Yin Hu stepped out of the courtyard and pulled the gate shut behind him.Ta Rae's branches scraped against the wall on the other side, reaching for him through the gap before the latch clicked. A single leaf poked through the crack between the gate and the frame, trembling with the desperate energy of a cat watching a parent leave for work. He could hear the tree's trunk creak as it strained against its roots."I'll be back in an hour," he said to the gate.The leaf trembled as though to show its great sorrow then slowly retracted. Of course, it went with theatrical reluctance.Spoiled rotten. How the hell do I raise a tree to not be so needy?!Yin Hu turned and looked at the bright day that surrounded him. The morning air carried the faint scent of sweat, wood polish, a stall of food that he was one hundred percent positive was illegal considering the bureaucratic nature of YellowHearth City, and the residual smell of herbs and plants.He walked at a pace that suggested a man with nowhere urgent to be and all the time in the world to not be there. Hands clasped behind his back, chin level, eyes roaming and surveying everything, and robes catching the breeze. The Ancient Being persona had settled into his bones so deep he wasn't sure where the act ended and the man began anymore. Not that he was upset at it. It was his identity now, for better or worse. Cultivator Row was alive with its usual morning energy. Kids running with packages, clothes, boxes, and a dozen other items. Disciples swept courtyards. Masters barked corrections. Someone was attempting what sounded like a guzheng solo but might have been a cat trapped in a storage crate and fighting for its escape.He kept his eyes forward and his pace steady through it all.The plan was simple. Walk to the shop, enter through the back door where no customers, hidden sages, arrogant young (...)