Aksai could do a lot if he ever got into certain circles of Spirit Refining cultivators.
If he could get in touch with the Spirit cultivators of his level and establish a friendly rapport with them, he would be able to ask them for various forms of information related to his cultivation journey.
Aksai could ask for the most ideal way to progress further in his journey as a late-stage Spirit cultivator.
He could use these circles to initiate barter transactions with them. Ask them for information related to his cultivation base. There was a chance he might be able to get some 1st tier cultivation inheritances from them related to various fields.
As such, Aksai decided to use Jainam as a stepping ladder in the most gentlemanly way possible.
And Jainam too was all smiles while helping Aksai, thinking he was owing a favor to a mighty Foundation Building Expert.
***
Aksai used to eat a lot ever since he started his body cultivation.
Plus, his tempered qi was more potent and concentrated than before after he had started mixed martial arts and regressed in his body cultivation.
Thus, the Spirit farmer kept on eating all the free and delicious Spirit food that had been served on the table for him.
The Qi Fusion Arts allowed him to digest the food at a shockingly rapid rate, extracting the maximum amount of qi from it while creating minimal waste.
By the time Jainam finished narrating all the details related to the two counties and beyond, Aksai had also finished everything that was served to him, feeling completely satiated.
“I thank you for providing me with all the information and delicious food, junior,” Aksai assumed his fake identity of being a Foundation Building Expert as he addressed Jainam.
To the mortals not initiated in the ways of the cultivation world, a young man calling an old senior “junior” would be quite odd. But for the Spirit cultivators, this was the norm. After all, among the Spirit cultivators, seniority was based on one’s cultivation base. And with seniority came a certain set of perks.
“You flatter me, my lord,” Jainam spoke very humbly to Aksai and offered him a courtesy bow as he said, “Please tell me if there’s anything else I can do for you.”
‘If I ask you anything else, you are going to expect a bigger reward from me,’ Aksai thought to himself as he looked at the polite-looking Jainam. This was the disadvantage of assuming the identity of a powerhouse.
In Jainam’s eyes, Aksai was a Foundation Building Expert. As such, Aksai could use that assumption to his advantage and extract all the information he can from Jainam.
However, the position of the higher-ranked cultivators also came with its own set of restrictions and unwritten obligations. Under these unwritten obligations, Aksai would be forced to reward Jainam with something substantial.
Of course, Aksai didn’t want to do that. He was only pretending to be a Foundation Building Expert, after all.
Even with all the precious resources he had on the Everwood farm, Aksai was sure that Jainam’s wealth had surpassed him by a long shot.
The man had run a restaurant in the Purple River Gate for decades on end. Aksai couldn’t surpass the wealth that Jainam had built by being an ideal businessman over such a long period.
Thus, the gift he offered would ultimately be looked down upon by Jainam. There was a chance Jainam would see through the veil Aksai had created and see him for who he truly was– a Spirit Refining cultivator.
As such, Aksai didn’t think presenting Jainam with any sort of reward that one could put a price on was a good idea. He needed to give Jainam something that was considered invaluable.
‘Oh yes! That boy waiting outside!’
Aksai quickly thought of an ingenious gift, which put a smile on his face. He looked at Jainam curiously before asking him a question.
“Junior, your earlier way of approaching me made me realize something. Are you looking for a talented Spirit cultivator who would take your place after your death? You are planning for your family’s future, am I right?”
Jainam smiled wryly before nodding.
“That’s right, my lord. Unfortunately, none of my family members are talented in the path of Spirit cultivation. Most don’t even have fully functional Spirit Roots, and those who do have very poor Spirit Root Aptitude.
Forget about the late-stage Spirit Refining; they don’t even have a chance of reaching the mid-stage Spirit Refining realm in their primes. What can I do in such circumstances?
I… I thought that you were a drifting cultivator with an ideal age. I assumed that you certainly had a chance to establish your foundation. I would have supported your Spirit cultivation journey with the resources I had available to me.
In exchange, I was going to ask you to join my family. Of course, this was all before I knew you were a Foundation Building Expert in disguise. I would have never dared to make any assumptions about you if you had revealed your identity to me earlier,” Jainam tried to explain his circumstances as politely as possible.
‘You say you would have supported me if I joined your family. But no matter how many resources are offered to me, I would never give up my Everwood surname. A man has to have some dignity. So no thank you,’ Aksai thought to himself and chuckled in silence.
“That’s alright,” Aksai waved his hands casually before speaking with the authority of a Foundation Building Expert.
“With that in mind, I have a perfect reward to give you.
You see, there’s a five-year-old boy sitting in the mortal section of the restaurant with his grandfather right now.
Accept him as your disciple and support his Spirit cultivation journey. You still have plenty of years left in you for you to do that.
When he grows up, you can marry him off to one of your family descendants.
And yes. I should tell you this upfront.
Before you judge the origins of that mortal boy, let me tell you that he has a high-grade Spirit Root Aptitude. You should know what that entails, right?
Sigh! I was going to accept that child as my disciple. But for the favor you have done for me, I’m willing to give that chance to you,” Aksai said confidently.
One had to say that the Spirit farmer was getting increasingly good at lying and deceiving people. Some liars knew how to hone their craft to perfection after sort of drawing their “first blood” in lying.
Aksai watched with amusement how Jainam’s expressions changed from a sort of disappointment to extreme shock and wonder when he heard that the five-year-old boy named Shuan had a high-grade Spirit Root Aptitude.
This was indeed the perfect gift Jainam could receive from a (fake) Foundation Building Expert like Aksai.
What did a Spirit cultivator with a high-grade Spirit Root Aptitude really mean? It implied that Shuan had up to a 40 percent chance of establishing his foundation in the future even without any aid or external influence.
If Shuan received the right help and resources at the right time during his Spirit Refining journey, that chance would increase even more.
Compared to other regular Spirit cultivators, Shuan had a genuine chance of becoming a Foundation Building Expert in the future. If Jainam accepted such a seedling as his disciple and managed to bring him into his family, his family would surely prosper in the future.
In the worst-case scenario, even if Shuan didn’t manage to become a Foundation Building Expert, he could become a late-stage Spirit Refining cultivator without any hurdles. As such, Jainam would be assured that his family would be able to retain its current wealth and status quo in society.
Aksai had revealed his fully functional Spirit Sense to Jainam. As such, Jainam didn’t doubt that Shuan would have a high-grade Spirit Root Aptitude.
He quickly got up from his seat and offered a respectful bow to Aksai as he spoke with some emotion in his voice. “Thank.. Thank you, my lord. This favor… I will never forget this favor,” Jainam said as he stood straight up.
He then looked at Aksai with an eager expressions. Aksai knew what he was waiting for. He chuckled before saying. “Go ahead. Approach that boy right away,” Aksai said casually. Jainam offered Aksai a light bow once again before rushing towards the exit, approaching the mortal section of his restaurant as if his life depended on it.
‘Shuan. I’ll remember this name,’ Aksai thought to himself before getting up from his position. In the next moment, he disappeared from his position.
On the table, a few 1st order Spirit cultivation resources were left by him as a tip. After all, Aksai was getting good at scamming people but he wasn’t a complete monster. At least not yet.