High School of Demon Hunting

Chapter 1406: Chapter 153: Life is a Rhythm

Someone once said, ”Life is a rhythm, with light and shadow, left and right, sunny and rainy, its flavor lies in these gentle and unwavering twists,” but Zheng Qing had never thought that life’s complications could be so ’rhythmic’.

Gouzi is a peeping addict, this has always been his understanding.

But Gouzi is also a good dog, able to help catch frogs and ducks, which the young cost student confirmed just tonight.

This combination of light and shadow, like the grey-robed janitors of the school, is somewhat inscrutable.

Dormitory 403, having just fallen asleep, was rudely awakened by a cacophony of duck quacks.

The lights came on.

Three warlocks squatted in the middle of the dormitory, staring at the duck squatting on the ground, silently for a long time. The Psyduck, neck retracted, crouched on the floor, blinked its small eyes frantically, its cries getting softer and softer.

The school’s animals are quite intelligent, they can differentiate which beings are a threat and which are not. For instance, just now when Gouzi was running around with the duck in its mouth, Psyduck clearly felt the impending shadow of death; but when it was surrounded by the three young warlocks, that deathly shadow vanished abruptly.

Psyduck felt that it would live on.

And so, its cries became much more calm and controlled. This change also earned it favor from the other residents of dormitory 403. Fat Cat, initially annoyed by the noisy quacking, glared at its plump neck with a hostile gaze – until the quacking became gentler, which softened the cat’s demeanor.

And those Sprites declared their friendship even earlier. They were quite fond of the fine down on Psyduck’s neck, several Sprites vying for the best ’seat’, all wanting to tuck their wings into that fluffy down.

”Are you sure it was Gouzi who caught it?” Zheng Qing confirmed for the third time.

Xin Fat Man, a bit impatient, stretched out his stubby fingers to grip Psyduck’s neck – the disturbed Sprites let out annoyed cheeps, but Psyduck was unexpectedly calm, silent, even batting its eyes at Fat Man – he then lifted the down on the duck’s neck to show Zheng Qing:

”See that? The marks of a dog’s bite. Although it didn’t break the skin, the swelling is irrefutable.”

Psyduck let out a quack as if in agreement.

Zheng Qing grabbed the duck’s bill, demanding it to quiet down, then he sighed deeply.

”Sleep, let’s sleep for now.”

He frowned, seemingly brewing an idea: ”It’s already late... you guys should sleep.”

”What about it?” Fat Man pointed at Psyduck, yawning hugely: ”With it in the room, can we really have a peaceful sleep?”

Psyduck shrank its head, quietly squatting under the desk, looking like an oversized quail. Zheng Qing glanced at it, initially planning to let it stay in the room for the night. But then he thought of the possibility that Gouzi might sneak into the dorm while everyone was asleep, and with the duck’s intelligence, it would surely cause a commotion.

Then there would be no need for sleep that night.

With this in mind, the young cost student stood up, grabbed Psyduck by its wings, carried it to the balcony, pulled open the window, and with a puff, tossed it out.

The duck, though chubby in appearance, had strong wings; flapping vigorously, it landed steadily on the grass. Then it dashed away, vanishing through a gap in the bushes.

Dormitory 403 was once again enveloped in darkness.

However, this time, Zheng Qing did not fall asleep. He sat cross-legged on his bed, eyes deep and fixed on the darkness of the dormitory, listening to his roommates’ soft and heavy snoring, silently contemplating that thought at the back of his mind.

After a long time.

Until his mind started to get a little fuzzy, Gouzi finally came again.

Since the other wizards were asleep, this time Gouzi squatted right in front of Zheng Qing without hesitation, silently sticking out his tongue, his tail wagging rapidly. In the dark, its two greenish eyes resembled the belly of a Firefly that had gorged on tree sap.

The Warlock suddenly snapped alert, unfolding his crossed legs onto the ground, and leaned forward slightly closer to Gouzi. Gouzi hesitated and retreated a bit, but sensing no malice from the Warlock, quickly started wagging its tail again and moved its head closer once more.

The entire process was very quiet, but Zheng Qing noticed that Tuan Tuan’s snoring seemed to have thinned out a bit.

”Did you bring me the duck?” the Warlock didn’t fuss about that minor detail, but instead looked at Gouzi and asked softly.

He still felt the need to confirm this fact.

In the darkness, the two Firefly-like eyes flitted up and down, drawing faint green streaks of light. That was Gouzi nodding its head.

”Why have you been following me?”

Gouzi tilted its head as if it found the question odd, or perhaps because it didn’t know how to answer. Zheng Qing laughed at himself – he couldn’t expect every cat and dog he met to speak.

The snoring in the dormitory remained steady, but much softer than before.

”You can understand me talking, right?”

After seeing Gouzi nod, the Warlock finally voiced the thought that had been lingering on his mind for a long time: ”Do you remember the wizard who hung you on the Cat Fruit Tree that night? Can you bring him to me... you are no longer the same as you were that night. I believe you can do this.”

Zheng Qing believed that after being bitten by him that night, something unknown had changed in Gouzi. Its relentless pursuit was one sign, and its ability to freely come and go despite the school’s Guardian Array was another. And he believed there was much more potential to unearth in this change.

Just like the seed within him.

Gouzi was clearly hesitant, its two Firefly-like eyes wavering uncertainly, not as bright as before – this only increased Zheng Qing’s confidence. The ’indecision,’ a sophisticated thought, was not something a common dog could possess. Over these few days, it had been becoming smarter and smarter.

A few seconds later, Gouzi agreed to the Warlock’s request, bravely nodded its head, tucked its tail in, and with a whoosh, vanished into the darkness of the dormitory.

Zheng Qing let out another long sigh.

He drew his feet back from the ground and sat cross-legged at the edge of the bed again.

The snoring in the dormitory had disappeared, clean and clear.

”Are you expecting too much of it?” Xin Fat Man’s voice came from his bed above, mingled with Fat Cat’s faint snoring, making it less distinct: ”After all, it’s just a dog...”

”I’m just a cat to it,” Zheng Qing chuckled softly in response, not the least bit curious about when Fat Man had woken up.

”That’s still rather rash.” Xiao Xiao sighed, and although his movements couldn’t be seen in the dark, Zheng Qing could still feel Xiao Xiao shaking his head:

”...You have only just figured out its background. You know nothing of its purpose, its thoughts. Isn’t maintaining a distance from it, as before, a good idea? Cause and effect, cause and effect, there must be a cause for an effect... Many of the world’s biggest troubles have come from these little causes and effects accumulating.”

”With too many troubles, I don’t mind this bit of extra trouble,” Zheng Qing lay back, resting his head on the pillow, pulling up the corners of his mouth to reveal a bitter smile: ”...If you can intertwine two troubles, perhaps they will neutralize each other, and then I will be rid of my trouble.”

The notion was simply too ideal.