Demon Immortal

Chapter 272 Entering the Ancient Battlefield

Duncan stood in front of the region that acted as the buffer between the Ancient Battlefield and the wilderness looking ahead.

If there was no other choice, he too didn't want to step foot in that place. He had read several accounts of the various dangers encountered by Nascent Soul seniors of his sect in that region that, it cast a large shadow in his heart.

So he didn't enter the region immediately.

He was waiting and hoping at this moment. He was waiting to see if his pursuers dared to come after him after knowing where he was headed towards. It would be a test of their determination to kill him off.

At the same time, he was hoping that they would call off the hunt and retreat. That way, he wouldn't have to step into this cursed place. Just looking at the Ancient Battlefield from a distance alone gave him goosebumps.

He could see the chaotic air currents whizzing in that area even from this distance. The occasional flashes of light emanating from the distance also didn't bode well for his confidence in stepping into that region.

All the accounts he had read in the sect had described this Ancient Battlefield in one word – chaotic. As per the records, there was no constant weather or temperature in that region. One moment it snowed, then the next moment it rained. It was as if even after all these years, the damage being done to that region still remained unabated.

The experts who had ventured into that region and come out had noted that the powers that were used during that battle several eons ago still remained without collapsing. They had formed a somewhat co-existing relationship with each other.

Any slight changes to the environment like a stone falling or some other inane thing could set off a chain reaction of those powers. This made the region incredibly dangerous to traverse.

Duncan didn't know why he felt like walking towards that region deep in his heart. The moment he learned that his path forward was being blocked by his pursuers, Duncan's mind immediately came up with the idea of traversing through the Ancient Battlefield.

Why he had immediately set off in this direction, he wasn't completely sold on this idea either. That's why, even without him realizing he had left his tracks exposed in a bid to deter his pursuers. That was the work of his subconscious mind that recognized the danger he walking into.

Duncan didn't have confidence in traversing this forbidden ground. He didn't think he was someone who was extremely lucky or ungodly skilled to do that. He just had changed his direction towards the Ancient Battlefield on a whim.

And right now, he was hesitating a lot to even step foot in there.

It was only natural. While Duncan hadn't thought much about it during his travel here, the moment he had looked at the distant battlefield, all the stories he had read about it came pouring back into his mind causing his feet to stagnate.

While Duncan's mindset had been altered after he entered the Violet Palace realm, the inherent cautiousness in him still remained dormant. And at this juncture, it was rearing its head and making him hesitate.

Just then, Duncan heard a sound behind him and looked behind.

In the distance, several shadows were rapidly approaching his place. Duncan cursed the stubbornness of his pursuers mentally. He really didn't think this through. And now, he was caught between a rock and a hard place.

He knew that with the eyesight of the Golden Hall experts in the pursuing party, they would have already recognized him by now. If even he could see their silhouettes in the setting sun, then they could definitely identify him from this distance.

And the distance was rapidly shrinking as well.

Duncan gritted his teeth and looked behind. He knew that even if he had established a legendary foundation, taking on so many Golden Hall cultivators with other cultivators mixed in was not something he could do. Hell, he didn't even know whether he could take on one Golden Hall expert, let alone a bunch of them together.

Taking a deep breath, Duncan's eyes firmed up.

In the front, there was the Ancient Battlefield. If he entered that region, there is a very high chance that he wouldn't walk out alive. To his behind, his pursuers were closing in. He had no chance to stay alive if they caught up to him.

There was a sliver of possibility that he could possibly emerge alive if he entered the Ancient Battlefield at this moment. Any further delay will only lead to his death. So, Duncan decided to gamble on that sliver of chance.

Without wasting any time, Duncan immediately utilized <Wind Chasing Steps> and headed towards the Ancient Battlefield in the front. He could already hear the shouts of anger and denial from his back, but he paid them no heed. In his mind, entering this place was the only chance he had to stay alive.

Just as Duncan was near to the Ancient Battlefield, he hollered at his pursuers.

"Pray that I die inside. If I emerge alive, I will make your lives hell!!!"

Duncan shouted one last time, before entering the Ancient Battlefield without waiting for the inevitable angry shouts that would come from behind.

*****

"Damn! He really entered the forbidden ground!" one Golden Hall expert exclaimed as the party came to a stop after seeing Duncan enter.

Envoy Ming didn't know how to react to that statement. Duncan's last words were still echoing in his ears causing him to be a little flustered. He didn't really believe it until he saw with his own eyes that Duncan entered the Ancient Battlefield.

"What do we do now?" Envoy Ming asked looking around.

Just like him, all the cultivators who chased after Duncan had an ugly look on their faces. Duncan's last words almost made them spit blood. They didn't think Duncan would be still crazy enough to warn them before entering the Ancient Battlefield.

"Should we stay for a few hours and make sure that he doesn't double back?" Envoy Ming asked dejectedly.

"No need," the grizzled old Golden Hall cultivator spoke with a somber tone. "You might not know this. Entering the Ancient Battlefield is easy enough. Exiting it is an entirely different matter. There is an invisible boundary-like existence engulfing the entire battlefield. That is the only reason that the powers there haven't expanded further in causing their damage."

"So, he won't be able to come out?"

"Not necessarily," the old man sighed. "If one can find the exit points in the Ancient Battlefield boundary, they can easily walk out. But, the problem is that the exit points keep constantly shifting. That is the reason why many people die in there."

"The ever-changing nature of the Ancient Battlefield and its inherent danger are only a part of the problem a cultivator might face inside. The biggest issue is finding exit points of the boundary. Without them, you will be constantly under the mercy of the powers that were unleashed eons ago."

The surrounding cultivators blanched hearing that. The Ancient Battlefield sounded more and more like a prison to contain those powers as the information about it was revealed. They couldn't fathom being under the constant mercy of the powers just because they couldn't find the exit points in the boundary.

The mere thought of it made them shiver. If any of them had any intention to follow after Duncan to finish the job and retreat, then none of them had such intentions any longer.

"It is no use guarding here," the old man told as he straightened up. "The exit points appear randomly. Even if he finds an exit point immediately after entering that region and walks back out, he could appear in any location where there boundary exists. So, we would only be wasting our time here."

The surrounding cultivators looked at the old man in surprise. They didn't know he had such intimate knowledge regarding the Ancient Battlefield. The old man was only at the peak of the Golden Hall realm now. So, having such detailed information shocked everyone.

"Don't look at me like that," the old man smiled wryly. "My entire family is long dead. I only had my grandson as my descendant to carry on my family legacy. He too died at the hands of that miscreant. My grandson was my pride and joy. His talent in cultivation was far higher than mine."

"I originally planned to wait till he broke through to the Violet Palace realm before entering the Ancient Battlefield to seek a chance for a breakthrough. My lifespan is coming to an end. So, I planned on using the Ancient Battlefield as a last resort to break through and collected all the information I could on it."

"Now, my grandson is dead. My family legacy is gone. I don't have anything to live for. Even my lifespan is running out. Right now, all I want to do is to take revenge on the bastard that killed my grandson and didn't even leave me his body to bury," the old man said with rage simmering in his eyes.

"Now, even the chance for vengeance was taken away from me," the old man sighed and looked at the spot Duncan had vanished in with hatred.

The surrounding cultivators didn't know how to console the old man. They too were here because their progeny was killed. But, unlike the old man, the person who died was just the most talented junior in the family to them. If not that person, another will soon rise up. Their situation was entirely different from that old man's.

"Don't worry about me. You all leave. I am a lamp that is running out of oil. But, I still have one last flame in me. I will not let the culprit of my grandson's death get away that easily. I will follow him and enter the Ancient Battlefield," the old man said straightening up. "I will make sure he doesn't come out alive!"

With that, the old man started walking towards the exact same spot where Duncan had vanished from sight.

*****

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