3 The Fated Encounter

-Yunlan-

"That's odd... a demon hunts humans either for the pleasure of killing or because they wanted to feed on their flesh. However, so far, the little damage done to the lobby area is too contained coming from such a vicious creature. Only a few claw marks in the reception area where the guard was attacked and a good amount of residual energy has been left behind." Da Qing said as he closely inspected the scene with those feline eyes that had seen war before. "The Ghost Slayer is a formidable fighter feared by all during the war... I would think that such a fight would have left the place devastated, yet there is nothing..."

"The Ghost Slayer has godlike powers even if he was only half-god, as confirmed by the Professor. Creating barriers should be a walk in the park for him, especially since he seems to be so fixated on protecting humans in general. He is such a caring man, I wonder just what in the world happened to him two thousand years ago. To be honest, it makes no sense to me that he would abandon those he fought so hard to protect. But more than that, I wonder why is back now..." Zhao said, passing his hand over the only mark that came from a sword, the Ghost Slayer's legendary blade capable of killing even gods. His mind began to race in search for a logical explanation.

"You know, this is not the first time he has shown up like this. Actually, we must be having quite a few records in the library of the times the Ghost Slayer had been initially rumored to be back, but disappear a while after, to come back again in irregular intervals." The cat added.

"Well that is odd, if you ask me. Say... How many times do you remember him being active after the war?" Zhao asked.

"With all honesty, I can't remember much about what happened that long ago. But I think the Order had less work when he was around, and many times the Guardians never even met him personally." The cat said, trying to recall all the times the elusive Ghost Slayer had been around. He had been by Zhao's side in all his reincarnations as it was his duty to find the soul of his master, and although his personality had varied from one another, there was something common in all of Kunlun's reincarnations, all of them were obsessed on finding the missing hero and failed every time.

"Remind me to go down to the library and ask Sang Zan to have a look at the old records. Maybe we can find some clues there." Zhao commanded the cat.

"I wonder... Do you think that Professor Shen can give us some more information on the Ghost Slayer?" Zhao asked merrily, while taking out a set of yellow talismans that he carried with him to difficult cases.

"Us? You mean you, right? This should be a brand new record for you. Just knowing him for a few hours and you are already looking for excuses to meet him again. Was it love at first sight?" Zhu Hong asked Zhao, butting into their conversation after she sent away the other professors that have no clue of what took place in their dorm.

"Sure, why not? I have a feeling that I've already known him for centuries..." Zhao said without thinking which made Da Qing stare at Zhao confused as to whatever he was joking or being serious. He doubted that he had met the Professor before in any of his previous lives, because he would have known if that were the case. However, he felt that Zhao remembered something Kunlun might have known... maybe he is a step closer to waking up again.

"You pervert, he is too much for you. There is something strange about that Professor. I think you should be more wary of him. All my senses were yelling at me to stay away from him when I was interrogating him and as you know, I'm a serpent who have a sense for these things..." She said while shuddering.

"So, he is not only smart and handsome, but he also has the ability to scare off one of Nuwa's descendants. Damn, he is just too perfect. I like him even more now..." Zhao teased, making the woman give him a death glare.

"Too bad, you will just end up scaring him off with your bad habits and messed-up personality." She rebutted, but Zhao only laughed.

"Say all you want, but I too, have a sense for choosing possible partners. Who knows, he may even like me back, sooner than you may believe." He infused the talismans with some his own energy.

"Yeah, right, maybe in your wildest fantasies or when he goes blind..." The cat said, making Zhu laugh.

Zhao ignored them and threw the talismans inscribed with red ink and they floated through the air in a circular motion around him. Then he whispered an ancient incantation, passed down from one generation of Guardians to another. Then, the talisman glow with a blinding golden light for a few seconds before sticking to different points on the ceiling, forming a thirty-two layered protection ward. The formation itself was in eight circles of different sizes and although it wasn't enough to properly enclose and protect the entire campus, it was a bit exaggerated for a single building. Nonetheless, Zhao proudly smiled at his handy work.

"You used the whole set? That's a pretty strong barrier for just a few floors... I guess I was right on reassuring the Professor that he would be safe while he sleep. This place is now the safest in the whole city. Impressive..." Lin Jing said, joining them again at last.

"Nothing less for my future wife..." Zhao said shamelessly. He suddenly stopped as he got a sense of an unexpected surge of energy, out of place in their human world. The sudden strong dark energy was overwhelming even for him, who was accustomed to fight strong creatures coming from the Underworld and sometimes even from Hell.

"Chief! This is bad, Hell Hounds are coming!" Da Qing yelled, as his sharper senses tell him of which kind of creatures have gone out of their prison. However, his warning was unnecessary, because all of them could feel them from the multiple portals that were now opening a few yards outside the building.

Zhao could not help but frown at the sight in front of him. Occasionally, some creatures from the Underworld got out, which was the reason Guardians exited, to fight them and protect the people, but it was unheard off such a huge number going out and not from the less protected Underworld, but from inside Hell, which was heavily sealed with the power of the goddess.

How they have arrived there, Zhao has no idea, but why they have arrived to such a place which has no meaning to them... Zhao could guess it might be because the Ghost Slayer was still somewhere close by. And sure enough, a second later, the air inside the lobby area started to become cold, the temperature falling to a degree where a thin layer of frost covered the walls, and mist formed with every exhale.

"Ghost Slayer..." Zhao whispered as two figures emerged from a dark portal.

The Ghost Slayer

He didn't have time to properly introduce himself to Yunlan. Once he showed up, the Hell Hounds had begun to move closer, barring their fangs in defiance. The blood-thirsty creatures were extremely ferocious and their claws were sharp like blades that could tear apart even bones.

Chu jumped in first, attacking the first wave of Hell Hounds with skilled moves and precise aims of his barely visible threads and decapitated them one by one. The Ghost Slayer would be mad with him for taking the first initiative when he was clearly ordered to protect the Guardian, but for now, the safety of his Honor was his top priority and so he acted accordingly, willing to accept any kind of punishment for his defiance if his Honor chose it.

"Guardian, you did well by creating such a strong barrier; perfect for this situation. The Hell Hounds will not be able to break through these many layers; but it is a mystery how they broke through my barrier in the first place... So please, for now, stay inside while we handle this." The Ghost Slayer said to Chief Zhao. Without giving him any time to reply, he quickly went out to join Shuzhi leaving Zhao speechless and fascinated at the impressive sight. Instinctively, Zhao summoned his enchanted whip, just in case he is required to protect his people, although his team was more than capable to hold their own in a crazy fight, such as the one they were carefully watching.

Despite what the Ghost Slayer had said, Zhao thought of joining the newfound Underworld Guardians, but dropped the thought as he realized that he would only be in their way. The two obviously have been fighting together for a long time, as their deadly dance was hypnotic and in perfect synchrony. The man with the bluish threads seemed to be watchful of the Ghost Slayer's movements, and kept up a barrier to avoid any unexpected attacks. Zhao felt a sudden hint of jealously as he watch them that he could not explain, yet their team work was enviable and he yearned for it.

Outside, the Ghost Slayer showed no mercy to the foul beasts, slaying everything that dared to come closer. His movements were graceful and quick and his blade was lethal. For the Hell Hounds that were out of his blade's reach, he summoned ghost fire over them which burst and consumed the creatures in flames leaving behind only their ashes.

Soon the number of Hounds started decreasing, until there was nothing left but dark ashes covering the entire yard. It was then, that both the Ghost Slayer and his mysterious bodyguard came forward to formally introduce themselves to the dumbfounded Guardians. Zhao's expression however made the man hidden under the cloak worry a bit. He knew Yunlan was smarter than how much he let others to believe and was currently starting to connect some dots that could eventually put his professor identity at risk if he wasn't careful.

"Guardian..." The Ghost Slayer said in a deep voice.

"Ghost Slayer, Your Honor..." Zhao said while giving a deep bow, despite the intense cold surrounding him.

"I had been away for a long time, however, as you must have noticed, I recently have been busying myself with such matters. But I would like to apologize as for now I must leave to take care of some important errands I have back in the underworld. However, as the activity of ghosts and monsters has been increasing, I would like it if you would accept the help from someone I trust with my life." The Ghost Slayer said pushing Shuzhi forward.

"This is Chu Shuzhi, my right hand man. He cannot officially join the Order, as he is not human, nor blessed with a soul, but I assure you that he is someone you can trust. He is going to be my envoy, whenever you might need my help, he will do you the honor. Also, a human will come to you in a few days, his name is Guo Changcheng. I will like for you to accept my request of making him a member of the Order. I assure you, he will not be having any problems with his name being written in the book of the Guardians. One look at him and you will know why. Please excuse me." And with that, the Ghost Slayer gave a small bow and disappeared, leaving Zhao speechless yet again.

AN: Just to clarify, Nuwa is the goddess that created the human kind and she also had the form of a serpent. From here on, there is no more edition, just raw material with many grammatical mistakes, but I assure the story will fasinste you, if you are a Weilan fan. 😄