Chapter 8: The Stormy Secret Realm (Part 2)

A large flying vehicle crossed the sky and arrived above Moye Ridge. Guo Shier and Nan You led a squad out of the vehicle. Typically, an exploration squad consisted of seven members, divided into combat teams, gathering teams, rescue teams, prospecting teams, etc., each with distinct roles. Generally, the members of the combat team were of higher rank.

Following Guo Shier and Nan You was the rescue team, comprising two Grand Masters, five Mad Masters, and Masters—making it a fairly powerful squad. Unless there was a special reason, altar experts would not join such a team. As deterrent forces, altar-level professionals were only deployed in special circumstances, as their numbers were extremely limited.

Nan You looked down and said, “No wonder there are so many Silver Line Crocodiles. There’s a small barrier lake here.”

A barrier lake is formed when a river is blocked between two mountains, creating a small lake. This particular barrier lake was elongated in shape, with a large base area, extensive slopes, low shrubs along the shores, and patches of reeds. From above, one could see Silver Line Crocodiles lurking underwater.

Everything around was silent; no sounds of battle could be heard.

After flying forward for a while, they suddenly heard a menacing roar. Then they saw a giant Silver Line Crocodile, with half of its body resting on the lake shore. Not far away was a rock wall with a deep crack. Nan You said, “They must be here.”

Guo Shier estimated that the crocodile was over 150 meters long—a truly massive creature.

It got its name from the two silver lines on its body. Apart from those lines, its entire body was pitch black. It had naturally formed scales, four thick and strong legs, and a flat long tail. Since it was submerged in the water, only a faint shadow could be seen. The two silver lines extended from its spine to its head, converging on its huge head to form a small silver horn. Its green eyes had vertical black pupils.

Guo Shier sighed, “It can’t compare to the Abnormal Earth Dragon. After seeing an Abnormal Earth Dragon that’s nearly a kilometer long, the Silver Line Crocodile seems insignificant by comparison. They’re completely different levels—there’s a huge gap.”

Nan You gave him a puzzled look and said, “That’s an Abnormal Talisman Beast, while this is a Mutated Talisman Beast. They’re entirely different—don’t mix them up.”

Guo Shier smiled and said, “Of course I know they’re different. I was just expressing my awe.”

Nanyou ordered, “Send out signal tokens to contact the two squad members and ask if there are any casualties.” The squad leader quickly sent a signal token, and a red glow flashed by. Guo Shier was observant enough to see the red light disappear into a crack in the rock. Moments later, a person cautiously poked half of their face out of the crack, looked up at the sky, and immediately spotted the figures hovering high above. They sent out another signal token before retreating back inside. Nanyou caught it and couldn’t help but laugh, “These cowardly guys… let me take a look…” After examining it briefly, his expression darkened as he said, “Five are injured, one is seriously hurt, and two are dead. Damn it, how could this happen?” Guo Shier reached out, took the signal token, and examined it before saying, “Not bad. Without this crack in the rock, none of them would have survived. The highest-ranked among them is just a junior Grand Sage, along with one intermediate Sage; the rest are lower-ranked disciples. It’s fortunate that most of them managed to escape. This squad leader was quite cautious.” Since both Guo Shier and Nanyou were sitting on their respective altars, while the rescue squad members were seated on Nanyou’s altar, the Silver-Line Crocodile didn’t notice them. Hovering high above, Nanyou said, “True enough. This squad leader is quite smart. He didn’t engage in a head-on fight, otherwise, the casualties would have been even worse.” Guo Shier stared at the Silver-Line Crocodile, a sharp glint in his eyes. The Soul of the Handsome Old Man fluctuated, saying, “Not bad. The spirit of the Silver-Line Crocodile can be used. Go and extract its spirit quickly! It’s a good chance to test your Moon Blade—killing it shouldn’t be difficult.” Nanyou asked, “Should I kill it, or shall I?” Guo Shier replied, “Let me do it. I’m short of spirits. The altar needs to be stabilized, and it requires a large amount of spirit for refinement.” Although he had advanced to a two-layer solid altar thanks to the Ancient Ink Lotus, he lacked spirit for refinement, so he needed a large amount of spirit to make up for it. Thanks to the Soul of the Handsome Old Man, there were no major problems for now. As long as he had enough spirit, the altar could gradually stabilize without affecting future advancements. Nanyou nodded and said, “Alright. I’ll hold back nearby.” Behind him sat seven professionals from the squad, all of whom became excited upon hearing this. They rarely got to see battles between altar masters, with some having never seen one before. Getting to watch Guo Shier take action was truly a rare opportunity.

Guo Shier wasn’t confident. After advancing to the second-tier altar, even if he obtained two level-15 Abnormal Talisman Beasts, it would still be a stroke of luck—he hadn’t even engaged in combat himself. Level-12 Abnormal Talisman Beasts were the first high-level ones he had ever faced, and alone at that. Of course, if he really couldn’t defeat them, Nan You would step in, but by then, he would also feel embarrassed.

The Moon Blade rose and hovered above his head, spinning slowly. Guo Shier had decided to launch a sneak attack—anything to kill this Silver Wire Crocodile, no matter what methods he used.

Guo Shier’s soul trembled slightly. “Elder Shuai, I remember you have a ring that can immobilize prey. Heh, how about we work together?”

Elder Shuai refused outright, speaking harshly, “Kid, don’t rely on the old man for everything. The old man isn’t omnipotent…”

Guo Shier insisted, “The old man is omnipotent! Omnipotent Old Man, please help! How can you expect me to face a level-12 Abnormal Silver Wire Crocodile alone? That’s too cruel! What if I can’t defeat it? Won’t that be embarrassing for you too?”

Elder Shuai replied bluntly, “If you can’t beat it, die! I’m already ashamed for you. Kid, you’re a master of the second-tier solid altar, not some former high-ranking sage or master of a virtual altar. Idiot, you’re already scared before even trying—how shameful!”

Nan You looked at Guo Shier curiously. Seeing him sitting atop the altar, his face turning red and white alternately, with expressions shifting between embarrassment and anger, he couldn’t help asking, “Elder, what’s wrong?”

It took Guo Shier a while to recover. With a bitter smile, he said, “Nothing… it’s nothing.” He knew he had to rely on his own strength this time. He also understood that Elder Shuai was trying to help him—he really couldn’t keep depending on him, after all, he was just a sacrificial spirit, not his master. Lately, he had become increasingly lazy.

“Wait!”

Guo Shier steered the altar and flew into the distance. Nan You stared in shock, wondering, “What’s he doing? Why is he leaving?” One of the mad masters beside him said, “Maybe… the Elder needs to use the facilities?”

Slap!

Nan You slapped him without hesitation and said, “Show respect for the Elder!”

The crowd chuckled softly. The mad master rubbed his head and muttered resentfully, “I respect him very much… How dare I not respect the Elder…”

Nan You’s altar remained high in the air, giving a clear view of everything below. Everyone on the altar had cast the Vision Enhancement Spell, allowing them to see everything clearly.

A moment later, Guo Shier appeared sneakingly from behind the Silver-Scaled Crocodile. Nan You widened his eyes, unable to understand why Guo Shier was being so cautious and acting as if he were launching a surprise attack. He scratched his head and said, “It’s coming!” The mad master glanced around and couldn’t help asking, “Where? Where? I can’t see it!”

Snap!

Nan You said, “Idiot, look behind you!”

The guy covered his head and looked back, while the other companions laughed heartily. One of them couldn’t hold back and said, “Idiot, look behind the Silver-Scaled Crocodile, not behind yourself.”

The guy replied foolishly, “Oh…” Only then did he realize what was meant, and his face turned red. The words “Idiot, look behind you” seemed to refer to him—since he was an idiot, he had to look behind.

Guo Shier quickly closed in. His Moon Blade had grown to two meters long and hung beside him. He no longer sat atop the altar but stood there, his gaze fixed on the Silver-Scaled Crocodile.

Boom!

The crocodile, which had been lying motionless, suddenly turned around, causing huge waves to surge across the lake. Its massive head aimed at Guo Shier, and it roared in anger.

Guo Shier skillfully steered the altar to the side. The sound waves from the roar made the entire lake churn, producing countless white froths.

The Silver-Scaled Crocodile twisted violently, and the two silver lines on its back began to glow. The light quickly gathered at the silver horns on its head, and with a crackling sound, a bolt of lightning shot out from them, turning into a lightning bolt as thick as a bucket. It shot toward Guo Shier with a loud boom.

Once the attack began, Guo Shier remained calm. He tapped his Moon Blade and shouted, “Perfect timing!”

The Moon Blade emitted a ringing sound and suddenly expanded to ten meters long, slashing through the air. Then, Guo Shier cast a spell, and with an eagle cry, the shadow of a mutated thunder eagle emerged from the Moon Blade. It opened its sharp beak and swallowed the incoming lightning, causing the entire Moon Blade to glow with lightning.

The level-12 mutated Silver-Scaled Crocodile already possessed considerable intelligence. When its lightning was swallowed by the Moon Blade, it realized something was wrong and tried to dive back into the lake. But its body was too large—over 150 meters long—making it impossible for it to disappear into the lake instantly.

Guo Shier cast another spell and shouted, “Slice!”

The Moon Blade was now over thirty meters long. Amidst the flashing lightning, a bolt of thunder struck down at the Silver-Scaled Crocodile.

The Silver Wire Croc instinctively knew it couldn’t escape. It roared violently, and countless runes appeared on its body, quickly forming a shield to try and block the Moon Blade’s strike.
Pop!
With a soft sound, the shield dissipated into particles of light. The Silver Wire Croc gained some time, and its massive body twisted again. It couldn’t completely avoid the attack, but it could avoid the vital areas. Thud! The Moon Blade struck its shoulder, missing its neck.
Aah! The Silver Wire Croc let out a pained cry—this strike drove it completely mad.