What was going on?
It was the first time in forever that Austin had to face such a peculiar and bothersome situation.
The air here was too thick and heavy as if it was made of something more than what it should be, so it was really hard to breathe. It applied too much pressure to the body that weighed heavy on the hands, the feet, and even the eyelids. Austin felt like he was trekking with a boulder dangling on his back.
Those warriors whose bodies were not built strong enough would soon be crushed and would surely kiss their tragic death if they would have dared to set foot in this place. The pressure was tremendous just like at the bottom of the deep sea.
However, if any of the warriors wished to explore deeper into the ancient palace they eyed to conquer, this was the only way they could pass through. In other words, everyone must stand the pressure and bear the weight of this challenging endeavor.
Naturally, a lot of well-trained warriors were capable to withstand such pressure as they had already surpassed even harder obstacles than this. In the spur of a moment, at least several thousands of competing warriors had already set their foot in the area, though the majority of them moved at a snail's pace as if doubtful and kind of afraid of what was yet to come.
Nobody felt ashamed of their slow pace since those who were able to move on a faster rate were at least at the Master Realm cultivation base. Moreover, some slightly faster competitors were experts at the Astral Realm so their safety weren't much of a problem.
On the other hand, inferior cultivators who were ranked below the Imperial Realm cultivation base were busy arguing over things they believed were most important -- less impressive sacred weapons, elixir, and ancient books.
As for the true experts ranking above the Master Realm cultivation base, those weapons, elixir, and books scattered on the peripheral area weren't even worth anything at all. So they chose to look ahead and focus on what was most important as they didn't want to waste any time there. They had set their eyes on the deeper area, on those high-end treasures they were yet to lay their hands on. Only a unique treasure and an extraordinary one could have made a good match.
Austin felt the same excitement on what awaited ahead as the other true masters.
When he recently entered this area, Austin couldn't hide his amazement as his eyes glimmered in delight. But Austin started to be cautious so he observed the place. After some time, he eventually figured things out on his own.
"I've never seen such a thing in my life!" Austin marveled at his discovery, filled with childlike wonder. "What is this place? The air is strangely different. The pressure is as high as the water pressure underneath the sea. But I'm sure, it's not only the air pressure. There is something in this place that makes me feel a heavy push. How strange! Such a unique place!"
Austin kept murmuring to himself, full of ideas and questions, as he trod on. The novel sensation cancelled the pain he felt when the pressure cracked his skin.
Though his skin was chapped, the wounds didn't bleed as the pressure was also holding the blood that was bound to gush in the natural setting. Austin suddenly focused at his chapped hands and arms, in wonder as to when these cuts had appeared.
"Oh boy! Look at those cracks! Have you seen anything like that before?" A middle-aged man started to bombard him with questions when he realized Austin was lost in thought.
"Don't be appalled. You will heal as soon as you leave this place. Let me tell you something, this place is filled with a rare gas called the Heavy Gas. Are you aware of it?
Oh my! Seems that you are not! Let me educate you about this matter. Heavy Gas, as the term suggest, has its thick and heavy properties. Wait, I am not talking rubbish! There is more! There is something else little-known about the Heavy Gas. It can explode! If a warrior breathes in too much of it, boom, there he goes! Hah-hah-hah! Are you scared?" the man laughed hysterically.
But a Heavy Gas training room can do them a lot of good. The room could help them master handling it! Think about it.
Manipulating the Heavy Gas is hard but if you keep practicing in such a chamber and get used to the pressure eventually, your body will be a thousand times stronger than those who practiced under normal air pressure. I can't imagine how powerful this kind of warriors would be if they do battle in normal space. Holy-molly, you know what I mean?"
The man was like a chatterbox of disorganized information. He never ran out of words while he and Austin were slowly moving forward step by step.
"Ah, tell me more about it.
You have such encyclopedic knowledge and an extraordinary skill of retention. I am impressed and so excited to know more." Austin interacted with the man every now and then to have kept his interest at its peak.
Though Austin had to put up with the man's verbosity, the information the man provided was not totally useless. In fact it was more than what he was willing to learn. As for what Heavy Gas was, Austin believed he had learned enough to actually search for it all by himself.
During the conversation, Austin found the man to be enthusiastic and genial rather than abrupt and evasive. In fact, he enjoyed listening to the man's tender expressions as it augmented the truth he was sharing.
"Oh you are such a delightful young lad! You do have an eye of an artist and you can find the value of my precious words, don't you? Follow my instructions and you will find yourself avoiding all the common mistakes others weren't able to survive.
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