A Farmer's Journey To Immortality

Aksai silently observed the four isolated battlefields through the formation.

His gaze lingered on Varesh for a moment.

He instantly recognized that the true sword cultivator was the most troublesome among the four imperial cultivators.

Even after being isolated from his companions, Varesh continued to cut through the Demon Vines with terrifying efficiency. This was despite more than 50 percent of the formation’s pure offensive power being focused on Varesh alone.

To put it into perspective, had Varesh been the one battling Aksai on the mainland a few days ago instead of Kalina, he would have easily shattered the spell-based Devil’s Den multiple times within only a minute or two.

If it had been Varesh instead of Kalina, not only would Aksai have failed to protect the Purple River Lord and his sect members, but even his own life would have been in danger.

Had it not been for the ultimate move that allowed Aksai to hide away in the Everwood Farm at a moment’s notice as a last resort, he would have truly died to Varesh’s attacks.

It was only thanks to the true formation setup of Emerald Cove Island that the Devil’s Den could trap and isolate Varesh from the rest of the world at this point.

Even then, trapping Varesh inside a 3rd Order formation that had no Intent-based techniques was akin to locking a fierce tiger inside a cage made of wooden sticks. No matter how sturdy and sharp the wooden sticks were, they were bound to be destroyed by the tiger’s continuous attacks.

Every swing of Varesh’s black flying sword carried a powerful Sword Intent that tore through the vines before they could properly entangle him.

Aksai narrowed his eyes.

Dealing with him in a short period of time was impossible. At least, not without revealing too many of his trump cards. And even then, a decisive victory was not guaranteed.

Aksai had already fought Kalina under favorable circumstances. Even then, he had been forced to use almost everything he had, including the Void Gu, his druidic abilities, the Fortune Telling Arts, and the various tricks he had accumulated over the years.

Varesh was a class apart from Kalina. Plus, Aksai couldn’t dupe Varesh into handing over his trump cards and treasures to him. The man was a pure offensive cultivator whose entire cultivation path revolved around killing.

Unlike Kalina, who merely imitated the sword cultivators and didn’t possess genuine Sword Intent, Varesh was a bona fide Sword Intent holder.

If Aksai wanted to deal with him quickly, he would have to pay an unacceptable price. The Druid’s Curse would shorten his lifespan tremendously considering Varesh’s level and caliber.

Frankly, there was no need to do that just yet.

Aksai was not in a hurry. He could simply leave Varesh inside the formation and slowly wear him down.

Instead, his attention shifted toward the other three isolated battlefields.

Saelyr.

Neshara.

Droven.

Unlike Varesh, none of them had displayed a means that made Aksai feel particularly threatened. Of course, this was only a relative term given the current situation. Still, if he could deal with the three of them first, Varesh would eventually become much easier to handle.

Aksai’s gaze then shifted sideways.

The Sun Ocean Lord was standing beside him.

The old man looked rather awkward. He had been silently observing Aksai’s formation while trying his best to pretend that he wasn’t.

Aksai looked at him coldly.

The Sun Ocean Lord immediately felt the gaze.

"Hehe... Little brother Aksai, about what happened earlier—"

Aksai raised a hand, and the Sun Ocean Lord immediately shut his mouth.

The former stared at him for several seconds before speaking.

"Lord Sun, there are no freebies in the world we live in."

The Sun Ocean Lord’s expression stiffened.

"Since you brought trouble to my doorstep, it is only right for you to put in some serious effort to help me deal with it."

Aksai’s voice remained calm.

"We can talk about the other things after we’ve settled this affair."

The Sun Ocean Lord’s mouth twitched.

He had expected something like this.

Aksai pointed toward one of the isolated battlefields.

"How about taking charge of an Array Eye and handling that tall guy by yourself?"

The Sun Ocean Lord followed Aksai’s finger.

His expression immediately became ugly.

Droven.

The huge armored man was currently standing inside a section of the formation, surrounded by countless Demon Vines.

His massive body was covered in demon beast blood, yet his aura remained stable.

The Sun Ocean Lord stared at him for several seconds.

Then he swallowed.

"That... tall guy?"

"Yes."

Aksai nodded.

The Sun Ocean Lord’s expression became even more bitter.

Frankly, he had no confidence in dealing with Droven.

The man’s defensive capabilities were simply too ridiculous.

During the pursuit, the Sun Ocean Lord had already witnessed Droven’s terrifying physical strength. The giant had casually shattered several Spirit Spells with his bare hands and endured attacks that would have severely injured ordinary late-stage Lords.

And now Aksai wanted him to fight that monster alone?

The Sun Ocean Lord almost wanted to curse.

But he didn’t.

Because he knew exactly what would happen if he refused.

He had imposed himself on Aksai.

Worse, he had done so without giving Aksai any proper warning.

Unlike the Purple River Lord, who had an established alliance with the Emerald Cove Guild, the Sun Ocean Lord had no such relationship with Aksai.

Aksai had no obligation to protect him.

None whatsoever.

From Aksai’s perspective, the situation was even simpler.

The Sun Ocean Lord had brought the imperial cultivators straight to Emerald Cove Island because he wanted Aksai to help him deal with them.

Yet now that they were trapped inside the formation, the Sun Ocean Lord was asking Aksai to protect him.

That was simply unreasonable.

The Sun Ocean Lord couldn’t even blame Aksai for being cold.

In fact, he understood the situation very well.

If Aksai decided to treat him as an enemy instead, his chances of survival would immediately drop to almost zero.