Chapter Summaries

After a terrifying vision at Linzhong Lakefront, Zheng Qing returned to the Dean's Office and learned that First University was 93 percent certain he was a Witness, a wizard with a special divinatory talent. He began filling out the school's special talent registration form, while the nature of the frightening vision remained unclear.

• Zheng Qing woke in the Dean's Office after seeing a frightening figure, but he could remember only a pale hand and the dead Little White Cat.
• Zheng Qing told Professor Yao and the elderly janitor that the vision might concern the school's safety and demons, but Professor Yao interrupted him to discuss the test results.
• Professor Yao told Zheng Qing that the tests indicated with 93 percent confidence that he was a Witness.
• Professor Yao explained that Witnesses could vividly revisit memorable events in dreams and might be recruited as investigators or provide courtroom evidence.
• The elderly janitor gave Zheng Qing a special talent registration form, and Zheng Qing began filling it out while skipping the optional question about sexual experience.

Zheng Qing completed a survey agreeing to go to Danhaag if needed and described a Witness Scene to Old Yao and a school worker. He recalled that the scene involved Jiang Yu’s dead kitten at Linzhong Lake, but left without recovering who had harmed it.

• Zheng Qing agreed on the assessment form to contribute to equality and justice in Danhaag if necessary.
• Old Yao explained that witnesses could suffer various side effects and said he would consult Professor Yi about Zheng Qing’s treatment.
• At the school worker’s request, Zheng Qing recounted a damp, moonlit scene near Linzhong Lake and remembered Jiang Yu’s kitten, whose eyes had later been gouged out.
• Zheng Qing recalled a very pale figure but could not recover more details, and Old Yao reassured him that he had done well for a first Witness Scene.
• As they left the Office Building, Old Yao warned Zheng Qing to keep his copper coin safe, and Zheng Qing headed back to his dormitory thinking of the dead kitten.

Zheng Qing met Jiang Yu at a coffee shop to compare how different spellbooks affected the Binding Spell, but their conversation turned to Jiang Yu’s continuing investigation into the kitten’s murder. Zheng Qing offered to help, and the two prepared to begin their experiment.

• Zheng Qing watched two sugar wrestlers while waiting to complete Professor Yao’s Binding Spell assignment with Jiang Yu.
• Jiang Yu arrived, ordered a drink and pastries, and dressed in a casual robe that Zheng Qing recognized as pajamas.
• Jiang Yu told Zheng Qing she had spent the afternoon searching Book Mountain Hall’s case archives for clues about the kitten’s murderer.
• Jiang Yu rejected the School Labor Committee’s conclusion that Silent Tideback caused the death, and Zheng Qing offered her his support.

Zheng Qing began another routine night patrol of Linzhong Lake with Lin Guo, regretting the weekend time lost to his punishment. As they walked their safe route, Lin Guo argued that time could measure everything, leaving Zheng Qing unable to refute him.

• Zheng Qing arrived for his fifth night patrol, having forgotten to bring his Little Fox, Poseidon.
• Zheng Qing and Lin Guo were assigned to patrol a short, safe stretch of the western lakeside corridor together.
• Old Man Vernal gave the patrol members their instructions and sent the groups out across the lake's patrol zones.
• As Zheng Qing and Lin Guo walked the corridor, Zheng Qing recalled Mr. Wu's claim that magic depended on time and asked Lin Guo what he thought.
• Lin Guo insisted that time could measure distance, wisdom, and even truth, leaving Zheng Qing speechless.

During a nighttime patrol, Zheng Qing and Lin Guo discussed rumors about Zheng Qing’s demon hunting as the orchard’s birds erupted into a panic. They discovered a wild demon on the slope beside the walkway, while Lin Guo’s Black Goat prepared to face it.

• Lin Guo let his Black Goat graze on the lawn while he and Zheng Qing continued their patrol.
• Lin Guo asked Zheng Qing whether killing demons caused corruption and whether it explained Zheng Qing’s headaches, repeating rumors about his past and the Merlin Medal.
• A commotion spread through the orchard, and Zheng Qing used a vine to return a fledgling to its nest, but the mother bird kept shrieking and tried to push it out.
• Lin Guo clung to Zheng Qing’s robe, and Zheng Qing turned to see a red-eyed wild demon with jutting fangs on the slope.
• Lin Guo’s Black Goat retreated beside the walkway, bracing its legs and lowering its horns toward the demon.

During patrol, Zheng Qing and Lin Guo encountered a Kappa Demon, a transformed wild demon, and prepared to face it. The demon’s mental assault incapacitated Lin Guo, but the Black Goat struck it hard enough to break through Zheng Qing’s disorientation.

• Zheng Qing recognized the creature blocking the patrol route as a kappa that had transformed into a wild demon.
• Zheng Qing pulled Lin Guo behind him, opened his spellbook, and compared this threat with the demons he had faced before.
• Lin Guo admitted he could not run, while his Black Goat cautiously positioned itself to protect them.
• The Kappa Demon unleashed a mental assault that weakened Lin Guo and disoriented Zheng Qing.
• The Black Goat charged into the Kappa Demon’s shell, injuring it and jolting Zheng Qing free of the mental assault.

Zheng Qing restrained the Kappa Demon with the Binding Spell after the Great Mountain Goat knocked it back, but he could not leave the spell unattended while Lin Guo remained unconscious. He called the Black Goat over and tried to get it to fetch help.

• Patrol wizards around Linzhong Lake heard a brief crash but dismissed it as possible thunder or merman activity and logged it without investigating.
• Zheng Qing recovered first, cast the Binding Spell, and wrapped the Kappa Demon in vines, even blocking its mouth.
• The Great Mountain Goat rammed the bound demon, knocking it into the bushes and causing it to spit dark blood.
• Zheng Qing bound the Kappa Demon's legs and filled gaps in its shell, but realized he had to keep watching it to maintain the spell.
• With Lin Guo still unconscious and no one else nearby, Zheng Qing called the Black Goat over and asked it to fetch help.

Zheng Qing failed to make the Great Mountain Goat summon help, so it woke Lin Guo, who sent a magical alert while Zheng kept the Kappa Demon bound. As academy staff and Old Man Vernal arrived at the lakeside, the Kappa Demon broke free, but Old Man Vernal seized and killed it.

• Zheng Qing failed to get the Great Mountain Goat to find help, and the goat woke Lin Guo instead.
• Lin Guo used the contact spell, triggering a campus-wide red alert for a wild demon near Linzhong Lake.
• Academy staff rushed to the lakeside corridor as Zheng Qing and Lin Guo remained unaware of the alarm's wider response.
• A graying teaching assistant arrived with staff and warned Zheng Qing to keep the Binding Spell maintained.
• The Kappa Demon broke free, but Old Man Vernal grabbed it and crushed it while Lord May watched.

After Zheng Qing subdued a wild kappa demon near the lake, the university searched the area and questioned the merfolk, who were cleared of involvement. As staff advised Zheng Qing and Lin Guo to visit the School Hospital, Lin Guo noticed Zheng Qing’s eyes had turned red.

• Professor An questioned staff about the wild demon’s origin and whether other demons were nearby, but no one had answers.
• Teaching assistant Zhang Yu explained that the merfolk had been cleared and that not every kappa was under their control.
• Lin Guo boasted that Zheng Qing had fought a merfolk, embarrassing Zheng Qing.
• Zhang Yu praised Zheng Qing for subduing another wild demon and recommended he enter the freshman School Hunting Meet.
• Thomas checked whether Zheng Qing and Lin Guo were injured, and Zhang Yu advised them to spend the night in the School Hospital.
• Lin Guo examined Zheng Qing and asked why his eyes had turned red.

After Zheng Qing and Lin Guo recovered from the wild demon’s attack, the professors arranged for them to be hospitalized and praised their actions. Zheng Qing met Professor Monteria while the teaching assistants examined the restrained Kappa Demon.

• Thomas examined Zheng Qing’s bloodshot right eye and treated it with light orbs, while Zhang Yu said the professors planned to hospitalize Zheng Qing and Lin Guo.
• Thomas called out Professor Yi over their homework concerns, and Professor Yi said they would still be able to submit it on time.
• Zhang Yu gave Zheng Qing and Lin Guo Calming Soul-Suppressing Soup, then Thomas invited them to watch the professors’ work.
• Old Man Vernal praised Lin Guo and his Great Mountain Goat, and Professor Monteria praised Zheng Qing after Thomas introduced him.
• Zheng Qing watched the teaching assistants examine the restrained Kappa Demon, whose open scarlet eyes still showed greed.

Professor Yi praised Zheng Qing and Lin Guo for defeating the kappa demon, while warning them that feral demons were weak and their real achievement was showing courage. The investigation confirmed the kappa’s recent transformation, but Professor Monteria found no abnormal bite marks, leaving the cause unclear.

• Professor Monteria described the potential of transforming demons, and Professor Yi warned the students not to spread rumors about the sensitive research.
• Professor Yi explained that Zheng Qing’s Merlin Medal had recognized his courage at Four Seasons Market, then praised both students and promised to recommend academic credit for them.
• A teaching assistant reported that the kappa had transformed within the past three hours and had developed three stomachs capable of digesting many kinds of food.
• Professor Monteria examined the kappa and found no abnormal bite marks, making the investigators grim.

Zheng Qing and Lin Guo recovered in the School Hospital’s isolation ward after encountering a wild demon, while Doctor Ma explained the risks of demonic energy and their treatment. The ward’s isolation would end after six-thirty, but they would remain hospitalized until the next morning and face a crowd of visitors.

• After the wild demon encounter, Zheng Qing and Lin Guo were placed in an isolation ward, and their belongings and clothes were confiscated for decontamination.
• Madam Bella gave Zheng Qing medicine that began restoring his movement, and Doctor Ma examined him and warned him to eat lightly and avoid straining his injured right eye.
• Doctor Ma explained that lingering demonic energy could eventually turn wizards into liches, though the demons used at the School Hunting Meet had been disinfected beforehand.
• Zheng Qing asked for books, but Doctor Ma said isolation would end after six-thirty and the hospital expected many visitors before lights-out.
• Doctor Ma told Zheng Qing and Lin Guo they would be discharged the next morning, in time for Monday’s first class.

Zheng Qing’s friends visited him in the hospital on a rainy evening, bringing gifts and noisy chatter. After Jiang Yu and Li Meng went to see Lin Guo, the boys pressed Zheng Qing to choose between the Gypsy witch and Jiang Yu.

• Zheng Qing waited anxiously for visitors while Lin Guo remained quiet behind the curtains in the same ward.
• Fatty Xin, Duan Xiaojian, Zhang Jixin, and the others arrived and complained about the rain disrupting their plans.
• Jiang Yu brought flowers, while Li Meng brought a glass box of sweets and dropped it onto Zheng Qing’s legs before offering a teasing get-well wish.
• Jiang Yu asked about Zheng Qing’s condition, and he said he expected to be discharged the next morning.
• Zheng Qing warned the visitors to be quiet, but Lin Guo revealed he was awake.
• Jiang Yu and Li Meng went to visit Lin Guo, while the boys asked Zheng Qing to choose between the Gypsy witch and Jiang Yu.

Zheng Qing avoided choosing between Ilena and Jiang Yu, then learned that newspapers were criticizing First University's safety after a wild demon attack and spreading rumors about his condition. He denied the claims but could not explain what had happened or how the demon entered campus.

• Zheng Qing stayed silent when his friends pressed him to choose between Ilena and Jiang Yu, and changed the subject to Old Yao's class meeting.
• Zhang Jixin said Old Yao had emphasized safety, while Fatty Xin read a Beta Town Post article attacking First University's handling of the wild demon invasion.
• Xiao Xiao defended the role of public opinion, and Zhang Jixin showed Zheng Qing a Gentlemen and Ladies report that accused him of having a dangerous condition and questioned his honors.
• Zheng Qing angrily crumpled the magazine and insisted that its claims about him were false, while his friends said the rumors were spreading.
• Zheng Qing asked whether the school had issued an announcement or explained how the wild demon entered, but his friends had no answers.

While recovering in the hospital ward, Zheng Qing learned that the Kappa Demon had no bite marks, leaving its origin unexplained. Xiao Xiao concluded that it did not fit any of the three usual ways demons came into being, and the mystery remained unresolved.

• A group of Alpha Academy witches crowded around Lin Guo’s bed with gifts, prompting the boys to tease Zheng Qing about the attention Lin Guo received.
• Zheng Qing recalled Professor Monteria’s comment that the wild demon had no unusual bite marks and asked what it meant.
• Xiao Xiao explained that demons usually arose through bloodline inheritance, corruption, or infection.
• Zheng Qing realized the Kappa Demon’s lack of bite marks meant it had not been born through any of those usual methods.
• Xiao Xiao said the demon’s unexplained origin was why the professors were troubled.

Zheng Qing and his friends learned that freshmen could earn credits by helping with the School Hunting Meet, but the Student Union and campus clubs had reserved all the work for their own members. Xiao Xiao proposed that they form a club, leaving the four boys with four days to apply and pass a defense before the meet.

• Zheng Qing, Zhang Jixin, Fatty Xin, and Xiao Xiao failed to learn more about the Kappa Demon's origins, and Fatty Xin urged them to focus on their health.
• Xiao Xiao explained that the School Hunting Meet would draw participants from beyond Puji Island and offered freshmen opportunities to earn credits through event work.
• Fatty Xin told Zheng Qing and the others that this year's organizers had restricted those jobs to Student Union and campus club members.
• Zhang Jixin said that only five students in their academy had not joined clubs, and explained that his brother had advised him to stay out of them.
• Xiao Xiao proposed forming a club and said they had four days to apply and complete the Student Union Federation's defense before the opening ceremony.

Professor Yao visited Zheng Qing and Lin Guo in the hospital, reassured them, and arranged for Zheng Qing to meet Professor Yi after Divination Class on Tuesday. He then went to a building guarded by the Door Gods, whose lax admission displeased him, before Yu Lei quickly recovered his confidence.

• Professor Yao told the ward that it was nearly ten o’clock and the students hurried to leave or arrange overnight care.
• Professor Yao examined Zheng Qing’s bloodshot eye, reassured him, and encouraged Lin Guo to recover from his exposure to demonic energy.
• Professor Yao told Zheng Qing to meet Professor Yi after Divination Class on Tuesday to discuss his vision-related talent and stabilizing his Psionic Field.
• Professor Yao visited a building guarded by Shen Tu and Yu Lei, and Yu Lei opened the doors without asking him for a password.
• Professor Yao criticized the Door Gods for letting people in without checking their credentials, but Yu Lei soon cheered himself up by embracing his role as a gatekeeper.

Old Yao convened a meeting after a wild Kappa Demon infiltrated Jiuyou Academy and demanded a thorough investigation into the Guardian Array and the demon’s origins. The School Labor Committee reported signs linking the beast to Creatures of the Night, while the professors recommended suspending school worker Vernal pending an investigation.

• Old Yao berated the school workers and teaching assistants for the academy’s repeated security failures, then ordered Zhang Yu to gather Guardian Formation inspection records and stress-test reports within an hour.
• Old Yao tasked Zhang Yu’s Teaching Assistant Group with investigating the incident and directed the School Labor Committee to fulfill its responsibilities.
• A School Labor Committee representative said diviners had found signs of Creatures of the Night connected to the Kappa Demon.
• Old Yao challenged the divination’s certainty, warned against unverified accusations, and ordered the committee to send its report to the Dean’s Office.
• Old Yao required departments involved in the incident to submit investigation and self-reflection reports within a week.
• Professor Monteria reported that Vernal had been drunk, late, and absent from his Linzhong Lake night-patrol post, and recommended suspending him pending an isolated investigation; the meeting room erupted in uproar.

Zheng Qing planned to help Fatty Xin skip Old Yao’s Magic Spell Class by disguising Tuantuan with a Shapeshifting Talisman. He secured the cat’s cooperation with a chicken leg and prepared to put the plan into action.

• Zheng Qing woke in the School Hospital to a paper crane from Fatty Xin asking him to cover for his absence from class.
• Zheng Qing considered how to fool Old Yao during Magic Spell Class, while Lin Guo refused to help him skip his own Divination class.
• Zheng Qing realized Tuantuan could serve as part of his plan after the Orange Cat came to keep him company in the ward.
• Zheng Qing offered Tuantuan three chicken legs, won the cat’s agreement, and showed Lin Guo a Shapeshifting Talisman.

After Madam Bella drove Zheng Qing and the Orange Cat out of the School Hospital, he disguised the cat as Fatty Xin and took him to class, where classmates treated Zheng Qing warily because of his red eye. Xiao Xiao reminded the group to meet at noon and finish their club application before submitting it that afternoon.

• Madam Bella discharged Zheng Qing and chased him and the Orange Cat from the School Hospital after the cat alarmed the house-elves in the dining hall.
• Zheng Qing transformed the Orange Cat into a ginger-haired, orange-robed Big Orange who resembled Fatty Xin and brought him to class.
• Students watched Zheng Qing's red eye with fear and spoke to him cautiously, upsetting him.
• Zheng Qing, Xiao Xiao, and Zhang Jixin discussed how to pass off the disguised cat as Fatty Xin.
• Xiao Xiao told the group to meet at noon to complete the club application form before submitting it that afternoon.