Chapter 509: Seven-Day Hearing (9)

"The first step: assess the damage." Xiang Qian held up a finger. "We know Luo Qi is fully capable of stopping the respiratory function of a living being; I have personally seen him easily modify a person's basic physiological reactions. If terminating vital signs counts as a Level 10 ability for him, then he actually only used a Level 1 ability when attacking Dai Wei. Everyone, am I correct?"

A few people nodded, and Xiang Qian held up a second finger. "The second step of the process: refer to the motive. The specific circumstances under which the attack occurred are crucial. Humans have a saying that even a rabbit will bite when cornered; under extreme circumstances, a High-energy Mage certainly has the right to choose to attack the other party. Therefore, I must determine the exact reason for Luo Qi's actions."

Several Mages lowered their heads to search for information. Liu Xiuyun still had memories of this part of the information, and he spoke first, "I participated in that inquiry into Luo Qi. According to him, it was because someone was buying Du Zhengyi's life on the Black Market through Dai Wei. I thought this point had already been proven? Is there no evidence?" He indeed had doubts about this point; like many Great Mages working in Qionglin, he had never stepped foot into the Black Market in his life and did not understand things at that level.

Liu Li thought for a moment and said, "The Zhouqiao Grass Market would never voluntarily admit to being involved in such a matter. Add this to the memorandum, and after today's meeting ends, urge the Execution Mages to accelerate the evidence-gathering process."

"Wait, Teacher Liu." Wusu suddenly said with a smile, "Did you just say someone wanted to kill Du Zhengyi?"

Liu Li glanced at him. "Yes."

"Then there is no need to gather evidence for this matter." Wusu laughed. "I personally received a widely distributed bounty post a while ago."

The woods went silent for an instant; including Zhou Quan, nine pairs of eyes stared at him.

Wusu smiled slightly. "Nothing strange about it. I have a lot of free time, so I have time to develop a personal hobby. I like to solve troubles that others cannot solve. Ah, don't misunderstand; I don't take jobs that involve killing."

Liu Li's eyebrows arched. "Mage Wusu, what do you mean? You knew about the bounty on Du Zhengyi's life at the time?"

"Yes," Wusu admitted.

"But you didn't think to report it to Qionglin?" Liu Li said in astonishment.

Wusu laughed. "If it weren't for the fact that the bounty for killing Du Zhengyi was shockingly high, I would have forgotten about it entirely." He paused, and as if that wasn't enough, he added, "If any of you were threatened by bounty hunters, I would certainly report it immediately. For a Battle Mage to be put on a Jianghu Kill Order is not exactly a strange thing. Supervising the Black Market is the duty of the Qionglin Security Committee; such matters fall under the Security Committee's jurisdiction, and I cannot overstep my authority."

Liu Li's face was full of anger, and Peng Ruxin also looked coldly at Wusu. Wusu returned the smile. "I must also add that the tone and style of the bounty post were truly low-class. Are Luo Qi and Du Zhengyi friends?"

"Inseparable," Zhou Quan said from the side.

Wusu said, "Then that is not strange. What does Dai Wei do?"

"He hangs around with Yao Yu; he's also a broker," Zhou Quan said without hesitation.

"So Du Zhengyi's bounty post must have something to do with him," Wusu said. "However, ordinary people wouldn't strike so hard against a middleman. If Luo Qi was trying to force out who the mastermind was, there are no reports of Luo Qi causing further harm, right?"

"None," Zhou Quan replied. "I can be certain."

Xiang Qian blew out a breath. "Then Dai Wei himself must be one of the initiators of the Jianghu Order. Search for some of Dai Wei's background; he isn't off the record too, is he?"

Zhou Quan nodded, pondered for a moment, and his mind reconnected with the crystal storing the data. After a few breaths, he said in surprise, "Dai Wei... Dai Wei's family has an intersection with Du Zhengyi. His younger brother is a High-Reaction Mage who was captured by Du Zhengyi himself and is currently locked up in the Qionglin underground. Unfortunately, this family loved that little bastard very much; his parents once retaliated by attacking Du Zhengyi and were heavily punished by the Security Committee as a result. After his parents had their Magic suppressed, they were exiled to human society. Dai Wei has been drinking heavily ever since and has spent most of his time lingering in the Black Market."

Liu Li frowned in disgust and pressed her thin lips together.

Xiang Qian laughed heartily upon hearing this. "I'll ask one more thing, Mage Wusu: is there still a Jianghu Order out to kill Du Zhengyi?"

Wusu shook his head. "It was revoked after about two days."

"Then I don't think Luo Qi's behavior was excessive," Xiang Qian said, looking up. "Mage Liu has always worked in education and understands children well. At Luo Qi's age, if he hadn't done something like this, it would actually seem hypocritical."

Liu Li did not voice agreement with her somewhat arbitrary conclusion; her own warrior-like personality naturally made things sound simple. However, Liu Li did not mean to object either. Her gaze slowly swept over everyone at the conference table.

Bailida said, "He could have taken a better approach. He could have notified Qionglin, or at the very least, he should have notified an adult."

Liu Xiuyun really couldn't listen anymore. "Mage Baili, Luo Qi had just nearly died in Qionglin at that time. Do you think he could trust Qionglin under those circumstances?"

Bailida, however, seized the opportunity. "I also know that Luo Qi has no trust in Qionglin at all. Under these circumstances, we must be more cautious in judging his credibility. To be honest, I highly doubt whether a seven-day meeting is enough."

"Mage Baili!" Xiang Qian said impatiently. "According to you, how long does the meeting need to last to be considered long enough? Do we need to appoint a monitoring team to follow and observe Luo Qi until he enters the crematorium?"

"You... Mage Xiang, how can you speak like that? It's too impolite!" Bailida said angrily, his complexion flustered.

"I really don't know what's wrong with you. Do you have a grudge against that child? Are you here to pick a fight?" Xiang Qian said bluntly.

"I can say responsibly that I have a clear conscience; everything I do is for Qionglin, for the peace of our entire Magic World. I don't know that child Luo Qi at all, and I have no dealings with the entire Luo family," Bailida said, tapping the table with his finger. "It is you all who are interesting. Venerable Liu Li completely shields her own student, and Mage Xiang is merely executing Venerable Liu's will. Mage Fan Ning, because of Venerable Fan Shi, your position is awkward, so you don't even dare to speak. Mage Peng, you are the Secondary Mage of the Security Committee; your Chief Mage is Li Xu, and your stance is also quite awkward; you don't even want to speak sitting here. Mage Yun, I heard you have a good relationship with the Luo family; don't think I don't know that Doctor Luo saved your son. As for Mage Sanchun, I see you don't want to take responsibility at all; you have no interest in the good or bad of Magic society and are extremely lacking in social responsibility. Mage Liu Xiuyun, Luo Qi's file has problems, and that is your department's responsibility; naturally, you hope he is innocent to reduce your own losses. Mage Wusu, you have always been frivolous and unorthodox; I think you probably even find Luo Qi quite amusing, don't you?"

For a moment, the forest conference room went quiet. Liu Xiuyun looked at Bailida in astonishment. Just as he was about to speak, Xiang Qian spoke first. "I request an investigation into Mage Bailida. The point of evidence is whether Mage Baili has any intersection with the Luo family or Du Zhengyi."

(End of chapter)