Chapter 301: Ritual

When Li Luo was once again bathed in the warm sunlight, standing at the Astral Sage College, he looked at that massive Resonance Tree and felt a sense of unreality, as if a lifetime had passed.

Only after experiencing the gloom, suppression, and step-by-step lethal threats of the Dark Cave could one understand how much this peaceful atmosphere was to be cherished.

It was not just Li Luo who felt this way; many students around him who had emerged from the Dark Cave at the same time were closing their eyes, enjoying this soothing and tranquil atmosphere.

"Every human living on this land of the Great Xia should actually be grateful to the Astral Sage College," Li Luo said, turning his head to Jiang Qing'e beside him.

Previously, he had no idea that the Astral Sage College was actually suppressing this Dark Cave, and that every year they would pay the price of many fresh lives to clear out those Others.

In a sense, the Astral Sage College could be considered the guardian of the Great Xia, while the Great Xia Royal Court was more like a mere ruler.

Therefore, Li Luo felt that the Astral Sage College deserved the lofty status it enjoyed in the Great Xia.

Jiang Qing'e agreed quite strongly with this; regardless of whether the Astral Sage College had other reasons for doing so, at the very least, they were willing to expend such vast resources and many excellent students and even instructors to suppress the Dark Cave, preventing those twisted and terrifying Others from rushing into their world. This point alone was enough for the people of the Great Xia to remember.

As the two spoke, students were continuously emerging from an opened wooden door, among whom were many who were not from the same stronghold as Li Luo and the others.

Clearly, the students from those other strongholds had also gradually completed their purification missions and begun to exit the Dark Cave.

The plaza was bustling and suddenly became lively.

However, no one left for the time being; instead, many instructors were maintaining order and forbidding students from leaving, because every time they left the Dark Cave, all students had to undergo testing.

Pollution testing.

Some students might be infected by malevolent thoughts unknowingly due to prolonged combat with Others in the Dark Cave. If this were not detected early, the malevolent thoughts would cause deeper influence and eventually lead to serious consequences.

Therefore, every time they left the Dark Cave, pollution testing was an indispensable step.

As two Purple-tier instructors rose into the air, the next moment, brilliant light seemed to erupt in mid-air, turning into sky-filling rays of energy that shone down.

These energy rays felt cool when they landed on the body, and they also seemed to have a calming effect, which caused the tense spirits of many students to gradually relax at this moment.

And it was precisely under this relaxation of body and spirit that some hidden things ran out.

Ah!

Exclamations rang out. As some eyes looked over, they saw a student struggling, with faint black mist emerging on their face, causing their expression to gradually become twisted and ferocious.

This was being polluted by malevolent thoughts.

However, just as this turn of events appeared, an instructor's figure shot out like lightning, quickly restraining that student and then forcibly taking them away from the plaza.

This kind of pollution was generally not too heavy, but purification required some time; presumably, that student would have to spend the next half month in the purification room.

After the first polluted person appeared, several more students were discovered one after another, but none of them caused any chaos and were all subdued.

Until the last two Purple-tier instructors descended from the sky and dispersed the energy rays, this round of testing was considered over.

Many students felt a sense of relief.

Li Luo also breathed a sigh of relief, but immediately he noticed that Jiang Qing'e's expression seemed to have become more solemn at this moment, and he asked immediately, "Is it not over yet?"

Jiang Qing'e was silent for a moment and said, "Watch."

And under Li Luo's somewhat puzzled gaze, the two Purple-tier instructors looked at the entire crowd, their expressions also becoming solemn, and they said in a deep voice, "Thank you all for your hard work on this purification mission."

"We are very relieved that you were able to return safely, but... not everyone has returned. There are still some students who are forever buried in the Dark Cave."

The noisy sounds in the plaza disappeared completely at this moment, and all the young, immature faces of the students became heavy. Some of them even showed sadness, because among those missing students were people they were familiar with.

Perhaps, a month ago, they were still drinking and laughing together, looking forward to the future.

But now, those faces could no longer be seen.

In the plaza, low weeping sounds arose.

The atmosphere instantly became heavy.

The voices of the two Purple-tier instructors rose again, and this time, they read out one name after another, and these names were the students who had perished in the Dark Cave.

"Two-Star Hall, Chen Zhen."

"Two-Star Hall, Liu Ming'er."

"Three-Star Hall, Meng Qi."

"......"

Every time a name was read, a point of light would fly out from the sleeves of the two Purple-tier instructors. It was a verdant leaf, palm-wide, and looking closely, a person's name was engraved on it—the very students who had perished in the Dark Cave.

Leaf after leaf flew out and finally drifted toward the Resonance Tree. On the Resonance Tree, branches reached out, and these leaves landed on them, clinging firmly and swaying gently in the wind.

Only then did Li Luo understand that that exceptionally verdant belt of leaves represented the students the Astral Sage College had sacrificed while purifying the Dark Cave...

One could imagine how great a price the Astral Sage College had paid over these years to suppress the Dark Cave.

As the last leaf flew onto the Resonance Tree, the two Purple-tier instructors bowed their heads slightly, and their calm, low voices rang out.

"My heart is without fear."

"Our generation shall endure."

Many immature faces also became much more solemn at this moment, and voices rose one after another.

"My heart is without fear!"

"Our generation shall endure!"

Li Luo looked up at the exceptionally verdant belt of leaves on the Resonance Tree, was silent for a while, and asked Jiang Qing'e, "Why doesn't the college invite other experts from the Great Xia to suppress the Dark Cave? Doing so should be able to reduce some losses, right?"

Jiang Qing'e said calmly, "First of all, the students who can enter the Astral Sage College are considered the most excellent of the Great Xia's younger generation; their strength and potential are not necessarily matched by people elsewhere in the Great Xia."

"Moreover, although these students are young, their temperaments are relatively purer. While it cannot be said that they are entirely free of malevolent thoughts, compared to those external experts who have experienced deceit and slaughter, the probability of them being polluted in the Dark Cave is slightly lower."

"An instructor told me privately that in the past, the Astral Sage College also sent out requests for aid at critical moments and invited some external experts. But while these experts were indeed stronger than the students, when they encountered Others, their malevolent thoughts were more easily triggered, thereby being planted with very deep seeds of malevolent thoughts, eventually causing even greater trouble."

"Therefore, the college has always held a cautious attitude toward inviting external experts for help."

Li Luo frowned. So there was such a secret; no wonder the college would rather pay the price every year to purify the Dark Cave than seek external aid.

Of course, the most important thing was that the situation should still be under the college's control, so there was no need for it.

As for the casualties... although it was somewhat cruel, it was ultimately unavoidable.

Li Luo looked at some students showing sadness and sighed softly.

"Suddenly, I really want the Astral Sage College to obtain that 'Dragon Bone Holy Grail'."

With the Holy Grail, at the very least, for four years, the Astral Sage College would not need to have any more student casualties. Although in a sense, the college that lost the Holy Grail would face a situation of student casualties, Li Luo was not a saint after all, and he had no ability to manage that much. What he thought of was just wanting to make the atmosphere of this Astral Sage College a little better.