High School of Demon Hunting

Chapter 1339: Chapter 86: I’m Serious

Hive.

This was the only concept in Zheng Qing’s mind.

Originally, there was only one mirror in front of him. But when this mirror shattered, each fragment became a new mirror, surrounding him from the front, back, diagonally in front, and diagonally behind, creating a hexagonal enclosed environment.

Just like a honeybee’s nest.

The floor was dark grey, and the ceiling was greyish-white. Apart from that, mirrors were everywhere.

Zheng Qing tried to walk around the mirror in front of him, only to find he had simply walked from one ’hive’ into another ’hive.’ This realization made him aware that these ’hives’ had already constructed a vast labyrinth of mirrors.

He cautiously retraced his steps, but always felt that the ’hive’ he returned to was not the same ’hive’ he had left.

This strong sense of distortion was maddening.

But what was even more maddening were the reflections in the mirrors.

In each mirror, there was a ’Zheng Qing,’ as well as other mirrors and the ’Zheng Qing’s within those mirrors. Each ’Zheng Qing’ seemed real - some ’Zheng Qing’s lost their souls, curled up under the mirror pretending to sleep; some ’Zheng Qing’s were furious, waving a Charm Gun and shouting loudly; some ’Zheng Qing’s were spreading out brush, ink, paper, and inkstone on the ground, painting talismans right there; others held a Law book, chanting incantations, seemingly trying to use magic to save themselves from this chaos.

More ’Zheng Qing’s were arguing.

Because each one of them wanted to prove they were the real one, and the others were fake:

”I’m the real one!”

”I’m the real one, you’re the fake!”

”I’m the real one! This cowlick, see it? Just this one, do you have it?!”

”Cowlicks? Everyone has them! This pimple, it just sprouted this morning... It’s because of patrolling late last night, staying up!”

”You’re all fakes... I’m the real one! My Charm Gun has the secret mark of the Zhongshan Jiang Family!”

”My robe has saliva left by the Sprites!”

”I have a cat hair on my belt... Is there anything more real than this detail?!”

Zheng Qing, listening to the chaotic noise from the mirrors all around, felt dizzy and had an urge to smash everything: ”Just... damn it... everyone... shut up!”

He held an Explosion Charm, walking in circles, threateningly approaching each mirror: ”Heh... Keep arguing, just try one more time!!”

The Rune outlined with cinnabar on the Explosion Charm flickered under the warlock’s irritable emotions, emitting unstable magical fluctuations. It looked like it might explode at any moment.

The ’Zheng Qing’s in the mirrors all looked at him uniformly—with the same expression of disdain, whether they were painting talismans, arguing, or even the ones pretending to sleep:

”You blow one up and see.”

”If you don’t blow it up, you’re the grandson!”

”Do you want me to buy you some oranges?”

”Blow it up! Destroy those fakes! Then I’ll be the real one!!”

”With such little brains, and you still dare to say you’re the real one?”

”No wonder the Doctor called you the mascot of the Hunting Team...”

Zheng Qing’s arm holding the Explosion Charm stiffened—he had just realized that these guys in the mirror were probably the least afraid of the mirror shattering. Because if he blew up these mirrors into hundreds and thousands of pieces, the vast maze in front of him would expand by hundreds of times, and the one who would truly suffer a headache would be him.

”Shut the hell up!” the young state-funded student shouted wearily, ”I’m the real one; all of you are fakes!”

”Who has ever seen a wizard with a gun barrel embedded in his forehead,” sneered a mature-looking ’Zheng Qing’ in the mirror behind Zheng Qing, ”of everyone here, you’re the most fake.”

The statement sounded like a joke.

Yet unexpectedly, it garnered support from the majority of the ’Zheng Qings’ in the mirrors.

”Yeah, yeah, who would embed a gun barrel on their forehead, right?”

”I heard that the Institute of Applied Magic has some ’Wizard Body Modifications’ alchemy...”

”I’m just a freshman, and also a student at First University, how could I possibly participate in such a dangerous experiment!”

”Dangerous? Ha... When Su Shijun cut my shadow, she also said that the experiment wasn’t dangerous... until she blew up that lab.”

They continued to argue in a disordered mess, endless and unrestrained.

Zheng Qing took a deep breath.

He couldn’t expect his teacher to reach out and pull him out; it was not his teacher’s style to teach. To get out of the current predicament, he would need to figure a way out himself.

”Is this the ’glamorous’ World in the Mirror I’ve been looking forward to?” The young state-funded student looked around, remembering what he had complained to his teacher before, and couldn’t help but smile bitterly.

Then he thought of the ’Elves in the mirror’ his teacher had mentioned. Instinctively, he felt that this elf might be able to help him leave this place.

But where could he find that elf in the World in the Mirror?

Staying put was definitely not an option. With his own reflections all around arguing amongst themselves, it would be a real joke if he found the Elves in the mirror here.

Zheng Qing had indeed doubted whether the ’Zheng Qings’ in the mirrors were elves from the World in the Mirror transformed. However, the sheer number of reflections made it seem like an overwhelmingly impossible task, like trying to eat the sky - a feeling which made him instinctively avoid this option.

At this moment, he faintly heard a crisp laugh, but it disappeared in the blink of an eye.

As if someone couldn’t help but laugh and then immediately covered their mouth.

The Warlock looked around with surprise — the crisp voice was definitely not his own.

”Did you hear that?” he tentatively asked his reflections in the mirrors — he felt like he was going crazy. What normal person would ask for opinions from their own reflection?

Most of the ’Zheng Qings’ in the mirrors were still bickering with each other, vying for the title of ”real.” However, a few ’Zheng Qings’ responded to Zheng Qing’s question, all unanimously saying he was hearing things.

Following the principle that what the ’enemy’ denies is exactly what we must affirm, Zheng Qing became even more convinced that he had indeed heard something.

He must leave this Hive.

Even though, at the moment, the Hive seemed very safe.

The Warlock made up his mind, adjusted the gun barrel protruding from his forehead, and reached into the Grey Cloth Bag—before leaving this Hive, he needed to make a mark to ensure he wouldn’t get lost in the search that followed.

So he drew out a Brush, dipped it in Cinnabar, and left a complex Rune on the mirror in front of him. The Rune included concepts such as warding off evil, Tranquility, and breaking illusions.

The ’Zheng Qings’ in the mirrors, who had been noisy earlier, fell silent all at once. They turned their heads and all gazed at the Rune together.

After a moment.

Zheng Qing put away the Brush, nodding with satisfaction—sometimes a little cleverness can solve big problems, he thought to himself, feeling pleased as he walked around this mirror towards the next Hive.

Then he saw, in the next Hive, all the ’Zheng Qings’ in the mirrors holding a Brush, painting the same Rune on the mirrors around them.

Position, brushwork, identical to one another.