Chapter 64: Gushan Guard

"Battle Mages are not easily held accountable, but you should know that once one of us has a problem, we have an obligation to handle it," the man said in a low voice.

Du Zhengyi glanced to the right; two more figures had appeared in the pine forest. They were more robust than the average Mage, looking more like hired thugs. They were dressed like ordinary humans out for a morning jog, wearing black hoodies with the hoods pulled tight over their heads, their gazes fixed coldly in this direction.

"Han Yi has filed a report and charges against you," the man urged, speaking in a commanding tone. "Explain this."

Du Zhengyi looked to the left again. Further away, energy was also flashing; nearly an entire squad of Battle Mages had gathered in the graveyard within the pine forest. Such a grand display was rare; even when capturing a Great Mage, there was no need for so many Battle Mages to gather at once. Thinking of how troublesome he must appear in their eyes, Du Zhengyi couldn't help but laugh.

Aside from the man who had spoken earlier, no one said a word. A flash of displeasure crossed that man's eyes. "Be careful, child."

Du Zhengyi turned his gaze back and couldn't help but laugh again. "It seems Han Yi wasn't hurt that badly if he could get up to file a complaint so quickly."

"Do you have nothing to say in your defense regarding his accusations?" the man said with authority. He was extremely thin, and his Adam's apple bobbed as he spoke, making it even more prominent.

"Han Yi was running around Qionglin like an idiot and ran right into the claws of a Qiongqi; what does that have to do with me?" Du Zhengyi said. He tilted his head slightly, continuing to track all the energy in the graveyard and calculating silently as he spoke. "Does he not even know that a Qiongqi only has developed dynamic vision and can only see moving objects clearly? Han Yi must be embarrassed and angry, but that's not how you settle scores."

"I know your abilities, and I know you have always been cunning, Du Zhengyi," the man said. "Most importantly, your sense of morality is becoming more and more like a Qiongqi's."

Du Zhengyi finally turned his head, looking at him with slight surprise. His dark brown pupils widened slightly before contracting again in the light. "What do you mean?" he asked, his face darkening.

"I am more inclined to believe that things are as he said: you lured him into the Scavenger's territory," the man said, his resolute eyes staring straight at Du Zhengyi from beneath his gray hair. "After all, among all the Mages, you are the only one who has lived in Qionglin since childhood; even a Venerable might not be more familiar with Qionglin than you."

"So you've come to make a presumption of guilt?" Du Zhengyi said indifferently.

"Why exactly did you return to Qionglin yesterday?"

"You just said I've lived in Qionglin since I was a child; whenever I want to reminisce about my childhood, I return to Qionglin," Du Zhengyi retorted tit-for-tat.

"What mission were you executing? How did you discover that Li Xu was a Lotus Burner? What is the evidence?"

"I was executing Pei Shu's mission and am only responsible for reporting to Pei Shu."

The man took a deep breath, as if delaying an outburst of anger. "Always using Pei Shu as a shield—do you think it works every time? Qionglin doesn't just have Pei Shu as a Venerable, and a Venerable is not the emperor of the Magic World. In terms of ability, you are our brother, but deep down, do you truly consider yourself one of us?"

Du Zhengyi did not answer his question, looking at him in silence.

"No matter what mission we are executing today or who assigned it to us, our fundamental identity is that of a Gushan Guard. I hope you haven't forgotten this ancient duty," the man said, his voice as dry as branches scraping in the cold wind of a winter forest. "We gathered here today because all the Guardians held a discussion this morning and unanimously determined that your morality has developed a problem."

Du Zhengyi nearly choked, but he realized in the next moment that the man hadn't lost his mind; he was serious, and all his colleagues were serious too. They had ambushed him in an abandoned graveyard; they were truly intending to deal with him, and they had even chosen a time when Pei Shu was away. He had no time to ponder if there was some deeper reason for this, or if it simply stemmed from a very barbaric dissatisfaction—they were jealous of him, and simply loathed him.

But the man continued, announcing, "The mortality rate of your companions is far higher than the normal Guardian mortality rate."

Du Zhengyi frowned and asked with equal disgust, "Because I always execute the most dangerous missions, and because the companions assigned to me are always idiots, the one in the wrong is me?"

Suddenly, as if a wind had blown through the pine forest, Du Zhengyi felt a chill in his heart. He realized it wasn't wind; it was the power of energy poised to erupt—it was anger. He hadn't realized he had incited such public outrage.

"You have indeed executed many dangerous missions, but none of the people assigned to you were weak; everyone was above the average level of a Guardian." The man's voice became even lower and colder, enough to freeze Du Zhengyi's heart. "Under these circumstances, we suspect you have developed certain dangerous tendencies. We hope you will cooperate and return to Qionglin to undergo a Yajian test."

"To test if I should also be locked in the underground Cube?" Du Zhengyi said.

"Ensuring that the most aggressive Mages are harmless is the constant duty of the Gushan Guard," the man said in a flat voice.

The wind suddenly picked up, and a blizzard swept through the early spring pine forest, raging over this graveyard. The hem of Du Zhengyi's suit jacket was blown up by the wind. He was not distracted by the sudden change in weather; even though his vision was blurred, he raised a Shield to block the attack. The one who had stabbed him was the man's brother, the one who had seemed to be daydreaming the whole time.

There were attacks on both his flanks. The blizzard had been created by the Mages behind him, and particles of energy fell with the snowflakes, omnipresent, disrupting the space around him. In such an unstable environment, he had no way to perform Space Travel. This was a well-coordinated siege, a tailor-made package designed for Du Zhengyi's characteristics.

"If it's for the sake of survival, you know I've never cared about hurting people," Du Zhengyi said, looking straight at the captain through the gaps in dodging attacks.

"That is exactly why we are taking you back," the man said steadily. "I heard that your energy is far from what it used to be, so your combat style is becoming more and more like an assassin's. I wonder if that's true."

"You can try it yourself," Du Zhengyi smiled. The moment an arrow was about to pierce his body, he vanished abruptly.

The man's expression changed. "Why can he still travel?"

Before his words had even finished, Du Zhengyi appeared behind him like a ghost, pressed close to him. The arrow he had been holding forward appeared in the man's abdomen along with his Shixian. The man let out a cry of pain.