Aksai had guessed it right.
He could not harm the Myriad Worlds Painting with his current cultivation base.
However, he never considered the possibility of the artifact harming him.
Although he had thought about the Myriad Worlds Painting being a 4th-order artifact or beyond, he abandoned that idea after pondering over it multiple times. After all, he had never seen or felt the natal spirit of the artifact before. Without the natal spirit, Aksai concluded that the secret dimension in his possession was a 3rd-order treasure.
Under normal circumstances, Aksai’s assumptions would have been right. However, due to his lack of background and the fact that he had not really explored much of Dadangar, he couldn’t imagine a scenario where a natal spirit was put into slumber by the previous owner.
This slumber was forcefully broken when Aksai tried to imbue the natal spirit into the Myriad Worlds Painting using the Consciousness Creation Art. When the slumbering natal spirit sensed the budding consciousness cultivated using Aksai’s modified Consciousness Creation Art, it directly devoured the new consciousness to replenish itself after a very long slumber.
It was like an extremely hungry bear being presented with a lot of sumptuous food after hibernation. The artifact’s natal spirit not only devoured the budding consciousness but also started demanding more nutrients using Aksai’s Array Formation as a medium.
Originally, the new consciousness created by the Consciousness Creation Art was supposed to take root in the artifact before it could manifest itself. It was a slow process that would take months. Aksai imagined he would not see any results until he returned from his trip to the Eternal Beast Dynasty.
However, the Myriad Worlds Painting’s original natal spirit was a curveball Aksai couldn’t expect. It was not only a fully developed consciousness, its rank was obviously very high. Aksai felt a subtle suppression on his soul after the awakening of the artifact’s natal spirit.
The ancient natal spirit, though not hostile, posed a significant threat due to its overwhelming power. Aksai’s heart pounded as he struggled to maintain control, desperately trying to stabilize the situation before it spiraled further out of control.
The realization dawned on him that he had been reckless, and now he was paying the price for his miscalculation and lack of information.
“Damn it,” he muttered, his voice strained. “I shouldn’t have tampered with something so powerful without fully understanding its nature.”
Despite the chaos, Aksai’s determination surged. He had to find a way to mitigate the situation and regain control over the Array Formation and the Myriad Worlds Painting before it was too late.
“Things are still not out of control. I can do this.”
Aksai took a deep breath, his mind racing as he reached into his storage ring. With a flick of his wrist, he pulled out an array of Spirit Stones and Aether Crystals.
He began feeding them into the Array Formation, the stones and crystals slotting into their designated places. Although the consumption of the formation was a bit exaggerated, Aksai had the capital to support its operability for quite some time.
After all, Aksai was an island owner of one of the most resource-rich 2nd-order islands in the Dadangar Archipelago. He had also made quite a fortune using his covert and overt tricks. The businesses he ran with Haan Di on personal and organizational level were also quite lucrative.
As such, Aksai had loads of Spirit stones to burn. He was only a Foundation Building Expert. However, his wealth was already starting to rival a poor half-step Core Formation Lord.
Thanks to this rich status, Aksai could afford to keep the array formation up and running. He didn’t care how much Spirit stones he was burning inside the formation as long as he could awaken the Myriad Worlds Painting’s natal spirit completely.
After all, the Spirit stones could be replenished easily in the future. However, Aksai was not sure that the slumbering natal spirit would react the same way next time. What if it chooses to ignore him due to his low cultivation base?
Aksai could never allow something like that to happen. Plus, now that the original spirit of the artifact had finally taken notice of him, he was determined to make use of it in his upcoming tasks.
Aksai knew that he couldn’t always take safe approaches. In life, sometimes some mess-ups were bound to take place. As someone who had died once, he knew that he couldn’t always count on his preparations and planning to make certain things happen. Instead, he needed to cease the opportunity when it was presented to him.
As such, Aksai didn’t hesitate to burn all his wealth for this operation. However, the biggest problem he currently had was not that he did not have enough Spirit Stones. It was that the formation also demanded a sizable amount of Aether Crystals from him.
Aksai had obviously acquired a good portion of the Aether Crystal from his clone in Acarnis. However, the quantity that he possessed currently was certainly not enough. As such, he decided to call for help.
Aksai could only count on himself during such critical tasks– his clone in Acarnis.
“Let me see if I can bring my clone back here,” he muttered to himself, sweat trickling down his forehead.
Using the neural link fabric, Aksai automated the Mantra and Mudra-casting, allowing him to focus entirely on the Myriad Worlds Painting with his Spirit Sense. Soon, he felt like his body was being operated by an external entity. This way, he was assured that the process wouldn’t get interrupted while he was doing the other things.
The neural link fabric hummed to life, intricately weaving the required patterns while Aksai channeled his energy towards stabilizing the artifact.
He could feel his body heating up, his skin damp with sweat, but a determined smile spread across his face when he realized that the Myriad Worlds Painting was still fully functional and unharmed.
“Good, good,” he whispered, closing his eyes to deepen his concentration.
Through his soul-related connection, Aksai reached out to his clone, Aron, who was in the Mind Cultivation World of Acarnis.
At this point, Aron was busy doing a project of his own inside the Research and Analysis department of the Acarnis World Government. When Aron sensed that something was wrong, he stopped what he was doing before finding a safe place.
With a mental tug, Aksai called Aron back to the Enchanted Everwood farm.
“Hm? What’s the matter? I was busy– holy fuc–”
Aron materialized inside the farm, eyes wide with shock as he took in the sight of the destroyed farmhouse.
“What the—” Aron began, but Aksai cut him off.
“No time to explain. Sit there,” Aksai pointed to a supplementary control-type Array Eye.
Aron swallowed hard, the potent fluctuations from the Myriad Worlds Painting making him uneasy.
‘My main self has gone crazy. Why did he summon me inside this atomic reactor as well? Does he want to finish me off along with him?’ Aron complained in his heart. However, he didn’t have the privilege to voice his complaints.
He quickly followed Aksai’s instructions, settling into the Array Eye with a mix of trepidation and determination. As soon as Aron was in place, Aksai activated the supplementary control-type Array Eye, feeling a subtle shift in the formation’s energy.
“Take out the Aether Crystals in your possession and feed them to the Array Eye right in front of you. Then start controlling the Array Eye you are in charge of,” Aksai commanded, his voice steady despite the situation.
Aron nodded, understanding the urgency. He began performing Mudra-casting and chanting Mantras, his hands moving with practiced precision.
Even though what Aron had was subroutine neural link fabric with limited functionalities, the automation of the Mudra casting and Tantra control was still within its reach. As such, Aksai’s neural link fabric just had to send the recorded macros to the subroutine, allowing Aron to perform the required actions without knowing much about them.
At regular intervals, Aron pulled out Aether Crystals from his storage, feeding them into the Array Eye. The crystals glowed brightly as they were absorbed, their energy merging with the formation.
Aksai watched as the Array Formation began to stabilize, the burden on him lightening as Aron took on some of the load. He reconfigured the formation, distributing tasks between himself and his clone.
Aksai handled the Spirit essence concepts, while Aron managed the Aether energy. This division of labor significantly reduced the pressure on Aksai, allowing him to maintain control with greater ease.
“Good job, Aron,” Aksai said, a hint of relief in his voice. “Keep it steady. We’re almost there.”
Aron nodded simply. The room was filled with the hum of the formation, the combined energies of Spirit Stones and Aether Crystals flowing smoothly through the Array Formation.
Aksai’s breathing steadied, his feverish body cooling slightly as the situation stabilized. He cast a glance at the Myriad Worlds Painting with a hint of excitement and fear.
They had managed to avert a potential disaster, and for now, things were under control.
***
Minutes turned into hours.
By the time Aksai and his clone Aron completed the formation stabilization, both of them had almost exhausted their resources.
Aron had only a dozen Aether Crystals left, while Aksai had about 50 Spirit Stones, making him poorer than even a late-stage Spirit Refining cultivator.
Aksai had paid a heavy price for this unforeseen event, but he managed to avoid any soul injury during the process. Even though he and his clone were extremely exhausted, both of them were completely fine.
Thanks to the division of labor between himself and his clone, he was able to hold on until the Myriad Worlds Painting’s artifact spirit was fully “well-nourished.”
The result of Aksai’s efforts became apparent in the next moment when the natal spirit revealed itself right in front of him for the first time.