A jade plate hung on the treetops, and the cold moonlight cast a layer of silver frost on the ground.
Today was the first day of the eighth month, and by common sense, there should be no moon in the sky.
Zheng Qing kept staring at the round, silvery-white celestial body in mid-air, ignoring Nicholas's incessant chatter in front of him.
Professor An, after handing the three troublesome freshmen back to the new student guide, left in a hurry.
As soon as he turned around, Nicholas, who had just been full of anger, softened his tone:
"This matter isn't actually that serious. The worst-case scenario is just repeating First Year, it's no big deal."
Zheng Qing coughed twice, looking down at the Little Elves still sound asleep in the cardboard box, his mood still a bit gloomy.
For an old student who was in First Year for the third time, studying First Year for two years was indeed not a big deal.
But for a freshman who believed he had upheld justice, this punishment was a bit disheartening.
Nicholas comforted him: "A hundred years ago, Alpha was no longer the true Alpha, clinging to ridiculous arrogance and enacting farcical stories. You are the future of Nine Provinces College, and what you need now is a warm dormitory and a comfortable bed. Don't think too much about anything else."
Zheng Qing held the cardboard box and let out a big yawn.
Why do my eyes always contain tears? Because my yawns are too deep.
He rubbed his eyes, sighing with emotion.
The long day seemed to finally be coming to an end.
Just as Nicholas mentioned, he desperately needed a comfortable bed right now.
At the end of the Walking Street, there was a large iron gate intricately carved with complex patterns.
This gate must have been very old.
The bricks at the base of the gate were covered with a thick layer of moss, and the paint on the gate frame was peeling off in patches, like a patient with vitiligo. Each time a student entered or exited, the archway would emit an unsettling sigh, followed by a cool, indifferent breeze.
"This gate is a shortcut from Beta Town to the dormitories of the four Universities, but this passage is one-way. You can only return to the dormitories through this gate, but you cannot go directly to Beta Town from the dormitories."
Zheng Qing stood at the entrance, peering inside; the campus under the moonlight was peaceful.
Green grass, clear lakes, willows swaying, students strolling leisurely in twos and threes, enjoying the ease and comfort under the moon.
The small animals in the Spirit Beast Garden, unwilling to sleep, chased and played on the grass, occasionally emitting hurried sounds of squabbling.
It was like a large park.
There wasn't a single dormitory building in sight.
"Here! Take out your ID cards."
Nicholas called out, pointing to an iron door on the side of the archway next to him: "Behind the door is the dormitory building hallway. After swiping your card, you will directly enter your own dormitory. Freshmen dormitories are randomly assigned; the University says this helps foster a spirit of unity among students."
Zheng Qing hurriedly rummaged through his robe for the silvery-white card.
"Of course, there's more than one entrance to the dormitory building. As the books say, studying at this University requires you to have a pair of eyes that are good at discovering things."
Zheng Qing leaned closer, curiously examining the side door.
The iron door was off-white, almost blending seamlessly with the mottled wall, making it easy to overlook its existence.
In the foot-long opening in the center of the door, a palm-sized, greenish-blue beast with squinted eyes was resting.
This exotic beast seemed to be cast from bronze, its body covered in verdigris scars. It resembled a lion but had horns on its head and scales on its body. At this moment, it was resting its head on its front paws, a purring sound emanating from its throat.
"The dorm manager of First University, Ni Wuye!" Nicholas introduced the greenish beast to the freshmen: "For your first meeting, say hello to Wuye."
"Hello, Ni Wuye." The freshmen responded sparsely, looking at the greenish exotic beast with curiosity in their eyes.
The small beast lifted its eyelids, lazily scanning the newcomers, but did not speak.
Nicholas pulled a reddish-brown pill from his pocket and offered it with a smile.
Upon seeing it, the exotic beast opened its eyes wide, a flash of crimson light passing through them. It happily stood up, extended its long tongue, and rolled the pill into its mouth.
Then its whole body trembled violently, and large plumes of thick smoke billowed from its eyes, nose, and ears.
The smoke was dense but odorless.
The greenish beast opened its mouth wide, and with a 'slurp,' swallowed the rising smoke, smacking its lips, looking quite unsatisfied.
Nicholas hurriedly handed over his ID card. The red light flashed in the small beast's eyes again. It nodded casually, heavily patted the round ball under its paw, and the iron door immediately clicked crisply.
"Do you know how to get in?" Nicholas pulled open the iron door, looking at the freshmen: "Ni Wuye is our dorm manager. Thousands of people in the entire University live in the dormitories behind Wuye. You just need to remember that wherever you see Wuye, you can return to your own dormitory."
"Those yellow pills are made from waste materials from potion class; a copper coin can buy a large bag. There's no difficulty; their only purpose is to produce a lot of waste smoke, and Wuye loves this stuff."
Nicholas stood at the door, urging: "Hurry up! Wuye has limited patience!"
The newcomers excitedly squeezed through the narrow iron door.
Zheng Qing held the cardboard box, carefully avoiding being squashed.
Behind the door was a silvery-white corridor with many black handles on both sides.
"Under normal circumstances, you can just wave your card in front of Wuye and directly push open your dormitory door. But sometimes there are more people, like today, you'll have to trouble Wuye to open a few more doors."
"Look at your room number, find your dormitory door, and just push it open and go in." Nicholas had already pushed open a door, half his body sticking out, calling to several bewildered freshmen: "Hurry up! Although this passage can last a long time, Wuye has limited patience, so be careful not to be thrown out again."
Zheng Qing looked at the 403 number embedded on the slightly yellow doorframe and compared it with the ID card in his hand.
He took a deep breath and pushed hard.
Pushing open the door, he saw a short, bare, gray corridor.
Just as he was stunned, a small silvery-white door on the opposite wall suddenly opened.
A familiar watermelon-head also happened to poke his head in.
The two stared at each other for a moment. Xiao Xiao nodded and pushed the door open.
"Xiao Xiao?" Zheng Qing looked at him with some disbelief, then turned his head and leaned out to look to the side. A thin figure had just half-disappeared into the silvery-white corridor behind him.
"A spatial extension and resonance spell must have been used here," Xiao Xiao pushed up his glasses, opening his black notebook with some annoyance. "First University has made quite a few technical changes in recent years. When my father came here, getting into the dormitory building wasn't nearly this troublesome."
"I'm just curious that you're in the same dorm as me." Zheng Qing drooped his head, grumbling weakly.
A small 403 nameplate hung on the wooden door at the end of the gray corridor.
Pushing open the door, a panting voice sounded in both their ears:
"Ha... you... ha... are... the last two roommates... huh...?"