Yama Rising

The sun was already setting, but he didn’t want to move, nor did he want to return to Hell. Just today, he wanted to be selfish.

It was soon 6.00 p.m. With the early dusk in spring, the campus grounds were soon illuminated with electric lights.

Just then, someone suddenly burst through his door. A student rushed into his room, crying out at the top of his voice, “Instructor Qin! Something’s happened!!”

“A student has passed out!” Qin Ye had seen this student before. He knew that he was from the Faculty of Combat, but he couldn’t recall his name in the heat of the moment. The student continued rattling on like an anxious machine gun, “I don’t know what happened, but his pulse has stopped as well! I couldn’t locate any of the other instructors around either!”

The student led him straight towards the cafeteria. The closer they drew to the cafeteria, the more Qin Ye furrowed his brows.

It should be mealtime right now. Although there’s another cafeteria in the academy, it’s highly unlikely that every single person has assembled there. So… why is everything pitch black in here?

He kicked down the cafeteria door hurriedly, only to be greeted by the sudden illumination of light within. A split second later, his jaws dropped slightly, and he glanced about his surroundings with great astonishment.

“You guys…” Qin Ye continued to stare at his surroundings with great surprise. The tables in the cafeteria were covered with sumptuous dishes and even beer, something that was usually prohibited in the Academy. Every single student of the Faculty of Combat was present, while Lin Han, Su Feng and the other instructors were also smiling faintly at him. He raised his hands and waved bashfully at everyone.

“Come, come, come, don’t be shy.” Lin Han dragged him over to the main table and sat him down, “Were you not even going to say goodbye to us? If Professor Tao hadn’t informed us about your departure, we wouldn’t even have known about it. Do you even consider us your brother-in-arms?”

Qin Ye was practically beside himself right now!

Why is there a send off party for me?

This was evidently a rare moment that couldn’t be explained by his wealth of life experiences.

The female ghost back in Wang Chenghao’s home had a tragic story to tell, and yet he had simply watched on with a cold expression in his eyes, and dealt with her summarily according to the laws of the underworld.

Come to think of it… is it simply because… those incidents didn’t involve me personally?

“Thank you for your service, Instructor Qin!!” The students stood up in unison. Some faces were more familiar than others, but every single one of them had a sincere smile plastered across their faces. Without waiting for Qin Ye’s response, they immediately downed the cup of beer in their hands.

Qin Ye suddenly realized that Local Bully was rather unreasonable.

“Thank you for all you’ve done for the First Academy of Cultivators.” Tao Ran spoke on behalf of the faculty staff, “Without you, there wouldn’t be the First Academy of Cultivators as we know it today.”

“Therefore, thank you. Thank you for sacrificing your precious cultivation time to nurture this garden instead. You’re one of the best gardeners around. Rest assured, the academy’s wall of honor will most certainly have a place for your name!”

Why are the rims of my eyes feeling so hot?

After all, he had seen more than his fair share of departures and goodbyes. In fact, he thought that his heart had already turned to stone when he had said his goodbyes to Zhang Baoguo back then. Since then, he had always acted in accordance with his will, whether laugh or curse, or speak his mind. Thus, how could he have expected a day when he would actually be caught off guard and be rendered completely speechless?

He subconsciously downed the glass in front of him in response. Tao Ran smiled, “Students, instructors and faculty staff, let’s begin! We feast, so that we have the strength and energy to send Instructor Qin off on his way!”

Qin Ye sat at the table where all of the instructors and faculty staff were located. Everyone spent the next ten minutes eating, before Xu Anguo picked up his cup and proposed a toast, “We’ll make an exception today, so long as it doesn’t affect classes tomorrow. Come, Little Qin, have a drink with this old man over here.”

He couldn’t afford to get drunk no matter what. This was an ironclad rule that he had set for himself.

“Instructor Qin is an exception. He needs to get his body back in proper working condition.” Li Tao chipped in, “But, Instructor Qin, your departure doesn’t mean that you’re leaving the First Academy of Cultivators. The place of your assignment will become the First Academy of Cultivator’s hunting grounds next time. You’ll forever be a part of the First Academy of Cultivators! Would anyone oppose that?!”

“Speaking of which, a year has passed in the blink of an eye…” Tao Ran sighed and glanced out of the window, “Little Qin, you might not know this, but you’re the one that I’ve had highest hopes for.”

Tao Ran’s voice was laced with regret. Qin Ye finally responded, “Is Professor Tao also leaving?”

He gently raised his glass, “Take heart, because our camaraderie lives on in our hearts. Decades later, when we all reunite in front of the wall of honor of the First Academy of Cultivators, we’d relive these stories in our tales to our children. What a joy that would be.”

The man of few words was suddenly speaking with great impulsiveness, and the atmosphere grew even warmer than it had ever been before.

Qin Ye chuckled, “You’ll have your chance next time.”

“How could there possibly be someone who cultivates faster than me? And he even looks pretty decent to boot? You’re practically an archnemesis of mine!”

As time went on, Qin Ye indulged himself in his company and drank several more cups of beer. That said, the fiery feeling in his heart was finally beginning to subside - That’s right… goodbyes are only part and parcel of life.

He couldn’t recall what his colleagues were bantering about. All he needed to do this indulgent night was to smile heartily at the friends around. There was no need to speak either, because words weren’t able to express his feelings right now. The only thing he knew for certain was that the atmosphere was warm, and that he wanted to take in every moment of this rare experience and cherish it for the rest of his life.

What’s this kid talking about… It’s not like I’m going to die tomorrow.

“Rest assured!!” Ye Xingchen downed his cup in a single breath, “You must make a visit to our clan one day! I’ll personally take you around to the mountaintops around! We’ve got several famous mountains and ancient temples in the region! Until then, please take care of yourself! And feel free to call me if you need anything!”

Her eyes were incredibly red, and she bowed deeply to Qin Ye, “Instructor Qin, thank you very much!”

Before Qin Ye could speak, the female student bit hard on her lips and muttered, “When school first began… I didn’t know a single thing, yet you continued to be patient with me. And… and you’d even taken a rookie like me under your wing and showed me how to write a thesis proper… and you’d even included my name in the credits. I appreciate all the help you’ve given to me, and I-I won’t let you down! Even though you won’t be physically around the academy anymore, I’ll still continue to study harder than ever before!”

“Cough, cough, cough!” She obviously wasn’t used to drinking, and she choked and sputtered from the strength of the alcohol. That said, her flushed face looked no different from a pristine gerbera, rosy and bright.

The rest of the students soon followed suit, scrambling to get ahead of each other as they lined up to have an audience with Qin Ye. There were those who could hold their liquor, and those who couldn’t. Boisterous or shy, every single one of them had heartfelt words to speak to Qin Ye.

Just like that, two hours zipped by in an instant, and Li Tao finally stood up, “Students, instructors and faculty staff, I believe everyone has had the opportunity to send their blessings to Instructor Qin in this send off party. I’m sure he appreciates these gestures of ours. We’ve still got classes tomorrow, so let’s call it a night. Instructor Qin, come, let’s make a move first.”

A group of them left through the main door of the cafeteria. When nobody was looking, Qin Ye turned back and stole a fleeting glance at the cafeteria which was still abuzz with activity.

The relationships forged here are going to be etched in my heart forever… The experience here… has been incredibly satisfying.