On both sides of the ancient and heavy gate of the school city, there was a huge turquoise sphinx prostrating on both sides.
The Sphinx on the left has a resolute, angular face that is of a man.
the one on the right has soft lines and a quiet expression, which is the face of a woman.
They have gone through wind and rain, like silent wise men, looking at every visitor with deep eyes.
Between the two colossi, a wide white marble staircase stretches upwards to the gate of the school city, which symbolizes wisdom and mystery.
Liu Qian and Janice climbed up the stairs to the entrance at the top of the stairs.
There was a semicircular desk where several assistant scholars in gray wool robes and different metal necklaces were sitting lazily, dealing with the menial matters that some old town residents came to consult or ask for help.
Liu Qian walked straight to one of the older-looking assistant scholars, took out a sealed letter from his arms and handed it over, his tone was calm and clear:
"Good morning, please let me know, we would like to meet Dr. Malwyn, here is a letter from a distant friend of his, I believe the contents will be of great interest to him."
Liu Qian's words and his appearance immediately attracted the attention of several assistant scholars around him.
They raised their heads one after another and looked at the silver-haired, purple-eyed, and extraordinary man and woman in front of them with scrutiny and curiosity.
The assistant scholar who took the letter wrinkled his nose slightly, and his tone was with a hint of imperceptible alertness:
"Reese?"
He apparently regarded them as Valyrian descendants from the free trade city-states.
Liu Qian nodded calmly.
Before coming, he had used the rubies provided by Chai Yi to perform simple illusion magic and change his appearance.
After all, compared to the Valyrian appearance that is relatively common in Essos, his true face may cause unnecessary trouble in Westeros.
To Liu Qian's surprise, the expected deliberate embarrassment did not appear.
The assistant bachelor only whispered a few words to his colleagues beside him, confirming whether Dr. Malwyn was in the school city at the moment and was convenient for meeting guests, so he called a young apprentice and ordered him to immediately send the letter to the school city and forward it to Dr. Malwyn himself.
The wait is not long.
Soon, the young apprentice ran back out of breath: "Doctor, please come in, please come with me." "
The apprentice led the two through the labyrinthine corridors and arched doorways of the academy.
Eventually, they stopped in front of a heavy oak door.
Before the apprentice knocked on the door, there was a rough, impatient voice like sandpaper rubbing from inside the door:
"Ah, come in quickly, what are you rubbing!"
The apprentice obviously had lingering fears about the temper of the owner inside the door, and when he heard the words, he quickly pushed open the door for the two of them, made a "please" gesture, and then slipped away as if he were running away.
Liu Qian and Janice walked into the room.
Dr. Malvin's office is more like an alchemist's cave filled with all kinds of strange objects and dangerous goods than a study.
Books, scrolls, parchments are stacked like mountains on the ground, on tables and even on chairs.
Oddly shaped glassware contains strangely colored liquids or powders, a few rusty metal instruments of no use are leaning against the corners, and the walls are covered with star maps, anatomical diagrams, and charts full of mysterious symbols.
Dr. Malwyn himself was buried in a messy pile of paper, his sloppy appearance as always.
He raised his head and scanned the two people who entered the door with those eyes that seemed to be sharp enough to penetrate people's hearts, and a trace of anticipation flashed in his eyes, and then he was replaced by a strong suspicion:
"I thought it was that Yidi boy? How..."
He grinned, revealing his mottled and strangely red teeth, and his tone was quite unpleasant: "That kid didn't dare to come by himself, so he sent you two messengers to send me a message?" "
"Dr. Malwyn, how can I be so rude."
Liu Qian smiled and remained calm.
He calmly clenched the ruby hidden in his sleeve, his mind moved slightly, and the illusion magic covering his face quietly faded like water waves, revealing his original face that belonged to a distant land.
This sudden change of face made Malwyn bounce off his chair suddenly.
He stared at Liu Qian's face as if he had seen a ghost, and after a few seconds, he suddenly realized "ah", and then his face showed an angry and funny expression.
He rushed to the door with quick movements, looked out vigilantly, and then quickly closed the heavy oak door tightly, even latching it.
"You bold and bold boy!"
Malwyn turned around, lowered his voice, and reprimanded in a tone of surprise and fear: "How dare you use the Shadowbinder's trick in a place like the Academy City?!" Do you know what this place is? "
Liu Qian raised his eyebrows, and his tone was a little teasing: "What? Could it be that when the scholars in the school see magic, they will immediately shout 'heresy' and 'witchcraft', and then burn me on the firewood? "
Malwyn rolled his eyes angrily, walked back to his table full of clutter, grabbed a handful of sour grass leaves and stuffed them into his mouth to chew, and said vaguely: "Hmph, that won't burn you right away, but this group of gray-robed 'sheep' is extremely stubborn, and what they despise most is the occult and magic.
If you perform your trick in front of them, they will first loudly reprimand it as a low-quality trick by street performers to cheat money, and then they will ask the guards to 'politely' 'invite' you out of the school city like a fly and put you on the undesirable blacklist forever.
Of course, behind the scenes, only the Seven Gods will know whether they will send someone to secretly study or deal with you. "
Liu Qian smiled slightly, no longer dwelling on this topic, and went straight to the core: "Doctor, let's get to the point, put aside these appearances, deep down, do you really think that magic is just an ethereal trick? "
Malvin looked at Liu Qian like a madman, and chewed the sour grass leaves in his mouth even more vigorously: "You are playing big under my nose, and you ask me if I believe in magic? I have seen this kind of 'trick' not a thousand times or five hundred times in a ghost place like Yaxia..."
Liu Qian didn't care about his reaction and continued to throw out his true purpose: "So, dear doctor, are you willing to leave this ivory tower that imprisons thoughts and come with me?" Go to me and help me solve a real magic puzzle? "
His gaze was sincere and full of unquestionable invitation.
Malvin's chewing stopped, frowning, and the protruding part of his forehead became more obvious: "Follow you?" Go to you? Solve magic puzzles? "
He looked Liu Qian up and down suspiciously, "Where are you from?" Where is your 'there'? "
"Stone Steps Islands." Liu Qian replied calmly.
"Cough! Ahem cough...
Malwyn seemed to be choked by his own saliva, coughed violently, his face flushed, and it took a long time for him to breathe.
He widened his eyes and pointed at Liu Qian with trembling fingers: "Stone Steps Islands?!" You... Are you the one who has been rumoring about those merchant sailors lately... The leader of the Oriental pirates entrenched in the Stone Steps Islands, right?! "
"I didn't expect that some of my deeds had already spread to the old town." Liu Qian's tone was playful.
Marvin snorted heavily and sat back down on his creaking broken chair: "The old town is the largest port in Westeros, there are more merchant ships coming from south to north than fish in the sea, so much has happened to the Stone Steps Islands, the trade route has been affected, how could the people here not know?!" "
He got closer, lowered his voice, and explored: "I see your posture... Is it to completely clean up that 'Prince of the Narrow Sea'?" "
Liu Qian nodded calmly, his tone was flat but powerful: "Yes, the Stone Steps Islands are now under my control." "
Malvin narrowed his sharp eyes and leaned forward slightly, as if to see through Liu Qian's appearance to see his soul: "Boy, what do you want to do with such great effort, crossing the ocean and unifying the broken islands and reefs where birds don't poop? The Iron Throne will not tolerate a pirate leader who has unified the Stone Steps sitting comfortably under their noses, as well as the free-trade city-states to the east, Reese, Telosi, and Mir...
You control their financial path, which is equivalent to killing them, and they will not let you go. "
Liu Qian spread his hands, a seemingly casual but unfathomable smile appeared on his face, and said the shocking answer: "If I say... My goal is to conquer the world and make the known world crawl at my feet, will you believe it? "
"Zheng... Conquer the world??? Malwyn seemed to have been struck by a bolt of lightning, his whole body froze, his mouth open enough to fit an egg, and his red teeth stood out in the dim light.