With his Observation Haki reaching an unprecedented level of power, as if he had stepped into a strange new realm, Wilder also felt something stirring within his abilities. It was as if a chain reaction had been triggered by the day's events.
Wilder knew it was the sound of his soul and the dark energy he had absorbed from that demonic island, which had since integrated with his soul and abilities.
This feeling… was somewhat wonderful.
It was as if he had taken control of this entire little world.
He was the god of this world.
"Don't be impatient. I'll let you see the world soon enough," Wilder said to himself, a demonic smile spreading across his face.
Wilder left the palace and went straight to the Swamp Gas Forest on the treacherous cliffs.
However, Wilder preferred to call it the Beast Forest. Many powerful creatures lived here. Some, residing in the deepest parts, were over a hundred meters tall, creatures that even Wilder was reluctant to provoke.
It was no exaggeration to say that this was the most dangerous region in the entire Kingdom of Morass.
The air in the forest was filled with a foul smell, similar to rotting flesh. Colorless and colored toxic gases drifted everywhere, with swamp gas being the most concentrated. Every day, terrifying creatures engaged in life-and-death battles here. Under the law of the jungle, the remains of weaker creatures constantly bred bacteria and toxic substances in the air. Over time, this area had become a zone shrouded in poisonous fog.
However, the creatures living here had long since evolved the ability to resist the toxic environment. Like Wilder, they were not afraid of the swamp gas and other poisonous mists.
The Palace Guard trained for life and death in an area cleared out not far from here. They too had to outwit, outmaneuver, and fight the creatures living here every day.
This was one of the ways Wilder forged them. The five hundred guards who had survived to this day were all experts in survival and wilderness combat—elites.
Wilder didn't intend to disturb them. He deliberately took a detour and arrived at a patch of black, dead woods not far from the large ravine behind the forest.
No one would disturb him here. At the same time, apart from poisonous snakes and insects, other large, non-flying beasts and birds would avoid this place as much as possible. This was because it was a swampy land, and there was no food to attract them. It was a land of death and desolation, with no prey but plenty of poison gas and swamp gas.
Wilder stood in the swamp, slowly closing his eyes. His Observation Haki began to radiate from his body, covering the entire five-hundred-meter area around him without a single blind spot.
In an instant, everything in the vicinity came into his "view."
The black, dead trees, forked and overlapping like a devil's fingers. The surface of the swamp, shimmering slightly under the sunlight that filtered through the gaps in the leaves.
The occasional ping-pong-sized bubbles rising from below, and the faint sounds of small animals moving deep within this silent zone.
Everything was captured with perfect clarity.
Wilder could feel "those guys" inside him starting to stir, as if they couldn't wait to come out.
The Undying Domain unfolded silently. Wisps of "spirit" drifted down from the air, landing on the grass, on the black deadwood, and on… the swamp that gushed from Wilder's hands and merged with the swamp land.
The next second!
Sudden movement!
The entire swamp began to churn!
Wilder himself didn't actually know what the final result of creating those things within his Undying Domain would be. He was just following the "stirring" in his heart, so he had no idea how things would ultimately develop.
Everything would be revealed in the next moment.
As the swamp churned, the frequency and intensity of the movement grew larger and larger. A few beads of sweat couldn't help but trickle down Wilder's forehead, and he began to feel nervous.
Splash!
The not-so-quiet swamp suddenly began to roil violently. Clumps of swamp bulged upward, as if ferocious beasts were hidden beneath, about to break through.
Success or failure hinges on this one move!
Wilder didn't dare to relax his spirit in the slightest. His whole body tensed up, not just mentally, but physically as well.
This was an experiment. Wilder didn't know if it would ultimately succeed. If it did, it would prove that his inner thoughts were correct, and his means of fighting enemies would be greatly enhanced. If it failed, it would prove that he had been overthinking things.
His spirit was being consumed rapidly, and Wilder's face grew uglier and uglier. He could feel the "domain" shaking, unstable, on the verge of collapse.
Is it not going to work?
Wilder gritted his teeth and opened his eyes, which were now filled with bloodshot veins. His hands, hanging at his sides, involuntarily clenched into fists, the force squeezing the blood away and turning his knuckles a pale white.
But Wilder didn't want to give up yet. Giving up might mean that he really had been overthinking it. If he held on a little longer, perhaps there would be a turnaround.
But the throbbing pain in his head grew more intense. Wilder couldn't help but knit his brows in pain, clenching his jaw so tight his eyes looked like they were about to pop out of their sockets.
Just then, Wilder felt a sharp pain in his temples, as if a long nail had been driven into them. Pain!
It was as if his very soul had been pierced, an unbearable agony.
But Wilder's heart suddenly calmed down. He looked at the changes in the swamp, and a glimmer of hope rose within him.
The swamp was now churning even more violently. Seeing that he might succeed, a look of pained excitement appeared on Wilder's face.
However, the next moment, the expression on his face froze, then turned completely rigid.
The roiling swamp instantly became calm. It was as if nothing had happened. Apart from the increased volume of swamp, the swamp land looked no different from when he had arrived.
Silence!
Even the chirping of insects had disappeared, likely scared away by the commotion just now.
Wilder's fists clenched and unclenched, relaxed and clenched again. Finally, he could only let out a resigned sigh.
There was no problem with the Undying Domain. The failure was with the ability he had tried to combine with it. He didn't know where the problem lay, but an ability that could be used independently seemed on the verge of collapse when combined.
To be precise, it had already collapsed.
"Just where did it go wrong?" Leaving this question behind, Wilder began to walk back toward the palace, lost in thought.
Although Wilder hadn't moved during the recent changes, his physical and mental energy had been severely depleted. He planned to go back and rest, and at the same time, think about which part of the process had gone wrong.
Wilder was not willing to give up just like that. At the very least, the commotion in the swamp had shown him a glimmer of hope for success. That kind of movement proved that it was at least possible, not just his wishful thinking.
On the way back, Wilder was like a lost soul, completely immersed in trying to figure out where the problem was.
He didn't even bother to avoid the rocks in his path, simply kicking them aside as he walked, his mind too preoccupied to notice.
"Soul… Observation Haki… dark energy…" Wilder felt that the problem must lie in the compatibility of these three things.
If he couldn't solve the issue of their compatibility, the problem of them interfering with each other and causing a final collapse would persist.
"Could it be… that I haven't fully fused my soul and body yet?" Wilder was startled, the thought occurring to him.
If that were the case, it could explain why his soul had been having various problems all this time.
It wasn't impossible. After all, whether it was the fusion of two souls or the act of transmigration, it was all too complex. The problems involved were simply impossible to observe in detail.
Wilder decided to try again. He rested in the palace for half a day, ate a few stupid lamb legs and some sand-sculpture fish with Aisha and Claire, accompanied by a bottle of red wine. After eating and drinking his fill and recovering his energy, Wilder once again returned to the swamp land behind the forest.
This time, Wilder didn't start immediately. Instead, he sat on the swamp and began to meditate.
This was one of the ways he usually trained his Life Return and Observation Haki. Wilder felt that in such a calm state, his soul should be quieter.
Ten minutes later, Wilder opened his eyes. They were completely calm. Without further delay, he stood up, released his Observation Haki, and activated his Undying Domain.
In an instant, everything came into his view.
The trees, the chirping of insects, the swamp, the bubbles, even the path of the gentle breeze was crystal clear.
Wilder once again controlled the ability within his body, releasing swamp from himself and merging it with the swamp land.
A short while later, the swamp land began to churn.
The frequency and intensity of the movement grew faster and faster.
In the end, just like the last time, the swamp began to heave in clumps, as if monsters were about to break through the surface.
At this point, Wilder once again felt the strain, and his brow furrowed involuntarily.
Is it going to fail again?
Wilder quickly steadied his mind and concentrated. His body, without him realizing it, tensed up again, like a block of iron.
But to Wilder's surprise, although he felt the same immense strain this time, it was much better than the last time, when he felt like he was about to explode from the pressure.
Could it be…
A sharp glint flashed in Wilder's eyes. He felt a sense of hope.
Gurgle… gurgle…!
The swamp roiled more and more violently. Wilder's eyes grew brighter and brighter, completely different from the last time when they were filled with bloodshot veins. In fact, Wilder no longer felt any pressure at this moment.
It was as if everything was under his control.
A look of shock appeared in Wilder's eyes. "This is… this is the true state of the Undying Domain!?"
"I understand!"
Wilder instantly understood the key, and finally knew why he had failed last time!
It turned out that the problem was in the place he thought was the most problem-free!
This is how the Undying Domain is supposed to be!
A completely calm state of mind, where everything is transparent, a feeling of having everything under control—this is the true Undying Domain!
Only in this way can one control everything within the domain! Like a magnetic field, it must be stable to avoid collapse!
The reason for the failure last time was because Wilder's mind was not calm. Or rather, he had not emptied himself, had not fully integrated his body and mind into the Undying Domain. This led to Wilder being like an intruder trying to control everything within the domain, and naturally, he was rejected by it.
"Hahaha! So that's how it is! So that's how it is!" At this moment, Wilder's mind and body were completely empty, as if he had merged with this world. Everything was within his perception. It was as if he himself was the embodiment of this world, and he knew everything about himself like the back of his hand!
BOOM! The roiling swamp finally underwent a complete transformation at this moment!
One by one, swamp monsters of various shapes, exuding a cold and sinister aura, emerged… no, they should be called swamp soldiers now.
Because a monster is a beast, while a soldier is a disciplined living being with mobility!
One by one, the swamp soldiers emerged from the swamp and stood upon it. Among them were some with a slime-like form, without limbs or a specific shape. There were also some in a "zombie" form, wearing ancient armor, helmets, and holding swords, their faces expressionless.
There were even some in the form of ferocious beasts, covered in "fur"—of course, this fur was also made of swamp.
There were also some in the form of tall giants with angry, wide eyes.
In addition, there were some strange creatures that did not exist in this world. Some were beast-like, like tigers or leopards, with a wide, sinister grin, but with three sharp, upturned tails on their backs.
There was also a creature the size of a man, shaped like a toad, that could spit out a spider web made of swamp!
Wilder looked at all this and laughed, his shoulders trembling slightly with excitement that was hard to suppress.
"I'll call you… the Hundred Demons!" Wilder looked at these swamp soldier monsters of various shapes, all of which were linked to ugliness, yet he wore an excited smile.
Undying Domain—Hundred Demons!
The meaning of the word "undying" was exactly as it sounded.
Wilder looked at these monsters, then suddenly moved. His body disappeared from its spot and reappeared in front of the toad-like swamp soldier. He swept his leg out, his iron-like leg heavily striking the swamp toad. With a splash, the toad demon shattered into mud and scattered.
Wilder landed on the swamp, standing steadily. He looked toward that spot, and a short while later… something strange happened.
The scattered swamp began to reconverge. In less than two breaths, a toad demon had reformed.
This was the meaning of undying. Within this domain, the swamp was endowed with undying life by Wilder!
And, of course, terrifying combat power!
In addition, within the domain, although Wilder could not control anything other than the swamp, he could sense everything within the domain through those other things.
For example, if a grain of sand landed on a blade of grass, Wilder could sense it. Through this sliver of perception, he could timely summon a swamp soldier to that spot, much more efficiently than with Observation Haki.
It was like… having countless eyes and ears, and with shared senses at that!
With a cold smile and the burning fire of ambition in his eyes, Wilder returned to the palace and summoned everyone.