Chapter 342: Gambling

Zhou Quan watched for a moment, hesitating, but his face still revealed an eagerness to try. "How about... we go over and take a look? What if there's some major geographical discovery? We can't go skiing anyway, and we shouldn't just waste an afternoon for nothing."

"Sure." Luo Qi took advantage of the situation and feigned innocence. "How do you fold and store skiing equipment? Can you teach me Folding Magic? That really is a practical spell."

Zhou Quan only carried a small bag on his back, yet he was still the one responsible for carrying the equipment between the two of them.

"Easy, I can teach you. But I actually only brought prototype materials that aren't easy to replicate; when it's time to actually ski, I need to manufacture two complete sets of equipment first," Zhou Quan said. He looked at the sky; the sunlight was still intense, and the Highland's blue sky was exceptionally azure. "Let's talk as we walk."

They stepped over the residual snow on the withered yellow grass and walked to the riverbank. The river was very shallow, and the surface was not wide. After Zhou Quan cast a few practical waterproof spells on their shoes and calves, they walked into the river.

Wading across the river, even without being soaked through, was not a pleasant experience for Luo Qi. He shivered quite noticeably. "I think I'm about to pee my pants."

Zhou Quan laughed out loud and looked Luo Qi over carefully. "Don't be mad if I speak the truth, but you look like a pampered child from a good family. Why did you come to the Highland Mages to study? It's too much suffering."

"I want to be a Battle Mage," Luo Qi said vaguely.

"If it's not overstepping, can I fish for some gossip with you?" Zhou Quan said suddenly.

Luo Qi glanced at him, though he wasn't repulsed; it was strange for someone to have absolutely no curiosity, and he knew what was bound to come would come eventually. "What news? News is a scarce resource, and I charge for it."

"I don't want to know anything else; I'm just curious about Du Zhengyi. Actually, it's not just me who's curious; you must be able to feel that he is basically the focus of these people. Good or bad, he really attracts everyone's attention. Many people speculate that he is the one who will take over for Pei Shu in the future," Zhou Quan said.

"You want to know if he will take over?" Luo Qi asked.

"Ah, no." Zhou Quan burst out laughing. "I have no interest in that. Look, with Du Zhengyi's personality, even if I knew he would be the leader in the future, would it be useful for me to suck up to him now?"

"Probably not useful," Luo Qi said honestly.

"Exactly, so what does it have to do with me whether he is the future Venerable? Whoever is the Venerable, I'm still the one doing the work. I've already accumulated five rounds of service time here at Qionglin. Once I finish my current job, I'll go on vacation in the human world; at least I won't be recruited by the world of mages for decades. So I don't care who the leader is; if I'm not happy with the work, I'll retire. But having said that, I'm not worried about Du Zhengyi stepping into the position of Venerable either. In all fairness, he is a just man."

Luo Qi nodded and asked, "Then what do you want to ask?"

"I have only one question. Please satisfy my very personal curiosity," Zhou Quan said.

"Stop with the buildup."

"Fine, then just tell me, why is your surname Luo? Aren't you Du Zhengyi's biological younger brother?" Zhou Quan asked eagerly.

"Why is my surname Luo?" Luo Qi said, stunned. At this moment, one of his hooves had already stepped out of the water. "My surname is Luo to begin with, so my surname is Luo. Because my dad's surname is Luo, my surname is Luo. Besides, I don't look like Du Zhengyi at all; how could you tell we are biological brothers? Is this the gossip you wanted to fish for?"

"But you are a Mind Mage! Isn't the appearance of you Mind Mages always disguised? You definitely aren't the way I see you right now, are you? Right?" Zhou Quan asked.

Luo Qi discovered that he was actually serious. He didn't know what kind of appearance Zhou Quan thought was under his real face—maybe a smaller version of Du Zhengyi? Wait, he suddenly thought that others might all be thinking the same thing; they must have been guessing like this when they talked to him, not believing at all that he was himself. My god, being a Mind Mage is truly an existential nightmare.

Luo Qi opened his mouth, but a new thought erased what he had originally intended to say. He said, "Wait, are you guys placing bets?"

Zhou Quan's expression was complex.

"Tell me quickly!" Luo Qi said unhappily. "I can help you win. But you have to split the money you win with me!"

"Qi-Qi, your personality is nothing like Du Zhengyi's," Zhou Quan said.

"Do you still want to win or not?"

"Fine." Sparks lit up in Zhou Quan's eyes, and he made up his mind. "I'm risking being beaten to death by Du Zhengyi to tell you: there is an Underground Gambling Den open in the Underground Laboratory right now."

"That really is an Underground Gambling Den in the truest sense," Luo Qi said. "I hang out underground every day, and I treat you all like brothers, yet none of you told me about this. I wasted my sincerity on you all for nothing."

"You haven't really bared your heart and lungs. But that's not the point; the key is that no one would tell the person involved. Only I could do something as cheating as this."

"You only asked me out to play so you could find a chance to ask me the truth," Luo Qi said.

"I swear to heaven, you are indeed very fun," Zhou Quan said solemnly.

"Then hurry up and tell me how you're betting," Luo Qi said.

"Fine, one part of us believes you are Du Zhengyi's biological younger brother," Zhou Quan said.

"The other part bets that I'm not?" Luo Qi asked.

"No, the other part bets that you are actually a girl," Zhou Quan said.

"Fffffff..." Luo Qi dragged out the sound, about to curse.

"Because according to some gossip, Du Zhengyi once brought a beautiful woman into the Black Market."

Luo Qi's curse was choked back. He suddenly felt a bit panicked; if one day he really took a fancy to a beautiful female mage, would the girl refuse to believe that he was who he appeared to be, even if she were beaten to death? How on earth was he supposed to prove to a girl that he was him—a handsome, not-tall-enough youth?

Wasn't this a disaster of his own making? A pit he dug for himself?

If that bastard Du Zhengyi died in the future, he would definitely be treated as a widow by more than half of Qionglin...

Handsome Luo Qi's vision went black...

"Luo Qi." Zhou Quan suddenly stopped in his tracks. "Don't you feel the wild donkeys getting more and more excited? I feel like there's something in this place."

"We aren't on a mountain, right?" Luo Qi asked.

"We are in a valley. A valley at an altitude of five thousand meters... it shouldn't count as a mountain, relatively speaking... what do you mean?"

"If it's not a mountain, there shouldn't be a Curse, right?" Luo Qi said. "Let's scan the surroundings; can you measure Magic Energy?"

"I can a little, but don't expect me to reach Du Zhengyi's level." Zhou Quan was made a bit nervous by him.

"Fine, you measure it, and I can use Telepathy to measure it too." Luo Qi swallowed. "I have a bad feeling."