Chapter 863: I’ll See You Try That (1/2)

”Hahaha, welcome to the area, fellow merchants.” Hack's voice resounded with a cackle when the Pitlook Merchant Caravan slowed down before stopping.

In front of it was a row of rock pillars, situated 10 meters from each other.

There was one place where there was a gap that spanned 50 meters, which was also the only path they could use to traverse further. But as of the moment, a rope of some sort was coiled between the two, blocking the caravan from passing any further. It wouldn't be possible for the Zenith Pluggers to fly past them without risks as the rope spanned up to a height of 100 meters. On top of that, their cultivations were suppressed.

With a quick glance, Trivar realized that each strand of rope was at the Nine Stars God Foundation level. It wasn't something they could cut through in a short amount of time. After all, their current cultivation bases were restricted to the First Stage of the Godly Fusion Realm.

To make matters worse, before he could even come up with a plan, droves of bandits walked out from behind the pillars, numbering more than 300. His attention immediately fell on the man standing at the very center, exuding a powerful presence.

Trivar unconsciously shuddered when he saw Whack, feeling the murderous intent emanating from him. On top of that, unlike everyone, Whack seemed to have lived in the Immortal Severance Zone long enough to completely restrict his cultivation base.

With that, he had completely adapted to the region, taking pleasure in reaping the lives of strong cultivators that passed through it.

Normally speaking, even if a cultivator had suppressed his cultivation to a lower realm, they would still be stronger than a regular cultivator at that cultivation base. After all, they had lived longer and had accumulated greater experience.

Moreover, the variety of techniques in their arsenal would also be greater. Hence, a cultivator that was naturally at the First Stage of the Godly Fusion Realm wouldn't be able to kill a stronger cultivator whose cultivation had been suppressed to that level.

Then again, that was in the case they had differing cultivations. If both cultivators had the same cultivation base, and one had suppressed their cultivation for a longer time, they would have more time to adapt to the changes.

After all, a cultivator in the Semi-God Realm was able to fly. So, their first instinct was to fly and engage with an enemy in midair. When they were suppressed in the Immortal Severance Zone, they would need some time to adapt to the suppression and alter their mindset to move on the ground. After all, old habits die hard.

This was where the advantages of Whack and other bandits could be seen. They had long since given up on returning to the world beyond, choosing to stay within the Immortal Severance Zone, completely giving up on progressing further in their cultivation.

This way, they had a lot of time to slowly adapt to the environment and become the region's fishes, or in this case, sharks.

They were basically throwing away the prospect of longevity thanks to this decision. In their eyes though, longevity meant nothing. Only when a cultivator reached the Semi-God Realm would they attain longevity anyway.

Then again, reaching that stage meant needing to survive through a heavenly tribulation. Most cultivators had zero hope in succeeding that. Even among the wealthy families who had been gearing up for the heavenly tribulation, most of them failed to survive, turning everything they invested into waste.

On top of that, most people lead hard lives, struggling to procure God Stones to cultivate or buy their necessities in life. There were also constant battles waged in numerous places. Every demon beast habitat was a dangerous place to venture into. All in all, cultivators died early most of the time.

Even those that attained immortality didn't live long since they fought stronger opponents for cultivation resources and succumbed to one or the other. Instead of dealing through them all for the slim chance of attaining immortality, it was better to enjoy their life to the fullest.

After all, most of the cultivators pursuing immortality cultivated nonstop, with cultivation making up their life. They didn't do anything else. To these bandits, that was boring. So, instead of spending all their lives cultivating, only to lose their lives in a heavenly tribulation, it was better to enjoy it by doing whatever they wanted.

That was why they gave up on cultivation and entered the Immortal Severance Zone. The Immortal Severance Zone was tremendously big. It was one of the largest danger zones in the Zamuria Continent. So, one way or another, cultivators entered it for all sorts of reasons. This allowed the bandits to have a steady influx of entertainment.

As the Immortal Severance Zone was the only place in the Zamuria continent where the Suppression Law was in greatest concentration, high-level cultivators also frequented the place. It was in hopes of comprehending the law. After all, the Suppression Law had numerous tangible uses and benefits.

This made the place a hot spot filled with powerful cultivators. With that, the bandits never lacked prey. This was why bandit groups were plenty in the region. Of course, there were cases where the bandit groups were annihilated instead. But that was always caused by a miscalculation on their part where their prey had greater numbers than them.

Trivar looked at the whole situation, sighing as he cupped his fists. ”Boss Bandit, we'll pay the toll for passing through. Please be magnanimous. Our merchant group has to use this route frequently in the future.”

Trivar instantly displayed his cunning. He first showed his willingness to pay the price. After that, he hinted at how his group had to frequent the route. This meant two things. If the bandit group stole them dry this time, it was natural they would obtain a lot of wealth. But that would be it.

But, if they only took a portion of the goods, then it was as if they had established a trade deal. Every time the Pitlook Merchant Group used the route, they would pay homage to the bandits. This meant that the bandits would have a steady influx of resources.

Trivar's words had opened two routes for Whack, either rob them dry for a measly one-time profit or accumulate a fortune through a long-time deal.