High School of Demon Hunting

Chapter 1548: Chapter 292 Choice and Test

A thin and soft tentacle stretched out from the crack of the door, bypassing Zheng Qing, and hovered less than a foot away from Zhang Ji Xin, wriggling slowly. A gold bean was stuck to the tentacle.

If it weren’t for that gold bean, the already-raised palm of Zhang Ji Xin would undoubtedly have crushed the wriggling tentacle into pulp.

”The gold is returned to you,” said the blurred face behind the door, its murky voice reverberating, ”Leave here, leave this house, leave this mountain... The gold is returned to you.”

Zheng Qing turned his head and looked at Zhang Ji Xin with some astonishment.

Not surprisingly, the red-faced male wizard looked even more baffled than he did.

Xiao Xiao abandoned the pile of smoking mystical grain leaves and walked over to the tentacle, carefully inspecting the gold bean stuck on it. After a while, he turned around and asked Zhang Ji Xin, ”Is this the gold bean you left behind when you exited the house earlier?”

Zhang Ji Xin nodded rather uncertainly.

”Probably... What’s the meaning of it coming back?” He scratched his head, his expression somewhat puzzled. ”When I left earlier, I did leave a gold bean... But all these gold beans look about the same, right? Who on earth would bother memorizing the appearance of each gold bean in their pocket?”

”I would,” Doctor Xiao declared confidently.

Xin Fat Man squinted his eyes and quipped, ”That’s because you only have a few gold beans in your pocket.”

Unlike his cautious teammates, who were engaged in careful discussion, Zheng Qing responded very directly to the puzzling actions of the old house master.

”Why are you returning the gold to us?” He asked straightforwardly. ”Why are you asking us to leave? We just want to know the road up the mountain.”

”Why go up the mountain?” The face behind the door shimmered with strange colors, countering with a question.

”We want to go home.”

”Why must you go through the mountain?”

”Elder Atar said that the road on the mountain is wider, and by climbing to the highest peak, we can return to reality. This mountain is the highest one we know.”

”The essence of magic lies in a balance... If you wish to climb the mountain, what are you prepared to sacrifice?”

The Atonement Hunting Team had already discussed this question multiple times. Hearing the old house master ask it now, Zheng Qing immediately replied, ”Gold, gemstones, magic potions, talismans... Even knowledge. Whatever you need, we can provide.”

”What about life?” The voice behind the door crackled with static, as though such a conversation proved exhausting for it.

Zheng Qing glanced at the two female demons.

”If you require it,” he answered succinctly.

This time, silence wholly enveloped the space behind the door, as if the house master had been utterly caught off guard by the warlock’s resolute reply, and simultaneously came to understand the determination of these visitors.

In the black cauldron, the mushroom soup bubbled under the licks of flame, with strands of pearl-like mist escaping from the bubbles and spiraling upward, coalescing into a faint but distinct cloud layer above the cauldron.

Only when the cloud thickened noticeably did the old house master speak again.

”Life is a precious word,” he remarked, as though reminding the visitors of life’s value or sighing over the choices made by the young wizards. ”Indeed, life must have cracks for sunlight to shine through... But atop that mountain peak, there is only endless mist and darkness, void of even a single crack. I believe this demon lady’s choice is more worth your consideration.”

”The demon lady’s choice?”

The five young wizards turned their gaze toward Nikita in unison, filled with surprise and confusion. But without exception, their eyes held undeniable caution. Zheng Qing took a subtle step back, tilting his charm gun so that its barrel pointed toward the female demon.

No one could be sure when the female demon had reached an agreement or formed a connection with the entity behind the door.

Nikita, too, seemed unprepared for her simple negotiations with the old house master to be revealed so blatantly. She quickly realized, however, that hesitation would do her no good in this moment.

”I am willing to stay here! I am willing to go down the mountain!” She raised her arms high and shouted resolutely.

The pitch-black eyes on the blurred face behind the door slowly turned to Nikita, lingering on her face for a long while before faintly rejecting her proposal. ”Your destiny no longer belongs to yourself... You have no authority to make this deal.”

”I know a way to help you escape your current predicament, even ascend to legendary status!” The female demon shouted, seemingly aware this was her last chance. ”Our captain has a truly magnificent plan!”

Those dark eyes seemed to ripple with intrigue.

Zheng Qing knew he had to act quickly and say something to thwart her intentions.

”Silence!” He shook his weapon and ordered sharply, signaling the female demon to step back, his tone dripping with mockery. ”If your captain’s plan involves raiding the Xuanhuang Fruit from the Black Prison, then it indeed merits the word ’magnificent’... Few demons would dare to challenge the fully prepared First University.”

”And half the strength of the New World,” Zhang Ji Xin promptly added, ”As far as I know, the school has already recalled a large number of hunting teams from the New World... They are stationed at the Black Prison now, serving as temporary guards.”

”Xuanhuang Fruit? So that’s it.” The voice from behind the door grew enlightened, as those jet-black eyes again slowly shifted, moving from the female demon to Zheng Qing. ”...The sky is where the ’Dao’ is clearest. The higher you climb, the closer you get to the sky, and the closer you are to the ’road’ home. This is true. But even if Randolph Carter stood before me, he wouldn’t have the confidence to remain sane in the face of that immense truth...”

Randolph Carter was a legendary investigator who graduated from Miskatonic University. This university, located in the renowned town of Arkham, rivaled the First University in achievements within the field of mysticism. However, unlike the First University, composed entirely of wizards, Miskatonic retained many archaic features typical of traditional educational institutions—meaning the majority of its members were ordinary people, with only a small fraction being wizards.

This was the most common method ancient wizards used to conceal their existence; no place could better accommodate transcendent thought and extraordinary souls than a university.

”...Lose your sanity, and you will fall from the mountain.” The voice from behind the door uttered its most chilling warning. ”The higher the mountain, the more tragic your fall. Will you still climb?”

This time, Zheng Qing didn’t immediately answer the old house master’s question.

He instinctively turned to look at his companions.

Jiang Yu hugged Zhu Si tightly and nodded firmly; Zhang Ji Xin shrugged indifferently; Xin Fat Man was squatting on the ground, studying the mushroom soup in the cauldron, completely ignoring the house master’s threats.

Even Xiao Xiao, usually the most cautious, merely adjusted his glasses and said, ”We have no other choice, do we?”

The young expense student grinned widely, turned back around, and declared, ”Yes.”