Starfire Judgement

When Bai Mo got home, he actually saw Bai Hanxing again.

He asked in confusion, "Why are you back? Weren't you guarding the mine vein?"

"Vacation."

Sitting off to the side, his mom, Zhuang Xingyan, who for once was not playing mahjong, added with a beaming smile, "And to arrange a blind date for him while he's at it."

"Oh~" Bai Mo let out a long, meaningful "oh," then asked Bai Hanxing, "Aren't there any female Military Mages in Middle Town? I remember Chief Instructor Gu Changying is single too, right?"

"Go, go, go. This is adult business. Kids stay out of it!" Bai Hanxing wore a worried look and waved Bai Mo away like he was shooing a fly, telling him to get lost and stop bothering him.

Bai Mo opened his mouth, but since he was not an adult yet, he really had no comeback.

It definitely was not because he had seen the lightning flickering in Bai Hanxing's hand. He was not that easily scared!

"Tch~"

Curling his lip disdainfully, he said to his mom, Zhuang Xingyan, "Mom, Auntie Song Qingyuan from the Mu Family said she wants to play cards with you tomorrow."

After saying that, he did not bother checking whether she had heard him and went back to his room, just as he was about to begin his daily cultivation.

"Buzz, buzz~"

His phone vibrated.

He usually kept it on silent. Only messages from people he had marked as special concern would trigger a response.

Bai Mo tapped it open to check. It was from Leng Qing.

Leng Qing: I forgot to tell you this afternoon.

Leng Qing: Around this time every year, Judicial Officers recommend outstanding talents to the higher-ups as reserves for Probationary Judges—Intern Judges. Are you interested?

Leng Qing: You don't need to decide too early. You have three months to consider it.

Bai Mo tapped a few times on his phone.

Bai Mo: ...

Bai Mo: Okay.

He turned off his phone and continued meditating.

He split his meditation time evenly between the Summoning Element and the Space Element.

In his Mental Sea, both his Space Element and Summoning Element cultivation were steadily increasing. He felt that the Space Element would still need a fairly long time before reaching the next stage.

As for his Summoning Element Stardust, Bai Mo felt that after this month, it should be able to break through to Elementary Level 3.

Bang!!!

Bai Mo looked at the thin Vine Branches binding his ankle. With a forceful step, he snapped them apart.

Then he raised his head and looked at Mu Nujiao opposite him. "Your Plant Element magic is getting smoother and smoother."

"But your binding methods are too monotonous. I'll teach you a way to tie people up. It's absolutely lethal in one strike."

"What method?"

Bai Mo opened his phone and showed her a proper picture of Kamei-ba.

"Pah!" When Mu Nujiao saw such an embarrassing binding method, her face immediately heated up, and she could not help punching him. She said fiercely, "Be serious!!!"

"I am being serious. Once this hits, they instantly die of social embarrassment. Just tell me, isn't that killing in one strike?"

Mu Nujiao ignored him and returned to the classroom in a few steps.

"No fun. What a waste of such a great prop as the Plant Element." Bai Mo shook his head but did not chase after her.

A little teasing was fine. If he kept going, maybe the first one to die of social embarrassment would be him.

June first was a good day, though not because elementary school students had the day off for Children's Day.

Because he was not an elementary school student, and there was nothing worth being happy about in envying others.

What was worth being happy about was that his Summoning Element had broken through to Elementary Level 3.

As the saying went, good news put a spring in one's step, but the person before him right now made him frown.

Looking at the person blocking his way, Bai Mo was somewhat surprised and said impatiently, "Lu Yangshan, what do you want with me?"

"There's an excellent opportunity to receive focused training from the Military Mages. I wonder if you're interested!" Lu Yangshan stood at the classroom doorway, blocking Bai Mo's path, speaking with a proud, unruly smile.

Hearing this, and considering his identity, Bai Mo did not need him to say it to know what this was about.

Demon. It was still more suited to Mo Fan.

Still, why was this guy studying at their school too? What an eyesore.

This was the guy who had strutted around in front of him every day when they were kids, even trying to take him in as a little underling.

What kind of gangster nonsense was that? Later, he learned that the guy had wanted to imitate Hua Yuan from the upper grades and form his own clique.

Did he think his surname was Hua too!?

Brain-dead idiot.

"Not interested! Move." Bai Mo spoke coldly, too lazy to even spare him a glance.

"Hey, don't be so quick to refuse. Let me explain it properly. This is a good thing."

Bai Mo frowned, too lazy to keep tangling with him, and walked straight out.

An invisible force of repulsion rippled in front of him, directly pushing Lu Yangshan out of the way.

Then Bai Mo walked out without even looking at him.

"What's he acting so arrogant for? It's not like he's the only one who knows magic." Lu Yangshan glanced at Bai Mo's departing figure and curled his lip.

Remembering that his cousin Lu Nian had asked him to invite Bai Mo to join a plan that would receive focused training from Military Mages, Lu Yangshan felt rather resentful. Why couldn't he join?

But in any case, he had passed on the invitation, and he had already used the reward Lu Nian gave him. Since Bai Mo didn't know what was good for him, it had nothing to do with him anymore.

Lu Yangshan glanced at the people around him who were quietly watching the show, then returned to his own senior-year class.

After leaving school, Bai Mo gave up on going straight home. He asked Lingling whether Leng Qing was at Qingtian Hunter's Association, and after receiving an affirmative reply, he headed straight there.

Lu Yangshan might not know what this action of his meant, but Bai Mo did.

Lu Nian of the Lu Family, that madman, had his eye on him, Bai Mo.

Then again, it made sense. He already had three Elements now, and once his Summoning Element reached Intermediate Level, he would have four.

After all, high-quality creatures that met the Return to Origin Contract's requirements were hard to find. There were plenty of Warrior Level Servant or Commander creatures, and Bai Mo didn't think there was anything Lu Nian wouldn't do.

However, Bai Mo wasn't afraid. The Lu Family and the Bai Family were both among Modu's four great families, so they couldn't do anything to him that easily.

The problem was, it would be bad if that madman really went insane.

Of course, even if he went insane, Lu Nian wouldn't dare do it within Modu.

Otherwise, he would just be courting his own destruction.

But once he was out in the wilderness, he would have to rely on himself. He couldn't keep applying for protection from the family elders forever.

If those Super Level old men found out he wanted them to come protect him just because of a suspicion, they might beat him up first.

Besides, this was not a safe world. Those powerful elders also had many matters to deal with. How could they possibly watch over him every moment of the day?

Therefore, he needed to protect himself.

First, he had to increase his strength. Second, he had to find an umbrella to shield him.

At the end of the day, it all came down to four words: fear of consequences. At the very least, he had to stall Lu Nian for a while, until he had grown strong enough.

There was naturally no need to say more about increasing his strength. If he reached Advanced Level, he no longer needed to worry about Lu Nian.

Whether he fought or ran, he would have plenty of room to choose.

As for an umbrella...

Of course it had to protect him. Ideally, it would be an official force.

Bai Mo did not want a squad of Military Mages to suddenly show up with some order and demand his cooperation. It would be better to enter another system and fight poison with poison.

The Bai Family would work too, but it still wouldn't have a deterrent effect, because Lu Nian also had the Lu Family backing him.

But if he had another identity, things would be different.

Why had Lu Nian insisted on using Mo Fan as the final test subject in the original work?

Wasn't it because Mo Fan had no power or influence, and was a naturally Dual Element mage who met the conditions but lacked enough strength?

Why didn't he look for an Advanced Level or even Super Level mage with higher cultivation? Wasn't it because they were unwilling, and he couldn't do anything to them?

Mo Fan was different. He was easy to control. Though he was a genius, a dead genius was no longer a genius.

Only a small number of people would be angered for his sake. Even if Lu Nian failed, he could pull a few strings and continue to get away with it.

Unfortunately for him, he was punished.

By the same logic, he, Bai Mo, was the same. If he really died...

Some people in the Bai Family would grieve, and there would definitely be people who took action, but not everyone would. Brother Xun had been right: human joys and sorrows did not connect.

Lu Nian might pay a heavy price, but he would not necessarily die. The Lu Family would protect him, perhaps after giving up some benefits.

Those who wanted Lu Nian to pay the price would then begin to hesitate.

But if he joined an official force, such as the Judgement Association...

Then Lu Nian would have to weigh things carefully. What crime was it to assassinate a pillar of the nation?

Unless he was like Mo Fan and had made tremendous contributions to the country.

Otherwise, whether the Lu Family still wanted to do well or not was hard to say, but they definitely would not want Lu Nian to do this, nor would they support him.

Therefore, Bai Mo came to Qingtian Hunter's Association, preparing to talk with Leng Qing about becoming an Intern Judge.

The Judgement Association was a magic organization unique to the Nine Provinces, dedicated to judging heretics and arresting criminal mages.

It was basically the Nine Provinces' Court of Inquisition and Holy Tribunal, except with a few more rats mixed in.

He planned to work there for a while, then quit once he reached Advanced Level. What he wanted was simply an identity.

Besides, for a Judge to deal with scum like Lu Nian was a Sacred Duty.

He could also pick up some Judgement Association resources along the way.

He had heard the Judgement Association's benefits were excellent. Every official Judge had a chance to advance to Advanced Level.

That was only one of the more widely known benefits. There were many others, and Bai Mo was just about to ask Leng Qing about them.

"Big Sister Leng Qing, are there any benefits to becoming a Judge?"

"That depends on the choice you make," Leng Qing said with a serious expression.

Hearing that, Bai Mo set down the coffee in his hand and asked in confusion, "What choice?"

"There are two kinds of Judges in the Judgement Association. One is an ordinary Judge like me, who accepts tasks assigned by superiors step by step, fulfills their duties, and completes them diligently. Naturally, they receive rewards from the organization."

Leng Qing continued explaining to Bai Mo:

"The other kind is called a Starfire Judgement Envoy. They also need to swear an oath to the Oath Tree never to betray the organization, but they are relatively free and have no superiors. They're rather mysterious, and even I don't know who their highest controllers are."

"The assessment methods for these two kinds of Judges are different."

Bai Mo raised his brows. He was quite interested in this, because of the words "relatively free." From the sound of it, he also would not be managed by the higher-ups of the Judgement Association.

So he picked up the teapot, refilled Leng Qing's already empty cup, and urged her on:

"Big Sister Leng Qing, tell me more about these Starfire Judgement Envoys?"

Leng Qing nodded and took a sip of tea.

"It's said that Starfire Judgement Envoys were specially created for people with outstanding abilities like you. Most of these people are unwilling to be restrained, but they are also extremely capable, making them excellent forces for assaulting difficult targets, assassination, tracking, investigation, infiltration, and counterespionage."

After a pause, she continued:

"Taking all of this into consideration, the management over Starfire Judgement Envoys is relatively loose, while their information is kept absolutely confidential.

"At the same time, they do have ranks, such as Judicial Officer and Chief Judge, but they hold no authority. They are not subordinate to one another, cannot mobilize ordinary Judges from other units, and are not governed by the Chief Judges of other branches. As for Starfire Judgement Envoys within the same system, they likewise have no command authority over them."

"Therefore, Starfire Judgement Envoys have no fixed missions. Their missions are relatively free; they take them themselves from the Starfire Net, though they are also harder to complete.

"Also, they must complete at least one mission every six months, or their status as a Starfire Judgement Envoy will be revoked."

"What about the rewards?" Bai Mo nodded, his eyes flickering slightly to show he understood. So it was an honorary position, basically. And the organizational structure of these Starfire Judgement Envoys sounded very simple: the authorities hired relatively trustworthy and capable people to help them handle certain matters.

It fit his requirement perfectly. He only wanted the identity of a Judge.

At the same time, he was also thinking—

In the original story, that mysterious gray-white man in the Ancient Capital who wrapped himself up tightly, and Blue Bat...

They fit the setup of these Starfire Judgement Envoys very well.

Leng Qing smiled. She had known he would ask, so she continued:

"Every mission has a corresponding cash reward, but what's more important are Judgement Points!"

Bai Mo's eyes lit up. A dedicated organizational currency; it should be quite useful, right? So he asked:

"Judgement Points? What are they used for? Merit?"

Leng Qing shook her head. "No. Judgement Points can be used to exchange for all kinds of heavenly treasures and earthly resources owned by the Judgement Association, or resource intelligence, as well as access rights to Cultivation Holy Lands in various places."

After saying that, she thought for a moment and gave an example.

"For instance, Pearl Institute's Three Steps Tower costs twenty points a day within the Judgement Association. Another example would be Spirit Seeds; one costs one hundred points."

Hearing this, Bai Mo's eyes shone even brighter. But then he thought of a certain shameless membership advertisement and asked again:

"Is this resource vault fully open? Can anything be exchanged with points?"

"For Starfire Judgement Envoys, the resource vault is fully open. But for ordinary Judges, access is comprehensively determined based on their rank and the amount of Judgement Points they have."

After listening, Bai Mo understood.

"So this Starfire Judgement Envoy is basically a Hunter with an official identity?"

"More or less."

"Then, Big Sister Leng Qing, why don't you become a Starfire Judgement Envoy?" Bai Mo was puzzled. Logically speaking, shouldn't Starfire Judgement Envoys be more popular? They did not need to take part in the regular judgement system, which meant they would not come into contact with all those annoying messes either.

I do the work, you give me benefits. The relationship between both sides in this Starfire Judgement setup was so plain and unpretentious.

"I'm not strong enough." Leng Qing glanced at him and continued:

"The assessment for Starfire Judgement Envoys is strict. The first requirement is strength: Intermediate Level or above, with the ability to defeat two elite mages of the same level or two demon beasts."

Hearing this, Bai Mo immediately understood the difficulty.

Leaving aside the fact that one Warrior Level creature was worth four or five Intermediate Level mages...

Just defeating two elite Intermediate Level mages working together was already no easy task.

Elite mages had absolutely been tempered by blood and fire. Their magic was refined, and their combat experience was abundant. More importantly, at the very least, both of their elements would be above the second tier of Intermediate Level.

That place wasn't so easy to take on.

Demons were even worse. One was manageable, but the difficulty of two was not as simple as one plus one.

However, he thought of how Leng Qing had said she wanted him to make a choice, as if she was hinting at something. So he said, "Sister Leng Qing, do you want me to join this Starfire Judgement Envoy?"

"Exactly!" Leng Qing nodded. "Like I said, the two tests are different. You're a genius whose name is on the Talent Ranking, and you even helped me solve a major case, so you have the right to choose. Otherwise, you could only undergo the ordinary assessment. At the same time, the Judgement Envoy system is very mysterious, and it doesn't have some of the problems that exist within the Judgement Association."

"However, no matter which one you choose, there's a one-year observation period first. Only after passing that will you take the formal assessment."