High School of Demon Hunting

Chapter 945: Chapter 7: Tail-End Street

Hui Zi Ji was very small, and it only had one short, narrow street.

After going around the marketplace once, and having greeted the neighbors, Zheng Qing returned to San You Bookstore in just over half an hour.

”This street is really short,” Zheng Qing sighed. ”As a kid, why did I feel like this street was so long, running around as if it never ended?”

”Long and short, big and small, it’s all relative,” Deng Xiaoxian said thoughtfully. ”Also, most wizards as children have sharper spirit senses than adults, and can see through the fog to what’s truly behind it more clearly.”

”Fog? Reality?” Zheng Qing’s interest was piqued. ”Is there a story behind this street?”

As he spoke, he looked around, his gaze sliding over those ancient signboards.

Deng Xiaoxian didn’t directly answer his question but hinted, ”What do you think Hui Zi Ji resembles?”

”Like the character for ’hui’.” Zheng Qing replied with an answer akin to a cold joke.

Deng Xiaoxian’s face immediately fell.

”Just kidding, just kidding.” Zheng Qing waved his hand and guessed again with a smile, ”Like the Lakefront Corridor at school? Or like a horseshoe? ...Got any clues?”

”Like some kind of animal,” Deng Xiaoxian added a hint.

Zheng Qing frowned.

He stretched out his finger, drew circles in midair a few times, and then hesitated before answering softly, ”Ouroboros?”

”Bingo!” Deng Xiaoxian snapped his fingers and continued to hint, ”What does the Ouroboros represent?”

”Immortality, cycles, infinity,” Zheng Qing immediately answered.

Because Sepulano’s society used the Ouroboros as a symbol, Zheng Qing had specifically looked into this mysterious magical creature. Therefore, he didn’t hesitate at all with Deng Xiaoxian’s question.

”Huh!” The young proprietor of Spring Reviving Hall raised his eyebrows, ”I feel like I’ve underestimated you... So next, if you connect this totem with Hui Zi Ji, can you guess anything?”

Zheng Qing did not have an answer this time.

His instinct told him the answer to this question was not simple.

After waiting for a while and realizing Zheng Qing was just staring at him, seemingly with no intention to answer, Deng Xiaoxian couldn’t help but laugh, ”Actually, I heard it through the grapevine, so just take it as a story... Don’t take it too seriously.”

”Some say, this little circle that keeps going around in Hui Zi Ji is actually a segment of the river of time that has been cut out by great mana. Many old folks, who haven’t transcended time and have entered the tail end of the legend, choose to ’extend their lives’ in Hui Zi Ji, in the hopes of eventually taking that one step beyond legend.”

Upon hearing this, Zheng Qingyuan was initially about to interject with a question, but he restrained himself and swallowed his question back down.

Deng Xiaoxian continued, ”Others say, Hui Zi Ji is actually built upon the remains of an ancient Ouroboros, and that by staying on this street, one can somewhat emulate the Ouroboros’s talents... Immortality, cycles, infinity.”

”In any case, there are many rumors, but no solid evidence.”

”The only thing that could indirectly confirm these rumors is that there are many elder wizards on the street, all very old... but nobody has investigated exactly how old they are. That kind of thing isn’t easily asked.”

”You’re Old Mr. Deng’s grandson, hasn’t he ever told you?” Zheng Qing finally couldn’t resist and asked.

”You’re Mr. Wu’s disciple, has he ever told you?” Deng Xiaoxian countered with a question.

”That’s different,” the young state-sponsored student’s expression faltered, and he murmured in a low voice, ”At least you have a blood relationship.”

Deng Xiaoxian shook his head in disagreement, ”For wizards, a blood relationship isn’t necessarily closer than a master-disciple relationship. Often, wizards will pass on their wealth to their disciples but not to their kin.”

Zheng Qing felt that he had a hard time understanding the thoughts of those wizards.

But he didn’t dwell on it; he had another concern that preoccupied him.

”The ’Legend’ you just mentioned, is it the rank after Big Wizard?” he asked with some curiosity.

”You don’t know?” Deng Xiaoxian was somewhat surprised, ”Ordinary Wizard, Registered Wizard, Big Wizard, Legendary Wizard, Ancient Wizard... Such a general classification is common knowledge, isn’t it?”

”Before you mentioned it, I really didn’t know,” Zheng Qing honestly admitted.

”I’m not sure what they are teaching you at university,” Deng Xiaoxian shook his head, not continuing on this slightly odd topic. Instead, he took out his pocket watch to check the time, ”Hmm, it’s getting late; I need to rush back to prepare medicines.”

Zheng Qing also took out his pocket watch and saw that he still had over two hours before the deadline his mother set for him to return home.

”Ah... what to do next?” The young wizard stood at the entrance of the bookstore, scratching his head, his gaze shifting between the bookshelves and the black door at the back of the room, ”Should I read some leisure books for a while, or should I go to the front of the store and call Brother Huang back to watch TV with me? Hmm, watching TV seems more appealing... But the cartoons Brother Huang watches are a bit too old-fashioned... I wonder how many channels his little TV can receive, whether there are any good movies.”

”Hey, I’m saying, with such a short holiday, don’t you plan to make the most of it and spend more time at home?... Why would you think about idling away the time outside?” At the doorway of the neighboring store, Deng Xiaoxian, who had half stepped into Spring Reviving Hall, tilted his head to look at Zheng Qing and asked in surprise.

Zheng Qing immediately looked downcast.

”I don’t know either,” he said, his demeanor dejected, ”Before I came home, I thought I really missed it... but after returning, it seems like there’s an invisible barrier between me and my family.”

”I don’t know if it’s because of the difference between my wizard status and my family’s commoner status, or just because of the generational gap.”

Deng Xiaoxian looked at the young warlock with a sense of empathy, ”Hmm, you’ve reached that age... Remember when you couldn’t understand why I felt so out of place when I returned to our street? You should have some understanding now.”

”Not really.” Zheng Qing said blankly, glancing at the junior proprietor of Spring Reviving Hall, ”I just don’t want to do chores at home, which is in no way comparable to your previous bizarre behavior.”

Deng Xiaoxian’s mouth twitched slightly, he withdrew the foot that had crossed the threshold and turned to look at Zheng Qing.

”I’m giving you a chance to rephrase.” He lifted his arm, tossed the tuft of long hair at his forehead on top of his head, then rolled up his sleeves and looked at the young man opposite him with an intense gaze.

Zheng Qing figured he was looking for a fight.

”Ahem... I mean, I haven’t spent enough time in the Wizard World, so I’m still adjusting, you get me,” Zheng Qing coughed, swiftly changing his tune, and then in a failed attempt to cover it up, he added, ”It would have been helpful for me to get through this period of adjustment if, before I started school, you’d introduced me to some information about First University.”

”For example, you could have told me that Sprites are harmless Alchemical Creatures that won’t harm warlocks;”

”Or, don’t drop things into Lin Zhong Lake, because Fishmen will snatch them away... These are just inconsequential details, right?”

Deng Xiaoxian looked at Zheng Qing through his nostrils for several seconds before eventually replying at a leisurely pace, ”Inconsequential details, yes... But not necessarily unimportant. As I’ve told you before... all these experiences are one of the most interesting parts of your school life. If every little unknown you encounter in school becomes known, wouldn’t life lose a lot of its fun?”

”My life doesn’t need that much unknown,” Zheng Qing complained, and his mood seemed to fall again as something came to mind.

Deng Xiaoxian blinked and smiled, ”Like final exam grades?”

”Ah, yes, and the final exams.” Thinking of his final exam grades, Zheng Qing suddenly felt a headache coming on and muttered in apprehension, ”It’s really ruining my vacation... I still don’t understand why the school can’t just send our report cards to our pillows directly...”

Then he realized that the grades would be announced during the Lantern Festival, by which time he would have returned to school.

Thinking that he wouldn’t need to explain his subjects and grades to his family made the young warlock feel a bit more relaxed.

”Does the school still send your grades via pets?” Deng Xiaoxian’s face showed a hint of nostalgia, but then he scoffed at Zheng Qing’s worries, ”Only bookworms and suck-ups worry about report cards... Oh, right, you’re also a ’Bookworm’... No offense meant to you guys.”

Zheng Qing looked at Deng Xiaoxian expressionlessly.

He was definitely doing it on purpose.