Chapter 6: Yingbei’s Help (Part 2)

Zhen Wuji, Yao Zebusong, and Halechi were all preparing to advance in the manor, but the materials they had were insufficient. They could only advance to the third or fourth layer of the Virtual Form Altar, after which their materials and spiritual essence would be exhausted, forcing them to go outside to find more.

Guo Shier didn’t ask any questions and focused solely on working with the old man to construct the Virtual Form Altar. Together, their progress was even faster than that of Li Ran and Qi Wu Zhen. It took only three days to complete the first layer of the Virtual Form Altar, which served merely for recovery. Immediately afterward, they moved on to the second layer of the Virtual Form Altar, which, according to the calculations here, corresponded to the twelfth layer of the actual altar.

The construction of the Virtual Form Altar was interesting—it wasn’t an independent entity but had to rely on the actual altar. Thus, the number of layers of the Virtual Form Altar could never exceed that of the actual altar; they advanced in an alternating pattern—one real and one virtual. Since Guo Shier’s actual altar had already reached the highest level, he only needed to construct the Virtual Form Altar.

Building two layers of the Virtual Form Altar also didn’t take long—six days in total. After a day of rest, they proceeded to the third layer. Both Guo Shier and the old man were excited, as they hadn’t expected to advance so easily. No wonder Qi Wu Zhen was so determined to reach the Sacrificial Star. They had thought the Sacrificial Star referred to the greater world, but it turned out she meant a starry sky projection.

Their materials and spiritual essence were being used up rapidly, but Guo Shier was wealthy enough to not worry about it. The supplies he had gathered in the Spellcraft World gave him a vast foundation, especially in terms of spiritual essence, which was what professionals needed most.

It took a month to complete the three layers of the Virtual Form Altar. Guo Shier and the old man knew that the later stages became increasingly difficult. It was manageable for now, but beyond the fourth layer, it would likely take a lot more time.

The old man said, “Kid, let’s stop for a while and rest for a few days. Advancing from the third to the fourth layer is always a tough hurdle—it’s not easy to overcome. I’ll make some adjustments to the altar. Once you’ve rested, we can continue with spellcrafting.”

Guo Shier nodded. “Okay. I’ll go out for a walk. Hehe, ever since I arrived at Yingbei Manor, I haven’t stepped outside yet.” Since they couldn’t expand the altar, the old man created a tiny version of it on the altar. After saying that, he retracted back into it. Guo Shier smiled, folded up the altar, and stepped outside.

The sun was shining brightly outside. Guo Shier didn’t know much about the climate here, but he knew it must be summer, with temperatures around thirty degrees. For ordinary people, this was quite high, but it had no effect on him at all; he could even roll around in magma.

Upon arriving at Yingbei Manor’s reception hall, he heard voices inside. A few servants stood at the door. Knowing that Guo Shier was a distinguished guest, none of them stopped him, and he walked straight into the hall.

At first glance, he saw Bo Rijigong in the hall—the alien who could possess demons. Yingbei and Bo Rijigong were chatting happily, clearly getting along very well.

Only two people were sitting and talking in the hall. When Yingbei saw Guo Shier enter, he smiled and said, “Have you been resting well? Hehe, come on in and sit!” He was very polite, and Bo Rijigong nodded slightly in greeting.

Guo Shier went over to them and sat cross-legged, saying, “Sorry to disturb you. Hehe, I’m still getting used to the environment here.”

Bo Rijigong nodded and said, “Have you adapted? Everyone who comes here goes through this stage. Don’t worry. This place suits almost all outsiders and will be of great help to them.”

Curious, Guo Shier asked, “Bo Rijigong, do many of your people come here?”

Bo Rijigong shook his head. “Very few of our people come here… It’s too difficult.”

Yingbei said, “Hehe, up to now, Bo Rijigong has only met just three fellow countrymen. He has lived here for over two hundred years. They are different from us—they are professionals from the Spellworld. In the past hundred or so years, there have indeed been very few of them. Well, I once heard from a professional who came here that they didn’t enter on purpose but got lost here. Perhaps the way to enter the Star Worshiping Realm has been lost or is in the hands of a few people. I’m not sure about that.”

Guo Shier sighed. “I guess the tradition has been lost. At least… among the professionals I know, almost none are aware of it.” There was one person who knew, though—Qi Wu Zhen. But even she didn’t know the true way to enter the Star Worshiping Realm. Instead, she relied on Li Ran’s realm-breaking ability to force her way into other small worlds, eventually entering the Star Worshiping Realm from one of those worlds.

Ying Bei nodded and said, “Yes, back then many professionals came to the Star Sacrifice, and even a large number of non-altar-level professionals entered as well. They forced their way in with the help of altar-level professionals. Unfortunately, they didn’t know the rules of the Star Sacrifice… They could only advance once, unless they were altar-level professionals, who could advance to the Virtual Altar level after that. Those with lower strength levels would be trapped here for life, unable to progress any further.”

Guo Shier asked, “Is it possible for anyone to go back?”

Ying Bei shook his head. “There’s no way to go back. Actually… if I had the chance, I’d want to go back too.”

Bo Rigong said, “Forget it. At the Star Sacrifice, though you can’t live forever, you still live longer than the professionals in your original world. Even if you could go back, what would you do?”

Ying Bei joked angrily, “You guy, just making me happy would be good enough. You have to belittle me to feel satisfied!”

Bo Rigong said, “It’s not jealousy. Damn it, your professionals keep coming in endlessly. Over there… just a couple of cats, each one arrogant and refusing to listen to an old man like me. As a result… not a single one of them has come back. We don’t even know where they died… It makes me angry just thinking about it.”

Ying Bei shook his head and said, “There’s no need to be angry. Those who come from your place are all top experts, used to being domineering in their hometowns, each with their own ways of doing things. They won’t listen to your advice. But then again… why don’t you have that annoying temper?”

Bo Rigong sighed. “After being belittled many times and still surviving, I’ve come to understand one thing: those who are too arrogant… won’t live long in this world. They’ll die very quickly! Unless they truly have overwhelming strength.Ah, I don’t have that kind of terrifying strength.”

Ying Bei said, “There aren’t that many top experts. I’ve been here for so long and only seen a dozen or so, including these newcomers. Two of them are true top professionals, and the others are also strong, close to being top-tier…”

Bo Rigong was shocked. “Two top professionals? How is that possible!”

Ying Bei felt a mix of pride, satisfaction, and disappointment. He said, “Our strengths are about the same. Among those who came this time, the weakest one… is still one level stronger than when I first came. You should know that any expert who comes to this magical place automatically advances by one level. When I first arrived here, I was at the seventh-tier altar and advanced to the eighth-tier altar… Hehe, the lowest among these people is already at the eighth-tier altar!”

Borijigon clearly understood the classification system of professionals in the Spellworld and exclaimed, “That strong?”
Yinbei nodded. “Not just strong—two of them were already professionals at the ninth-tier altar level in the Spellworld. Here, they’ve even reached the eleventh tier… an eleventh-tier Solid Altar! It’s absolutely terrifying. I can’t even imagine how powerful that must be.”
Borijigon said, “I remember a hundred years ago, a professional at the ninth-tier altar level from your Spellworld came here… He was incredibly arrogant, but his strength was indeed formidable. Though I’ve never fought him, I know I’d definitely be no match for him.”
In fact, what Yinbei liked most about Li Ran’s team was that they weren’t arrogant at all and treated him equally. That’s why he was willing to help them and let them stay at his manor. Otherwise, though he wouldn’t be hostile, he wouldn’t be so enthusiastic either.
Guo Shier asked, “Did that person stay on this continent too?”
Yinbei replied, “He left long ago. Heh, with his strength, how could he possibly stay here for long? This continent is safe, but there are very few materials or exotic spellbeasts. Those who stay here are mostly people like us.” He gave a wry smile and added, “We’re a bunch of complacent old folks who can’t return to our hometowns, so we just stay here, waiting to die.”
Guo Shier asked, “Besides here… by the way, what’s this place called?”
Yinbei said, “This place is called Aiko Forest. It’s a free zone designated by a top expert named Aiko, hence its name. This forest covers almost the entire continent. It serves as a buffer zone where few people fight, making it one of the rare safe areas.”
Borijigon said, “In recent decades, this place has also become increasingly unstable. Since Aiko’s death, there’s been no strong figure to maintain order here. But since we’re in a remote area, it’s still relatively peaceful. After all, there’s nothing valuable here, so no top experts come to fight over it.”
Yinbei said, “That’s why this place is still relatively quiet. Heh, Guo Shier, how long do you plan to stay here?”
Guo Shier smiled and asked, “What? Do you want me to leave soon?”
Yinbei replied, “How could that be? I’d rather you stay for a few more years so my manor stays safe. Heh, by the way, you should have advanced these days, right?”

Guo Shier said, “Hmm, I’ve advanced three levels on the Virtual Form Altar. Let’s relax for a while. I plan to advance once more and that should be enough. Advancing too quickly… isn’t stable.”
Yinbei’s eyes almost popped out in disbelief. “Three levels? You… you’ve advanced three levels in just a few days? Good heavens, this… this…” He didn’t know what to say for a moment.
Guo Shier asked, “Is this… very strange?” He had always advanced rapidly. With the Soul Scriptures, he wasn’t afraid of complex souls, so he never faced major difficulties in advancing.
Yinbei smiled bitterly. He simply couldn’t understand how Guo Shier had reached the third level of the Virtual Form Altar in just ten years. As for the next three levels, to reach the sixth level, it had taken countless years, and so far he was still stuck at the sixth level. If he could break through, he could reach the fifteenth level of the altar, greatly enhancing his strength. Unfortunately, he hadn’t been able to do so yet.
Bo Rigong was very curious and said, “How about we have a sparring match?”