Marauding Thieves
"Is this the Sword Garden?"
As he murmured, the wind swept curls of gray mist past Yu Ci, spinning around him. Listening closely, even the wind's wail seemed sharper and colder than outside.
Yu Ci drew a deep breath. The air entering his nose and mouth was far from pure; it felt as though it were mixed with fine iron sand, scraping his throat and lungs with a faint ache. Yet if one carefully savored its mysteries, one would discover that this "iron sand" was in fact vital energy crystallized into dust-fine particles, drifting everywhere.
Ever since he had pushed the Xuan Yuan Gen Ben Qi Fa to the initial stage of "drawing qi into the realm," and learned yin-yang qi perception from He Qing, Yu Ci's sensitivity toward the vitality of the outside world had grown by the day. Feeling it for himself, he nodded inwardly. Just as Li You had said, within the Sword Garden, the grim killing aura of swords mingled with dense deathly qi. Ordinary people could scarcely bear it, but if refined properly, it was a blessed land of cultivation for sword cultivators.
"Unfortunately, I am not a sword cultivator after all. I cannot bear the Innate Geng Metal Qi, and the Sword Garden is no place to remain for long."
Yu Ci shook his head and walked slowly onward with his hands behind his back. There were scarcely even hills across the wilderness. One had to remember that this was the Duanjie Mountain Range. The sight constantly reminded people that this was a wondrous space carved out by the divine powers of sword immortals. Countless fortuitous opportunities and treasures lay buried within, awaiting cultivators to unearth them.
It was a temptation enough to drive one mad. And for certain people, "treasure" did