Dragon Raja: Lu Mingfei Returns from the Elden Ring

“What do you mean by ‘consider’?” Lu Mingfei laughed and patted Lu Mingze’s shoulder hard. “We’re ‘brothers,’ you can die as you please, but if I die, you can forget about living.”

“That’s right, that’s right,” Lu Mingze said with a smile.

Seeing the harmonious scene between the brothers, Qiao Weini momentarily forgot what she wanted to say. After regaining her composure, she immediately asked, "Where is Lu Lincheng?"

“He’s different from you. The Secret Party can’t allow me to protect a high-ranking member of the Doomsday Faction. I need to stabilize morale,” Lu Mingfei said.

Giovini looked out the window at the radiant light. Shen O Lu Mingfei had already traversed the earth's surface and floated into the air, the intense light like the rising sun, dazzling the snowfield. After the blizzard subsided, distant mountains appeared, the light piercing the cold air and casting a chilling glow onto the mountain walls. The snow-covered mountains shone like gold; in this seemingly barren land at the edge of the world, no more magnificent sight could be called a miracle.

"Are you sure you need it?" Giovanni's brain short-circuited for a moment.

"Of course, but protecting you is still no problem," Lu Mingfei said, shrugging.

Suddenly, Qiao Weini reached out and rubbed Lu Mingfei's cheeks. "How do I know if my objectivity has been altered? Are you really my Mingfei?"

Rather than verifying its authenticity, her action seemed to carry more of a sense of pride and a feeling that "if I don't try it now, I won't have another chance."

"Let's pack up, we should go." Lu Mingfei broke free.

His purpose in coming here was not only to personally take Giovanni away, but also to deal with Caesar and Percy. The bodies of these two brothers had already been physically consumed by the former head of the Gattuso family. For Lu Mingfei, creating biological entities like the Supreme Will was beyond his capabilities, but cultivating soul containers in the form of "eggs" was still achievable.

Chu Zihang's father possessed a bloodline medium, making it easiest to cultivate an "egg." However, whether it could hatch and the length of the hatching time depended entirely on the strength of its own soul. Chu Tianjiao's obsession was strong, and his bloodline was top-tier, but compared to the Dragon King's level, it was still far from sufficient.

The Dragon King's incubation process takes a very long time, so the idea of ​​humans being resurrected in this way is truly a fantasy.

Or perhaps it's a spiritual entity like Genji, who didn't even leave behind any flesh and blood from her previous life; who knows what it might hatch into?

Lu Mingfei did not intend to resurrect Caesar and Percy by cultivating "eggs". Caesar and Percy were souls he had personally stolen, and their completeness was actually much higher than that of Chu Tianjiao and Yuan Zhinu. They were more like Melina and Lu Mingze before, and only needed a container, that is, a doll body.

Because the life-size sample shown by Lu Mingfei had a strong uncanny valley effect, Caesar and Percy both chose the cute three-headed proportion.

The eager Secret Society elites waited until the animal migration had passed before gradually venturing into the outer perimeter of the safe haven, where they finally encountered their first hostile creatures.

Of all the species in the entire safe haven, only one species cannot comprehend Lu Mingfei's mental intimidation. Their brains are not only a hybrid of beast and dragon blood, but also a product of gene editing. They can understand the fear brought about by intimidation, but they also exhibit unprecedented ferocity in such dire situations.

The hellhounds charged toward the Secret Service army.

But they were no longer facing mercenaries armed with light weapons or doomsday sentinels. Instead, they were being pierced by various types of Russian and NATO 12.7mm armor-piercing rounds. The bullets, carrying kinetic energy of 18000 joules, easily penetrated the scales of the hellhounds. Dragon blood might allow them to survive with their limbs torn apart and their internal organs burned, but with such a high rate of fire, their life force would eventually be exhausted.

From a high altitude, the bursting ice mist appears as lines, like the footsteps of death walking on the ice field.

The hellhound pack was quickly surrounded and annihilated by the well-organized advancing battle line.

After clearing a path through the minefield, the Secret Service army spotted a crowd. The Doomsday Pirates, some in school uniforms, some in researcher lab coats, and some in casual clothes, were all gathered at the city entrance, each looking bewildered.

Chapter 285 Progress

The takeover proceeded unexpectedly smoothly. The surrender of the Doomsday Faction was genuine, and the elite members of the Secret Service, with their superior counter-surveillance capabilities, searched the alleyways and central buildings, finding no hidden remnants or assassins. At an airport more than 200 kilometers away, transport planes took off one after another, carrying experts from various fields, as well as a larger quantity of supplies needed to accommodate the prisoners, to the site.

Amidst the crowd, Lu Mingfei led Toret forward slowly. Giovanni sat on Toret's back, followed by Lu Mingze, with the puppet figures of Caesar and Percy perched on either side of Lu Mingze's shoulders.

“You carry the load… I’ll lead the horse…” Lu Mingze hummed.

Lu Mingfei did not meet up with the Secret Party members; his destination was the Secret Party headquarters located outside Nibelungen.

The radiant light above the center of the harbor had become so intense that it obscured the object's true form. The overwhelming brilliance "flowed" across the ice field. This effect was caused by the wind stirring up the ice crystals on the snow layer, which, under the bright light, resembled glowing mist or ribbons shimmering among the hills.

Walking on such an ice field truly feels like being at the edge of the world.

Giovanni gently stroked the horns on Torret's head. She had been involved in some highly confidential genetic engineering projects and wasn't particularly surprised by animals with physical mutations such as scales and bone spurs. However, Torret's horns were not a mutation; according to Lu Mingfei, this was Torret's natural appearance.

That's amazing.

She felt the patterns on the horns, as if glimpsing a corner of another world where her son had spent a century. Although Lu Mingfei's brief account mainly focused on the enchanting magic, the interesting companions, and the glorious honors, Giovanni was not someone who could be easily fooled.

With just the mention of wartime, she could deduce Lu Mingfei's living conditions. Given that magic couldn't completely replace technology as a means of production, that world was essentially a medieval period of war.

She felt a mix of emotions, not only for the hardships Lu Mingfei had endured, but also for his current achievements. She was proud of Lu Mingfei, but at the same time, she felt a deep sense of helplessness, the feeling of being an outsider. The hardships Lu Mingfei had suffered, the pain he had endured, the places he had fallen, the places he had gotten back up... all of this was irrelevant to her, not only in a physical sense, but also in a psychological sense.

You can tell from Lu Mingfei's eyes that Kong Cheng's scrutiny carries a warm kindness; you can feel friendliness, but you can't feel familial affection.

But she couldn't change anything.

That's it then, she thought to herself.

"Are you cold?" Lu Mingfei asked. His perception was no longer limited to human senses, and he immediately realized that Giovanni was uncomfortable. He maintained a domain covering a radius of several meters, mainly for Giovanni's sake. Of the people present, only Giovanni was affected by the cold.

“It’s nothing,” Giovanni smiled.

Their position allowed them to see where the Secret Service was encamped.

Ye Sheng did not enter the safe haven with the army. Most of the commanders went in with the second batch of troops; the secrets of the safe haven were a treasure trove that could not be ignored, especially in such turbulent times.

When the group arrived at the command vehicle, Ye Sheng had been waiting for quite some time. He wasn't surprised to see Toret, Caesar, and Percy; he was already immune to the mannerisms surrounding this Secret Party dictator.

"Aren't you going to interfere with their division of the safe haven?" Ye Sheng asked. This question was entirely from the perspective of Lu Mingfei's faction, and in fact, others in the command system also regarded him as a representative of Lu Mingfei's faction.

"Don't worry," Lu Mingfei said.

Everyone was under his mental influence, and before leaving the safe haven, he had sealed off some intelligence and facilities, some of which were overly invasive explorations, and others were "toxic knowledge" deliberately left behind by Odin. Now was not the time to digest these things; they could be studied in the future when humanity was no longer in a crisis of racial war.

"Any good news?" Lu Mingfei poured a cup of hot tea and handed it to Qiao Weini.

“The principal said you would definitely ask this,” Ye Sheng replied. “The progress is very encouraging. More than 20 countries, led by the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, have issued a statement and recently held their first joint humanitarian assistance and disaster relief exercise in Hawaii. This joint exercise is based on the scenario of a strong earthquake, volcanic eruption, tsunami, super tornado landfall in a certain country, and requests for international assistance. It will include drills on life search, rescue in narrow passages and at high altitudes, and medical rescue.”

"It's progressing faster than I expected. Are there any obstacles along the way?" Lu Mingfei nodded.

“Yes.” Ye Sheng brought up a webpage on the car’s computer. “The existence of the Dragon Clan has been almost deduced online, although the mainstream opinion is still that it’s an alien invasion. This time, the Secret Party is only intervening moderately, which can be regarded as the preliminary work for the ‘final moment’.”

Revealing the secrets of the dragon race to the world, the internal code name of Kassel College is "The Final Moment".

Lu Mingfei sat down at the computer and began browsing. He clicked while sipping tea, the computer screen flickering so fast that the content was illegible. Ye Sheng knew that Lu Mingfei could use Time Zero, and at first glance it looked like the effect of Time Zero, but Lu Mingfei's tea-sipping movements were normal, and no domain was being opened.

Therefore, this is Lu Mingfei's own reaction speed; his processing and analysis of information has reached the level of "word magic."

"Caesar?" Ye Sheng looked at the seated doll and asked after deducing its appearance based on the details.

"Good eye," Caesar said, shrugging.

"The intelligence from Rome says you're missing." Ye Sheng then looked at Percy beside him, "Is this Mr. Percy?"

"A lot of unbelievable things have happened. Could you please help me contact Nono?" Caesar sighed.

“It’s possible, but the calls here are being monitored,” Ye Sheng said. “She’s fine now and hasn’t been affected by your disappearance.”

"Could you please make a phone call for me?" Caesar jumped up from his seat and went to the phone.

The communication line was quickly connected to the Kassel College command center. After the busy tone, Nuonuo's voice came from the other end of the phone, "Ye Sheng? The principal asked if Lu Mingfei has returned."

“Nono, it’s me,” Caesar said. His voice hadn’t changed even though he had become a doll.

"So Lu Mingfei is right next to us?" Nuonuo said. "The principal is going to snatch the phone. When are you going back to the college?"

"Probably with Ye Sheng and the others."

"That will take a long time. Are you alright?"

"It's nothing... Actually, something is wrong, you'll know when you see me." Caesar kept everyone in suspense.

"Then it's nothing serious, here you go." Nono handed the phone to the principal.

“Caesar, it’s good to see you’re alright,” Angers’ voice came. “I hope you come back soon. I’ll call off the next student council election immediately.”

“I’ll give the phone to Lu Mingfei, Principal,” Caesar said. “Also, the election doesn’t need to be stopped; at least elect an acting chairman.”

Chapter 286 Resurrection Ritual

“Mingfei, I won’t ask about your previous disappearance. I didn’t agree to publish what you left behind. Don’t blame Fingel. You know his Word of Power doesn’t work on me,” Angers said. “Now there’s a more serious situation.”

"The elemental turbulence at the North Pole, perhaps?" Lu Mingfei looked up at the northern sky. Under his influence, the ice field was clear and blue, but he was looking at the storms within the Arctic Circle.

“Our allies must have noticed it too, and they’re waiting for our response,” Angers said. “EVA has blocked data reporting from several weather satellites in elliptical orbits, but national organizations will realize the anomaly sooner or later, and you know that’s like pulling up seedlings to help our work.”

“I’ll handle it,” Lu Mingfei said.

Angers was silent for a few seconds, then said in a deep voice, "Mingfei, you keep saying there's still time, is there really still time?"

“Of course, don’t be nervous,” Lu Mingfei said. “It’s not the final moment yet.”

"Then I wish you good luck." Angers hung up the phone.

"Ye Sheng, we need to speed things up here." Lu Mingfei took out the architectural layout plan of the harbor and handed it to Ye Sheng. "Get everything that can be transported out. There's a small airport hidden in the snow; we need some transport planes."

“Okay.” Ye Sheng immediately began to handle it.

Amidst the wind and snow, on a makeshift road, a long, thin line of soldiers crawled along like army ants. Large quantities of supplies were transported from the safe haven by sleds or tracked vehicles. Some of the most valuable supplies were piled up in the temporary military camp, while the rest of the larger supplies were transported to a small airport and then airlifted to the rear of the Secret Service.

In the days that followed, everyone got used to the "little sun" above the harbor, with only a few complaining to the command center that it exposed the harbor's coordinates.

Jovini had already evacuated with the first batch of transport planes, while Lu Lincheng was detained in a temporary military camp.

On this day, the last batch of transport planes arrived. There were not many supplies left to be transported, and the transport planes were reduced to a two-plane formation, with one of the planes carrying special personnel.

Ye Sheng spotted Chu Zihang in the crowd immediately. He was wearing an executive department trench coat and carrying a box issued by the department, making him easily recognizable among the executive officers. Holding a specially approved pass from Angers, Chu Zihang had traveled all the way from the academy to this location, solely to keep Lu Mingfei's invitation.

Before entering the Arctic, Lu Mingfei had two things to do, one of which was to fulfill his promise to Chu Zihang—to revive Chu Tianjiao.

Most of the special agents were on missions, but Chu Zihang broke away from the group to meet Ye Sheng, who was waving goodbye. Ye Sheng arranged for dog sleds as transportation, as Lu Mingfei was setting up an alchemical matrix in the wilderness. Sleds were more convenient than tracked vehicles for traversing the hills and coniferous forests.

They proceeded along the path near the military camp, crossing hillsides and weaving through the woods. The two spoke little along the way; Chu Zihang sat silently on the sled, clutching the briefcase issued by the executive department, not even questioning the distant glow in the sky. Reaching a fork in the road, Ye Sheng stopped the sled, letting Chu Zihang continue on foot alone.

"Thank you," Chu Zihang said.

After parting ways, Chu Zihang wandered alone through the forest, the snow reaching above his knees. He hadn't gone far when a warm sensation washed over him—not a warm breeze, but more like the chill that had encountered an obstacle and parted ways. The trees were sparse, and there were no rocks. Chu Zihang knew he had reached his destination.

Instead of the expected alchemical matrix, there were only some boxes marked "Danger & Fragile" piled up on the open ground. Lu Mingfei was indeed here.

"I'm here." Chu Zihang knelt on the ground, laid the suitcase flat, carefully unlocked it, and took out a cylindrical stainless steel tube.

Wearing protective gloves, he wiped away the white frost from the surface of the stainless steel cylinder and held it with both hands with great solemnity.

"Didn't you go to the camp first?" Lu Mingfei noticed the frost on Chu Zihang's body. "Don't rush. It may take a long time. I told Ye Sheng to let you rest first."

"It's my request," Chu Zihang said frankly. "Whether it succeeds or not, I want a result."

Lu Mingfei scrutinized him from head to toe. "Your mindset is different now."

“Everything will come to an end, but that doesn’t mean that everything loses its meaning. People get sick, die, and change. My father did, and so will I…” He glanced at Lu Mingfei and hesitated for a moment. “But even gods cannot change the existence of certain moments. Countless voices come together, and perhaps only for a breath. We hope that those moments will last forever.”

"He got a perfect score on the school year mental health survey questionnaire," Lu Mingfei commented. "Masashi Toyama should be very pleased."

“I’ve been thinking about these questions over and over these days. I meditated and sat alone at the Lionheart Club and figured some things out,” Chu Zihang said calmly. “Once you understand them, there’s nothing left to worry about.”

“Alright.” Lu Mingfei took the stainless steel cylinder. “Don’t get too close, but don’t get too far either. The spirit of a hybrid is too fragile. In other words, if cocooning is a high-speed race, the spirit left by your father might not even be able to start… But since he withstood Odin’s devouring, there must be a reason, such as your existence.”