On the Ark.

……

Author's note: It's rare that I didn't take a day off at the beginning of the month! I have to catch a flight after finishing this chapter. If I can get home before 11 pm tonight, I'll write another chapter; otherwise, this will be the only one.

Chapter 451 No matter what happens, I'll always be by your side.

Lin Ye didn't expect to run into Mostima in a place like this... Hmm, he felt like he'd had this feeling many times before.

Although he had known Mostima for less than half a month in total, the time and place of her appearances always surprised him. The first time was in an alley when he was being chased, but that was their first meeting, so it could be considered a coincidence. The second time was at the seminar the following day; Lin Ye had gotten in thanks to Warfarin's "Mr. Blood" status, while she was a special guest at the seminar. The third time was after the seminar; a sudden downpour forced Lin Ye and Eyjafjalla to find shelter, and she appeared before him unexpectedly again, holding an umbrella.

Hmm... If it was sudden, then Lin Ye didn't know what word to use to describe this.

Amidst torrential rain and blocked streets, she stood in the middle of the road, blocking traffic, the halo above her head particularly dazzling.

boom.

She got into the passenger seat, closed the door, and said with a smile, "The rain is really heavy."

Lin Ye turned to look at her, his lips twitching slightly: "You know that too?"

"Yes, isn't it obvious with such heavy rain?"

"No...is this what I wanted to talk to you about?" Lin Ye propped his head up, feeling a bit of a headache. He needed to clear his mind. "Why are you here?! And aren't you afraid I'll bump into you?!"

"Hmm?" Mostima smiled as she looked at Lin Ye. "Are you going to bump into me?"

"What do you think?"

"If I thought I would, I wouldn't be standing there."

Lin Ye was speechless for a moment, and could only stare at Mostima.

“Let’s drive.” Mostima smoothed her rain-soaked hair and said, “Time must be tight for you, the Originium Tower isn’t close to here.”

"...How did you know I was going to the Originium Building?"

Mostima smiled and pointed to the car's navigation system: "Your navigation is still on."

Lin Ye almost forgot about this, but before he could say anything, Mostima reached out and turned off the navigation.

“In this kind of weather, navigation is useless,” Mostima said. “Because more than 80% of the streets in Lungmen have been blocked, the route you’re using now has no way of guiding you to the Originium Tower.”

"...Then which way should I go?"

"Can't you just listen to me properly?" Mostima sighed softly, a tone that reminded Lin Ye of Skadi, but Skadi's sigh was genuine, while Mostima's was fake. Soon, she smiled again. "Aren't I your navigator? Let's go. Hesitation isn't a good habit for a hero who wants to save a damsel in distress."

……

"Thank you, everyone." Eyjafjalla bowed slightly to the scholars present. "That concludes my remarks."

After Eyjafjalla finished speaking, the scholars present began to discuss it amongst themselves, as her academic research was quite niche. Before coming here, most of them had never heard of the connection between Originium and volcanoes. Eyjafjalla's views were also quite striking. If the first seminar, due to time constraints, hadn't allowed her to fully express everything she wanted to say, this seminar gave her ample time to speak, naturally generating a considerable response.

This made Eyjafjalla even more nervous.

Soon, someone asked her a question, and with the help of her hearing aid, she managed to begin answering it.

After answering three people's questions in a row, the fourth person to raise their hand was a female scholar, who had also interacted with Eyjafjalla.

That's right, it was the female scholar who questioned Eyjafjalla and Lin Ye before the first seminar.

“Miss Eyjafjalla,” the female scholar, named Rowling, spoke slowly, “I would like to ask whether the research data in your report is accurate?”

Eyjafjalla nodded and said, "Absolutely true."

"What makes you so sure?" Rowling said, squinting. "To collect this data, you'd need to go deep into the heart of the volcano, which is also the area most susceptible to Oripathy. The closer you get to the center, the higher the probability of infection. And to get the data you just reported, the infection rate would be... are you infected?"

Faced with Rowling's questioning, Eyjafjalla replied without hesitation, "Yes, I am indeed infected. Half of this data was collected by myself."

"What about the other half?"

Eyjafjalla said calmly, “It comes from my parents, who were also conducting research in the heart of the volcano. They perished in a pyroclastic flow a few years ago.”

Upon hearing this, the expressions of all the scholars present changed slightly, and even Rowling's eyes showed a hint of emotion, as if she were pondering something. But before she could come to a conclusion, the meeting door was pushed open, and a man covered in blood, yet wearing a smile, walked in.

“Infected? That’s perfect.” The man opened his arms to the scholars present and said with a smile, “Ursus welcomes you.”

Behind him lay the bodies of dozens of security personnel.

……

The SUV sped through the city streets, its powerful impact sending water splashing more than a meter high.

"What do you know?" Lin Ye asked Mostima as he drove.

“I know a little,” Mostima said. “Some very dangerous guys have entered Lungmen.”

"A dangerous guy? Who is he? Is his target Eyjafjalla?" Lin Ye asked in rapid succession. "Also, does Mr. Wei Yanwu know about him? Oh right, I should give him a call."

Mostima stopped Lin Ye from making the phone call.

“No, because there’s no evidence yet,” Mostima said. “Mr. Wei Yanwu isn’t the type to pull the Guard Bureau away at a time like this for something that’s just based on hearsay.”

Lin Ye thought for a moment, then slowly put down his phone.

"Is it the Reunion Movement?" The only hostile force Lin Ye could think of at the moment was the Reunion Movement.

"It might be much more troublesome than that."

Lin Ye bit his lower lip tightly, and then dialed Eyjafjalla's cell phone again, but this time, the call didn't go through.

“If it’s just the two of us going, there might be problems.” Mostima turned to look at Lin Ye. “Even so, are you still going?”

Lin Ye didn't answer, but instead pressed the accelerator hard.

Amid the roar of the engine, Mostima smiled faintly: "This is more interesting."

And don't worry, no matter what happens, I'll be by your side.

Mostima thought to himself.

……

……

Author's Note: I got home at midnight, but I still managed to write a chapter. Actually, I got off the plane at 8:30, but picking up the cat that was being transported took too long. Now, I'm in the middle of a fight with the resident cat, Jiubai—no, to be precise, I'm being yelled at. I wonder if we'll end up fighting. Sigh, just thinking about it makes me... a little excited.

Chapter 452 Eyjafjalla's Resistance

It happened very suddenly.

But the scholars present weren't fools. When they saw the newcomer covered in blood and smelled the strong stench of blood in the air, they guessed something was wrong. Although they didn't know who the newcomer was, the scholars never expected that they would dare to make a move in a place like Longmen. Weren't they afraid—wait, who was their background?

"Ursus?" Rowling exclaimed, both shocked and furious. "You're from Ursus? You're Ursus soldiers?!"

But why are the people of Ursus wearing clothes from the Yan Kingdom?

The leader glanced at Rowling and was about to speak when a cold male voice rang out from outside the corridor.

"Blackback, have you forgotten our mission this time?"

The scholars looked in the direction of the voice and saw another burly man dressed in Yan Kingdom attire carrying a battle axe as he entered. Behind him followed a group of masked men wearing distinctive Yan Kingdom-style bamboo hats, who instantly surrounded the scholars present.

"Don't be nervous, Golden Demon." The man known as Blackback smiled. "And don't worry about leaks. None of these guys will escape. Scholar Rowling, you don't need to be so nervous. I've asked you to write a book, and I greatly admire your research talent, but I must say that your research direction is somewhat problematic. There's no way you can develop a vaccine for Originium Virus, no matter how much manpower and resources you invest. You should go to another field to showcase your talent."

Rowling tried to calm herself down: "What field?"

The black-backed dog revealed its yellowed teeth: "I knew you'd be interested. Don't worry, we're here to pick you up."

Rowling's heart sank. Through her conversation with Blackback, she had already guessed the purpose of these people.

Kidnapping.

They were to be kidnapped and taken to Ursus. Although these guys were all dressed in Yan country clothes, they had already let it slip, or perhaps they didn't care at all, and their accents didn't sound like Yan country accents at all. However, Rowling didn't know their specific origins; she didn't know if they were from a terrorist organization in Ursus or from the Ursus government, although the difference between the two wasn't significant.

All the scholars present knew that Ursus was one of the most unsuitable countries in the world for academic research. The harsh natural environment was one reason, and the second was… the increasingly autocratic emperor and the terrorist organizations lurking throughout the land; a moment's carelessness could cost them their lives. Moreover, their research projects, which involved kidnapping scholars, were clearly not good things to be had.

Rowling gritted her teeth, quickly searching for a way to escape. Right now, the men brought by Blackback and Golden Ghost were, under their orders, tying up the scholars present. Those who resisted even slightly were knocked unconscious and then carried on their shoulders, clearly not wanting to waste any time.

With a snap.

A bundle of hemp rope fell in front of Rowling. Rowling looked up and saw Blackback looking at her with a half-smile: "Scholar Rowling, do you need my help?"

Before Rowling could speak, a familiar voice came from the stands.

"So, you really aren't good people after all."

Everyone was stunned for a moment, then turned to look and saw Eyjafjalla standing on the platform, holding a wooden staff in her hand.

"Oh? There's a little warlock here too." It was Jin Gui who spoke, looking at Eyjafjalla with interest. "How come I didn't notice him earlier?"

Blackback tilted its head and said, "It's probably too short, so it didn't see me."

The Golden Demon and Blackback weren't speaking loudly, so even with her hearing aid, Eyjafjalla couldn't hear them clearly, but she guessed it wasn't anything good. So she raised her staff, pointed it at the Golden Demon and Blackback, and said, "Let the others go, or I'll make my move."

Eyjafjalla's words amused the German Shepherd: "Where did this little sister come from? Is she an adult yet?"

Jin Gui pondered for a moment and said, "If I remember correctly, she's on the list too. She's a volcanologist. I didn't expect her to be a sorcerer as well. That's interesting. If we had enough time, I could play with you, but unfortunately, time is what we lack most right now. Just come with us obediently. Blackback, make your move."

"Tsk, such a little girl, let me handle her." Blackback shook his head as he walked towards Eyjafjalla, his smile shifting from helplessness to joy. "This is really...exciting."

Rowling looked at Eyjafjalla with a tense expression. She wanted to tell Eyjafjalla to run, but she felt it was pointless. If Eyjafjalla could run, wouldn't she have already...?

“I warned you,” Eyjafjalla said, then raised her staff, aimed at the blackback walking towards her, and said, “Then don’t blame me.”

Blackback had initially wanted to see how long Eyjafjalla could keep up her pretense, but the next second, he saw flames suddenly gather at the tip of the staff. He sensed a restless and powerful energy emanating from those flames, and his eyes widened instantly. He instinctively tried to retreat, but before he could, the flames coalesced into a fireball and hurtled towards him. At that distance, he had no way to avoid it and was engulfed by the fireball in an instant.

When the fireball touched Blackback's body, it suddenly exploded, and the leaping flames and heat wave engulfed Golden Ghost, who was watching the show from the side.

The temperature in the entire conference hall rose instantly.

Rowling, upon seeing this, couldn't help but gape.

This is just too amazing!

Rowling suddenly remembered that she had argued with this seemingly insignificant little girl just a few days ago, and she felt a little panicked. If Eyjafjalla had done something like that to her back then, wouldn't she have been turned into charcoal on the spot?

Fortunately, she wasn't... or rather, fortunately, she wasn't an enemy.

Rowling thought to herself.

But with this, the crisis is resolved, right? I never expected that such a big crisis would be resolved by Eyjafjalla, this seemingly insignificant little girl. But no matter what, Eyjafjalla is her benefactor. Later, I still need to... um?

Rowling's eyes widened.

Because the flames in front of them were slowly disappearing, and the two black figures in the flames began to move slowly again.