Zhao Renshu's fury blazed, his eyes burning with a terrifying red. He shook his hand, and the released icicles vanished into thin air. Beside him, Guozhao Zhiqiang didn't dare to meet the gaze of his three masters, terrified of the disappointment he knew he'd find etched on their faces.
Zhao Renshu was particularly angry because of Guozhao Zhiqiang's actions. "I'm going to kill you!" he shouted, pointing at his disciple.
"Renshu, calm down," Guo Baiyu said, walking forward to mediate. "Zhiqiang, explain."
Guozhao Zhiqiang hesitated, his voice low. "I know them." He still didn't dare to look at his masters' disappointed faces.
"Senior Brother!" Yang Bao limped forward. He looked at his Second Master and Third Master, who were beyond angry. "Masters, please let Senior Brother explain."
"You better have a good explanation," Fang Yaoting said madly, his voice tight with anger.
"I met them when I came back from Waterfall City," Guozhao Zhiqiang explained briefly.
"Why do the three sectors protect these bastards?" Huang Hongse demanded, disgusted.
"Seniors," Hu Dingxiang said, stepping forward respectfully. "I am Hu Dingxiang from Snow Sector. Sector Leader Wong asked us to come help cleanse this village with these men."
"Do you not investigate before coming to purify?" Zhao Renshu said indifferently, his sarcasm biting. "Pathetic Sectors."
"How dare you insult our Sector?" Yi Guozhi from Golden Gate Sector pointed a sword at Zhao Renshu, his face contorted in anger.
Yang Bao limped forward, stepping in front of Zhao Renshu. "How dare you draw your sword at my master?" he challenged, despite his injury.
"Your master must be very pathetic to have a disabled, handicapped, limping disciple," Yi Guozhi mocked, bursting out laughing. Many people also laughed with him.
Guozhao Zhiqiang was about to attack Yi Guozhi, but Fang Yaoting looked at Guozhao Zhiqiang with angry eyes and shook his head, a silent command for him to stand down.
"Very well, Ah Bao," Fang Yaoting said, his eyes now on Yang Bao. "Show him how pathetic you are."
"I'll teach you a lesson," Yi Guozhi sneered. He pointed his sword at Yang Bao and began to attack him.
Yang Bao's swordsmanship was fast, and he easily blocked Yi Guozhi's blows, moving with surprising agility despite his limp.
Some of the female students, who had just been rescued, shouted, "Brother Yang, be careful!"
Tam Liang was shocked and couldn't believe it. "He was limping, but when he fights, his left leg didn't affect his combat effectiveness at all!"
"Fortunately, you didn't hurt his Shimu," Tam Kun whispered to Tam Liang.
Tam Liang elbowed Tam Kun's left arm, silencing him.
Yi Guozhi swung his sword wildly at Yang Bao. Yang Bao did a forward somersault over Yi Guozhi's head. As soon as Yi Guozhi turned around, Yang Bao kicked Yi Guozhi's left face, and the powerful kick threw Yi Guozhi directly to the ground. Yang Bao then pointed his sword to Yi Guozhi's throat, pinning him.
The students cheered, elated by Yang Bao's victory.
"You lost," Yang Bao uttered softly. He sheathed his sword back into the scabbard on his back and limped back, standing behind his Masters.
"You said a moment ago 'your master must be pathetic to have a disabled disciple'," Zhao Renshu smiled, mocking Yi Guozhi's earlier insult. "I totally agree." He laughed out loud, and so did some of the students.
Yi Guozhi slowly got up, his face red with humiliation and fury. "How dare you?! You'd better explain it to Six Sectors!"
"Go back and tell your leader that the Guozhao Hunters want an explanation," Guo Baiyu stated, his voice firm, "why their sectors will take a job without investigating first."
The young hunters from the various sectors chattered among themselves, murmuring, "The Guozhao Hunters!" Their reputation was clearly known.
Hu Dingxiang grabbed Guozhao Zhiqiang's left hand. This action made Guozhao Zhiqiang turn around and face him.
"Are you a Guozhao Hunter?" Hu Dingxiang asked, surprised.
Guozhao Zhiqiang stared at him without saying a word. He nodded softly, confirming it.
"You didn't tell me," Hu Dingxiang said, a hint of hurt in his voice.
"No need," Guozhao Zhiqiang replied, withdrawing his hand with a hurtful heart, feeling the sting of the perceived rejection. "If you still want to live in a city above the clouds, you go with me."
Hu Dingxiang looked puzzled. "Living in the city above the cloud? I do not understand."
Guozhao Zhiqiang smiled disappointedly, a sad, bitter smile. "Forget it. It seems that I'm the only one who remembers the promise."
"I..." Hu Dingxiang began but was cut off.
"Zhiqiang," Ping'an called, sensing the tension.
"Help me cleanse this place," Huang Yueliang called out to her companions, drawing their focus back to the task.
"You guys still standing there?" Huang Hongse snapped at the young hunters from the other sects. "Come stand behind us, if you don't want to be possessed by spirits!"
The young hunters of the three clans walked towards the school and stood with the students, seeking protection. Huang Hongse threw out her flag into the air, and the one flag multiplied into twenty small flags that surrounded the group of people, forming a protective barrier. Guo Baiyu, Zhao Renshu, Guozhao Zhiqiang, and Yang Bao stood around Huang Yueliang, forming a circle.
"What are they doing?" Tam Liang whispered, observing the preparations.
"They are purifying the spirits' souls," Huang Hongse explained to the children and the other hunters, "by asking them to move on and forgive those who hurt them."
Huang Yueliang took out her guzheng. She sat cross-legged on the pavement and began to play a sweet and softly sad melody. Her gentle guzheng music was soft and sad, which touched the hearts of students and young hunters. Some students and hunters cried, moved by the mournful beauty.
"Ah Qiu, what's the matter?" Tam Liang asked a crying student.
Tam Qiu held onto Tam Liang's sleeves and said, "Ah Liang, the melody is so sad; I think it touches the depths of my heart."
Yang Bao, seeing Tam Qiu crying, handed her a handkerchief with flowers embroidered on the bottom. She took it and wiped her tears, only to realize that this handkerchief must have been given to him by his girlfriend. She quickly handed it back to Yang Bao, embarrassed.
"You can take this back," Tam Qiu said. "I don't want to cause any misunderstanding between you and the person who gave you this."
"Why would my Shimu misunderstand?" Yang Bao asked, confused.
"Your Shimu?" Tam Qiu asked, surprised.
"Yes," Yang Bao confirmed. "My Shimu made it for us."
"I thought it was yours..." Tam Qiu began, a new realization dawning.
"What?" Yang Bao asked.
Tam Qiu snatched it back, now eager to keep it, and wiped her tears. She said, "After I washed it, I will give it back to you."
Spirits began to appear everywhere, swirling around them, and the students began to cry in fright.
"Don't cross the flag!" Huang Hongse warned everyone, her voice stern.
The students cried and hugged each other inside the flag barrier. The spirits of two hundred men, women, and children hovered and danced around the five people outside the flag. The souls disappeared one by one, moving on, but the last thirty spirits still hovered and floated in front of Guo Baiyu. They refused to move on, their hatred too strong.
Twenty-four students inside the barrier were calling their parents loudly, seeing the spirits. After a while, Guo Baiyu nodded, a silent communication, and the thirty spirits bowed, accepting his acknowledgment. As Huang Yueliang ended her music, they finally disappeared, finding their peace.
Huang Hongse called her flag back into her hand and tucked the flag back onto her belt.
Zhao Renshu looked at the young hunters from the other sectors. "To atone for all your mistakes," he commanded, his voice cold, "everyone helped pile the corpses into a pile, and we will burn them."
Chastened by the day's grim events, the students and young hunters spent the entire evening diligently piling the two hundred corpses into a massive pyre. As twilight deepened, Zhao Renshu conjured a fire talisman, and with a flash of light, the bodies ignited, burning in a final, necessary act of purification.
Yang Bao watched the corpses burn into the late evening. Even after the sun set and the night began, the piles of corpses were still burning, a grim pyre.
Guo Baiyu patted Yang Bao's left shoulder lightly. "As a hunter, you will see much worse things than this," he said, preparing him for the harsh realities of their profession.
"I know," Yang Bao sighed. "I'm not used to it yet." He looked at Guo Baiyu. "Master, are the corpses haunted?"
"An inanimate body without a soul is just a corpse and nothing more," Guo Baiyu replied, dispelling his fear.
The next morning, the students gathered in front of the school, ready for their new journey.
"Your parents asked me to take you back to Cloud City and become my disciples," Guo Baiyu said to them. "I had to promise them so they could move on. If any of you don't want to follow me, you don't have to leave with us."
"My sister and I will go with you," Tam Liang, the teen boy who had held Ping'an hostage, declared.
The other students babbled, their excitement growing. "If Brother Liang goes, then we will go too!"
Lim Peizhi smiled at the young students. "You should all feel that you are very lucky. Such opportunities are rare."
"How?" Tam Liang asked, curious.
Huang Yueliang smiled and said, "Not a lot of people will be as lucky as you guys, who will become a Guozhao Hunter."
The twenty-four students were taken aback for a moment, and they all said, "Guozhao Hunters?!" Their voices filled with awe.
"Pack your things and leave this village within an hour," Guo Baiyu commanded, giving them their first instruction.
The students tried their best to carry their belongings into the two waiting carriages. The young hunters from the other sectors said goodbye, some still bewildered by the events. Guozhao Zhiqiang stood there, watching Hu Dingxiang and other disciples walk away in the opposite direction, his heart heavy.
"He is a very handsome young man," Ping'an commented softly, noticing Zhiqiang's gaze.
"Shimu," Guozhao Zhiqiang replied, his voice strained, acknowledging her observation but not wanting to dwell on it.
"There will be an opportunity; you will meet him again," Ping'an said, offering him hope. "Let's go home." She looked at the twenty-four young students. "You have responsibilities now."
The group of friends and the disciples walked alongside the horse's carriage and began to walk out of Tam Village. When the group reached the top of the mountain, the twenty-four students glanced at Tam Village one last time, a final farewell, and then headed towards Cloud City, towards their new future.