Chapter 337: Going Skiing

"The Highland Mages cleared out the first underground floor and gave it to them as a laboratory. Did you know there was an underground level here before?" Majiang asked.

"Have you ever heard of any Mage's territory that didn't have underground structures?" Du Zhengyi countered.

Majiang actually gave it some serious thought. "No."

"For most Mages' buildings, the surface part is just a facade; the scale of the underground part is much larger than what's above ground," Du Zhengyi said casually.

"Then do you know that Luo Qi has been hanging out underground whenever he's free these past few days? He's gotten familiar with everyone in every experimental group; he has acquaintances everywhere," Majiang said. "Your Luo Qi is truly a man of iron, isn't he? In every experimental group, the girls younger than him love playing with him, and the girls older than him love doting on him. Do you know how many snacks they've given him? In a place like this, snacks are hard currency!"

"Do you have a problem with him?" Du Zhengyi asked offhandedly, as he was reading a book.

"The one with a problem is Guan Xinyue," Majiang said. "Look, the little girl is quite pitiful too, having gone through so many things at home and experienced so many human tragedies. So, is your Luo Qi actually interested or not?"

"Luo Qi is only interested in eating at this stage, I suppose."

If Majiang hadn't fully understood what he meant when Du Zhengyi said this, he understood it within a few minutes. Luo Qi used his teleportation ability to return to the hall from underground at that very moment. He walked in a hurry, followed by a large pile of floating golden symbols, looking like a giant golden bee flapping its wings.

Majiang watched the symbols chasing after Luo Qi with interest, vaguely identifying some common Secret Language and molecular structures among them.

"Brother! You're here, I was just looking for you," Luo Qi said, looking travel-worn. "They have something good to show you."

"Luo Qi, didn't you see your big brother here?" Majiang said from the side, dissatisfied.

"Hello, Big Brother," Luo Qi said. "Are you satisfied with the food here at the Highland Mages' place?"

"Not satisfied. If I'm not satisfied, can I go outside to find food?" Majiang countered.

"Hmm, then will you spend money to buy something good to eat?"

"They don't deliver here, and besides, don't break the Highland Mages' rules; you have to respect their customs," Majiang emphasized this point. "You've asked the girls for quite a lot of food, haven't you?"

"The Highland Mages don't care what others do," Luo Qi said.

"Enough nonsense, Luo Qi, what do you need me for?" Du Zhengyi quickly intervened. Sometimes Du Zhengyi would realize that Luo Qi and Majiang could actually get along perfectly well, because in one aspect, the two of them were very similar—for instance, in the way they seriously talked nonsense. It was just that neither of them had realized it, nor were they willing to admit it. At times like this, if no one cut them off, they would be like a pair of crosstalk performers, one feeding the other lines until tomorrow morning.

Majiang often said things that disparaged Luo Qi, but unless Luo Qi happened to be in a particularly bad mood, he generally maintained a sense of humor toward Majiang's witty remarks, demonstrating quite good grace. Then, he would pick out the parts in the gaps of the conversation that could be used for irony.

"Oh, oh, when they came over, they brought a new discovery; they found a new material that is harder than the existing ones," Luo Qi said. "Zhou Quan asked if you'd be willing to go take a look; he said it would be useful to you."

Majiang eyed the golden symbols dancing behind Luo Qi. "Are these the molecular formulas for the new material?"

Luo Qi looked back, gave a careless wave of his hand, and made the golden symbols fold up more neatly. "Mine aren't; these are molecular formulas I asked one of your junior brothers for... I want to set up a laboratory of my own."

"What are you researching?" Majiang asked.

"Food engineering."

"I have nothing to say to you."

Luo Qi ignored Majiang and turned to look at Du Zhengyi expectantly. "Do you want to go to the lab to see their new material? They said it's especially suitable for Battle Mages; perhaps you could suggest some good application scenarios."

"I might go take a look in a while," Du Zhengyi said. "Where are you going now?"

"I'm going to find a quiet place to do some experiments by myself. Zhou Quan also said he'd invite me out to play in a bit; are you going?" Luo Qi said, looking at Du Zhengyi with some anticipation again.

"No interest. Where are you going to play?" Du Zhengyi asked.

"He said we should go a bit further away, leave this circle of woods belonging to the Highland Mages. Find a nice hillside to go skiing; otherwise, it would be a waste to come to such a cold place," Luo Qi asked Du Zhengyi with some excitement. "Are you coming?"

Seeing Du Zhengyi hesitate, Luo Qi immediately said, "Do you think it's too cold outside? Or how about I do Meditation with you? Do you really do it every night? I think that stuff seems quite beneficial."

"You go play with Zhou Quan; I have some other things to do," Du Zhengyi said.

Luo Qi stared at him suspiciously. "What could you possibly have to do here?"

Du Zhengyi waved his hand impatiently, signaling for him to get lost, along with his golden wings that were flaunting themselves in public. "Don't annoy the Highland Mages too much."

Luo Qi made a gesture of obedience and disappeared in a hurry at the end of the corridor with his big wings.

"Don't you think this scene is familiar?" Majiang asked suddenly.

Du Zhengyi looked at Majiang with some wariness.

But Majiang still opened his big, broken mouth and said it. "Ever since you were little, every time you finally made a little friend, no matter how well they played with you, as soon as someone else appeared, they'd follow them away. Why? Because you're always too uptight, serious, and boring; everyone is more fun than you. Lonely, are you? Genius Great Mage?"

"I'm not that childish, okay?"

"You almost cried several times when you were a kid," Majiang laughed. "It was only because I, your big brother, saw you were pitiful that I took you along."

"I'm not a child anymore. Besides, I was never that childish, okay? I don't need friends either. But for Luo Qi, the bigger his circle, the better; after all, he's only just begun," Du Zhengyi said.

"To lower your importance in his life? Oh my, heavens, I really don't want to listen to you talk. I'm going to find a Medical Mage to chat with and compare techniques; you can read that boring book of yours yourself," Majiang said irritably before turning and walking away to seek out the few Highland Mages he had recently become familiar with.