The Holy Armored Army

Leading them was an officer on horseback, wearing half-plate armor with a cold expression, exuding the chilling aura of a battle-hardened veteran.

The imperial Holy Armored Army.

The officer rode his horse to stand before Old Morgan, his gaze sweeping across the surrounding ruins and corpses as he spoke in a deep voice.

"The Third Battalion of the Holy Armored Army, ordered to assist the Nightwatchers in defense."

He pulled the reins, his tone crisp and decisive.

"What is the current situation? What do you need us to do?"

Old Morgan met his gaze without flinching or engaging in excessive pleasantries.

"The Deep Sea Church launched an offensive from both land and sea simultaneously. Currently, most of the outer city has fallen."

He pointed toward the dock district, which was still burning in the distance.

"Mutated creatures are wandering everywhere, and many civilians have been contaminated. The situation is dire."

"But the most troublesome part is..."

Old Morgan paused, his voice dropping slightly lower.

"The core forces of the Deep Sea Church have yet to reveal themselves."

The officer's brow furrowed.

"You mean this is only the prelude?"

"Most likely," Old Morgan nodded. "They wouldn't go to all this trouble just to cause chaos. Their true offensive... is still to come."

The officer was silent for a moment, a trace of solemnity flashing in his eyes.

Then, he suddenly waved his hand.

"Whole battalion, listen to my orders!"

"Establish an outer defensive line centered around the Nightwatchers base!"

"First Team will clear the surrounding mutated creatures, Second Team will assist in blockading the main streets, and Third Team will remain on standby for support!"

"Execute any mutants on sight!"

"Yes, sir!"

The unified response echoed through the streets.

The soldiers dispersed quickly, their golden armor flowing in the firelight like a steel tide surging into every surrounding corner.

In groups of three and teams of five, their muskets, spears, and alchemical weapons coordinated perfectly, slaying the wandering mutated creatures one by one.

Dense sounds of gunfire and combat began to ring out through the streets.

The chaotic situation finally began to be suppressed.

Alice watched this scene, her tense nerves finally relaxing slightly.

"They're finally here."

"With the Holy Armored Army, we can at least stabilize the area around the base," Old Morgan remarked. "Things won't deteriorate further."

Yet, his expression remained grim.

Lu Yuan stood to the side, watching the Holy Armored Army deploy methodically.

Golden armor, neat phalanxes, well-trained coordination...

The empire's regular army was indeed beyond comparison to a mere rabble, but if the Deep Sea Church's goal was truly the entirety of Gelimu Port...

Lu Yuan knew in his heart that even including the Holy Armored Army, it wouldn't be enough.

However, the current situation was completely beyond his capabilities. Once this incident was resolved, he would need to grind for more experience; right now, he was simply too weak...

Lu Yuan withdrew his gaze and turned to Old Morgan.

"Where are Mina and Brent?"

"Ink is with them in the library," Old Morgan smiled. "That girl may be sharp-tongued, but she can be relied upon in critical moments."

"Right, I'll go check on them."

Lu Yuan nodded and turned to walk deeper into the base.

The library was at the lowest level of the base.

There should have been many guards hidden along this path, but now it was deserted. It was obvious that Old Morgan had deployed everyone he could mobilize within the base.

Lu Yuan walked quickly down the stone steps and arrived before the familiar metal door. As he placed his badge against it, the door slowly opened.

As he pushed the door open, the sight that met Lu Yuan's eyes made him pause slightly.

Ink was suspended in mid-air, with sheets of paper floating all around her.

Those papers were covered in runes and emitted a faint glow, forming a protective barrier that enveloped the entire library.

Mina and Brent were huddled by a table in the corner.

Hearing the door, Ink turned her head.

On that small face condensed from ink, a glint flashed in her pitch-black, bead-like eyes.

"You're finally back."

Her voice carried obvious exhaustion, lacking its usual sharpness.

"These past few days... have absolutely exhausted me."

Lu Yuan looked at Ink and smiled.

"You've worked hard. I'll ask Old Morgan for some points later to buy you some ink blocks to eat. There won't be a shortage of points after this sea voyage."

Ink huffed and said nothing more, but her posture visibly relaxed.

The floating papers around her also began to drift slowly to the ground.

"Big Brother Lu!"

A youthful voice came from beneath the table.

Mina poked her head out, and the moment she saw Lu Yuan, her eyes reddened.

She ran over and hugged Lu Yuan's leg, her small body trembling.

"Big Brother Lu... you're back..."

Brent followed her over, his eyes filled with worry.

"Doctor Lu..."

Lu Yuan knelt down to check Mina's condition.

Her face was pale, there were obvious dark circles under her eyes, and she had clearly lost weight.

"What happened to her?" Lu Yuan looked toward Ink.

Ink floated closer, her voice low.

"Her Echo of All Things talent allowed her to perceive too many things."

"Over these past few days, she has been hearing those sounds constantly... the roars of the mutants, the wails of the dead, and..."

Ink paused, a trace of gravity flashing in her bead-like eyes.

"And whispers from the bottom of the sea."

Mina gripped the hem of Lu Yuan's coat tightly, her voice thin and tearful.

"It was so scary... they kept talking... they kept saying..."

"He is about to awaken..."

Lu Yuan's heart sank upon hearing this. Neither the thing he saw on the island nor the black shadow in the sea later was something the current Gelimu Port could withstand, and now there was another 'He'...

Nevertheless, Lu Yuan leaned down and gently stroked Mina's head, saying softly, "It's okay, don't worry. I'm back."

Hearing this, Mina buried her face in Lu Yuan's chest, her shoulders still trembling slightly.

Brent stood by the side, his eyes also red, but he pressed his lips together tightly, trying to look strong.

Seeing this, Lu Yuan reached out and ruffled Brent's hair.

"You did well, Brent."

Once Mina's emotions had gradually stabilized, Lu Yuan gently patted her back.

"Brent, take Mina to sit down for a bit."

Brent nodded and took his sister's hand, leading her toward the chairs in the corner.

Mina looked back at him once, her eyes still red, but at least she had stopped trembling.

Only after the two children had walked away did Lu Yuan turn back to Ink.

"How have you been these past few days?"

Ink was suspended in the air, her newspaper wings somewhat wrinkled, and the ink stains on them were much lighter than usual.

"Almost recovered."

Ink's voice carried a hint of fatigue, but her tone remained as prideful as ever.

"Just a few days of consumption, that's all. I'll be back to normal after some rest."

As she spoke, those pitch-black, bead-like eyes looked Lu Yuan up and down.

Lu Yuan knew that Ink had been helping Mina adjust her Echo of All Things talent over the past few days, preventing the girl from being driven mad by overloaded perception.

Then, Ink's small face crumpled.

"You're carrying the scent of the church."

She floated a bit closer, her nose twitching slightly.

"Holy light... Are you heavily injured?"