Abdin didn't reply for a while before he nodded slowly as if forced.

A smile lightened the old man's face and he opened his mouth to say something but Abdin cut him off. "Fewer people wander this deep into the wild nowadays. Which direction have you been going and why?"

Denyanu bowed. "We are mercenaries, fellow Daoists. We have escorted a caravan to the city and we bought these slaves on our way back to sell them in the villages for profit."

This was their usual cover tale whenever they were stopped. But Abdin knew this was just a cover-up. This entourage had nothing to do with being mercenaries.

Denyanu, who wasn't privy to Abdin's thoughts, turned to look at the cart full of slaves. A gleeful smile crept to his face and he turned to Abdin again.

"If fellow Daoist opened the gates for us," he said shrewdly. "We will give him three slave girls."

Abdin understood what the old man meant by 'giving him three slave girls' and couldn't help but frown. What did the old man take him for? But then it was common for cultivators to take young maids for their entertainment. He took a glance at the girl that saw him earlier and decided to let it go.

"Since you insist on entering and you don't seem to have a specific destination, I will let you in," he said.

"Fellow Daoist would let us in?" Denyanu's eyes widened in wonder. But then his face became doubtful. For all he was trying to coerce Abdin into allowing them in, he never thought it would be this easy. Wouldn't this be a trap?

"But before then," said Abdin. "I want every lightning skill book you have and every cultivation method for the ki condensation stage." He needed something to divert their attention and make them believe he let them in because of it.

Denyanu gave a bitter laugh. He had suspected that would happen. But he still couldn't see any loss as long as they would be allowed into the castle. He turned around and discussed it with his men. They managed to bring three books from their bags of holding. The old man raised the books and showed them to Abdin.

"If I find out they aren't what I am looking for when you come in..." Abdin was up the wall while they were down below, so he had no way of collecting the books right now.

"I vow with my core that two of these books are of the lightning skill, while the other one is a cultivation method for ki condensation stage. May the core be destroyed if I am lying," he swore.

His body glowed when he said that, indicating that he had taken a Pol Oath.

Abdin nodded.

"Now remains the second condition." Denyanu and his men frowned. They were starting to doubt whether Abdin would ever open the gate for them or if he was just teasing them. "You're mercenaries for hire. Work for me for ten years."

"Work for you for ten years?" Denyanu was annoyed. "What does fellow Daoist mean by that?"

"It is quite easy," said Abdin. "As a payment for opening the gate for you, I want you to help me in protecting and building this castle into a city for ten years."

He paused for a moment and went on, "And as a reward, I will give you shelter and the spirit ki to rapidly increase your cultivation. You can leave for anywhere you wish to, after ten years."

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Before the next ten years, he would have already built himself so much that he wouldn't need them anymore. And, besides, the men before him had nowhere else to go. It was part of the reason he chose them. He was fairly confident they would accept his offer.

Denyanu smiled. "Fellow Daoist must be joking, there is no spirit ki in this place. How can there be any in the castle?"

Abdin had no intention of letting them in on his secret before they accepted his conditions, so he just remained silent.

A decade wasn't much to a cultivator. Great cultivators often spent a thousand or more years alive. Even the lesser ones could live for a century or two. Abdin didn't see it as a big deal, especially as he knew their story and where they came from. A person in search of asylum wouldn't turn down such an offer.

Denyanu turned to the others and they whispered among themselves before he turned to Abdin.

"As long as there is enough ki to help us cultivate, then we accept. But if, after going in we find out there's no spirit ki or is beneath our tastes, then this agreement would be void. And there is no more need to give fellow Daoist any share from our loot since we have already agreed to work for you."

Abdin laughed inwardly. He knew perfectly well that they were seeking treasures, they never believed there could be any spirit ki in the castle. If there was any, then why didn't it flow out of the castle or diffuse through the air so they could feel it? But since they believed they would find treasures inside the castle, and they couldn't get in themselves, they needed his help. Hence they would agree with any conditions he set.

"Now remains the last condition," said Abdin. Denyanu laughed bitterly. The conditions kept coming. Abdin ignored him and went on, "I want each of you to stop one of my attacks. I want to test the extent of your cultivation and expertise." He gave a small smile as though to tell them it was nothing to worry about. "The first should step forward."

However, that was easy compared to asking them for ten years of service or giving him skill books. Abdin's cultivation was just ninety years, and they were nine. That meant he would have to attack nine times and each attack would just be F rank. None of them had any doubt of parrying such a meager attack.

"That's not a problem," said Denyanu. "But we also have a condition. You mustn't have more than a minute of rest between attacks."

Abdin laughed his agreement. Every time he launched an F-rank attack, he would lose pol equivalent to the energy contained in one to ten years, depending on the attack. The condition they set was to prevent him from regaining his lost pol before another attack. That way his pol would be diminishing and he couldn't use more than F-rank attacks.

When Denyanu saw that he agreed without argument, he narrowed his eyes but still ordered one of his men to step forward.

A young man of about twenty-five came forward and stood aside. Abdin clenched his fist, summoned a D-rank lightning bolt above him, and shot it toward the man.

The man held a bow-like weapon. He raised it to shield himself. But, as the lightning approached and he felt the currents of its pol, he quickly replaced the bow inside his bag of holding and clasped his hands together, summoning a water bubble with all his pol.

The two attacks met, causing wind and dust to cloud the sky. Both were D-rank. But in a couple of seconds, the lightning burned through the water bubble and went for the man.

The short pause created by the collision gave the man the chance to roll sideways, avoiding it. The lightning bolt hit a tree, cutting it into two clean halves.

Abdin nodded his approval. "You have passed your test. Henceforth you are a member of my castle. Next."

A stout man ran forward. It was clear he would find it easier before Abdin regained his pol. The D-rank lightning bolt Abdin used carried pol equivalent to seventy years, so the man figured their opponent wouldn't have more than ten or twenty years of pol at the moment.

A young man also ran forward trying to beat the stout man to it. They didn't know how long it would take Abdin to regain his pol so they couldn't let this chance go.

The two argued, and Denyanu had to intervene before the young man was forced to stand aside.

The stout man grinned and moved forward, waving to Abdin as if telling him to hurry. But not long after, a huge lightning bolt scurried toward him trying to engulf him. It was D rank as well but a bit larger than the first.

The man's face clouded. The currents of pol in the approaching bolt were more than the ones before. Three words suddenly appeared in his head: foundation establishment expert.