High School of Demon Hunting

Chapter 1510: Chapter 254: Dialogue by the Window

Zheng Qing had many guesses about the scenery submerged in the white mist.

For example, beneath it could be a boiling sea of oil, with peaks of blades rising from the sea, where fragmented souls wailed and tattered corpses climbed the peaks, strips of flesh being sliced from them. It was just like real hell.

Or perhaps, beneath was a huge labyrinth, with a ferocious Sphinx crouched at its entrance, and all manner of monsters wandering its paths, requiring great effort for every step he took forward.

But when he descended the steps, passed through the foggy mist and saw a desolate black grassland, he couldn’t help but pause.

The scene before him was very similar to the world he had seen before passing through the narrow door.

The same black grass, the same silence and desolation.

The difference was that at the end of the grassland, in the extreme distance, stood a towering Bronze Gate. Its appearance was similar to the Iron Gate he had seen before, but even from a great distance, he could clearly distinguish the new gate’s material, which was entirely different from the Iron Gate.

The barbaric aura rising from the Bronze Gate was essentially different from the solemnity of the Iron Gate.

That hint of green shone exceptionally bright in this pitch-black world.

The Young Wizard couldn’t help but raise his eyebrows; he began to suspect there might be Silver Gates, Gold Gates, or even Diamond Gates behind this Bronze Gate—was he supposed to go through each gate one by one, wasting his life away in this baffling world?

With this dreadful thought, Zheng Qing hung his Charm Gun at his waist, then reached into his Grey Cloth Bag and pulled out a few Talisman papers.

One Cloud Sliding Talisman, two Armor Horse Charms.

He tried calling out ”Furry Bean” into the air a couple of times and waited for a while, but the grey figure never appeared.

The Warlock laughed at himself, replacing the Cloud Sliding Talisman with a Climbing Cloud Talisman instead.

Then, with the ’tut-tut’ sound of Climbing Cloud, he held his Charm Gun and slowly headed towards the distant Bronze Gate at the end of the black grassland.

...

...

The depths of the museum in Wusa City.

The small but spirited banquet between the Young Wizard from the First University and Elder Atar from the temple was drawing to a close.

The old man was very merry with flushed cheeks and bright eyes.

The Warlocks too were thoroughly enjoying their drinks. Zhang Ji Xin’s robe had long been taken off, draped around his waist, tied in a bizarre knot—a decoration from earlier when dancing to liven up their drinking.

Xin Fat Man had a mournful expression, his blue face revealing shades of gray, as he clutched his watch, muttering over and over ’it’s gone,’ ’really gone,’ ’not even a bottle, no, not a drop left.’

Xiao Xiao’s notebook was filled with densely packed secrets of the Dreamland.

Jiang Yu stood by the window from beginning to end, away from that noisy and chaotic world. Furry Bean was crouched on the windowsill in front of her, its front legs crossed over each other, head resting on them, appearing to be asleep, yet the occasional grey figures that darted out from nowhere told the Witch that it was still diligently searching for traces of Zheng Qing.

This was also why the Witch could patiently stand by the window.

If Gouzi, who could traverse gaps in space-time, couldn’t find Zheng Qing, then it would be fruitless for her to search outside all night.

The night prayer had already ended.

The myriad cats that covered the streets and alleys began to vanish into the night once again, with only a few lingering about in search of a stray Zu Ge for a little nibble.

The witch sighed softly.

Suddenly, Furry Bean perched on the windowsill jerked its head up, pricking its ears and gazing outside the window.

”Found them?” Jiang Yu instantly became alert, her white cat ears standing tall along with her hair.

Furry Bean looked around suspiciously, unsurely meowing quietly.

”Not found?” The white cat ears drooped down once again.

”It’s saying that it’s not sure either,” a grating, unpleasant voice surfaced at the feet of the witch.

Jiang Yu looked down, and there was that hairless old cat that claimed to be a temple servant, leaning on a cane.

”Found means found, not found means not found, what’s this uncertainty supposed to mean?” The witch stroked her hair, slightly vexed, and straightened a few strands that hung over her cat ears, ”...Even you can’t find your own master, that’s really useless.”

Furry Bean crouched down, bared its teeth at her and swished its tail in an appeasing gesture.

This show of submissiveness made the witch unable to continue her venting.

The old cat’s unpleasant voice came again.

”The greatest difference between Dreamland and the real world is the barrier.” It tapped the ground lightly with the wooden staff in its hand, then leapt nimbly onto the windowsill, rolled its body and sat on Furry Bean’s belly.

Furry Bean flicked its tail and glanced back at the old cat, opened its mouth but ultimately didn’t let out a ”meow.”

Jiang Yu stared into the old cat’s amber eyes with their vast black pupils, asking in bewilderment, ”...What does this have to do with finding people?”

”Suppose the real world is a gemstone kept in a safe, guarded by alarms and security, then Dreamland is a pearl cast upon the street,” the old cat offered a very down-to-earth analogy:

”Any existence can reach out for that pearl... and in fact, many beings dwell within that very pearl. However, since there are so many hands reaching for the pearl, no single hand can dominate it.”

”Starry Sky?” The witch vaguely grasped the meaning behind the old cat’s words, pondering, ”You mean to say, our captain went into a domain of a being from Starry Sky?”

Instead of directly responding to her speculation, the old cat continued to analyze, ”If I am not mistaken, this little one carries a hint of Miskatonic’s aura... The Tingdalous clan also has branches in Dreamland, and while their other abilities might not be particularly outstanding, their instincts for tracking and killing are commendable. If even a descendant of Miskatonic cannot trace someone, then there must be a power capable of contending with that of Miskatonic.”

”In Dreamland, such areas are few and far between.”

Jiang Yu lifted her gaze to the sky.

The stars shimmered magnificently, their light twinkling with varying frequencies amidst the flowing, colorful night, as if each star was an eye watching over the land.

She couldn’t help but sigh for the third time.

”There are too many,” the white cat ears lay flat amongst her hair, looking dispirited, ”With so many stars, how can we know on which one he has been hidden?”

”Therefore, the best choice is to wait.” The old cat hugged its cane, lifted its chin, and its whiskers by its mouth trembled with solemn stability, ”Patience is a virtue that transcends the world, race, and ideology, and is the most commendable... The good news is, if you can’t find him, neither can the demons, so for now, he won’t be eaten by those demons.”

The witch rolled her eyes inwardly.