Chapter 388: First meeting with the Lord of the Epidemic

To be honest, this approach was so impolite that Li Lieqi stood far away, seemingly not wanting to acknowledge Yu Zao, lest she incur Li Qi’s wrath.

The male students also gave Li Qi apologetic looks, but they spread their hands, indicating that they couldn't stop her.

Indeed, although Li Qi had only met this student named Yu Zao once, he had a deep impression of her.

The extent to which this girl acted on her own whims could be called that of a Grandmaster; the first time she met Li Qi, she directly revealed her identity to him, showing no understanding of the atmosphere.

To be honest, this kind of personality is quite rare.

"Hey, why aren't you talking? You're spacing out again." Yu Zao reached out and waved her hand in front of Li Qi's eyes.

Then, she squatted down, turned her head back, and happily said, "No wonder this person's promotion speed is fast; he's a cultivation maniac! He doesn't even look at what he's eating when he eats!"

"Uh, student, so do you have something?" Li Qi finally fully disengaged from his thoughts and looked at Yu Zao in front of him with some helplessness.

This girl... she's only in her teens, right?

According to Mortals, she should be calling him uncle.

"Ah, you're awake." Yu Zao turned her head, squatted, and looked up at the seated Li Qi: "What was wrong with you just now? You weren't faking it, were you? Can anyone really be so immersed?"

"Uh, student, so, do you have something?" Li Qi repeated, emphasizing his tone.

"Wow wow! He's angry!" Yu Zao immediately stood up and shouted excitedly at the other students.

Li Lieqi slapped her forehead sharply and sighed deeply.

The other male students also silently took two steps back.

Li Qi also understood something.

Don't argue with children. Liu Canzhi had mentioned this person's situation before; she was just a troublesome kid.

So he put on a smile, nodded slightly towards Li Lieqi as a greeting, packed up his lunchbox, and prepared to eat elsewhere.

However, seeing him like this, Yu Zao came over instead and pulled him: "Wait, wait, wait! Don't go, don't go!"

Li Qi rolled his eyes, turned around, and stood straight: "So, student, what exactly do you want?"

"Nothing, I'm just curious, are all Shamanes like you?" Yu Zao curiously circled Li Qi, examining his appearance.

"Like me in what way?" Li Qi was puzzled.

"I've heard many people say that Shamanes are all mysterious and gloomy, liking to scheme behind people's backs, always melancholic and strange, messing with Gu, researching techniques like life lamps and soul flames, often accompanied by阴魂, manipulating ghost spirits to harm people, liking to deal with demons and monsters, disliking people, being reclusive, and that nothing good ever comes from getting involved with them." Yu Zao babbled on seriously.

"So I wanted to come and see, and then I found out it seems to be true! I've been watching you from behind for three days!" Yu Zao held up three fingers, her eyes wide as she spoke.

This expression, combined with her appearance, looked very cute at first glance.

But she was also very annoying, Li Qi really wanted to punch her.

"For three days, I've seen you arrive here on time every day, get your meal, eat it, go to the kitchen to do something, and then walk back. Your eyes are unfocused the whole time; it looks really scary. You haven't been doing some ghost-god technique that's damaged your Spirit Soul, have you?" Yu Zao asked, tilting her head.

"No, I was just thinking, that's all, student. If there's nothing else, I'll go now." Li Qi said.

He truly had no interest in dealing with children.

"No, you can't go. You look very wrong to me. I specifically found Lord of Pestilence to come over. Lord of Pestilence and I are both skilled in Spirit Soul injuries; at least you need to be checked." Yu Zao said.

Li Qi was stunned for a moment, looking at the students over there, and then at Yu Zao in front of him.

Hmm, why does the scene feel off?

How did the story turn into him being a reclusive weirdo, being cared for by a kind female student?

"Ahem, Li Qi, she's just messing around, and we really couldn't stop her. We're really sorry." Li Lieqi stepped forward at this moment: "However, your sudden half-month leave, and then being suspended immediately upon your return, was indeed a bit strange. After we told Yu Zao about this, she became interested in you, observed you for three days, and felt that something was amiss, which is why she suddenly came to disturb your meal today."

"It was indeed a bit rash, but after all, she's a child, and seeing that you're fine, we're relieved."

Li Lieqi stepped forward to explain.

Li Qi heard this and thought for a moment.

Indeed, from others' perspectives, he was quite eccentric.

Not to mention, Li Qi himself knew that his reputation at Imperial Academy was quite prominent, with many legends about him circulating in various places, such as getting an A on his first class, or Imperial Academy’s Chancellor personally teaching him.

So when his suspension notice was posted, quite a few people should have noticed.

Although he usually didn't care much, it seemed quite eye-catching at this moment. It was just that he usually didn't pay attention to these things, and now he was completely immersed in contemplating the boundary between spiritual and material entities, so he basically ignored the outside world entirely, making it normal for people to worry.

However...

Li Qi subconsciously began to doubt.

Even if someone was worried about his expression, they wouldn't really come up and try to treat him, would they? Is this a bit too eager? He didn't even know this Yu Zao; at most, it was a one-time encounter.

However, while Li Qi was thinking about these things, Yu Zao had already been carried away by Li Lieqi. As she walked, Li Lieqi was still greeting Li Qi, apologizing for disturbing him.

Given this, Li Qi felt a bit embarrassed.

So, he immediately said, "Wait, Yu Zao also has good intentions. A check-up won't hurt, and besides, those three over there, are they Lord of Pestilence?"

Saying Lord of Pestilence's name, Li Qi looked at the 'three' male students not far away.

Their appearances were different, their bodies were different, their cultivation levels were different, and they even had three different Spirit Souls. By all accounts, they were three different people.

However, in Li Qi's data stream vision, these three people had almost identical minds, and there was a subtle connection between them, as if three different computers were connected by a network cable.

In a sense, these three could form a 'fourth person'.

This characteristic, coupled with the name 'Lord of Pestilence', made Li Qi already think of something.

He wanted to interact with this Lord of Pestilence, so he might as well just agree.

Yu Zao, however, struggled happily at this moment: "See! I told you he definitely needed treatment. As fellow students, we should definitely help each other!"

"Helping each other isn't like this, sigh... Forget it, since Li Qi agreed, I won't bother with you." Li Lieqi shook her head helplessly, swayed her ponytail, and put Yu Zao down.

Lord of Pestilence, however, had one of his bodies step forward at this moment: "You can tell? As expected of Li Qi. Li Qi has told us many times about your strange and wonderful deeds. Seeing you today, you are indeed impressive."

"Aside from a few teachers, you are the first to see my true nature."

Lord of Pestilence said so, and then his three bodies suddenly overlapped.

It was very strange; the three bodies perfectly Fused, becoming a fourth person.

The Spirit Soul strength, body toughness, and even cultivation all directly Fused, increasing threefold!

He completely transformed into another person!

Li Qi's pupils contracted.

Because he saw that even the mind had changed; the original three spiritual entities had also Fused into one, which means... the previous three people died, and a brand new person was born from their remains.

What in the world is this Lord of Pestilence!

He just died, doesn't he care about the continuity of his mind?

In the process of contemplating 'I am I,' Li Qi once summarized a characteristic called 'self-identity,' which means that no matter what, a person must maintain continuity in Karma and time in order to say: I have always been myself.

But the Lord of Pestilence in front of him didn't care about this at all. He just committed suicide without hesitation and then created another existence with his own memories.

To draw an analogy, he... he actively handed over the identity of 'Lord of Pestilence' to a new person.

Li Qi had heard an analogy.

There is a kind of teleporter that can transport a person to another location at an extremely fast speed, but the principle is to replicate a person at the destination and then destroy the original person to achieve the purpose of teleportation.

Lord of Pestilence was like this.

This relationship was even the same as a Demonic Clone!

If Li Qi committed suicide now and let his Demonic Clone be Li Qi, it would be the same as what Lord of Pestilence just did.

Li Qi was dumbfounded; he destroyed his self-identity and didn't care at all.

"Wait, Lord of Pestilence, what in the world is this? Do you know what just happened to you?" Li Qi quickly walked up and said to Lord of Pestilence in astonishment.

"Huh? What's wrong?" Lord of Pestilence looked at himself: "Student, is there a problem?"

"You really don't feel anything?" Li Qi grabbed Lord of Pestilence's shoulder, looking very agitated.

He couldn't help but be excited.

The Lord of Pestilence in front of him was another solution to 'I am I'!

A solution that broke out of Li Qi's mental confinement and didn't care about self-identity.

Li Qi had never thought about this aspect before, because in his opinion, this was directly denying one's own existence, killing oneself.

However, judging from Lord of Pestilence's reaction, he didn't think there was anything wrong with it. There must be Lord of Pestilence's own logic and views, which might be another way of solving the problem.

Li Qi was very clear that there was no right or wrong in the Dao path. As long as one could continue walking, it was all correct. What everyone pursued was merely to keep walking, to walk further and further, until the end, until that supreme and unique Dao.

Therefore, being able to draw on others' ideas might also be a way to solve the problem.

"Feeling? What feeling?" Lord of Pestilence was a bit puzzled.

"Ahem, I apologize, I was a bit agitated just now. Allow me to explain in detail." Li Qi coughed twice, took two steps back, and first carefully examined Lord of Pestilence.

Lord of Pestilence... looked very unremarkable.

Unlike his astonishing origin, he himself was really hard to describe as having any distinguishing features; he was utterly ordinary, so much so that Li Qi had previously treated him as a passerby.

Moreover, in a place like Imperial Academy, any random passerby would be outstanding outside, after all, knowledge brings its own elegance. Everyone here is a Genius, a scholar, so someone so unremarkable is truly rare.

It could be said that he was so unremarkable that it became his distinguishing feature.

However, through True Knowledge Dao Resonance, Li Qi almost immediately discovered the reason for his lack of distinguishing features.

Because... it was 'simulated'.

Lord of Pestilence's body was not composed of cells, but of countless tiny insects.

They couldn't even be called insects; he didn't have the structure of insects, and they were extremely microscopic small structures, similar to single-celled organisms, but even smaller than cells.

These countless things, similar to single-celled organisms, formed a multicellular body and constituted the microcosmic world of the human body.

An unbelievable structure, completely different from common sense, even a body from another set of cognitions.

So, his human appearance... should be something he learned to change into.

To be able to pile up a non-frightening human form with these small things, he must have worked hard for quite some time.

Li Qi was conversing with Lord of Pestilence here.

On the other side, Yu Zao seemed to have suddenly discovered something. She pulled Li Lieqi: "Hmm... it seems this problem doesn't need me to solve it anymore. Let's go, Sister Li Qi, let's go eat first, and then come back to see them."

"Huh? Didn't you insist on dragging us over? And insisted on bringing Lord of Pestilence? Now?" Li Lieqi looked at Yu Zao in confusion.

"I just had a whim~, let's go, let's go, let's go eat, and let them two chat by themselves." Yu Zao pushed Li Lieqi and left here excitedly.

It was as absurd as when she arrived.

It was just like the ancient literati's 'arising with enthusiasm, returning when the mood is gone'.

Before going to bed in the middle of the night, one wants to visit a friend, so one gets up and leaves, walking all night until one reaches the friend's doorstep, only to find that the mood is gone, so one leaves without a word and goes home.

This was 'arising with enthusiasm, returning when the mood is gone'.

However, Li Lieqi always felt it wasn't that simple.

But she glanced at Li Qi and Lord of Pestilence over there; the two were indeed chatting happily, even finding a place to sit down.

Are these two... very compatible?

Was this the reason Yu Zao insisted on dragging Lord of Pestilence over?

Li Lieqi thought about these things and finally shook her head, deciding not to think about it anymore.

There was no need; she wasn't good at these things, and maybe she was just overthinking. Yu Zao was straightforward and innocent; how could there be so many hidden meanings?

Meanwhile, on the other side, Li Qi and Lord of Pestilence both began to value each other.

Because Lord of Pestilence discovered that Li Qi could actually see his vulnerable parts!

He was able to articulate the boundary between the individual and collective plague insects within his body, a boundary he had never been able to grasp precisely, which led to a great dissipation of power.

And just now, this student named Li Qi had exposed it with a single word.

As expected of the Immortal Realm! As expected of Chang'an!

It's truly a place where hidden Dragons and crouching tigers reside; any random person can solve a problem that has plagued him for so long!

Moreover, he seemed to want to gain something from him as well.