Veteran (I really don't want to think of a name): Used eerie bait, no impulses, normal behavior and habits, observed eerie activity near him, no signs of respect or fear... Judged safe. Note: Excellent personal qualities, recommended for captain rank or higher.
...
Kraus finished checking the three envelopes in front of him one by one.
He shook his head with a smile.
“It seems Lu Yuan is indeed a talent.”
“All of your evaluations are very high... I hereby announce that the screening operation targeting Lu Yuan will be lowered to the minimum level. Once we finish the confirmation in the pipe network, I will inform the headquarters of the truth.”
“Right, remember to ask for more points for Lu Yuan. It’s not easy for him, carrying that thing.”
Glock added a teasing remark when he heard this.
“Indeed... who knows what he’s carrying...”
Inside the alchemy workshop.
Lu Yuan pulled back his hand.
Bo Er sat down by the table, holding a cup of water in his hand.
“By the way, were any of the people who went down with us injured or infected?”
Lu Yuan looked at Bo Er and asked.
“Our people are fine; I told them to keep their distance. However, aside from the previous incident in the catchment basin, the Holy Armored Army had two people with light injuries. One of them had his shoulder armor corroded, but Heinrich has already arranged treatment.”
“The Imperial Iron Guard is doing better; they’ve maintained their condition well overall, though a few individuals have severely overextended their pathways.”
Bo Er hesitated for a moment before adding another sentence.
“But Wolf doesn't seem right.”
“What do you mean?”
“His condition is a bit poor, and his body temperature is running high, though I’m not sure if it’s caused by his pathway.”
“But I noticed his footsteps seemed a bit light when he was walking.”
Lu Yuan took note of this but didn't ask further.
“Alright, you should get some rest.” Bo Er stood up.
“The business with the pipe network is over for now. Hopefully, the front lines will stay peaceful for a while.”
He walked to the door and glanced back at Lu Yuan.
“Actually rest. Don't go tossing and turning all night again.”
“I know.”
The door closed.
Footsteps faded away down the corridor.
Lu Yuan sat for a while, his head still heavy and groggy.
Images that shouldn't be there kept surfacing in his mind.
Lu Yuan knew his current state was very poor, so he picked up the Sanity-stabilizing potion Bo Er had delivered.
【Target Detected: Specially Blended Sanity-Stabilizing Potion (Church Version)】
【A special potion created by merging the Church's advanced holy water with special medicinal herbs. It has a powerful effect on stabilizing Sanity and provides a moderate amount of Sanity recovery based on your body...】
After reading the greyish-white text description, Lu Yuan raised an eyebrow with interest, then tilted his head back and swallowed it directly.
As the slightly warm, bitter liquid entered his stomach, a warm current gradually emerged.
【You feel the radiance... You receive tranquility... Sanity: +24... 68/120】
【You will continue to recover Sanity over the coming period... +1...】
A sense of clarity surged into his mind, instantly dispelling the images before his eyes.
The substantial increase in his stats made Lu Yuan look slightly suspicious.
This was considered 'not much' recovery?
24 points?
Could it be recovering a percentage?
Lu Yuan felt the clarity lingering in his mind; it seemed the effect of this potion would last for a while.
After a moment's thought, Lu Yuan stood up and left the alchemy workshop.
The sunlight outside had already risen high, nearing noon.
The cloying, sweet scent that had lingered over the North Ward for so long had finally dissipated.
In its place was the dry, astringent scent of copper powder and alchemical solutions mixed together.
At the entrance of the alchemy workshop, two Nightwatchers holding silver-plated short-shotguns were standing guard. Seeing Lu Yuan come out, they stepped aside slightly to let him pass.
Lu Yuan walked along the street toward the front lines. The changes along the way were far greater than he had expected.
Several electric streetlights that had gone out days ago were lit again. Their light seemed pale under the midday sun, but they were indeed shining.
Further ahead, several craftsmen in grey overalls were squatting by the roadside. An old man was guiding them as they gradually repaired the copper-plated ground that had been corroded and rotted.
Nearby were two transport carriages parked. One was piled with bundles of copper bars, prefabricated copper plates, and several crates of sealed alchemical solutions marked with the alchemy workshop's seal.
The other carriage was loaded with cast-iron frames and thickened vertical shaft covers.
Nightwatchers were standing by to oversee the unloading, holding manifests and checking the crates one by one.
The entire street was bustling with people.
Nightwatchers, craftsmen, porters, and even a few low-level clerics in greyish-white Church robes were setting up purification runes in front of a damaged building at the corner.
The North Ward was undergoing a large-scale, organized reconstruction.
It seemed Kraus was moving faster than expected.
Lu Yuan continued forward.
As he approached the front lines, the atmosphere was noticeably different.
A ring of sentry posts had been added to the perimeter, each manned by two people equipped with silver-plated short-guns and copper powder canisters.
Lu Yuan didn't recognize most of these faces; they were likely temporary conscripts.
A Nightwatcher wearing a squad leader's badge saw Lu Yuan and walked quickly toward him.
“Captain Lu? Why are you out? Glock gave orders before he left; the defenses here have been redeployed.”
“How many people were conscripted?”
“Two squads, sixteen people. Along with the original complement, it’s more than enough to maintain basic defense here.”
The squad leader glanced toward the front lines.
“Additionally, the branch coordinated a group of inscriptionist apprentices to come over. They’re specifically responsible for repairing the conduction pathways and foundation runes. There’s a lot of work.”
Lu Yuan nodded.
“And the Holy Armored Army?”
“Heinrich is guarding the shaft entrance with his men; he’s been there this whole time,” the squad leader continued.
“The Imperial Iron Guard is also here, but their people aren't in great shape. Most of them are resting.”
“I just took some medicine and can't sleep for the moment, so I came out to take a look.”
“Alright. If you have any problems, you can call for me at any time.”
The squad leader finished speaking and turned to leave.
Lu Yuan didn't say much more and continued walking into the camp.
The deployment around the shaft entrance had indeed changed.
Where there had once only been a copper powder circle and a cast-iron cover held down by a few stones, there was now a reinforced structure supported by iron frames, with a member of the Holy Armored Army standing at each of the four directions.
The holy light runes on their silver-white armor maintained a faint glow.
Heinrich stood directly opposite the shaft entrance, arms crossed, his gaze scanning everyone who approached.
Seeing Lu Yuan, he gave a slight nod.
Lu Yuan walked over to the shaft.
The hyphae in the gaps of the cover had dried out completely, crumbling into powder at the slightest touch.
The discoloration of the copper powder circle hadn't expanded further.
The veteran missing a pinky finger was squatting nearby, cleaning up the remaining hyphae debris. He saw Lu Yuan approach.
“Captain, you’re not resting? The hyphae here are all dried out, and the same goes for that shaft that was breached earlier.”
“Not resting for now. Just came to take a look.”
“I couldn't sleep either, so I came over to help.”
“I appreciate it.”
Lu Yuan gave a simple acknowledgment.
Heinrich spoke up at this moment:
“If there’s an issue with your Sanity or if you feel unwell in any other way, you can come to me at any time. The Holy Armored Army brought quite a few supplies this time.”
“I will.”
Lu Yuan nodded and continued walking.
The drainage outlet on the east side that had been forced open had been resealed. The inscriptionist apprentices had covered the opening with a prefabricated copper plate and brushed a layer of sealing alchemical paint over the surface.
Two simple suppression runes were engraved on top of the paint, with a faint blue-white glow shimmering on the copper surface.
On the foundation nearby, the large patches of greyish-green thread-like objects were falling off, revealing the natural copper color underneath.
As he passed the west side of the camp, Lu Yuan saw Wolf.
He was sitting alone at the base of a low wall, leaning against it with his hands on his knees.
The other soldiers of the Imperial Iron Guard were scattered nearby—some leaning against the wall with their eyes closed, others looking down as they wiped their shortswords.
The dark red patterns had mostly faded from the backs of their hands and necks, leaving only faint traces.
But Wolf was different.
His posture didn't look like he was resting; it looked more like he was enduring something.
Lu Yuan didn't slow his pace, but he glanced out of the corner of his eye as he passed.
The dark red patterns on the back of Wolf's hands, resting on his knees, hadn't faded like those of the other soldiers.
Instead, they were deeper than they had been last night.
The color of the patterns had changed from dark red to a deep, almost dark purple hue, looking as if they had seeped deep beneath the skin rather than floating on the surface.
【Target Detected: Wolf (Believer Transcendent) (Micro-infection)】
【A human who believes in the Pure Furnace, but something tiny is parasitizing his body... His furnace fire is being eaten away. Pitiful.】
Lu Yuan's brow furrowed as he saw the prompt.
“Wolf, were you injured down there?”
Wolf's body trembled slightly before settling into stillness. He opened his eyes and looked at Lu Yuan, a flash of confusion in his gaze.
“This is an old problem of mine. I wasn't injured. But Lu Yuan, don't you need to rest?”
“Not for now. My pathway provides quite a bit of Sanity.”
“I see. I need to continue tempering my furnace fire. We’ll talk later.”
A self-deprecating smile tugged at the corner of Wolf's mouth, and then he lowered his head, sinking back into that strange state.
Lu Yuan didn't say anything more; he simply turned and walked back toward the alchemy workshop.
When he arrived, Lu Yuan noticed a paper parcel left at the door.
It was tied with thick hemp rope.
He bent down to pick it up, went inside, and untied the cord.
Inside was a set of greyish-white Church inner robes, neatly folded.
Beneath the robes was a slip of paper with elegant handwriting.
“Tomorrow night, at the second chime of the clock tower, the East Gate of the Old Council Square.”
It wasn't signed.
But Lu Yuan knew it was Agnes.
Lu Yuan folded the note and tucked it into his pocket.
Then he rewrapped the inner robes and placed them in a desk drawer.
Tomorrow night.
The target was the Third Tower of the Polymath Tower, Laurina's laboratory.
He closed the drawer.
Now, he had to deal with another matter—that crystal.
Lu Yuan confirmed the door was locked, then opened his satchel and pulled the sampling bottle from the bottom.
The greyish-green and dark gold shimmer flickered through the glass, pulsing in his palm.
The frequency of the pulse was even slower than it had been in the vault.
Lu Yuan placed the sampling bottle on the table and focused his gaze on it.
【Target Detected: ? (Consciousness Crystal... Extremely Dangerous... Dormant...)】
【Large amount of chaos detected... Knowledge insufficient, unable to analyze...】
There were a few more words, but the prompt still didn't reveal much.
However, it was certain that this thing was not a source of pollution.
Lu Yuan was in no hurry to act.
Rate on N.U.
