Chapter 404: The Path of Reincarnation

"Thank you for telling me the truth." The old woman smiled as she looked into Luo Qi's eyes. Luo Qi shifted his gaze to meet hers, seeing himself reflected in her pupils. In an instant, the flowing piano music stopped, and Luo Qi sensed a signal attempting to make contact with him.

Judging whether she was friend or foe took only a moment. Luo Qi did not hesitate; his body was exhausted, but his mind was becoming increasingly agile. He nimbly connected to that contact and granted her permission, and their thought spaces linked together.

Luo Qi did not open his own mental world; he merely opened a channel, a high-speed channel for the flow of consciousness. In his mental form, he stood within the high-speed channel, and in the blink of an eye, the old woman appeared before him. She was still wearing that olive-green robe, and she remained an old woman; she had not chosen to present herself in a younger state.

They sized each other up for a moment, and Luo Qi spoke first, "What do you want to tell me? This channel can only be maintained for a moment, about one-thirtieth of a second in real time. Any longer, and Du Zhengyi will detect the energy fluctuations."

"I will make it quick," the old woman said with a smile. "Do you often work behind Du Zhengyi's back, right under his nose?"

In the mental world, Luo Qi couldn't even be bothered to simulate a smile. He raced against time and said, "I have not betrayed him. With that as the premise, how I act is my own freedom."

The old woman nodded slightly, accepting his point. She stripped away all expressions and emotional simulations to conserve energy; now they were more like two cold logical entities communicating. She said bluntly, "Have you ever thought about where the Ship of Reincarnation actually leads? As I see it, you are hoping that Du Zhengyi can board this ship."

"I can probably guess," Luo Qi said.

"Did you reach that conclusion after experiencing this Dove Occupies the Magpie's Nest incident?"

"Even earlier than that," Luo Qi admitted.

"You truly are a genius. I spent more than half my life collecting information just to barely touch the edge of the truth," she said. Even without emotional transmission, Luo Qi felt he understood something.

"I am just lucky," Luo Qi said. "Lucky enough to unfortunately become the focus."

"You are destined to be the focus," she said. After a brief pause, she continued, "You know, Pei Shu's refusal to arrange a reincarnation for Du Zhengyi is likely just because his mind has been damaged and he cannot be reincarnated. He will die from mental exhaustion, not physical exhaustion; perhaps that is the only way a Mage can die. He is unfortunate, but do you really think he would be willing to accept such an arrangement? Those of us who receive a Ship Ticket probably won't know the truth until the very last moment. Do you know who operates... who steers the ship for us?"

"My dad, and others who work for Pei Shu," Luo Qi said mechanically. "The Mind Mages of the First Laboratory."

"That is what I thought as well," the old woman said.

"Like canned beer."

"I fear that every time it is canned, changes occur. The size of the can will not be a perfect fit, and it may be necessary to modify the original soul," the old woman said. "I want to know, are you hoping to master this Magic and then try to repair Du Zhengyi's soul wounds? Perhaps the next step will require you to make trade-offs regarding Du Zhengyi's soul. Perhaps you will feel this is only because you have no other choice, just as a doctor must amputate a limb for a patient. Do you feel your actions are righteous?"

Luo Qi did not answer.

"Of course, there is another question here. Can you take action against an innocent person, simply because you want them to make room in their body for your friend?"

"Before I see this Magic with my own eyes, I know nothing. Perhaps after I master the highest Magic, I can find a solution. I have to try." Luo Qi said.

But he also thought at the same time that his dad knew this Magic, and his dad had tried his best to keep his own hands from getting dirty.

"When you have the ability, you also have the power. You have the power to control life, you have the power to modify souls, and you become a god. Child, gods only look down upon the masses."

"I know that the Magic collected in Gushan is not just this one kind," Luo Qi insisted.

"I thought that after you experienced the pain of having your body stolen, you would have more noble thoughts," the old woman said. Her eyes looked at Luo Qi, her virtual gaze staring straight into Luo Qi's soul.

"What I want to do, and what I will ultimately do, Nainai, I feel that is my own business. You traveled a long way; it certainly cannot be to evaluate my moral values. We are connecting our consciousness under the noses of the Gushan Guards, and it is not to discuss this either."

"You impatient child!" the old woman scolded. "If you think this is feasible, why don't you just create a copy of Du Zhengyi? You are quite proficient in that bit of Magic technique now; there are many of you circulating in my market right now. You could do the same, copy the main parts of his soul that you like, put them into a rag doll, and you could even hug him to sleep every night!"

Luo Qi froze. He had not expected the old woman to be so sharp, yet her words hit the bullseye. His consciousness churned several times, falling into confusion. He was ashamed and angry, but he refused to despair. "I will definitely find the best way. If this method doesn't work, I believe there is another way in Gushan."

"Child, we all need to face the existence of death. Do you hope that when your breeding period arrives, you will be forced to marry a female Mage and produce a Mage cub to avoid the death of our race? Do you hope that you will have your chance at survival stolen, to yield the right to live to someone with thicker arms than yours? Oh, I know what children like you are thinking; you can accept your own death, but you are unwilling to endure the pain of losing a close friend. Naive! As long as one lives long enough, we all must endure such pain; everyone does. Therefore, souls should not be eternal; we all need to rest in peace."

Luo Qi stood there, unmoved.

"Whether it is kind words or harsh ones, friend or enemy, nothing can make you think a little more? You child..."

Luo Qi was actually a bit lost; he guessed in confusion what the Black Market proprietress really wanted. The old woman, however, suddenly became irritable. It took Luo Qi a moment to realize she had made up her mind. "Choose whatever you want; I am going to give you a gift anyway. Because you are the only one who can topple him, you are the only one who can truly defy the heavens and change fate."