Chapter 630: The Ancestor's Gift (19)

"I cannot be entirely certain," Mahjong said slowly, "but I think... the margin of error shouldn't be too large. They might be dead... or on the verge of death. However, distance reduces the binding possibility of the Medical Entanglement, so they might still be alive."

Luo Qi saw his complexion turn somewhat ashen, and he slowly added, "I hope they are still alive."

Everyone realized that the hope of the Old Mage and the others surviving was slim.

The gray news of death rose like thick fog between tombstones. When death reached their side, Luo Qi struggled to digest the shock, and the will of the Mind Mages surrounding him became shrouded in a layer of bleakness. At first, the silence pressed heavily upon the heads of these warriors. Luo Qi sluggishly recalled Xiang Qian's graying braids; she always reminded him of his grandmother back home. To Xiang Qian, she should have been more solid than the old family estate.

He found it hard to believe that such a person had died so easily. Subconsciously, he kept feeling that Mahjong had made a mistake; Mahjong didn't have a reliable look about him, and he hadn't truly studied how Entanglement worked in depth. It was only after a few seconds that he realized he had actually fallen into grief. He had forgotten that the beginning of grief is often the inability to believe in the event that occurred. The sudden news of death had left him no time to suppress his emotions deep down, nor had he guarded against the hatred that followed closely on the heels of doubt.

He heard Liu Ziyi shrilly asking the Lotus Burner, "You killed them? You can kill people and still stand here talking as if nothing happened?"

He also vaguely felt Guan Xinyue holding her tightly, preventing her from rushing forward, with Wen Lin helping her from the side. Someone else said something strange in a low voice, but he was in no mood to distinguish it; he was both sorrowful and irritable.

"Luo Mage!" He saw Zhao Jiaozhu looking at him with a half-smile, and then the smile vanished from his face; he looked as shocked as if he had seen a ghost. The Chaos around the clownfish seemed to become clearer. Then, it felt as if someone had pushed him very rudely. He was startled, and anger flared in his heart; he wanted to find out who had shoved him, and he would pay them back twofold.

"Luo Qi!" A woman's shrill cry pierced his chaotic brain. Perhaps it was the fragility in the female voice that made him hold back his brute force; he hesitated for a moment.

"Luo Qi!" This time it was a man's voice, one Luo Qi was exceptionally familiar with. The tension in his heart eased, and a hand gripped his shoulder, pinching him painfully, but it didn't feel like the shove from just a moment ago. He saw Du Zhengyi's eyes, and he looked deeply into them, almost seeing the world deep within those dark brown eyes. Those eyes did not flinch either. Of course it was Du Zhengyi; in this world, the only Mage who still dared to meet Luo Qi's gaze was Du Zhengyi.

Luo Qi snapped back to reality, meeting the various gazes that were speculating about him. He steadied himself. Zhao Laoda's gaze was perhaps the hardest to describe; beneath the mask of forced composure, he was barely concealing an equal dose of fear and desire.

"What is it?" Luo Qi asked Du Zhengyi in a low voice. He knew he must have had some sort of incident in public. Restraining the rising anxiety, he dared not make eye contact with anyone else. He rubbed his face, limiting his focus to Du Zhengyi's eyes.

He couldn't see anything on Du Zhengyi's face; there was a bit of world-weary boredom in his calm, no different from usual, as if everyone else were a bunch of fools making a fuss over nothing. Luo Qi almost wished for a stroke of luck, hoping that Du Zhengyi somehow hadn't really noticed.

Luo Qi stabilized his emotions and turned to the Lotus Burner, "Zhao Laoda, is the trap you set on the mountaintop the same as the one at the entrance?"

"If I had done such a thing, I wouldn't think there would still be an opportunity to talk about any cooperation with you here," Zhao Jiaozhu said indignantly. "I cannot say that I handled this matter with great nobility; if it could have been avoided, I would not have chosen this result. But..."

"But?" Luo Qi asked.

"A Mage's life is precious, and the sacrifice of a Battle Mage is priceless. I admire the choice of a Battle Mage," Zhao Jiaozhu said.

"What are you talking about?" Luo Qi said sluggishly, his mind scattered in several places.

An unbearable voice suddenly shouted, "Because the Seal Beast had already leaked out, right?"

Luo Qi turned his head in surprise. The person speaking was Wen Lin. One of her hands was still gripping Liu Ziyi's hand, completely unaware that the latter was currently struggling to open a Magic Detection Net. Wen Lin said angrily, "You have been investigating here for a long time. I have already learned just how perverted your people are. You must have already discovered that something was wrong with the Seal Land. It has been such a long time, enough for you to figure out the situation. What exactly is on the mountaintop? Is the leak of the Seal Land on the mountaintop? Something came out, right? You not only wanted to use Du Zhengyi, you also wanted to use us to clean up your mess!"

"With all due respect, the job of a Battle Mage is to clean up messes," Zhao Jiaozhu retorted unceremoniously.

The solidified silence fell like an iron gate. Luo Qi calmed down completely, or rather, he became clear-headed.

"As long as you are tired of the job of cleaning up messes, my doors are open to you at any time," Zhao Jiaozhu said straightforwardly. He looked at all the Battle Mages, and he was incredibly sincere when he said this. Luo Qi even believed that his words would be honored; if the Battle Mages were willing to move to his camp, even if they had been enemies a second ago, Zhao Jiaozhu would welcome their addition.

How many of those capable Lotus Burners who covered their faces might have once been Battle Mages? How many could have become Battle Mages? What would these people think at this moment? They were bound by Entanglement. But what exactly was Entanglement, and to what extent could it constrain their behavior? If Entanglement were truly perfect, then Du Zhengyi should have tied him up and buried him under the Qionglin long ago, shouldn't he?

Luo Qi spoke up, "At the very least, we can be sure of one thing now: when the Progenitor Mage kills, he doesn't care at all whether we are humans or Mages. No one has a get-out-of-jail-free card."

A new wave of silence spread through the crowd. Zhao Jiaozhu was wary of this silence and hurriedly said, "We should continue moving forward, although I know that now that this has happened, it will be even harder to get Du Zhengyi to trust us..."

Before he could finish his sentence, Du Zhengyi suddenly raised his head and said, "Begin."

No one reacted, and Luo Qi had no idea how he had begun, but when they entered just now, Luo Qi thought the Seal Land had awakened; that must have been an illusion. Because now, as Du Zhengyi finished that sentence, the empty corridor began to deform. Several Energy Crystals appeared on the walls, and the flowing radiance began to gather into obvious patterns, becoming more mundane, looking just like a few decorative paintings.

Several doors near them opened with a slight buzzing sound, and the rooms that had been bare just a moment ago were now extending furniture out from the walls.

"My god."

He heard Zhao Jiaozhu exclaim. Du Zhengyi walked to a wall with no expression, where a diagram with complex lines appeared.

Liu Ziyi squeezed over, "A structural map of the Seal Land?"

(End of chapter)