In the Mortal World that Mira's currently residing in, the Western Continent is one of the more unique Continents.
The Northern Continent is, for the most part, covered in snow and ice. Mountains that exceed the sky and cold temperatures all-year-round. This Continent is a great place for those who have an affinity for ice and water. However, this Continent isn't suitable for life to thrive so the amount of humans living on this Continent is barely a fraction compared to the other Continents.
That's not to say that the Northern Continent is some sort of Death Zone where the death rate is abnormally high. On the contrary, those that live there either have a high affinity with ice and water or are strong enough to disregard the abnormally cold temperatures. This makes it essentially the second strongest Continent in terms of quality, only behind the Central Continent.
The Southern Continent is the exact opposite. Deserts as far as the eye can see. Scorching temps that could turn any mortal man to ash. An uncountable number of volcanoes. This place is not for the faint at heart and can be considered the most dangerous continent for humans to live and explore.
The Eastern Continent is a paradise compared to the other Continents. This Continent has the highest population of humans living on it as the Continent itself basically screams life. Perfect temperatures all-year-round, high-quality soil that allows for herbs and treasures to grow faster and healthier, and plenty of beasts to raise and/or hunt.
However, like most things, the good comes with the bad, and the bad in this case is… Overpopulation.
Yes, there are too many humans and beasts living on the is Continent causing the paradise to be turned into a living hell for the weak. Human lives are worth less than grass, slavery is extremely common, and death happens every day for the pettiest of crimes.
The worst part is there's nothing that can be done about this unless the peak powerhouses of the world start fighting, causing millions or even billions of people to die, lowering the population to a relatively stable manner. Unfortunately, this is only treating the symptom and not the root of the problem. Life would still flourish and the Continent would overpopulate again in a matter of centuries, maybe less.
So the Central Continent allows the atrocities of the Eastern Continent to continue while using those people as their source of trade. In fact, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that everyone, from the weakest person to the strongest, is a slave on the Eastern Continent. The only difference is the amount of strength and privileges each slave has.
Meanwhile, the Western Continent is different from those other places. While those other Continents could be described as hell holes, the Western Continent is much more neutral. There are all kinds of biomes and the terrain is constantly changing. Forests are the main biome, but there are mountains, tundras, deserts, grasslands, volcanoes, and even unique biomes such as places filled with an overabundant amount of the elements.
Another interesting thing is that the number of humans living on the Continent fluctuates between 5-10 billion people, plus or minus a few billion. That may seem like a lot, but that amount is so pitifully low that it's actually weird that there aren't more humans living on the Continent. The reason why that's considered low is because of how massive the Western Continent is.
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that the Western Continent is probably big enough to house several hundred billion people before things start getting overcrowded. In Mira's perspective, the Western Continent is at least 20 times larger than Earth.
The main reason for the low population of the Western Continent is a number of factors, but the main two being the terrain and the Central Continent's recruitment.
Like what most people know, the Central Continent is the major force of this Mortal World and although part of the reason for that is that the environment on the Central Continent is basically a holy land for cultivators, the Central Continent also recruits and accepts plenty of people from the other Continents. Normally, they only take geniuses, but the Western Continent is a bit special.
Most cultivators on the Western Continent are a head above the rest even in terms of the other 3 Continents. It's not that their weapon arts are better or their Dao Comprehension is higher, but it comes down to real-life experience. Sure, all of the geniuses on the continents are strong in their own right. The Northern and Southern Continent people have to survive against the harsh weather and fierce beasts and on the Eastern Continent… well, luck plays a major role there.
But the Western Continent is different. Most of the Continent is actually filled with beasts of all different kinds, killer plants, and insanely strong insects. That being said, the geniuses on the Western Continent are almost always fighting. Not out of enjoyment, but out of necessity. Beast Hordes are commonplace and one can barely take 2 steps out of a City without being attacked by some sort of beast.
Another reason for the Western Continent's geniuses being more experienced is the number of biomes or unique situations that they run into. Like mentioned earlier, the Western Continent is filled with unique places and the terrain is constantly changing. One day, an area might be a grassland, while a few years later, the place could be turned into a desert.
Needless to say, the death rate on the Western Continent is actually the highest out of all the other Continents. Well, if you don't count the number of deaths that humans cause amongst themselves on the Eastern Continent, but in terms of death by natural causes, beasts, or environment, the Western Continent has the highest death rate.
That's the primary reason for the low population and as Mira and the others were traveling, they can clearly see this fact. Although they mostly came across forests, it wasn't weird for them to come across a random mountain or a tundra out of nowhere. They also barely came across any cities, or at least large ones that'll have millions of people living in them. Most of the places they saw during their flight were villages of several thousand to tens of thousands.
However, this time it seems Elenei was able to spot one of the unique biomes the Western Continent has to offer. From above, the trio was able to see a land filled with death. Or at least that's what the place looked like from a distance. The ground looked like it was rotting, the trees were bone white, almost like they were made of actual bones. The ponds and rivers were red almost like they were formed by blood. A purplish-black fog covered the area causing it to reek of poison and death.
Another strange thing is that the ground looked like it was bubbling. Yes, bubbling. Portions of the ground would literally arise into a bubble before popping, releasing more of that fog.
Yet, they couldn't see any beasts, but that didn't make them feel any better. On the contrary, that just made the whole place more eerie.
The only sounds that could be heard were the sounds of the ground bubbles popping, everything else was still and quiet. Almost like the place was trapped in time, unable to move.
Maria and Celaine did not want to enter such a place. The revulsion was clearly evident in their eyes and they might not even be willing to go even if Mira forced them. They could feel that their chances of dying here are abnormally high and yet they didn't know why. That thought alone sent shivers across their entire body as their hairs stood on end.
The fact that they can feel death encroaching just by being near the place was incredibly terrifying.
Even Elenei underestimated this place. At first she just spotted something interesting, but now that she's here she can confidently say that this is one of the most dreadful places she's ever been to. It's not the most terrifying or dangerous, but the whole place leaves her lingering with fear and uncertainty.
To make matters worse, her Soul Sense can't penetrate the poison fog which should be almost impossible considered she's a fucking Phoenix in the Mortal World!
[A/N: Soul Sense is basically Spiritual Sense that you'd find in other worlds. I can't remember if I've mentioned it in the past, but here's a reminder. ;)]
"What a wretched place. I've never seen something so revolting and disgusting in my entire life. I almost regret bringing you here since even I can't sense or tell what's in this place."
Elenei said in disgust.
"Well said, Little Elenei! I'm definitely not going in there! Even if you break all of the bones in my body and toss me in, I'm crawling my way out! I'm sitting this one out!"
Maria held her nose and said nasally while even the usual silent Celaine decided to speak up.
"Yeah, I'm not going in there either. I can feel that I won't survive long if I go inside and I don't really feel the need to risk my life for something that pertains to poison, death, necromancy, or whatever."
Mira was only half listening to them as she stared at the place curiously. She also feels what they're feeling. This place revolts her as well, though not nearly as bad as what her companions feel.
Her intuition is telling her that her chances of dying in this place exceed 60%, but she can't help but want to enter. It's not like anything is calling her or she feels a sense of comfortability to this place, but she has a feeling that she might find something incredibly useful for her future if she enters this place and comes out alive.
"I guess it's time for a solo adventure."
