Chapter 8: Luo Jie’s Tracks (Part 1)

Feng Xilong said, “Let’s rest for a while. We’ll have to cross a desert area shortly, and we can’t stop there—there are many mutated birds that will attack us. Let’s eat something here; on the way, we’ll only be able to rely on dried food.”
Luo Zhan asked in a low voice, “Do they also need to eat?”
Guo Shier laughed, “How novel! If they don’t eat, do they just drink the northwestern wind?”
Luo Zhan smiled, “I thought such elite professionals wouldn’t need to eat at all.”
Juehu Miluo turned and said, “Even the top-tier professionals need to eat and sleep. They can get injured or die too—there’s nothing strange about that. You’ve just had little exposure to them. When you reach that level, you’ll understand that elite professionals are still humans, not monsters!”
The group landed, and Guo Shier said, “Senior brothers, please fly up for a moment so I can clear a space.” The ground was covered with cacti and other plants, even denser than in a forest. Without clearing them, there would be no space at all.
Juehu Miluo said, “Okay, let’s all fly up.”
They followed his instructions and flew up. Guo Shier released his Moon Blades, which turned into countless tiny blades circling around him, emitting a whistling sound. With a sharp command, “Spin!”, the blades accelerated rapidly, forming a small vortex. He pointed, and the blades spread out quickly.
With a loud crash, all the plants that touched the blades were shattered and thrown outward by their force.
Guo Shier pressed the blades downward slightly, creating a 100-meter-square clearing. He casually cast a series of virtual talismans and shouted, “Solidify!” The talismans landed, and the muddy ground immediately solidified. Only then was he satisfied and said, “Alright, senior brothers, you can land now.”
Bao Chengyong landed first. Curious, he said, “Kid, your life talisman blade is quite unique. It’s somewhat similar to mine… just a bit weaker.”
Ling Zhenren said, “For his age and rank, this is already quite good.”
Bao Chengyong asked, “Who will cook?”
Guo Shier quickly replied, “I’ll do it. Senior Bao, we got quite a lot of Blood Dragon meat earlier…”
Bao Chengyong casually said, “Good, then you take care of it.” He wasn’t interested in the Blood Dragon. Hearing Guo Shier’s attempt to gauge his reaction, he didn’t blame him for taking it without permission. He just said, “If it’s not delicious… that won’t do!”
Guo Shier agreed. When it came to cooking, he was confident he could satisfy everyone. He asked Eagle Demon and the others for help, set up a large pot, and started cooking.
In less than an hour, the aroma of the food filled the air.

Bao Chengyong didn’t care at first, but when he smelled the aroma, he was astonished. Guo Shier was fond of using various spices to cook food—a habit formed in his past life. Not only did he make use of the natural flavors of the food, but he was also skilled at seasoning it.

Juehu Miluo twitched his nose and asked, “Huh? Why does it smell so good?”

Feng Xilong and Shi Yanxilong were also very interested, staring at the large copper pot that Guo Shier was handling. Feng Xilong said with a smile, “It’s really fragrant. I feel a bit hungry.”

Yan Ruodai watched with a smile. She knew Guo Shier was talented in cooking; she had tasted his dishes before at Leitai and had been highly impressed.

Ling Zhenren sat on the ground with his eyes closed; he seemed the only one unimpressed by the aroma of the food.

Soon, Guo Shier said, “Alright, everyone, come and eat.”

It was a large pot of braised Blood Dragon meat, along with some other meat from magical beasts and a small amount of mushrooms and vegetables. Most importantly, it contained some pickled seafood, including the meat of the Sea Emperor Crab. That stuff was exceptionally delicious, and its addition greatly enhanced the flavor of the entire pot. Since Blood Dragon meat was already delicious on its own, it was hard not to think this dish was tasty.

There was also a large pot of Jingming rice and several bottles of rice wine, a specialty of Bibo City.

After trying a little, everyone started eating heartily. Guo Shier thought to himself, “My skills aren’t as good as yours, but when it comes to cooking, even all of you combined aren’t as good as me!”

Juehu Miluo ate with great joy. Having seen countless magical foods, he was amazed by how delicious Guo Shier’s dishes were.

Bao Chengyong praised loudly, “Great! Great! The Blood Dragon meat is delicious. You should cook next time, haha.”

Everyone devoured the food in no time.

Ling Zhenren said, “Rare!”

This meal made these top professionals see Guo Shier in a new light.

Ling Zhenren waved for Guo Shier to come over and said, “Bring me that Soul Pearl of the Abnormal Human you obtained.”

Guo Shier smiled bitterly inwardly but obediently took out the Soul Pearl. Juehu Miluo glanced at it once before turning away. He didn’t interfere, knowing that with Ling Zhenren’s status, he wouldn’t steal from a younger person.

Ling Zhenren took the Soul Pearl and examined it briefly before praising, “Not bad… a very complete soul.” He conjured several virtual talismans, causing the Soul Pearl to float in front of him. Then, countless more virtual talismans shot out from his fingertips, dazzling Guo Shier.

As more runes were incorporated, wisps of black smoke emerged from the Soul Pearl, with impurities gradually being removed. Then, Master Ling took out some additional materials and added them as well. After about fifteen minutes, the Soul Pearl was in his hands. He said, “You haven’t used an Aberrant’s Soul Pearl before, have you?”
Guo Shier nodded. “I’ve used Mutated beings’ Soul Pearls, but I haven’t used an Aberrant’s Soul Pearl yet.”
Master Ling smiled. “I treated you to a delicious meal and helped refine this Soul Pearl for you… You can absorb it; it should be beneficial to your soul. But they can’t use it—only those at the level of Grand Sage or above can, otherwise their souls won’t withstand it.” He handed the Soul Pearl back to Guo Shier.
Guo Shier quickly took it and said, “Thank you, senior.” It was the first time he had heard the word “soul”; it was the pronunciation of ancient runes, slightly different from his previous understanding.
Master Ling waved his hand and continued to sit with his eyes closed, resting.
Juehu Miluo said beside him, “Don’t use it now. You don’t have time to process it.”
Guo Shier nodded and carefully stored the Aberrant’s Soul Pearl in his life sigil sphere, planning to absorb and digest it when he had time later. He estimated that using this Soul Pearl should allow him to advance to the level of Intermediate Grand Sage.
After resting all night, they got up again early the next morning.
Bao Chengyong was still leading the way ahead.
Soon, they saw vast sand dunes stretching endlessly. At that moment, Guo Shier noticed a group of dark dots on the horizon. He asked, “What’s that?”
Juehu Miluo replied, “Mutated eagles! It’s a group of Mutated eagles. It’s nothing to worry about.”
After about ten minutes, the group of Mutated eagles could be seen clearly. The two leading Mutated eagles were over a hundred meters long, with more than thirty others circling in the air behind them.
Guo Shier guessed, “Those Mutated eagles must be at least level twelve!”
Juehu Miluo said, “Level thirteen! The two leaders are both at level thirteen. But it’s fine… as long as we don’t encounter Mutated birds at level fourteen or above.” He activated the altar, and their speed increased sharply. The others also sped up, quickly leaving behind the group of Mutated eagles.
Guo Shier was surprised. “Uh, Mutated birds at level fourteen…”
Juehu Miluo explained, “If we encounter Mutated birds at level fourteen, we’ll have to fight, because their speed can keep up with ours. We must kill them, otherwise they’re very troublesome.”

Guo Shieru understood that if he accidentally ended up on this continent, it was best to leave immediately; if he couldn’t leave, he would basically be trapped. Only after arriving on this continent did he realize there were so many advanced mutated beast symbols, and even in the sky, they were extremely dangerous. Along the way, he encountered many mutated birds, but fortunately, none at level 14 or above. After flying continuously for five days, even these top professionals felt a bit tired. Guo Shieru noticed sparse desert plants on the ground, mostly things like camel thorns, along with a few cacti. He exclaimed, “We’re about to leave the desert!” Juehu Miluo nodded and said, “This section is probably the hardest to navigate.” Feng Xilong added from the side, “It’s not too bad. As long as we don’t run into fierce mutated birds, the journey is manageable.” A red glow flashed, and Feng Xilong grabbed something, examined it briefly, and said, “Bao Chengyong wants us to hurry over—something seems to have happened.” Everyone perked up. The lack of any incidents during their journey had made them somewhat irritable. After speaking, Gu Xilong accelerated again, and the group rushed forward at lightning speed. Soon, they saw Bao Chengyong hovering in the air. Feng Xilong, being the fastest, reached him first and asked, “What’s wrong?” Bao Chengyong looked serious and pointed to a distance, saying, “Look over there!” Feng Xilong was stunned. In the distance was a camp of mutated humans, with a strong smell of blood in the air. The camp was in disarray, seemingly having just been attacked. Juehu Miluo also arrived and asked, “What’s that?” Guo Shieru’s heart pounded wildly. He saw piles of ashes in the camp ahead, drifting everywhere in the wind. He was familiar with this kind of ash—it appeared after Qi Nan Shan fought someone, left behind by the flames of the Soul Fire. Eagle Demon also noticed something. He glanced at Guo Shieru, his eyes showing a mix of joy and concern. Guo Shieru couldn’t believe it. He thought Master Luo Jie and Grandpa Nan Shan wouldn’t come to such a place. It was far too distant from the Star Continent and the Core Foundation Continent. Perhaps it was a trace left by another Black Symbolist. Yan Ruodai stared at the ground in surprise. After a while, she said, “Black Symbolists?” Ling Zhenren’s face darkened as he said, “What powerful Black Symbolists! One person wiped out the entire camp…”

Guo Shier’s hands were trembling uncontrollably. He hoped this Black Talismanist was his master, yet he also hoped he wasn’t, torn between conflicting desires. After all, these people here were all top-tier professionals. If he encountered Master Luo Jie, he would be utterly unable to prevent a conflict—he had no say at all here.
Feng Xilong smiled bitterly. “I hope it’s not a particularly powerful Black Talismanist; otherwise, we’ll all suffer.”
Guo Shier was surprised to find that these top-tier professionals also feared the Black Talismanist, which he hadn’t expected. A question arose in his mind, and he couldn’t help but ask, “Uncle, is the Black Talismanist really that strong?” He needed to test this. After meeting Qi Nanshan, he already knew how powerful the Black Talismanist was, but he hadn’t imagined that even these top-tier professionals would be afraid of him.