Chapter 5: Small Hook (Part 2)

Guo Shier entered the rank of Great Sage before the age of twenty. While his exceptional potential was a factor, two other key reasons were at play: the soul scriptures he brought from his past life, and the inheritance from the ancient Mi Luo family. These were the two secrets behind his rapid advancement.

These two secrets were Guo Shier’s foundation and also ensured his smooth rebirth in the future. Since awakening his soul in this life, he had never wasted time. Whenever he had free time, he would chant scriptures nonstop. His soul became purer and more refined through these chants, while its power continued to grow.

The transition from Sage to Great Sage took a considerable amount of time, and even after succeeding, further time was needed to solidify the rank.

The life sigil sphere floating in front of Guo Shier had swollen to the size of a football. The dense array of virtual symbols on it formed a new sigil matrix, which Guo Shier needed to modify. Fortunately, thanks to his inheritance, he could make the changes directly. His mind was immersed in his soul, continuously casting spells.

Eagle Demon observed from the side. Guo Shier had his eyes closed, his hands rapidly forming complex spells, like dancing spirits creating a series of illusions. Countless virtual symbols flew out from his fingertips, merging into the life sigil sphere. The original sigil matrix, composed of flame-like virtual symbols, was reorganized.

The Four Important Symbols—Giant Nest Dragon, Ancient Flame Sparrow, Dark Winged Demon Scorpion, and Blade Shadow Mantis—also flew out and circled the life sigil sphere. As the sigil matrix was restructured, these four symbols joined it as well.

Once Guo Shier completed the construction of his own virtual altar, these animal and insect symbols would play a crucial role. For now, they could only be stored within the life sigil sphere. Once the virtual altar was successfully built, these spirit beasts and insects would appear directly on it, their essences becoming an essential part of the altar, helping to strengthen it.

The Golden Armor Amulet was no longer useful, while the Green Lotus Symbol could still be used to some extent. Following the inheritance from the ancient Mi Luo family, Guo Shier combined the two symbols into one, though this would require further refinement later.

As for his personal weapon, the Moon Blade, its quality improved again with Guo Shier’s advancement.

Thanks to the Spirit Storage Symbol and abundant flame symbols, Guo Shier could extract materials from the Spirit Storage Symbol and incorporate them into the life sigil sphere, refining them with the flame symbols. This time, for the first time, Guo Shier truly modified his life sigil sphere on his own—previously, he had only passively advanced, watching the sphere change without intervention.

According to the inheritance, Guo Shier altered his life talisman sphere. This shows just how effective Li Ran’s life talisman sphere was, as it could be easily modified. Of course, this could only be done when there was a drastic change in the talisman sphere during the advancement process, and relevant inheritance knowledge was also required; otherwise, even if modification were possible, there would be no way to proceed.

Eagle Demon stayed by his side, watching Guo Shier continuously chant spells without pause.

Three days passed quickly. Anyone who came to look for him was turned away by Eagle Demon. Not even if the sky collapsed would he interfere. However, news of Guo Shier’s advancement eventually spread—it was impossible to hide it.

It wasn’t until the ninth day that Guo Shier finally completed his advancement, though he still needed some time to stabilize. He was nearly exhausted from working nonstop for nine days. Even though becoming a Great Sage had greatly improved his physical strength, he still felt overwhelmed. The first thing he said when he opened his eyes was, “Uncle Eagle Demon, I’m starving!”

Eagle Demon smiled joyfully and asked, “Did it work?”

Guo Shier nodded. “Yes. It was harder than any previous advancement, but… this time there are many benefits. I restructured my life talisman sphere to better prepare for future advancements.”

Eagle Demon said, “Good. I’ve already prepared bone soup and cooked a large pot of meat—enough for you. It’s in the living room downstairs.”

Guo Shier rushed downstairs. By the time Eagle Demon followed, he had already drunk a big bowl of soup and started eating the meat frantically.

After several days without food or drink, he was so hungry he felt dizzy. In his past life, he might have died of starvation long ago. Fortunately, his body was now countless times stronger than before, allowing him to endure such hunger.

As he ate large amounts of food, Guo Shier noticed something strange—the food disappeared rapidly. Using the power of his soul to investigate, he discovered countless tiny virtual talismans breaking down the food, quickly relieving his fatigue. He said, “Uncle, there’s not enough food. I need more!”

Eagle Demon was stunned. “More?” he asked, trying to persuade him, “If you eat too much, you won’t be able to handle it!”

Guo Shier laughed. “I can handle it!” He explained the changes in his body. Eagle Demon was amazed. “Wow, there’s such a way to break down food? Alright, I’ll go prepare more.”

The meal took up half a day. Guo Shier returned upstairs, did nothing, and went straight to sleep. He slept for two days. When he woke up, Guo Shier clearly felt his own strength; he was filled with confidence, as if nothing was a problem. It was a wonderful feeling.

Guo Shier first went to the camp headquarters to obtain an identity badge. This was a necessary procedure. With the status of a Great Sage, one could enjoy many conveniences, earn more base points, and have a greater chance of escaping.

Ying Mo also got an identity badge. He was already a Senior Symbolic Martial Sage, just one step away from becoming a Great Sage.

Bu Xi Long asked if he wanted to go to the main camp. Guo Shier politely declined. It wasn’t time to go yet; he needed more time to adjust.

The status of a Great Sage was quite high even within the Gu Xi Long family, granting great freedom of action. One could also visit the main camp headquarters and use the small teleportation array at Camp 27 to teleport locally. Sages did not enjoy such privileges.

Back at the camp, Qian Rongyao sent a message token, saying that it was the squad’s turn for patrol again the next day.

Guo Shier immediately notified the squadron. This time, only one squadron would stay behind to guard the camp, while all the others would go on patrol. The sixth squadron was assigned to stay behind.

The entire squad was full of confidence this time. If they encountered a small number of mutants, they decided not to retreat until they killed them all. With the help of the teleportation arrays, their strength could be doubled or more.

…

Standing at the entrance of Broken Bones Gorge, Guo Shier said, “I wonder if we’ll encounter mutants this time.”

Ying Mo looked at his eager teammates and said with a wry smile, “I hope not too many. There are only two Great Sages in the entire squad. With nine squadrons totaling about three thousand professionals, after training, they might be able to handle ten mutants. More than that would be tough.”

The nine squadrons were divided into three groups of three squadrons each. Guo Shier’s tenth squadron was assigned to the center, acting as the vanguard of the entire squad. At present, the tenth squadron was the strongest, with a Great Sage as its squad leader and a Senior Sage as its deputy leader. They were also the best-trained, so Qian Rongyao didn’t hesitate to assign them as the vanguard.

The first and second squadrons were positioned on either side of Guo Shier’s squadron, advancing in a triangular formation. Guo Shier’s squadron was at the tip—the most dangerous one.

The ground was still covered with countless broken bones, and the weather remained scorching hot. Squad 12 of Guo still formed three talisman arrays. With more members now, two professionals were assigned to key positions, meaning a dual-talisman setup—so that if one professional was unavailable, another could take over.

Other teams were similar. The talisman array formations had been modified by several Grand Saints, with Bushi Long and Yao Lixi Long also contributing to the changes. It was said that because Bushi Long contributed this training method, he received high praise from the Gu Xi Long family and might be transferred out of Camp 27.

Guo stepped on the broken bones, causing them to crack crisply. These bones had originally been very hard, but under the scorching sun, they had become brittle, shattering into countless small pieces with just one step. He moved to the front of the team and glanced back at Qian Rongyao, who waved his hand, signaling for Guo to go first. Only then did Guo shout, “Let’s set off!”

The team began moving forward. The defensive talisman arrays were handled by the teams ofWild Cow and Ning Xin, while the Eagle Demon’s team continued to use offensive arrays, following closely behind Guo. The Eagle Demon looked back and saw that the various squads of the First Division had dispersed. He flew not far behind Guo and stepped forward slowly.

Soon, the team arrived at the place where the mutants had appeared last time. However, everything around was quiet, with only the crackling sound of footsteps.

Qian Rongyao flew down from behind and landed beside Guo. As they walked, he said, “From here on, we enter a dangerous area. Be careful—mutants appear suddenly.”

Guo casually cast a vision-enhancing spell on his eyes and immediately saw ripples in the air. Qian Rongyao smiled and said, “See that? Hehe, you’ve advanced to Grand Saint status, so just by casting this spell, you can discern some of the mysteries.”

After observing for a while, Guo asked, “What are these?”

Qian Rongyao replied, “There’s no exact explanation. You can think of them as invisible talisman gates, but we can’t use them—only mutants can… Only those at the Grand Saint level can see something, which is why I must come on every patrol… I see more than other professionals, allowing me to detect the arrival of mutants a bit earlier.”

Guo pointed ahead and said, “There seems to be some fluctuations over there…”

Qian Rongyao glanced at it and immediately shouted, “Stop! Form the array!” With his extensive experience, he could tell right away that mutants were approaching.

Guo Shier’s spirits lifted. He needed the Soul Beads of the mutants urgently and didn’t want to end up empty-handed again. He immediately ordered the troops behind him to form a battle formation. With a ripple, four mutants emerged, as if appearing out of thin air. Guo Shier was overjoyed—four! With Qian Rongyao by his side, he was confident he could defeat these four mutants. “Get ready for battle!”