Everwood palace. Martial World Sharang.
Hour of Shadow Rat. (06:00 PM – 07:00 PM)
Aksai reclined comfortably on a resting chair in the courtyard, the evening sky gradually dimming to reveal faint stars and a crescent moon, though daylight lingered.
A guard stood behind Aksai’s chair, holding a large umbrella, while a table beside him boasted a glass brimming with fresh, zesty fruit juice. There was also a bowl filled with an assortment of fruits, from ripe black bananas to succulent purple berries, and golden apples to exotic magenta mangoes.
Sipping the fruit juice, Aksai savored its flavor as his attention turned to a nondescript middle-aged man approaching him with a flattering smile.
Flanked by palace guards, the man was Mo Len, a city official from Serenity Peak, evidently under Aksai’s “monetary” influence.
Behind him trailed a group of prisoners, their limbs bound and mouths gagged, restrained by chains and weights.
Despite their captivity, the prisoners glared defiantly at Aksai and his guards, their expressions laden with contempt for their captors. They even tried to challenge the palace guards and even Aksai himself, subtly implying that they should engage in a brawl to decide who gets to be in the shackles.
One could tell that most of the prisoners were martial artists. Some had even crossed the mid-stage Bronze Body realm. Special forms of restrictions were made for these martial artists to ensure that they didn’t use their body cultivation to break free.
Unfazed by their supposedly grim situation, these prisoners followed Mo Len, though it was clear they harbored no respect for his authority.
“Lord Aksai, I am grateful for this audience,” Mo Len saluted, his tone deferential.
Aksai, however, frowned at Mo Len’s deference, his annoyance evident as he questioned the city official sternly.
“Mo Len, why the delay in this week’s delivery? Are you slacking off?”
“I wouldn’t dare,” Mo Len hurriedly interjected, offering a strained smile to Aksai before explaining.
“My lord, the issue is that I’ve been under scrutiny from one of my superiors regarding my dealings with the death-row prisoners. Their numbers in the city prison are rapidly dwindling, you see.
Even if I expedite their execution dates legally, certain individuals in the upper echelons of the city administration are bound to raise questions. So I had to resolve some matters with them before arranging this week’s delivery,” Mo Len lamented, a hint of helplessness in his tone.
“I see,” Aksai nodded in acknowledgment before continuing.
“Next time your supervisor queries you, direct them to me. They’re likely looking for ways to get in our little secret. Let’s satiate their curiosity,” Aksai suggested before draining his fruit juice in one gulp.
Aksai had expected something like this to happen. There were a lot of city officials who wanted to get close to him without there being an opportunity to do so. The quickest way to ensure cooperation from the city administration was to buy the loyalties of most of these city officials.
In Martial World Sharang, Aksai was so poor that all he had was money.
Why should he concentrate all his efforts on buying only Mo Len when he can just get the latter’s boss as well as his underlings to his side?
Clap.
Aksai clapped his hands, prompting a palace guard to approach Mo Len from behind, carrying a sealed cloth sack. Handing it to Mo Len, the guard retreated noiselessly to his position.
Mo Len hesitated upon receiving the sack. “Go ahead. Open it,” Aksai smirked, observing Mo Len’s reaction as he sampled the purple berries.
Despite his initial reluctance, Mo Len ceremoniously opened the sack. His expression transformed into a wide smile upon seeing its contents—a few tens of gold coins. “Thank you, my lord,” he expressed with a humble bow to Aksai.
“You can leave now,” Aksai instructed Mo Len, his demeanor turning serious. Without delay, Aksai’s special guards, cloaked in long black robes and donning wooden masks, emerged from behind him, encircling the prisoners.
These masked guards, clad in black attire, were none other than Aksai’s Scarecrow puppets. Five of them were stationed at the Everwood palace and five were stored in his storage ring, with the remaining five positioned at the Everwood farm, awaiting Aksai’s summons at any moment.
Aksai had 15 Scarecrow Puppets under his control at this point. He would have had more if it weren’t for the excessive burden it placed on his mind.
Operating 15 Scarecrow puppets simultaneously was Aksai’s current limit. Without a fully unlocked Spirit Sense aiding him, he would have been able to control far fewer puppets than the current 15.
And, of course, Lian Lakir had been inducted as one of Aksai’s elite Scarecrow puppets. He was often paired with Nesha, his former lover when they were both alive.
By turning them both into his puppets, Aksai had reunited the couple. One could say that Aksai was a very peculiar kind of matchmaker.
Mo Len’s expression stiffened as he looked at the black-clothed guards. He wasn’t sure if they were martial artists, but he could instinctively tell that they were more dangerous than the prisoners he had brought into Aksai’s palace.
Even Aksai’s usual palace guards had tense expressions when they felt the black guards’ cold and mysterious presence. They backed away from the group of prisoners uniformly, allowing the Scarecrow puppets to take charge of their custody.
“Ugh! Ugh! Ugh!”
One of the prisoners started making muffled sounds through his gagged mouth. He also began to break free from the shackles using his mid-stage Bronze Body realm qi. One could tell that he was riled up after the arrival of the black-clothed guards.
“Hmm. There’s always this one bolt sticking out from the pack that needs some hammering down. Lian, go take care of him.”
Aksai remained unfazed as he commanded one of his Scarecrow puppets. He didn’t have to voice his commands to the puppets, as they could act on his thoughts alone.
However, in Martial World Sharang, where something like Scarecrow Puppets Arts shouldn’t exist, Aksai made it a point to keep up appearances.
Puppet Lian stepped forward and…