrong. The two before him were far too calm, showing no tension or anger at all. Their expressions were as if they were watching a clown show.

Fang Cheng laughed heartily, “You must be here for the first time on the Star Continent, haha. No wonder you’re so naive. On the Star Continent, our Star Sect disciples are the rulers who control everything. And yet you still dare to demand payment from me! Haha, as for that payment… let me tell you now—take everything from you and turn you into servants. How about that? That’s a great payment, right?”

Guo Shier nodded and said, “Very good, excellent!” Then he suddenly whistled.

Qin Nanshan and Eagle Demon Hand, wielding their signature blades, suddenly appeared in the small grove, blocking the path on either side.