Once he arrived within the Kunlun mountain range, Bai Guo was committed to maintaining a low profile. After the upheavals he had been involved in the last time he was here, many people, especially of the Kunlun Sect, personally knew his face. And even those who hadn't been able to attend the hectic tournament had no doubt heard of the incidents he had been involved with and at least knew of him by name and description.

  Just as before, the roads leading up the Kunlun Goddess Peak were under strict watch. After several days of lurking around the mountain, try as he might, Bai Guo had found no way inside the sect. He couldn't even come close. And he knew that to bring up the grisly topic of the sect master's death in public would no doubt out him as a person of immediate interest to the Kunlun Sect.

  His previous stay here had left him with enemies around every corner, and not a single friend he could call upon. And yet Bai Guo couldn't bear to just leave with his concerns unanswered, and so he remained, wracking his brains over a solution.

  Over the days that followed, he had found only one innocuous opportunity to touch upon the events of the tournament. All it amounted to was a piece of trivia - to the general public, the young man who had dragged out his battles to the point of absurdity came to be known as the Endless Blade.

  And that was the most he managed to learn.

  As Bai Guo went about his new routine of studying the patrols from a distant, deserted alleyway, doubt and hesitation gnawed at him. The accusations levied against his master remained at the forefront of his mind almost every waking moment. But the more he had pondered the matter, the more impulsive his current course of action began to seem.

  "Just what am I doing here?" He thought. "Am I not just repeating my mistakes?"

  Bai Guo paused his vigil and sat down against the wall, fingers rubbing his weary face.

  "I separated from my master just to harangue my sworn brother with these ridiculous accusations, and all I did was tear up an old wound and nearly cause his death. Of course I knew what he's like; of course I knew the situation could never be how it seemed! And yet here I am, thinking about putting my master through the exact same ordeal. Secretive as she is, I still know what she's really like! How can I condemn her when she's not without her own share of good deeds?"

  "And just how can I claim that she wouldn't go as far as brother Shen has? She was willing to give up that cultivation method of hers for my sake. She acted like it would have been no big deal, but wasn't she just putting on airs? Even if He Yong would indeed require more time than her to master it, that still left a possibility for him to accomplish exactly that."

  His realizations slowly eased him through the anxieties that had been plaguing him for the past months.

  "I'm... such an idiot..." Bai Guo muttered under his breath. "And even if the accusations did turn out to be true, even if things were as bad as they seemed... Just what could I possibly do about it? The only thing I can hope to achieve is to keep doing as I've been, and steer her in the right direction whenever I can."

  And just as his mind had been made up, a familiar voice softly pointed him out.

  "Are you ready to stop playing around, dear nephew?"

  Bai Guo sprang to his feet, recognizing his father's sworn brother. Hou Jin stood at the other end of the alley, his hands behind his back.

  "One of ours caught you on your way back to the mountains." Hou Jin explained. His tone was far less stern than Bai Guo expected.

  "What will you do now, uncle Jin?" Bai Guo asked, his hand hesitantly drawing towards his sword.

  "I was hoping we could talk." Hou Jin said. Bai Guo warily glanced behind his figure. His uncle took note, explaining, "I'm alone. Without that dreadful master of yours around, there's no need for others."

  Bai Guo frowned, gripping his sheathed sword. "If you think it'll be easy to force me to come with you without her, you're mistaken!"

  "Oh, Bai Guo..." Hou Jin shook his head. "You're my sworn brother's son! I'd never harm you. My subordinates were there for my own safety."

  Bai Guo continued to regard his uncle with a cold stare. But his grip softened. Spotting his nephew's diminishing aggression, Hou Jin slowly approached.

  "We've had a report," Hou Jin began, "That the Desolator of Life surrendered himself before shortly getting rescued by a masked young swordsman. That was you, wasn't it?"

  Bai Guo was surprised to see him regard the matter with a slight chuckle.

  He continued, "You were smart to hide your face. If you hadn't done that, we wouldn't be able to talk like this. I'd have no choice but to bring you in."

  Bai Guo remained silent.

  "But I must say, you've really outdone yourself this time." Hou Jin laughed. "Su Jiang is never going to hear the end of it! Not that he's ever had much of a career to begin with..."

  Uncle Jin patted his nephew on the shoulder, who didn't seem to share in his humor, but was nevertheless somewhat surprised that the matter was being taken so lightly.

  Bai Guo still had nothing to say. Hou Jin stood by his side, quietly observing the mountain. Bai Guo joined his uncle in staring at the Kunlun Goddess Peak. His hand had completely let go of his sword.

  "Though the death of senior Long was certainly regrettable," Hou Jin said, "for me, this case has never truly been about the Desolator of Life. I knew all along that he was out of our reach. And it was never about your master either. I just wanted to keep you out of harm's way, little nephew."

  Hou Jin paused, curling his goatee around a finger. "The fact that you've returned here - alone - must mean that you finally saw your master for who she truly was. Am I right?"

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  And though Bai Guo still wouldn't answer, as Hou Jin glimpsed into his eyes, he seemed to find exactly what he was looking for.

  "Well, it's obvious enough what you're trying to do here." Hou Jin said. "However, there's no proof left to be found out there. The only evidence remains with the Bureau. I have a proposal for you, Guo'er."

  From his pocket, Hou Jin produced a rectangular token of blue jade, the image of a crane carved into it. As he received it, even the taciturn Bai Guo couldn't help but widen his eyes. The young man flipped the token and found the words "Investigator Bai Guo" engraved on the other side.

  "What do you think?" Hou Jin prodded. "How about we go make it official? If you ask me, it's been a long time coming."

  "I don't know..." Bai Guo finally mustered. "Am I really qualified?"

  Hou Jin chuckled. "After fighting off nearly a dozen investigators, even the late senior Long wouldn't be able to call you unworthy anymore! Of course, not that we need to let them know about that... Since nobody was harmed, we will permanently write it off as the antics of youth and never mention the matter again."

  "I wouldn't call it a fight." Bai Guo protested. "For the most part, I just gave them a scare..."

  "Well then courage will make up for whatever's still missing!" Hou Jin patted him on the shoulder again. "And we know you have that in droves. What do you say?"

  Bai Guo gripped the token tightly, as if still unable to believe that it's real.

  "You'll have a big role to play in the days to come." Hou Jin suddenly said. "Perhaps more than any other investigator in our organization."

  Bai Guo, caught off-guard by his words, warily questioned, "What do you mean, uncle?"

  "No doubt you've realized it yourself." Hou Jin sternly began, "Your master is not someone we could possibly ignore. And neither can the world at large. And you must understand even better than the rest of us just what kind of an undertaking it would take to stop her. I'm offering you more than just a prestigious post here, Guo'er. I'm offering a way to stop her."

  Hou Jin stared at him with the utmost conviction. Bai Guo's eyes danced between his uncle and the token he held in his hand.

  "Could it be that you have a plan already?" Bai Guo asked.

  "I can say that we may be on the cusp of something very solid." Hou Jin replied.

  Bitterness welled up in Bai Guo's heart. Though he was momentarily overcome with doubt, deep down, Bai Guo knew the answer already; he had made up his mind before his uncle had even showed up. And now that his uncle had told him this much, Bai Guo had an inkling that he would not be allowed to refuse so easily.

  He was ashamed by the betrayal he was about to commit. But knowing that there was a plot in motion against his master, he was obligated to at the very least learn as much about it as he could.

  "Uncle Jin... I accept!" Bai Guo said, bowing.

  "Excellent!" Hou Jin was overjoyed. "It's still early in the day. Let's get you set up right away."

  Hou Jin took his nephew through the narrow streets, saying, "Do temper your expectations, Guo'er. It is not exactly set in stone just yet. You must still go through the training and pass the examinations. However, knowing you, this should pose no issue."

  Bai Guo hummed in acknowledgement. His eyes warily took in his surroundings. They were headed down familiar locales, and, perhaps in the name of expediency, were about to draw all too near to a place that Bai Guo had been very deliberately avoiding during his stay. They were coming up on the Mountain Purification Temple, where he and his master spat in the face of hospitality and stirred a slumbering beast.

  He no longer had any friends among the monks, and he feared that they may have been seeking to get back at him for responding to their kindness with enmity. But even more than that, he burned with shame at his part in the matter, and simply couldn't bear to face them.

  Bai Guo had no idea how to broach the matter to his uncle, so he simply hoped that he would manage to slip by unnoticed.

  But when the old temple was in their sights, Bai Guo's feet had suddenly stopped.

  The temple walls surrounded nothing but a pile of burnt rubble.

  Hou Jin noticed his nephew's tarrying a moment later. He traced the young man's shocked gaze towards what remained of the temple. Hou Jin drew closer, something of a smile on his face as he began to enthusiastically explain the details of the grizzly case involving the unfortunate monks.

  But his explanation only echoed what Bai Guo had already realized by himself.

  Something had wakened the Sleeping Asura.

  "Everyone was killed?" Bai Guo asked absentmindedly, looking over to his uncle. His eyes were unfocused, his gaze like glass.

  Just as Hou Jin was about to give another casual answer, he spotted the peculiar gravity in his nephew's expression. He realized that his easygoing manner of speech was, for once, out of place; his nephew hadn't been taken in with this story like he had been with many others. Hou Jin immediately began to wonder about the reason.

  "There may have been a survivor." Hou Jin said. "Or at the very least, one of the monks remains unaccounted for. A twelve year old boy."

  Bai Guo turned back towards the ruins. Hou Jin was unable to tell if his words had brought his nephew any relief. He held his tongue, giving the young man some time.

  When Bai Guo faced his uncle again, his eyes were filled with a bitter resolve Hou Jin had witnessed within him just once before, many years ago. On the day the young man's father was killed.

  ...