She was well-aware that they were but she needed to keep the disguise up. Her target knew that this big guy was going to the capital to participate in the recruitment. And he knew she was with him. If he searched for the guy once they reached the capital... Or if he did not find him there... He would without a doubt uncover her own secret identity.

As such, she was stuck.

She had to keep up the disguise while staying with this caravan all the way to the capital. She had to give up on chasing else she would have to lose all pretense.

She internally cursed Jin's ancestors many times while keeping up the charade.

The words of the big guy took her out of her reverie: "It is easy to distinguish cultivators from mortals. Not only the way they act but also their movements, their breath..."

As he looked at her with a serious gaze, she felt as if she had been discovered by him but, in case, kept the disguise: "Is that so? Sir Jing is truly formidable"

His eyelids closed slightly as he chuckled then shut up and started meditating. He tried to indirectly gave her a hint and, since she did not want to take it, would not inquire further. He knew she was a strong cultivator. There was no need for him to break the secret though. They were strangers after all. He did not like her attitude but whatever. He was not forced to entertain her.

Meanwhile, she was considering whether to silence him...

He knew her secret for sure. Even if he did not expose her... But she could not kill him or the target might become suspicious... As for the target finding her secret? It was unlikely. He probably escaped because he was not at ease with two cultivators stronger than him in the carriage or hoping to mislead the Cartel in some ways.

From the file, she knew that he was quite cunning and prone to run away at random times to hide himself.

Still, she sighed internally and cursed him some more.

She would have to report to her superiors that she lost him even though they made contact. This would reflect badly on her evaluation later on but if she lied about it... They might just end her.

...

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ENTRY 00048

First contact was made successfully.

Identity not exposed.

Target lost.

(Possibility that the target harbored doubts and planned a baiting trap to find our identity)

...

Time flew by and nothing much happened on the road to the capital.

Jin taught Ame as they sparred without the use of spiritual energy. To make it more efficient, Jin used a sword similar to Ame's. Regardless, she never managed to defeat him a single time. Heck, she could not even land a hit or resist more than ten movements.

The longer they spent together, the better she felt near him. It was not love but camaraderie. She respected his ability and enjoyed their debates. And she believed he thought in a similar way.

As they arrived at the royal capital, she decided that she would not separate from him right away. There was still a lot to learn and having a friend was always nice.

Meanwhile, Jin was pleased with himself with how things turned out. He was very much aware that he earned her trust and friendship.

After a few more hours of travel, they began to see the capital. It was very different from what Jin expected.

Simply put, it was a single gigantic tree.

It towered to the sky, piercing through the clouds.

As they got closer, he began to distinguish more and more features. He noticed how the city was built surrounding the tree with stones stuck within the bark. It was a mix between natural and artificial.

They reached the foot of the tree and it turned out that the roots served as the mural to protect the city. As they queued up at the entrance, awaiting the guard's check that would allow them entrance, Ame explained to him: "The city is separated in three parts. The first one is called the root for obvious reasons. It's like the outer perimeter and at ground-level. It's where the lower-class people live, mostly mortals. Next, you have the trunk. Mid-class people are living there. They built their houses and shop surrounding the trunk using all kinds of materials. The whole thing extends all the way till the first branch"

Jin interrupted her: "Wait. They live around the trunk and not within?"

She chuckled and told him: "It's forbidden to harm the tree. If they pierced it, wouldn't it die? The capital would've long disappeared if not for that rule. They spent eons stacking rocks and such to build around it. And, right at where the first branches extend is the last part of the city called the crown. In the very middle of the tree from which the branches expand, there is the palace. All the surrounding is part of it. And on the many branches, the nobles and wealthy built their houses"

Jin asked: "What about the higher places?"

She stated: "There's nothing above the palace. No ruler would ever allow anyone to live above him. Look, even the few first dozen branches extend downwards. Only those have people living on them"

Jin found it quite peculiar. He certainly would not want to live on one of those branches. What if it broke? Even as a cultivator, he did not think he could survive such a fall. Well, unless he used some special sealing means...

He sighed.

Since he planned to work for the palace, it was quite likely that he would live all the way up or something on the way up. He was not too fond of the idea but he would have to deal with it.

He wondered what would happen if a fire started here... Since that tree was still up, it probably would not be too effective... It would be something to keep in mind though.