Dragon Tribe: Still Thinking Until Now

"Yes, with clear prices." The artist nodded.

He turned his back to Lu Mingfei, and there was indeed a sign on his back saying "Portrait 200, Landscape 150".

Lu Mingfei was so angry that his nose was crooked, "I don't have any money!"

But Nuonuo liked the painting very much. She poked Lu Mingfei's chubby face in the painting with her slender white fingers and giggled, "Give me money, give me money, Junior Brother. We'll buy this painting."

Lu Mingfei took out the money while cursing. The artist obviously knew which of the two kept his word, and said with a grin, "Madam, you are so beautiful, you should get a luxury package. We provide portraits, personal sculptures and mailing services. Don't charge 998 or 668. Today it's only 488, and the full service will be delivered to your home!"

Nuonuo was amused and actually wanted this guy to make a portrait of her.

But the rain in Chicago came suddenly, and the very thin cloud floated over their heads and then stopped moving. The Barcelona artist made a bitter face and quickly helped Nono seal the painting with glue, then put it into a waterproof bag and stuffed it into the girl's hand. He snatched the two hundred dollars handed over by Lu Mingfei and disappeared into the depths of the alley.

A light rain began to fall immediately, mixed with tiny ice crystals and snowflakes, and the sky darkened. It looked like this kind of weather would continue for some time.

At this time, all the stores along the inner side of the riverside promenade had their lights on, and hair-like raindrops were floating in the mercury-colored light.

The cold wind blowing off Lake Michigan mixed with a drizzle of rain, and the temperature dropped quickly.

Lu Mingfei had to turn up his collar to block the wind. He asked Nuo Nuo to wait for him in a roadside cafe. After ordering two cups of hot coffee, he rushed into the drizzle. He returned to the Maybach and got the umbrella that was always in the car. Then he went back to the street and waved to his senior sister in the cafe through the black glass wall.

Lu Mingfei blew hot air into his palms, then took out his cell phone and took a look.

It was still early, 11:40 in the morning, just in time for lunch.

They started from Cassell College and sped along the intercity highways in Illinois, stopping in every city they came across. It took them three days.

But it’s okay. The winter vacation and summer vacation at Kassel Academy are almost the same, and a bit too long. Usually the principal is not in school during the holidays, so Lu Mingfei has plenty of time to do what he wants to do.

Today's trip to Chicago was their last stop. Lu Mingfei liked this city very much. It made him feel at ease. He planned to park his car at the train station at night and let the school worker drive it back. He and his senior sister would take the CC1000 train back. This kind of trip was very relaxing. You could do whatever you wanted. There were no dragons or hybrids. There was only himself and the girl beside him.

At this time, the rain suddenly got heavier. Nuonuo ran from the cafe to Lu Mingfei's umbrella with her hands on her head. Her fleece coat was a little wet. She fumbled in the pocket of the coat and took out a cup of hot coffee and put it in Lu Mingfei's palm. The warm breath immediately spread from his palm to his heart.

"I just saw several hot pot restaurants in front of us, including Chinese, Japanese and Korean ones. We can go and try them." Lu Mingfei said, "Senior sister, what kind of hot pot do you like?"

Nuo Nuo buried her red face in Lu Mingfei's arms, twisting a few times before finally finding the most comfortable position. She raised her head and said, "Japanese hot pot, I prefer Chongqing hot pot, but I think there is no authentic Chongqing hot pot in this small place like Chicago."

"Yeah." Lu Mingfei said.

He remembered that he actually didn't like Japanese hot pot before, but people's habits really can change because of certain things. After experiencing a tragedy that often made him heartbroken, Japanese hot pot and five-eye fried rice became his favorite foods.

In fact, it’s not that he likes these foods, it’s just that there was a person who liked these things sitting opposite him and eating them. Now that person is gone, you can only do what she did to make yourself feel her presence.

"Are you going back to college tonight?" Nono asked. She stared blankly at the riverside promenade in the drizzle. People who didn't bring umbrellas lifted up their clothes to cover their heads and ran to the stores to shelter from the rain. Raindrops in the Chicago River splashed countless tiny ripples when they came into contact with the water surface. These ripples collided with each other, making the relatively calm river surface become like boiling water.

The black lady tour guide on the cruise ship was escorting the tourists back to the cabin with a huge umbrella. Two girls were playing in the rain. They didn't seem to be afraid of the cold. They were only wearing white dresses, and their slender ankles were exposed under the hem of the dress. They were illuminated by the lights on the deck, and they sparkled in the dim rain.

"Well, but we can go back later." Lu Mingfei said.

They walked side by side in the rain and snow, watching the bright headlights on the nearby driveways cut through the dense rain curtain and move back and forth.

The wind created by the suddenly anxious traffic messed up the drizzle, and the inside of the riverside promenade became brightly lit.

"Junior brother..."

"Yes, senior sister." Lu Mingfei answered in a muffled voice. He thought he might have a cold.

His footsteps suddenly paused again.

Nuonuo seemed to hold his hand even tighter. The girl was probably really afraid of the cold, so she moved closer to him.

"Actually, I really..." The sound of wind and rain swept away Nuo Nuo's increasingly low words. She could only hug the boy beside her tightly, quietly absorbing the warmth of early spring.

-----------------

There were not as many customers in the Japanese hotpot restaurant as in the Chinese hotpot restaurant. When Lu Mingfei and Nuo Nuo rushed in, there were actually private rooms for them to use.

With a sweet smile, Yamato Nadeshiko handed out warm towels to the guests who entered the box, took away the dripping umbrellas, and then bowed and stepped back.

Although it is in Chicago, the owner of this store is a real Japanese, a middle-aged man who doesn't look very rich. He is a little bald and has a strong Kanto accent. When Lu Mingfei came in, the owner was hiding behind the bar playing games.

Soon they were eating the steaming hot pot.

It's called hotpot, but it's actually a bit like oden, with a soup base made from kelp, dried shrimp and pork bones. Fat beef slices, crab legs, enoki mushrooms, shiitake mushrooms, radishes and green onions are stewed in the boiling milky white soup. It smells very fragrant and immediately aroused Lu Mingfei's appetite. When the ingredients were tumbling in the pork bone soup, the rising hot air brought a warm taste that quickly dispelled the dampness and coldness in his body.

Nuonuo was sitting opposite Lu Mingfei. The stove under the hot pot was jumping with orange flames. The senior sister's face was illuminated by the flames, making it look rosy and pleasant. The four-leaf clover earrings reflected the light flowing like a river of fire.

It was a bit hot in the box, so Nuonuo took off her coat, leaving only a slim white sweater underneath, which outlined the girl's graceful curves, with clear collarbones and butterfly bones, and her lips were slightly red with the color of blood. She gave Lu Mingfei a reproachful look, which made him stare at her.

"Look, be careful of getting stye." Nuonuo picked up a big piece of white radish, dipped it in soy sauce and put it in her mouth. The steam climbed up her face, looming, and actually looked a little charming.

Lu Mingfei smiled awkwardly, "Senior Sister is still as beautiful as before."

"Then why don't you like me as much as before?" Nuonuo took a step closer.

Lu Mingfei’s forehead was covered with cold sweat, “Senior Sister, you…”

Nuonuo laughed loudly. She was very happy to see Lu Mingfei embarrassed. It made her feel like she had returned to a long time ago.

Eating hotpot is indeed a very leisurely thing.

The sleet that suddenly swept across Chicago not long ago slowly turned into heavy rain. The temperature outside dropped below zero and the rain turned into snow again.

At this time, they were eating hot pot in a warm private room, with the best sake placed in front of them. The two of them were laughing and joking with each other, and they drank cup after cup of hot sake after they touched each other on the steaming heat.

The two pairs of chopsticks were raised and lowered high, and everyone was sweating profusely, but it was quite enjoyable.

Sake is clear and mellow, and a little sip will not make you drunk, but if you drink too much, you will inevitably become a little drunk without realizing it.

After drinking, Nuonuo's fair and clean face became slightly flushed, adding a bit of girlish naivety to her arrogance.

In the end, the only sounds in the box were the bubbling of the hot pot and Lu Mingfei's smacking of his lips. Both of their eyes were watery, and their feelings for each other seemed to be aroused as a matter of course.

The four walls are covered with screens of clouds and cranes, and the white color is used as the base color, making this Japanese-style room really feel like you are in Japan.

Lu Mingfei finished the last bit of sake and burped. He didn't know when Nuonuo had sat next to him. She clung to him as if she had no bones in her body and held the boy's left arm with both hands.

Lu Mingfei was stunned for a moment. Nuo Nuo's body was so hot that he got goose bumps.

At this time, a hand pinched Lu Mingfei's chin and his face was forcibly turned over.

The scent of the girl's perfume suddenly filled the air, like cold sea water, and her deep red eyes, misty with water, stared into his eyes.

Nuonuo seemed to sober up suddenly. She supported herself on the tatami with one hand and held Lu Mingfei's collar with the other. She leaned forward and almost pressed the boy under her. The smell of alcohol sprayed directly onto Lu Mingfei's face.

Lu Mingfei's heart skipped a beat and he thought it was over.

Nuo Nuo's eyes were so aggressive, as if she wanted to swallow him whole. Lu Mingfei's Adam's apple rolled, "Senior Sister..."

"Lu Mingfei, Lu Mingfei, Lu Mingfei, you are such an idiot." Nuo Nuo said very softly, her body softened and she fell on Lu Mingfei's chest.

Then a slight snoring sound came out of her mouth. She actually fell asleep.

Only then did Lu Mingfei realize that they had already drunk four bottles of sake.

Chapter 98 Night Watch

The fierce wind wrapped in the blizzard hit the church's bell tower like a raging wave smashing a boat on the lake. The ancient carved glass on the walls and dome of the bell tower rustled under such an attack, as if it would shatter at any time. The bell roared in such a snowstorm, as if it would never stop.

At this time, the door was pushed open from the outside, and the overwhelming wind that seemed to sweep away everything brought the biting cold into this warm little house.

The man who came in was holding a black umbrella and wearing a black fleece windbreaker with a black suit underneath. If you ignore his age, he looked like someone from the executive department.

Capable, concise, powerful and majestic.

These words can undoubtedly be applied to Hilbert Jean Angers today.

"This bell makes me feel like I'm attending the funeral of someone who has passed away." Ange sat down on the sofa in the corner of the room, crossed his legs, and buried himself in the sofa. When he did this, a chubby little guy with a glass of heated whiskey on his head immediately appeared in front of him.

"Thank you Adams, this is exactly what I want." Angé touched the little robot's head, and Adams ran away happily, soon disappearing into the darkness.

"But funerals are always reassuring, aren't they? You know your friends are watching you in those black coffins. You are carrying their courage, their faith, their hope, and even their hatred. When you pray to them and recite eulogies for them, they are standing behind you. How can you not feel at ease at this time? Even if there are thousands of troops and dragons rising into the sky in front of you, your blood will only boil." The sloppy old man who was lying in front of the computer screen and wished he could get inside said lazily, "Ange, people like you will only hold your folding knife tightly even if you are attending the funeral of a deceased person. The sound of the bell will not make you uneasy, but if one day your knife breaks, then you will be uneasy."

The wind and snow were howling outside, and the sound of the movie playing on the vice-principal's computer echoed inside the room.

The man's breathing and the woman's moans intertwined.

Ange took a big gulp of the liquor. "You're right," he said, "If it's the funeral of an old friend, I'll feel at peace, and after the bells stop ringing, I'll bear their hatred and continue to slash at fate. But if it's the funeral of an enemy, I'll dance with joy, and after the bells stop ringing, I'll burn their coffins and their bones."

"This is something a cool guy like you would do." The vice principal closed the page on his computer, lifted his clothes in a rather greasy manner, and touched his belly with his two big hands. "Haven't you been preparing to attend someone's funeral all these years?"

The vice-principal picked up a bottle of high-concentration vodka, gulped down a big gulp, and burped again.

"Ange, according to the usual practice in previous years, you should be on the streets of London at this time. But this year you have been staying here since the holiday, hiding in my secret hut. What are you worried about? What are you afraid of?" The vice-principal raised the bottle and looked in the direction of the principal through the dark yellow liquid in it.

His face still had an awkward expression, and his other hand was still rubbing his belly. But for a few moments, Angers could clearly see that the eyes behind the strong liquor seemed to be blooming with blazing gold.

This is the bell tower of the college chapel and a restricted area for the night watchmen.

The word spirit called commandments covered the entire academy with this place as the center. No one could use the power of the holy words in the realm of commandments. Logically, such a place should be solemn and majestic. Even if it is not a sacred building like St. Paul's Cathedral, it should be a quiet place like the Pantheon. But everything here subverts the common perception.

This is really just a shabby attic, with glass windows on the sunny side and huge posters of low-cut girls. There is only an unmade bed, a single sofa, a computer desk and swivel chair, and a large bookshelf full of DVDs of western movies. Of course, there are empty bottles all over the floor and adult magazines thrown everywhere.

This is where the respected teacher Flamel, who is respected by those who truly hold the power of light in the mixed-blood society, has lived for many years. The vice-principal's title in the academy is the night watchman. His words and spirits can maintain order in the academy to a certain extent. It seems that in the eyes of many students, he only has this role.

In the minds of those leaders, the real name of the Night Watcher was Flamel, the greatest alchemist in the world today. The Gaotinggen family, who engraved the alchemy matrix for the embryo of the second generation in the ice cellar, had to feel ashamed in front of him.

Ange buried himself in the sofa, sipping the liquor in small sips. But perhaps because he had just drunk a whole glass of whiskey, the principal's face became a little ruddy, which made him look more like a young man.

"If what stands in front of me is something called death, I will not retreat. On the contrary, I will embrace it like an old friend. You see, an old guy like me is not afraid of death, so what else can I be afraid of?" The principal cast his gaze out the window, and his sight fell into the swirling snow through the carved glass.

"You are as sensitive as a sand fox, Ange, and this clock tower is the safest place in the entire Kassel Academy in the field of alchemy. Hundreds and thousands of tons of mercury flow under the foundation of this building to form a great alchemical matrix. That matrix can not only amplify our words, but also prevent the snooping of certain great supreme beings." The vice-president also cast his gaze out the window.

"Something is watching us, isn't it?" said the Vice Principal.

The principal suddenly looked at the sloppy old cowboy, staring at his light blue eyes that seemed to be covered with a layer of shadow for a long time. "I'm not sure, but something is wrong." He said, "Chicago shouldn't have much rainfall, but after the Kuimen Project, the rainfall here has suddenly increased four times compared to the same period last year. This is not a good sign."

"An ancient alchemical proverb discovered in the Sumerian civilization records that a smooth surface of water is the entrance to another world. This statement can be extended to many explanations, the most famous of which is that the reflection of light will open a window to another world." The vice president said, "Too much rain can be regarded as another kind of elemental turbulence. Something is watching us through every drop of rain that falls from the sky."

"Is it Odin?" said the headmaster.

The vice-president took out the ice maker from the freezer, scooped out a piece of ice and chewed it slowly in his mouth. "I'm not sure, but it's very likely. I used the video footage recorded by Norma to observe the existence of the two dragon kings or suspected dragon kings we have observed so far. The first one was Odin who appeared in Kuimen, Three Gorges, and Norton, the king of bronze and fire who was revived from Ronald Tang's body. The former undoubtedly appeared from a non-real space. That kind of space has different names in many places. The Chinese call it a paradise or a paradise, the Indians call the place where Brahma lives the Brahma Realm, the Germans call that place the country of the dead, and the Greeks believe that there is really an underworld in the world."

The old cowboy swallowed the crushed ice with difficulty and looked at the principal. "You don't hang out with alchemists, but you should know about Nibelungen, right?"

"The country of the dead, Nibelungen? It is said that it is a temple-like place for you people." The principal said lightly. For thousands of years, no one has entered the Nibelungen and no one has seen it. Things came out of it, but in just one year, the Nibelungs appeared more than once.

This is incredible, but it seems natural.

Because the end is coming.

The kingdom of the dead is being opened one by one, and the sleeping or even long-dead dragons are reviving one by one. The end of everything must be the return of the emperor who once roared at the world. Before he died, he swore to kill all the rebels, and he is coming back to collect his debt.

"Yes, Nibelungen, the Land of the Dead, is a place that people like us yearn for. If we could die there, I think many people would fight for this spot, such as those old guys from the Gottingen family." The vice-president snorted with disdain like a pig. "The civilization of dragons is probably built there. Every first-generation species has their own country, and perhaps some second-generation species can also have such a space. It is not difficult to guess that those kings have the ability to open the door to the Land of the Dead anywhere, so they can naturally open a window anywhere to peek into everything that happens in the world."

"I remember it was raining the last time we hunted Norton, and a bronze city far more magnificent than Baidi City emerged behind him." The principal recalled the Six Flags incident.