Using <Wind Chasing Steps> made Duncan's speed increase twofold. The real effects of <Wind Chasing Steps> were only visible when travelling long distances. While using the technique could increase mobility in short distances, the increase in speed wasn't anything impressive. However, if it was travelling in a straight line for long distances, then <Wind Chasing Steps> truly shined.
Duncan travelled at his maximum speed intending to put some distance between him and the site of his battle as soon as possible. After travelling for some time, Duncan came across another pathway leading to multiple tunnels.
Duncan felt his head ache looking at the myriad of tunnels that were leading in different directions. He figured that there was a complex system of tunnels running throughout the mountain. And the cave was apparently the entrance to this whole system.
Duncan knew that he needed to be smart here. If he got lost, then finding his way back would be difficult in this maze. This time, Duncan didn't waste much time thinking. He neared a wall and used his sword to carve out his initials on it.
While this wouldn't help him identify the right tunnel from a distance, he would be able to identify it as long as he spent enough time checking out every tunnel. It was time-consuming for sure, but Duncan wasn't going to sheathe his sword anytime soon after the last encounter.
Now that he was away from the entrance, Duncan wasn't ambivalent anymore. He already had a list of priorities for his survival in this cave for a week. First and foremost was to be vigilant at all times. Then came food, shelter, and whatever supplies he could forage here.
Right now, he needed to find food and shelter soon. All these tunnels looked like passageways leading to some place deep inside the cave. If there was any kind of food or shelter in this area, then it was most likely to be at the location where the tunnels were leading towards.
Without further hesitation, Duncan picked another random tunnel and started walking.
*****
Duncan was vigilant as he traversed the tunnels. He made sure there were no blind spots for someone to sneak up on him as the last one did. He had been incredibly lucky in that encounter and he wasn't keen on repeating that.
The tunnel that he was traversing started tapering off a bit once he went in a bit. Duncan could see that there was a slight reduction in space for him to move horizontally the further he went in.
While it wasn't like a tight fit or anything, Duncan was glad that it reduced the horizontal space that he needed to take care of. He could just care about the front and not worry about someone ambushing from his side.
With no light, Duncan's progress was slow. The further he traversed toward the interior of the cave, the less light was available for him to see. Right now, he was only able to see a few feet ahead of him.
This made for a tense journey as Duncan headed in.
After what felt like half an hour, Duncan saw the tunnel widen a bit ahead. There were noises coming from the direction he was travelling towards as well. Duncan gripped his sword tightly and made sure he wasn't making any sound as he inched his way towards the wide space.
There was a slight bend in the corner in the direction he was heading in. The corner was obstructing his view of whatever it was that was making the noise. Duncan frowned a bit and decided to be a little careful in his approach.
He put his back to the sidewalls and inched his way forward, making sure to keep his steps as quiet as possible. Duncan reached the end of the corner and struck his head out slowly trying to assess what was making that noise.
There was a figure that was hunched over something. It was mumbling and moaning as it rocked back and forth. Duncan could see that the figure was feeding out of whatever was in front of him.
Seeing that there was only one figure in the area, Duncan relaxed a little and angled his body so that he could get a better view of the situation there. His mind was wondering if he could kill this being and steal its food.
Duncan's view broadened as he had now shifted to the best possible position that both allowed him to see things and also hid most of his body. Duncan frowned as he saw the figure that was feeding was akin to the one he encountered at the entrance. He wasn't worried about its strength, rather he was worried about killing it without creating another commotion.
Duncan shifted his sight from the figure that was feeding to the item it was feeding from. The moment Duncan laid his eyes on that, Duncan felt his hair rise in alarm. A shiver ran through his body as he tried very hard not to gag.
Because the item that the figure was feeding from was a corpse. Not just any other corpse, but the corpse of something that was similar to it in appearance. It was as if it had hunted its own kind and was feeding on it.
Duncan knew what he was seeing at that moment. He had read about them but had thought that they were merely legends or something that only occurred in very remote places. He never imagined running into something like this here in a prominent sect.
After all, who would expect the Heavenly Demon Sect, a premier sect in the cultivation world to have a cave full of cannibals? And even better, who would expect their master to throw them into that said cave?
*****
Meanwhile, a figure suddenly blurred into appearance at the entrance of the cave and looked around angrily. The anger that was emanating from that figure was palpable to everyone who looked at her.
When her eyes landed on the guards, they trembled in trepidation. They prayed to whoever would listen to damned souls like them and hoped that she didn't take out her anger on them.
The last time one of the guards had made a mistake and had allowed one of the inhabitants of the cave to escape, the end result hadn't been pretty. She had skinned that guard alive and tortured the guard until he begged for death.
It had to be known that for a person to be eligible to join the Heavenly Demon Sect, one must have a strong heart and perseverance. The atmosphere in the sect fostered and nurtured a kind of will that defied even the heavens. If not, that person would have been driven away from the sect and hunted down for sport.
So, if someone like that was left begging for death, one could imagine how cruel the torture was. And that wasn't even the worst part. The sadistic bitch had been laughing all the while she tortured the guard.
That scene left a deep impression on the leftover guards. Hence, they didn't want to offend this crazy bitch, who didn't have any compunctions in torturing someone to death. While killing was prohibited in the Heavenly Demon Sect, it only mattered when both parties were at a relatively equal status. If not, it was the fault of the one who died to offend someone way stronger than them.
The female looked around angrily and finally found the person she was looking for. She angrily marched over to the man who was sitting calmly and sipping his tea and stood before him.
Liang Tianye looked up lazily from his position to take in the woman and calmly nodded at her. Apart from that, he didn't have any indication to acknowledge her presence.
The female fumed angrily and stomped her feet causing Liang Tianye to raise his eyebrows.
"Liang Tianye, you may be the Vice-Sect Master of this sect. But it doesn't give you the right to use the area under my control whenever you see fit," the female said angrily.
Liang Tianye didn't reply. He merely snorted and continued to drink his tea. Seeing his reaction, the woman became even angrier. Killing intent started to leak out of her causing the nearby guards to tremble.
"If you don't give me an explanation, right now, I am going to…"
The female trailed off as an even more oppressive killing intent slammed into her causing her to go mute. Her fingers started twitching nervously as she eyed the man in front of her.
"You are going to do what?" Liang Tianye asked calmly as he surveyed her.
"I… I… I…" the female wasn't able to reply.
The mountain-like pressure that was emanating from Liang Tianye was pressing down on her ruthlessly. The guards who had been trembling until now were now on the ground whimpering in fear. The killing intent that emanated from Liang Tianye was like a knife that was pressing down on her throat.
She knew that if she uttered one wrong word, she would be killed mercilessly by the man before her. There was a reason that people called Liang Tianye the Wind Demon. While many may have forgotten his deeds in the past, the female had not.
She knew how lawless and rampant Liang Tianye had been in the past. He had terrorized the entire continent and the Heavenly Demon Sect with his actions when he was a bit younger.
It was only in the past century that he had mellowed out a bit and reduced his anger. If not, she would have been dead by now for having the temerity to even leak killing intent in his presence.
While others might have been afraid or angered by the straightforward putdown, it had the opposite effect on the woman who was standing in front of Liang Tianye. She rubbed her legs discretely and looked at Liang Tianye with hooded eyes as he stared at her dispassionately.
"Tch, you are no fun, Vice-Sect Master," the woman's voice turned sweet as she flipped her posture within a second.
She stretched her body in a sexy manner and walked towards him despite the oppressive pressure boring down on her. Liang Tianye saw the change in her and snorted. He reeled in the pressure he was exhibiting and went back to sipping his tea.
The female, for her part, paid no heed to the presence of guards, who were breathing heavily from the ground, and neared Liang Tianye in a seductive manner.
*****
A/N: Hey folks!
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