Chapter 2: Legends of the Secret Realm (Part 1)

Luo Zhan slipped out silently, heading straight toward the sound of footsteps. When he saw who it was, he felt slightly relieved. He stepped in front of that person and blocked the way, saying, “Xiao Jie, don’t go over. Shier is in meditation.”
Luo Wei Jie was surprised. “Uncle Luo, is it Shier who’s meditating? Oh, so it’s Shier who moved to Xijianju. Hehe, okay, I’ll stay here and not go over.” She knew that one shouldn’t disturb someone while they were meditating. In fact, she really liked Guo Shier and especially enjoyed teasing him, finding him very interesting.
Unaware of it, Guo Shier had completed nine sets of movements. The speed wasn’t fast, but the precision was extreme. The moment the ninth set was finished, his soul erupted with a loud boom, as if a thunderclap rang in his ears. Instantly, his soul expanded rapidly, and an invisible force surged outward, causing the bamboo grove to rustle noisily.
Guo Shier slowly sat down and instinctively began reciting the scriptures. Those 167 characters were already etched deep in his soul, so even when in a dazed state, he could recite them flawlessly.
Each character resonated within his soul, bringing him great pleasure. It felt similar to the experience he had after first practicing spell power—very joyful and soothing, as if his whole body wanted to fly.
His soul seemed to have been purified, becoming stronger once again.
Guo Shier felt as if he had been reborn. He sensed that his soul power had at least doubled. Strangely, an endless sense of confidence and authority seemed to emanate from his soul—a feeling he had never experienced before.
Daring not to continue practicing spell power, Guo Shier sat cross-legged on the ground, reciting the scriptures softly over and over again, refining his soul. The pleasant sensation was almost irresistible.
After sitting for two hours, Guo Shier finally stopped reciting. He checked briefly and was shocked—his spell power had increased by at least four times. Such a rapid rate of improvement was terrifying.
Standing up, Guo Shier felt sharper in his senses, able to hear distant sounds clearly. He heard someone say, “Why isn’t he done yet? It’s taken too long. We’d better go check to make sure nothing went wrong.” Hearing this voice, he couldn’t help but shudder. Wasn’t that the crazy girl Luo Wei Jie?
“Don’t go over. Shier will come out once he’s finished meditating. Going in now will disturb him.”
Luo Zhan responsibly blocked the way.

Guo Shieru raised a finger to signal the nearby rune warriors to be quiet. He sneaked along the pond, bypassed the path, and dashed back home. He had no intention of meeting that crazy girl—he already had too much to do and no time for arguments with her.

Luo Weijie was still arguing with Luo Zhan. After Guo Shieru left, the three rune warriors also came out from by the pond after a while. Luo Zhan asked, “Has Shieru finished his training?”

Zhang Dakui laughed and said, “Shieru has already finished. He went back first, hehe.”

Luo Weijie stamped her foot in anger and coquettishly said, “Uncle Luo! It’s all your fault…”

Luo Zhan laughed and said, “It has nothing to do with me, Xiao Jie. It’s Shieru who doesn’t want to see you. Hehe, let’s go back. Xiao Jie, Shieru must have gone into the rune chamber—no matter how you try, you won’t be able to see him.” The rune chamber was also a seclusion room; without the owner’s permission, no one could enter. This was the rule for rune masters and rune warriors.

Luo Weijie turned around grumpily and said, “Hmph, since we live so close, I doubt you won’t come out.”

Luo Zhan shook his head. He didn’t understand why Luo Weijie wanted to fight with Guo Shieru. Although he could tell the girl had no ill intentions, Guo Shieru was just a nine-year-old who hadn’t done anything to offend her. He couldn’t figure out why she kept pestering him. He said, “Xiao Jie, stop teasing Shieru. He’s the type who yields to kindness, not force.”

Luo Weijie slowed down for a moment before walking away quickly again.

Zhang Dakui muttered, “Could it be that Xiao Jie has a crush on our Shieru?”

Luo Zhan laughed and scolded, “What crush? Shieru is only nine! Well, I guess Xiao Jie just wants fun… Sigh, poor Shieru. Never mind, it’s not our concern. Let’s go back for dinner.” He completely ignored their relationship—as long as Shieru was safe, he didn’t care about anything else.

Guo Shieru hid underground and sat down on a recliner, feeling very troubled. If he were really a child, maybe he could get close to Luo Weijie, but his soul belonged to an adult. Getting entangled with a girl in her twenties was something he certainly didn’t want—it would be pure suffering. He could only avoid conflict when possible.

After finishing his basic training, Guo Shieru needed to advance his skills, so the next day he went to see his master, Luo Jie.

When Luo Jie saw Guo Shieru, he appeared somewhat dazed. The child’s strength had increased dramatically again—how had he done it?

“Shieru, why has your strength improved so fast?”

Guo Shier smiled and said, “Master, I’ve already completed the nine sets of exercises for cultivating basic spell power yesterday. Hehe, after finishing them… well, I don’t know why my strength improved so quickly.”
Luo Jie was slightly stunned and asked, “Huh? You didn’t finish the basic exercises before advancing?”
Guo Shier replied, “Yes, I missed the last set and only practiced eight sets.”
Luo Jie fell into deep thought. Generally speaking, it was unlikely to advance before completing all nine sets of basic exercises, yet Guo Shier had advanced, and even beyond what was typical. With each set of basic exercises practiced, one’s strength would increase by one level. Sets three, six, and nine were the most crucial, especially the last one—once completed, spell power could reach a certain level, sufficient to advance to the rank of a spellcaster.
Seeing his master remain silent, Guo Shier grew uneasy. He cautiously asked, “Master, is there something wrong?”
Luo Jie smiled bitterly and said, “It’s not that there’s anything wrong, but I don’t understand why your cultivation has improved so fast. If you continue at this pace, you’ll soon reach the level of a spellcaster. But… I don’t know if that’s a good thing or not. Still, don’t worry. With me here, I’ll protect you.”
He was inevitably worried, as he had never seen a nine-year-old spellcaster before, let alone one whose cultivation was improving so rapidly. Without any precedents or experience, it was natural to be concerned. Fortunately, the old man had profound cultivation skills, so as long as he kept Guo Shier by his side, nothing would go wrong.
Guo Shier also smiled bitterly and said, “It’s painful when cultivation progresses slowly, and it’s painful when it progresses fast. Sigh, life… is just full of pain!”
“Slap!”
The old man slapped him on the head without hesitation and scolded, “You’re just a nine-year-old brat—where do you get all these rants from?”
Being called a brat by his master, Guo Shier didn’t get upset at all. He was indeed just a child. He grinned mischievously and said, “Master, I was just expressing my thoughts a bit. Ah, master, don’t hit my head—it’ll make me stupid!”
Luo Jie was torn between laughter and exasperation and said, “Stop whining! Relax a bit with your cultivation these days. Focus all your energy on creating spells and learning. Everything else isn’t important. You lack a lot of knowledge and need to make up for it quickly. Go to my book repository, pick out some books, and I’ll create a special large spellbook for you to carry around.”

“In just over twenty days, we’ll set off. This time, the journey will be very long. So, you should use that time to read and practice controlling talismans. I’ll get you some special talismans for practicing control so you can get familiar with it.”
Guo Shier knew his master was trying to help him, but he had his own plans. He wouldn’t slack off in learning, controlling talismans, or crafting them. Similarly, he wouldn’t neglect his cultivation. Whether rapid progress in cultivation was good or bad was uncertain, but one thing was clear: the faster his cultivation improved, the stronger he would become, and the better his means of survival. In this life, survival was the most important thing.
Guo Shier said, “Master, I want to learn how to make hidden talismans.”
Luo Jie replied, “Hidden talismans… Usually, only talisman masters or spellcrafters delve into their creation. You’ve just advanced to the rank of spellcaster, and you already want to make such advanced talismans?”
With no other choice, Guo Shier resorted to acting cute. After all, as a child, if he wanted something he liked, he had to pester others. As he spoke sweet nothings, he felt goosebumps on his own skin and despised himself inwardly.
Luo Jie truly loved this young disciple. Seeing him flatter excessively, spouting sweet words, and eventually talking nonsense, it was both amusing and frustrating. Realizing he really wanted hidden talismans, Luo Jie said, “Alright, alright, I’ll teach you. Sigh, even in old age, I end up taking on such a naughty disciple.” Though it sounded like a complaint, there was no trace of real annoyance in his tone—instead, it was filled with indulgence.
Guo Shier enjoyed this indulgence; otherwise, he wouldn’t have acted cute. But he tried to do it as little as possible, as he felt a bit embarrassed and ashamed himself. Thankfully, his master agreed; otherwise, he wouldn’t have known how to handle the situation. Should he keep acting cute? The thought made him break out in a cold sweat.
“Thank you, master! You’re so kind!”
Guo Shier despised himself again, but for the sake of hidden talismans, he couldn’t care less.
As a great spellcaster, Luo Jie gave Guo Shier a book specifically on making hidden talismans and told him to go see Hu Bo to obtain the necessary materials from the material warehouse. He reminded him, “The materials for making hidden talismans are quite precious. Don’t waste them. Try to standardize the specifications when making them. Once you create your life talisman, you can plan the format of your life talisman book. Hidden talismans are an important part of the life talisman book.”
Curious, Guo Shier asked, “Hidden talismans are part of the life talisman book? Master, the life talisman book is a symbol of a master. But what exactly is it made of?”

Luo Jie said, “The hallmark of advancing to a Spellcaster is the formation of one’s own Life Talisman, which is the most crucial step. The first Life Talisman is the core of the Life Talisman Book; it is not meant for attack but to support further cultivation—it is a very important talisman. Only after the first Life Talisman is successfully formed can one use it to create a second one, which is the Hidden Talisman.”

“It can be said that creating a Hidden Talisman is equivalent to adding another Life Talisman. Once this Hidden Talisman is formed, more treasures or other talismans can be added to it, and of course, one-time talismans can also be added, though no one does so as it’s not cost-effective. Once the Hidden Talisman is filled with treasures, a second Hidden Talisman can be created, and this process can continue until the tenth Hidden Talisman is reached. Hehe, at that point, one can advance to the rank of Master.”

“With one Life Talisman and nine Hidden Talismans, to advance to Master using these ten talismans, one must also form a Life Talisman Book. This is a critical hurdle—once overcome, one can successfully advance to Master. Hehe, sadly… few people can pass this hurdle; it’s extremely difficult.”