Chapter 10: The Two-Layered Altar (Part 2)

Guo Shier’s ability to make the altar move at lightning speed was truly remarkable—much faster than using the Ancient Ink Lotus. In an instant, it flew far away. As for exactly how fast it was, he had no way of estimating; he only felt that its speed was incredibly fast. The handsome old man poked his head out and said, “Go over there first!”

By using the altar to fly rapidly, a few minutes later, a strange sight appeared before them. Countless halos flashed—red, orange, yellow, green, cyan, blue, and purple—appearing and disappearing intermittently. Nan You exclaimed in surprise, “This… this is… this is a ring path… the most dangerous kind!”

Guo Shier was confused. “What ring path? What’s it for?”

Nan You replied, “It’s similar to an entrance to a secret realm, but much more dangerous. If you’re not careful, you’ll get trapped by the ring path!”

The Eagle Demon asked, “How can it trap you?”

Nan You pointed at the colorful rings and said seriously, “Once you enter, the rings will shrink into dots. Hehe, if your speed isn’t fast enough, *crack*—you’ll be split in two, half inside and half outside. Even experts at the altar level aren’t immune!”

Huh?

Everyone was stunned. It was that extreme.

Nan You continued, “Don’t be surprised. In the Eight Paths of Heaven, anything strange can happen.”

The handsome old man said gravely, “This kind of ring path… must have appeared recently. It didn’t exist before, and it will disappear soon. This isn’t the passage they mentioned.”

Nan You nodded. “Ring paths always appear suddenly and vanish just as suddenly. But… they also represent opportunities. If you have the strength to enter, there could be many benefits.”

Guo Shier was torn. He asked, “Besides trapping people, what other characteristics does a ring path have?”

The handsome old man replied, “I know that. Its feature is long-distance teleportation, similar to a talisman gate. The destination of a ring path is never certain. Do you plan to enter?”

Guo Shier asked, “If I enter… what will happen? Could I not return?”

The handsome old man pondered for a moment before saying, “I don’t know if you can return, but I do know… once you enter, you’re likely to get lost again…”

Guo Shier was speechless. Thinking about it made him feel pitiful. He was already lost outside—would he have to go through it again? This world was incredibly vast. He hesitated, looking at the ring path, his heart in turmoil: If he was lucky, maybe he could be teleported directly back to a familiar area.

Nanyou said, “This kind of loop path is something I’ve seen for the first time. I’ve only heard of it before. It’s said that some people have run far away using these paths and only managed to return after great difficulty. Moreover, these paths are extremely dangerous. I really don’t think it’s worth exploring.”
Guo Shieru hesitated for a moment before saying, “Alright, let’s not take that risk. Let’s leave here and head to our original destination.” While they were discussing, they had unknowingly approached the loop paths. Just as Guo Shieru decided to leave, suddenly, colorful lights flashed around them, revealing that there were loops everywhere—layer upon layer, so dense that it made one’s hair stand on end.
The old man couldn’t help but sigh bitterly, “Kid, you’re really lucky!”
Nanyou’s expression changed. He said, “Quickly pick a loop path and enter. Go fast… Ah, there’s no time to think. In a moment, this place will be filled with loops, and we might get trapped if we’re not careful!”
Guo Shieru didn’t dare delay, but he also didn’t want to rush in blindly. He asked anxiously, “Which loop path should we enter?” He noticed that those colored rings appeared and disappeared in no more than two seconds, some even faster.
The old man also grew anxious and shouted, “Just pick one!”
Guo Shieru cursed loudly as he rushed toward a newly appeared colored ring.
“Damn it, heavens… I curse you!”
He plunged headfirst into a golden ring at incredible speed, seemingly determined not to return. Fortunately, he had heard Nanyou’s explanation and knew he couldn’t hesitate, so he rushed in quickly and avoided being trapped.
In an instant, he reached the other end. Guo Shieru exclaimed in surprise, “Whoa… We made it this fast?” Everyone sat on the altar, observing their surroundings.
Nanyou said with a strange expression, “Is this the mainland? A secret realm? It seems we’ve left the Eight Paths Heaven!”
Guo Shieru was shocked. He didn’t want to leave the Eight Paths Heaven yet and quickly asked, “Old man, can our talisman gate still be used?”
The old man replied immediately, “No… none of them work. We’ve arrived in a completely new… unfamiliar place. All coordinates, including those of the Eight Paths Heaven, are useless. Kid, we’re in big trouble.”
Guo Shieru looked troubled. After a moment, he regained his composure and said, “Anyway, we’ve been lost all along. Another attempt won’t hurt!”
The old man smiled and said, “Run slowly. One day you’ll be able to make it home…”
Guo Shieru was baffled and said, “It’s a shame. I thought we might gain something from the Eight Paths Heaven, but instead we just got out.”

Nan You said, “It’s fine. There’s still a chance to enter Baji Dami Tian.”
Guo Shierqi asked, “How do we get back?”
Nan You replied, “In our area, there are fixed entrances and exits. I don’t know how you got in, but on our continent, as long as one reaches the rank of Great Sage, they can enter to gain experience. Otherwise, there wouldn’t be so many major fortresses built in Baji Dami Tian.”
Guo Shierqi suddenly realized that Nan You wasn’t from the same region as them. He asked, “Can your talisman gate still be used? Do you have any ready-made continental coordinates?”
Nan You took a quick look and was stunned. He said, “Damn, how is this possible?”
Guo Shierqi’s heart sank, and he sighed, “Sigh, we’re all lost now. Nan You, welcome to the Lost Squad.”
Nan You snapped, “What the hell is this ‘Squad’?”
Everyone burst into laughter.
Eagle Demon said with a smile, “Another lost child.”
Nan You said weakly, “Come on, I’m over 480 years old this year… still a child? Half a mound of yellow earth already up to my waist. If I don’t advance any further, I can live at most another hundred or so years…” Only by reaching the Real Form Altar can a professional’s lifespan see a significant increase. Even after advancing to the Virtual Form Altar, the lifespan isn’t greatly extended, though it’s still much better than those below the rank of Great Sage.
Guo Shierqi knew these guys had long lifespans, but he didn’t expect Nan You to be nearly 500 years old—nothing could tell from his appearance.
Luo Zhan asked, “What place is this?”
Guo Shierqi made the altar fly forward for a distance before seeing a thousand-meter-long skeleton. There were countless broken rocks and withered trees on the ground, giving him the impression of Tan Ya Secret Realm—a ruined secret realm. The skeleton of the thousand-meter-long mutated talisman beast was broken into several sections, looking like a small mountain range.
The entire land was brownish-yellow, making that white skeleton particularly striking.
Guo Shierqi shook his head and said, “This isn’t a good place. Let’s be careful.”
Nan You said, “Let me down. Two altars are better than one. This place seems like a slaughter ground.” He flew down, activated his own Virtual Form Altar, and sat on it.
Guo Shierqi was surprised. “A slaughter ground? What’s that?”
The Handsome Old Man asked, “Are there still slaughter grounds around?”
Nan You replied, “Many of them.”
Guo Shierqi asked, “What is a slaughter ground?”

Nanyou explained, “There are many types of killing grounds—natural killing grounds, ancient family gambling killing grounds, and those specifically designed for battles between mutated talisman beasts… I don’t know which type this one is. It just looks similar; it might not even be a real killing ground.”
Guo Shier said, “Nanyou, don’t you have a divination talisman disk? Take it out and check.”
Nanyou replied, “Alright, let me give it a try. Although…” He muttered something indistinct, but Guo Shier understood clearly: “…it’s very rare to get an accurate prediction. At least it can serve as some comfort.”
Guo Shier almost collapsed on the altar—this guy was really good at deceiving people.
Nanyou began to speculate seriously. After a moment, he said, “Go in that direction!” He seemed extremely confident. If it weren’t for Guo Shier having heard his muttered words, he might have thought the guy was right. Now, however, he couldn’t help but doubt it.
Guo Shier said, “Okay, let’s go in that direction!” Even if he were to choose the direction himself, he’d still pick randomly. It was better to follow Nanyou’s advice.
The two altars flew across the sky toward the distance.
…
Roar!
Boom! Boom! Boom…
Huge feet stepped on the ground, emitting explosive noises. A giant beast nearly a kilometer long, with four thick thighs that resembled towering pillars, would crush everything beneath its feet—rocks and dead trees alike—into powder with each step.
It was a Level 15 Abnormal Earth Dragon.
About 200 kilometers away, another equally massive Abnormal Mammoth was wandering around, letting out roars from time to time.
This Abnormal Mammoth was also Level 15, over 600 meters long, with a thick nose that was a hundred meters long. When it swung its nose, it would produce a howling sound. Its golden fur shimmered with layers of fluctuating talismanic light.
High in the sky, Guo Shier and Nanyou sat on the altars.
Nanyou said, “A Level 15 Abnormal Mammoth! How rare! Do you think we have the strength to kill it?”
Guo Shier shook his head. “We can’t. Our strength isn’t enough.”
Abnormal talisman beasts and mutated talisman beasts are two different concepts—just as talisman beasts and mutated talisman beasts are distinct. The former are extremely rare, and their essences are highly beneficial to altars. That’s why when Guo Shier and Nanyou saw this giant Abnormal Mammoth, they both stopped without hesitation and stared at it intently.

The handsome old man stared silently at the mutated mammoth below. He was even more envious than Guo Shier, but he knew in his heart that with Guo Shier and Nan You’s strength, they might be able to injure the mutated mammoth, but killing it and extracting its soul was highly unrealistic—even with him joining in, it wouldn’t help.

Mutated talisman beasts were extremely rare; one might not even see one even after exploring dozens of secret realms, let alone advanced ones. Every altar-level expert who saw one couldn’t help but want to take action. After all, the soul of an advanced mutated talisman beast could help an altar reach a higher level, or at the very least, maximize its potential.

Eagle Demon and Luo Zhan didn’t feel the same way; they merely found it strange. Whether it was Guo Shier, the handsome old man, or Nan You hovering nearby, all of them looked utterly covetous, as if perverts staring at a peerless beauty who was also teasing them.

Guo Shier muttered, “I can’t accept this… I really can’t! A level-15 mutated mammoth… a level-15 soul…” Finally, saliva dripped from his mouth.

Eagle Demon couldn’t help but laugh. It was the first time he’d seen Guo Shier act so out of control. He had watched Guo Shier grow up and rarely seen him so eager for something.

The handsome old man said, “Let’s step back and discuss how to deal with this mutated talisman beast.”

Guo Shier replied, “Okay, giving up like this? I can’t accept it either. Nan You, what do you think?”

Nan You gave a bitter smile. “What can I possibly think? This guy is too strong; there’s no way we can kill him. If it were a level-15 mutated talisman beast, we might be able to fight back and possibly kill it, but a mutated talisman beast… that’s impossible.”

The two sat on the altar, high above the ground, and with the talisman array shielding them, the mutated mammoth didn’t notice the two creatures coveting it above.

Suddenly, the handsome old man cast a spell. Guo Shier faintly heard a roar in the distance and was startled. He asked, “What was that?”

Nan You listened carefully and was also surprised. “Strange, where did that roar come from?”

Guo Shier glanced at the mutated mammoth leisurely wandering below and said, “Let’s go take a look.” Nan You agreed, and the two flew over using the altar. Moments later, they saw the massive body of a mutated earth dragon.

Nan You gasped in shock. “Another level-15 mutated talisman beast… uh, it’s a mutated earth dragon! This guy is even more powerful; it’s a dragon-type mutated talisman beast!”

Guo Shier exclaimed in surprise, “How come there are so many mutated talisman beasts here?”

Volume 24: The Gu Nan Family