Peerless Bodyguard of a Stunning Beauty

Hearing Zhao Rong’s words, all the students from the Ghost Hunting Academy kowtowed and pleaded, ”Before Zhao Bo died, he cast a spell on everyone in the academy. If he died, we would all have to accompany him in death… Now that he’s gone, we don’t have long to live… Hero Zhao Rong, please, save us!”

Hearing the students’ words, Zhao Rong asked in surprise, ”I never expected Zhao Bo to have a trick like that up his sleeve. Did he tell you what kind of spell it was?”

A student leader from the Ghost Hunting Academy stepped forward to explain. ”When Zhao Bo was still alive, only some of us knew that he had cast a spell on everyone… Most of the students had no idea. However, when he suddenly died, the spell he placed on us finally manifested. Only then did we realize that with Zhao Bo gone, we were all doomed to die with him…”

Hearing the student leader, Zhao Rong couldn’t help but think of the Vice Dean, who had just departed. He turned back to the student leader and asked, ”Since Zhao Bo cast a spell on everyone at the Ghost Hunting Academy, does that mean the Vice Dean was cursed as well?”

The student leader nodded. ”The Vice Dean knew. He even discussed the matter with me once. The reason he didn’t dare tell anyone else was that he was afraid of causing a panic and creating unnecessary trouble.”

Suddenly, Zhao Rong felt like he understood everything. He looked in the direction the Vice Dean had fled and said, ”So, the Vice Dean wasn’t going off to travel the world. He wasn’t preparing to establish a Ghost Academy in the Sahara Desert. He was preparing to accept his own death.”

The assistant’s eyes widened in disbelief beside him. ”So the Vice Dean didn’t want to trouble us or make us worry… That’s why he chose to face death alone, in silence.”

Zhao Rong nodded and asked the student leader, ”Since you’re all under a spell, how can it be broken? How can I save your lives?”

The student leader replied, at a loss, ”We once sent someone to sneak into Headmaster Zhao Bo’s office, and they stole a secret document. The document stated that everyone at the Ghost Hunting Academy, aside from Zhao Bo and the four great Ghost Hunting Taoists, was afflicted by a spell called the ’Tongcan Priest’ curse. It also said there’s only one cure: an elixir called the Chongmen Dan.”

Hearing the name Chongmen Dan, Zhao Rong quickly searched his mind, combing through the alchemy manual given to him by Mage Yizhen. However, even after searching the entire book, he found no mention of an elixir by that name.

Left with no other choice, Zhao Rong humbly asked the student leader, ”Where can I get this Chongmen Dan?”

The student leader pointed east of Wang Family Village. ”In the mountains to the east, there is a cavern called Black Wind Cave. Living inside is an ancient being known as the Thousand Year Old Demon. Only that demon knows the ingredients and the method for refining the Chongmen Dan.”

Hearing that someone knew the method, Zhao Rong immediately looked toward the eastern mountains and declared, ”If this so-called Thousand Year Old Demon in Black Wind Cave knows the cure, then I’ll go there right now, get the medicine, and save all of you.”

When the student leader heard that Zhao Rong was going to Black Wind Cave, he drooped like a deflated balloon. He hung his head and said, ”Here in Wang Family Village, it’s been known for ages that no living person who enters Black Wind Cave has ever come out alive.”

Hearing this, the assistant immediately stepped forward, pointing at the student leader’s forehead. ”If Black Wind Cave is a death trap, then why did you tell my brother that the Thousand Year Old Demon inside has the cure to save you?”

Lili also spoke up angrily. ”Student leader, I think you have a twisted character and a corrupt heart! Telling Brother Zhao Rong to go into Black Wind Cave to find your antidote is the same as sending him to his death!”

The student leader replied meekly, ”We’re only asking Brother Zhao Rong to save our lives. He can choose to save us, or he can choose to abandon us. Our lives are important, but Brother Zhao Rong’s life is even more so.”

Hearing the student leader’s words, Yu Lan walked over to Zhao Rong’s side, patted his shoulder, and said, ”Brother Zhao Rong, I don’t think these students are worth saving. They want our help, yet they speak so rudely and try to shift responsibility. I say we just leave. Let this crowd from the Ghost Hunting Academy kneel here and fend for themselves.”

At her words, all the students began to cry pitifully. Clearly, their will to live was still incredibly strong.

As Zhao Rong looked at the thousands of young, able-bodied students before him, he couldn’t bear to simply ignore their fate. He paused, then gritted his teeth and said, ”Saving a life is more meritorious than building a seven-storied pagoda. What is the purpose of a person’s life? It’s to help others, to save others. The greatest joy in life is seeing those you have helped go on to live happy, wonderful lives.”

With that, Zhao Rong stepped forward and helped the students to their feet one by one. He nodded and promised, ”Everyone, get up. I am resolved to help you. I swear I will get the Chongmen Dan from the Thousand Year Old Demon in Black Wind Cave and save every last one of you.”

Hearing their hero, Zhao Rong, agree to save them, the students abruptly stopped crying and began hugging each other with joy.

One student, who had dreamed of nothing but survival, embraced his junior and vowed, ”If Hero Zhao Rong can save us, I swear that from now on, I will also become a person who helps and saves others!”

A cynical veteran who had been at the Ghost Hunting Academy for eight years without graduating laughed. ”If I get to live, I’m leaving this Ghost Academy immediately! I won’t care if people mock me for spending eight years here and never learning a single ghost-hunting spell. I won’t care about those who laugh at me for having no skills. A person lives for themself, not for others!”

A timid student, who had come to the academy to build his courage, spoke through a mix of tears and laughter. ”If I get to live, I’ll bravely take the first step to change my personality! From now on, I’ll be an absolutely fearless person!”

When the assistant, Lili, Yu Lan, and Xuelian heard Zhao Rong’s decision, they were all bewildered.

The assistant spoke up in disagreement. ”Brother Zhao Rong, we’ve already been through hell since coming to the Ghost Hunting Academy. We barely survived the worst of it and managed to keep our lives. Are you really going to throw your life away in the mountains east of Wang Family Village?”

Zhao Rong shook his head, his gaze firm. ”We aren’t going there to die. We’re going to save people.”

Lili tried to reason with him. ”Brother Zhao Rong, have you forgotten our mission for coming here?” She took a step closer and whispered in his ear, ”When my father sent us to the Ghost Hunting Academy, he wanted you to protect us while also becoming the headmaster. Then, you were to sell the academy to my father’s company at a low price, allowing for a complete acquisition. Now, not only have you become the headmaster, but you’ve also obtained the land deeds and legal documents. You could say your mission is already an outstanding success. Since you’ve completed your task, why would you risk your life for something that offers no benefit and doesn’t even concern you?”

Zhao Rong heaved a long sigh. He looked at Lili, who was standing very close to him, and said, ”I know our mission is complete. But I can’t just stand by and watch all these young, strong students slowly die. So, even if it costs me my life, I have to find a way to save them.”

Yu Lan stepped forward, interrupting him. ”Brother Zhao Rong, you’re a man, not a god. The reason you’re so formidable is just that you’re a bit luckier than others, and your talent for cultivation is a bit higher. But all those advantages vanished the moment you came to this Ghost Academy. Are you really going to bet your life on what little luck you have left?”

Zhao Rong looked at Yu Lan, knowing she meant well and was only worried about him. Yet, he remained resolute. ”No matter what happens, no matter how great the difficulty, I must save these people. They are living, breathing human beings.”

While everyone else was arguing against the rescue, Xuelian decisively stepped forward. Going against the tide, she stated her support for Zhao Rong. ”Brother Zhao Rong, if you’re going to save these students, then I’m willing to go with you. Even if it costs both of us our lives, I believe it’s all worthwhile as long as we can help others.”

Hearing Xuelian’s words, Lili, Yu Lan, and the assistant were all stunned. Although the three of them opposed Zhao Rong risking his life in a desperate gamble to save the students, they were, after all, a team—locusts tied to the same string. Even if they disagreed with him, when the final choice was made, they would stand by his side, on the side of what was right.

Suddenly, the assistant let out a long sigh. He walked toward Zhao Rong with a smile and gave him a deep hug. ”Brother Zhao Rong,” he said, ”since you’re going to save them, then I’ll go with you. Even though I’m not a very capable person, I think I might be able to help when it really counts.”

Lili also had a change of heart. She stepped forward to embrace Zhao Rong and said concisely, ”You are our Brother Zhao Rong. Whatever you decide, no matter how much we disagree or how reluctant we are, we will follow you, without wavering.”

Hearing Lili change her tune, Yu Lan couldn’t stay silent. ”Brother Zhao Rong, I am willing to follow you through fire and water! In life, I belong to you; in death, I will be your ghost. I, Yu Lan, will follow you forever, Brother Zhao Rong!”

With that, the five of them set off, heading toward Black Wind Cave east of Wang Family Village. Though they were filled with righteous spirit and brimming with confidence for the trials ahead, what awaited them was a level of terror and difficulty they could never have imagined.