Only the brutal and dark experience of the Umbra Cave could make them crave peace so much. All they wanted at this point was a time without the threat of death hanging over their heads at every moment, with their nightmares coming to life all around them.
It wasn’t just Li Luo. All the other students were enjoying the peace with their eyes closed, just sitting happily and luxuriating in it.
Li Luo swiveled his head around to remark to Jiang Qing’e, “All of humankind should be grateful to the Astral Sage College for their peaceful life here in the Xia Kingdom.”
He had not known about it before, the lives they paid each year to keep the Others at bay.
It seemed like the Astral Sage College was the Xia Kingdom’s great protector, while the royal court was just the ruler.
Privately, he felt like the Astral Sage College was the most noble in the Xia Kingdom as well.
Jiang Qing’e agreed on this point. Regardless of whether the Astral Sage College had another agenda, their willingness to sacrifice so many resources, student lives, and even teacher lives to keep the Umbra Cave at bay deserved its place in the good books of history.
Nearby, an endless stream of students continued to file out of a wooden door, including many who had been at the same purified spot as Li Luo and the others.
Students at other purified spots had also finished their purging missions, and were starting to exfiltrate from the Umbra Cave.
The courtyard was loud with happy voices of relief.
For now, no one was allowed to leave. The students were tightly enclosed by many mentors. After leaving the Umbra Cave each time, there had to be a check. For corruption.
Some students might have been unknowingly corrupted after fighting the Others for extended periods of time. If it was not detected early, the corruption would seed itself deeper, leading to disastrous consequences.
That was why the corruption check was crucial each time.
Two Violet Vibrance mentors took to the air above them, and suddenly there was a spray of light that separated into individual threads of energy, reaching down to them.
The energy threads were icy cool, and at the same time they made them all feel very relaxed.
When the body relaxed, hidden things would be exposed.
“Argh!”
There was a startled cry as a student started to buck and thrash. Black mist started to appear around her face, twisting her expression.
She had been corrupted.
From the first hint of black, mentors were converging on her, quickly holding her down and then taking her out of the courtyard.
Corruption at this test was usually not very serious. After some purification time, they would be fine. That student would probably spend the next few weeks in the purification chamber. After the first find, there were a few more students who were revealed as corrupted, but they were all subdued and escorted away in good time.
Finally the two Violet Vibrance mentors landed back on the ground, wiping away the energy threads. The check was over.
Many of the students felt relief wash over them.
Li Luo was relieved as well, but when he turned to Jiang Qing’e, he saw that her face was still rather solemn.
“Isn’t it over yet?”
“Wait and see.”
The two Violet Vibrance mentors walked to the front of the crowd. “Congratulations on surviving this purging mission.
“All of us are very happy to see each of you make it back. Except… not all of you are here. Some students will forever languish in the Umbra Cave.”
The crowd fell silent immediately, grave expressions on young faces. Each of them let their sorrow come to the fore. Many of the deceased students had been familiar to them.
Perhaps a month ago, they had been drinking and making merry together.
Now they would never see them again.
Some sobbed quietly to themselves.
The two Violet Vibrance mentors started to speak again, this time calling out the names of those who had fallen.
“Two Star Hall, Chen Zhen.”
“Two Star Hall, Liu Ming’er.”
“Three Star Hall, Meng Qi.”
…
As each name was read out, a bit of light flew out from the two mentors’ sleeves. It was actually a shining leaf, on which the name was written.
The leaves floated along to the Tree of Resonant Power and fastened themselves to an open branch firmly.
Li Luo understood in a flash. Each leaf on the tree represented a student who had died in the fight against the Umbra Cave…
Throughout all these years, the Astral Sage College had built its grand yet macabre symbol in the resistance against the Umbra Cave.
Finally, the last leaf was attached to the Tree of Resonant Power, and the two mentors bowed their heads, speaking solemnly together in quiet prayer.
“May fear be gone.”
“May we live long.”
The students echoed along obediently after them.
“May fear be gone!”
“May we live long!”
Li Luo looked up to the tree. It was nothing but a gravestone to him now.
“Why doesn’t the school invite other experts from the Xia Kingdom to deal with the Umbra Cave? Surely the losses would be less that way.”
“Firstly, the students that enter the Astral Sage College are the best, and the rest of the Xia Kingdom might not match their standards,” Jiang Qing’e replied. “Besides, students might be younger, but their hearts are usually a bit purer. We are not impervious to corruption, but compared to the experts outside, who have darkened their personalities in the gritty world, students stand a lower chance of getting corrupted.
“Privately, my mentors told me that the Astral Sage College once reached out to these other experts in times of need. They were indeed stronger than the students, but they were much more easily corrupted and turned. Overall, they caused more harm than good.
“That’s why the school has always been very cautious about inviting external experts to help.”
No wonder the school would continue to pay this gruesome price each year. It had no choice.
Of course, while things were largely under control, there was no need for the school to call for aid.
As for the deaths… They were regrettable but also inevitable.
Li Luo felt sympathetic for the mourners all around him.
“Suddenly, I really want to get the Dragon Bone Holy Grail for the Astral Sage College.”
With the Holy Grail, they would face no deaths for at least four years. Although this meant that some other school would then have to go without the panacea, Li Luo was not enough of a saint to care that far. All he could manage was contributing to the improvement of the Astral Sage College.