Chapter 492: The Frankenstein Rebellion (3)

When Luo Qi woke up, he thought he had only just closed his eyes. He was startled awake by the loud, banging noise of someone hammering on the door. Not only had he not slept enough, but he was also so frightened that his soul nearly left his body.

He lay flat on the bed, steadying his breathing, and slowly blinked his eyes. Someone had left a lamp on in his room. The light was not bright, but it was enough for a Mage's eyes to make out outlines and distinguish colors. His cat jumped out of the small nest beside the pillow, stepped onto his chest, and anxiously scratched a few loose threads into his new clothes.

He slowly turned his neck, guessing that he must have been lying perfectly still while sleeping, as even his neck felt stiff. Most of the muscles in his body were aching, his eyelids were heavy, and the hard little bed felt sweet and soft at this moment, making him reluctant to leave it. His whole body was resisting getting up. He looked toward the bedside, where Du Zhengyi was sitting quietly on a chair.

Seeing Luo Qi turn his head, he lowered his gaze slightly. Their eyes met, and Luo Qi's eyes widened. He looked urgently at Du Zhengyi, observing everything from his calm facial expression to his open collar and the naturally rolled-up sleeves of his shirt; even every crease in his clothes seemed to express tranquility.

A sense of inquiry emerged from Du Zhengyi's gaze. He looked as if he couldn't be bothered to speak, and a single questioning look contained multiple meanings. Luo Qi roughly concluded that it included asking about his physical condition, asking if he needed anything, and asking what kind of trouble he was stirring up.

Luo Qi looked in alarm at the banging door panel; he could still hear at least five people arguing, split into three groups talking to themselves. He looked back in panic, staring at Du Zhengyi as he gasped, "Brother? Can you not hear it? I... am I the only one who heard it?"

Du Zhengyi silently formed a shape with his mouth. Luo Qi saw that it was an "Oh" of sudden realization, and he was even more surprised, his eyebrows nearly arching up to the ceiling.

"I don't want to pay them any mind," Du Zhengyi said dismissively.

"Huh?"

"Majiang said you had passed out and your body had entered a self-protective state. He patted his chest and swore you would be asleep for at least ten hours, and that you wouldn't be woken up even by a thunderclap," Du Zhengyi said unhurriedly. "Clearly, that was nonsense. He really is a quack doctor."

"Ah." Luo Qi caught his breath; he had been scared to death, thinking he had actually fallen into a hallucination while Du Zhengyi was personally keeping watch over him. "That's terrifying. Who is outside? They have no manners at all."

"The Committee is in a rush to dig you out, and the Mage they sent to deliver the message is not very reasonable," Du Zhengyi said slowly. Luo Qi suspected he was suppressing his temper; he was usually never this calm and collected.

Luo Qi didn't want to get up at this time either; every muscle in his body was resisting being used. He could feel another person's Medical Magic stitching him up inside his body; it was likely that Majiang had performed a medical adjustment on him. He could imagine the Doctor sneering at his own medical skills; if Majiang could be compared to a carpenter capable of repairing the Taihe Hall, then he was merely a firewood-chopping cook.

"What do they want? Is there another Colosseum for me?" Luo Qi asked. There was no such thing as being reasonable or not; Luo Qi knew the reason they hadn't come in directly was surely because they all knew Du Zhengyi was inside.

Du Zhengyi looked at him. "To put it in human terms, they are in a hurry to hold a hearing to conduct your final judgment."

Luo Qi blinked, pondering it for a long while. "I don't really understand the Investigation Team's style of doing things..."

"There are nine people in total. Qionglin likes to follow ancient traditions; it's always nine. The nine members of the Investigation Team must first hold a hearing, summon all witnesses in the name of Qionglin, and have relevant personnel explain your assessment report to the members of the Investigation Team. Oh, Liu Ziyi insists on testifying for you personally and will also submit her report," Du Zhengyi said. "Do you want some water?"

Luo Qi wasn't very concerned about water right now. "Does that mean as long as five people think I am safe, I'll be fine?"

"It is not entirely a matter of the minority obeying the majority; the members of the Investigation Team must reach a unanimous opinion," Du Zhengyi said.

"How can they reach a unanimous opinion?"

"That is a matter for them; they will have their own meeting under the supervision of Liu Li," Du Zhengyi said.

"One of the nine people is Fan Shi's younger brother. How could he possibly be biased toward me?" Luo Qi asked.

"I don't think he is a problem," Du Zhengyi said.

Luo Qi looked at him in surprise, hesitated, and said nothing.

"In my view, he is a person with a bottom line." Du Zhengyi shook his head. Luo Qi didn't know what he was rejecting, as he hadn't said a word, but it seemed he had been seen through clearly by Du Zhengyi. "Mage society is not large. The vast majority of Mages live on Eurasia. In this small world, Great Mages cherish their reputation within the Core Level very much. If one or two of the nine people disregard the facts laid out before them and make an unfair decision, it will be very difficult for them to continue existing in the Core Level afterward. As I said before, the final Sandbox Test is very important, and Liu Ziyi's support for you is even more critical. Following the normal process, you would definitely be fine."

Luo Qi caught the implication of something unexpected. "An abnormal process has appeared?"

Du Zhengyi was silent for a moment. The people in the hallway stopped knocking, but the sound of arguing continued. Luo Qi could now tell that among those arguing were Guan Xinyue and Majiang, though Majiang said very little; he wasn't good at arguing. Perhaps Du Zhengyi had heard the ins and outs of the matter from these arguments, so his gentle silence just now was, to put it bluntly, eavesdropping. Luo Qi grinned.

"You can actually still smile," Du Zhengyi said in a low, disgusted voice. "This kind of Investigation Team meeting usually lasts a long time; I remember the shortest one in the past took two weeks. But now, the Highland Mages have intervened, demanding that the Investigation Team stop their investigation into you and hold the final meeting immediately."

"Why?" This really took Luo Qi by surprise; he had never thought the Highland Mages would have an attitude. "Demanding to stop the investigation into me? Could it be that the Highland Mages want to help me?"

"It would be better to say that Qionglin has angered the Highland Mages." Du Zhengyi stood up and paced a few steps in the small bedroom. "What do you call those things stitched together? Frankenstein's monster? I heard a Highland Mage said that phrase too. As soon as the Highland Mages came into contact with those things, they seemed to immediately discover their characteristics and flew into a rage. Sorry, I had never imagined in my life that Highland Mages could get angry; I haven't seen it with my own eyes, so I'm a bit skeptical—Majiang might have been exaggerating when he said that. That is where the change occurred; the Highland Mages demanded that Qionglin stop further testing on you, otherwise, they might cut off all cooperation with Qionglin in the future."

"Very good," Luo Qi said. "The sooner it ends, the sooner I'm free. The Highland Mages are much like humans who practice cultivation; their minds are broader than ours. It's reasonable for them to have this reaction."

"But holding the final hearing in such a rush—I don't know if Liu Li can suppress the situation. She is a remarkable Mage, and I respect her very much, but she is not a very slick or quick-witted person; she is not suited for this kind of occasion." Du Zhengyi paused, his eyes fixed on Luo Qi. "On the other hand, the Highland Mages have proposed that you fully integrate into the Highland Mages' circle. If you agree, there will be no need for Qionglin to continue investigating your safety. As for the issue of the Anchor... the Highland Mages have also promised that there will be no problems."