High School of Demon Hunting

Chapter 2036: Chapter 257: Sunday

”So, who exactly is Mordicana?”

Zheng Qing finally found a topic where he could take control, and immediately threw it out, trying to divert his companions’ attention: ”...I’ve heard this name several times now.”

Yesterday on the hunting ground, from that demon-like dark giant to Su Shi Jun, and then to Jiang Yu, the Warlock heard this name more than once, but he never had a clear concept.

Xiao Xiao raised his eyebrows.

”You fought all night yesterday, and you still don’t know who your opponent is?” He raised the sausage in his hand, his tone particularly surprised, as if Zheng Qing was asking why a cut was made on the casing of the sausage.

The young public-funded student rolled his eyes.

”Please, I’m not codenamed ’Doctor.’”

”This is common knowledge.”

The short Warlock shook his head, did not continue to mock Zheng Qing, but flipped through the black-covered notebook beside him, tapping the thick pages with his fingers: ”Mordicana, one of the first ancient beings to set foot in the starry sky, powerful and mysterious, its true form is no longer traceable. Some wizards think it is a shapeless cloud of shadow, some have observed a dark long snake like a tributary of destiny, and others are convinced its true form has no eyes, no limbs, is a dark giant...”

”I feel like I’ve seen all of these forms.” The young public-funded student muttered.

Xiao Xiao didn’t pay attention to the boy’s self-talk and continued to explain leisurely: ”...The only thing wizards can be sure of is that this ancient being resides in Zul·Baha·Sal’s burial grounds, holding nicknames like ’The God of Ghoulish Bones’ and ’King of Ghouls’...”

”’Zul·Baha·Sal’ is a place name?” The Fat Wizard pinched a meat bun, showing some interest: ”I always thought it was a phrase from some lost magical language...”

”To understand it as a lost language isn’t wrong,” Xiao Xiao, always patient in unraveling mysteries, explained: ”But a more accurate understanding is that this language hasn’t been born yet... Just like ’Zul·Baha·Sal,’ which is a city on the continent of Zo Chic, and the continent itself lies at the end of the river of time, yet is not born in our current observation...”

”That’s really quite complex.”

Having heard this, Zheng Qing now had a thorough understanding of his ’counterfeit’ opponent from last night, but he still felt a bit puzzled. So, he raised his index finger, pointing to the sky: ”If I remember correctly, beings among the stars aren’t known for their good temper, yet last night I felt...”

That guy was too good-tempered!

The young public-funded student grumbled in his heart, but couldn’t think of a more tactful way to put it. Compared to Satoguya, the Black Mountain Goat, or the moon that crowded the sky one night, Mordicana could practically be considered a warm cuddly bear.

”So you feel Mordicana is gentle?”

Xiao Xiao pushed up his glasses, using a very neutral term, and affirmed: ”Your feeling is correct, this being is one of the few in the starry sky willing to actively understand the concept ’beneath the starry sky,’ rather than being just and kind, it follows its own set rules... This is also why the Wizard World can maintain a good relationship with such beings and invite them as ’consultants’ in events like the ’Campus Cup.’ Correspondingly, not only does it maintain a good relationship with wizards, but also with other starry beings...”

Sounds like the persona of a good-natured old man.

The notion drifted through Zheng Qing’s mind, he always felt a flash of inspiration just passed, with Xiao Xiao’s rambling explanation echoing in his ears, he inattentively listened, trying hard to catch the fleeting spark of creativity.

Then he felt a tap on his shoulder.

”What?” The young public-funded student awoke as from a dream.

”You didn’t understand, so I explained to you, but you didn’t listen properly... What do you mean by this?” Xiao Xiao, visibly annoyed, steered the topic back to Zheng Qing’s attempt to escape: ”Since that’s the case, explain properly what happened in the last three minutes of yesterday’s competition? It can’t be that after being dragged into the dark vortex by Mordicana, you used your charm gun again?”

Bang!

Zheng Qing finally grasped onto the inspiration in his mind.

”Of course not!”

The young public-funded student answered joyfully, pulling out his Remington from the grey cloth bag to show the Doctor: ”I merely used it to shoot a few ordinary fu bullets... Honestly, I also don’t know why that ’Mr. Mo’ showed mercy...”

”Mordicana doesn’t have a concept of gender,” the Fat Wizard corrected from the side.

”’Mr.’ doesn’t necessarily refer to a male,” Zheng Qing retorted casually.

”So?”

Xiao Xiao impatiently interrupted the bickering between the two, tightly grasping onto Zheng Qing’s previous answer: ”If merely saying ’you don’t know’ won’t satisfy the school or even the audience... I suspect that Monday morning’s ’Beta Town Post’ will publish all sorts of strange speculations, like you’re a follower of that ’Mr. Mo,’ or even worse, that you possess bloodlines from the deeps of the starry sky, and so on...”

Zheng Qing shivered instinctively.

”I guess,” he quickly interrupted the Doctor’s imaginative conjecture, revealing the body of the charm gun, raising his voice slightly: ”I guess maybe these ’traces’ create an effect similar to ’Old Seal,’ causing that ’Mr. Mo’ to hold back and not kill me.”

The Old Seal is an ancient and effective secret technique often used in rituals to expel starry beings, belonging to the realm of mysticism—which means it still cannot be explained by modern wizard theory—the more precise understanding is that it is like garlic to vampires, wolf’s bane to werewolves, boy’s urine to zombies, belonging to the starry existence’s taboo but not lethal secret technique.

As for the ’traces’ Zheng Qing referred to.

Just from Xiao Xiao’s perspective, he could see some symbols like yellow windmill markings on the wall, which are marks belonging to Hastur; a small red skull, a mark left by the Great Demon Shenjin Liangzi on the Black Prison Battlefield; moreover, as he knew, this gun was specially noted by Professor Yao before it nearly exploded a student, if there wasn’t any mark left on it, Xiao Xiao would not believe it.

And Professor Yao is now a legend.

”A very reasonable guess.”

The Fat Wizard nodded earnestly: ”If ’Mr. Mo’ is as cautious as you say, then seeing so many marks on Mr. Zha’s gun body, it very likely raised its hand magnanimously... if it has hands.”

Saying this, feeling he told quite a good joke, he laughed heartily a few times.

”But it’s also a very subtle guess.”

Xiao Xiao gave the fat man a glance, his eyes somewhat inexplicable: ”Mr. Zha received reminders from the Hunting Committee, and I think using ’warnings’ is more accurate; he’s forbidden from using special fu bullets in the campus hunting competition... I know there’s no prohibition against using charm guns, so that’s why I say this guess is very subtle.”

Zheng Qing deeply agreed.