An hour later, the old man who worked for the auction house returned and he brought along another person with him. This person had a dark cloak covering their body from head to toe revealing only a flat white featureless mask. It took only a moment for him to realize that the cloak and mask were specialized magic tools used to hide one’s identity. The cloak blocked this person’s level from being detected and the mask would change their voice and block Spirit Sense in order to keep anyone from recognizing their face. Sage was somewhat intrigued by the level this person was going to in order to conceal their identity, but at the same time he was also annoyed as this meant his chances were not high.

The old man introduced the masked person as ‘the seller’ and then left the room, promising them anonymity. Sage didn’t believe they wouldn’t be listening in so he immediately used the Windscreen technique to isolate them from any sound transfer. The masked person didn’t respond positively or negatively when noticing what he’d done. Instead, they merely waited a few moments before speaking with a strangely grating voice, “The Bone Mantis comes from a Hidden Domain. You must understand I cannot give out the location of such a place.”

Sage suddenly realized why this person was going to such trouble and why he would be turned down without even discussing any terms. A Hidden Domain was something of a priceless treasure. It was similar to his own Inner World, an endless source of revenue. Even if it was possible for him to sell off his Inner World and still survive without it, there was little chance he would ever accept such a deal. The long term resource supply of a Hidden Domain was far too important to any Clan or Sect to give up. He was convinced that the biggest and most powerful groups maintained their position through the possession of Hidden Domains.

It was one thing for one or two geniuses to rise up and bring their family or friends along with them, but what happened after they died? If a group had a Hidden Domain the resources it supplied could be used to raise up more geniuses in the hope that another super-genius appeared that could prop up their group for the next few millennia. It wasn’t something anyone had told him or that he’d learned in a book, but only his hypothesis after experiencing other Hidden Domains and having his own Inner World. He felt they were the foundations for a group to exist longer than a single person.

If they didn’t have these constant sources of cultivation resources, they wouldn’t be able to raise so many high level cultivators. Since breaking into the sixth rank was something of a crap shoot for most people in this world, the only way to ensure they could have enough Nascent Souls was to have so many fifth rank cultivators that at least a few of them could break through. If they couldn’t raise the odds of success, then they could just pay more to roll the dice over and over again.

If Hidden Domains are as important as I think they are and they are already so secretive about them. Doesn’t that mean that a complete path to level 61 is many times more valuable? If a Hidden Domain is the key to remaining a first rate power, the path to level 61 is the key to becoming a Kingdom, right?

Almost instantly, Sage set into motion more security measures on the Inner World around the researchers and the Purple Mist Sect. They were already pretty tight on their security, but he was immediately far more paranoid about any sources of leaks. Since nobody could leave the Inner World without his assistance, the changes weren’t much, but he merely set up more systems of control to ensure nobody who knew about this area of research could easily go outside. At the same time he built a list of those already on the outside world who knew of this information and thankfully it was only a small group.

The majority of the Lang Clan only knew of their aspirations to find a path to Nascent Soul. Such an idea wasn’t really a big deal as every single Clan and Sect also wished to find a guaranteed route to Nascent Soul. Having such a dream was no different than anyone else. The only ones who knew they had actually made some progress in that regard were Sage’s children and the Nascent Souls from the Purple Mist Sect. The ten children, their ten bodyguards, the five strongest of the Purple Mist Sect, and of course Ling and Jiao. Twenty seven wasn’t a small number, but they were also Sage’s closest family. The fifteen from the Purple Mist Sect were all beasts, and their loyalty was guaranteed with contracts. They wouldn’t be able to betray him, at least not intentionally.

There was a chance they might let some information slip by accident, but thankfully the Purple Mist Sect was trained to be quiet and aloof. The serpents preferred to calmly assess situations and only act when it was necessary. They only gave his children advice when they were alone. Not only did this make them seem mysterious it also gave their words more weight and kept them from undermining the authority or decisions of the ‘kids’ they were mentoring. Of course, these sorts of concerns were only relevant many hundreds of years ago. Sage’s ‘kids’ were over 800 years old at this point and their Purple Mist Sect bodyguards had long gone past mentors, friends, and family. They were lifelong partners that were probably closer to them than their husbands or wives. It was far more likely that one of Sage’s children would be the ones to leak anything.

Putting aside these worries, Sage smiled at the masked and utterly anonymous person in front of him. The train of thought he followed had flashed past in an instant, completely handled by his Soul Clone living in a much faster stream of time. Sage nodded to them and then let out a soft sigh, “I understand. Is there any chance you don’t have any backers and wish to join a great Clan? The Lang Clan would be willing to offer you and any of your collaborators immense concessions for high positions, great rewards, and multiple contracts and oaths to guarantee your safety and position.”

There was a chance that this person was a rogue cultivator or part of a small sect or clan. The Hidden Domain would be the foundation of a first rate power, but if they hadn’t yet reached that level it was also a terrible danger. If anyone found out what they had it would become an all out war. Whoever owned it would be the next first rate power. Even worse if they let any of the current first raters find out as they would be willing to smash them to bits to strengthen their own foundations. Sage had no illusions about the cruelty of these cultivator groups when it came to improving their own strength. While they may like to put on a good show to give themselves a nice reputation, they were ruthless when it came to improving.

The person was a little surprised by this offer. They grew silent for a few moments and Sage took this as an opportunity to elaborate.

“I’m sure you’ve probably received many offers of wealth from the auction house and even the Holy Flame Sect, but in this world a single fortune doesn’t guarantee any power or security. While I may wear the uniform, I’m only something of a Guest Elder for the Holy Flame Sect. I was chased out of the Dou Kingdom and joined the sect to hide from the enemies that wished to wipe out my clan to the last. Then, I was even unluckier and was chased out of the Shihu Kingdom because I stumbled upon something forbidden. After many trials and tribulations I returned to the Dou Kingdom with, I thought, enough power to rebuild my Clan, but my old enemies didn’t agree. I was chased to the edge of life multiple times before finally finding the path to rebuild the Lang Clan. I’ve been betrayed and on the run far too many times. You should know how valuable a Hidden Domain is. It’s worth enough that the Lang Clan would gladly accept you and yours with open arms.”