He had always believed those words were a lie the man had told to coax him into leaving, but now he felt somewhat dazed.
"Senior." Lu Mingfei's voice immediately brought him back to his senses. "I know you've been searching for clues about Odin. Whatever either of us discovers, we should tell the other right away. Can we agree on that?"
"Yes." Chu Zihang nodded solemnly.
"We can end our conversation now. If Norma stays offline too long, someone will notice." Lu Mingfei was very satisfied with how the conversation had gone.
After Chu Zihang left, Lu Mingfei opened his laptop.
He logged into Cassell College's academic administration system. Every professor and student had an individual account, each linked to an identification code in Norma's database. Norma maintained and managed the entire system.
Angers had deleted Lu Mingfei's student records, which theoretically meant he had lost his login privileges, but his temporary visiting professor account still worked.
The visiting professor's profile was almost blank, displaying only his name and registration date. Many functions available to regular professors were grayed out and inaccessible.
He opened the course management page, which listed an elective called "Practical Combat Class I."
This special elective was not scheduled alongside Cassell College's other courses. Instead, Lu Mingfei, as its instructor, was responsible for arranging the venue and time himself.
The second semester was just beginning, and the timetable had only recently been finalized. For the first few weeks, classrooms were occupied almost all day, leaving Lu Mingfei practically no choice. The first opening was two weeks away: the first evening period in an out-of-the-way classroom. Lu Mingfei did not mind. He selected that slot and submitted a room reservation request.
After finishing that, he opened the student assessment management page.
There were just over fifty students on the list. Only a handful had signed up when Free Day began, but enrollment had filled up on the very day it ended.
Lu Mingfei found Fingel's name and entered full marks in the coursework column.
Coursework accounted for 70% of the Practical Combat Class grade, while the final assessment counted for only 20%. The remaining 10% came from attendance. The assessment method field was blank for now, leaving it to the instructor to decide. Usually, this meant research assignments, group discussions, presentations before class, papers, and the like. Since Practical Combat Class fell under practical courses, Lu Mingfei could also make a field assignment the final assessment.
He shut his laptop, having more or less finished everything he needed to do on this return to Cassell College.
Under Angers's arrangement, once he attended the Board of Trustees meeting, he would become a high-ranking operative in the Executive Department. Not only would he no longer have to attend classes, but he would also draw a salary from the department.
For Lu Mingfei as he was now, however, that paltry salary was barely a drop in the bucket.
Before setting off for Italy with Angers, Lu Mingfei had one final task: returning his library books. Cassell College's library had once been his only means of learning about dragons and alchemy. Now, he had the team Lu Mingze had left behind, as well as Angers's network, to supply him with intelligence.
He borrowed a trolley from the dormitory manager and pushed a stack of books taller than himself toward the library.
Once inside, he patiently sorted all the books and returned them to their proper places. The library was almost empty. The semester had only just begun, and only a few upperclassmen preparing papers or graduation projects sat buried in piles of books.
Yet while returning several books on alchemy to the shelves, he spotted a familiar face by a window in the reading area.
The ponytailed girl wore headphones and propped her baby-soft cheek on one hand, her expression utterly focused. Before her lay a hardcover book with a dark green cover. Her fingers gently turned the pages, and her brow alternately furrowed and relaxed.
Her presence was like a ray of sunlight, brightening a corner of the classical, old-fashioned library.
Perhaps sensing Lu Mingfei's gaze, Xia Mi suddenly turned her head and looked at him.
She blinked, froze for a moment, then lit up with delighted surprise. Waving, she called, "Senior Lu..."
Halfway through, she realized how inappropriate that was and quickly covered her mouth.
Loud conversation was forbidden in the library.
Lu Mingfei waved back and continued returning his books. Once he finished with these, he still had other sections to visit.
Xia Mi skipped over. Since Lu Mingfei needed to pick out the books for this section by category and call number, the floor was covered with books he had sorted into groups.
"Senior, why aren't you using the returns desk?" Xia Mi asked curiously.
"The campus maintenance crew still hasn't come back from their trip to Australia, and I have too many books," Lu Mingfei replied.
"I'll help." Xia Mi had already picked up a book from the floor as she spoke.
She walked along a row of books, trailing her fingers across the varied covers of the alchemy volumes before finding a gap and sliding the book into place.
Working together, they soon finished returning all of Lu Mingfei's alchemy books.
"Senior Lu, are you really interested in alchemy? Don't tell me you've read all of these?" While helping him, Xia Mi had realized that he had not borrowed them for a particular alchemical experiment or a paper in a specific field.
The books he had borrowed covered a broad range of subjects.
"I've skimmed most of them." Lu Mingfei swept his gaze across the shelves.
He had borrowed and browsed every book there that interested him.
Then his gaze suddenly stopped on one particular book. It had not been there on his previous visit; he could not be mistaken. To choose what to read, he had looked at every cover and title.
Chapter 89: The book
It was called The Story of Alchemy. Lu Mingfei took it down and leafed through it. To his surprise, it compiled important alchemical artifacts unearthed from prehistoric times through the twentieth century, along with the corresponding research findings.
Cassell College excavated dragon ruins all over the world, while its professors studied the various artifacts recovered and published papers on their findings in the college's journals. But sites connected to dragons were scattered across the globe, and alchemical objects generally incorporated the local cultural style.
For instance, alchemical craftsmen in Eastern Europe had once used alchemical potions and a silver metal refined through alchemy against Deadpools. In folklore, this had become the use of holy water and crosses to repel vampires. In East Asia, meanwhile, ancient Chinese alchemists had made objects such as alchemical talismans and command tablets that could be activated with spoken words. Ordinary people generally called them magical implements.
The only thing these wildly varied objects had in common was their connection to draconic alchemy.
Professors researching such things were generally busy people. None would have much interest in compiling an introductory collection. The alchemical objects were largely unrelated, meaning the entire book jumped from subject to subject. It simply listed the fruits of archaeological teams' and other professors' work, with neither a central theme nor a systematic framework.
"Senior, don't flip through it so fast. I think I saw my alchemy teacher's name." Xia Mi leaned closer.
With Lu Mingfei's current memory, a single reading was enough for him to remember everything. Most of this book consisted of close-up photographs of alchemical objects, some apparently taken directly inside sealed spaces such as tombs. There was no need to stop and think.
"Want to read it?" Once he finished, Lu Mingfei closed the book and handed it to Xia Mi.
After accepting it, Xia Mi suddenly asked, "You seem really good at alchemy, Senior. I'll probably be joining the Alchemy Department when I enroll. Could I ask you to tutor me then?"
Lu Mingfei did not answer immediately.
"I'll treat you to a meal." Xia Mi planted her hands on her hips. "A pretty junior offering to buy you dinner!"
Calling herself pretty was actually rather modest. In Lu Mingfei's estimation, Xia Mi had the looks to compete for the title of campus beauty in the next incoming class.
"Starting this semester, I won't be at the college very often," Lu Mingfei explained. "Most alchemy exams are experiments, anyway. There isn't much I could teach you."
"That's too bad." Xia Mi stuck out her tongue. "At least I can still ask Senior Chu."
Lu Mingfei had intended to tell her that Chu Zihang would not be around much either-he planned to take Chu Zihang back to China to investigate the Nibelungen. All he needed was for Angers to assign Chu Zihang a mission.
But he said nothing. Xia Mi was merely a junior he had happened to meet twice. Once she enrolled, there would be plenty of senior students willing to teach her alchemy.
He gathered the remaining books, said goodbye to Xia Mi, and left.
Only after Lu Mingfei disappeared by the stairs did Xia Mi lean against the tall bookshelf behind her. She opened the book, erased what had been attached to several of its pictures, then closed it and casually put it back on the shelf.
Humming an Irish folk song, she returned leisurely to her seat and idly leafed through the alchemy book she had supposedly needed to "rack her brains" to understand.
Since Constantine and Fingel had also relinquished their enrolled student status, neither needed to attend classes. Before leaving, Lu Mingfei transferred some operating funds to Fingel, telling the two to wait for his return before heading to China to meet Old Tang. His next step was to investigate Odin's Nibelungen.
On the day of departure, they once again left aboard the principal's private plane.
After reaching the airport, they transferred to a Gulfstream business jet bound for Italy.
The black Gulfstream G550 tore through the clouds with a deafening roar.
This kind of ultra-long-range business jet was designed for billionaire businessmen, superstars, and political leaders. Aboard such private aircraft, they could cross the Atlantic during a few hours of sleep, boarding in the darkness of New York and opening their eyes to the early morning in Paris. It was designed to be exceptionally quiet. While cruising through the stratosphere, its VIP passengers usually could not even tell that the engines were running. The designers described its flight as "a giant blue whale swimming through the deep sea."
But this Gulfstream was extraordinarily loud. Beyond the roar of its engines, those inside could actually hear the shrill whistle of its wings slicing through the air. A brilliant Milky Way stretched above, and a pitch-black sea lay below. It hid among black clouds, which spread like an ocean, while it was a tiger shark charging at full speed toward its prey.
This Gulfstream had been modified by Cassell College's Equipment Department and nicknamed Sleipnir. In Norse mythology, Sleipnir was the eight-legged heavenly steed ridden by Odin, the chief god. Whenever he swept across the sky, he blazed like a fiery meteor. The aircraft's only flaw was excessive noise. To the Equipment Department, ultimate speed was the mark of superb craftsmanship; comfort was optional. Their job was to build dragon-slaying weapons, and weaponsmiths never considered comfort.
"Have you ever seen a tank fitted with zoned air-conditioning, heated cushions, and massage seats?" Director Akadulla argued confidently.
This Gulfstream was the principal's pride and joy, and he usually could not bear to use it. Only when attending auctions around the world would Angers bring his treasure out of the hangar. First, it upheld the college's prestige. Second, after the auction, he needed to bring certain "forbidden objects connected to draconic civilization" back to the college, and a private plane made it easier to pass security checks. Otherwise, Angers would rather endure an ordinary commercial flight.
On this flight, Lu Mingfei's two-meter-long Bloodhound's Fang finally did not have to go through the college's freight channels.
Angers wore a black suit as always, accented with a red rose on his chest. When his expression turned solemn, he looked like a mourner at a funeral.
Shortly after enrolling, Lu Mingfei had heard Angers tell the story of the original Lionheart Society. It was a tragedy that ended with Summer's Lament, whose investigation results the Secret Party refused to release. It was also why Lu Mingfei had later chosen to trust Angers.
The aging playboy was merely a mask he used to disguise himself. Inside him lived only a lonely avenger, forever gripping a sharp iron blade.
The dragons had taken everything from him and taught him the world's cruelty. From that moment on, he had transformed into the most terrifying Dragon Slayer in the world.
Someone so single-minded was worthy of trust.
"Nervous?" Angers noticed Lu Mingfei looking at him. "You're about to face those at the very pinnacle of power among hybrids."
"They're the nervous ones." Lu Mingfei looked away and out the window. "Those ruled by the flame of ambition fear warriors."
"And so kings swollen with ambition always hang wandering knights from the gallows." There was a note of mockery in Angers's voice.
Lu Mingfei knew who the king in question was. As principal, Angers had cultivated trusted followers, intending to bring all of Cassell College under his control so that he could mobilize the most elite teams when slaying dragons.
Now the king was displeased.
Chapter 90: Rain
Portofino, Italy.
Lu Mingfei and Angers strolled side by side. Angers wore a long black coat of lightweight wool and an elegant cashmere scarf. Lu Mingfei wore Cassell College's winter uniform, with only a black trench coat issued by the Executive Department over it. On one side of the winding path, houses stood at varying heights along the hillside. On the other, they could see the frozen harbor and the sea.
Portofino had originally been built as a seaside tourist town. In Italian, Portofino originally meant a small harbor on the border.
The exterior walls of every house here were painted in vivid colors-pastel green, yellow, brown-to create a striking contrast with the green hills and turquoise sea. Even the public facilities built by the government were full of character and distinctive touches, deliberately using bright, vibrant colors.
They saw few pedestrians along the road. Summer was the peak tourist season here, when many celebrated political figures, financial magnates, stars, and celebrities from around the world happily chose this pleasant little town for their holidays.
"This isn't the best time to visit." Angers looked toward the distant sea, swept by bleak, cold winds. "In another four or five months, you'll see the sea, sails, green trees, great rocks, orange wooden boats, and all sorts of vivid flowers setting one another off. It'll be beautiful, like spring in Yangzhou, as your ancient poets described it."
"Yangzhou's beauty wasn't just in its scenery. The poet's friend was there, too." Lu Mingfei still remembered his middle-school Chinese teacher's lessons. "The man writing the poem wasn't aboard the boat to Yangzhou. He watched from afar as his friend's sail vanished into the horizon, until only the vast river lay before his eyes."
"Oh." Angers nodded, as though his thoughts had drifted somewhere far away. "An elusive vision, with willow catkins drifting like smoke and flowers blooming like brocade-and his friend there, too."
He, too, had such a vision buried deep in his heart, fleeting as shimmering light, yet holding everything he had left.
He stopped, lit a cigar, and took a deep drag. The smoke he exhaled scattered in the cold wind blowing toward him.
"Mingfei, if we can kill all the Four Great Monarchs... I mean if. The day the last Dragon King falls in a pool of blood... will also be the day hybrids go to war with one another."
"I know." Lu Mingfei stopped as well, the hem of his black trench coat fluttering. "It's inevitable. That was decided the day hybrids first came into existence."
Angers paused in surprise. "You really did learn a great deal during this trip to China."
"Now I have a hybrid faction behind me, too," Lu Mingfei said openly. "For the time being, they're loyal to me. They've provided me with a lot of intelligence."
Angers shook his head. "But factual intelligence doesn't necessarily lead to the right conclusions."