Traveling Party

The sky hung low like an iron curtain.

Decades have passed, and the Wasteland land remains shrouded in a gloom of decay year after year.

The sunlight was sometimes scorching, and sometimes so thin it seemed weak and powerless, as if it came from another world.

On the riverbank, several dead trees stand tall.

Their barkless branches, twisted like ghostly hands in the night, point futilely to the sky, never receiving the rain they prayed for until their death.

Waaaaah—

A desolate wind blew through the bone-like wood, producing a hollow sound.

On the bare, withered chest of the earth, a group of three walks.

Their members are quite unique.

One of them, with his white hair, was a rare long-lived elder in this Wasteland.

The other two were surprisingly young, and they closely guarded the old man like protectors.

Walking along, one of the young men inevitably felt parched. He glanced at his water bottle but managed to suppress the dryness in his chest.

He tried to distract himself by asking the old man:

"Elder, is it necessary for you to come with us?"

"The Banyan Forest is indeed legendary, but we can just go and take a look. Why do you have to leave the camp?"

The old man shook his head:

"I don't have much time left."

"And the news I heard this time is different from before, so I have to come and see for myself at the last minute."

The young people are somewhat confused:

"I do not understand."

The old man said:

"This is different from those short-lived forces of the past."

"It's not just about order; they seem to have a stable production structure, and it's not the kind that's maintained by one or two treasures."

The Human God remained unchanged:

"I... I still don't quite understand."

"Child, it's alright." The old man smiled instead. "If it's really as I think, you can naturally experience a completely different world by looking with your eyes and touching with your hands."

"..."

The group trekked across the Wasteland.

One month after they set off.

The Wasteland land remained desolate, but as the three crossed a canyon, they suddenly spotted some close-knit figures ahead.

These people did not appear as frail as ordinary people in the Wasteland; they were even wearing clothing to protect themselves from the wind and sand.

Behind the procession were several wooden carts.

A long cobblestone path extends from beneath its feet, faintly appearing from the distant horizon, winding through the barren desert and withered trees, disappearing at the edge of the world.

"..."

The three of them were stunned for a moment.

There used to be roads built on the Wasteland, but decades of desolation have ravaged it beyond recognition by wind erosion and ground fissures.

Today, new roads are being paved on the old site.

The young man looked at the old man blankly, completely bewildered by what he was seeing.

"Elder, what are they doing? On the road?"

The old man fell into deep thought.

His eyes gleamed with excitement, and it took him a long time to speak again:

"Road."

"They are repairing the road."

Without even having time to explain to the young man, he quickened his pace and headed towards the paving team:

"Come on, let's go take a look!"

Upon getting closer, the old man discovered that the situation was different from what he had imagined.

The workers simply took tools like shovels and picks and casually patted the ground. Without any intermediate steps, stones automatically disappeared from the wooden cart behind them and were instead laid on the ground.

Ordinary people would see this.

They would only assume that it was an awakened craftsman doing the construction.

But the old man was exceptionally perceptive; he immediately recognized that these people's behavior was fundamentally different from that of the awakened ones.

"This way of mobilizing the Essence..."

"Do organizers distribute power to their subordinates and then exercise authority on their behalf? No, there are similar aspects, but the essence is quite different."

The young man next to the old man asked:

"Elder, you seem to value this matter very much?"

The old man shook his head:

"If we were to prioritize construction projects, roads would definitely be at the top of the list."

"Aigner, we think we made the right choice coming here this time."

"..."

A few weeks later, the three-person team continued their journey eastward along the cobblestone path.

The dry air seemed to have gained a tiny bit of moisture, and the air seemed to be enticing people to head east.

But what's even more concerning are the other pedestrians on the cobblestone path.

Unlike ordinary refugees on the Wasteland land who were wary of each other, these people headed east with hopeful hearts, and their processions often included human-powered wooden carts carrying goods.

During the lunch break.

The younger members of the group tried to talk to these people, and it took them quite a while to return.

"Elder, they are all going to the Banyan Forest."

"This force is quite ambitious. They have built roads that have spread to all parts of the east and have already established connections with many organizations. From the first mine, it only took them a little over half a year to make a name for themselves through the food trade and even become the dominant force in the region."

The elderly person resting had a more complex look in their eyes:

"Yes, they have abundant food and a magical forest to gather resources. Their rulers must be quite powerful, otherwise, such wealth would not be something an ordinary person could protect."

The young man shook his head:

"I don't know anything about the Green Swamp, but I do know that their Lord's name is Linsey."

"Moreover, it seems that the Banyan Forest has trained a very powerful army!"

"They use weapons that do not require Essence but are still quite powerful. Even awakened individuals in the second or Third Stage are often easily suppressed by them once they are outnumbered."

Lao Tzu nodded:

"It seems he has some excellent craftsmen under his command."

"I also heard that Yarrowen set up a camp here. I never thought that after his failure, fate would unfold in this way."

"..."

Several more days have passed.

This time, the three-person team saw a hideous insectoid appear on the road.

They were also pulling a wooden wagon, inside which some stones and dirt could be vaguely seen.

The young man was immediately shocked by this scene and jumped in front of the old man to protect him.

But before he could make a move, the old man patted him on the shoulder:

"Aigner, relax, it's okay."

The young man sounded nervous:

"But... what is that?"

"Different races, or Demi-human," the old man said. "Many worlds are dominated by humans, but there are also demi-human species that have developed intelligence."

"You may find them a little scary, but it's best to put aside your prejudices."

"These are all intelligent, communicative beings."

As they were talking, a gust of wind suddenly blew by.

It is common knowledge that the fierce winds on the Wasteland are like knife cuts.

But this time, the east wind brought a refreshing scent of trees and the moisture of water, making one want to take a few more breaths.

The unprecedented experience left some young people feeling somewhat bewildered.

The old man said with emotion:

"Child, we've arrived."

The group looked eastward.

The magnificent, towering Banyan Forest appeared in the distance against the sky.