Conspiracy

Lu Yuan picked up the Key, but did not leave immediately.

"There are a few more things."

He took a small package out of his pocket and placed it on the table.

Inside the package was a silver badge, engraved with a moon and an eye—the emblem of the Night Watcher.

There was also a piece of cloth with a few lines of text written on it in blood.

The moment Old Morgan saw the badge, he paused in his tracks.

He reached out, picked up the badge, and turned it over.

It has a name engraved on it: Gao Wen.

"... Where did you find it?" Old Morgan's voice was a little hoarse.

"On the Iron Whale," Lu Yuan said, looking at Old Morgan, "He and the church Priest worked together to set up a Formation to try and contain the Contamination, but they failed."

Old Morgan remained silent, his gaze fixed on the blood-written letter.

The handwriting is messy, but still legible:

"The plan failed. Someone betrayed us. The Priest is dead, and I won't last much longer."

"They need our blood to complete the ritual. Don't come looking for us, and don't touch those Ore."

"Burn this ship, burn everything."

Tell Old Morgan... I did my best.

" --Gao Wen"

Old Morgan stared at the few lines of blood-red text, remaining motionless for a long time.

His hands were trembling slightly; Gao Wen was someone he had personally mentored.

That kid has a loose tongue, but he's quite skilled, possessing Eerie Path that's almost at the Third Order, and he's also quick-witted.

Sending him to sea on the Iron Whale was intended to give him experience and make it easier for him to be transferred to Headquarters later...

Actually, he already had a bad feeling when the file was being adjusted.

What lies sealed beneath that sea, even if it's just a few words or fragments of information, is enough to send chills down one's spine.

But he held onto a sliver of hope.

After all, it's a seal, it's in a slumber, and Gao Wen is quite skilled...

He didn't want to think in that direction.

Now, the letter written in blood is before me.

The worst outcome still happened.

After a long while, Old Morgan took a deep breath and carefully put away the badge and the blood letter.

"... He's a good lad."

The voice was very soft, as if it were being spoken to oneself.

"They fought to the very end, and didn't disgrace the Night Watcher."

Lu Yuan was silent for a moment, then spoke again:

"On the ship returning, I entered Strange Dream."

Old Morgan looked up, his eyes narrowing. "Strange Dream? Your situation..."

"It's different from before," Lu Yuan continued, "This time I can move freely, and the thing that was binding me is gone."

Old Morgan pondered, "The heart was touched, and the shackles of the Strange Dream were also released..."

"But I saw someone in my dream," Lu Yuan continued.

Who is it?

"He was wearing Night Watcher uniform, but his face was unclear," Lu Yuan recalled the blurry figure. "He said something to me."

What did you say?

Lu Yuan took a deep breath and repeated it word by word:

"This is just the beginning. The island is merely one part of the plan; Grim Port is the real goal."

Before he could finish speaking, he was dragged away by tentacles in the sea.

Old Morgan's expression suddenly changed.

"Grim Port is... what?"

"I don't know." Lu Yuan shook his head. "He didn't have time to finish."

A silence fell over the command center.

Old Morgan turned his back and looked at the map on the wall covered with red dots.

The Deep Sea Church launched a sudden attack, perfectly timed after the main force of the Night Watcher had left.

From Ore to the Iron Whale, from islands to Grim Port...

Gao Wen's blood-written letter, along with this warning.

All the clues point to a terrifying possibility--

Everything was planned from the very beginning.

The Ore was the bait, the Iron Whale was the bait, and the island was also the bait.

The real target, from beginning to end, has always been Grim Port.

"... I understand." Old Morgan turned around, his voice low. "I'll report this to Headquarters. Go and store your things."

Lu Yuan nodded, but did not leave immediately. Instead, he spoke again:

"There's one more thing."

"Um?"

"Marcus has blood too," Lu Yuan said calmly, "And more than in my bottle."

Old Morgan paused for a moment.

"Moreover..." Lu Yuan continued, "The Ascension Society's purpose this time was very clear; from beginning to end, it seems they were aiming for that heart."

Old Morgan frowned, because the Night Watcher had not received any news about the island before this.

Now that you mention it...

He pondered for a moment, his gaze becoming deep:

"Indeed, and Marcus actually managed to collect it."

"The Ascension Society probably knows far more than they've shown," Old Morgan sneered. "Those lunatics, who knows how many Taboo things they've researched in private."

Lu Yuan's lips curled up slightly:

"So, the Ascension Society come to demand people sooner or later. If their attitude is bad... perhaps we can take a small amount."

Old Morgan stared at Lu Yuan for several seconds.

Then he smiled.

A rare hint of approval appeared on that weathered old face.

"You brat..." He then waved his hand. "Go on, store the things first."

Lu Yuan picked up the Key and turned to leave.

Deep Warehouse.

Lu Yuan descended the familiar spiral stone steps.

The surrounding air gradually became cold and damp, and that heavy feeling that had been pressing on my heart returned.

[Abnormal environment; high concentration of Spirituality residue detected...]

He quickened his pace and arrived at the ancient door.

Turning the brass Key, the heavy click of the mechanism echoed in the deathly silence of the underground.

The door opened.

The warehouse remained as bright as day.

This time, Lu Yuan didn't look around much and went straight to an empty shelf deep inside.

He took the glass bottle out of his pocket and carefully placed it into a special container on the shelf.

The container is covered in runes; once placed inside, the runes begin to slowly light up, enveloping the bottle.

Lu Yuan looked at the bottle covered in runes and breathed a sigh of relief.

It's indeed dangerous to carry this on your person, because you can't see the owner's name.

So it's highly likely that what Old Morgan said about offspring was true; it was some indescribable heart, but he used his pitiful rationality to rush in front of it.

Therefore, at least until this incident is over, Lu Yuan does not intend to touch this bottle of blood again.

And Mina too.

She possesses the gift of Echo of All Things, able to sense such things. Bringing this vial of blood to her... it would be fatal, wouldn't it?

Withdrawing his gaze, Lu Yuan turned and left.

Just as they stepped out of the warehouse and back onto the ground, a low, mournful Horn sounded from outside the base.

That was the rallying cry unique to the imperial army.

Immediately following was the sound of synchronized footsteps, like the beating of war drums, which made the ground tremble slightly.

Lu Yuan strode towards the door.

Old Morgan and Alice were already standing there, looking outside.

An army is advancing from the inner city.

Golden armor gleamed in the firelight, and well-trained soldiers stood in neat square formations, spears like a forest, muskets on their shoulders, exuding a murderous aura.