"Your speed..."
"Practice makes perfect," Lu Yuan replied without further explanation. "I've already treated Mary. Her condition is unique and requires continuous observation."
"As long as she's okay," Hans nodded, visibly relieved.
Lu Yuan acknowledged this and turned toward the library.
Mina and Brent were still inside; he needed to check on them.
Moreover, he had promised Mina a sedative to alleviate the side effects of the Echo of All Things, but hadn't had time to prepare it. With the materials now available, it was the perfect time.
The library was quiet.
Lu Yuan pushed the door open and saw Brent asleep against a bookshelf, exhaustion etched on his face.
On a blanket spread nearby, Mina lay with her brows furrowed, her lips moving incessantly as if trapped in a nightmare.
Ink floated in the air, its bead-like eyes fixed on Mina with a rare expression of gravity.
Several more knowledge light orbs than usual swirled around her.
At that moment, she held one in her hand, nibbling on it distractedly.
"You're here."
Ink’s voice was very low, seemingly afraid of waking Mina.
"What happened?" Lu Yuan approached, his gaze falling on Mina. "Is her talent flaring up again?"
"Did something emerge outside?" Ink took another bite of a light orb, her tone heavy. "The voices flooding into Mina’s ears suddenly increased by a huge margin..."
She paused, swallowed the rest of the orb, and plucked a new one from beside her.
"I figured some big entity appeared out there. How is the situation?"
"A high priest of the Deep Sea Church," Lu Yuan crouched down to check Mina’s condition. "But he's been dealt with."
Ink breathed a sigh of relief.
"That’s good then," she said, her voice muffled by the light orb in her mouth. "Since the source is gone, she’ll recover after some rest."
Lu Yuan nodded, his eyes lingering on Mina’s pale face.
The young girl’s lips were still moving, murmuring blurred words intermittently:
"...No... I don't want to hear..."
"...Stop shouting... Please stop shouting..."
"...They can't be saved... No one can be saved..."
Her voice carried a sob, tears seeping from the corners of her eyes as she curled into a ball.
Lu Yuan frowned. "Why is Mina still saying these things?"
"Aftershocks," Ink sighed. "Too many voices were forced in at once. It’ll take time to digest them."
She floated closer to Mina, a flash of complexity in her bead-like eyes.
"This Gelimu Port... it’s a mess." Ink’s tone held a hint of irritability. "All sorts of chaotic things are crawling into her ears. The deep sea, the people who died... it’s just a jumble."
She paused and took another bite of a light orb.
"Once things here are settled, we need to move her somewhere else."
Lu Yuan nodded. Gelimu Port was indeed unsuitable for Mina. Later, he could ask Old Morgan about sending her to an Imperial Province or another safe location.
Before Lu Yuan could say anything else, the communication crystal in his robe suddenly lit up.
It was Sivating’s voice, brief and urgent:
"We’ve arrived at the inner city. The situation here isn't resolved yet. The Viscount made a mistake, and Old Morgan is investigating."
"How are things on your end?"
Lu Yuan replied, "Stable for now. Tell Alice that Mary’s condition is under control."
"Understood. Contact you when there’s news."
The communication cut off.
Silence returned to the library, broken only by Mina's occasional murmurs.
Lu Yuan looked down at Mina, his brow slightly creased. "I’ll go prepare some medicine for her..."
"Don't," Ink interrupted, her mouth still stuffed with half a light orb. "In this state, her progress is rapid. It's better not to interrupt."
The book spirit chewed the orb, her voice tinged with complexity. "With a talent like the Echo of All Things, the sooner she adapts, the better. A little suffering won't hurt."
She paused and added, "Don’t worry, I’m watching her. If anything really goes wrong, I’ll call you."
Lu Yuan remained silent for a moment before finally nodding.
【Gelimu Port Status: 43/50 → 44/50】
The grey-white prompt flickered at the edge of his vision, likely triggered by the mention of the Viscount’s mistake.
This caused the experience bar, which had been stagnant for a long time, to move forward a bit.
Lu Yuan looked away.
What exactly happened in the inner city?
He didn't know; all he could do now was wait for news from Old Morgan.
Half an hour ago, as Old Morgan led Valentine and the team through the outer city, the streets were filled with panicked civilians.
Electric lights had failed across large areas, and the air was thick with the scent of blood mixed with the characteristic rot of mutated creatures, sending shivers down the spine.
"Mutants ahead," Valentine’s voice came from the front, his green eyes glinting in the darkness.
Old Morgan raised a hand, signaling the team to stop.
Valentine signaled back that it was fine, then blurred forward. His upper body began to swell during the sprint as a grey keratin layer erupted from beneath his skin, covering his elegant features.
After several muffled thuds, Valentine returned carrying a twitching mutant, which he tossed casually onto the ground.
"Severely contaminated. No human traits left," Valentine wiped the black blood from his hands, a look of disgust on his face. "The pollution density in the inner city is higher than I imagined."
Old Morgan crouched down, prodding the corpse with his cane.
The mutant's skin was a sickly grey-green, covered in fine scales. Its eyes were bulging, and its mouth was split to the ears, revealing rows of sharp, fine teeth.
Typical deep sea mutation characteristics.
"Move," Old Morgan stood up, his voice raspy. "Don't delay."
The team continued forward.
Just then, the communication crystal at Old Morgan’s waist vibrated, and Hans’s voice came through:
"The battle at the warehouse is over. The priest behind it has been killed."
Old Morgan’s footsteps paused briefly.
"Good. It seems the plan was successful."
"Yes. The turret was handled exceptionally well by that kid Lu Yuan. Together with Sivating and Alice, they successfully took down the leader."
Old Morgan’s cloudy eyes narrowed slightly, his lips curling into a barely noticeable arc.
"All those years of preparation weren't in vain after all."
Old Morgan said nothing more, returning the communication crystal to his waist.
Valentine glanced back at him. "The warehouse is resolved, yet you don't seem surprised?"
"The turret was always meant for situations like this." Old Morgan’s gaze drifted toward the inner city. "What I'm more worried about is what's happening over there."
In the distance, the sky glowed with an eerie dark red, as if something were burning fiercely.
Rate on N.U.
