Departure

The villagers were happy that they were finally liberated from the affliction of the evil physician.

The physician was eventually put in prison to pay and atone for the heinous acts he committed against the villagers.

Seeing that the physician has been imprisoned, Gui Shan decided to head back to the inn.

"Why me...", the physician screamed out as Gui Shan was about leaving.

All over Mulang village, Gui Shan's fame had spread far and wide, the people took him as their savior.

Childrenn, men and women held him up for his herioc act, throughout that day, he was the talk of the town.

Surprisingly for Gui Shan, as he was heading back to the inn, he had lots of people staring at him, he couldn't keep up with the smiles that was over the faces of the people.

Gui Shan then thought within himself; "I finally did something I am proud of".

He continued down the path to the inn,but surprisingly enough, he met some guards at the front of the inn, alongside his friends and the inn keeper.

Still in shock as to why they came again, a guard spoke;

"The village head welcomes Gui Shan to honor his banquet", the guard said.

"Can I come with my friends?", Gui Shan said without thinking twice.

"It's your choice to make", the guard replied as he returned back to the Royal manor, where the village head dwells.

Gui Shan quickly went inside with his friends and the inn keeper to celebrate his conquest.

"Good work! Gui Shan", Tang Tang said as a compliment.

"We are very proud of you", Ru Yuo added.

Tang was still amazed by how Gui Shan was able to solve the case and save the people of Mulang.

They are laughed together as they prepared to go over the Royal manor for dinner with the village head.

Before they departed for the royal manor, the inn keeper thanked Gui Shan for his intervention.

"Thank you for saving my life", the inn keeper said as they left for the royal manor.

"We're lucky to be friends with Gui Shan as he is also friends with us", "I'm amazed at the way he uncovered the mystery that has layed low in the village for years.

They arrived at the royal manor and entered into the court house for the village head to welcome them in.

The village head welcomed the three youngsters and appreciated them for their contributions to the well-being of the villagers.

He welcomed them to the dining hall and had a feast with them.

During the honoured Gui Shan as the guest of the feast. He thanked Gui for the effort he had put into unraveling the secret behind the villagers illness.

"The people of Mulang would forever be indebted to you",

"You are warmly welcomed to visit the village anytime", the village head said.

"It's an honor elder, and I didn't do it for any prize", Gui Shan said.

"I admire your sincerity and kind heart", the village head said.

Speaking further, he enquired of Gui Shan's hometown and parents.

"My hometown is Ciafa village and my father works as a councilor in the village", Gui Shan replied.

"I would love to meet the father who trained you to become the great man that you are today", the village head said.

They discussed for a while, and drank to full. Later on, Gui Shan told the village head of their journey to Nirong Village for the Guiyi academy entrance examination.

As Gui Shan continued speaking, the village head called a messenger and whispered something to his ear, the messenger quickly went and came back with a token which he handed over to the village head.

"Gui Shan, you can have this", the village head said as he handed over a metal token to Gui Shan.

In response, Gui Shan stretched his hand towards the king to accept the token he was given. On seeing that a token was handed over to Gui Shan, Tang Tang and Ru Yuo's focus were now fixed on the King.

Meanwhile, deep in Gui Shan's mind, he thought of what help the token would be to him, since he assumed it was an ordinary token.

"That is the symbol of the Guiyi academy scribbled on it, it will guarantee your safety in Guiyi academy", the village head said.

Gui Shan still confused by what the village head meant by it guaranteeing their safety, knelt down as he appreciated the king for his kind gesture.

"Forget the formalities young lad, you are now a part of us", the village head said.

The three youngsters showed their gratitude and inform the village head of their departure the next.

"We would miss having you around us", the village head said.

As they were about to set off, the village head assigned two guards to them to see them to the inn.

Soon before evening, they arrived at the inn and bade the guards farewell as they returned back to the mansion.

Upon their arrival, the inn keeper welcomed them as they entered the inn.

"I'm already missing you guys as though you were gone for years", the inn keeper said as he gave them a warm embrace.

They all went into the main bowl the inn. The inn keeper served with wine and they drank to stupor.

They all retired to bed feeling a bit dizzy since they drank too much of it.

The next day came, it was indeed the day of their departure.

"Wake Up sleeping boy", Gui Shan said as he tapped Tang Tang.

Being an early bird, Gui Shan is always time conscious. They took their bath and started emptying their stuffs from the room.

The two boys began packing their stuffs for the journey, the finally packed all their stuffs and came out of their room.

To their surprise, Ru Yuo was already at the main hall of the inn waiting for them.

"I can see you're already warmed up for the journey unlike Tang" Gui Shan said.

"Oh yes, I can't wait to get to Gui Shan academy", Ru Yuo said.

"Me too", Tang Tang said as he awakened.

The hunter on his own part stocked them with enough food supply that would last them for their journey and also help them some days at the academy.

"The village head delivered this", he said pointing at so many food items and bags of money.

Gui Shan was shocked at the generosity of the village head and demanded that his gratitude should be relayed to the village head.

"I'll miss you guys, you're my children deep down in my heart", he said.

They were fully set to go. They bade the inn keeper goodbye, even though they couldn't bear leaving.

"See you soon old man!", they all chorused.

As they went through the village, the people cheered them and echoed Gui Shan's name. They felt so very important for the first time, they felt loved by the people, but they had to go.

They continued not minding the cheers from the villagers. They finally got to the end of the village and bade all the people farewell.

With the help of the map and Ru Yuo's guidance, they continued their journey to Guiyi academy as it was just few miles away.

On their way, Gui Shan thought of his encounter with the evil physician. He felt fulfilled for a moment of time.

But something was still lingering, the thought of what the village head meant by his statement.

So many thoughts raced through his mind, so he decided to spill it out.

"Do you guys understand what the village head meant by saying that the token would guarantee our safety", Gui Shan asked out of security.

"I think they are still some answers I need to get", he added.

"I think the village head is trying to protect us",

"It seems as though they are some hidden dangers in Guiyi academy which he's trying to protect us from", Ru Yuo said.

They both continued in their discussion not long before Tang Tang cut in.

"Let's not worry ourselves for now, when we get there the mystery would unfold itself like a puzzle", Tang Tang said convincingly.

Both parties were convinced, so they decided to continue in their journey without pondering on what seems like a mystery.

The three youngsters sang happily on their way as they hoped to arrive at Nirong Village soon.

From a distance, Tang Tang spotted an inscription that scribbled at the top of a post;

"Welcome to Nirong Village"

They were very happy to have arrived at their destination. They all jumped up as they ran past the gate of the village.

"Finally, I'm getting closer to my goals", Gui Shan said in a whispering tone.

The youngsters were full of excitement and expectations, they entered the village and took a very deep breath.

Finally they arrived at...

Continue reading from next chapter...