Aksai didn’t need to think long.
With a nod, he replied, “Brother Haitin, I’m not planning to dive straight into practicing them. I just want to take a look and use them as references for my own needs.”
Lying was simple once one got the hang of it. Many troubles can be avoided if one just learns to lie better.
Haitin seemed relieved.
“Fair enough,” he said before producing a communication talisman from his storage ring. With a flick of his wrist, the talisman shot out of the window like a streak of light.
Clearly, Aksai’s request had caught Haitin off guard, as the body cultivation techniques weren’t something he had readily on hand.
Moments later, one of Haitin’s maids entered the hall, a simple storage pouch in hand. She bowed, placed it on the table before them, and quickly exited.
Haitin reached into the pouch and began pulling out a stack of old books, placing them on the table between them. There were more than forty ancient tomes, along with over two dozen sealed scrolls.
The pile of materials looked heavy with history, but also somewhat neglected.
“These,” Haitin gestured at the books and scrolls, “are all the body cultivation techniques my sect has collected. As you can see, we didn’t bother transcribing them into jade slips. They’re old and, frankly, not given much attention.
Body cultivation has always been an inferior path in Dadangar. At least here, in the Dandagar Subcontinent, we lack resources for mainstream cultivation. Who would care about a heretic path in such a situation?
So no one’s bothered modernizing the storage of these techniques. They’re more of an archive than an active resource.”
Aksai nodded as Haitin continued.
“Most of these techniques are practically impossible to cultivate nowadays. Many require rare resources that are no longer available in the Dadangar Subcontinent.
Others can only be practiced by individuals with specific Physiques—like the ‘Titanblood Bone Cleansing Method,’ which demands the practitioner have the Titanblood Physique. Then there are some techniques, like the ‘Crimson Skin Body Tempering Art,’ which will only allow you to reach the strength equivalent to a late-stage Spirit Refiner.”
Aksai picked up one of the scrolls, unsealing it gently. As he scanned the contents, Haitin kept explaining.
“There are about ten techniques here that could theoretically allow you to progress beyond the first realm of body cultivation and into the second. One of them is the ‘Iron Fist Heavenly Stance,’ which is an external body cultivation technique.
It strengthens the limbs and torso, allowing the practitioner to enhance their physical strength to match a mid-tier 2nd realm body cultivator. But it requires regular immersion in specialized spirit pools—a resource that’s extremely rare in Dadangar.”
Aksai nodded, keeping his expression neutral.
“And then there’s the ‘Black Stone Immortal Body,’ a technique that hardens your skin and bones, making them almost impervious to normal attacks. However, it has its drawbacks—it drastically slows down the circulation of your Spirit essence, making it difficult to progress in your Spirit cultivation while practicing it.”
Haitin paused before picking up another scroll, unsealing it with care.
“Now, there are only two techniques here that could theoretically take someone into the third realm of body cultivation, but I wouldn’t recommend them. One is the ‘Vermilion Blood Sacrifice Art,’ which pushes the body to extreme limits by consuming large amounts of Blood Force. However, this one is dangerous—it could drain your life essence and destabilize your Spirit cultivation entirely.”
Aksai raised an eyebrow, intrigued but not surprised. He had encountered similar risks when researching body cultivation techniques on his own.
“The second,” Haitin continued, “is the ‘Demonic Dragon Soul Armor Technique.’ It should be powerful, no doubt, but it’s even more unstable. It requires integrating the essence of a high-rank dragon beast into your body, which, if not done perfectly, will result in failure. And failure means death—or worse, permanent damage to your cultivation foundation.”
Aksai casually flipped through one of the books as Haitin explained, appearing to absorb the information but not showing too much interest.
In truth, he was far more knowledgeable about the limitations of body cultivation techniques than Haitin. After all, he was in the Argent Body Realm. He still had silver qi energy running through his veins even though it had not been refined for a while.
The Dadangar Subcontinent, as expected, wasn’t the right place for pursuing the body cultivation path. However, with his access to Martial World Sharang, Aksai had opportunities that most cultivators in Dadangar couldn’t even dream of.
Still, he kept his expression controlled, nodding thoughtfully. “I see,” he said, maintaining a tone of mild curiosity. “I appreciate you bringing these out for me, Brother Haitin. I’ll definitely take a closer look at them.”
Haitin seemed pleased by Aksai’s tempered response, perhaps relieved that Aksai wasn’t too eager to jump into dangerous waters.
“Take your time. As I said, these techniques are unconventional, and I wouldn’t want to see your progress hindered by an impulsive decision.
But I trust you’ll make the right choice for your path. Maybe you can use some of the knowledge mentioned in these techniques to strengthen Heretic Dao.”
Aksai smiled, leaning back slightly. “Don’t worry, I’m not in a rush to experiment. I’ll make sure to tread carefully.”
Inside, Aksai was already planning how to integrate these techniques into the vast network of knowledge he had access to.
But for now, he would play the part of the curious but cautious cultivator, content to study the techniques without diving headfirst into them.
At this point, Aksai was more certain than ever that Haitin’s background wasn’t simple. It seemed his clan had migrated to the Dadangar Subcontinent from somewhere else.
What did Haitin mean when he mentioned coming from lands beyond the Shinayin Empire? Aksai didn’t know, and he didn’t bother to ask. He hadn’t even checked out the Shinayin Empire yet.
Aksai wasn’t qualified to know such information. In fact, learning about these things might bring unexpected trouble.
Curiosity killed the cat, as they said.
So, Aksai didn’t care where the knowledge came from. As long as it served his purpose, he was fine with staying in the dark about certain things.