Sage was sitting across a table from a pot-bellied boy with white hair. He was currently serving the boy tea and a sumptuous meal. Sage appeared extremely happy to serve the boy, pouring the tea with his own hands and hopping up out of his seat constantly to help bring the dishes out of the kitchen and moving them closer to the boy’s plate. The white haired boy was happy to gorge himself, eating at a leisurely pace and nodding with agreement when Sage complimented him.

This boy was that troublesome creature, Tao Ba, the being in charge of the Universe Ring. Or at least, that was Sage’s relationship with him. Sage had no idea what authority or position Tao Ba actually had, but the boy had proven to have some sort of pull in the past. There was also the fact that Tao Ba had deep knowledge and had given him quite a few tips in the past. This wasn’t without cost as he had to act like a sycophant in order to butter him up first, but this was a pretty small price to pay. Sage had no idea where he might even begin to search for some of the obscure information that Tao Ba had shared with him in the past, and the cost of such information would probably be absurd. Serving the boy some food while spouting flowery compliments was an extremely cheap price for obscure or ancient knowledge.

Finally, the meal came to an end and Tao Ba leaned back in his chair. The otherwise skinny boy put his hands on his round tummy and gave it a few pats. Sage recognized his chance, Tao Ba always gave him tips when he was happy and full, but he had only a few minutes to speak before the boy would leave again.

“Oh Great One, I am going to do something risky. If I don’t come back, can you give one of my Lang Clansmen temporary access to this place? If I were to perish, they would need to bring my final wishes to the Clan and the Universe Ring would be really helpful to them.”

Tao Ba’s white eyebrow lifted slightly, “Oh, what certain death are you heading into?”

Sage walked over to a side table and pulled open a door, bringing out a large rectangular object and pushing aside the stacks of empty dishes to make room for it. He placed it down in front of Tao Ba, “Do you remember this? I feel that I am finally ready to face the challenge, but if I’m wrong I need a backup plan.”

Tao Ba saw the large object and then reached out, tapping it with a finger and infusing Qi into it. The rectangular object let out a golden light shooting up into the air and pulsing a few times before the light formed into the shape of array-like symbols and shapes. They weren’t the modern Array Symbols nor were they the ancient ones that Sage had some mastery over. They were similar to the ancient symbols but were different in enough ways that Sage had no confidence in deciphering them. Tao Ba glanced at the symbols projected in the air over the table before giving Sage a nod, “Ahh, this thing. I do remember it. Alright, if you dare to attempt it, then I’ll give privileges to your inheritor. Where’s this heir of yours? I’ll let them borrow your access until they return the ring to the Lang Clan Tomb where you found it.”

“That’s such a relief, Great One. I’ll call them in.”

Sage waved a hand towards the door and sent a strand of Qi out through the crack between the floor and the door. It swept up and tapped the shoulder of a person waiting outside. The door opened a moment later and a young woman with her hair pulled back and pleated into a wide braid down her back entered the room. She had a very modest dress that had a high turtle neck, sleeves down to her wrists, and skirts that brushed the floor. Approaching the table she gave Tao Ba a deep bow.

“It is my highest honor to be in your presence, Great One.”

The woman had already received a course in the proper ‘etiquette’ for how to handle Tao Ba, so the white haired boy was soon smiling widely and happy to meet her. Sage smiled, glad that his backup plan had come together. Being away for a decade meant seven thousand years of advancement upon the Inner World. If anything happened to him this woman, Lang Feiyan, would have to carry on its legacy. A whole world with tens of thousands of years of history would be gone and she would be responsible for making sure none of it was a waste. There was no way that Sage could empty all the people out of the Inner World without causing a huge commotion and destabilizing the world. Millions and millions of people appearing in a small space so quickly would strip a location bare. There would be so many refugees and the locals might just decide to wipe them out to solve their problem.

It was somewhat callous, but if he didn’t die then all those people would release his secrets into the world. So many things were common in the Inner World and they would be suddenly sent into the outside world without any control. This concern as well as his own confidence meant that he couldn’t let the whole Inner World out. The world was contained within his soul and if he died they would go along with him. For those outside of the Lang Clan, Sage did not directly interfere in their lives. For the sake of the outside world and also his own heart he had to consider his own existence akin to a natural disaster or a cataclysm, not a god. If he tried to be a god to the people of the Inner World, then he also had to take responsibility for their destruction.

Most of the humans on the Inner World were descendants of people he’d taken captive, mostly for wrong doing. These were people he might have killed, but instead they were allowed to live out their lives and create such a full and thriving world. Even if it all came to a sudden end, none of them would exist at all if he hadn’t brought their ancestors there. It was a little bit of circular logic, but if he released them all into the world his secrets would definitely be revealed and if that happened he would have a giant target on his back.

Along with Lang Feiyan, there were about a thousand others who had been packed into the Universe Ring along with all manners of knowledge and items from the Inner World. They had all volunteered for this dire duty knowing they would either be separated from their friends and family for nearly a millennium, or their whole world would be destroyed and they would have to travel to the other Lang Clan to start over. With the Lang Clansmen from the research teams, there were also a couple hundred Purple Mist Sect members to act as their escort. With their protection, Sage was sure they’d be able to return to the rest of the Lang Clan. The members of the Purple Mist Sect that had been chosen were those with the highest loyalty and had signed Blood Contracts to prevent any mishaps.

Tao Ba left after some time conversing with Lang Feiyan, and a few Dragoons cleared the room, leaving just the large object on the table. Feiyan looked down at it and Sage nodded, “That’s it. The Stone Tablet. The cause of all this preparation.”