Abdin climbed down the wall and opened the gate. No one moved until he waved at them.

Denyanu moved forward and waited. He looked really old with a grey beard. By Abdin's estimation, the man could be eighty or ninety years older than himself. His biceps were toned, indicating his long time of battling. And there were tiny scars on his neck that Abdin didn't notice until he moved up close.

His name was Denyanu Sulas. Originally from the city of Fas in the great Shurein empire which bordered their current residence, the Biyakis empire.

"My name is Denyanu Ibis, I'm from Biyakis," the man lied. Sulas was a noble name in Shurein and it was widely known. Abdin wasn't surprised at the old man for not wanting his true identity to be revealed. Even at this very moment, men from Shurein were tasked with hunting them down.

He allowed the old man in and called the next person.

They each came forward and stated their names, age, and where they came from. They all lied, claiming that half of them had families and that Denyanu was the one who rallied the team on account of expertise.

They confessed to taking goods from town to town and escorting caravans to protect them against demon beasts and bandits. They also bought slaves from their gains to sell in the next town they went to.

Abdin's face didn't let on anything on his mind; he accepted the story as they told him.

The slaves were brought out of the cart. He ordered them to be partially unshackled and asked them some questions.

Most of them were from afar, some from towns unknown even to Abdin. There were twelve slaves, which made a total of twenty-one people in the party.

When he was satisfied everything was alright, he moved aside to let them in, closing the gate behind him.

[You have gained eleven years of pol. Your cultivation has risen to 100 years. It now remains twelve years and eight months for you to die.]

The castle always gave him extra pol whenever he brought in cultivators as servants. And it was so when he protected the castle from invaders. That was partly why he was eager to invite this party as early as possible.

The two sides faced each other.

"I welcome you to Abd city." Abdin nodded in approval of the name he just wove at the spur of the moment. He chose different names for each empire he went to, not wanting his old rivals to know about it.

"Starting from this day, you are now the guards of this city. You will not allow anybody to enter except with my permission. Each of you shall..."

He noticed they weren't listening but rather admiring the stone building.

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Abdin sighed. He couldn't blame them. He had once visited the capital of Biyakis many years ago. The capital itself wasn't as beautiful as his summon.

He wanted to scold them for not paying attention, but then he realized it wasn't just about the buildings. Denyanu was sitting cross-legged and eyes closed as he inhaled the dense spirit ki. The old man stood up after a short while and stared at him with hungry eyes.

"My lord," the man said in a pleading tone. "Is there a way to elongate my indenture to you? Twenty years perhaps or thirty or even forty? I don't need anything. Just allow me to meditate even for an hour a day."

The rest of Denyanu's party who had already felt the density of the spirit ki also nodded in agreement. The spirit ki was the best treasure the castle had, and also the one causing the most danger to Abdin.

None would enter the castle and wish to leave. It had been proven over and over again.

Ancient cultivation sects would want to relocate their headquarters there. The noble and the wealthy would wish to tour it, or at least send their men. Most would just want to conquer the castle, especially when they discover that it was a measly ki condensation stage cultivator occupying it. He had fallen into that trap twice before, but now he was ready to face anyone who came.

Abdin studied them with narrowed eyes. He wasn't worried they would use the ki in the castle - it was what he wanted. But there were three things he needed from them: servitude, the skill books they promised him, and that slave girl that saw him earlier. If everything went on smoothly, both parties would benefit from this relationship they had forged today.

"You can call me Commander."

"Commander?" Denyanu narrowed his eyes, befuddled. Wouldn't he tell them his name at least?

Abdin nodded. His name had become famous in various parts of the world. He wouldn't say it casually. So he should be known as Commander in these parts.

He gestured to the old man to bring the books in his hands. The lightning skills would be useful. And even though he didn't need the cultivation method for the ki condensation stage, he could always barter with it.

Denyanu brought him the books. Two were large, hardcover books, and one was slim. Abdin opened them each and skimmed through the contents.

There was a skill called serpentine lightning. In contrast to the lightning bolt that had the shape of a ring, this usually took the shape of a serpent.

And unlike the bolt that left his control as soon as it left his hands, the serpentine skill could be controlled however he wanted even after he released it. If he wanted, he could reduce the size of the serpent and send it to about half a kilometer's journey. The serpent had no thoughts of its own and Abdin couldn't see what it saw, but he could still unleash an attack on his enemy as long as he could see them. And even though its strength diminished as it traveled, it could still deal sizeable damage to a ki condensation stage cultivator.

Denyanu, who also used lightning-style cultivation, was the one who found the skill book from a prince he once escorted. He had already mastered it but rarely used it due to a few reasons. First, the skill was never as potent as a simple lightning bolt. And second, it took up more pol than a lightning bolt. The man had thought Abdin would dismiss the skill book as useless because of these reasons, and thus, he was delighted to see Abdin throw it inside his bag of holding.

The second skill book had a movement skill. It could raise his speed to a kilometer per second. But he needed to reach cultivation of one hundred and twenty years before he could use it. He threw the book inside his bag. Now that his plans were taking shape, he could cultivate 20 years in a few days.

The third book was the smallest. Books that were based on skills were mostly bigger because there must be a full explanation of the skill, how to use it, and how to learn it. But cultivation methods would just teach the way to breathe spirit ki. So they mostly had fewer pages.

River Fish was the name of the cultivation method. It was said to open up the core and allow cultivation for up to one hundred years. It could garner at least thirty to forty thousand ayrids were he to sell it.

He nodded his approval. The idea to invite this party was a step in the right direction.

Denyanu smiled. "I hope Commander likes them."