High School of Demon Hunting

Chapter 1372: Chapter 119 The Truth of the Wizard World

The sunshine outside was bright and cheerful.

It formed a stark contrast to the gloomy atmosphere inside the museum. Perhaps those negative vibes in the museum were just Zheng Qing’s misconception. But in the sunshine outside, he truly felt a sense of comforting warmth.

The professor took him to a secluded grassy area.

They sat down on the ground.

”Everyone has their own morning in their heart,” the professor, leaning against a large bluestone, fished out a small red clay teapot from nowhere, and sipped tea slowly while speaking, ”...When the time comes, people wake up on their own.”

”Sometimes, that morning is an alarm clock, a rooster crowing; other times, it’s a figurative slap on the face, a moment of sudden enlightenment; and sometimes, that morning arrives after you know the ’truth’...”

Zheng Qing started by sitting next to the professor in a relaxed manner, supporting himself with his hands by his side, squinting at the sun, lazily watching as the professor lectured. However, he quickly realized this posture was somewhat disrespectful and switched to a kneeling position.

”Lie down, it’s more comfortable,” the professor gestured with his hands, indicating the boy should feel at ease: ”Don’t pay attention to these details...”

Zheng Qing blinked, obligingly placed his hands behind his head, and with a thud comfortably lay back on the grass.

Several butterflies danced around the two wizards, young and old.

Not far away atop the trees, orioles and larks let loose their vocals, singing loudly.

The grass in May had started to enter the most luxuriant season of the year, the soft lawn like an expensive Persian carpet. Lying on it, nature’s breath rushed into the young wizard’s nostrils; combined with the warm sun and the soft breeze, Zheng Qing found the feeling of sleepiness coming back to him.

The professor’s voice seemed to come from a very distant place:

”...What is the truth? The truth is the fact. It’s the most real existence in this world, hidden under countless facades and illusions. The truth is that one plus one equals two, sound travels at 340 meters per second in 15-degree air, space curves under mass, two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom make up a water molecule, and so on.”

”That doesn’t sound too frightening.” Zheng Qing interjected.

The professor smiled.

”Yes, it doesn’t sound frightening,” he murmured: ”That’s exactly what’s most frightening. Because we see it all the time, take it for granted, and think nothing of it... just like no one finds eating hot pot and singing songs to be a scary affair. Cicadas don’t know spring or autumn; mayflies do not understand the human world, so what do humans know about what’s beyond their own world?”

”The universe is vast, crowded within the human realm.”

From a certain perspective, Zheng Qing could understand the ’fear’ in the professor’s words—the birth of this world had too many coincidences, countless horrors, and fears intertwined, building a delicate balance that allowed for life’s existence.

But from another angle, Zheng Qing felt there was a subtlety in the professor’s words.

”Based on what you’ve said, it sounds like you are discussing the fear of ’ignorance’,” the boy always grew inexplicably braver at such moments, audaciously retorted: ”Since we find it frightening that we don’t know what’s out there, doesn’t that mean ignorance is quite terrifying?”

The professor sighed softly: ”Ignorance is bliss and allows for the brave exploration of all possibilities. It is the driving force behind the advancement of all civilizations. But truth is different. Because we can’t change the truth... it always sits there, coldly watching us struggle.”

Zheng Qing held his breath.

Intuition told him that today, the Master would reveal some ’truths’ of great importance, truths that would be difficult for people to accept. This curiosity scratched at his heart like a cat’s claw, making him uncomfortable even while lying down, so he simply sat up again, hugged his knees, and leaned a little closer to the Master.

The Master glanced at him.

”What do you know about Demons?” the Master asked abruptly.

Zheng Qing was stunned for a few seconds.

”Demons?” he hesitated, cautiously responding: ”Demons and Wizards are natural enemies, sustaining themselves on the flesh and blood of Wizards. Depending on the way they are born, Demons are classified into three categories: inherent bloodline inheritance, demonic energy invasion, and demonic contagion; by their territory, they are further divided into Sea demons, Witch Demons, and others. The Mage Alliance has an arrest warrant for Demons, listing thousands of small and large Demons, among which the Sea Demon King and Witch Demon King are the most formidable ones. Under the Sea Demon King, there are also four Big sea monsters – Mist, Iceberg, Whirlpool, Poseidon... Oh, and it is said that there is an Elderly Ancestor of the Demons, worshipped by all Demons, who is the origin of all their births.”

His answer sounded messy and somewhat disjointed, lacking focus.

But this was not Zheng Qing’s fault.

Although nearly a year had passed since enrollment and he had encountered Demons numerous times, these encounters were mostly unilateral hunts. The only time he had a verbal exchange with a Demon, that beautiful Female Demon kept repeating terrifying phrases like ’you smell so delicious’ in a frightful tone.

There are indeed quite a few books about Demons in the school library.

Zheng Qing hadn’t spared effort in perusing them during his Absolution Hunting Team Training. However, those books mostly dealt with distinguishing Demons, tracking Demon traces, the weaknesses of different Demons, and how to kill a Demon as quickly as possible. There was very little involving the profound nature of Demons per se.

As for Professor Montreya’s laboratory, the focus was on the research and utilization of Demon bloodlines — perhaps there might be materials related to the origin of bloodlines in the lab, but Zheng Qing, who was just a junior assistant skilled in crafting Talismans, had no access to them.

The Master held the red clay teapot, squinting at the Sun overhead, listening to the Young Wizard beside him prattling on about the ’truth’ that was widely circulated in the Wizard World.

A long time passed.

The Sun overhead seemed to feel a bit sheepish under his gaze, quietly hiding behind the clouds.

The environment on the grass became increasingly pleasant.

Finally, Zheng Qing drained all the little knowledge he had and closed his mouth.

”Demons, Demons,” the Master muttered the word quietly and paused before slowly continuing: ”A Demon arises from abnormalities; an obsession leads to the making of a Demon. Demons... originally, they were just beings obsessed with abnormalities. And Wizards, there is no difference between them and Demons. Wizards are also a kind of Demon.”

The young public expense student quietly swallowed.

If the Master’s words were overheard by outsiders, it would certainly cause an uproar. Having entered the Wizard World for a year, he had never seen such a view in any book, nor had any Wizard ever spoken such words to him.

Wizards and Demons are no different?

Zheng Qing did, however, know about Witch Demons, which were a group of Wizards fallen under demonic influence. But that was all. Once those Witch Demons began to eat humans, they turned into them.

”Wizards don’t eat people!” the young public expense student sat up straight, somewhat unable to accept: ”We are not the same as them!”