Benton and the twins were just finishing dessert in the restaurant when Kang Ya-Ting met them.

He immediately cupped his hands before giving each of the three a decorative metal pin. The piece of jewelry was the shape of a green snake and had a clasp on the back. “The Poison Claw Sect thanks the Esteemed Master Cultivator for his most gracious and prized gift. Though these tokens do not intrinsically represent an iota of the value of the gift given, this one hopes the Esteemed Master Cultivator will treasure the friendship represented by the tokens just as much as the sect treasures his technique.”

Well, in pure monetary terms, treasuring the pins just as much as the technique might be stretching it a bit if Benton had been a normal cultivator. Since he could whip up as many as he had points for, though, the calculation was a little more complicated. He wouldn’t trade a Sect Point right now for just about any amount of silver taels.

On the other hand, a pin that signified the Poison Claw Sect’s friendship might one day prevent a conflict that would otherwise cost lives. The small piece of jewelry represented that the wearer was valued by the sect and should be treated as a member by the public and other sects. For the members of the Poison Claw Sect, it meant the bearer had the favor of the sect’s elders, signifying that messing with them was a huge risk.

Friendship with the sect was only a step below being an ally, a position that took years of fruitful exchanges to receive. It was everything he had hoped for and more.

Benton immediately clipped the pin to the left breast of his robe and bade the twins to do the same. He cupped his hands to Kang Ya-Ting. “This one understands the honor inherent in the presentation of the token and accepts that its value far exceeds the humble gift offered by this one.”

“Nonsense. This one’s gift was clearly the inferior. Esteemed Master Cultivator’s technique is unique under the heavens.”

“This one’s technique was but a trifle, nothing in comparison to the friendship of the mighty Poison Claw Sect.”

“This one appreciates the Esteemed Cultivator’s high esteem for his sect, but that technique is a treasure to ignite the avarice of a monk.”

What followed was a long conversation in which each of the two participants praised the others’ gift to the high heavens while denigrating their own. As Benton got into the spirit of the contest, making wilder and wilder claims, the twins looked on in bemusement.

By the end, though, Kang Ya-Ting seemed well pleased.

“If this one may enquire, are there any specific benefits of the pin that this one and his disciples might avail themselves of?” Benton said.

“Well, to begin with, the Esteemed Master Cultivator and his disciples are welcome guests of the Poison Claw Sect and, as such, are entitled to use the facilities both here in the Sixth Flawless Flowing City branch and in the main sect lands. Such guest rights include entrance to baths, the right to stay in special lodging areas, free meals at participating sect restaurants, access to unlimited training and sparring areas, and discounts at shops. If one were to need, for example, pills, one would find that the Poison Claw Sect alchemists are renowned as superior throughout the region and that the offerings available inside the sect grounds far outstrip those found anywhere else in the city.”

If that reference to buying pills wasn’t a blatant admission that the sect had spied on Benton’s earlier conversation with the twins, he didn’t know what was, and obviously, they were going to refuse the offer of lodging. Too many ears around.

“Of course,” Kang Ya-Ting continued, “any facility requiring contribution points to enter, such as cultivation areas equipped with arrays to increase qi density, will require special permission. A reasonable amount of such usage has been allocated already, and the Esteemed Master Cultivator or his disciples need only contact me to arrange for entrance.”

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

That accommodation was a surprise. Special cultivation areas were highly coveted by sect members, and usage came at a premium of contribution points. For an outsider to be allowed in demonstrated that the person was held in very high regard indeed by the elders.

“This one unfortunately has errands that will occupy the rest of the day.” Benton had to go pick up the bows and other stuff he’d ordered from the Swift Hunter Weapon Vault. “This one would definitely like to access the alchemy shop, however. Would tomorrow work?”

“Of course.”

There was one more ask that Benton had, but that one would require him leaving the twins at the Poison Claw Sect while he ran his errand. His thoughts as a person from Earth was that the whole being designated as a friend of the sect setup could be a trap, that leaving his disciples behind was too dangerous. According to Su’s memories, however, no sect would dare even the smallest of slights against one granted such a high-level guest right. The loss of face would be tremendous.

“This one hesitates to impose on our host’s generosity, but the thing that is most desired is to see the disciples truly tested in spars against similarly accomplished cultivators. Would it be possible for the sect’s trainers to evaluate them so that they could be matched with appropriate opponents? This one would enjoy watching those bouts tomorrow.”

“That idea sounds delightful,” Kang Ya-Ting said. “Judging from the prowess this one has observed thus far, such spars will be just as beneficial for the Poison Claw Sect members. This one will not only accompany the Esteemed Master Cultivator’s disciples to the trainers but give them a personal tour of the sect grounds.”

Benton’s immediate impulse was to tell the kids to behave and mind Kang Ya-Ting, but those admonitions would be treating them like children, not the adults that their society considered them to be and the future sect leaders Benton hoped they’d become. Instead, he simply told them to have fun.

All in all, his trip to the Poison Claw Sect had resulted in everything coming up roses. The rest of the day was more aggravating.

To begin with, he felt strongly that he needed to conceal exactly how much of a treasure his spatial ring really was. After all, he had no idea how close the decision to treat him as a friend of the sect instead of simply trying to take his treasures from him had been. Discovering that he carried a storage device so vast that Su wouldn’t have even been able to comprehend the size of it might tip the scales for the elders to change their minds.

That particular deception meant he had to use a wagon to pick up the weapons instead of just showing up and sweeping it all into his ring.

A bad thought hit him. Kang Ya-Ting knew about all Benton’s purchases, meaning that Benton would have to leave town with everything in wagons. Crap! The food alone filled the three he had. Pills were small and would fit in a regular sized ring without a problem, but he’d need to procure more cargo space for the weapons, the fabric, and the herbs. He would have to find at least three more wagons and oxen to pull them, and they’d all have to be bought instead of rented.

There went some of his stash he was planning on spending on pills.

An even worse thought hit him. He was drawing a lot of attention. Spies were everywhere in sects. News of him being named a friend of the Poison Claw Sect had surely reached the Swift Blizzard and Jade Chameleon. One or more of the three big sects in the city were likely to follow him when he left to return to the village.

Man, he was going to have to use a wagon train until any pursuers gave up, if they even did. That meant no simply stowing everything in his ring and taking the direct route through the forest. The new route would add a month or more to his travels.

Oh well, what must be done would be done. The village had survived for years on its own. It could wait some extra number of weeks for their food delivery.

Not that anyone save perhaps the orphans and maybe Zhong Wen were expecting him to return in the first place. Besides, this world wasn’t like Earth. There were no cell phones, no texting if one were going to be five minutes late. Being a month later than anticipated on a long trip was just a part of the hazards of travel.

By the time he’d finished ruminating on the trip home, he’d reached the warehouse. Though the twins typically handled most of the wagon-driving, Benton had picked up enough skill to be able to get from Point A to Point B. Slowly. With many angry pedestrians left in his wake. Which were the circumstances when he arrived at the weapons vault and those when he returned to the warehouse.

Next, off to find more wagons and oxen. Great. He just loved dealing with the huge smelly animals.

Maybe he should wait for the twins to return. That job seemed like a good learning opportunity for his disciples.