Demon Immortal

Duncan's eyebrows rose as he looked into the distance at the cluster of petals dancing in the breeze.

Considering how many petals were drifting in the region, Duncan realized that this area wasn't with its own dangers either. Compared to the soul-creeping despondency, the danger here was very physical, but hidden.

Looking closely at the lone petal in his hands, Duncan felt a trace of something related to swords present in it as well. While it was akin to his sword light, it was more condensed and advanced than his sword light. Duncan had a vague guess on what it could be.

"Is this sword intent?" Duncan mumbled to himself in disbelief.

He could feel that the feeling that was associated with swords was very potent. Even a small petal was able to make him bleed. It can be seen how powerful it was for such a thing to happen.

Duncan's body had become far more powerful than when he was at the Spirit Sea realm. The mysterious blessing from the vision of his Violet Palace had strengthened his body as well. His body had become more tough as well. However, a mere petal was able to injure him this deeply. Duncan knew it wouldn't be something possible if the petal was ordinary.

The only thing he could associate with swords that could cause such deep damage was sword intent. Duncan had read about them a lot but had never experienced it in a clear-cut manner. This is the first time he has come into contact with sword intent in real-time.

Duncan looked at his bleeding fingers and frowned slightly.

By all logic, his injury must have been healed by now. His regeneration speed wasn't slow at all. He had seen his body heal cuts that were still bleeding a second ago. However, his regeneration didn't seem to work when it came to this wound.

Apart from the small cut that bled, there seemed to be something present in his wound that was keeping it open. Duncan could feel a sharp sword aura in the wound that was more domineering than his sword light.

Duncan was immediately intrigued by this and tried to probe it with his spirit consciousness. The moment his spirit consciousness touched the sword aura inside the wound, it was shredded into pieces as well.

Duncan reeled back in shock and hissed in pain. He cradled his head a little and looked at the small wound with shock written across his face. He couldn't believe that this small wound would be able to get rid of his spirit consciousness that easily and that thoroughly.

Duncan took a deep breath. He had a new understanding of the danger represented by the petals. Looking into the distance, his face became dignified. Everywhere he could see, there were petals drifting in the air. Duncan hadn't paid much attention to their distribution until now. But, after experiencing the cut dealt with by a lone petal, Duncan realized the gravity of the situation.

If he wanted to cross this region, then he would need to step amidst these drifting petals. And it has already been proven to him that his body wouldn't be able to tank these petals. Since that was the case, how was he going to get across this region?

Compared to the previous region, the danger in this region was far more visible. Each and every petal drifting in the air was a danger to him if he wanted to cross this region. Moreover, the petals in the region were innumerable as well. This made it nearly impossible to cross this region without running into them.

Moreover, these petals drifted through the air in a mysterious rhythm. It might look like there was a wind carrying all these petals around randomly. But, it was anything but the truth. The petals moved very deliberately in a certain rhythm. Trying to cross without understanding it will only let him get surrounded by them one moment or the other.

And, if that happened, he would not be able to escape out of the encirclement alive.

Just imagining being cut all over by a thousand petals made Duncan shiver. Duncan's wine-addled brain sobered up as he realized the problem in this idyllic place.

Beneath the beautiful scenery here in the garden, there was such a hidden danger lurking. If he had stepped into the region without knowing this, instead of taking time to appreciate the beauty, he might have ended up in a dire situation. This thought made Duncan frown.

It wasn't that Duncan hadn't thought about the next region being as dangerous as the region that induced despondency in his soul. In fact, he had been prepared to face something similar. But, what made him frown was that he couldn't find any way to walk through this garden region no matter how hard he tried.

The petals were everywhere. And their edges were sharp enough to be well-honed swords. Walking through this region will be akin to walking through a region filled with swords everywhere. Getting cut by them was a thing that was going to happen no matter what.

If the petals weren't sharp enough to harm his body, then this would be nothing. But the sword aura in the petals was domineering and sharp enough to slice through his skin and muscle easily. The only reason that his wound was shallow was because it was an accidental cut. His fingers were lucky that they were actually clasping the center, instead of the edges.

If not, Duncan was sure that he would have lost a finger without even knowing how. The petals in the garden were that sharp. Duncan realized that compared to the earlier region, the possibility of death or dismemberment in this region was very high. The danger may only be physical and visible here, but the degree of danger in this region was very high compared to the earlier region.

Duncan looked at the petal in his hand with a frown and tried to think of some way to combat this scenario. No matter what his idea entailed, he couldn't see him surviving his trek across this region at all. The sword aura in the edges of the petals was too sharp for him to dare to even try them.

Duncan grimaced realizing his predicament. He was currently stranded in this location. Without figuring out how to combat this sword aura, he wouldn't be able to pass through this region easily. He also had no intention of stepping back into that region where the surroundings played tricks on his emotions. That was both mentally and emotionally draining to him.

Duncan didn't know how long his peace would last in this location either. While there were no petals that were drifting into his area yet, he also realized that it would only be a matter of time before such a thing occurred.

Hence, he needed to find some way to walk through this region. If not, this beautiful region might just become his deathbed.

Duncan squeezed his brain trying to find a loophole. First, he thought about trying to understand the pattern of the drifting petals and make his way after it. But, the reality proved him wrong very soon. The pattern that the petals followed was too mysterious for him to grasp. Causing that to become a dead end as well.

Then, Duncan tried a few more of his thoughts, only for every one of them to fail without exception. Duncan felt frustrated seeing all his efforts end in vain. He almost flipped out and wanted to destroy the garden. But, his sanity prevailed and he stayed his hand at the last moment.

Just then, a thought flashed through his mind causing Duncan to pause and look at his surroundings in a new light.

"Why am I being so intent on walking out of this region? I don't have any pressing business to see to. Moreover, I wanted to stay away from the sect currently. If that meant staying here for a while, it wouldn't make much of a difference does it?"

"Staying here or roaming the small kingdoms on the other side of the Ancient Battlefield, all I need to focus on is to stay away from the sect and cultivate well. Sure, this place is dangerous, but wasn't the Grotto Heaven dangerous for me as well? Didn't I cultivate there and grow in strength?"

"Likewise, instead of being in a hurry to exit, I can cultivate in this region peacefully. Moreover, this place isn't bad either. I have always been attracted to swords. This place is filled with petals that contain sword intent. I can try to cultivate here itself."

"If it was the previous region, hurrying through might make sense. Here, I have beautiful scenery, good sword cultivation resources, and enough food and wine to get me by for months. So, why should I not use this location as my cultivation spot?"

Duncan asked himself and started laughing merrily.

Moments ago, this region looked very dangerous in his eyes. He wanted to find a way to get out of here. But now, Duncan felt that this was the best spot for him to cultivate.

With a chuckle, Duncan sat crosslegged in the garden and turned his concentration towards the petal in his hand.