“So that’s how they were able to track me.”
Aksai mumbled to himself as he observed a seemingly ordinary flying insect trapped inside a glass bottle sealed with a runic talisman.
Aksai had been curious about how Haisha could have known that he was the one who conducted a very lucrative deal with Juyee from the Mystic Treasures Emporium. After all, Aksai had employed his Qi Fusion Arts to change his appearance not once but twice.
Upon inspecting the insect and perusing one of the scrolls he retrieved from Haisha’s storage ring, he finally found his answer.
“The effect of this tea should linger around me for three or four days. It means that I can be tracked using the same method for that duration if the Mystic Treasures Emporium decides to act against me,” Aksai thought to himself.
A shadow crossed Aksai’s face as he realized how close he had come to exposing his true identity despite taking all the necessary precautions.
Spirit cultivators had myriad methods for tracking individuals, some of which were so unconventional and unpredictable that they couldn’t be countered without prior knowledge of their existence.
Under normal circumstances, Aksai would have remained within the confines of the Everwood farm for about a week to allow the distinct scent he carried to dissipate, which could be tracked by specially cultivated insects.
However, Aunt Reta and her son couldn’t afford to wait that long. Therefore, Aksai decided to take some risks.
“Anyway, it seems Haisha acted on his personal interests, and the Mystic Treasures Emporium had nothing to do with why I was tracked,” Aksai contemplated.
“So I don’t anticipate the emporium taking action directly. As for that harlot Juyee, I doubt she would personally come after me.
The two counties are bound to face unrest once the battle between the two clans starts. So nobody will have the time to focus on me. Additionally, during the battle, nobody from Ragui County will recklessly venture into Wuyum County.
Thus, I should be safe from tracking for quite some time. I need to act swiftly and attend to all my affairs within two days at maximum. After that, I must vanish from the Dadangar five-kingdom subcontinent altogether,” Aksai resolved as he considered various possibilities.
If even someone like Haisha, with a relatively mediocre background, possessed the ability to track Aksai, then he could only imagine the lengths to which the Lakir clan’s main branch would go once they discovered that their talented scion had been killed by someone.
How far would they go to avenge Lian’s death? Aksai had no desire to personally find out.
Even if the Lakir clan was destined to come under attack by the Wilben family and its allies, the Lakir clan was simply too extensive, with hundreds of members spread across the main and side branches. It would be practically impossible to eliminate every single member of the Lakir family unless the Purple River Sect resorted to extreme measures.
Aksai was certain that the involvement of the Purple River Sect in the matter stemmed from the greed of some of its sect elders. Consequently, the Lakir family would be ousted from its rule over Wuyum County in the impending chaos.
If Aksai’s assumptions were correct, the only Foundation Building Expert within the Lakir family was likely to face life-threatening circumstances soon.
However, remnants of the Lakir family’s forces were sure to persist after the battle. Aksai didn’t want to provide these remnants with any reason to act against him during the tumultuous times ahead.
Thus, he added one more justification to his decision to distance himself from the Dadangar subcontinent soon. With his recent purchases from the Mystic Treasures Emporium, he had already planned an extended retreat. Therefore, the chaos about to unfold in the two counties couldn’t have come at a more opportune time for Aksai.
***
“Unfortunately, Haisha’s subordinates didn’t have storage rings on them. Guess they were too poor to have one,” Aksai commented as he checked the bodies of the nameless cultivators. He decided to use their bodies as nourishment for some of his 2nd-order Spirit plants.
Aksai then moved on to inspect the storage rings of all the Blood Bakshi cultivators together. The first storage ring he found was stuck around a finger that had been separated from the rest of the hand due to the explosion.
The separated index finger and the storage ring still attached to it belonged to the leader of the Blood Bakshi cultivators, who had personally struck Haisha Lakir, severing his arms.
Aksai didn’t waste time checking out the items one by one; he directly retrieved all the contents stored inside the ring.
“Hm? What the hell are these things?”
He scrunched his nose in a bit of annoyance when he realized that most of the Blood Bakshi cultivators’ resources were strange and unrecognizable to him.
Apart from that, there were vials and jars filled with dark blood from various demon beasts and even some human cultivators. There were also human bones and severed organs stored inside sealed wooden boxes.
“These Blood Bakshi cultivators really have demonic origins,” Aksai thought to himself as he stored away the items he couldn’t recognize in a separate storage ring. He then began reading through some of the manuals the Blood Bakshi cultivators possessed just to see what they were about.
[ Blood Fiend Creation Manual ]
This manual detailed the process of creating blood fiends from the bodies of deceased cultivators. The technique bore some resemblance to Aksai’s Puppet Creation manual. However, the Blood Fiends produced by the Blood Bakshi’s method were far more versatile.
One could fashion Blood Fiends from pure masses of blood. These creatures could possess the bodies of others, serving as loyal subordinates to the user. Alternatively, they could inhabit the bodies of demon beasts, allowing the user to control these wild creatures.
Additionally, the manual described the creation of Flesh Fiends. These entities resembled zombies or undead creatures. While lacking in intelligence, they still possessed practical utility.
Aksai was impressed by the depth of knowledge the Blood Bakshi possessed regarding the creation of Blood Fiends. He sensed there was much more to the Blood Bakshi than he currently understood.
“Perhaps the involvement of certain sect elders from the Purple River Sect in this matter was due to the existence of the Blood Bakshi force. I don’t think the sect elders care about the existence of demonic cultivators nurtured by the Lakir family. Then it might be that they are interested in the techniques possessed by the Blood Bakshis.”
Aksai pondered as he closed the manuals and scrolls. He decided to delve deeper into them when he had leisure time.
“Perhaps I can combine the techniques from the Scarecrow Puppet Creation manual and the Blood Fiend manual to develop my own version of puppets in the future,” Aksai mused before rising from his position.
Having rested sufficiently and attended to all pressing matters, Aksai altered his appearance once more before departing from the Everwood farm.
His next destination was the rental farmhouse where he had been residing since arriving in this new world.
He could only hope that the situation was not as dire as he feared.