Chapter 8: Traces of Luo Jie (Part 2)

Juehu Miluo said, “It’s not a matter of being strong or not. Once the altar inherited by the Black Symbol People is discovered, it must be destroyed. If someone obtains their inheritance, they must be killed immediately! Strange… The Black Symbol People are long extinct—how can there still be traces of them?”
Guo Shier felt his scalp tingle as he asked, “What if the Black Symbol People are very strong… and we can’t defeat them?”
Ling Zhenren replied, “If we can’t defeat them, run away quickly. Their soul-black flames can burn away your soul and seize its essence… Moreover, once they reach the Void Form Altar, they become uncontrollable. Even if they can’t defeat us, they can still escape.”
Guo Shier didn’t know what to say and showed a bitter smile.
Bao Chengyong finally came to his senses and said, “To wipe them out completely… that’s terrifying!”
Shi Yanxilong said in a strange tone, “If this Black Symbol Person stays on the Yàn Continent… the mutated beings will be in trouble. He’s likely to wipe them all out by himself!”
Feng Xilong said with a bitter smile, “If he wipes out all the mutated beings on the continent, who knows how powerful he’ll become? By then, if he tries to enter the continent under our control, who can stop him?”
Guo Shier asked, “So what should we do?”
Feng Xilong pondered for a moment before saying, “We don’t need to fear this Black Symbol Person. After all, we have a large number of people and strong strength. Ignore him for now. Let’s head to the Magic Rock Secret Realm first. We’ll discuss this again after returning to the sect. We can’t act rashly now.”
Shi Yanxilong added, “It’s good that this is the Yàn Continent; otherwise, it would be troublesome.”
Yan Ruodai asked, “I wonder how he got to the Yàn Continent. Aren’t the entrances and exits here controlled by your Gu Xi Long family? How come we don’t know anything about it?”
Feng Xilong replied, “If this Black Symbol Person has a physical altar like ours, it’s normal for him to be able to enter here. Besides, we haven’t returned to the Gu Xi Long Continent for over a decade, so we’re unaware of many things.”
Bao Chengyong said, “I guess it’s only recent events… If this Black Symbol Person hasn’t attacked on your family’s territory, probably no one would know. Black Symbol People are easy to spot when they’re weak, but once they grow stronger, it’s hard to trace them.”
Ling Zhenren said, “This Black Symbol Person… is very powerful. It seems not a single mutated being escaped from the entire camp. I’m afraid not even those mutated beasts and birds survived.”

Guo Shier’s heart was pounding wildly, his face turning pale and blue alternately. Juehu Miluo said, “Little guy, don’t be afraid. With us here, the Black Symbol People can’t hurt you.”
Ling Zhenren sighed, “Once the Black Symbol People grow stronger… it will be a disaster! I hope we can handle this properly this time.”
Guo Shier sensed something unusual in Ling Zhenren’s words and couldn’t help asking, “Elder Ling, if the Black Symbol People really reach the Solid Form Altar, will you still try to kill them?”
Ling Zhenren shook his head with a bitter smile. After a long while, he said, “If they reach the Solid Form Altar, we must strive to live in peace with them…”
Guo Shier was stunned. The shift was too sudden for him to process.
Yan Ruodai said, “Little guy, don’t be surprised. Any professional who inherits the Black Symbol People’s legacy, as long as they can escape the pursuit of other professionals in the early stages—and even escape the pursuit of other Black Symbol People in ancient times—those who manage to grow strong become almost invincible once they reach the Solid Form Altar. If you mess with them…” She shook her head, looking helpless.
Guo Shier gradually calmed down. He didn’t really feel anything toward the Black Symbol People; it was only because of Luo Jie and Qi Nanshan that he was upset. Learning this important information made him feel a little better. He secretly hoped that Master Luo Jie and Grandpa Nanshan already had their own Solid Form Altars.
Feng Xilong said, “Let’s not stay here. Let’s head to the Magic Rock Secret Realm first. We can discuss this later.”
Ling Zhenren nodded. “Mm. This Black Symbol Person seems very powerful. Even if we want to find him, we’ll need to gather some experts…”
The group set off again.
Guo Shier was conflicted. He was eager to know whether this Black Symbol Person was Master Luo Jie or Grandpa Nanshan, but in this small group, he had no say. Besides, he wasn’t sure it was definitely Master Luo Jie—it could also be another professional who had inherited the Black Symbol People’s legacy. He could only keep his mouth shut.
Along the way, they encountered seven mutant settlements. Two of them had been completely wiped out by the Black Symbol Person. They avoided three camps and fought the remaining two, killing many mutants and aberrants.
They still hadn’t seen the Black Symbol Person, but judging from the two destroyed settlements, this person was extremely powerful, with ruthless killing skills—almost no mutants escaped. These top professionals felt chilled to the bone. The Black Symbol Person had left an extremely deep impression on them.

Guo Shier had made up his mind—that it was best not to meet that Black Symbol Man at this time, whether he was Luo Jie or Qi Nan Shan or not. These top-tier professionals were extremely powerful, and if a conflict arose, he wouldn’t be able to help at all.

Crossing the entire Yan Continent took about a hundred days. If Guo Shier and the others flew on their own, it would likely take at least a few years.

It was a desert where even drought-resistant plants couldn’t survive; all that existed was broken rocks and sand. Strong winds howled, lifting large amounts of sand and dust, and the eerie sound of the wind made people feel uneasy.

Feng Xilong said, “We’re almost there. It shouldn’t be far from here.”

After flying for another day, a huge ravine suddenly appeared ahead. At first, it was just a small gap, but as they got closer, it grew larger and larger, turning into a deep chasm hundreds of meters wide. Feng Xilong stopped and said, “That’s where we descend.”

Ling Zhenren asked, “Is this the Demon Gully?”

Feng Xilong smiled and said, “Ling Zhenren also knows about the Demon Gully?”

Ling Zhenren nodded and said, “I’ve only heard of it. I heard it’s very dangerous.”

Guo Shier turned back, feeling unsure whether to be disappointed or relieved. He had finally gotten some information about the Black Symbol Man, but he couldn’t go verify it, which left him feeling uneasy. Eagle Demon whispered, “Shier, there’s still a chance. Don’t rush.” Guo Shier slowly nodded, putting aside his sadness for now, and said, “Uncle Eagle Demon, I know.”

Zhou Xiaoling asked curiously, “What chance? I don’t understand.”

Luo Zhan understood what Guo Shier was worried about, but he couldn’t say too much.

Guo Shier said, “Ding ding,” then slowly shook his head.

Zhou Xiaoling misinterpreted it as an opportunity to escape and whispered, “I get it, Shier. Don’t rush.”

Juehu Miluo turned around and said, “Everyone, sit down. We’re going down.”

Guo Shier asked, “Is the Demon Rock Secret Realm down there?”

Juehu Miluo replied, “Yes. But this Demon Gully is very difficult to navigate.” With that, he activated the altar and led everyone down into the gully.

Ugh! Ugh!

Strange howling sounds echoed through the Demon Gully. Guo Shier instinctively pulled in his neck and whispered, “What’s that sound? It sounds like someone crying softly. It’s really creepy.”

Zhou Xiaoling grabbed Guo Shier’s arm anxiously and said, “Hey, stop scaring people, will you…?”

Soon, the whining sounds turned into sharp roars—howl! Howl! It sounded like countless mutated symbol beasts were howling.

The surroundings quickly grew dark. Guo Shieru cast a vision-enhancing spell on himself, only to find that even with it, he could barely see anything more than a hundred meters away. There was thick black fog here, and it wasn’t stationary—moving rapidly with strange wind sounds. At first glance, it resembled streams of black air, surging like rushing water.

Guo Shieru noticed that those descending had all activated their own altars, and Juehu Miluo was constantly strengthening their defenses, his expression showing surprise.

Zhou Xiaoling said, “Strange, it’s so cold!”

Juehu Miluo’s face turned slightly red as he said, “I’ve activated protection, but it’s extremely cold here. I can’t fully block the invasion of cold energy.”

Guo Shieru was stunned. This was still on Juehu Miluo’s altar. If he were in the Demon Gully, he might freeze solid right away. He hadn’t expected it to be this dangerous. Without hesitation, he activated the Qinglian Talisman and pulled Zhou Xiaoling in with him. He had always been cold-sensitive, and Zhou Xiaoling, who lived in the Fire Sect, was equally afraid of the cold.

Yingmo and Luozhan, with their strong vitality, paid no attention to the cold and sat there as if nothing had happened.

Wind Xilong’s voice came through, a bit hazy but still clear: “Be careful! Various cold-type mutated talisman insects will appear here!”

Mutated talisman insects!

Guo Shieru was skilled at controlling insects and had collected a great deal of information. His knowledge of talisman insects was on par with that of these top professionals, and he knew that cold-type mutated talisman insects were extremely troublesome. He whispered, “I hope we don’t encounter them. Cold-type mutated talisman insects… are terrifying!”

Yan Ruodai suddenly raised her lightning staff and sent out a bolt of lightning.

A blinding flash illuminated the dark and damp Demon Gully. In an instant, Guo Shieru saw a dozen blue talisman insects, each about a meter long. He searched his memory carefully—he seemed to recognize this kind of insect.

With a crack, one of the insects was blown away by the lightning. Guo Shieru immediately remembered what kind of insect it was and exclaimed in horror, “Bimeng! It’s a mutated Bimeng!”

Juehu Miluo said gravely, “There’s no need to panic. These are just level seven or eight mutated Bimengs. They’re nothing special.”

Guo Shieru suddenly realized that everyone present was a professional with a tangible altar. Dealing with level seven or eight mutated talisman insects posed no real challenge to them.

Working together, they quickly eliminated the dozen or so mutated Bimengs. Watching the dead insects fall, Guo Shieru couldn’t help but say, “Wow… what a shame… Ah, it’s such a waste…” He had two excellent insect talismans, and obtaining the essence of Bimengs would be very beneficial for their growth.

Juehu Miluo growled, “Shut up!”
Guo Shier stared eagerly as the corpses of those talismanic worms disappeared. Zhou Xiaoling laughed mockingly; she found Guo Shier’s pained expression amusing.