Chapter 139: A Dangerous World
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Aoki moved forward against the wind and snow.
The temperature was extremely low, but it had little effect on him. His body healed instantly from any damage, with no discomfort at all. Continuous damage posed no threat to demons; what they feared was sudden, massive damage.
He could now regenerate almost infinitely, but the speed of his regeneration was limited. If someone could destroy him faster than he could heal, he would still die. Infinite regeneration was indeed powerful, but it wasn't true immortality, nor was it invincibility.
As he got closer to the village, Aoki felt that something was wrong.
It was too quiet.
There was no sound except for the wind.
The village had no clear layout, with houses clustered together in a chaotic manner. Aoki walked down the street, his expression darkening.
The street was buried under a thick layer of snow. Most of the houses on either side had their doors open, but there was no one in sight.
Not a single person in the entire village.
Large black stains dotted the walls, and Aoki could tell at a glance they were dried blood. All the houses showed signs of being smashed and damaged. Whatever had happened here, it was clear the residents hadn't met a good end.
"Let's try the other village."
Aoki spread his wings, soared into the sky, and flew in another direction.
At that moment, a strong wind blew from above, and the sky suddenly darkened.
Aoki turned his head to look.
A terrifying giant bird came into view. Its wingspan was over ten meters long, its head resembling a crocodile's but lined with rows of sharp teeth. Its yellow eyes were devoid of any emotion, filled only with the cruelty and bloodthirstiness of a predator.
Aoki's figure flickered and disappeared.
The giant bird swept past where he had just been, missing him, a hint of confusion in its eyes.
Aoki reappeared on the creature's back.
Splat!
Blood spurted from its head. The giant bird let out a shrill scream and struggled frantically as Aoki vanished again.
The bird flapped its wings, desperate to escape.
Then, Aoki appeared on its back once more.
A burst of blood erupted from the same spot on its head, and his hand plunged deep into its skull.
This time, the creature didn't even struggle. Its body stiffened, its wings went limp, and it fell like a meteor.
Boom!
A massive crater formed upon impact, and the giant bird's corpse lay motionless in the center.
Aoki materialized nearby, gazing up at the corpse with surprise in his eyes.
It was the first time he had seen such a large bird.
With its wings spread wide, it was over ten meters long, resembling a small fighter jet.
"Is this a dangerous species? I wonder what level it is?"
Aoki gently stroked the giant bird's body. Its golden feathers seemed metallic, hard, and sharp-edged.
Dangerous species(Danger Beast) were another distinct feature of this world. They were all formidable monsters. The strongest among them were incredibly terrifying, like forces of nature themselves.
Aoki grabbed the giant bird's head, and with a thought, he entered a special space.
Compared to before, his alternate space had undergone a massive transformation. Its length, width, and height had all increased a hundredfold, becoming a vast realm over a thousand meters in size. It was larger than the original Infinity Castle.
This was the result of "extreme enhancement."
While "Spatial Travel" and "Spatial Mark Travel" had not changed, the "Alternate Space" had expanded significantly, which was an unexpected surprise.
Unlike Infinity Castle, this massive space only had a single house in the center; the rest was an empty expanse.
The previous space had been taken directly from Infinity Castle. This time, the expansion was based on the original space, so no additional buildings were included.
Boom!
The enormous corpse fell with a dull thud.
Only objects he could physically lift could be brought into the alternate space, and the same rules applied to taking them out. Fortunately, the giant bird wasn't beyond his strength.
After storing it, Aoki left the alternate space and resumed his flight toward another village.
But this time, as soon as he took to the sky, he was targeted by a flock of strange, crow-like birds. Each one was as large as a basketball, with one that appeared to be the Crow King, as big as a millstone.
The eyes of these bizarre crows were bloodshot, brimming with a thirst for blood.
In a one-on-one fight, Aoki had no fear, but with hundreds, maybe thousands of these creatures, they were more troublesome than the giant bird he had just defeated.
The crow monsters hesitated for a moment before deciding not to attack Aoki. Under the Crow King's lead, they continued to fly north.
"What a dangerous world," Aoki muttered, shaking his head. He resolved to keep a low profile.
The giant birds Aoki had encountered earlier were easily dealt with, so it wouldn't be too hard to handle this flock of strange crows either.
But who knew if more troublesome monsters might appear?
Fortunately, no further incidents occurred.
Aoki landed in an open area outside the village and began walking toward it.
This village was very similar in scale and size to the abandoned one.
"At least there are still people living here," Aoki thought.
He looked around and saw that most of the villagers were pale, thin, with dull eyes, and dressed in tattered clothes.
"Hello," he called out, stopping a middle-aged man passing by. But as soon as he spoke, the man quickly dodged away, casting a wary glance at him before hurrying off.
Aoki noticed this wasn't an isolated reaction.
Most of the villagers looked at him with suspicion.
Just then, a tall, strong young man dressed in animal skins approached Aoki.
"I'm sorry," the young man said. "There were robbers in the village yesterday, and everyone is on edge."
Aoki sized him up and thought, "What a strong physique."
In this world, humans seemed physically stronger than those in the Demon Slayer world. In terms of raw strength, even a Pillar might not match this young man.
"I don't intend to stay here long. I just want to know where I am and how I can get to the Imperial Capital," Aoki replied.
The young man in animal skins spoke seriously, "Reaching the Imperial Capital won't be easy. This is the northern border of the Empire, only a few dozen kilometers from the fortress of the northern foreign tribes. The capital is thousands of miles away, and there are countless nests of dangerous species along the way."
"Foreign tribes from the north?" Aoki mused.
He recalled that three major alien races surrounded the Empire: one in the south, one in the north, and one in the west. The east was considered a barbarian land. The Empire had been at war with these three races for many years.
Esdeath was likely here to attack the northern foreign tribes.
Aoki now had a rough idea of the timeline.
"What is the current situation?" he asked.
The young man in animal skins looked grim. "It's terrible! Under the leadership of the brave Numa Seika, the northern tribes are growing stronger. Most of the nearby villages have already relocated. If this continues, we'll have to leave too!"
Relocating wasn't easy.
For the poor, a house was often their most valuable asset. Leaving their home could mean living on the streets. In such cold weather, having no shelter from the elements was almost like signing a death warrant.
And there were countless dangers on the road; any accident could spell disaster for an entire family.
"I don't think you need to move. Esdeath is already here," Aoki said.
The so-called Northern Hero might have some abilities, but he was nothing in front of Esdeath.
She possessed immense strength, exceptional military talent, and was kind and generous to her subordinates. In terms of combat alone, Esdeath was nearly flawless.
The young man in animal skins was stunned for a moment, then his face lit up with excitement. "Esdeath? General Esdeath?"
Aoki nodded.
Just as he had heard, Esdeath was quite popular among the common people, especially in places like the border, which frequently faced foreign invasions.
However, Aoki knew that Esdeath didn't fight for the country or the people; she fought solely to satisfy her own lust for battle and bloodshed.
Of course, he didn't share these thoughts with the young man.
Objectively speaking, Esdeath had crippled the northern tribes and was indeed a great benefactor to those living on the Empire's northern border.
Aoki waved his hand.
Boom!
A giant bird appeared out of nowhere and landed in an open space by the roadside, shaking the ground.
"This… This is a Level One dangerous giant bird, Oriel?" the young man in animal skins stammered.
"This is your reward. Thank you for the information," Aoki said, nodding to the young man before spreading his bat wings and soaring into the sky.
By the time the young man came to his senses, Aoki's figure had already vanished into thin air.
"Could he be a legendary imperial weapon user?" the young man wondered, taking a deep breath as he gazed at the massive bird corpse before him, his expression growing excited.
Wonderful!
Now that they had this meat, they wouldn't have to worry about relocating in the short term.
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T/N: There is a Patreon for this work, and any new work I add will be dropped there first. check it out for an early chapters.
Patreon link:- Patreon.com/ANelite
And also:
Imperial weapon = Teigu
Teigu = Imperial weapon