Chapter 8: Breaking the Barrier (Part 1)

A giant nine meters tall, holding a massive rock in his hands, charged out of the tribe camp with a roar. Guo Shier said loudly, “Uncle Eagle Demon, there’s a huge threat coming… be careful.” Looking at the rock in the giant’s hands, he felt a chill run down his spine. He wondered if Eagle Demon could even block it—the rock was four to five meters in diameter, terrifying just to look at.

Eagle Demon sneered. He didn’t believe the Aberrant would ignore the chaotic fight among the mutants. Yet, just as he threw a punch that killed one mutant, the Aberrant was already nearly a hundred meters away, blocked by a crowd of mutants. With a roar, the Aberrant carelessly threw the rock.

The huge rock, accompanied by the howling wind, crashed toward Eagle Demon. Guo Shier was shocked and shouted, “Dodge quickly!”

Eagle Demon was surrounded by mutants, all desperately clinging to him, determined to disrupt his escape even at the cost of their own lives. Frustrated, Eagle Demon roared and decided not to dodge. He waved his hand, and a phantom palm shot out, knocking away seven or eight mutants blocking his path. The phantom palm then swelled and met the rock head-on.

In terms of strength, Eagle Demon might not compare to the Aberrant’s innate power, but with the power of his talismans, the Aberrant was no match. With one swipe, he sent the rock flying back.

The rock slammed into the Aberrant, who let out a piercing scream as he stumbled backward. His hands were covered in blood as he barely managed to block the rock, his arm visibly twisted and deformed. The rock bounced aside, killing or injuring several mutants.

Eagle Demon was furious—how dare they attack him from behind? With a strange cry, he burst through the crowd of mutants and rushed at the towering Aberrant. This time, he didn’t use his fists. The Aberrant was too huge—over nine meters tall, like a towering tower. Fighting such an enemy with fists was foolish. Eagle Demon wasn’t foolish. He drew his life-saving sacrificial blade.

A flash of black light appeared as Eagle Demon slipped through the Aberrant’s legs, his blade swiftly slicing through the joint. With a soft cutting sound, the Aberrant let out a deafening scream as he collapsed to his knees, his leg as thick as a small water tank severed by the blade.

Eagle Demon turned and swung his sacrificial blade, cleanly cutting off the Aberrant’s neck. Its huge head rolled away.

Guo Shier shouted, “Great!”

Eagle Demon swung his long sword and charged back into the crowd of mutants, killing mercilessly this time. In moments, all the mutants surrounding him were slaughtered. Those a bit further away let out terrified roars and fled in all directions. Eagle Demon said, “I thought they really weren’t afraid of death.”

The entire tribe camp was in chaos. Eagle Demon flew into the air; the killing spree had left him satisfied, so he stopped pursuing them. He laughed and said, “They’re too weak. It’s not fun to kill them.”

Although Guo Shier didn’t have strong feelings toward the abominations and mutants, he understood why Eagle Demon was killing them so brutally. In the past, they had been captured by the Gu Xi Long family to fend off attacks from mutants and abominations. It was there that Eagle Demon first developed feelings for a woman, who was later killed by those very abominations and mutants.

Guo Shier said, “I didn’t expect there to be mutants here too. Let’s go.”

The three of them flew away on the altar. Unexpectedly, after flying hundreds of miles, they encountered another tribe of mutants. Guo Shier asked, “Uncle Eagle Demon, shall we kill them?”

Eagle Demon shook his head and said, “It’s pointless.” He seemed listless, no longer as excited as when he first found the mutants.

Guo Shier nodded. Killing those who had no chance to fight back, even if they were mutants, held little interest for them. Their initial excitement stemmed mainly from past impressions; only after attacking did they realize how weak the opponents were, which was completely different from their previous expectations. So none of the three wanted to fight again.

After spending a few days exploring the continent with nothing special to find, Guo Shier finally left with Eagle Demon and Luo Zhan.

He had given up hope of finding Kuumu and Monier. He understood that unless they happened to meet by chance, they might see each other again, but if unlucky, they would probably never see them again. Finding an acquaintance in this world was extremely difficult, almost like searching for a needle in a haystack.

During that time, Guo Shier discovered several sealed continents and secret realms, collecting some items, but nothing truly remarkable. He knew that good things required luck, so he wasn’t too concerned. He led Eagle Demon and Luo Zhan back.

Soon, the three returned to that continent filled with flames, arriving in front of the magic array. A group of people stood inside it. Guo Shier glanced over and saw Si Debing, Lei Zhenhuo, Lei Yuan, Zhen Wuji, Halechi, Wang Keer, Li Ran, and Qi Wu Zhen—eight people in total. He laughed and said, “I’m back!”

Halechi spotted Guo Shier and couldn’t help but exclaim in shock, “Damn it… ninth level! Ugh… I’m done for!” The first time he saw Guo Shier, he was better than him; the second time, they were equal; the third time, Guo Shier was even one level higher—this was truly disheartening.
Zhen Wuji showed a surprised expression and said, “Congratulations, congratulations…”
Li Ran smiled and said, “Not bad, advancing so quickly… Hehe, Shier, you’ve been away for too long. We’ve all finished our training. If you don’t come back soon… we’ll be leaving.”
Qi Wu Zhen stared at Guo Shier for a while before nodding and saying, “Not bad.” Though his words were cold, there was still a hint of concern. Wang Keer rubbed her eyes hard. She looked just as incredulous as Halechi and muttered, “Sigh, I’m considered a pretty good genius, but this is too much! There’s no such thing as an advancement speed like this…”
As for Si Debing and the other two, their eyes flickered uncertainly; it was unclear what they were thinking, but their expressions looked poor.
Li Ran tossed Guo Shier a dozen or so large pouches filled with talismans and said, “This is extra material for you, hehe.”
Guo Shier took them quietly, knowing they were leftover materials extorted from Si Debing and the others. He smiled and said, “Everything’s done… I came back just in time, right?”
Wang Keer pouted and said, “We’ve been waiting for you for dozens of days. If you don’t come back… we’ll leave. There’s no way to be away that long without returning.” If it weren’t for Li Ran’s insistence, even Qi Wu Zhen would be impatient to wait any longer. Waiting was the most torturous thing.
Ying Mo and Luo Zhan also greeted everyone. The two had advanced to the sixth-level altar and felt proud. Although they couldn’t compare to Li Ran and the others, they had at least entered the ranks of advanced professionals.
Li Ran asked, “Have you found your master?”
Guo Shier smiled bitterly and said, “I can’t find them. Maybe I won’t see them before leaving. Sigh.” He sighed—this was his regret.
Li Ran said, “There’s nothing we can do. This world is too big. Unless they come back, it’s really hard to find them… Don’t be sad. I guess they’re still traveling out there. Hehe, once professionals reach the altar level, they often spend decades or even centuries traveling. It’s normal not to find them.”
Qi Wu Zhen said, “Didn’t you leave a message? If you can’t find them, just stop looking.”
Si Debing said, “Senior, can… can we not go?”
No one paid him attention. Lei Zhenhuo’s face turned red as he said, “We’ve already compensated… Can we leave? We’ve been here too long.”

Li Ran said indifferently, “Stop talking nonsense. Just follow us. You should have explained everything about your family affairs; there’s no need to worry about anything else.”
Wang Keer whispered, “Three experts from the ninth-level altars keep complaining about wanting to go home. Hehe, Guo Shier, you don’t know… I’m even embarrassed for them.”
Guo Shier didn’t understand why Li Ran wanted to keep those three, but he knew their souls had been marked with soul talismans, preventing them from resisting. Even if they tried to resist, aside from Li Ran and Qi Wu Zhen having ways to suppress them, the effect of the soul talismans alone would be enough to kill them.
Si Debing and the others weren’t the kind to die rather than submit, so after a few calls, they could only give in.
Lei Yuan gritted her teeth secretly. She said, “Senior, we can follow you, but you need to set a deadline. Our family… still has many things to handle. Should I stay and let Lei Zhenhuo go back?”
Li Ran grew impatient and said, “There’s no time for all this nonsense. Just follow!”
Lei Yuan showed a bitter expression. It was their own actions of bullying others that had drawn these two twisted experts. She didn’t know what to say either. The three of them discussed it quietly for a while but still found no solution.
Guo Shier asked, “Are we leaving from here?”
Li Ran shook his head. “We can’t leave here. We need to find… the weak point of this world.”
Si Debing and the others didn’t understand Li Ran’s words and didn’t know what he meant. They stared at him confusedly, wondering: The weak point of this world? Although they were all professionals at the ninth-level altars, none of them had any concept of this world. Even Qi Wu Zhen only had a vague idea, mainly because her heritage included a vague concept of sacrificing to the stars, which filled her with longing.
Guo Shier thought for a moment and realized Li Ran made sense. If this world was like an ocean, and Li Ran wanted to leave, he needed to find the coastline to have a chance of getting ashore. He asked, “What exactly is the weak point?” He always felt this world was boundless. If he were to search for its weak edge, he might never find it in his lifetime.

Li Ran smiled and said, “The sacrificial treasure refined this time can not only break through boundaries but also identify weak points.” This sacrificial treasure was created by combining the powers of Qi Wu Zhen, Zhen Wu Ji, Si De Bing, Lei Zhen Huo, and Lei Yuan. Even Halechi contributed a little. It was forged through the collaborative efforts of two professionals above the ninth-tier altar, four professionals at the ninth-tier altar, plus one professional at the eighth-tier altar. Its power was beyond even his own understanding. The only thing he knew was that this sacrificial treasure was a masterpiece that defied the heavens.
Guo Shier didn’t stay to refine this treasure. Out of curiosity, he said, “Hehe, Brother Li Ran, can I take a look?”