High School of Demon Hunting

Chapter 872: Chapter 130: A New Combination for Absolution

Hunting isn’t a picnic where you can just wander around leisurely and capture prey; star apes aren’t kittens in the woods that would line up to admit guilt and accept punishment after being nagged by Zheng Qing.

Therefore, even though the Absolution Hunting Team had unified their target and understanding, after painstakingly wandering in the forest for several hours, they still couldn’t find those so-called star apes.

”Team leader, take another look at that booklet issued by the Hunting Committee. Are we really just looking for a few star apes?” Xin Fat Man’s enthusiasm gradually faded after a long and fruitless search.

When he had returned once again from an unsuccessful search of a small thicket, he could no longer contain his dejection and complained, ”Star apes aren’t cockroaches or stinkbugs that can squeeze into the crevices of stones... They’re also magical creatures with status and position, do they need to hide this thoroughly!”

”I’ve looked at it no less than thirty times,” Zheng Qing stretched his hand into the grey cloth bag and pulled out that booklet, casually tossing it to the fat man, his tone also revealing a deep weariness, ”If you don’t believe it, you can take a look yourself... The Hunting Committee really only marked a few star apes in this hunting area.”

The fat man screamed, his body and arms violently twisting as if dancing the rumba, frantically catching the booklet that was thrown into the air.

”I was just saying it, and you took it seriously,” the fat man muttered, but his hands were deft as he quickly flipped through the booklet, checking once again.

”How about it, I wasn’t wrong, was I!” Watching as the fat man confirmed and returned the booklet, Zheng Qing asked back irritably.

”Not at all, how could the team leader be wrong? After all, you’re someone who has won the Merlin Medal and led us to first place in the hunting contest, who would dare doubt you over such a trivial matter!” The fat man held the booklet in both hands and bowed at ninety degrees, clearly chastising himself without missing a beat.

His actions managed to dissipate the hint of anger that had been building up in Zheng Qing.

”Stand up and talk... What on earth are you doing making such a fuss!” The young public tuition student snatched the booklet back and, with a kick, sent a small spray of snow onto the fat man.

On one hand, the fat man shivered, shaking off the snowflakes onto the ground; then he lifted his head, revealing a flattering smile.

On the other hand, the booklet that Zheng Qing had just caught didn’t follow its intended trajectory back to the grey cloth bag, but instead took a turn and landed in the hands of another hunter.

”It’s not a solution to keep searching aimlessly like this. Should we call the two gentlemen back first?” Xiao Xiao, holding the thin booklet, quickly flipped through it while proposing his suggestion.

The gentleman referred to Dylan, who, like Blue Bird, was a Wandering Hunter in the Absolution Hunting Team.

The reason for the change was also after careful consideration by the Absolution Hunting Team.

On one hand, Blue Bird had already served once as a Wandering Hunter; this time, they needed to give Dylan a chance. On the other hand, considering that Lin Guo had come into the Silent Forest with everyone, safety could not be overlooked. Although the Cabin in the Woods was known as the hunting team’s absolute safe zone, it could not be denied that there was always some risk, so after some thought, Blue Bird gave up continuing as a Wandering Hunter, letting Dylan step up.

”If your divination was a little more accurate, our search wouldn’t have been so aimless.” Xin Fat Man immediately shifted his focus, directing his dissatisfaction from Zheng Qing to Xiao Xiao.

Xiao Xiao didn’t reply but silently continued to look through the booklet.

Seeing this, Zheng Qing silently sighed and had to step up again, ”It’s not the Doctor’s fault... Living next to First University for so many years, if the Silent Forest hadn’t developed some ability to counteract diviners, it wouldn’t live up to its reputation as ’the wizard world’s most dangerous forest’... before setting out, the Hunting Committee also warned us not to overly rely on divination or similar magic within the forest.”

Xin Fat Man curled his lip and finally fell silent.

”Since we can’t find anyone for now, let’s rest and regroup,” Zheng Qing also lost the desire to search any further. Heeding Jian Ruiliu’s advice, he accepted Xiao Xiao’s suggestion and began to recall the other two hunters of the hunting team.

He took the Colt Python from his waist, popped open the cylinder, gave it a few spins, then fished out a Fu Bullet rolled from the ’Birdsong Chirping’ talisman from the grey cloth bag and loaded it in. Then he aimed the barrel at a snowdrift nearby and pulled the trigger.

A stream of pale red light erupted from the barrel, carrying the Fu Bullet silently into the snowdrift. Immediately after, an invisible wave radiated outward from the center of the few warlocks, spreading in all directions.

Soon, two familiar figures hurried back from deep within the forest.

”What, did you find their tracks?” Dylan asked impatiently upon seeing them—the daylight combined with the reflection from the snow had caused great trouble for this vampire-blooded tracker, and if it weren’t for the mission’s sake, he would have much preferred to bury himself in a snowdrift and sleep soundly.

”No, not yet... It’s just that the Doctor suggested we should rest for a while, and I think it makes a lot of sense,” Zheng Qing’s reply left Dylan terribly frustrated.

”A rest might be good, it’s a perfect opportunity for everyone to check their gear, see if anything needs fixing or patching up,” Zhang Ji Xin’s voice followed.

This time, he had taken Zheng Qing’s place as the Wandering Hunter, while Zheng Qing took on the role of the main hunter.

This role swap was partly due to the actual conditions of this winter hunt—for instance, the hunting area was very small, so the Wandering Hunter didn’t need to maintain intense patrolling work; and since the Silent Forest was complex, roaming outside required extensive hunting experience, among other factors.

On the other hand, the role swap also took into account that through the training over this period, Zheng Qing was no longer clueless about hunting activities and could try to take on the more comprehensive role of a Hunting Team Leader.

After all, the dual-head system was a transitional arrangement. It’s never a good sign for a hunting team to always have two heads. Over time, it inevitably leads to problems.

Seeing that everyone had gathered, Zheng Qing finally leisurely raised the Colt Python in his hand, aimed at several nodes around them, and fired.

”Pop, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop!”

Colorful bullets carrying their own sparks emerged from the barrel and silently fell into the snow.

Complex runes and patterns spread out from where the bullets landed, and in the blink of an eye, a series of defense and warning barriers rose up, creating a temporary safe zone.

”Really convenient!” Zhang Ji Xin exclaimed in admiration. ”Why didn’t anyone think of using this method before?”

”Because apart from our grand team leader here, no one would be crazy enough to waste so many standard talismans to roll Fu Bullets,” Xin Fat Man replied somberly. ”After all, ’having money’ is the most efficient magic in the world.”

”No, I’m still poor,” Zheng Qing thought of the pitifully small number in his account and immediately retorted, ”I just try to DIY whatever I can.”