One day after the events in Inkdon village, Aether, seeking to reach Eastwood City in order to attend the awakening ceremony, was travelling with a group of merchants and transport caravans when the group found him on the road to Eastwood.
"We are 15 to 20 minutes out to reach Eastwood City," a voice from outside shouted to inform the passengers of the caravan. He was Old Man John, to whom the caravans belonged; he was an old man of 67, with dark skin and a kind smile which reminded him of his father's smile.
18 minutes later, Aether could see the large stone wall of the city and majestic iron doors in the middle of the wall.
"Halt!" a loud voice shouted toward the caravan, and a guard captain came forward. He possessed a formidable, muscular build, with skin weathered and darkened by years under the sun, suggesting extensive exposure to outdoor duties. His armour, marked with dents and scratches, testified to its long service in numerous battles, while the sword in his right hand bore nicks and a well-worn hilt, indicating his direct involvement in past conflicts.
He asked what the purpose of your visit to Eastwood City was. While the captain of the guards was interrogating Old Man John, the other guards started to search the caravan and also interrogated the passengers of the caravan.
"I am here to trade some merchandise and drop my passengers in Eastwood City," Old Man John said.
The captain stared at him for a few minutes and said, "We will see," and started waiting for the guards' report.
While the captain was talking to Old Man John, Aether was observing the captain of the guard; he had a mysterious aura around him. I wonder if he is a cultivator, and if he is, on which rank?
Minutes later, a guard came to the captain to give his report.
"Sir, we have searched the caravan, and we have found merchants in the front of the caravans and passengers in the back caravans," and he continuously gave the guard report.
After hearing the guard's report, he said, "Let them in."
Old Man John thanked him and started preparing to enter the city.
When all passengers had settled inside the caravan, the caravan started moving and entered the city of Eastwood.
When the caravan entered the city, Aether saw a vast number of buildings in the Midwestern style on both sides of the roads.
The caravan kept moving for a few minutes, then stopped at an inn called Seven Moon Inn.
Here, Old Man John came out from his caravan and said, "Ok, folks, our journey ends."
A few minutes later, people had started leaving with their luggage; a few had gone into the inn, and others had gone into the city, where some of them had their homes. Aether was thinking about what to do. Did he have to spend the night outside in the cold?
While Aether was thinking about what to do, Old Man John approached him and said, "Boy, it seems that you have nowhere to go." Then he thought for a minute and said, "How about this? You can stay in one of my caravan carriages; it can at least save you from the cold."
Aether was grateful, but he was also suspicious, so he asked a question to Old Man John.
"Thank you, sir, but why are you doing this? First, you gave me a ride to Eastwood, and now you are letting me stay in the carriages?"
Old Man John laughed loudly and said, "Nothing much. I can see you are here to attend the awakening ceremony, and if you awaken a good element rank, then I will have a friendly, strong cultivator in the future. Otherwise, if you didn't awaken any element, it does not matter much to me. I have to give servants food to eat, so what about one more mouth to feed for a day?"
After listening to Old Man John, Aether nodded and thanked him. Then he settled down in one of the carriages.
The next morning, Aether woke up early and was getting ready to attend the awakening ceremony. When he came out of the carriages, he saw a man waiting outside for him.
The man said, "You will leave early this morning, and he told me to prepare some hot soup and bread. Shall I bring you food here, or would you like to eat your food in the dining area?"
"I will eat in the carriages," Aether said to the man.
After eating the food, Aether went to thank Old Man John before leaving. Old Man John gave him good wishes and told him that he would pray for his success in the awakening ceremony.
Currently, Aether was standing before a military base where the awakening ceremony would occur. In the Great Star Empire, the military had been given the duty to conduct the Awakening Ceremony in each empire city.
Outside the base, a makeshift tent was built, and on one side of it, there was a board on which was written Awakening Ceremony Registration.
Aether went toward the tent, where he could see a small line of children standing there waiting for their turn.
Some of them had come with their parents, and some, like him, had come alone.
Aether waited for a few minutes, then he was standing in front of a guard. The guard looked at him for a few seconds, then said, "Name?"
"Aether DuskBane," Aether replied.
"Age and where you come from?" the guard asked again.
"16 years old, and I came from Inkdon village."
The guard looked at him for a minute after hearing the name Inkdon village, but didn't say anything. Then he wrote down the information given by Aether and gave him a number plate on which the number 46 was written.
"Number 46. They will call you on this number. If you didn't answer within 5 minutes, then you would lose the opportunity to participate in this year's Awakening Ceremony. And keep in mind, you have only 3 chances to participate in the Awakening Ceremony."
After saying that, he looked toward a standing person to his right and said, "Bring him to the place where the ceremony will be held."