Chapter 483: Ruins 27

"This is an energy map that accurately describes a Mind Mage. Although this kind of energy is different from all other Magic Energy and cannot be formally defined as Telepathy in our world, it can be in this Magic Sandbox. This box clearly describes Luo Qi's energy activity along the timeline, like a magic mirror that makes the most inscrutable Mind Mage in our world perfectly clear," Liu Ziyi said.

Du Zhengyi took over Liu Ziyi's work. When his magic lightly touched Liu Ziyi, she immediately gave him control, just as she had when she sought out Battle Mages to look at experiments in the lab before. Du Zhengyi expanded Luo Qi's energy view and browsed quickly along the timeline; the energy released by Luo Qi shifted like an animation. Du Zhengyi could observe all mages possessing magic in the Energy Vision, except for Mind Mages. This was his first time having the opportunity to see the energy changes of a Mind Mage; if this truly was "energy," the range of the energy fluctuations was much larger than that of other mages.

"Is this what the Qionglin wants to see?" Du Zhengyi asked thoughtfully. He had never before thought that there was a way to test a Mind Mage's energy. Originally, a Mind Mage's energy did not need to be tested at all, because there had never been any Mind Mages who could fight ten men at once. To test a new Mind Mage, at most, one would only need a group of Mind Mages to form an array. But Luo Qi's ability approached that of Pei Shu, and he was not in the same league as existing Mind Mages; they did not have the guts to test Luo Qi directly. "Without a reference point, just recording the range of energy fluctuations, how can one determine if Luo Qi is stable? By using Luo Qi himself as the reference point?"

"Yes, Luo Qi needs to stay here long enough," Liu Ziyi said in a mechanical voice. "Only if the time is long enough can we take samples. We can calculate his average value based on Luo Qi's energy response, and then infer his boundary values."

"Is forty-eight hours enough?"

"I think it is enough. Time is not an absolute parameter; we must also compare it against the obstacles encountered. The Sandbox has already dispatched puppets approaching the level of a Level 1 Battle Mage; the pressure can compensate for the lack of time," Liu Ziyi calculated and said, then added, "I will also submit a report to the Supreme Committee to corroborate this point."

"So the Qionglin will also see this monitoring?" Du Zhengyi asked.

"Not the full version," Liu Ziyi said. "I can only intercept this while standing inside the Sandbox, and it just so happens that I can decrypt it. To those monitoring from the outside, this is a black-box operation, and the final result is a diagnostic report on Luo Qi. I suspect that the original design intent here wasn't that cruel; it is used to test Mind Mages, but the intermediate processes of these tests are covered up as privacy."

Du Zhengyi nodded. He had already noticed several of Luo Qi's periods of activity, including several peaks. "Do you remember the time point when Luo Qi was injured?"

Liu Ziyi gave Du Zhengyi the exact time point with an expressionless face. He did not ask further; Liu Ziyi had many traits, and precise memory was one of them. He compared it to the time given by Liu Ziyi; during that critical moment, Luo Qi's energy had not risen at all, and was even quite a distance from the concentration of the peak. "He didn't use energy at that time?"

"Correct," Liu Ziyi said. "This is an important reference point. The Sandbox also records attacks launched against Luo Qi. Under an emergency attack, Luo Qi judged that mind attacks were useless, so he didn't use his power at all. This reference point is very important for the result; it is a significant bonus. To a large extent, this shows that Luo Qi has strong self-restraint and a very clear head."

"Is this Sandbox only useful for testing Luo Qi's stability?" Du Zhengyi asked, slightly pursing his lower lip.

"I don't think so," Liu Ziyi said after a moment of thought, then added with emphasis, "Definitely not. When you came in, I was decrypting another magic block. Although I haven't cracked it yet, judging from its location and characteristics, it is very likely a record of a past Mind Archmage. For example, logically speaking, Pei Lao must have undergone this kind of test; after all, he is also a Mind Archmage who stands out in his era. The Sandbox can vertically compare Luo Qi with past Mind Archmages, comparing their energy concentration maps and their energy Critical Points." Du Zhengyi took over her words, "And then it could test what kind of Mind Mage Luo Qi actually is—is he 45 Pei Shus, or 2.5 Pei Shus?"

"That's about it," Liu Ziyi nodded and said.

Du Zhengyi watched the slowly shifting energy concentration map in silence. He was worried that it would be like this. When they took the exam as Battle Mages, they not only had to pass the final test and end the Sandbox's operation, but the Supreme Committee would also produce an evaluation for each of them. He had long suspected that this evaluation was not just given by the personnel observing from the outside; it was hard to write such precise evaluation results just by observing. He still remembered his own report.

He had found a way to warn Luo Qi in advance not to use his full strength, and it seemed Luo Qi had understood his meaning. As long as Luo Qi did not use his full strength, the Sandbox would not increase the difficulty accordingly, and then Luo Qi would be safe. The characteristic of this Sandbox was that the more power you gave, the greater the force of the counterattack. On the other hand, if Luo Qi did not use too much power, the possibility of him losing his own balance would also decrease. And most importantly, if Luo Qi did not use his full strength, his true ability would not be recorded.

Du Zhengyi knew all too well what a mage whose ability was clearly ahead of his era would encounter in his lifetime. Although he himself had never complained, he still did not want Luo Qi to spend his life like that.

He turned his attention back to Luo Qi's energy map. As time passed, the colors on Luo Qi's energy map grew denser several times, like bloodstains covering the frame. He could not imagine what Luo Qi had encountered or done at that time. On the bright side, perhaps Luo Qi was just directing the puppets to run around the pillars. But suddenly, the image changed. Du Zhengyi was taken aback; his first reaction was that the interface Liu Ziyi was maintaining was being shut down.

Liu Ziyi said knowingly from the side, "It's not a malfunction."

The colors in the energy map faded rapidly, turning pale, and finally became even fainter than Du Zhengyi's own Telepathy energy map. For a moment, Du Zhengyi felt his pulse quicken; he was almost about to see the energy map cleared. The energy map belonging to Luo Qi continued to decline, eventually turning into a color that was barely there.

"I discovered it a long time ago," a faint smile appeared on Liu Ziyi's lips. "Luo Qi is even smarter than the Sandbox. After he discovered that he was the primary target of the attack, he shut himself down. I remember he was someone whose ability was sealed away before; perhaps he sealed himself this time, waiting for you to find him."

"That's too optimistic. It could also be that he fainted somewhere and lost consciousness," Du Zhengyi said in a low voice.

Xiang Qian shook his head and said indifferently, "It's all the same, as long as we can find him."