Micro reached back to pull Lena into the hut with him by her hand, then closed the broken door behind him. The room was just as warm and welcoming as Micro remembered it, but the smell of blood hung in the air.

“Oh, if it isn't little Lena.” Feng said, covering his mouth as he coughed.

“All grown up...”

Lena fell to her knees and bowed so deeply that her head hit the wooden floor with a thud that shook the small structure. She began to mumble incoherently, something about apologies and honour, but Micro spoke over her and ran to Feng's side.

“You look terrible!” Micro shouted.

“You should come with us to the city. They have healers there!”

“I don't think I'll be taking any trips with you today.” Feng replied weakly.

“What happened?” Micro asked.

“I can only assume it's the magicians at work.” Feng said, shaking his head.

“Terrible beasts of chaos... strange energies...”

“The magicians attacked you?!” Micro gasped.

“It's more likely their summons got away from them.” Feng replied.

“No ordinary mortal could hope to control the creatures which descended on these woods in the past few days. If only they could summon more like you.”

Feng chuckled as he sipped his tea, directing a pained smile at Micro and gesturing for him to sit. Blue sat quietly on Micro's shoulder while they conversed, displeased to hear mention of the magicians. Micro sat next to Feng, and then both of them turned to face Lena, whose mumbling still continued.

“I'm glad you survived the upheaval back then...” Feng said with a more somber tone, causing Lena to finally look up at him in silence.

“I never thought I'd see a friendly face in that armour again.”

“The schemes of Kang's rivals were uncovered soon after you all escaped!” Lena shouted.

“But not before most of you were hunted down and-”

“I don't care to dwell on those days.” Feng said sternly.

Micro leaned back slightly as the tension between Feng and Lena grew complicated, though Blue was beginning to fall asleep on his shoulder.

“But even after Turang's family was revealed to have conspired with the Water Serpent Moon Sect, no amount of justice could restore the sect's honour!” Lena replied defiantly.

“If Kang or his only remaining disciple were to return to us now-”

“Kang was poisoned just as I was, but he gave his life to save mine.” Feng stated coldly.

“The honour of the sect died with Master Kang, and soon I will join him. Make of the Water Tiger Moon Sect what you will. It was nice to see you again. I'm sure you'll guide the next generation of disciples well.”

Feng's cold tone was only softened by the pain he was in. He turned away from Lena to grip his wounded shoulder and took a deep breath. Micro reached out to support him as he swayed slightly, stirring Blue from her nap. Blue cringed as she anticipated Micro's next words.

“Blue!” Micro shouted.

“You can help him, right?”

“Ugh...” She sighed and rolled her eyes.

However, before Micro asked her again, she had already jumped down from his shoulder, landing between Micro and the old man next to him. Feng looked down with a curious expression, but she continued without a word. Blue sent roots of energy into the ground beneath her and began channeling energy into her hands, then reached out and cast a faint light over Feng.

Lena's face contorted in fear as Blue's technique continued, but she refrained from protesting when she noticed several cuts on Feng's face beginning to heal. After a moment had passed, Blue ceased her healing technique and shrugged.

“He's not getting any better than that unless he fixes up his core.” She explained while climbing back up to Micro's shoulder.

“It's a sapphire core, but it's barely holding itself together.”

“Why don't you cultivate?” Micro asked Feng with wide eyes.

“You can heal faster with a strong core, can't you?”

“It's been a century since I last considered such a thing.” Feng explained.

“Thank you for your assistance, but I'm quite ready to see my final day.”

“Master Feng!” Lena shouted, tears flowing down her wrinkled face.

“You were a disciple of Kang at a golden era in our sect's history! And now our sect is cursed by the shadow of those ancient crimes. We've become little more than famed dogs of the empire, and there is little honour in the power we still hold...!”

Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

“My era is done.” Feng retorted.

“I know I have no right to beg you to reconsider the path of exile you have chosen, but there would be honour in your return! Master Ning is still loyal to Kang's teachings as our acting sect leader, and she is certainly the most powerful of us, but she knows that she sits in a position that was stolen through despicable means!” Lena explained without pause, ignoring the bitter look in Feng's eyes.

“You would have the ghost of a hermit for a sect leader?” Feng scoffed.

“Your presence alone would restore enough-” Lena began, but Feng suddenly rose to his feet and walked to the door.

“I'll fetch us something to eat.” He said curtly without looking back.

He ignored the hole in the door and left Lena speechless in the centre of the small room. She took a deep breath to regain her composure, then looked around at the humble cabin's interior. The small fireplace and barren shelves made it hard for Lena to believe someone could have lived there for a century, but she remained comfortable in the dimly lit but warm room.

“Why does Feng call you little Lena?” Micro asked her, waking her from her somber trance.

“Aren't you older than him?”

“Master Feng formed a sapphire core at a very young age, as one would have expected from Kang's direct disciples. The lifespan of such a prodigy can't be compared to one of lesser birth. I may be an elder of the sect now, but I will never know the power achieved by such masters as Feng and Kang.”

“Hmm, I should teach the old man how to cultivate before his back gets any worse...” Micro thought to himself.

“But why doesn't he want to go home with you? Sects seem like nice places.”

Lena stood up and joined Micro at the small table by the fire, settling on the floor with a long sigh.

“It happened so long ago, when I was only a child, perhaps your age...” Lena began as her expression darkened.

“The sect leader, Kang, had led us toward an era of growth and prosperity. We were originally a sect of hunters, but our influence expanded greatly under his guidance. And he was a powerful cultivator...”

“What changed?” Micro asked.

“There are those in this world who seek power over others, rather than power itself.” Lena answered.

“But a sect's strength is its leader, a leader's strength is their disciples, and the disciples' strength are their sect. A faction opposed to many of Kang's philosophies arose in a time of peace, and they challenged his authority when they couldn't challenge his power. They succeeded in implicating Kang and his elders in a crime which threatened the kingdom itself. Kang would have fought the charges with his dying breath, but his inner disciples were repeatedly attacked by assassins of the Water Serpent Moon Sect. He chose exiles to save as many of them as he could, at the cost of what honour the sect still retained...”

“So even though they were weaker than Kang, they still managed to take his job?” Micro replied.

“But are strength and power the same…?”

“That question was answered very quickly when a Cerulean Envoy was sent to investigate the matter, and the scandal was quickly uncovered.” Lena explained.

“You mean Yahari?” Micro asked.

“She was really strong!”

“Indur was his name, though little else is known of him.” Lena replied.

“He appeared before the man who stole the position of sect leader from Kang one day with an imperial notice in hand.”

Lena closed her eyes as the memory surfaced in her mind.

“The sect leader and his disciples were to be taken away to face judgement, and our sect, in its disgrace, would survive only in name as servants of the empire.” Lena’s voice grew bitter and resentful as she continued.

“What did they do to make the envoy so mad?” Blue suddenly spoke up.

“This isn’t a bad story after all.”

“They framed Kang, which much help from the Water Serpent Moon Sect, for the assassination of the first prince of this kingdom.

“Woah.” Blue nodded her head, amused by Lena’s explanation.

“To meddle with mundane politics is taboo, but they cared more for the power they could gain from the resulting chaos than for the honour they cast aside in the process. Those who were convicted were never heard from again, and a war was avoided, but…”

“But Feng was already hiding out here?” Micro asked as Lena’s voice trailed off.

“With no means to make things right with Kang’s faction, our sect has continued to struggle against fate without its honour intact for too long…!” Lena replied.

“But if Master Feng now returns to absolve the sect of its shame, we may finally know an honourable path once again. We may even free ourselves of imperial interference if Feng could pass on Kang’s teachings to but a single disciple and-”

“What do you think a sect is?” Feng’s stern voice filled the room once again as he passed through the doorway with a basket of vegetables under one arm. He joined them at the table, then revealed the contents of the basket to be stout carrots.

“Apologies for the lack of variety. Most of the garden wound up somewhere else last time things started moving. It’ll take a while to restock.”

“Thanks, Feng.” Micro said as he reached for a carrot. Blue jumped onto the table and took a small bite of the carrot, but she didn’t take another. Micro savoured each bite in silence with his Spirit Taste Skill activated while Lena and Feng continued to speak.

“What is a sect?” Lena repeated slowly.

“It’s everything, it’s our home, it’s our way of-”

“You’re as hopeless as that misguided Turang was, the poor fool…” Feng interrupted her, shaking his head.

“Do you care so little for the sect which your master raised and cherished?!” Lena gasped.

“Do I care? About what?” Feng laughed.

“The sect is no less a sect than it ever was, and it will never be anything more.”

“But our shame-”

“Do you know Kang’s origins, little Lena?” Feng suddenly asked with a softer tone.

“Those who knew him in his youth died long before my time…” Lena answered cautiously.

“He was a mundane farmer, no stronger than a common beast of labour.” Feng said with a smile.

“He was a…” Lena stuttered in confusion.

“But he…”

“He was not ashamed of his origins, but he grew tired of such reactions.” Feng continued.

“He thought it more practical to let people assume he was of noble stock, lest his path be obstructed by trivial issues of blood and stock.”

“You lie…!”

“But he was in love with the world he saw, and he pursued knowledge beyond his station.” Feng said with a nostalgic tone.

“And knowledge gave him strength.”