Sage turned around towards the voice and he was greeted with a young boy in white robes, who had snowy white hair, yet despite being slim he had a chubby pot belly. His eyes were a deep black and his monochromatic look was only set off by a bright red sash around his waist and tying back his long hair.

As soon as Sage saw him, he felt a shudder from Guan Zhenyan. At the same time, his habits kicked in and he immediately bowed to him, “Please forgive me, Great One, for not properly welcoming you! Please just wait one moment!”

He summoned over a table, chairs, and a full tea set. Without anything else being said he immediately started to perform an elaborate tea ceremony. Using a special Flame Stone to heat the water, and steeping expensive tea leaves for the ‘boy’. Tao Ba was quiet the whole time, simply taking a seat and looking around like he was a high and mighty ruler. A few minutes later, Sage filled the teapot and poured a glass for Tao Ba. Tao Ba’s drinking etiquette showed his contempt for Sage and it was at this point that Guan Zhenyan finally couldn’t stand it.

“You greedy little monster! Even if Lang Sheng isn’t your Master, he’s at the very least a guest. Arrogant brat.”

Guan Zhenyan’s voice boomed into the Universe Ring, not just a mental projection, but with actual volume. He immediately berated Tao Ba and then trailed off, mumbling other unkind things as he did. Tao Ba was so startled he spilled his tea upon himself and immediately shot to his feet.

“Who dares call me a…”

At that point, he seemed to recognize something and immediately he cupped his hands, bowing his head down like a faithful and loyal servant. A pleasant smile came onto his face, “Sir Guan! It’s such a pleasure to hear your voice again after so long!”

“Bah. You’re nothing but a jumped up security guard, so don’t forget your place!”

Tao Ba’s lips twitched, but he kept smiling and enduring as Guan Zhenyan berated him a few more times. Only, it seemed that Tao Ba noticed something and lifted his head, “You are as great as always, Sir. Though in the territory of this mere guard, you should at least keep your manners.”

Sage suddenly felt a terrifying pressure descend upon him. He fell to his knees and he felt a bit of discomfort from the link with Guan Zhenyan.

Why did these two bad tempered people meet? They seem to know each other already, but how does that make it fair for them to use me as a battleground!

Sage was barely supporting himself on the ground with one hand. He grit his teeth to force out a few words, “Please control yourselves, Great Ones. It is my pleasure to pour tea for Tao Ba, there’s no need to quibble about it.”

Finally, Tao Ba waved his hand and the great pressure went away. Sage was breathing heavy, trying to recover from the struggle. He struggled back to his feet and immediately poured a new cup of tea for Tao Ba. Thankfully, Guan Zhenyan stayed quiet this time and after Sage gave a bit more praise to the boy, he finally excused himself and ran from the Universe Ring as quickly as possible.

“Damn, Kid. Why are you going out of your way to serve a petty little beast like that? I didn’t realize you were so weak and cowardly.”

“Unlike Sir Guan, Tao Ba only requires some words of praise, a meek attitude, and serving food and drink. It’s quite a cheap price for obscure information and the sharing of secrets. If only your assistance was so easily gained.”

Guan Zhenyan scoffed at him, the two of them now in the real world and talking face to face. Even if it seemed like a complete loss of honor and dignity to Guan Zhenyan, Sage could care less. If he could trade a few honeyed words and bootlicking for a fortune, then why wouldn’t he? Of course, for those extremely arrogant folk who considered themselves to be so filled with honor and esteem, such treatment would inspire their contempt. Just as he’d found out back at the Kang Clan. At that time he realized that setting aside his own dignity by choice was far different than having someone else forcibly smash it. Even if he’d lived so many years in this culture, he still didn’t put such stock in his own ‘face’ and could easily set it aside whenever he needed to.

All he had to do was serve tea to a smug kid once every few months and he got access to all sorts of secrets. It was a small price to pay. He just considered it to be an unpleasant chore like scrubbing the bathroom, cleaning up after the dog on a walk, or changing a baby’s diaper. Having such extreme ‘dignity’ was just ridiculous in his opinion. Should he be offended when people don’t open the door when he arrives or bow when he walks by? Such arrogant nonsense.

Ahh, but wouldn’t it be nice if I could just butter up Guan Zhenyan and get access to all his technique manuals?

While lamenting how difficult it was to deal with the man, that same person was looking down at him and puffing on his pipe. After a few minutes he finally couldn’t help himself, “What are you doing? I’m going to start charging you if you don’t get out of here.”

Only then did Sage realize the mental link was relaxed again and he quickly scrambled to his feet. He had no idea what sort of insane price the man might make up for him being in there so he ran out of the room. He was about to turn the corner when he was thrown off his feet and his back hit the ground. His arm jerked backwards and a powerful force pried his fingers apart. A golden streak of light zoomed back towards the room he came from.

“Nice try, Kid!”

Guan Zhenyan’s voice boomed loudly in his head, a veritable mental scream. At that point he realized that he had forgotten to hand the Universe Ring back before rushing out of the room. That golden light must have been the ring being forcibly taken back. He’d tried to steal back the ring without even realizing he was doing it. Unfortunately, Guan Zhenyan was far more aware and stopped him. Sage hopped back up to his feet and reluctantly left the manor, returning back to the little woodshed he had out back. Despite the shabby outward appearance, the interior was pretty well appointed. He had the Hoplites to build him furniture and weave him blankets, bedsheets, curtains, and a rug with their Steelsilk.

With the upgrade of his Inner World already completed and the Arborist Experiments moved over, he was now free to return to his prior task. Although he had questions about how Guan Zhenyan and Tao Ba knew each other, they weren’t that important to him at this point. Guan Zhenyan would likely charge him a high price for that knowledge, and he didn’t have access to the Universe Ring to ask Tao Ba. Understanding their relation would do little to help him at this point anyway. He needed to gain more strength. The reason he was so trapped under Guan Zhenyan’s thumb was because he wasn’t strong enough. He’d been betrayed and chased out of three different lives already because he was just too weak. The laws in this world were merely at the whim of whoever had the biggest fist. They were merely lip service to ensure people kept productive for whichever lord happened to hold their leash. If people were too busy thieving, fighting and killing, how would they have enough time to keep making money to pay their taxes to their lord?

Sage felt his mental foundation shudder, strengthening his resolve as he sat down and prepared for his next step.