On the way back to the castle, Aidan held the newly acquired Essence Conduit in his hand, feeling extremely pleased.
"The White Boar" and "Black Boar" were both rare varieties among level one Essence Conduits. Their market value could easily exceed 500 Essence Gems.
The reason for naming it such, aside from its entirely Black appearance, was due to its diet consisting of pork.
However, although their functions were similar and their appearances alike, their paths of advancement differed.
"Black Boar" combined with "Blue Silk" to form the second level "Black Mane," and then advanced to the third level "Steel Mane."
On the other hand, the optimal progression path for the "White Boar" was to merge with "Jade Skin" to refine into the second level "White Jade," then ascend to the third level "Jade Stone"
Steel Mane could make an Ascender's hair as hard as steel needles, combining offense and defense. "Jade Stone" hardened the practitioner's entire body like white jade while reducing the effects of ranged attacks.
Aidan's heart was filled with a faint sense of joy. Obtaining the "Black Boar" was just one aspect. What truly delighted him was Malagor's power inheritance.
"The Black Boar can enhance strength, and Malagor deliberately placed the boulder blocking the road, indicating that I must refine this Black Boar. In the future, with enhanced strength, I can push aside the boulder and continue forward. This should be the first test."
"By observing Malagor's careful arrangement of this checkpoint, I can infer that there will be a second and third checkpoint in the subsequent inheritance. The key point is that the power inheritance he set up is not a huge trap but rather genuine."
"With the help of this inheritance, I can reach the Confluent Tier faster. Only by reaching the Confluent Tier can I have the strength to leave Mistvale Keep and venture outside!"
Not only that, but Aidan also obtained a level-1 Essence Conduit, "WereWolf," from the assassin he killed. Generally, Ascenders would destroy their own Essence Conduit before dying, leaving their opponents with no gains. However, the assassin was too overconfident, completely unaware that Aidan possessed a level 2 Essence Conduit and could use it. Such a naive wild Ascender, with shallow knowledge, didn't realize that every move they made was within Aidan's calculations. Furthermore, they never imagined that they would ultimately become Aidan's nourishment!
Aidan dared not use blood magic within the castle, let alone kill Ascender companions inside. This would attract investigations within the castle. In this world, Ascenders had many supernatural reconnaissance methods. Trying to secretly kill an Ascender without being discovered was extremely difficult. Aidan was unwilling to take such risks; it would be akin to courting death.
However, this Ascender, without family or support, solitary and destitute, was an unknown entity even to the castle, making him the perfect target for Aidan!
What is the most crucial thing for an Ascender's cultivation?
The answer is simple—resources.
Aidan needed resources for cultivation, but the castle's resources were limited, requiring competition to obtain them.
Not only did he need to compete, but he also had to win in these competitions.
For him, the more competition there was and the more victories he achieved, the more his strengths would be revealed, making others more wary of him.
When accumulated to a certain extent, this wariness would turn into suppression, hindering his progress.
Why didn't the Archbishop pursue him for killing the slaves? Why didn't the elders seek retribution for robbing his peers? Why did the king choose to be lenient toward Aidan's rebellion against the castle's system?
It was all because he was weak, possessing only Raidant-level aptitude.
They, considering themselves powerful, disdained dealing with the weak. In the castle's system, squabbling with the weak like Aidan not only brought disgrace but also made them appear ruthless, damaging their social network.
Weakness was Aidan's current shield.
But as he continued to acquire resources through competition, Aidan would appear increasingly powerful. This would attract attention, fear, or attempts to win him over to their side. Regardless of which faction Aidan chose, he would face suppression and manipulation from other factions.
And suppression and manipulation would slow down his growth.
Aidan was well aware of his current situation. His current situation was quite neutral; he seemed to have offended everyone, yet in reality, he had offended no one.
But as time went on and his level increased, this contradiction would emerge and intensify.
Aidan knew that this contradiction would eventually escalate, but the later it escalated, the better it would be for his growth.
Therefore, Malagor's power inheritance was indeed ingenious!
With this power inheritance, he had invisible resources. With these resources, he could operate outside the system, pursue an individual path, cultivate calmly, and quietly accumulate strength.
Once within the system, one had to take sides. Even if one had no desire for contention, they would still be involved in politics and factional struggles.
Those within the system were just pawns. First, you had to become a qualified pawn before others would trust you. When they trusted you, you had the opportunity to climb up. When climbing, you had to be careful not to be treated as a discardable piece.
Aidan understood this process too well. Even with countless wisdom, he couldn't change this pattern. This was the rule!
The key was that he only had Raidant-level aptitude, so the castle had no desire to invest in him. He could easily be treated as a discardable piece.
Therefore, the best development path was to develop independently. In this way, most of the competition could be avoided, and the image carefully constructed in the minds of the castle's high-ranking officials could be maintained.
"In this world, clandestine actions are easier to accomplish, while overt actions are harder to achieve. By leveraging Malagor's power inheritance, I can cultivate in secret, accumulate strength, avoid attracting attention, and evade suppression. However, I still need to continue with robbery and extortion. Suddenly stopping would arouse suspicion, and I also need Gems," Aidan pondered his future plans.
He indeed needed Gems.
His "Fangs," "Werewolf", "Black Boar," and "Thief" all required feeding. His cultivation also required Gems, not to mention living expenses.
Although he had hundreds of Essence Gems on hand, they couldn't sustain such long-term expenses.
What's more, the later stages of cultivation required more significant expenditures. Especially after advancing to the second level, each time an Essence Conduit was merged, it incurred a considerable cost.
Thinking about this, Aidan felt worried.
Essence Gems were a problem. Relying solely on robbery, extortion, and his savings could only delay the eruption of this problem.
In addition to this, he had another trouble, which was feeding the Black Boar.
The Black Boar's food was pork.
Both black and Black boars had large appetites, needing a whole adult pig's meat for a meal every five days.
Pork prices in this world were not cheap. Ordinary people only slaughtered a pig and enjoyed some meat during the New Year. Without large-scale farming technology like on Earth, the prices of pork, beef, and other meats were unaffordable for ordinary people. Moreover, living space in the castle was cramped, and the wilderness was extremely dangerous. How much space was there to raise livestock?
Most of the time, the pork one could occasionally eat was from wild boars hunted by hunters.
"It seems that in the future, I'll have to hunt and slaughter pigs myself," Aidan's eyes flashed with determination.
Relying solely on purchasing pork in the castle would not only cost Essence Gems but also attract suspicious glances. Even if someone loved pork, they wouldn't eat it so frequently and in such large quantities.
If he personally hunted, not only would this trouble be solved, but it would also alleviate economic pressure to a greater extent.
In these past few days, the academy had been on break, aiming to allow students to focus on reaching the Advanced or Peak Novice Tier as soon as possible. Aidan decided to take advantage of this time to leave the castle, assess the situation, and then hunt and slaughter pigs.