Chapter 604: Three Make a Crowd

Luo Qi's feet sank into the pile of sand and stone, and he struggled to pull them out. The stench of the monster's corpse rushed straight into his nose. He raised his head, and the pitch-black metal high walls assaulted his vision; his thoughts seemed to stagger for a moment. His heart drummed in his chest, slamming against his ribs as if it wanted to burst out of his torso. A faint, ethereal strain of music bypassed the back of his head, like rhythmic footsteps and applause, keeping time with his heartbeat; his heart almost began to pulse along with this rapid, ancient rhythm. He took a deep breath and resolutely suppressed this non-existent music.

He looked around. The high walls of black metal were exposed from the cracked sand, stone, and earth, as if real life had hatched from a dinosaur egg. The great ruins of the Ancient Mages had stepped out from illusory, distant legends. The pitch-black walls surrounded what Luo Qi recognized as the Titan Giant Hall; the last time he was in a hall like this, he had been captured very quickly. He restrained the anxiety and panic naturally arising in his mind and shifted his gaze to search for the figure that had just flashed by.

"Luo Qi, what's wrong?" Du Zhengyi grabbed his wrist. He let out a breath like a drowning person, only then realizing he had been holding his breath the whole time.

Luo Qi did not answer. He stared at the few figures at the end of the hall; his eyes saw their existence, but his Yajian declared they did not exist. It was like his bodily sensations and vision were out of sync, and he felt a strong sense of motion sickness.

But he didn't need to ask to know who would be in there. The Clownfish, who was always a step ahead of him, had come again. He glared at those people in annoyance and blurted out, "Well played! I'm such a fool; I actually thought you were going to lure him to the peak. I was still thinking about how to avoid being used by you, never expecting that I'd already fallen into the trap yesterday."

"Luo Qi." Du Zhengyi called his name again.

Someone transmitted a wave of laughter to him. Without bothering the air to vibrate for him, the sound went straight into Luo Qi's mind, teasing him with a double entendre, "But you've only just truly fallen to the bottom of the pit now, little brother. Is your ass sore?"

Luo Qi slammed his mouth shut. In the Consciousness World, he pushed back the Clownfish's Yajian and answered irritably, "Seeing the key right here, you're very excited, aren't you?"

"It's alright," the Clownfish's Yajian responded politely.

Just then, another Yajian that made Luo Qi extremely uncomfortable suddenly popped up, poking heavily and tactlessly at Luo Qi's Yajian. Like someone who had never used a telephone and thought they had to shout to be heard on the other end, Luo Qi's "ears" were almost deafened.

"Do you think you can still stop us from using the key?"

"Zhao, your ability to focus is truly strong, but you don't need to do this now. Please stay natural. Being overly targeted might cause a misfire; if Luo Qi's deep consciousness judges it as an attack, he might suddenly strike back. I suggest we try to solve the problem in a civilized manner."

"What the hell is going on?" Luo Qi was about to explode. "Why the hell did you even start a group chat? You let his Yajian into your head? You really have no shame."

A wave of amusement, "I absolutely trust the person I follow."

"My god, can you be any more shameless? That was a beautiful lick, Yu Shu. I have a frisbee here; do you want to fetch it for me?" Luo Qi responded with nausea.

That Yajian relaxed a little and chimed in smugly, "Great Mage Luo... it's so strange to call you that; you're still half a child."

"No need for formalities. It sounds like I'm calling my dad, I really don't dare to answer to it. Just call me Luo Qi, Leader Zhao," Luo Qi responded. "No... have you recently declared yourself a Venerable?"

"Let's talk about something you're interested in, Luo Qi. Do you think you can stop us from using—the key?" Leader Zhao's Yajian asked, almost smiling.

"The Du Clan can open the gate, why don't you try using your own blood? Or is it that you're just too much of a mongrel, and your own blood isn't pure enough?" Luo Qi asked, simultaneously feeling an irrepressible wave of anger rush over, as sobering as the smell of blood. At least direct Yajian communication had this one benefit: the person who wasn't a Mind Mage would be forced to be sincere here.

"You aren't wrong; my Du Clan bloodline is indeed very thin," that Yajian replied stiffly, unconsciously raising its aggression again, pointing like a sword blade, "I am willing to teach this talented little friend a lesson to correct your erroneous cognition. What makes you think I need your friend's blood?"

Luo Qi did not answer.

He received a wave of dangerous amusement, like the stench of a rotting corpse penetrating through paper that couldn't cover it, passing through the Clownfish's Yajian shield and stimulating Luo Qi's nerves head-on. "Do I need to turn the key in my hand?"

"Luo Qi." Du Zhengyi sensed it and turned his head to look at Luo Qi vigilantly.

In a layer of the Consciousness World, Leader Zhao whispered to Luo Qi, "I don't need to. As long as he stands here, he will activate the ruins; he only needs to stand here. Don't you feel it? This place is waking up; this temple is responding to Du Zhengyi's arrival. Come and witness the great power of the Ancient Mages, child. After witnessing a miracle, you will follow the true Mage."

"Oh? Then why don't you kneel down and follow Du Zhengyi?"

"What kind of comprehension is that? Your little friend is just a key; what he activates is the great legacy of the Ancient Mages," Leader Zhao said.

"A legacy is only passed down to one's own children; that's what a legacy is. If the Ancient Mages' legacy can appear for him, it means he is the descendant of the Ancient Mages, and you are not. Then why are you, an outsider grandson, so excited?" Luo Qi pondered quietly. "Isn't that the logic? A mongrel without the bloodline desperately singing the praises of a pure bloodline—it's truly ridiculous. Have you really thought about what you're actually following? Ideals? Truth? Cut it out, you just want power. No matter how much the Ancient Mages' legacy shocks me, it has nothing to do with you. If I wanted to worship someone, I'd rather worship Du Zhengyi. Are you sick?"

Silence persisted in the Consciousness Space. After a long while, the Clownfish's amusement rippled through the world, and Luo Qi disgustedly pushed his Yajian away.

"Venerable, don't waste time. I said it before, Luo Qi cannot be recruited. With me here, he isn't needed either." The Clownfish's thoughts smoothly transmitted a wave of gentle warmth, smoothing out the tension in the Consciousness Space like a spring breeze.

"What? Afraid I'll steal your job?" Luo Qi realized the Clownfish was subtly trying to control Leader Zhao. The latter might not know his joy and anger were being influenced; he was thinking autonomously, but emotions could also influence him to a certain extent. He interjected, "Mr. Zhao, are you sure you know what is buried here?"

He transmitted a wave of cold sensation toward Leader Zhao, like a chilly breeze blowing across the back of the neck in the middle of the night, and that Yajian shuddered.

(End of chapter)