Chapter 513: Seven-Day Hearing (13)

"You know I am his friend," Du Zhengyi said. "Anything I say will naturally have a subjective bias."

Liu Xiuyun waved his hand, as if brushing away flying insects in a tropical rainforest, or perhaps brushing away the thoughts that had been buzzing in his head these past few days. "It doesn't matter. I have listened to so many others; now I want to hear what someone who truly understands him has to say."

The cigarette in Du Zhengyi's hand had burned out; he made the butt vanish into thin air, then shoved his hands into his trouser pockets. "Luo Qi is a good person."

Liu Xiuyun nodded, waiting quietly for him to continue.

"The most common kind of good person, the kind of useless good person who wouldn't bully a kitten or a puppy. Mage Liu, do you think I'm fobbing you off? Actually, I'm not; that is the reality. He is an ordinary person. He has a conscience—a thing that is rare these days because a conscience makes people uneasy. He also has a sense of morality; everyone knows one should be moral, but few can afford it. Like most people, he doesn't have much capital to cope with conscience and morality, so he is neither a hero nor a saint; he simply does his best to look after and protect everyone he knows. I cannot say how much heavy virtue Luo Qi possesses, nor can I say that you will definitely like him once you get to know him. That would be a lie; he is no little angel, and sometimes he can be particularly annoying. In fact, quite a few people end up particularly disliking him once they get to know him," Du Zhengyi said.

Liu Xiuyun was completely stunned, looking in confusion at the blunt, mercilessly candid Du Zhengyi, yet he saw a warm smile on the corner of Du Zhengyi's lips.

"But for me, the more I know him, the more I like him. Humans spend a hundred-year lifespan constantly socializing, Mages spend a two-hundred-year lifespan constantly waiting, but how many people can we actually meet in a lifetime who make your heart feel joy?" Du Zhengyi said lightly. "So if this is a private conversation, I am speaking from a private standpoint, requesting that you give him a chance."

Liu Xiuyun opened his mouth wide; Mages are not a race that wears their emotions on their sleeves, and the tone of Du Zhengyi's voice was as if he were discussing the grammar of Ancient Spells with him, yet he was now struck by intense emotion. This feeling made him feel exposed, as if a wild beast had torn through his fur, as if digging three feet into the ground had revealed the roots of a great tree.

Du Zhengyi smiled slightly. "Mages take survival as their primary need, suppressing many other needs. Luo Qi often says, we have no art, no sense of humor, no life, only survival."

Liu Xiuyun recovered a little, realizing he shouldn't be rudely staring straight at the other person. "I know Luo Qi has been walking the path toward becoming human. Has he... succeeded?"

"He is very successful, full of human nonsense, a good-for-nothing Mage," Du Zhengyi said. "But also a very normal, very ordinary human."

"A pretty good ordinary person?" Liu Xiuyun understood his words.

"Yes." Du Zhengyi nodded. Liu Xiuyun was momentarily distracted, as if he saw a trace of regret and sadness in his eyes, but how could the God of War of the Qionglin have such emotions? Du Zhengyi continued, "It is a pity he has to live in our world; he can only slowly become hardened. This world once turned him into a human; I hope this world can give him time to let him turn himself back into a true Great Mage."

Liu Xiuyun did not know what to say, but a hopeful thought rose in his chest. "If there is one person who can win time for him, it must be you. I believe everyone with a conscience knows that Luo Qi is actually our future, the only one with the ability to succeed Venerable Pei Shu. Perhaps you becoming his friend, becoming someone who helps him, is just the future the Ancestor arranged for us."

For some reason, he noticed that there was not much joy on Du Zhengyi's face, though it was difficult for an average person to discern anything from the face of a deliberately guarded Battle Mage.

"Then I am leaving," was all Du Zhengyi replied.

He had never seen a younger Mage in the Qionglin more impolite than Du Zhengyi.

He nodded helplessly, and Du Zhengyi walked toward a small path in the rainforest.

"Wait," Liu Xiuyun suddenly called out. "Mage Du."

Du Zhengyi turned his head back; mist was already gradually permeating the dim forest, and his complexion appeared exceptionally pale in the gloomy light.

Liu Xiuyun walked forward a few steps, tripped by the tangled vines in the rainforest, and he stopped. "I searched all the records and could not find any information about you before the age of eight. Did you know that?"

Du Zhengyi's expression was very calm, and a smile even appeared on his lips. "That must mean you didn't search the right way."

Liu Xiuyun hurried forward two steps, staring at the strange young man. "You know?"

Du Zhengyi watched him quietly, his expression somewhat amused. "Know what?"

"Do you know where you came from to the Qionglin? Do you know who your parents are?" Liu Xiuyun asked.

"Of course," Du Zhengyi said. "I know where I came from, and I know where I am going."

Liu Xiuyun looked at him in astonishment until he bowed slightly, then turned and stepped onto the small forest path, disappearing into the depths of the mist-filled mountains like an elf in a human story. He stood there for a while, feeling lost.

A long time later, Liu Xiuyun returned to his room, his sense of loss replaced by a heavy sense of responsibility. He began to think seriously that they might truly be about to lose the rarest Mind Mage in a hundred years. He started flipping through Luo Qi's materials again, quickly browsing through Luo Qi's entire documented life. He didn't sleep all night; Luo Qi's entire life was almost etched into his brain. He carefully checked the history of Mages and the legends of Ancient Mages, wanting to find a precedent to deal with the current situation.

Until the day dawned again, he realized he had to attend the meeting. For the sixth day of the meeting, he organized the favorable materials he had found; regardless of whether they were useful, he intended to debate Bailida thoroughly for the day.

He arrived a full hour after the standard start time of the meeting. He had organized his materials on paper so he could better debate Bailida.

Because he was too hurried, he knocked his materials into disarray at the conference table. Zhou Quan kindly used Magic to help him gather them back, but ended up messing up his order. He had to rearrange the order of the materials, and just at this moment, he heard Bailida say with earnest sincerity, "I thought about it all night, and I solemnly apologize to everyone for my impulsiveness yesterday. Today, here, I want to express my final opinion—I believe Luo Qi is innocent and can be trusted."

Liu Xiuyun jerked his head up, staring fixedly at Bailida with his bloodshot, sleep-deprived eyes.

"Thank goodness," Xiang Qian said. "It's finally over."

Liu Li also let out a sigh of relief. Liu Xiuyun sat there blankly, staring dead at Bailida. He was no different; he was still the same Bailida, looking in good spirits, perhaps even having had a good night's sleep... but, no, this was all wrong.

Today, Bailida looked even more like an idiot than he did yesterday.

He stood up without realizing it; no one else in the conference hall raised any objections. Yes, just as Bailida had pointed out, Liu Li was shielding her student, Xiang Qian trusted Liu Li, Yun Maoran owed the Luo family a favor, Sanchun didn't care about anything other than Experimental Magic, and Fan Ning found it inconvenient to speak out in opposition. Peng Ruxin's department had just made a mistake, so he wouldn't speak up either. Wusu didn't care about anything; once everyone else agreed, he wasn't necessarily going to oppose any decision.

"It seems we can reach a consensus today," Liu Li said in a relaxed tone. "I also believe there is no problem with Luo Qi; of course, the Qionglin will keep an eye on him."

"Wait," Liu Xiuyun shouted. "I disagree."

"What?" Liu Li raised her head in surprise, looking at him in shock. "Mage Liu Xiuyun, you have always seemed to lean toward Luo Qi."

"Yes," Liu Xiuyun swallowed. He thought quickly. "I request that we follow the original plan and conclude the meeting in seven days."

"O... kay..." Liu Li said. "But what do you intend to..."

"I have one final hearing request," Liu Xiuyun said. "Li Xu..."

"Right, that criminal Mage, the High-Reaction Mage," Liu Li said unhappily. "We must have been blind to let him manage the security department; this is truly the most shameful thing in the Qionglin in a hundred years."

"Yes, but Li Xu recorded a very strange incident. It is said that a human monk was terrified upon seeing Luo Qi. I know Luo Qi once said that was because he subconsciously leaked his Mind Magic, and I once thought Luo Qi's explanation was fully sufficient." He had chosen to believe Luo Qi; he had not intended to bring this up to exacerbate Bailida's paranoia, but now the situation had changed. "However, I have carefully reviewed Li Xu's original records. According to his description, the human monk's level of fear toward Luo Qi was extremely deep, and other than that, I have not found any record of anyone fearing Luo Qi in any other documents. For the sake of caution, I request that the Mind Mage investigation team conduct a detailed mind investigation of that monk and submit the results tomorrow."

Liu Li considered for a moment. "Fine, your evidence request is accepted."

"Thank you." Liu Xiuyun bowed politely to Liu Li and turned to look at Bailida. Bailida was completely indifferent to the matter, as if he were talking about something he had long since lost interest in. He turned to Wusu; Wusu gave him a look that was half-smile, then looked at Bailida. He wondered if Wusu also felt that something was wrong. Whether or not that was the case, it didn't matter, because Wusu then buried his head and continued to paint vigorously on his tablet, preparing to finish his new painting.

(End of chapter)