Chapter 9: Holy Land (Part 2)

Guo Shier shook his head, and the Moon Blade whistled out once again.
Gudel flipped his wrist, and a small shield appeared, glowing with light. It suddenly expanded and blocked the Moon Blade’s strike. With a loud crash, the shield shattered, but Gudel was already about ten meters in front of Guo Shier. Before Guo Shier could retract his Moon Blade, Gudel shouted fiercely, “Let’s die together!”
Boom!
Gudel’s body emitted a blinding light, and in an instant, his flesh was torn apart—he had self-destructed.
The Soul Suppressing Cauldron enveloped Guo Shier once more. The force of his self-destruction was immense, hitting him hard. Even though protected by the Cauldron, Guo Shier was sent flying backward.
He heard a ringing in his ears and saw stars before his eyes. The force was so strong it could even penetrate the Cauldron. He took a talisman pill to suppress his turbulent soul. At that moment, he realized the power of this world was rapidly invading, forcing him to cast spells continuously to drive away this strange force.
Gudel’s self-destruction accelerated the pace of the battle, and all those old men and women began fighting desperately.
Their fearless self-destructions left Li Ran and Qi Wu Zhen in a flurry. Though they were extremely powerful, they dared not use their spells too much to prevent the invasion of this world’s power. If they had arrived earlier, they could have used 100% of their strength; now, 80% was already quite good.
In an instant, five of those people self-destructed—all of them severely injured—leaving everyone in disarray. Aizek and Meili were also hurt. The biggest drawback for them was their inability to transform. If they had used their true forms as mutated beast spirits, their strength could have increased by at least one-third. But they were even more wary of the invasion of this world’s power; once they transformed, theErosion would enter their bodies, which they couldn’t bear.
Halechi also suffered greatly. It was only when Zhen Wuji stepped in to help that they managed to kill him.
The battle ended quickly. Out of the twelve enemies, eight were dead, and the remaining four were severely injured. Li Ran’s team emerged victorious. The four survivors fled in panic, too afraid to continue fighting. They hadn’t expected these people to be so strong.
As everyone gathered together, Li Ran said, “The people here are very strong and can already pose a threat to us. We need to leave this place as soon as possible. I hope we won’t encounter such madmen again.” He was also a bit shaken. In the world of spells, self-destruction was rare. Once someone self-destructed, their soul would vanish—a thing that professionals in this world couldn’t tolerate, except for the mad.

It’s truly terrifying that people here dare to blow themselves up one after another.
Guo Shier said, “The fight isn’t going well. We can’t use the altar, and we can’t employ too many sacrificial treasures. I used two, and already I felt the power of this world invading. After fighting once, I’ll have to be even more careful next time when using sacrificial treasures. This is extremely disadvantageous for us.”
Qi Wu Zhen said, “Goha, Yao Zebusong, you’re too weak. I won’t even mention Halechi—his strength is well-known. If you two continue to hold back your powers and don’t give it your all, don’t blame me if I get harsh!”
Guo Shier looked at Qi Wu Zhen in surprise and asked, “What’s wrong?”
Li Ran said calmly, “They’re too cautious. If they were more serious, those four wouldn’t be able to escape.”
Goha and Yao Zebusong’s faces turned red. They had reserved some of their strength. Worried about the invasion of this world’s power, they feared problems might arise. Once they left, it would take a lot of effort to drive that power away.
They didn’t argue, knowing that arguing would only anger Qi Wu Zhen. They also understood how formidable she was—getting beaten by her would leave them in utter shame. So they remained silent. Fortunately, Qi Wu Zhen didn’t press further. After all, they were both professionals with ninth-level altars; they were still on their side.
Li Ran said, “This isn’t a place to stay long. Let’s keep searching ahead. Everyone, stay prepared. I think this isn’t over yet. The four who escaped might go for reinforcements.” He glanced at Goha and Yao Zebusong.
Goha and Yao Zebusong still didn’t speak, inwardly sighing. But after this lesson, they realized that if they didn’t put in more effort against enemies in the future, they might really get beaten by Qi Wu Zhen. And if they angered both Li Ran and Qi Wu Zhen, they’d never be able to leave this world.
Yao Zebusong hesitated for a moment before saying, “We get it. We’ll do our best next time.”
Li Ran nodded. “Good. Let’s go.” Everyone followed as they flew forward. Li Ran continued to use Breakthrough to fly quickly.
……
Yahemei was the king of the Barren Lands, where he held an extremely high status and prestige. One day, he received a distress call sent a day earlier. Upon receiving it, he immediately gathered a group to discuss the situation.
The Barren Lands had many ninth-level Barbarian Spirit experts, each cultivating in their own territory and being highly hostile to outsiders.

Yahame said, “Strangers have come in and killed eight of our top experts, injuring four more… They’re extremely strong—well, very different from us. Does anyone have any suggestions?”
Someone asked, “They’re not from our tribe?”
Yahame replied, “No. They have black hair and eyes, and their skin color is different from ours. They’re typical foreigners.”
That person said, “Then what’s there to discuss? Just take people and kill them.”
Yahame said, “There are nine of them, all highly skilled. Twelve king-level experts attacked them, but eight died—by self-destruction—and we still couldn’t kill them.”
Someone suggested, “Should we invite Wuweike?”
Yahame said, “Who will go and invite Wuweike?”
Someone agreed. Yahame added, “I’ll go too this time to see what kind of foreigners these are. Hehe, since they’ve entered, we don’t need to leave. This is our territory… Gather the experts and send people to find their location.”
The top experts across the Vast Wasteland began to gather.
…
Li Ran’s team still didn’t know they had already alerted the region’s most powerful group of experts. Of course, even if they had known, it wouldn’t have mattered to them. Their only goal now was to leave as quickly as possible. As long as they didn’t encounter local experts before leaving, there would be no danger.
They had already reached the heart of the Vast Wasteland, deliberately avoiding areas inhabited by locals along the way. It wasn’t out of fear, but to avoid trouble. Fighting their way through would be exhausting, and it could also attract the hostility of the world’s forces.
After flying carefully for three days, they arrived above a mountain range.
Li Ran said, “I need to rest.” Even though he was a professional who had surpassed the Ninth-Level Altar, using Breakthrough continuously for three days left him exhausted. The main reason was that he had to resist the world’s forces while using Breakthrough, which was extremely difficult for him. Fortunately, Qi Wuzhen could still help. Such a powerful sacrificial treasure was beyond the reach of people at their level.
They found an open area, and everyone landed. Goha voluntarily brought out a large piece of animal skin and laid it on the ground. He said, “This place is desolate; no one should come here.”

Everyone sat down, and Li Ran said, “Guo Shier, get something to eat—something hot will do.” He looked tired. Guo Shier was secretly alarmed; if Li Ran could feel this tired, then this place was truly eerie. If they wanted to leave, they relied on Li Ran and Qi Wu Zhen, and those two absolutely couldn’t get into trouble. If anything happened to them, everyone would be doomed.

Guo Shier hadn’t cooked food in a long time; they mostly ate dried rations or at most made a pot of meat soup. This time, he didn’t plan to go to much trouble either—just cooked some braised pork with some vegetables and mushrooms, along with a pot of rice and a pot of hot soup.

Ezek and Meili each took out fresh meat from the Aberrant Symbol Beasts to eat. They occasionally ate some regular food, but to replenish their strength, they still needed to consume the fresh meat from those beasts.

After the meal, everyone sat cross-legged and rested, while Guo Shier began reciting the Soul Scripture silently. Qi Wu Zhen had already learned this scripture, so she no longer relied on Guo Shier. Soon, Guo Shier realized that the fluctuations from the Soul Scripture could quickly dispel the forces of this world. Li Ran also discovered this secret and breathed a sigh of relief.

Zhen Wu Ji, Goha, Yao Ze Bunsong, and Halechi also found that these fluctuations helped dispel the local forces.

After stopping the recitation, Li Ran, Qi Wu Zhen, and Guo Shier were very excited. As long as they weren’t corrupted by the forces here, their strength could recover significantly. Li Ran pondered for a moment before saying, “The altar can be used… Just dispel those forces after the battle. Hehe, that way I’ll feel at ease.”

Guo Shier nodded. “Yeah, otherwise it’s too frustrating—having strength but not being able to use it.”

Qi Wu Zhen added, “Mm, as long as we can recover somewhere after the battle, it’s indeed a good solution.”

The experts here had already put a lot of pressure on them without them even realizing it. Not being able to use the altar greatly restricted their ability to fully utilize their strength. Moreover, such battles were unfamiliar to them; facing a strong enemy would leave them helpless, unable to exert their combat power at all, which was extremely dangerous.

With these concerns removed, everyone in the team relaxed. Although they had defeated their opponents in the battle three days ago, many questions remained, and everyone felt threatened, to the point where Goha and Yao Ze Bunsong didn’t dare to use their full strength. If they had used the altar and fought with all their might, those four would never have escaped.

Li Ran stood up energetically and said, “We should be able to find a weak point soon. I didn’t expect things to turn out so difficult this time. I hope we can go back; if not, we’ll have to charge forward desperately.” He instinctively felt that reaching the Greater World wasn’t an easy task.
The group took off again. Li Ran activated Breakthrough, and less than a kilometer into their flight, Qi Wu Zhen shouted, “Stop! Someone’s coming… and there are quite a few of them!”
Li Ran grew furious. He had just caught a slight clue and was on the verge of finding a suitable place to leave when they were disturbed, forcing him to spend more effort. His expression darkened instantly.
Guo Shier and the others also sensed something was wrong. Through their spiritual senses, they knew there were quite a number of people coming this time.
Zhen Wu Ji said calmly, “If all else fails, bring out the altar to fight!”