Looking up, Sage caught sight of the woman from before, Wan Ling. She was standing in front of a table covered in documents. Remembering the business deal and how he had let her stay in his house to keep working, Sage relaxed. Walking forward he smiled and bowed his head to the woman, “Ahh, you’re still here. How wonderful! I was just thinking of you.”

Even as the drivel spilled from his lips, he glanced over to the paperwork to try and get an idea of what was going on.

“You’ve already been gone for months, yet you can still pretend like you aren’t burning with desire to know what’s happened.”

Sage lifted his head from the bow and his careful observation to look directly at Wan Ling, “Months? How long did you say I was gone?”

“It’s already been over three months, did you go into seclusion or something?”

Sage just nodded his head, going along with her reasoning. Putting a guilty smile on his face, “You’re right. I got too caught up in training and lost track of time.”

Internally, he was realizing there was some time dilation from his trip. The three weeks had turned into three months. Either the time in the Hidden Domain was slower than normal, or the trip there and back had taken much longer than the instant he had felt it to be. Could this be some sort of lightspeed related time dilation for traveling to another planet?

Putting aside the thoughts for now, Sage focused on the present. The beautiful and ruthless business woman still glaring at him. He bowed his head another time, apologizing for another slip into forgetfulness. Wan Ling looked him over carefully seeming to notice him spacing out for a second. His face was essentially a puppet now, so it showed nothing other than what he wanted it to, but she seemed to recognize the long pause and was re-evaluating him. Finally, she smiled back at him and walked closer, looking like a caring older sister as she put an arm against his shoulder, her tone getting protective and motherly.

“Oh, you needn’t worry too much. Sister here took good care of your home and business while you were away. The remodel of ‘Future Horizons’ was finished a month ago and is already gaining popularity. Once you’re rested you just need to start making more of those fabulous devices.”

She patted him on the back a few times and walked him towards his room for a bit before she made an excuse and got back to her paperwork. Her movements were very controlled and precise, but Sage could tell there was a slight delay before she had left him. Something was on her mind and she was hesitating to bring it up with him. Sage put it aside and went into his room. After being at high alert and on edge for a few weeks he just wanted to relax. All he’d done for weeks was stay on high alert and research the foreign materials to keep himself focused.

The first thing he wanted to was take a long and relaxing bath. Walking towards the bath, he was stopped by Wan Ling. She called over to him and walked over with a smile, “You want to unwind after being gone so long, right? Well, then why don’t we take this opportunity to show you the new place!”

Sage laughed and suddenly remembered his business had included a full spa treatment. Instead of using his makeshift shower and a simple tub, why not go for the full experience?

Half an hour later, they stepped out of a carriage that Wan Ling had arranged for them and Sage was met with a completely different look from before. The strange melding of traditional and earth modern was gone. Instead it was completely transformed into a traditional building, but with a touch of the magical. Before, there was a large building with a western style wooden siding, painted with a modern feeling slate grey and white trim. Attached to that tall building was still the ancient eastern style tea house with open sides, paper windows, elaborate wooden window frames and the gorgeous garden and pond courtyard.

Now, the eye catching modern building was completely transformed. It had been remodeled into a Pagoda style building. The modern siding and trim was removed and replaced with decorative peaked corners and panels. The roof had a high peak and the lower floors were expanded to make it so the Pagoda building started large with each floor being slightly smaller than the one below, adding a layer of roofing and giving more space for decorations. The decorations added the touch of magical, Sage counted at least one large sculpture of a dragon, a phoenix, a multi-tailed fox, a turtle with a dragon head and a snake tail, a foo lion, and at least a dozen more he didn’t get a good look at. Each of them were individually painted and exquisitely detailed.

The sign on the gate was replaced by one above the door that said, ‘Palace of Prosperity’.

Intrigued, Sage followed along with Wan Ling and was taken on a tour of the premises. At its core, it was very similar to before except with a few major changes. All the touches of the modern world that Sage thought would be exotic and interesting were removed. The people of this world obviously didn’t find it interesting. With no frame of reference they must have looked like clowns, so in hindsight Sage now realized it was a horrible idea. Instead it embraced the fantastical. The most beautiful and fierce of monsters and creatures were used instead to make a sort of wonderland feel. Instead of the businesslike outfits and behavior he had tried to use, the business went the other direction to create an opulent splendor with dozens of servants lined up to greet customers and attend to their every need. The casino and movie theater were completely removed and the place was utterly transformed into a theme resort version of a day spa.

After the tour was complete, Sage gave Wan Ling a big smile, “No wonder you said it’s becoming popular. This is excellent work.”

“Why thank you! It was hard work getting it done so quickly, I had to call in a few favors with different builders for the remodeling. I’ve still got more work to do so I’ll leave you to enjoy the place. I already had them book you the largest suite.”

Sage laughed and nodded, “I can’t let waste such a thoughtful gift. Why don’t you stay for a while, too? You look like you could use some rest.”

“I already tested it all out before it opened, but I can’t stay for now. There’s far too much work to do.”

Sage felt a sort of sudden sadness and didn’t understand why. Ignoring the twinge of feeling, he just smiled and nodded to her. Bidding Wan Ling goodbye and heading into the spa. The experience was truly indulgent with full body massages, saunas, and hot tubs. All the while there was fragrant incense, soft music and extravagant meals on offer. After that he retired to a huge suite, with overly soft and fluffy sheets, comforters, pillows, and even carpets and rugs.

He spent his free time reading some of the basic books he’d got from the Timeless Master and improving his knowledge. The next day he returned to his home and met up with Wan Ling again. This time he caught her unaware and noticed the look of distress on her face before she could hide it and put on a smile. Not wanting to avoid hidden trouble for the future, Sage called her out.

“You don’t need to worry…”

Sage’s sharp gaze cut her placations short and she sighed, “Ehh, you saw through me. We’ve run into a few problems.”

After a few minutes of explanation, Sage learned how ambitious Wan Ling’s plans already were. The plan was to open a branch of the Palace of Prosperity in every major city of the Holy Flame Province. Along with the Palace of Prosperity, a traveling theater group was to be formed. Instead of putting on plays or concerts, they would set up the projector equipment and show movies to introduce the world to the concept. The problem came from Red Knife City, the city that bordered Green Plateau Province. Someone was obstructing their plans to purchase property in the city.