High School of Demon Hunting

Chapter 1583: Revised: Chapter 327 Side Quest

”Bang!”

A fist wrapped in dark red flames slammed heavily onto the head of the Leader of Huodou. The elongated skull of the Huodou groaned and distorted under the iron fist, then was crushed into the soft black soil, struggling briefly before shattering with a loud crack.

Bright red blood, mixed with the unique scent of morning dew in the forest, spread in all directions.

Swish, swish swish.

Several figures landed in the clearing alongside the splattering blood.

The fist rose slowly from the pit mixed with shattered bone, flesh, and mud. The dark red flames swirling around the fist gradually dissipated, vanishing into the strong, glossy muscles.

Zhang Boren tore off his slightly tattered cloak and threw it to the ground, covering the pile of viscera. At the same time, he scanned his surroundings with a fierce gaze. The lurking eyes in the forest retreated under the intimidating stare of the warlock.

”Those sneaky bastards!”

The captain of the Kunpeng Hunting Team spat disdainfully at the ground, his voice gruff as he barked orders to his teammates: ”Witch, confirm the time! Swordsman, check the coordinates! Dwarf and doll, stay put and don’t wander around.”

The witch, dressed in flowing robes and wide sleeves, nodded slightly. She sat cross-legged in midair, holding a pocket watch in her hands, and opened its casing. The hour and minute hands on the watch hesitated for a moment before starting to spin wildly, like a broken compass.

A young man clad in a sleek black hunting outfit, wielding a Japanese blade, tapped his toes lightly on the ground and vanished into the dense forest shadows like smoke. Vaguely, several figures appeared to split off from the faint smoky trail, darting in all directions.

The dwarf clutching a gatling cannon and the little witch obediently squatted—or possibly stood—on the spot. Because of their short stature, it was difficult to immediately discern their posture at a glance. Faintly carried by the wind were their murmured complaints:

”Damn code name... I’m really not short; I’m one of the tallest in the Red Beard Family!”

”So sleepy, I just want to nap...”

”Don’t sleep! Could you try being angry for a moment? Isn’t it infuriating that the captain keeps calling you ’doll’?”

”...But I really am a doll.”

”Click!” The witch snapped the pocket watch shut with a crisp sound, as if casting a silencing spell. The two diminutive figures immediately clamped their mouths shut.

”The sixth day of the sixth month in Witch History, Saturday, 5:33 AM, three minutes off schedule. Impact level is controllable.” The Kunpeng Hunting Team’s diviner spoke in a voice as gentle as a mountain spring, cleansing the lifeless atmosphere of the forest.

Pale trails of smoke returned from the forest, merging into the figure of the swordsman.

”Outer edge of Silent Forest, less than five hundred meters from the Silent River. Across the river is the north district of Beta Town.” Kunpeng Hunting Team wandering hunter Ishikawa Ukyo reported methodically: ”No other temporal-spatial interference sources detected so far. No signs of chaos in the north district. Seventeenth anomaly has not contacted the black tides as of yet.”

”How much time until the black tides rise?” He turned his face slightly and glanced at the diviner.

The witch stroked the crystal ball in her arms, pausing momentarily before looking up: ”Twenty-three minutes.”

”What about the seventeenth anomaly? When will it appear?”

”Uncertain,” the witch shook her head. ”The seventeenth anomaly originates from the starry skies and inherently possesses great power, shielding it from many divination skills... Furthermore, we are just travelers in this timeline and cannot access sufficient divination data during this period.”

”Tch, troublesome.” Kunpeng Hunting Team’s captain scratched his head in frustration, suddenly struck by a thought. He raised his head abruptly: ”What if we go to the school and ask for help? I recall we’re free to roam the island...”

”We can roam freely only because in this temporal fragment we do not exist on Buji Island, so we need not worry about strong observational interference.” The witch calmly rejected her captain’s suggestion: ”However, that does not mean we can recklessly engage with the owners of this timeline. Doing so would cause massive turbulence in the temporal tides, attracting the forces of fate’s repair.”

”Moreover, each time period and every role has its designated task. These tasks are interconnected like interlocking gears, propelling the ultimate resolution forward. If we go to the school for help and cause one of the gears to detach from its destined path, we would ultimately suffer from the backlash ourselves...”

”Alright, alright, I was just spitballing,” Zhang Boren waved his hands repeatedly, his face full of regret—he should have anticipated that his suggestion would trigger a long-winded response from their diviner—so he hastily switched topics: ”Let’s deduce our mission again... using this moment as the time origin.”

The hunters from Kunpeng immediately converged around him, their expressions growing more solemn.

The team diviner took a deep breath, and the crystal ball in her arms radiated rainbow hues, projecting a series of rotating visual fragments. Her voice softly echoed within the small cluster:

”Based on historical progression, in ten minutes, two female demons will escape from the school and summon the long-prepared black tides at the edge of Silent Forest.”

”This tide will include not only most of Buji Island’s feral magical creatures but also some demons that swam from the depths of the sea via the Silent River, as well as many beings from Dreamland.”

”At minute seventeen, the Beta Town Patrol Team’s sheriff will be attacked by an Ash Widow and fail to send out a signal.”

”At minute twenty, the first wave of black tides will strike the dock marketplace in Beta Town’s north district, where many magical creatures from the previous tide have been caged. The guards will be caught off guard and break immediately. The first wave of black tides will shatter the cages, releasing those magical creatures... then continue surging toward the town center.”

”At minute thirty-one, the main forces of the Northern District Wizards will appear. With the help of several elder wizards living in the town, the North District Great Wise Person will establish the first line of defense.”

”At minute fifty-seven, the second wave of black tides will land. Chaos will begin spreading to other areas of Beta Town.”

”At minute seventy-one, the Black Mountain Goat child will appear, devouring the vanguard of the third wave, ensuring the full descent of the Mountain Goat of the Forest, who births countless offspring... The situation around the school at this point will spiral out of control.”

”Our mission.”

”First, deal with the Ash Widow lurking in Beta Town to ensure the sheriff sends the alarm signal ahead of time.”

”Second, clear the dock marketplace of captive magical creatures to ease the direct pressure on the Northern District Wizard Group.”

”Finally, take advantage of the third wave of black tides to eliminate the Black Mountain Goat child. If necessary, use the dimensional anchor to request cross-dimensional strikes. Prevent the descent of the entity at all costs.”

At this point, the witch paused briefly before continuing: ”Given the urgency of time, the hunting team must act independently. The swordsman will handle the Ash Widow, the captain will clear the dock marketplace, and I, along with the other two teammates, will stay behind to construct the array to intercept the Black Mountain Goat child ahead of time.”

”Any other questions?”