"Oh~ so you're trying to poach us, huh?"
Off to the side, March 7th listened for a moment and immediately caught on.
But then—
These guys were only trying to poach Evan
and completely ignoring her and Stelle?!
That was unacceptable.
Absolutely unacceptable.
"Hey~ you're poaching us!"
Stelle echoed it without hesitation.
The synchronized accusation instantly made Green Hibiscus and White Lotus look… complicated.
After all, the only reason the two of them dared to show up personally
was because they already had a good grasp of Evan's movements.
On top of that—
Because of the Stellaron crisis,
the Xianzhou's enforcement departments were still in disarray.
Even the Artisanship Commission was too busy to chase every loose end.
"So everyone knows the Nameless are already General Jing Yuan's honored guests,"
March said loudly.
"And you Sanctus Medicus people still dare to come here in broad daylight to steal him?"
"Aren't you afraid the Cloud Knights will arrest you?"
Her voice was loud enough that guests downstairs almost started looking up.
Startled, Green Hibiscus and White Lotus hurriedly tried to hush her.
"Easy, easy—Miss March, you misunderstand."
"You don't know how miserable we Seeders are."
"The Xianzhou tolerates every belief—
except faith in the Merciful Medicus."
"We're forced to survive in the cracks."
"All we ask for is salvation."
"Tell me—can you and this Trailblazer girl really guarantee you'll never suffer illness or pain in this life?"
"But we can guarantee that."
"So long as you believe in the Merciful Medicus,
whether short-lived or long-lived,
you will be bathed in divine grace."
Listening to their earnest persuasion,
Evan instead grew interested.
The Merciful Medicus, huh?
To be fair—
Among the Aeons, Yaoshi was indeed the easiest to accept worship.
The only prerequisite was actually encountering them.
People conveniently forgot how long the Xianzhou once searched
just to obtain Abundance's miracle in the first place.
Now?
What a joke.
Before March or Stelle could argue back,
Green Hibiscus spoke again.
"We're not asking you to sever ties with General Jing Yuan."
"Poaching doesn't mean abandoning the Xianzhou's commissions."
"We're simply asking that—
while cooperating with the Xianzhou—
you also join our association."
"Oh~"
"So… a mole," March said thoughtfully.
The moment the word left her mouth, both men stiffened.
If not for the Chief's explicit orders,
these two disrespectful outsiders would've already been knocked out
and dragged off for experimentation.
Didn't they understand the greatness of the Merciful Medicus?
Anyone—anyone at all—
who truly witnessed the miracle of Abundance
would never treat them like this.
That was precisely why the Chief had stressed it repeatedly:
They could leverage Evan's cooperation with the Xianzhou.
Even General Jing Yuan's collaborator joined us—
doesn't that prove our orthodoxy?
As for poaching?
No need.
At the same time—
Artisanship Commission Headquarters.
The acting officer Da Hao rubbed his temples as he listened to the bespectacled man's report.
A headache.
So he immediately passed the problem along to the Divine Foresight Pavilion.
And sure enough—
Qingzu arrived.
As Jing Yuan's chief secretary, Qingzu handled an absurd amount of work.
Ordinarily, minor Artisanship Commission matters wouldn't involve her at all.
"Mr. Welt," she said calmly,
"we meet again."
"General Jing Yuan has delegated this matter entirely to me."
"Please—go ahead."
The moment Qingzu saw Welt Yang, she knew it.
If Da Hao had called her,
then even the Artisanship Commission couldn't handle this.
And on the Xianzhou, that meant only one thing.
Internal traitors.
The Sanctus Medicus.
"Miss Qingzu," Welt replied politely.
"I'll keep it brief."
She nodded.
"Evan, March, and Stelle…"
"…have joined the Sanctus Medicus."
"Mm."
Qingzu nodded—
Then froze.
"…What?"
"Mr. Evan and Miss March and Miss Stelle—
joined the Sanctus Medicus?!"
"What kind of situation is this?!"
The report reached the Divine Foresight General almost immediately.
Qingzu watched Jing Yuan nervously—
Only to see him issue a single calm instruction.
Business as usual.
Meaning—
No interference.
Mr. Evan would handle this personally.
That level of trust was… startling.
Meanwhile—
Near Cloudford.
A girl wielding a greatsword stared wide-eyed
at the man who had just impaled a Mara-struck monster with a single spear thrust—
And at the expressionless woman nearby.
"Are you alright?"
"I'm fine," the girl replied quickly.
"What about you two—miss, and… traveler?"
Dan Heng nodded.
Then his gaze shifted to the woman clearly marked as a Ten-Lords Commission automaton.
"Thank you for your assistance," she said coolly.
"I am Xueyi, judge of the Ten-Lords Commission."
"Oh! Nice to meet you, Miss Xueyi!"
the greatsword girl said brightly.
"I'm Sushang, a Cloud Knight recently transferred from the Yaoqing Xianzhou."
"Sorry—this area suddenly went into lockdown."
"I'll escort these two to safety, then help evacuate civilians."
"If anything else comes up, please contact my colleagues."
"Thank you, Miss Sushang."
After the Stellaron unrest,
the Ten-Lords Commission had dispatched judges across the Luofu.
Xueyi hadn't expected to be attacked at Cloudford.
Without this girl—and the two outworlders—
Her mechanical body would've been scrapped on the spot.
As Xueyi inspected the fallen Mara-struck soldiers,
Sushang turned back toward the two travelers.
"Uh… what was your name again?"
"You're an outworlder, right? Then come with me."
The blond merchant smiled gently.
"You may call me Luocha."
He then turned toward Xueyi with curiosity.
"Miss Xueyi—what exactly has happened on the Xianzhou?"
Several system-hours earlier—
Nearly a full day since Evan and the others arrived.
The Stellaron had erupted.
The Jade Gate was sealed.
Aboard the Astral Express,
Dan Heng stood in the observation car, staring at the massive flagship in the distance.
The Xianzhou Luofu.
"Coffee?" a gentle voice asked.
"Standing here this long… still worried about them?"
Himeko approached, stirring her cup as she handed one to him.
Dan Heng hesitated.
First—
Would this coffee kill him?
Second—
Yes. He was worried about Evan and the others.
Evan had easily resolved Jarilo-VI's Stellaron crisis—
But the Xianzhou…
Dan Heng knew this place too well.
Seeing him hesitate, Himeko sighed softly.
"Ever since Kafka mentioned someone named Blade…"
"Your emotions have been unstable."
"That man is tied to your past, isn't he?"
"The past you're trying to escape."
"And your past as a Xianzhou native."
Dan Heng froze.
Then took a sip.
Bitter—
Yet strangely sweet.
Himeko's coffee tasted… different today.
"Himeko".
"I have to face this."
"I can't let everyone get hurt because of me."
"And this… is my responsibility."
Even in his dreams,
those crimson eyes still stared at him.
Five are named.
Three must pay the price.
And you, Dan Heng—are one of them.
It was time.
Himeko stirred another cup, then paused—
The spoon's arc lifted again.
"Then go."
"Everyone's waiting."
"And remind them—don't get too carried away on the Xianzhou."
"The Express only stops for seven days."
"If they don't come back in time, Pom-Pom won't be happy."
Dan Heng nodded.
As the third passenger to board the Express—
(after Himeko, then Welt and Void Archives)—
He turned to leave.
Just before he did, Himeko's voice reached him again.
"One more thing."
"When this is over…"
"You'll come back to the Express, right?"
"And continue the Trailblaze—with everyone?"
To read advanced Chapters, head over to p@treon:
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