High School of Demon Hunting

Chapter 1973: Chapter 194: Difficulties in Second-Tier Deployment

At the end of the crescent moon, a half-full moon faces west.

The chilly moonlight wrapped the somber night in a sheer veil of silver, adding a touch of vitality to the world, making it less dreary.

Outside the academy, deep within a semi-desolate hunting ground near Riverside Silence, a tawny, flame-like envelope was pulsating gently like a heart.

This hunting ground was still the one used for the last training session of the Absolution Hunting Team. Although there was an accident with the Mutated Gaetrassi, it didn’t lead to any real mishap, and the school was curious about who was causing trouble, so instead of closing the hunting ground, they repeatedly reminded the Absolution Hunting Team to train on time and not to waste school resources.

In other words, Zheng Qing and his hunting team had become a tempting bait. That’s also why he felt uneasy about Poseidon and those little wizards accompanying him to the hunting ground.

On the flip side, the young scholarship student also doubted that wizards bold enough to cause trouble at the First University would be brainless enough to appear at this hunting ground a second time—from this perspective, compared to other corners of the school, this semi-abandoned hunting ground seemed safer.

Getting back to the point.

The number of hunters participating in today’s training reached its peak since the bootcamp began, almost the entire team joined in. For a standard hunting team of five, this meant there would always be two hunters on the substitute bench.

Jiang Yu stepped out first, taking on the responsibility of looking after the little witches and Poseidon; closely following him, Blue Bird, who was always taciturn, also volunteered to sit on the substitute bench.

Zheng Qing did not express any opinion on this.

He did not deny it, because they indeed needed two hunters to stay outside; but he did not agree, due to a different consideration for the hunting team training.

In official hunting competitions, each contestant might face unexpected situations, and when such incidents occur, the presence of substitute players becomes crucial. If Absolution wants to maintain a team proficient in Second Rank battle formation, not only do the five hunters on the field need to be familiar with the array movements, but also the hunters on the substitute bench have the same requirements.

Therefore, he planned to train with the current confirmed lineup first, then rotate players afterward. However, before actually unfolding the Second Rank battle formation, and without knowing the difficulty of its implementation, he was still unsure about the feasibility of this idea.

Facts prove that the Warlock’s caution is very justified.

The First Rank phase of the Bo Fu Clan battle formation is very simple, and the Absolution Hunters’ solid foundation combined with the proficiency accumulated in previous training made the unfolding of the First Rank battle formation exceptionally smooth. The envelope erected was uniform in thickness, with pure magic flames, ensuring that even as the hunting team repeatedly changed formations and movement speeds, they maintained the stability of the battle formation.

But when the hunting team started attempting the Second Rank transformation, the difficulty suddenly increased.

”Spread out! Spread out! Maintain! Maintain distance! Don’t spread out!” Zhang Ji Xin shouted contradictory commands while struggling to maintain the stacked Array around him at the center of the battle formation, ”...Fat Man, your speed is too slow, you’re too far, you broke off the inverted triangle array beam of the second layer!”

Unlike the First Rank battle formation, which only requires focusing on footwork and array changes underfoot, the Second Rank battle formation is relatively more ’three-dimensional’. For instance, the First Rank battle formation is a planar formation drawn on parchment, while the Second Rank is several sheets of parchment stacked together, each with a different formation drawn on it.

In other words, when unfolding the Second Rank transformation, hunters not only need to maintain proper positioning but also need to time different spells precisely, recite different incantations, and at the same time, capture the rhythm of the fluctuations in the air, striving to maintain ’harmony’ between themselves and other teammates.

For a group of second-year students, these demands were indeed a bit high.

”Why blame me for this!” Xin Fat Man was not a good-tempered fellow either, flipping his quirky eyes upon hearing the accusation from the red-faced male wizard, ”...When I acted as the array core, the Second Rank unfolded smoothly, only you stumbled here. Instead of finding fault with yourself, you blame me?”

Once he spoke, Zhang Ji Xin was speechless.

Because what Xin said was indeed the truth.

After entering the hunting ground, the Absolution Hunting Team had already adjusted the formation four times in succession, with different hunters hosting the array core. Except when Xin Fat Man served as the array core, the team barely managed to successfully unfold the Second Rank array, materializing a half-transparent giant still glowing with a faint tawny hue, while the other attempts failed.

With good luck, for example, when Xiao Xiao served as the array core, the giant formed was only slightly shorter—about three meters, not as imposing as the Blue Giant by Xin Fat Man.

With less luck, for example, when Dylan was the array core, the giant that materialized turned directly into a huge skeleton, and it was a bizarre skeleton with deformed skull and without ribs.

The little witches watching from outside burst into laughter.

Zhang Ji Xin’s results this time as the array core were neither good nor bad. He summoned a fairly standard Bo Fu Clan giant, estimated to be about ten meters tall, only that this giant was somewhat ’disabled’, missing a leg, so when it stepped forward, it immediately fell to the ground, breaking the formation.

”No more arguing, no more arguing.”

Zheng Qing started to mediate, offering comfort to both sides: ”Tonight is only our first attempt, mistakes are inevitable. I remember when we first learned the Binding Spell, Li Meng even got so winded while reciting spells...”

”Are you comparing yourself to Li Meng’s level?” The red-faced male wizard glanced sideways at the hunting team leader.

Despite being choked by the remark, Zheng Qing did not get angry, he still smiled cheerfully and reassured: ”...Quite the opposite, I actually think if Li Meng practiced our battle formation, she might perform even better than everyone else.”

”Spirit Witch indeed has a higher affinity for mimicry transformations.” The Diviner of the Absolution Hunting Team nodded in agreement—as he spoke, Zhang Ji Xin, who was planning to retort, shut his mouth immediately.

”Bingo!”

Zheng Qing snapped his fingers, pointing at Xin Fat Man: ”Just like Xin, in the four attempts earlier, his performance as an array core was the best, why is that? I believe it’s largely due to his identity as the Blue Giant... because he is familiar with the feeling of transforming into a giant, and thus during the unfolding of the battle formation, he can capture the subtle changes in the fluctuations of the formation to the greatest extent. This is something none of us possess.”

Xiao Xiao nodded in agreement, adjusted his glasses, and added: ”Besides, another point worth noting is that the changes in formation have a very close connection with the ’traits’ of the hunter hosting the array core... This is also why Dylan transformed into a huge skeleton.”

”And you transformed into a dwarf.” Mister Blood Werewolf retorted sarcastically.

Upon hearing this, everyone showed a knowing smile, and the originally anxious and tense atmosphere due to training gradually dissipated.