Chapter 5: The Yunshi Mining Area (Part 2)

Eagle Demon and Luo Zhan exchanged glances—they had also lost everything. Guo Shier smiled and said, “You two have no money left. Let’s talk about it when you have some. Hehe, Uncle Eagle Demon, Uncle Luo, shall we go visit the mining area? Nan You, will you come?” He was quite interested in the Yunshi mines.
Huo Yu said dejectedly, “Let’s go. Everyone go. Sigh, why am I so unlucky? I even lose at gambling like this.”
Guo Shier realized that Huo Yu wasn’t the kind of woman who could hide her thoughts. He smiled and said, “Nan You, come with us. It’s better to be busy than idle. Haven’t you had anything to do lately?”
Nan You replied gloomily, “Nothing but losing money…”
The five of them flew out of the castle courtyard and entered the Yunshi mining area.
The mining area was vast, divided into many sections. The ground was covered with huge pits, and countless people worked hard in them like ants. There were many flying vehicles patrolling in the sky.
Guo Shier landed directly in a huge pit, with Nan You and the others following. A strong smell of sweat mixed with dust hit them, along with the sound of constant hammering. Thousands of ordinary slave workers were digging up soil to expose large chunks of Yunshi, then breaking them down piece by piece and loading them into baskets for transport.
In the distance, there were rows of shacks where the slaves lived.
Guo Shier felt uneasy seeing this. He despised the practice of enslaving ordinary people through robbery. But he knew that there were many slaves in the world—ordinary people aside, even professionals could end up as slaves. He and Eagle Demon had once been captured by the Gu Xi Long family and taken to a distant continent, still searching for a way back to this place.
“Can these people go back someday?”
Nan You said, “It’s impossible to go back. If they complete their tasks well, some of them might be sent to other places.”
Guo Shier nodded.
A few saints, led by a high-ranking saint, flew over quickly and landed beside Nan You, saying respectfully, “We greet our lord.”
Nan You waved his hand and said, “Go ahead with your work.” The saints bowed respectfully and left. Along the way, professionals came up to pay their respects from time to time.
Guo Shier picked up a piece of Yunshi and asked, “This kind of stone still needs to be processed, right?”
Huo Yu replied, “Of course. It has to be sent to a furnace to be burned into custom-made talisman bricks before it can be taken to Great Hidden Fortress.” She added, “There are a dozen more similar mining areas—not just Yunshi mines, but also other types of mines. Our mining area is the safest, with no dangerous talisman beasts.”

Nanyou smiled and said, “That’s why they sent the two of us here to guard. If there’s danger, experts from the solid-form altar will be sent.”
Huoyu said, “Hmph, I’ll soon be promoted to the solid-form altar level. Staying here is so boring. It’s better to find a slightly more dangerous place to guard, so I can at least be active and kill a few mutated talisman beasts. Thankfully, it won’t be long—just a few months more and I can leave. If it weren’t for those purple talisman flames, I wouldn’t have come here to suffer.”
Hearing Huoyu’s complaints, Guo Shier smiled faintly. In fact, he had also come for the purple talisman flames; otherwise, he wouldn’t have been here. Nanyou said, “Talisman flames are rare. The major ancient clans are really going all out this time.”
The handsome old man suddenly said, “Kid, release the altar.”
Guo Shier was stunned. His soul trembled slightly. “What?”
The handsome old man said, “Hurry up. No need for so much nonsense.”
Guo Shier looked helpless. This old man always came up with some bizarre ideas. He released the altar and sat on top of it. The handsome old man appeared, looked around, and said, “Fly over there!”
Nanyou was puzzled. “Shier, what’s wrong?” Once the altar was released, it meant something was happening.
Guo Shier smiled and said, “It’s nothing. The handsome old man wants to get some fresh air.”
Nanyou couldn’t help but sigh bitterly. That sounded awkward. What fresh air could a sacrificial spirit need? Did it even have air to breathe?
Guo Shier steered the altar and flew quickly into the distance.
Huoyu watched blankly. She knew Guo Shier was an expert with altars, but she didn’t expect him to be a top expert with two solid-form altars. After a while, she said, “He… he’s actually an expert with two altars? I thought he was like us. Nanyou, you actually brought such a skilled expert here?”
Nanyou dismissed it with a shrug. “So what? Shier has already agreed to join our Guunan clan.” He boasted proudly.
Yingmo and Luozhan followed and flew away as well.
Nanyou and Huoyu exchanged a glance and simultaneously released their own virtual-form altars to chase after them. Both of them were curious about what Guo Shier had discovered.
Guo Shier stopped over a desert. He asked, “Handsome old man, do we keep flying?”
The handsome old man said, “Why rush? Wait…” He poked his head out and looked at the land below the altar, his eyes filled with confusion. After a while, he said, “Fly a little further, but not too far.”
Guo Shier flew a short distance as instructed. Brown rocks appeared on the ground. After observing them carefully, he said, “There’s nothing here.”

Nanyou and Huo Yu flew over, their speed much faster than that of Yingmo and Luozhan. After a while, Yingmo and Luozhan finally arrived, flying straight up to Guo Shier’s altar—they were already accustomed to staying there.
Yingmo asked, “Did you find anything?”
Guo Shier smiled and said, “I didn’t find anything. It’s Shuai Lao Tou who’s coming.”
Nanyou said, “This place is desolate; there shouldn’t be anything worth paying attention to.” Though he said this, he was still a bit eager, knowing Guo Shier’s sacrificial spirit was unique—this guy was even more powerful than many altar masters.
Shuai Lao Tou stared intently at the ground below. After a while, he cast a series of spells, and countless virtual talismans descended, quickly merging into the earth. Guo Shier knew these were exploration talismans, but Shuai Lao Tou’s method was strange—not one he knew.
A moment later, numerous virtual talismans flew up from the ground and landed in Shuai Lao Tou’s palm.
Guo Shier was surprised to see those talismans rapidly condense into a rune—a character for “lei”. Then he heard Shuai Lao Tou let out a strange laugh, “Ahaha… Haha, as expected, as expected…”
Nanyou and Huo Yu didn’t see the character. They looked at each other in confusion, wondering what the old man was up to.
Shuai Lao Tou said, “Move a little forward. Yes, that’s the spot. Stay still and don’t move. Wait for me to extract it, hehe.”
Guo Shier understood now—there was a natural rune beneath this ground, the “lei” rune. He wondered how Shuai Lao Tou had discovered it.
Shuai Lao Tou proudly cast numerous spells while also summoning a flame sacrificial treasure. Countless flames descended and hit the ground, causing the earth to tremble, sand and stones to roll, and dust to rise into the sky. Nanyou couldn’t help but curse, immediately raising the altar’s defenses to block the incoming dust.
Huo Yu asked, “Nanyou, what’s he doing?”
Nanyou replied irritably, “You ask me? Who else should I ask?”
Then they heard Shuai Lao Tou’s exaggerated laughter, “Wahahaha… Haha, zhihaha…”
Huo Yu wondered, “Is he crazy?”
Nanyou said, “Very likely… crazy.”
Guo Shier blushed. A natural rune—was it really necessary to laugh so wildly? Shuai Lao Tou seemed a bit abnormal today. He couldn’t help but say, “Shuai Lao Tou, stop laughing. It’s creepy.”
Shuai Lao Tou snapped, “Idiot, what do you know? This is something super amazing! Wahahaha, I never expected to find it here. Damn, what good luck I have…” He boasted for a moment before adding, “Don’t just stand there watching—help out!”

Guo Shier suppressed his doubts and stepped in to help, casting countless virtual talismans as well. He was already very skilled in this extraction method and assisted the old man in drawing out the natural runes underground.

After a while, the ground began to churn like water’s surface—soil and rocks rolled around, and large amounts of dirt and debris were forced outward, revealing the rocks beneath.

It was the first time Guo Shier had witnessed the immense power of the Flame Sacrifice Ritual. An unparalleled wave of heat spread out, forcing Nan You and Huo Yu to keep retreating. The ground gradually melted, forming a huge magma lake. Thousands of flames burned, turning the entire sky red.

The Eagle Demon exclaimed, “This is the power of a master of altars… truly terrifying!”

Luo Zhan was stunned, pointing downward and saying, “The ground has completely melted… it’s terrifying!”

Guo Shier continued to amplify the power of the Flame Sacrifice Ritual. The ground boiled completely, with magma rolling and spewing out massive amounts of mist. Crackling sounds could be heard constantly—those were the rocks shattering.

Nan You and Huo Yu didn’t understand what Guo Shier was doing.

The ground gradually collapsed. Even Guo Shier couldn’t help but exclaim, “Damn, it’s absolutely spectacular! Old man, you’re amazing!”

The old man said proudly, “Fortunately, you obtained a Level 15 Abnormal Earth Dragon. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have been able to find a suitable vessel.”

Boom!

The magma on the ground suddenly erupted and shot into the air. Guo Shier shouted, “Everyone, get out of the way!”

Nan You couldn’t hold back his curses as he and Huo Yu flew outward desperately.