He felt that the techniques of the Arborist were much more in line with the usage of his Insect Immortal Index. With the help of the Inner World researchers he aimed to combine the knowledge of Blacksmiths and Arborists with his Insect skills. He had already been able to create simple Magic Tools using implanted ancestral memories to create his own crude version of an Arborist. He was already excited to see how much progress he could make with a full and complete knowledge base.

They completed the deal rapidly, Sage handed over a dozen Storage Chests filled with Natural Treasures from the Inner World as well as a Jade Tablet containing the method to create a Heart’s Tongue. Lin Muzhi brought out a Storage Ring, one which contained a whole library of Jade Tablets. Then Sage handed over the Jinxi Ancestor’s bow and they both signed Blood Contracts to verify the integrity of the knowledge they traded, along with Sage’s promise not to share anything with the Holy Flame Sect.

After quite some time spent by either party making sure everything was valid, Sage finally left the City Lord’s Manor. He used the Red Comet to fly out of Daggerguard City and disappeared from them for a while. He wasn’t in the mood to become a target in case the rest of the Cult of the Woodlord decided to change their mind and target him to prevent the knowledge that Lin Muzhi had given him from being spread. After passing over a ridge, Sage flew down into a valley and went to a stream bed. There, he brought out a small rock, one which already had the Universe Ring concealed inside and it fell to the river bed as he entered it.

Anyone who had followed after him would have very little chance of finding him now and he went into seclusion for many months. Not quite a year later he reappeared in the river and trudged out of the water to the shore. Then he disappeared again and reappeared in dry clothing. He was also wearing a completely different outfit than before. Then he rubbed a paste onto his face and pushed on his cheeks and jaw. The skin was pushed around like putty and then froze into this new configuration. Then he started off in a run to leave the forest, not bringing out the Red Comet. A few hours later he was walking calmly along the streets of Daggerguard City and renting a room at an inn.

He’d returned for the next auction while in disguise. Since the last major auction was at Red Knife Pass the year before, then this year there was one in Daggerguard City. Sage wasn’t here for anything specific, but he was curious if the Cult of the Woodlord had any animosity for him and he was eager to study the Arborist knowledge so he decided to wait nearby. At the same time, since he was reminded of it, Sage created a pair of Heart’s Tongues, for both himself and the Soul Clone. He didn’t think he’d need it all that much on the Inner World, but it was best to maintain as much similarity as possible between the two bodies.

He was pleased to find no wanted posters put out for him and when asking about important events to the locals there was no mention of him at all. He even paid a local information broker to find out more and was happy to find nothing at all about himself. Even if he seemed to be off the hook, he didn’t give up his disguise. Even if the beast wasn’t hungry, he still wouldn’t dangle meat in front of it.

The auction was far less exciting than the last few he’d been to, as he wasn’t exceptionally interested in any of the items that were up for sale. He mainly purchased a few more high level materials to use for his future weapon, but he mainly just bought things that were hard to find in the past, not because he had a specific plan for the item. Since he hadn't yet decided on what he should build he felt like if he had enough good materials to work with then it might just jump out at him.

After paying a few million Spirit Stones and leaving with his items, Sage saw a familiar face walking down the street and his eyes narrowed. He had no idea what the name of this fellow was, but he was one of the people that had chased Sage out of the Shihu Kingdom in the past. After his Human Seal and inhuman form were revealed accidentally, this fellow had been one of the leaders that pushed so hard to hunt him down. Given how long ago it was and how little he’d suffered that time compared to some of the others, he had decided to forgive and forget. At least until one of them had appeared in front of him.

Was he also attending the auction? We took off our masks and exited through secret doors, but there’s only so many hidden exits, right?

He guessed that the auction attendees would leave through a set number of hidden doors and they probably used random wait times so they wouldn’t run into each other. It really didn’t matter why the fellow was here, but now that Sage had seen him, he decided to get a little payback for the past and followed after the man. They walked through the town and Sage realized what he was doing.

It’s a lot harder to forgive and forget when you’re staring right at your tormentor. I’ll just give him a good beating and tell him to send a message to the others.

After justifying this event internally, Sage caught up with the man after he’d turned into an alleyway. The man spun around and a coiled bundle appeared in his hand. He loosened his fingers and a coiled hoop unfurled into a dark rope covered in large thorns. The man raised his hand and with a snap of his arm and wrist the weapon, a whip, snapped towards Sage. Just as he’d intended, the man had sensed Sage pursuing him and led him to a dead end alley. The man thought to ambush his tail, but it turned out to be exactly what Sage wanted. It would be much easier to take on the man quietly in isolation, much easier than avoiding guards or bystanders if he followed the man back to his home.

The whip cracked nearby Sage’s head, but he managed to avoid all but a light cut on his cheek. Then the whip swung back and the thorny tip curled backwards towards its own wielder. The man cursed and lifted his leg, losing his stance as he avoided his own weapon. A jade aura appeared around Sage’s body even as the cut on his cheek sealed up. The whip shot out again and he slapped it aside with his bare hand, using a defensive maneuver from the Violent Sun Sect. The Soul Clone had already started incorporating the fighting techniques of the Violent Sun Sect into the Jade Mantle. They planned to include all of the Violent Sun Techniques into the heritage of the Lang Clan after a little modification to make use of the Clan’s strong bodies.

A vicious whip cut through the air, scraping against the Jade Mantle and causing sparks to fly from the contact. Tiny fragments of his Qi were shattered by the sharp points and then dispersed in the air. Sage didn’t intend to kill this man, and they were also fighting in the middle of a city at close quarters so he had to restrain much of his strength. At the same time Sage was also suddenly interested to note that the whip the man was using was not completely under control.

They exchanged a dozen blows in rapid order, giving the alleyway and brick walls of the two buildings on either side of them many deep gouges. Sage was working his way closer and closer to the man while also suffering more and more vicious whip attacks. Then, he suddenly noticed something and he gave up all pretense. His foot stomped the ground and he shot forward, catching the whip on his left arm and thrusting his right fist forward. Just as his arm hit full extension and the man dodged to the side to avoid the punch completely, the jade colored aura around Sage’s body shifted and a blade shot out from the side of his wrist. This arc of energy met with the man’s throat and passed clear through flesh and bone.

A head plopped to the ground, filling the alleyway with the loud thunk sound of bone striking stone.