Chapter 354: Zhou Quan Wakes Up

"Where is Luo Qi?" Du Zhengyi asked in the hallway; he had already asked several people.

"How would I know?" Majiang said. "Hasn't Luo Qi been following you around for the past few days like a piece of chewing gum stuck to the sole of your shoe? Could he really be lost?"

Du Zhengyi glared at him; the metaphor was disgusting, and Guan Xinyue let out a retching sound. But she was on Majiang's side. "He might be meditating in the garden again; you could try shaking every tree to see."

Du Zhengyi had nothing to say. Luo Qi had been incredibly well-behaved these past two days, and he didn't know how Luo Qi could still manage to annoy the two of them. However, the three of them were always bickering, especially Luo Qi and Guan Xinyue, who couldn't get along peacefully, like a cat and a dog. And whenever they started scratching at each other, Majiang would inevitably get dragged in, at which point he just wanted to stay far away.

"Also, Zhou Quan finally woke up this morning. Don't you think you should go see him? You can't let the gap between who you favor and who you don't appear too wide, can you? You know that Luo Qi is going to be hanging around Zhou Quan and the others for a long time. You don't want to make enemies for Luo Qi just because of your own whimsical, foul temper, do you? You should know that while they wouldn't dare do anything to you, they can certainly strike at Luo Qi. Don't tell me that Luo Qi might become a badass Great Mage in the future; thanks, but no thanks. He happens to be a Mind Mage, a Telepath. He's not like you; you're a cold Steel Warrior, and other people's emotions and opinions don't hurt or tickle you. He is the exact opposite of you—a super-absorbent SpongeBob who can receive all emotional radiation. The moment he walks into a room, he feels the hatred anyone there has for him. They don't even need to attack him directly; just ostracizing him is enough to make him very uncomfortable," Majiang said in a continuous stream, cutting Du Zhengyi off every time he tried to open his mouth.

Du Zhengyi was rarely defeated by anyone, especially not without a fight; his momentum had completely deflated. "Fine, I'll go see Zhou Quan. I was planning on visiting him anyway."

"Stop lying," Majiang said.

Guan Xinyue hesitated for a moment and said, "I think Du Ge might really want to see Zhou Quan, to teach him a lesson in person, right?"

"Hey, the girl is right. You're much sharper than Luo Qi; you can see it so accurately just by looking," Majiang said.

Du Zhengyi looked at him in silence. This old guy was becoming increasingly obvious about fawning over the young girl; he didn't know if he was truly interested or if it was just a conditioned reflex for an old man upon seeing a young girl.

Majiang read his expression. "Damn, you really do think that, don't you?"

Du Zhengyi shrugged indifferently. "Then I won't say anything, alright?"

"You can't blame this all on Zhou Quan; your Luo Qi isn't exactly a saint either, alright?" Majiang said, stunned. "Don't be so biased."

"Give it a rest, as if you don't know Zhou Quan was intentionally trying to find the Highland Mage's Shenmiao," Du Zhengyi said in a low voice.

"There's no proof, so don't talk nonsense. You know that while Zhou Quan's position isn't high, it's very sensitive. Besides, this is the Highland Mage's territory now; don't stir up trouble," Majiang said, looking around.

"If he didn't seize the opportunity to use Luo Qi's desire to learn the weakness of those with Invisibility, then I haven't been to Qionglin," Du Zhengyi said.

Majiang's expression also became complicated. He lowered his head and thought for a few seconds, then shook his head at Du Zhengyi.

Guan Xinyue watched them nervously, her eyes wide. Du Zhengyi looked at them and let out a breath of relief. "Fine, I won't say anything, and I won't show anything either."

Majiang nodded and led them toward Zhou Quan's room; most of them lived in the same hallway. Zhou Quan's room was in the section after the hallway turned.

Zhou Quan was well-liked, and when they arrived, his small room was packed with people. Fortunately, the Doctor's status was transcendent, and Du Zhengyi's status was even more so—he was practically the Plague God of Qionglin. With his arrival, most people automatically cleared out without even needing to be shooed away.

Zhou Quan was recovering quite well. Since waking up, his spirits had been high, and he was sitting up against a large feather pillow—that pillow must have been something they made themselves. A disaster that had nothing to do with him hadn't affected him much; he was still laughing and joking, able to chat enthusiastically with anyone.

Majiang performed today's follow-up examination first. While cooperating with the Doctor, Zhou Quan apologized to Du Zhengyi. Basically, from the moment Du Zhengyi entered the room, he started apologizing, exaggerating all the grievances Luo Qi had suffered and taking all the responsibility upon himself.

This was truly the case of not hitting a smiling face. Even though Du Zhengyi hadn't agreed to what Majiang said, it was very difficult to say anything to Zhou Quan now. In addition to apologizing, he also praised Luo Qi to the heavens. Young and promising, sharp and capable, knowledgeable—he even knew about Tibetan wild donkeys... the flattery was so much that even Du Zhengyi couldn't bear to listen. Given Luo Qi's own foul habits and his nature as a troublemaker, Du Zhengyi really couldn't bring himself to speak ill of others with a clear conscience.

They chatted for a while, basically fulfilling the duty of visiting a patient. Du Zhengyi asked Zhou Quan, "Do you remember why you wanted to take that seed?"

"You mean that walnut?" Zhou Quan asked.

Du Zhengyi nodded.

"Sorry," Zhou Quan said. "I just wanted to see what kind of walnut it was and what it could actually grow. Because I really don't remember at all; I have no memory of anything after walking into the cave. I actually really want to know why I was so stupid as to pick a walnut and clutch it in my hand. If that place was really a good spot, I should have at least grabbed a decent Magic Artifact."

He said it so lightly and straightforwardly that Du Zhengyi had even less of a way to blame him. He said helplessly, "Perhaps according to the values of this place, plants are indeed very important. Regardless, the Highland Mage is very interested in the seed you brought back."

Zhou Quan made a bitter face. "Once they analyze it and find out it really is just a walnut, my stupid deed will definitely be recorded and become a big joke in Qionglin."

Neither Du Zhengyi nor Majiang said anything. Zhou Quan sighed in frustration; he was genuinely depressed, as the prospect was truly bleak.

Majiang comforted him, "Forget it, at least it's a plant. You can't really plant it wrong or ruin it, so what can happen? You stumbled into it and it happened to be a good fit; the Highland Mage just likes tinkering with this stuff. You can consider this a good deed; Qionglin should give you a spiritual civilization award for helping the Highland Mage salvage a walnut."

Although Zhou Quan was annoyed, he couldn't help but laugh. Du Zhengyi saw a little bit of why Luo Qi was closer to Zhou Quan than others; when it came to being carefree, both of them had the potential to compete for first place.

But sometimes, things are just very strange. Just then, Liu Ziyu pushed the door open excitedly. "Senior Brother, you're all here. Luo Qi asked me to find you and have you take a look—Zhou Quan's seed has sprouted and is growing impressively. Luo Qi says there's a chance the yield per acre could exceed ten thousand."