Patrolling the Road
When Long Tian and Yu Jin set off, the sun had just passed noon.
Shen Mo stood at the courtyard gate and watched them go down the slope, but didn't follow. Tang San's matter only required a briefing, not many people. After walking along the main road for most of the day, they approached the fork in the road outside the Shrek Academy the next morning. Tang San was squatting on the steps of the side gate of the academy, holding an old cloth in his hand and wiping the scabbard of a short knife. When he saw them coming from the road, he stood up and put the cloth on the steps.
Long Tian briefly explained the patrol team's movements. Tang San nodded after listening, sheathed his short sword, and said, "I've gone through the student files these past few days. Your name only appeared once in the enrollment registration, using an alias. I also removed the enrollment materials under that alias. Now, the file shelf only has the blank page corresponding to the alias. If someone comes to check, they'll only find a canceled student record. I've submitted a correction letter to the town's household registration office through the academy's liaison, giving you a complete apprentice status under the name of a tailor shop in the east of town. This kind of status is the least likely to be investigated during patrols; there's no record of Soul Master aptitude, and you won't appear on any academy's recommendation list."
Long Tian listened without asking further questions and nodded. He was already familiar with Tang San's efficiency during the Elite Tournament, and this time he hadn't disappointed him either. He glanced at the sky, about to discuss the next steps, when Tang San spoke first, "However, there's something I need to tell you. Of the three patrol teams, the northernmost group passed through Soul Hunting Town yesterday and should be on the outskirts of Bluestone Town today. If you need to go to town to complete your registration, you'd better finish the paperwork before they finish passing through the villages to the east. Their personnel are scattered, and the groups are far apart, but the Bluestone Town area is likely where they'll stay for a relatively long time."
Long Tian stood on the steps for a moment, mentally reviewing the information Tang San had provided and the patrol route Shen Mo had marked. Bluestone Town was one of the nodes on the patrol route where they would spend the most time. They might visit several local academies and the Spirit Hall Branch in the town, thoroughly examining the abnormal Soul Power records of the surrounding villages. He turned to look at Yu Jin, Yu Jin was leaning against an elm tree trunk by the roadside. The light from the dark gray bead was inconspicuous in the sunlight. After listening to what he had said, Yu Jin straightened up and nodded to Long Tian.
"Go to Bluestone Town," Long Tian said to Tang San, then walked along the path from the side gate of the academy towards the fork in the road. Tang San added, "The tailor shop in town is on the east side of the main street. There's a blue curtain hanging at the entrance. The owner's surname is Zhou. Just tell him your apprentice's registration number, and he'll understand."
Long Tian responded and turned onto the main road leading to Bluestone Town at the fork in the road. Yu Jin followed and walked beside him. The two quickened their pace, leaving the road signs behind them. The fields by the roadside were a uniform green in the afternoon sun. The wind blowing through the wheat fields created a continuous rustling sound above the road, which was broken and then closed by their footsteps.
After walking for nearly two hours, Long Tian slowed his pace as he passed a village entrance. A horse-drawn carriage was parked on the dirt road at the village entrance, its canopy fully covered. Two people sat on the carriage shaft, wearing the standard short robes of the Spirit Hall, talking to an old man carrying a load on a shoulder pole at the village entrance. Long Tian didn't stop; he continued along the official road, only quickening his pace after walking a distance. Yu Jin caught up. The two walked a while longer on the official road, then squatted down to rest behind a low hill by the roadside. Long Tian reviewed what he had just seen in his mind—the two men were from a patrol team, and judging from their direction of travel, they were probably heading back towards the town after visiting several villages on the outskirts of Bluestone Town. Their window of opportunity was narrower than expected.
He squatted behind the low hill for a while, then stood up, brushed the dirt off his trousers, and set off again with Yu Jin. By the time they reached the outskirts of Bluestone Town, the sun was already setting. Long Tian didn't enter the town through the main street, but instead circled around to the eastern part of the town along a narrow alley. The alley was narrow and old, with moss growing on the walls on both sides, and several old clothes hanging on bamboo poles extending from the top of the walls. He emerged from the end of the alley, glanced at the eastern section of the main street, and saw the blue cloth curtain hanging under the lintel of a shop. The shop wasn't large; several rolls of cloth and an old wooden frame were placed at the entrance, and a middle-aged man wearing a gray apron was sitting on a low stool by the door, sewing an old garment.
Long Tian walked over and stopped at the door. The man looked up at him, placed his needle and thread on his lap, stood up, and waited without saying a word. Long Tian gave the number Tang San had provided. After hearing this, the man turned and went into the shop. He rummaged in the drawer under the counter for a while and took out a stamped correction letter and a thin register. He spread the correction letter on the counter and had Long Tian fill in his name, hometown, and basic information about his apprentice status. Then he turned to a new page in the register, copied the correction letter's number and contents, and finally stamped the tailor shop's seal in the blank space. Before closing the register, he glanced at Long Tian and said, "People from the Spirit Hall have come to the east village entrance. They've been asking questions all afternoon. You'd better leave quickly."
Long Tian nodded, put away the correction letter, and retreated back to the edge of town along the alley.