“Precisely,” Kaamen answered Reman’s question with a nod.
He then spoke further in the lowest possible voice he could manage.
“How else could an ordinary Spirit farmer like him have the sect’s token? He played it smart by giving the token to that kid Ruan. After becoming an inner disciple and coming under the protection of a sect elder, nobody would question that kid or his mother.
I was wondering why anyone would be so generous to hand over such a big chance to their neighbors. Even family members with blood relations would tear each other apart just for a shot at becoming an inner disciple of the Purple River Sect, you know.”
Jasmine was shocked after hearing Kaamen’s words. She couldn’t believe that Aksai had the guts and power to kill someone like Lian Lakir, especially in the Wilben family’s territory during such chaotic times.
She wondered if the killing of the Lian Lakir was one of the tipping points that set the stage for the two families to fight to the death.
Even if Aksai wasn’t the main reason behind the enmity between the two families, he had certainly added fuel to the fire by killing Lian in the Wilben family’s territory.
Jasmine’s chain of thoughts was broken by Kaamen’s next words.
“Anyway, my point is that there’s a chance the remnants of the Lakir family will find out Aksai is the real culprit behind the token’s theft,” Kaamen chose his words carefully as he spoke.
“If that happens, they will surely follow his trail and come here looking for him. And if they come to know that we were the ones who had accompanied Aksai here, what do you think will happen to us if the remnants of the Lakir family even falsely assume that Aksai had accomplices in us?”
“We would face the wrath of the Lakir family if they couldn’t find Aksai,” Reman spoke in a grave tone.
“You younglings might not know this, but it could definitely happen. I have heard from very trustworthy sources that the Lakir family is originally a family of demonic cultivators who were legitimized by the kingdom’s royalty after their ancestor became a Foundation Building Expert more than a century ago.
It is said that the family cultivates the Blood Bakshi force, which still follows its old demonic practices. If they come here, they will surely take their anger out on us,” Reman made a grim prediction and hoped that it would not come to pass in the future.
“Indeed,” Kaamen agreed. “Staying here is dangerous. We need to leave in a few days and go somewhere else,” Kaamen replied with a stressed expression.
Earlier, Kaamen had gone after Aksai to apologize to him. However, if he were to meet Aksai now after learning about the incident involving Lian Lakir’s death, he would have tried to strangle Aksai for indirectly making them accomplices to his crimes.
It could be said that Aksai had unknowingly painted targets on the backs of Reman, Jasmine, and Kaamen by entering the Purple River Gate together with them.
Of course, they were the ones who had convinced Aksai to allow them to accompany him, and they had indeed paid him handsomely. It was as if they had spent half their fortune inviting a potential disaster upon themselves.
“Where should we go now?” Jasmine spoke with a hint of panic in her voice. “We can’t return to Wuyum County, and we’re far from any other routes to bypass Ragui County. The river routes aren’t safe for us either.”
“We only have one option: the Dadangar Archipelago,” Reman said gravely, gazing toward the Dadangar Sea.
“The Dadangar Islands Alliance is a formidable organization. They won’t allow the Lakir family’s influence in their territories.
Moreover, it would be nearly impossible for the Blood Bakshi to find us there because of the sheer number of islands present in the archipelago.”
The trio quickly devised a plan to depart from the Purple River Gate as soon as possible and head for the deep seas.
All three of them hoped they would never encounter the Blood Bakshi or Aksai again after finding refuge on one of the islands of the Dadangar Archipelago.
Would their wish come true though? Only time will tell.
***
Three days later.
Enchanted Everwood farm.
Not knowing the extent of the trouble he had caused Reman’s family, Aksai remained at ease within his safe zone. While the world outside was engulfed in turmoil, Aksai experienced a tranquil calm.
Even if Aksai had been aware of Reman and Jasmine’s troubles, he likely wouldn’t have cared.
He would have likely flipped a bird to them if he were to hear them whine about how much they would have to suffer because of him.
After all, it wasn’t Aksai who had urged Reman’s group to follow him; they had done so of their own volition. It was debatable whether they could have safely reached the Purple River Gate without Aksai’s assistance. Some might argue that their decision to accompany him had ultimately saved their lives in the first place.
Was it not better to stay alive under any circumstances?
Following his farewell to Aunt Reta and her son, Aksai wasted no time in locating a safe place to teleport and enter the isolated domain of the Everwood farm. He had thoroughly prepared for his extended stay there, distancing himself from the chaos unfolding in Wuyum and Ragui counties.
At this juncture, Aksai was observed quietly seated inside his wooden farmhouse, eyes closed and breathing regulated. Assuming a meditative posture on a rattan mattress, he intoned the enhanced Mantras and Mudras outlined in the Stellar Greenwood Tantra.
Accompanying this Tantra was a compatible Yantra in the form of an Array Disk. Crafted from a thin, golden-colored metal, this disk bore a lotus-shaped carving consisting of countless Essence Equations.
Initially retrieved from Lian Lakir’s storage ring, Aksai had retained this Array Disk, recognizing its potential utility only upon delving into the depths of the Stellar Greenwood Tantra.
The Array Disk facilitated the casting of an Array Formation anywhere Aksai desired.
Specifically tailored for use with the Stellar Greenwood Tantra, this formation had the primary function of accelerating the cultivation speed of practitioners.
By filtering out ambient Spirit Essence, it rendered absorption of the Spirit essence compatible with the Tantra far more efficient.
===
AN: To avoid confusion from henceforth:
Tantra = Cultivation technique
Yantra = Tool to enhance the effects of the cultivation technique
Mantra = Runic chants
Mudra = Hand-signs / Hand-weaving patterns
Asana = Distinct postures
Prana = Breathing techniques
A high-level comprehensive Tantra AKA cultivation technique, would have its own sets of Yantra, Mantra, Mudra, Asana, and Prana. These sets would vary after each layer or chapter mentioned in the Tantra.