"It seems that you are not from here," The hoarse voice seemed amused, and Vikram was pulling his hair internally.
First, he was hurting everywhere. Second, he barely had the energy to stand or talk. Well, there shouldn't be a next reason.
"Yeah, I come from the far east!"
"This is the Far East," The demon squinted his eyes, and Vikram coughed twice, scratched his head, and looked around the cave.
"Well, two thousand years of life can make a man forget some things!"
"..."
"..."
"Anyway... there is no process to unsealing me, the moment you touch the cross and spread a drop of blood, the black desert will become normal, and the cave will be erased from history... But make the choice carefully..."
Vikram's smile belied the storm of emotions raging within him as he stood before the entity, its words washing over him like a distant echo. Outwardly composed, he projected an air of nonchalance, as though he held all the answers hidden behind his immortal facade.
But inwardly, Vikram seethed with frustration and resentment, if the seal was that simple, why the hell was he here still. Didn't this guy have any followers? Like those cultists repeatedly trying to undo the seal of a nefarious being?
As Vikram pondered the implications of the entity's words, he realized the magnitude of what had been revealed. If his deductions were correct, then the very nature of the desert was intertwined with the sealing of the entity.
At that moment, doubt gnawed at Vikram's resolve, whispering words of caution and warning. Was he truly prepared to face the consequences of his choices, to confront the being responsible for the devastation that had befallen the land?
Yet, amidst the turmoil of his thoughts, a steely determination welled up within Vikram. He had set this plan in motion, and he would see it through to its conclusion, no matter the cost. It was a burden he bore alone, a weighty responsibility that rested squarely on his shoulders.
Yeah, it didn't sound like a good plan.
But he was the one who started it, he would be the one to see through it too.
As Vikram's gaze met the crimson glow emanating from the entity's eyes, a chill ran down his spine, sending shivers coursing through his body. Inwardly, he trembled at the sheer power and malevolence that radiated from the being before him, a primal instinct urging him to flee from its presence.
Yet, outwardly, Vikram remained composed, his expression betraying none of the fear and uncertainty that churned within him. With steely resolve, he met the entity's gaze head-on, refusing to cower in the face of its overwhelming presence.
Vikram moved forward and smiled. He radiated confidence and bit his finger on his only arm.
"It seems that the drawings and depictions on the caves are somewhat dishonest, huh?" Vikram smiled as he saw his finger bleeding, and moved towards the cross.
"No... They depict the truth..." That raised an eyebrow from Vikram, but didn't comment. All individuals carried their own story and their own trauma. He was not going to intrude on the private life of a crimson-eyed Immortal.
The pictures depicted the man sealed here to be a brutal and bloodthirsty man who went on a killing spree and had bled oceans of blood in vain.
He pushed his bleeding finger on the foot of the cross, and the red-eyed Immortal had, for the first time, shown an emotion in his face.
It was amusement.
"You really are a crazy bastard." The red-eyed Immortal said, and Vikram just shrugged. He was really in a pickle, and his ticket to the way out had been this sealed guy.
That was the reason why the Slave Head had vehemently refused to agree to Vikram's plan. But seeing as Vikram was going to continue with his plan anyway, the Slave Head gave up.
'He was a kind old man,' Vikram felt the whole cave shaking, and the nails on the cross loosely shaking. 'It's really brutal,' Vikram slowly understood what was happening.
"Ahhhh," The nails shot off on his 'hands', and the nails on his legs shot off as well. He sighed with a slight mix of moan and relief and levitated on the sky. He was never sealed... This guy... he just didn't want to break the seal.
Suddenly, his crimson eyes shined as though it was two blood moon, and looked at Vikram and smirked.
"I got caught, huh?" Vikram smiled wryly, his dry lips cracked and parched.
"Yeah..." The red-eyed Immortal suddenly eyed the skies, and a maddened glint shone through his eyes but quickly shook his eyes.
The Immortal landed and eyed the fake Immortal. Vikram shook his head and sat on the shaking floor. "What gave me up, though?"
"The location... This is not the Far East. Seeing that you have no clue as to where you are, that means you are either newly incarnated Immortal, or a con. If you were a newly incarnated Immortal, you would stay as far awa-"
Vikram frowned, and looked up, only to see pure horror on the face of the red-eyed Immortal. "No! Who would do that to a child!"
For the first time, Vikram felt the overwhelming pressure of an Immortal. The Immortal flicked his hands upward, and Vikram's body lifted into the air, drawn toward the Immortal's grip. With a casual flick of his hands, Vikram's body was turned upside down, helpless against the force.
The Immortal's face grew increasingly grave as his hands rested on Vikram's lower abdomen. A strange, invasive presence began to seep into Vikram's body, and he found himself powerless to resist. He couldn't even muster the energy to protest—hell, he was almost grateful that the Immortal was letting him live after all the theatrics.
The Immortal's expression darkened even further, and Vikram felt a sense of dread building within him. Something was wrong. Finally, the Immortal let out a deep sigh, one that seemed to age him in an instant, before placing his hand on his head, his face full of regret.
"Umm, what happened?" Vikram awkwardly asked, remaining upside down. The Immortal opened his mouth and closed it. His face was a blend of pity and sadness.
Vikram's anger flared as he recognized the look on the Immortal's face—a look he had seen too many times before. The Immortal must have sensed it too because he quickly clarified.
Sigh, "This is the first time I've seen it in person, but to think someone would do this to a mortal... it's infuriating. Kid, you're really in a messed up situation."
"When have I not been?" Vikram replied with a grin, but the Immortal didn't seem to find it funny. Instead, his expression grew more serious.
"That serious?" Vikram asked, but the Immortal only nodded gravely.
"You cannot have power," he said, his frown deepening.
Vikram, despite having a rough understanding of what the Immortal was implying, still couldn't fully grasp it. "What do you mean?" he asked, his voice edged with confusion.
The Immortal sighed, as if he were explaining something to a child. "What I mean is that you have a type of physique that… how should I put this… yeah, it rejects progression." The Immortal paused, his brow furrowing as he tried to find the right words. "This isn't a natural physique. This is something man-made, which means someone deliberately carved this into your body."
Vikram was stunned, processing the words as his mind raced. "I have a body that rejects progression?" he echoed, his voice tinged with disbelief.
The Immortal nodded grimly, continuing, "You might find some success with weapon arts, since cultivating weapons isn't the same as progressing in the traditional sense. But you cannot break through your limits. The moment you try, your body will be sucked dry."
Vikram's mind buzzed, but he didn't give up. "But there's a chance, right? There must be a way around this..."