Aulisel

That night, Jiang Yang arrived at the Northern Europe Refuge and met Aulisel, the head of the Northern Europe researchers.

He held out Gungnir. With its energy exhausted, the divine spear had lost its radiance and looked like nothing more than an ordinary metal spear.

"Auli, yours is the only place that can recharge Gungnir now. I'll entrust Gungnir to the Norse Refuge for safekeeping. You'll be responsible for recharging it."

Auli

As it happened, Aulisel was also one of the friends who had worked alongside Jiang Yang for many years.

Back then, she had been the one to solve Gungnir's energy problem. She could be counted among Human Civilization's most important scientists today.

She accepted Gungnir with a calm expression and said as she gently stroked its shaft,

"No problem. However, our conditions are no longer what they once were, and recharging is very slow. To fully recharge it might take a thousand years."

"How long?"

Jiang Yang was stunned!

"A thousand years!"

Aulisel repeated irritably.

"Why does it take so long? Didn't you finish it in just a few months before?"

Jiang Yang asked in puzzlement.

"Before, we had the energy supply of almost the entire Earth. What do we have now?"

Aulisel looked at Jiang Yang as though she were looking at an idiot.

Damn it, this woman!

Seeing her look, Jiang Yang ground his teeth in frustration.

"However, if we had a powerful core energy source, it wouldn't be impossible to shorten the time. But I haven't found anything like that yet."

Aulisel continued.

Hearing her words, Jiang Yang suddenly remembered what he had found during the battle against Typhon. He took out the blue-violet crystal and handed it to Aulisel.

"Auli, take a look. Can this thing serve as that energy supplement?"

"Oh? Such powerful energy, actually preserved in crystalline form. Jiang Yang, where did you get this?"

"Typhon left it behind."

"I see."

Aulisel looked thoughtful.

"With this, the recharging time will be greatly reduced. Leave it to me."

"All right, Auli!"

Aulisel accepted the blue-violet crystal from Jiang Yang and prepared to head for the laboratory.

Just as she was about to take a step, she saw a hand stretched out in front of her.

"What?"

She asked in puzzlement.

Jiang Yang was looking at her helplessly.

"Hey, we're old friends, at least. How about a drink together? Don't spend every day soaking in the research institute. You're king-class now too, aren't you? Don't you have plenty of time ahead of you?"

Aulisel looked at Jiang Yang with a calm expression, staring until his skin crawled. Just as he was about to back down, he suddenly saw her break into a smile.

"You have a point. Jiang Yang, let's go have a drink."

"Uh... all right..."

The night sky was still resplendent with stars.

Jiang Yang and Aulisel sat atop the Norse Refuge's dome, drinking and talking about what had happened over the years, thoroughly enjoying themselves.

Just before they parted, Aulisel suddenly said,

"Jiang Yang, I hope you'll become the researchers' protector."

"Huh, what? Don't the researchers already have protectors?"

"Jiang Yang, the Divine Court and the refuge have actually already separated. The Divine Court oversees combat, survival, and so on. The research institute is only responsible for scientific research and defending against unknown disasters, while they provide resources and protection."

Aulisel gazed up at the starry sky and spoke softly, while Jiang Yang listened in silence.

"The people of the Divine Court are content now. They think the apocalypse has passed, and they've all immersed themselves in the glory of the gods."

"Although they can still provide us with resources and protection free of charge now, what about ten million years from now? Will they think we're utterly useless?"

"And has the apocalypse really ended?"

Those words stabbed into Jiang Yang like a knife, reminding him of the scene he had once witnessed in the depths of the sea. Looking at the cool beauty and composure of Aulisel before him, he wanted to tell her about the terror in the deep.

But first, he asked,

"Why come to me?"

"We're friends, aren't we?"

"All right, I agree. You sly Auli!"

"Thank you, Jiang Yang!"

"Then, Auli, I have something to tell you too."