Sage started the interrogation over, but he didn’t pull much more from the man. The Shou Clan had organized an alliance with their former rival, offering them a large amount of benefits to bury their previous issues. They were going to be quiet for a time, and once they returned to activity they would invite their rival to join the Artful Life Alliance. A new and thriving alliance with all the weakest parts removed. The man didn’t know any other details other than that, he was merely keeping up appearances as the rival of the Shou Clan before.

They really are scheming something. They dare to use me as a weapon to clean up their alliance? Did the leadership change and now they don’t like having so many small groups? Or maybe they’re planning on absorbing the rest of the groups? I only wiped out the leadership, so they will sweep in and take control? Not a bad plan.

It was just too bad for the Shou Clan that Sage was not afraid of whatever plan they had arranged. With the Purple Mist Sect, he didn’t even fear the royals of the Dou Kingdom. They might have a Saint, but he still felt that the numbers were on his side. If the hundred tier 6 Seething Purple Cobras struck in unison with the Shifting Swarm Formation, he felt like they could put up a good fight against a rank 7 at the very least. The only thing that gave him pause was his concern for innocents. If they sprung a big trap on him they might act without care for bystanders. It also might be dangerous enough that he would also end up injuring innocents while fighting back.

The pause was only momentary before Sage continued with his plan. He was no stranger to the idea of villains trying to blame their vile actions on those who tried to stop them. That silly line of: it’s your fault these people are dead, because you didn’t stop me. Sage didn’t even consider himself a hero in the first place. So there’s no way he would be accepting the guilt of someone else’s actions. He also wasn’t irresponsible enough to not consider such repercussions.

Since the enemy was already waiting for him and they had plenty of time to prepare for his arrival, there was no way he was going to be foolish enough to waltz into the battlefield they’ve prepared for him. Controlling the terrain was his forte after all.

A few days later, within the Shou Clan compound, there was a meeting being held within an underground hall. The immense and prestigious clan hall on the surface was merely decoration. The ancestral tablets and heirlooms of the clan on display were all finely made replicas with false auras. The true ancestral hall was thirty feet underground, reinforced with array formations and with Core Formation Cultivators standing guard outside the doors.

At this time in the hall, five chairs were arranged in a star-like formation, showing that each of their positions were equal. The occupants of those five chairs were the only ones allowed within the Shou Clan Ancestral Hall, a room that looked more like a stone tomb than a lively hall. The entire room was carved out of stone, with various reliefs on the walls depicting the most influential events of the Clan, along with many alcoves that held the memorial tablets of the most important of their ancestors. The room also had sixteen huge stone columns that held up the fifty foot high ceiling and were arranged in a circular pattern around the center of the chamber. Upon these large pillars, different weapons, armor, and equipment of the Clan were on display, shielded only by simple alarm arrays. Instead of hiding away their greatest treasures in a secret vault, the Shou Clan displayed their greatness to the younger generations.

The group sitting in those chairs were wearing three distinctly different styles, signifying their different origins. The most unusual one of these people was a woman with a face covered with small piercings. Just like the stooped back old man sitting next to her, she had very large ears. She might have been lovely if it weren’t for the absurd number of strange spikes, studs, and hoops she had studding her face. Her dress was of a similar style to the robes of the old man, which was also the same color as one of the banners hanging on the wall.

There was also another pair that were wearing similar clothing. One of them was a woman with a very harsh and serious look on her face. Her hair was pulled back into a bun and her back was held perfectly straight, not even touching the back of the chair once during their conversation. The chair next to her was occupied by an older looking gentleman. He was very well groomed, his hair was slicked back, dark save for the streaks of grey at the temples. This man as well as the serious woman had a pair of characters on the chest of their robes: ‘Yin’ and ‘Cha’.

Finally, there was the odd-man out, his clothing was different from all the others. This man had a piercing gaze and an eclectic style of dress, not looking like the uniform of an organization like the other four. He also had a sword sitting across his lap, which he always kept a hand upon.

The pierced woman was smiling at the man with the sword, “Brother Sword, it’s always so good to see you. I’ve been told you just train all day. Working so hard can be counterproductive. You should stop every so often to rest. You’ll definitely achieve double the results with half the effort.”

The swordsman didn’t say anything, just nodding his head and releasing a noncommittal grunt.

“Brother Sword truly treats words as gold. Why don’t you stop by my courtyard and I’ll show you the best places to relax in the Sect?”

The serious woman was silent, but her face started to twist into an aggrieved look. She suddenly raised her hand, but just as her mouth was opening, she was interrupted. The refined gentleman next to her held up his hand and she didn’t dare to speak. The gentleman turned his gaze upon the stoop backed old man but didn’t say a word. The swordsman also looked at the wizened old man. Then he glanced back to the woman covered in piercings. He lifted his hands, one of them still holding the sword by its sheath. Then he formed a clasped fist salute to the woman, with the hand holding the sword acting as his fist, “Shou Clan Leader is too kind. This one does not wish to impose upon your eminence.”

A feminine titter left the pierced woman’s studded lips. She lifted one hand and placed it upon her chest, “Oh, Brother Sword you are too polite! Don’t call me Clan Leader, that is too formal. Just call me Sister Shou.”

The two from the Yincha Sect kept their silence throughout, trying to pretend like they weren’t party to the pierced woman flirting with the swordsman. They kept throwing veiled glances at the stooped back old man, but throughout it all the old man had his eyes closed. He had his head leaned back against the chair, slightly slouching and lightly snoring. Even though this old man was napping in front of them all, none of them dared to disturb him.

“Brother, you can’t be so distant. We are truly like close relatives at this point…”

The swordsman continued to try and fend off the pierced woman’s advances, but he slowly surrendered ground. Eventually, he could only give in and agree to her requests, “... I will come to see Sister Shou soon.”

At that moment, as if he was waiting for it, the slouching old man snapped away. His eyes blinked a few times as he sat up straight. Then he reached up and used his little finger to clean out his ears. He flicked a ball of wax off the tip of his pinky, making it bounce onto the ground in the space between all their chairs. Rude as his gesture was, none of them said a thing. The old man coughed and wheezed slightly as he recovered his breathing, then he let out a long sigh, “It is truly bothersome to get old.”