“I have to admit, brother Haitin,” Aksai said after a moment, “this Spirit tea is remarkable.”
Haitin smiled. “It’s just a common resource that my sect produces in a controlled greenhouse. But I’m glad you think so.
It’s one of our sect’s lesser-known treasures, but those who use it regularly see real improvements in their cultivation.
Of course, it’s not something we hand out to just anyone. We usually save it for our talented newbies– cultivators in the Spirit Refining realm who show immense talent. We use this tea to hasten their cultivation journeys to some extent while also enabling them to unearth their potential.
When the Spirit Refiners use this tea during the late-stages of the 1st realm, they develop a certain tolerance towards it by the time they are ready to break into the Foundation Building realm. Once they break into the 2nd realm, the tea becomes ineffective for them no matter how much of it they consume.”
This was the story of basically cultivation resources ranked by order and quality. One couldn’t keep on using the same resources for an extended period without compromising on their potency. There would come a day when a certain cultivation resource becomes completely useless for someone who had made a habit of using it.
Aksai also wanted to bring variation to the cultivation resources he produced inside the Everwood Farm. After all, he had also made use of various resources to speed up his cultivation journey. Most of the resources he produced had stopped working on him altogether whereas the remaining ones had lost their peak potency.
It was only a matter of time before the resources produced inside the Everwood Farm became completely useless to him.
As such, Aksai also wanted to get a new batch of cultivation resources that he could produce inside his separated dimension. He could then use these resources as raw ingredients and make use of his newly unlocked facilities.
Aksai also felt that this Spirit tea had special effects on bloodline users. He knew that Haitin had a certain special bloodline. He was able to reattach his severed arm using a bloodline ability.
As such. Aksai guessed that the tea is specially produced to enable the Blackblood clan members to refine their bloodlines. As for the Spirit essence calming effect that it produces, it could be said to be only a side effect that was applicable for all– with or without special bloodlines.
Thus, Aksai never mentioned that the Spirit tea had a special effect on his bloodline. He also didn’t try to probe any information around it from Haitin. Doing so was akin to letting Haitin know that he was also a Spirit bloodline user. This was something Aksai wanted to avoid at all cost.
However, there was nothing wrong with showing interest when it came to the Spirit Essence calming properties of the Blood-calming Spirit tea. Rather, it would be weird if someone with a shallow background like Aksai wasn’t interested in such a type of elite cultivation resource.
“I’ll be honest, brother Haitin. I’m very interested in cultivating this Blood-calming Spirit tea.”
Aksai said, already forming a plan in his mind. If this tea could produce such an effect on his Spirit bloodline, then having a steady supply of it would be invaluable. But he couldn’t exactly ask for it in bulk without drawing suspicion. Instead, he decided to take a more subtle approach.
“I have to ask,” Aksai said casually, setting down his cup, “do you grow this tea here in the sect? Or do you have special suppliers?”
Haitin leaned back slightly, his eyes narrowing with interest. “Like I said, we grow it ourselves inside a dedicated greenhouse. The plants are sensitive, and they require specific conditions to thrive. Why do you ask?”
Aksai shrugged, keeping his tone light. “I’m just curious. Something like this could be useful in my own cultivation, and perhaps it wouldn’t hurt to have a small supply growing in my own backyard.
You know what I do on Emerald Cove, right? Even though I have become a Foundation Building Expert, I’m nothing but a Spirit farmer by heart.
If it’s not too much trouble, do you think I could get a few saplings? I’m sure I could find a way to cultivate them back at my farm.”
Haitin chuckled, clearly amused by the request. “It’s not an easy plant to grow, but I’ll see what I can do. Consider it a small part of the rewards I promised you.”
Aksai smiled, hiding his satisfaction.
If he could transfer those saplings to his Enchanted Everwood Farm, he’d have a personal supply of this incredible tea, one that could help refine his druidic bloodline in secret. If he were to use this tea while refining his bloodline using the corrupted druid’s technique, the effects might be doubled.
It was a win on multiple fronts, and Haitin had no idea just how valuable that gift would be.
As they continued to sip their tea, Aksai couldn’t help but marvel at the resources Haitin had at his disposal.
Whether it was the tea, the palaces, or the cultivation techniques, everything spoke of wealth and power on a scale Aksai hadn’t truly appreciated until now.
Either Haitin was incredibly rich, or Aksai was far poorer than he realized—or perhaps it was a little of both.
Whatever the case, Aksai knew one thing for sure: his time in the Black Blood Demon Sect was about to become even more fruitful than he had anticipated.
A few minutes later.
After finishing their tea, Haitin looked at Aksai with a relaxed, almost casual curiosity. “So, brother Aksai,” he began.
“Alright. Let’s cut to the chase. The Blood-calming Spirit tea doesn’t really cut it. I would have given you a few saplings casually even if I didn’t owe you anything.
Is there anything else you’d like as a reward? I meant it when I said I’d be generous. There’s no fixed amount of reward.
You can ask for anything you want. You can keep on asking until I find that what I have given you is enough.
Please don’t be overly hypocritical and ask for perfunctory rewards. At the same time, you also shouldn’t ask something that I can’t offer easily. As long as it doesn’t touch my bottom line, I’ll keep on giving you rewards until you are satisfied.
Of course, I have also promised that I will provide you with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for solving the troubles I had with Siya. I’ll tell you all about it once we are done deciding your rewards.”