Chapter 210

"Why did you go to the Zhouqiao Night Market?" Du Zhengyi turned his head and looked at Luo Qi calmly.

A thin layer of sweat broke out on the tip of Luo Qi's nose. Du Zhengyi's gaze wasn't sharp; as always, looking into his eyes often reminded Luo Qi of chocolate. The sunlight from outside the window fell on Du Zhengyi's head, and his eyes made him think of warm, dark chocolate again. Du Zhengyi wouldn't scold him with a stern face, wouldn't stare at him coldly, wouldn't look at him with suspicion like Mahjong did, and certainly wouldn't look at him like he had seen a ghost, as those other people did.

He was a powerful person. Now, Luo Qi felt fortunate that such a powerful person as Du Zhengyi existed in the world, and fortunate that Du Zhengyi could still tolerate him. Being "powerful" didn't just mean he could conjure mountains of fire or strike with ball lightning; it also referred to his inner strength. And being "tolerant" meant that, in his heart, Du Zhengyi truly held no guard against him.

If there were really a Boggart like in human legends, Luo Qi knew what he would see: a Du Zhengyi who no longer trusted him and was full of wariness toward him.

Therefore, it was no wonder he was breaking into a cold sweat right now. Since he woke up, the tightest string in his mind wasn't whether the Black Market wanted to issue a bounty on him, nor how the Lotus Burners would use the information if they discovered his true identity—those were problems for tomorrow. Luo Qi's biggest problem today was how to answer Du Zhengyi without losing his credibility in front of him. Mages are human after all; no one can stay sane in a century of solitude, and telepaths especially understand that the only way to maintain mental health is to find a resonant chord.

Luo Qi knew he had to answer Du Zhengyi's question carefully. He had an urge to tell Du Zhengyi everything; he didn't want to lie, nor was he someone who enjoyed carrying secrets. But what could he say? It would only end in a huge argument. If he told Du Zhengyi that he wanted him to live a long life, so he tried to get him a ticket, and that was why he had the idea to pry into the secrets of Gushan, the result would surely be Du Zhengyi standing up and beating him to the ground in his capacity as a Guardian of Gushan.

He suspected that was Du Zhengyi's bottom line—a line Du Zhengyi valued more than his own life. He wanted to get a ticket for Du Zhengyi, but the result might be getting a one-way ticket to the Qionglin Abyss from Du Zhengyi himself.

"I went to see Wan Pei," Luo Qi said cautiously. When lying in front of Du Zhengyi, it was best to keep everything else true except for the part that couldn't be said. "Are you guys still eating? If not, let me show you my cat."

The attention of the three was drawn over, and they all looked at Luo Qi's little black cat in unison, abandoning their focus on Luo Qi. This cat was a size larger than Luo Qi's previous kitten, but it was far from being on the level of Uncle Cat. Just as the three of them turned their gaze, the little black cat "cracked" and bit through a bone, as if its teeth were extremely sharp.

Mahjong couldn't help but squint to examine it closely, "What... the hell is this?"

Guan Xinyue was startled when she heard his question, "Isn't it a cat?"

Luo Qi licked his lips, "Are you sure it's a cat? Are you sure you've seen this little thing in real life or in a documentary?"

He reached out to stroke the kitten, scratched its back gently, pulled up its soft ears, and showed the three of them the long, thin black hairs on the tips of its pointed ears.

Guan Xinyue laughed, "Like little braids."

As she said this, she reached out to touch the black cat, but Luo Qi pulled her hand away, "Don't, you can't touch this one."

Guan Xinyue was taken aback. Luo Qi's spirit was tightly wound, and he rarely showed such a nervous expression. The kitten looked cute and harmless; it even tilted its head to look at her with bright yellow eyes and licked her with its tiny tongue. Yet, Luo Qi suddenly became even more nervous, reaching out to block the kitten while stroking its back with his other hand.

Frightened by Luo Qi's nervous attitude, Guan Xinyue shrank back and sat further away. As soon as she retreated, the kitten suddenly turned its head to act spoiled, darting back to Luo Qi's shoulder and rubbing its forehead against his neck.

Luo Qi stroked the kitten, "This cat is very useful. Brother, try attacking me."

"Attack you?" Du Zhengyi said, sounding unenthusiastic.

"You don't have to actually attack me, just try to think that I'm detestable and that you want to attack me," Luo Qi said. "But be careful, be very careful."

Du Zhengyi glanced at the cat, "Will it rush over and scratch my face?"

Mahjong laughed, "It'll get into a brawl with you; you'd better get ready to teleport."

"Please, take this seriously," Luo Qi said in a low voice.

Mahjong couldn't help but laugh again, "This is the first time I've heard Luo Qi ask someone to be serious."

"Fine," Du Zhengyi said, turning to look at Luo Qi, seriously preparing for offense and defense.

All three stared intently at Luo Qi and his cat. But after a long while, the cat remained just a cat; it even yawned after rubbing against Luo Qi's neck until it got sleepy.

"Luo Qi, are you just messing with us to change the subject?" Mahjong asked.

Luo Qi sighed, "Brother, do you like me that much? It's really not easy for you to seriously want to beat me up, is it? Don't ever try to scare me again! I've seen through you—you're just a paper tiger. From now on, I'll do whatever I want!"

"Oh, wow," Mahjong said, "Aren't you something."

Du Zhengyi lowered his head and laughed, "Why don't you go, Mahjong? Don't you want to tear Luo Qi apart three times a day on average?"

"Eight times, let me tell you, and that's a conservative estimate," Mahjong said. He leaned forward, thinking about how detestable Luo Qi was. He had long been brewing the idea of beating this little brat to death, and today was indeed a perfect opportunity.

"Meow," the kitten suddenly let out a cry, turned its head to stare at Mahjong, and observed him without moving. Mahjong was also taken aback.

"Is this a telepathic creature?" Mahjong said. He had heard of them, but only in legends; it was said that ancient creatures were once unprecedentedly prosperous.

The kitten let out a strange cough, sounding like a cat trying to spit out a hairball.

Guan Xinyue was the first to lose her patience, "Is it going to spit a hairball to gross out Dr. Mahjong?"

Mahjong glared at Luo Qi in annoyance, "If you're messing with me..."

Before he could finish his sentence, the small creature that looked like a black cat suddenly made a "ka" sound in its throat and spat a glob of mucus at him.

Mahjong instinctively picked up a plate from the side to shield his face. Although he was a doctor, he was also a trained mage, and his reaction speed was astonishing; the kitten's mucus landed right in the middle of his plate.

Guan Xinyue was stunned. Just as she was about to say that the kitten was spitting at people like a grumpy old man, she heard a tiny, strange sound coming from the plate. She saw Mahjong's expression change; the plate in his hand began to develop a hole in the center, corroded by the mucus.

Luo Qi whispered, soothing his kitten, which finally turned its face away and slid into his arms, clutching his clothes as it lay down.

"Xinyue," Luo Qi looked up and shrugged under their stunned gazes, "You should sit a bit further away. I think the highly corrosive mucus diluted in the air might still be somewhat irritating to the human respiratory system."

Guan Xinyue immediately moved to the other side of the table, far away from that ominous plate.