On the Ark.

"So, do you want to go into acting?" Lin Ye asked, somewhat helplessly.

“Yes, yes.” Nian nodded repeatedly, the disdain in her eyes turning into anticipation. “You also think I have a lot of talent as an actress, don’t you?”

"I didn't notice anything at all." Lin Ye handed the notebook back to Nian. "And could you please stop acting for me all the time? I feel like you've lost all your charisma."

"Aura?" Nian raised an eyebrow and asked, "What aura?"

Lin Ye didn't know how to answer. He couldn't just say it was the aura of a strong person, could he? That would be too childish. But that was really how Lin Ye felt. When he first met Nian, she gave him the feeling of an "ancient powerhouse" who could destroy the world. But now she had become a silly girl who was always thinking about acting. The contrast was just too great.

"Is everyone here?" Andre Cheshire, sitting in the driver's seat, glanced back at everyone and then said with a smile, "Then let's go, Doctor."

Lin Ye was still a little unaccustomed to being called Doctor by people other than Kal'tsit and Amiya, but Amiya had already told him to gradually get used to the title, so he agreed and then said rather stammeringly, "Sin, thank you for your hard work."

Andercher smiled and said, "Work is nothing to be as hard as it seems."

Then I stepped on the gas.

There were five people in their car at this moment. Besides Lin Ye and Nian, the remaining three were Andrcher, Steward, and Ansel, whom Kal'tsit had mentioned to him before. However, this didn't mean that the trip to Laterano would only involve the five of them, because Exusiai had already returned ahead and would pick them up directly in Laterano. Other people arranged by Kal'tsit would also meet them in Laterano.

Therefore, Rhodes Island sent quite a few people this time, which is enough to show Kal'tsit's emphasis on this work and Lin Ye's personal safety.

While in the car, Lin Ye asked Andercher, a Sakorta native, about the situation in Lateran.

"Latland, well..." As a Sarkaz, Andrei, like Exusiai, had a white halo above his head, except that his halo was slanted, and it was unclear how it differed from Exusiai's. "To be honest, although this is my hometown, I don't really have any fondness for it."

"why?"

“Various reasons,” Andrcher said, “but the main one is probably…it’s too dull. Doctor, you should have heard from Dr. Kal'tsit that Laterano is a very dogmatic place. They believe in God’s rules, and anyone who doesn’t follow them will suffer a terrible fate.”

Lin Ye seemed to understand: "I see..."

“So in my personal opinion, we won’t be able to complete this mission so easily this time,” Ander said. “But don’t worry, in Lateran, as long as you don’t cross the locals’ bottom line, that is, their dogma, they are very easy to talk to.”

Doesn't this violate local dogma...?

Andercher's words made Lin Ye feel slightly guilty.

Based on his past experiences, it seems he can't go anywhere without causing some trouble. Although this isn't his intention, it's the reality; it's as if he's born with a knack for attracting trouble. Moreover, his main purpose this time isn't to go to Laterano to discuss business. He doesn't know what Mostima encountered in Laterano, but a little thought tells him it's definitely not a simple matter.

Therefore, Lin Ye didn't know whether he would violate Lateran's doctrines.

Ugh, it's really unbearable. Why does he always seem to run into all this trouble?

Lin Ye rubbed his temples in annoyance, about to say something, when he suddenly saw a train convoy drive past them, heading in the direction they had come from.

"A convoy in a place like this?" Andercher was also somewhat surprised. "I wonder what they're going there for."

Lin Ye glanced back, but unfortunately couldn't see anything clearly, so he could only shrug: "Whatever, it has nothing to do with us anyway."

……

Amiya pushed open the office door and hurried toward Kal'tsit, who was sitting behind her desk: "Teacher, teacher."

Kal'tsit, who was working, slowly raised her head and looked at Amiya, who had a worried expression on her face. She frowned slightly and asked, "What's wrong? Why do you look so flustered? Did something happen to Lin Ye?"

Amiya shook her head: "No, the Doctor has already left."

"What is it?"

“Yes… we have some special guests,” Amiya said. “The Doctor isn’t here, so you might need to go and receive them.”

"A guest I need to greet?" A hint of unease flashed through Kal'tsit's mind, but she didn't show it on her face. She simply stood up slowly. "Alright, then take me there."

……

When Kal'tsit arrived at the reception room, she found the atmosphere inside to be rather heavy.

There were seven or eight unfamiliar faces standing in the reception room. Kal'tsit glanced at them and found that they were all from Yan Country.

There were enough chairs in the reception room, but none of them sat down; they stood ramrod straight, like statues. Kal'tsit, however, sensed it. The moment she entered, she was locked onto by their gazes. A sense of vigilance immediately rose within her; her intuition told her that these Yan people were no ordinary individuals.

But Kal'tsit is no pushover either.

Her expression remained unchanged, as if she felt no pressure from these Yan people at all. She even ignored them and looked at the woman sitting behind them. She knew very well that the woman was the key person here.

"I am Kal'tsit, the head of Rhodes Island," Kal'tsit said calmly. "May I ask who you are?"

The seated woman slowly stood up, and when she looked up, Kal'tsit felt that she looked very familiar.

At that moment, the door to the reception room was pushed open, and Jingzhe walked in. When she saw him, she showed a surprised expression: "Your Highness..."

Before he could finish speaking, the other party raised his hand to stop him.

"Dr. Kal'tsit, is that right?" The other person gave a faint smile. "I've heard so much about you... Just call me Ying Li."

……

On the other side, Lin Ye sneezed loudly.

Chapter 627 Arrival in Laterano

In Lin Ye's imagination, Lateran was a region similar to Vatican City in his previous life.

Although he had never been to the Vatican in his previous life, he had only imagined it.

The misty, rain-shrouded holy city, the nuns in their ancient robes, the stern-faced priests, and the devout believers—it was just like the overall impression Lin Ye had of medieval Western Europe. However, after spending two days arriving in Laterano, Lin Ye realized that his imagination of Laterano seemed to have deviated slightly.

The holy city was not shrouded in mist and rain; on the contrary, it was bathed in bright sunshine.

As the car slowly entered the city, through the window one could see the ancient blue bricks and the Lateran people walking on them. Their attire was nothing like the rigid style Lin Ye had imagined; instead, it exuded a "trendy" feel. There were no nuns in their habit at all; the girls in the view were dressed in brightly colored clothes, looking very energetic.

"This...is this really Laterano?" Lin Ye couldn't help but ask. "You didn't actually drive all the way to Lungmen, did you?"

Although he knew Lin Ye was joking—after all, the Sarkaz people's distinctive angelic aura was still quite noticeable—Andcher still smiled and then answered rather seriously, "This is Lateran, of course."

"But you previously said that Laterano people are mostly rigid."

“Yes,” Andrcher said. “The Laterans are terribly rigid and harsh on certain civic rights and doctrines, but that doesn’t stop us from enjoying life. Doctor, you must have met quite a few Laterans before coming here, right? What kind of people do you think they are?”

Andercher's words reminded Lin Ye of Exia and Mostima.

Indeed, neither Exusiai nor Mostima were associated with the words "rigid" or "harsh" in Lin Ye's mind. As for their obsession with civic rights and dogma, Lin Ye hadn't sensed it yet, and of course, he hoped he wouldn't.

Nian was quite interested in Laterano as well. While looking out the car at this city that was completely different from Yan Country, she asked with great interest, "Does this place have an emperor?"

"Emperor?" Andersel was taken aback at first, then quickly laughed. "Latland doesn't have an emperor, only a pope."

Is there any difference?

“Of course there is, the Pope is merely a spiritual figurehead for the Laterans,” Andersel explained. “He doesn’t handle any Lateran affairs.”

"The Elders' Council is in charge of Laterano, right?" Lin Ye asked, recalling the information Kal'tsit had given him. "So, are we going to visit the Elders this time too?"

“Yes.” Andcher nodded and explained, “In Lateran, the elders are the ones who hold real power. If we want to seek business cooperation with Lateran, we can’t do without the council of elders. Doctor Kal’tsit has also instructed me that I will take you to see the elders as soon as possible. But before that, would you like to try some Lateran desserts?”

"dessert?"

“Yes,” Andersel said with a smile, “Latland’s desserts are world-famous, no less so than its muskets.”

Although somewhat surprised, Lin Ye wasn't really interested in desserts right now; he was more eager to find out about Mostima. However, seeing that everyone else seemed interested, he couldn't refuse Andrcher's offer, so he agreed.

Just as Anderchel had said, the desserts in Lateran were quite delicious; even the notoriously spicy Nian was satisfied, let alone the others. After enjoying the desserts, Anderchel led everyone to stay at an inn. This was at Lin Ye's request; they could have gone directly to the elder, but Lin Ye wanted to inquire about Mostima first.

Exusiai returned to Laterano first, and Lin Ye had instructed her to contact him immediately if anything happened. However, he hadn't received a reply from Exusiai yet, which made him feel a little guilty. After all, the woman whose identity he didn't know had explicitly warned him not to tell Exusiai about this matter.

It's like in those police dramas from my past life, where kidnappers warn family members, "Don't call the police, or I'll kill you."

But calling the police wasn't his intention, and Exusiai is much more troublesome than the police.

"Hmm? Doctor, do you want to go for a walk outside?" Andrei, who had just put down her luggage, immediately stood up when she saw Lin Ye about to leave. "Shall we go with you?"

"Uh, no need, I'm just taking a walk outside," Lin Ye said with a laugh. "Nian can come with me."

"I see, alright then." Andercher and the others had obviously heard some rumors about Nian, so they didn't doubt the fighting ability of the only woman in the team. "Then you'd better not go too far. Although Lateran isn't a chaotic place, it's better to be careful for your safety."

Lin Ye agreed, and then pulled Nian away from the hotel.

Before leaving, Lin Ye sent the stranger a text message saying he had arrived in Laterano. Although he couldn't get through on the phone, Lin Ye figured she should receive the message, and all he had to do was wait for her to contact him.

“This city is quite interesting,” Nian said, walking beside Lin Ye. “I just wonder if the god they worship really exists.”

Lin Ye looked at Nian with some curiosity: "God? Can you sense the existence of gods?"

"If it's not too far away, it's usually fine," Nian said.

Lin Ye then realized that, from a certain perspective, Nian seemed to be a "god," perhaps on the same level as the Messiah. Although she completely lacked the Messiah's aura, appearing only as an ordinary woman who did as she pleased.

"The desserts here are really good," Nian said leisurely. "They taste great, but something's missing."

"What's missing?" Lin Ye didn't realize it at first.

"It would be perfect if you put some chili peppers in the double-skin milk," Nian said.

Lin Ye's lips twitched slightly, wondering what kind of culinary disaster this was now?

Just as he was about to complain, a cold female voice sounded behind him.

"You really have a lot of free time."

Lin Ye was stunned for a moment, then suddenly turned around and saw a woman with short, wine-red hair standing behind him, her eyes, which were the same color as her hair, reflecting his slightly surprised face.

"You are..." In fact, Lin Ye had already guessed the other party's identity.

The woman glanced at Nian standing next to Lin Ye, then turned and left.

"Come with me."

Chapter 628 The Foolish Female Master

The red-haired woman led Lin Ye and Nian to a secluded dessert shop in an alley.

Compared to the bustling dessert shops on the street, this place was noticeably less popular, with only a handful of customers, and the facilities inside looked quite old. Clearly, the red-haired woman hadn't brought Lin Ye here to treat him to something, so Lin Ye tactfully refrained from asking questions and followed her to a window seat.

Neither of them had made a move yet, but Nian picked up the menu on her own and raised her hand as if she couldn't read the room.

"Order! Order!"

The tense atmosphere dissipated almost entirely. Looking at the red-haired woman whose face had turned rather pale, Lin Ye felt a little embarrassed, so he coughed lightly twice and then poked Nian's waist with his finger.

"Try to tone it down," Lin Ye said in a low voice. "I'm here to discuss business."

"You go ahead and talk," Nian said dismissively. "What does it have to do with me? You just need to pay the money."

Lin Ye was speechless.