Chapter 52 - 47 : The Traveler’s Record (1)

Chapter 52: Chapter 47 : The Traveler’s Record (1)

Three days passed quickly. Ethan spent them preparing without rushing. He completed the short work he had accepted, gathered the supplies he could afford, checked his remaining cultivation materials, and spent most of his spare time cultivating. Nothing dramatic happened. There was no sudden breakthrough. No strange phenomenon. No unexpected discovery. His progress was quieter than that.

The Evergreen Breath Method continued to circulate through his body, steady and familiar. The strain that had once accompanied each session had gradually diminished. His breathing remained controlled for longer periods, and recovery after cultivation had become easier. Ethan noticed the changes. He simply didn’t make a ceremony out of them. His body was improving. That was enough.

On the morning of the third day, he collected his advance payment. The organizer counted the coins into Ethan’s palm.

"You don’t trust us?"

"I trust numbers more."

The man laughed.

"Fair enough."

Ethan placed the coins away. The wooden token from the recruitment compound was still with him. He checked it once before leaving. Then he went to the stable. His horse was ready. Ethan paid the remaining amount for its care and checked the saddle and supplies without lingering. He had already done this once. There was no reason to repeat the same conversation. He simply took the horse and left.

The city gate was already crowded. But this morning, the western road carried a different kind of traffic. Not merchants. Not ordinary travelers. People preparing to leave together.

Ethan slowed as he approached. The expedition had assembled. It was not an army. Ethan realized that immediately. But neither was it a caravan. There were roughly fifty people gathered near the western gate, perhaps a few more when the support workers and handlers were counted. Enough to look substantial. Not enough to become an unwieldy mass.

At the front stood several officials from the Prefect’s office. They were speaking quietly with officers responsible for organizing the departure. Behind them were several state soldiers. They wore practical equipment and maintained a disciplined appearance, but they were not the main force. The state had not emptied its barracks to deal with bandits. That would have been excessive. Instead, it had brought enough personnel to represent the authority of the Prefect’s office and provide the organized core of the operation.

Beyond them stood several groups of family retainers. Their clothing varied. Some wore the colors of wealthy households. Others were dressed more plainly. But Ethan could recognize the difference between ordinary hired guards and people who had spent years serving a particular family. They stood together. They knew one another. They listened when their senior members spoke. A few carried themselves with the confidence of people accustomed to having someone important behind them.

Ethan looked farther. Independent fighters stood apart from the family groups. Some were ordinary trained men. Others were clearly cultivators. There were not many Body Tempering cultivators. Perhaps eight or nine in total among the entire gathering. Ethan quietly counted them. Most appeared to be at the lower or middle portion of the realm. A few were harder to judge. That interested him.

The operation had gathered strength without pretending to possess an overwhelming number of cultivators. It made sense. Cultivators were valuable. The city could not simply gather dozens of them whenever a road became troublesome. And those who were here had accepted because the payment, reputation, or circumstances made it worthwhile.

Ethan looked back toward the gate. The western road stretched beyond it. For the first time, the expedition felt real. Not an announcement. Not a notice on a board. People were actually leaving the city.

"Body Tempering?"

The question came from Ethan’s side. He turned. A man slightly older than him was looking at his token.

"Yes."

The man nodded.

"Independent?"

"Yes."

"Family?"

"None."

The man smiled faintly.

"Then we’re in the same boat."

Ethan looked at him. The man gestured toward the gathering.

"I don’t belong to any of them either."

Ethan didn’t ask for his name. The man didn’t offer it. That suited him. They stood in silence for a moment. Then a movement near the front caught Ethan’s attention. The atmosphere changed. It wasn’t dramatic. Nobody shouted. Nobody announced anything. People simply began making space.

Several figures approached from the direction of the inner road. Their clothing immediately distinguished them from everyone else. Deep azure-blue outer robes. White inner garments. Restrained silver embroidery. At the chest was the emblem Ethan had never seen before in person but had already heard associated with the regional sect.

Three layered cloud strokes surrounding a small ascending crescent of azure light. The design was simple. It did not need to be more complicated.

The Azure Cloud Sect had arrived. There were several of them. Most appeared young. Junior disciples. Their cultivation varied, but Ethan could recognize the presence of Body Tempering among them. They were not dressed identically in quality, yet the same colors and emblem connected them immediately.

At their center walked a man whose robes were finer. Still deep azure. Still restrained. But the silver cloud embroidery was more refined, and a formal waist token hung clearly at his side. A darker outer cloak rested over his shoulders for the journey.

Ethan looked at him for several seconds. He did not need to ask who he was. The surrounding people had already begun lowering their voices.

"The Sect Envoy."

Ethan stored the title away. So this was the person the Prefect had mentioned. The Sect Envoy did not behave like someone arriving to take command of everyone. He greeted the officials. Spoke briefly with the Prefect’s representatives. Then acknowledged the family retainers and independent cultivators. Calm. Measured. No unnecessary display.

Ethan approved. Authority was easier to respect when it didn’t need to announce itself.

The Prefect arrived shortly afterward. He did not come alone. Several officials accompanied him, along with a few senior state personnel. Ethan noticed that the Prefect was not carrying the burden of organizing everything himself. Orders moved through other people.

An official checked the supply wagons. Another confirmed the number of participants. Someone else spoke with the handlers responsible for the animals. A final group made sure the road ahead had been checked before departure.

Ethan watched all of it. The city had a system. He had known that already. But knowing something existed and seeing it operate were different things. The Prefect spoke briefly with the Sect Envoy. Ethan couldn’t hear everything. He didn’t need to. He could see the arrangement.

The state was responsible for the operation. The families had supplied people. The merchants had supplied resources and had a direct interest in the road. Independent cultivators had been hired. The Azure Cloud Sect had supplied a higher-level cultivator and several junior disciples. No single group was carrying the entire burden. That was why the expedition could exist.

Ethan opened his journal. He did not write yet. He simply watched. A horn sounded. Conversation gradually diminished. The Prefect’s voice carried across the gathering.

"We leave."

There was no speech.

No promise of glory.

The people began moving. The expedition passed through the western gate. Ethan followed. The city slowly fell behind them.

The road outside the city was wider than Ethan had expected. For the first stretch, the movement remained orderly. The officials and state personnel maintained the front. The supply wagons followed. The family groups remained together. The independent cultivators moved where they preferred, though nobody strayed too far.

The Azure Cloud Sect delegation occupied a position that allowed them to remain near the central portion of the group. Ethan noticed the arrangement without trying to memorize every position. He was more interested in the people.