Zhi Guan looked at the row of disciples who had pulled up their shoulders and were looking rather defeated despite the victory of their side. He himself had never had such a moment after entering the Teng Yong Sect. He had grown up in a country torn apart by war. Every day was a fight for survival and he had lost everyone he knew apart from his mother by the time his Master took him in.

The road of cultivation … it had never seemed more dangerous to him than the life of a mortal. On the contrary, he felt that this path was better. At the very least, as long as you practiced hard, as long as you gained enough experience, you had the strength to protect yourself and others. Of course, there were also limits to how much you could do.

He turned to the rows of bodies lined up on the ground. There were more than a dozen of them already and more were still being carried over. His gaze rested on each of their faces for a moment. There were four sects and, admittedly, the Jian Chu Sect which came later and confronted the demonic faction first had borne the brunt of the attack. Still, while most of them were indeed from the Jian Chu Sect, none of the sects had made it out of this battle without losses. Not even the Zhen Yan Sect that had quietly supported everyone from the back.

Zhi Guan walked over to the ones from their Teng Yong Sect who had been lost. There were five of them but he only knew one of them better: Chai Hong. She had formed her golden core just two years ago and had accompanied him on a few missions, sometimes helping to lead the younger disciples and sometimes tailing along with other golden core and a few nascent soul stage disciples to solve the more difficult missions.

He wasn’t someone who liked to talk so he could count the number of sentences they had spoken on two hands. He remembered her clearly though. During those missions, she had given it her all, charging ahead regardless of danger, never afraid to step up to protect others or solve the troubles they encountered. She had been serious in her cultivation whenever there was a lull in the progress of the missions and he had seen her practice her sword arts deep in the night once or twice which made his opinion of her soar.

Her future had been boundless but now, it had come to a sudden end. Knowing what he did about her, she might have died trying to protect the younger disciples or charging ahead to deal with more enemies early on. Both would be in line with her personality. Both paths were something to be proud of. Still, it was a shame. Her life shouldn’t have ended like this.

Zhi Guan glanced at the others: two foundation establishment disciples, another one in the golden core stage, and even a nascent soul stage disciple. He only recognized the first two based on the robes they wore. He couldn’t remember ever having seen them in the sect.

It wasn’t that odd if you thought about it. After all, the Teng Yong Sect was one of the four great sects. The number of disciples and Elders living on the sect grounds could be imagined. Usually, you would only be more familiar with the people of your own generation or the one directly following behind. As for younger disciples, only those under the same Master had more intersections with their seniors.

Missions like the one in the border region where disciples of very different cultivation levels came together were rare and he hadn’t been here long enough to get familiar with everyone. Most of the time, he had paid closer attention to his little junior and the people around him or even gone on his own small missions on the side to help out where he was needed. As a result, some people couldn’t even be recognized.

Zhi Guan stared at the faces of the two disciples, committing their features to memory. He might not have known them while they were alive but he ought to remember them after they had sacrificed their lives in this battle. Maybe it wouldn’t matter. Maybe he, too, would follow in a few days. But no matter how long he had to live, he would remember them for the time he was given, just like he remembered the others they had left behind during missions in the past.

He turned to look at the last two remaining disciples who he had at least seen before. It seemed they hadn’t been on any missions together but maybe they had been leading other teams when they were on the way out of the sect or had some interaction during the competitions in the sect. No matter the reason, he remembered their faces. Unfortunately, he couldn’t recall their names but certainly, there would be others who could.

He turned away from the bodies and strode back into the hallway, his gaze wandering over the ground.

Shen Lei and Luo Lin were standing close by and exchanged a glance when they noticed him pass by. Luo Lin tugged at his fiance’s hand and they hurried after him.

“First senior martial brother, what’s the matter?”

Zhi Guan turned to look at Luo Lin and hummed. “I am looking for something.”

Luo Lin raised his brows, not sure what to make of that. “Well … can we help?” He felt tired after this battle. It was his first time in such a big fight and he had even used his ability so much. At this moment, he could have lied down and slept for several hours. Still, there were a lot of things to do and while he currently didn’t have a specific task, he should try his best to help where help was needed. Since his first senior martial brother was looking for something, then maybe he could assist with that.

Zhi Guan took in his appearance and shook his head. “No. I just need a few moments. You should take a break.” He wasn’t the type to harp on things so he simply glanced at Shen Lei before he turned around and continued with his search.