Chapter 8: Traces of the Master (Part 1)

Yi Qiaolong breathed heavily, his face filled with extreme fear, seemingly unwilling to recall. After a long while, he said, “It’s ruined, completely ruined… Everyone’s dead… It’s so terrifying…” His soul became utterly chaotic.
Eagle Demon said, “He’s about to give up.”
Guo Shier sat down beside Yi Qiaolong and began reciting scriptures silently. As the soul fluctuated, Yi Qiaolong’s chaotic soul gradually stabilized. Guo Shier’s scripture magic was extraordinary; even a great sage or a supreme master like Qi Wu Zhen needed its purification.
A moment later, Guo Shier stopped reciting, and Yi Qiaolong’s chaotic soul also calmed down. The fluctuations caused by the scripture saved his life; otherwise, he would have been beyond rescue.
When he opened his eyes again, Yi Qiaolong’s gaze had changed. He said, “Thank you.” Once he regained consciousness, he realized the power of those soul fluctuations—they had restored some of his damaged soul and stopped its chaos. He understood he had escaped disaster.
Yi Qiaolong sat up. He wasn’t physically injured; the main damage was to his soul. Once his soul was healed, he would be mostly restored.
Guo Shier said, “You’re welcome. Tell me, who destroyed this place?”
Even though he had recovered, hearing this question filled Yi Qiaolong’s eyes with fear once more.
“Black Symbol Men…”
Guo Shier felt his soul explode with a loud noise, and his body began to tremble violently. He was extremely sensitive to the term “Black Symbol Men.” Eagle Demon caught Guo Shier and snapped, “Shier! Stay calm!”
Yi Qiaolong thought Guo Shier was afraid and said painfully, “It was two Black Symbol Men…”
Guo Shier continued to shake violently. He wasn’t afraid—he was overjoyed. After finally calming down, he rubbed his cheeks hard, but his lips still curled upward. He couldn’t suppress his joy and asked, “Two Black Symbol Men? What happened to them?”
Yi Qiaolong replied, “I don’t know… I’m not sure either. Those two forced their way through the teleportation array and started killing… By the end, they seemed insane. So many died… We tried to escape… but we couldn’t.”
Guo Shier’s heart pounded wildly. He asked, “Where are those two now?” Immediately, he realized he had asked a foolish question.
Yi Qiaolong shook his head. “I… I don’t know.”

Guo Shier asked, “When did you meet them?”
Yi Qiaolong replied, “I don’t know how long I was unconscious. Um, maybe not more than ten days. I can’t be sure…” Suddenly feeling weak, he took out a pot of water from his talisman bag and drank it. His stomach growled noisily, and he continued, “No, it must be over ten days. Even if I went hungry for ten days, I wouldn’t be this weak.”
Guo Shier thought for a moment and asked, “When did those two Black Talisman men enter the continent?”
Yi Qiaolong said, “Half a year ago…”
Guo Shier was shocked. “They’ve been killing people for half a year?”
Yi Qiaolong replied, “We had already decided to retreat, but we still didn’t escape. At first, we tried to besiege them, but later… it was them chasing us. They were too powerful. I didn’t even have time to see clearly before my flying vehicle crashed. If it weren’t for you guys, I would be dead.”
Eagle Demon was amazed. “Amazing… killing for half a year!”
Guo Shier was secretly worried. Killing for half a year meant those two Black Talisman men were in poor condition. He still couldn’t be sure that they were Master Luo Jie and Grandpa Nanshan, but he had a strong feeling that they were likely those two.
The handsome old man suddenly poked his head out and said, “Kid, this is your chance!” He hadn’t shown himself in a long time. Ever since Qi Wu Zhen left, he couldn’t hold back any longer in the altar.
Yi Qiaolong was startled. Stammering, he asked, “Wh… who is that?”
The handsome old man roared at him, scaring Yi Qiaolong so much that he fainted. Guo Shier frowned and said, “Handsome Old Man, why scare him into fainting?”
Eagle Demon asked, “Handsome Old Man, why did you come out?”
The handsome old man glared and said, “Back off! You have no business interfering with an old man.” Then he added, “Kid, this is a great opportunity. Don’t miss it. Listen to me…”
Guo Shier said, “What? What opportunity is there here? Handsome Old Man, I know that as soon as Sister Zhen left, you became restless again.”
The handsome old man cursed angrily, “You bastard! Little brat! You scoundrel! Listen to the old man! Damn it… shut up all of you!” Seeing the old man go wild, everyone immediately fell silent. This old man wasn’t someone to mess with.
Guo Shier raised his hand and said, “Okay, okay, go ahead, talk!” He really didn’t dare anger the handsome old man.
The handsome old man patiently explained, “Is this place an ancient clan’s territory?”
Guo Shier nodded. “Yes. This is the core continent of the Gu Xi Long clan—the Gu Xi Long Continent, the headquarters of the Gu Xi Long clan.”

The handsome old man nodded in satisfaction and said, “Is this place already in ruins?”
Guo Shier thought to himself that after listening to Yi Qiaolong talk for so long, everyone already knew the situation here. He replied, “Yes, I heard they’ve been fighting for over half a year… I guess many people have died.”
The handsome old man continued, “Good. Then let me ask you… An ancient family that has existed for thousands, even tens of thousands of years—wouldn’t such a family be the same?”
Guo Shier replied in confusion, “Of course. Otherwise, how could it be called an ancient family?”
The handsome old man smirked lewdly and said, “Well then, an ancient family that has existed for thousands of years must have accumulated all sorts of rare materials and supplies…”
Guo Shier, Eagle Demon, Luo Zhan, and Nan You were stunned. So that’s what the handsome old man had in mind. This guy was naturally good at taking advantage of chaotic situations. No wonder he could shout Yi Qiaolong into unconsciousness so easily.
The group exchanged glances. After a while, Eagle Demon said, “I think… the handsome old man is right.” Due to their rapid advancement, they all lacked materials. The materials they had extorted from the Guji Family had been mostly used up, and Guo Shier also had little left. Advancing to the next level of altar required countless materials.
Guo Shier said, “I have no objections. It’s a good idea.”
Eagle Demon, Luo Zhan, and Nan You also lit up with excitement. No one would object—everyone liked to take advantage of chaotic situations like this.
Luo Zhan asked, “What about Yi Qiaolong?”
The handsome old man replied, “He’s a great sage, not an ordinary person. It’s fine for him to stay here. We’ll act on our own. Hmm, there are many fortresses in this area, most of which have been destroyed. Hehe, I guess… there must be a lot of supplies. Kid, I’ve prepared many storage spaces for you to put your materials in.”
Guo Shier almost collapsed. This old man was truly amazing—he had even prepared storage spaces in advance.
The old man’s next few words left everyone speechless. He said, “Hey, you three kids, when you have time, make more storage spaces. Don’t leave all your stuff with that little scoundrel. I work really hard, you know that? That little scoundrel doesn’t care about anything. I’m the one who has to organize everything he brings, along with your materials. Damn it, he wants to drive me crazy!”

The handsome old man casually cast a spell, a sleep spell that immediately put Yi Qiaolong into a deep sleep. He said, “Put him in the cabin—uh, no, he has some valuable things on him.” With a gesture of his hand, he pulled out a string of talisman bags. After taking a quick look, he exclaimed in surprise, “Wow, so many valuable things!”
Guo Shier took them and examined them, then fell silent for a while before saying, “I see now. Yi Qiaolong is the chief manager of Xingbao, so the warehouse must also be under his control. That’s why he fled with the best materials… Hehe.” He carelessly threw them to the handsome old man and said, “Good, this will just cover the losses caused by Ban Xilong capturing me.”
Eagle Demon said, “Let’s look for the Black Talisman Men first.” He wasn’t sure if those two Black Talisman Men were Luo Jie and Qi Nanshan, but they had to be found anyway. Once the two sides met, everything would become clear.
The handsome old man cursed, “You idiot! Do you even know where those two Black Talisman Men are? Besides, they’re not easy to fight against—they’re all soul masters. They might kill you without even thinking. Why go looking for them for no reason? Are you crazy?”
Eagle Demon was furious at the scolding. Guo Shier hurriedly explained, “Handsome old man, stop cursing. We’re all suspecting that those two Black Talisman Men are acquaintances, the ones we’re looking for. That’s why Uncle Eagle Demon said we should go look for them.”
Nanyou silently picked up Yi Qiaolong and threw him into the damaged flying car cabin. Then he heard Yi Qiaolong shouting loudly, “Shier, there are still many talisman bags here!”