Chapter 2: Judgment (Part 2)

Continuous explosions shattered over a dozen shields in one go. By then, Aondo had already thrown six or seven black beads, which expanded to the size of a bowl as soon as they were released, releasing a bloody smell. Those beads flew toward Ias like lightning.

Guo Shier asked curiously, “What the hell are those?”
Li Ran frowned slightly and said, “They’re Evil Blood Beads. Using these is rather despicable… Ias uses lightning, so the Evil Blood Beads aren’t very effective. If it were someone else, they’d probably suffer badly.”

Sure enough, Ias’s staff emitted a dazzling light, sending out dozens of pale blue bolts that instantly destroyed the six or seven Evil Blood Beads, filling the air with a foul stench. Then she threw a spindle-shaped object, which moved at speeds comparable to lightning and struck Aondo’s shield in an instant.

Guo Shier exclaimed, “Damn, it stinks!” He waved his hand to create a gust of wind before finally breathing easily. “Holy shit, I almost choked!”

His soul trembled, and realizing what had happened, Guo Shier cursed again, “This is too cruel! Evil Blood Beads can even contaminate souls!” His soul was extremely pure, so even a small amount of such evil energy wasn’t enough to contaminate it, but he could still sense its viciousness.

Bai Guang laughed and said, “This is also a skill. Evil Blood Beads aren’t easy to refine.”

A deafening explosion rang out, sending Aondo and the altar flying into the air. Bai Guang and Ti Luoya exclaimed in shock, “What happened?”

Li Ran said calmly, “It’s a Thunder Spindle. Heh, eye for an eye. I didn’t expect her to possess such a treasure.”

Guo Shier sighed and said, “It’s a fake sacrificial treasure.” A fake sacrificial treasure was a one-time-use item rarely refined by people, as the materials required were almost as costly as the treasure itself, making it uneconomical. Yet, fake sacrificial treasures were quite powerful, and a few professionals would refine one or two of them to use in critical moments.

The Thunder Spindle was a famous type of fake sacrificial treasure, extremely powerful. This strike injured Aondo, and more importantly, his defensive sacrificial treasure was completely shattered, with the altar also sustaining some damage. At that moment, another Thunder Spindle appeared in Ias’s hand. She said coldly, “Here’s another Thunder Spindle for you!”

The Thunder Spindle turned into a silver streak, trailing lightning, and shot forward like thunder.

Aondo was terrified, screaming, “I give up!”

The Thunderbolt Shuttle stopped in mid-air immediately. This thing was difficult to refine; Iyas only had three of them in total. If it weren’t for the exceptionally generous rewards after this battle, she wouldn’t have dared to use them. Since the opponent had surrendered, saving one was a good thing.

Bai Guang and Ti Luoya couldn’t help but mutter curses under their breath, seemingly blaming Aondo for losing so quickly.

Li Ran said, “Since the Gu family has surrendered, this battle is yours…” He turned to look at Ruo Wangtian and the others, seeing joyful smiles on Ruo Wangtian, Yi Jumaru, and Hua Wulang’s faces.

Bai Guang sent out a message token, and immediately several altar-level professionals flew over, bringing a hundred large storage pouches—just the materials from their loss. It was unclear how they had agreed on this amount, but even Guo Shier was surprised by its size. He hadn’t expected so many, though he quickly adjusted his mindset, knowing that the share from the Bone Mountain was even more vast.

Guo Shier said, “Brother Li Ran, Senior Zhen Wuji, let’s each pick two materials.”

Li Ran and Zhen Wuji didn’t hesitate and quickly selected the materials they needed. Only then did Guo Shier step forward to let the Old Hero choose. The Old Hero picked two items and complained, “There’s nothing really good here. We’ll just make do.” He had received so many materials recently that even those once rare now seemed insignificant to him.

Neither side had any objections to Guo Shier taking the materials. For the Gu family, since they had already lost, it didn’t matter who got them. As for Ruo Wangtian and the others, anything they could gain was free, so a few fewer items didn’t matter.

Hua Wulang summoned a few professionals to take away the hundred large storage pouches. As for how to distribute them, that was their own business.

Aondo and Iyas stepped forward to bow and then returned to their respective teams.

One battle after another ensued. At first, Guo Shier was very interested, but soon he grew sleepy. He sat on the altar sometimes and stood sometimes, eventually lying on top of it and chatting with the Old Hero. Neither of them was interested in watching anymore, whether it was one-on-one or team versus team.

The battle raged on, and so did the conversation between Guo Shier and the Old Hero.

The Old Hero said, “Kid, I’ve completely adjusted your altar and added many natural runes. Hehe, I guess… no one in this world has an altar as strong as yours, at least at the same level… um, even one level higher works too. Hehe, how does that feel? Nice, right?”

I learned that phrase from Guo Shier. The handsome old man borrows many concepts and words from Guo Shier when speaking, so Guo Shier also likes to communicate with him; it feels very friendly.
Guo Shier asked, “How’s the construction of the eighth-level altar progressing?”
The handsome old man replied, “It’s almost done. You should take some time to help reinforce it as well—after all, there are some tasks I can’t handle. With your soul, advancing to the ninth-level altar shouldn’t be a problem. But going beyond the ninth level is more difficult. I don’t know the secrets behind it. Ask your elder brother; he should know them.”
Guo Shier nodded, knowing that Li Ran would definitely do his best to teach him. After all, they still lacked a professional capable of surpassing the ninth-level altar. According to Li Ran’s plan, if they couldn’t find such a person, they would train one themselves.
The handsome old man said, “The Gu family lost again…”
Guo Shier replied, “Ignore them. That bunch of amateurs are completely useless. They’ve already lost most of it. Damn it, I still want a share of Bone Mountain to sell… What a disappointment.”
The handsome old man smiled bitterly. “Who would do business with you when you’re about to lose everything? How many times have you sold that Bone Mountain… And it’s not even yours.” He was utterly impressed by Guo Shier’s tactics—being able to sell something that didn’t belong to him and still make a fortune.
Guo Shier said cheerfully, “It was just good luck. They were too greedy.”
The handsome old man snorted. “Greedy? You’re greedier than anyone!”
Guo Shier replied seriously, “You’re wrong. If they weren’t greedy, I wouldn’t have been able to get such a big profit. Hehe, if you don’t believe it, think about it carefully.”
The handsome old man thought for a moment and couldn’t help but say, “It’s true. Um, you kid are too cunning. You tricked me again.”
Guo Shier laughed heartily. When he looked up, he noticed that several experts were staring at him unfriendlyly. Smiling, he said, “Ah, sorry. I got caught up in the conversation. Go on…” He then lowered his head and asked the handsome old man, “Handsome old man, is that Soul Devouring Beast from that time still there? Haven’t you used it?”
The handsome old man shook his head. “It’s in the Soul Talisman Bag. I haven’t used it yet. Its power is too great; I can’t think of a use for it right now. It’s a shame to use it as an offering. Hehe, what do you plan to do with it?”

Guo Shier said, “Put it in the Soul-Calming Cauldron. This thing is quite powerful. Also, add some Fire Fiend and Gold Fiend inside, create a corner for it to grow slowly there. Maybe… it could become a key combatant in the Cauldron in the future.”
The old man nodded. “Okay, I’ve noted it. I’ll take care of it when I have time.”
Guo Shier said, “I’ve noticed that the internal space of the Soul-Calming Cauldron seems to be expanding little by little. Have you felt that too?”
The old man shook his head. “The Cauldron is compatible with your soul; it has nothing to do with me. How could I know?”
Guo Shier said, “I’m not sure either. Maybe we’ll find out in a few years. If the space can grow slowly, hehe, even without looking for a secret realm, it should be enough.”
The old man said, “That’s different. A secret realm is sealed… inside an altar, which is very sturdy. But the Soul-Calming Cauldron is a sacrificial treasure. Even if it has a large space, once the treasure shatters, the space will vanish as well, and you won’t be able to keep anything.”
Guo Shier dismissed this. “Do you think an altar won’t be destroyed? If faced with a powerful attack, it can’t withstand it… and it’ll be ruined too.”
The old man smiled bitterly. “After all, an altar is far stronger than a sacrificial treasure.”
Guo Shier suddenly cursed, “Damn it, I lost again… If this keeps up, the Gu family will be in trouble.”
The old man said, “If you want to steal from others, you always have to pay a price.”
Bai Guang and Ti Luoya looked gloomy. Neither of them expected the other to be so strong. In ten battles, they had lost at least six, sometimes even eight. If they continued like this, the materials they had gathered would run out soon, and they hadn’t won much from Bone Mountain either. The loss was significant.
Ruo Wangtian and the others were overjoyed, as they got a batch of materials with each win. It should be noted that materials are not easy to find. Most of these materials used for betting are quite precious. Even a Gu family might not be able to provide one, and many families would be needed to gather all the required materials. Seeing materials being taken away one after another, it would be false to say they weren’t heartbroken.
The battles continued day and night without pause. Fortunately, these people were none ordinary professionals—they were all altar-level experts with altar protection, so they didn’t mind the fatigue.
“Next battle!”

This time, the Gu family won and received a share of Bone Mountain. Gu Shier and the others took 5% of it as usual, and Gu Shier didn’t keep it for himself either—immediately auctioning off his share. This angered both sides, but they still had to force smiles and continue striving for those meager gains.
This was a battle of formations—three members from the Gu family against three from their opponents, all being professionals at the eighth-level altar. Professionals at the seventh-level altar weren’t allowed to participate, as both sides feared losing. Experts at the ninth-level altar were prohibited from intervening, so they could only rely on the professionals at the eighth level.
Gu Shier exclaimed in surprise and asked, “What kind of fighting style is this?”
The old man explained, “It’s a battle of formations… whoever’s formation is destroyed first loses.”
Gu Shier said with interest, “Hmm, no need for a chaotic fight. Let’s see… how they fight.”