Cultivation World Dadangar.
Near the borders between the Rokur Kingdom and Neutral State Haan Di.
Hour of Pig (05:00 PM – 06:00 PM)
The sun dipped below the horizon, casting a fiery orange glow over the barren mountain at the foot of which Aksai fought fiercely.
The air was thick with dust, kicked up by the relentless movements of Spirit cultivators engaged in deadly combat.
The rugged terrain, littered with jagged rocks and sparse, dry vegetation, echoed with the clash of martial prowess and the crackle of Spirit spells.
Aksai, despite his injuries, moved with remarkable agility. His right arm, bleeding from a deep slash, and his forehead, marked by a bloody cut, didn’t slow him down.
His torso bore the marks of a spear and barbed whips, yet his spirit remained unbroken. Three opponents lay dead at his feet, their lifeless eyes staring into the dusky sky.
“He… he is a body cultivator!” spoke one Spirit cultivator in a grim voice while looking at Aksai with vigilant eyes. “But… his body cultivation feels different. And sometimes his attacks don’t use the Spirit essence. He is practicing some heretical path.”
“The Alliance didn’t give us enough information about him,” said another cultivator while gripping the weapon in his hand.
“It doesn’t matter. We have already gotten paid for this job. Island owner Aksai Everwood… he is indeed a tough opponent to beat. Guess he hid a lot of his trump cards. The more we allow him to recover the more difficult it would become for us to kill him in a short time. But we have him outnumbered and cornered. Let’s not stop now. Attack!” added another cultivator who looked to be a mercenary with his half-masked face. One would have to wonder if the cultivator was really a mercenary or made to look like one.
Facing Aksai now were three late-stage Spirit Refiners. They moved with precision, their eyes locked on Aksai, waiting for an opening.
Behind them, four more opponents were kept busy by Aksai’s Scarecrow Fiends, eerie constructs that mimicked human fighters, holding their ground despite their puppet-like behaviors.
One could already tell that Aksai’s puppet art was cut above the average with the way his puppets acted. His opponents also wondered how Aksai was able to operate so many puppets at once while fighting his own battles.
Only a skilled puppeteer with a reputed background could be able to pull off such a feat. However, as far as they knew, Aksai was nothing more than a Spirit farmer who had allied with Nuya by sheer coincidence and obtained ownership of the Emerald Cove.
How could someone like him be so proficient in a mysterious puppet art?
Of course, Aksai had no reason to tell anything about himself to his enemies.
His eyes narrowed as he assessed his opponents. He inhaled deeply, centering his qi, and began with a swift movement.
With a flick of his wrist, he summoned [Wood Vines]. Dark brown and green vines erupted from the ground, writhing like snakes, their thorns gleaming in the evening light.
After becoming a druid, Aksai’s wood-element spells were as quick as lightning. They could be cast while skipping the hand signs and mantras. It was almost as if they had been turned into his natal Spirit spells.
One of Aksai’s opponents barely had time to react as the vines wrapped around his legs, pulling him off balance.
Seizing the moment, Aksai launched into [Qi Flow Arts]. His legs moved with lightning speed, a blur of motion as he closed the distance. A powerful kick connected with the trapped opponent’s chest, sending him sprawling with a grunt of pain.
“Aaaaaaargh!”
Aksai’s kick was so powerful that the opponent’s rib cage had been fractured at many places just with a single impact. If the vector force acting on his body hadn’t sent him away from his initial position, the kick would have ended up piercing his chest as if a mini meteor had gone through it.
Another cultivator tried to flank Aksai, but the latter was ready. He channeled his qi into a powerful [Qi Fist Arts] strike. His fist, glowing with energy, slammed into the attacker’s ribs, a sickening crack resonating through the battlefield. The cultivator cried out, stumbling backward, clutching his side.
The third opponent, a fierce woman with a spear, thrust her weapon at Aksai. He parried with [Guardian’s Qi], his defensive stance absorbing the blow. He shifted his weight and used [Sword Qi Arts], his spectral sword humming with energy as it clashed against the spear, sparks flying.
“Is that all you’ve got?” Aksai taunted, his voice calm despite the chaos around him.
“Don’t get co*ky with me, you brat. I’m two decades older than you,” the woman snarled, pushing forward with renewed aggression.
Aksai decided to change tactics. He activated [Light Steps] along with a few of his talismans at the same time, his agility increasing exponentially.
Aksai also used his qi-based movements and Blood Strengthening Art to boost his agility even further, reaching a level that transcended the limits of a Spirit Refining Perfectionist.
The blood-red runic tattoos appeared over his limbs as a result of the Blood Strengthening Art, boosting Aksai’s overall Stats to a whole new level.
Swoosh. Zoom. Blur.
He darted around his opponent, his movements a blur. She tried to keep up, but Aksai was too fast. With a swift motion, he combined [Wind blades] with [Sword Qi Arts], sending sharp gusts of wind slicing toward her.
“Aaaaaaaah!”
She screamed as the wind blades cut through her defenses, leaving deep gashes.
In the background, the Scarecrow Fiends continued to engage the other four cultivators, their relentless attacks holding the enemies at bay. Aksai glanced at them, satisfied they were doing their job.
‘They… they sent seven Spirit Refining Perfectionists after me. That too with capable artifacts on them. I would have been dead meat if I didn’t have Argent Body body cultivation and my Scarecrow Fiends to rely on.’
Aksai thought to himself with a grim expression as he took a short breather to survey his surroundings. ‘Should… should I be honored or feel depressed?’
Aksai wanted to ask the mercenaries who sent them after him or how did they locate him. However, he knew that the opponents wouldn’t just tell him the details just because he asked them nicely. As such, he didn’t bother asking.
He could always get to the bottom of the truth after he finished dealing with them.
“Attack him!”
“Island owner Aksai, you have to pay for killing our comrades. Haaaah!”
The silent stalemate between the two sides was lifted after a brief pause.