Ken opens and closes the pendant in his hands. Opening and closing it. Once, twice, three times, four times, and then a lot more. Treating it like some sort of a fidget toy. The polished metal erratically scatters the light of the full moon, creating a fascinating little lightshow as a result.

This pendant was his family's final gift to him before he left. A farewell by which he will remember them. He hardly thinks it necessary, he's barely done anything for them to earn such an extravagant gift.

Inside it there is no such thing as a picture, for inside the village there is neither the technology, nor an artist skilled enough to draw something on such a small surface area, Kenki included.

Instead, the inside is segmented into four separate spaces. Each containing a little something from each family member.

A wheat kernel from his father Isamu.

A needle from his mother Linua. Since it's impossible to fit a whole needle there's only a small fragment of it inside.

A hardened drop of tree resin from his older brother Daiki. No doubt that it is a jab at him from an incident a couple of years back.

And finally, the husk of a ladybug from his little brother Yun.

"…"

Let's hope that it doesn't decay.

For how distant he feels that he has been towards them, he really doesn't deserve something this good. But it would have been an insult to reject it.

Heaving a sigh he opens and closes it for one final time before storing it in one of the satchels strapped to his hip.

"I really have an interesting set of circumstances going for me don't I?" Letting out a small laugh, he turns his eyes to the horizon. With the light of the full moon illuminating it, one could easily see the outline of the city in the distance

The city is called Ornthar. Not that it really matters since it is only a temporary stop for him.

'I really don't know what that woman was thinking.' Ken shakes his head helplessly 'Isn't she afraid that I'll just bail and change sides? My connections to Twilight Blossom are essentially nonexistent, only consisting of my bond to master Zhang Dongmei. And at the end of the day I'm not really trained for espionage, I'm only a measly ten years old after all, what if I screw something up?" The young boy feels a little helpless.

He'd been randomly dropped off on some piece of land hundreds of kilometers away from his home and then given a little information on the surroundings, barely enough to create an alibi for himself.

"Go into the city" she had said "Just like villages, so do cities and towns have their guardians. It's just that they are many times more powerful. The moment you enter the guardian will be able to pick out your Qi."

And when he had asked why would that even be a good thing she had simply laughed.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

"Because they get big bonuses for turning in naturally advanced cultivators. And in the guardian's eyes you will be exactly that. Under no circumstances will an initiate realm cultivator be found outside one of their five great sect compounds. Of course, not unless they managed to advance using their own strength. Good luck kiddo"

That's all that she said to him before both Dongmei and her poofed into nothingness. He didn’t even get her name

So here he is now, perched on the tallest tree around, with a rope tied around his waist. Getting ready to sleep.

'I'm expendable' he concludes.

'Even if there's only a twenty percent chance for success. Not changing sides and then not being caught. That's still a twenty percent chance to obtain intel on the enemy, and she probably really likes those odds.'

'Well, I can't predict the future. I'll see how everything develops.'

With that in mind Kenki finally closes his eyes. The ambient sounds of the forest quickly drift him off to dreamland.

.

.

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He's on the move first thing in the morning. There's no need for him to gather his stuff or make breakfast. In his backpack he'd already prepared kilos upon kilos of smoked deer meat. Perfectly fit for travel.

It's a bit leathery but such is the price that must be paid for preservatives not existing. Even with the odd laws of this world, microorganisms still seem to exist, and raw meat goes bad fast.

As a result, the meat needs to be dried to a level where it wouldn't spoil, resulting in this unpleasant texture.

"Hnn…?"

While walking on the old and beaten down mud road he turns around, hearing the yelling of a man.

His eyebrows knit together and for a brief moment he contemplates directing Qi to his ears to boost his hearing. As it is, the sounds are barely perceptible.

But he decides against it. Better behave like he is unaware of being a cultivator.

Off in the distance he sees a small dot, one that is steadily getting larger and larger. It doesn't take long for him to make out the outlines of a carriage as well as the old man in its lead. He waits patiently, the carriage stopping just short of him.

"Boy, what are you doing here? Aren't you aware of the bandits that own this road?"

'Bandits?'

"I could say the same to you old man, don't you have a lot to lose carrying all that luggage with you. You seem like a merchant."

"Bah. They let poor men like me through as long as I deliver them booze every once in a while." He waves Kenki's words off.

"But you?" He points to the boy. "They will capture and sell you without a second thought."

"Yeah. I noticed" Ken replies in a sarcastic manner. The gesture causes the man's bushy white eyebrows to raise, before he nods in understanding.

"Ah, I see." The man apologetically takes his straw hat off. "You have my condolences, when I passed by the bandits I remember a couple in their number bragging about having captured some unaware travelers. It would also explain your misshapen state" he further comments, pointing out all the injuries and mud that Ken is covered with. The boy remains stoic throughout, not letting a single emotion through.

'I was originally planning on using my state for a different alibi but this might work too.' The previous night Ken had spent some time inflicting himself with some bruises and cuts before rolling around on the forest floor and covering himself with dirt and mud. It should give him the look of a newly advanced cultivator, one that has just passed the Trial of Initiation and whatever challenges it had entailed.

He'd also taken the chance to throw away his bow. No point for a kid his age to have it, it would just make everything about him way more suspicious. Bows are pretty imposing after all.

The man awkwardly rubs his neck. Ken's emotionless stare and lack of response seem to have gotten to him.

"Are you headed for Ornthar?" The man sheepishly asks, and Ken replies with a nod.

"I assume that you don't have a pass to enter the city with. Why not come with me? With my help they should let you through and, although I can't take care of you, I know a couple of people in the city that would be happy to take in a young lad like yourself. As long as you work for them earnestly you should make enough to feed yourself. For example, Lady Shina, she is the owner of an inn and was looking for someone to help her in her work last time I was around here. It's just unfortunate that she cannot pay much"

Ken simply maintains his stare.

'It doesn't seem like he's lying.' He thinks to himself 'I'm a kid so I should seem gullible, he didn't promise some grand meal or riches to entice me. He has given me something reasonable to latch on to.'

"Sounds good" He finally says after some deliberation.

"That's great!" The man smiles, tapping the wood next to him. He places the straw hat back onto his bald head "Come on, there's more than enough space on this carriage for you. With the speed this old girl is capable of, we should reach the city in about an hour."

The horse neighs when the man whips the reins.

And then they're off