Chapter 66 Mortal Greed

As the official launch of the "Bronze Plan" drew closer, the students of Cassel College noticed that their familiar campus seemed to undergo some subtle, imperceptible changes.

First, a "yellow" trend inexplicably swept through the college.

It was not about pornography, but rather that a group of students, regardless of gender, began stubbornly incorporating the color yellow into their daily outfits—even though this splash of yellow clashed terribly with the dark green school uniforms.

Secondly, the tech geeks of the Equipment Department, who traditionally holed up in Vanaheim and never ventured out except to deliver weapons, began walking out of their perverted turtle shells in groups.

They had no particular purpose, nor did they pay much heed to the greetings of other students; they simply wandered around with looks of profound relief on their faces, only to return to their underground base with deep sighs once their strolls were over.

Rumor had it that the head of the Equipment Department was petitioning the principal to build a surface-level base, but the request had been rejected due to the exorbitant cost.

The most shocking events, however, were the several unexplained disappearances of students on campus. They would be attending classes on campus during the day, only to vanish into thin air by nightfall.

Those close to them reported to the school administration that the missing students had all participated in secret gatherings hosted by the "S"-grade freshman, and had become eccentric and superstitious ever since.

Eyewitnesses also claimed that students frequently gathered late at night in the Norton Pavilion, producing sounds of heavy objects being moved and rustling whispers, occasionally accompanied by flashes of yellow light within the hall.

Whether due to a lack of evidence or some other reason, the school administration chose to remain silent and did not crack down on the "S"-grade freshman's gatherings.

These bizarre phenomena cast a thick veil of mystery over the campus of Cassel College.

Just as the atmosphere turned mysterious, terrifying, and restless, and the unbearable students began to spontaneously organize and investigate the matter, the mist vanished without a single warning.

The mist had vanished, of course, because Lu Mingfei had stopped.

In his subsequent gatherings, he had attempted to use the psychopomp ritual set up in the Amconvention Center to communicate with the emerald lama that had once appeared. Unfortunately, the entity that descended in a holy advent was the King in Yellow, the most powerful avatar of them all.

Having completed communication with Him and the human sacrifice, Lu Mingfei decided to abandon any further worship of this responsive and generous deity.

Though the phrasing sounded somewhat blasphemous, he had no desire to establish too permanent and deep a connection with any single Great Old One.

Mortals had never been qualified to refuse the bestowals of gods; they could only watch helplessly as they plunged step by step into the bottomless abyss under the weight of those divine gifts.

And a method—one with even slimmer odds, yet potentially leading to a different outcome—was...

To pray to other deities.

Gods would not care about ants like humans, but that did not mean they did not care about other gods.

By leveraging the conflicts between gods, mortals stood a chance to sway the situation and grasp a sliver of opportunity to preserve their tiny "selves."

Although this crazy move would most likely incur the harshest punishments from multiple deities simultaneously, Lu Mingfei, having already been gazed upon by the "Crawler in the Dark," could never have a worse ending from the start. There was nothing he could not afford to stake on the table.

Lu Mingfei had wanted to use the power of the Supreme Immortal Lord of Central Yellow to escape the fate of being toyed with and controlled by Nyarlathotep, yet when this "merciful" deity truly responded, he found himself begrudging this fleeting moment of "freedom" and "self."

How greedy indeed.

...

The high mountains on both sides squeezed together to form a "gorge," their towering cliffs lined with withered forests, white clouds and mist shrouding the peaks.

Under the starry sky, the mountain shapes were pitch black, and the water was pitch black as well, with only a solitary boat cutting through the night-dyed calm surface, leaving ripples trailing in its wake.

"The time is midnight on January 11, 2010. The *Maninhabited* has dropped anchor below the Three Gorges Dam; the river surface is quiet, and the equipment is functioning normally.

Tonight, we will execute the 'Bronze Plan.' I am Captain Helleto, and this is my thirteenth captain's log for this voyage."

Principal Helleto glanced at his wristwatch, dialed an overseas call, turned on the speakerphone, and placed the mobile phone on the table. "Preparations are complete. The Board of Directors, please give us your final orders."

An elderly male voice came through the phone:

"Operation commences. Good luck."

Principal Helleto clapped his hands, his expression calm and detached:

"Though we have rehearsed this many times, only tonight will you learn the reasons and all the details of this operation. Listen closely and remember: cooperation among all teams is the only way to ensure success."

While Helleto was holding forth, Lu Mingfei turned his head slightly and whispered to Zero:

"Zero, are you wearing a yellow swimsuit?"

Zero was wrapped in warm winter thermal gear that obscured her curvaceous figure, making her look like a tiny bundle.

Her neck and profile were as translucent as ice sculptures, and her pink lips moved slightly:

"No, and such behavior on your part constitutes sexual harassment."

"I only asked because... well, for special reasons, I rather like yellow. Fortunately, your hair is blonde, even if the shade is a bit pale."

"We'll be wearing diving suits when we go into the water later anyway. You won't be able to see anything."

Zero remained expressionless, looking straight ahead. By contrast, Caesar, standing on the other side, felt his facial muscles twitching uncontrollably.

His Verbal Spell, "Kamaitachi," allowed him to issue commands to the wind elements within his domain. The wind, as if enslaved, relayed any captured sounds directly to him.

Without the suppression of the principal's "Discipline," even without intentionally activating his Verbal Spell, he could still clearly hear the conversation between Lu Mingfei and Zero.

Mannstein, the executive officer for this operation, stood ramrod straight beside Helleto. Seeming to have overheard something as well, he shot a fierce glare at Lu Mingfei standing in the back row and gave a heavy cough.

Helleto seemed to be in a good mood, turning a blind eye to Lu Mingfei's whispering. He continued:

"The reason for initiating this operation has remained classified within the college until now. After the operation concludes, remember to go to Mannstein and sign a supplementary confidentiality agreement."

Mannstein nodded solemnly.

Helleto explained in a smooth, unhurried tone:

"After the last Three Gorges operation, the school reaped tremendous results. That result was that we captured the 'egg' of the 'King of Bronze and Fire.'

Regrettably, however, we did not find that noble existence within the captured 'egg.' Therefore, the school suspects that the hatched Dragon King is currently hiding beneath the Three Gorges!"

An uproar erupted on the deck. Even the students who had previously worn solemn expressions were left speechless by this earth-shattering news.

The notices issued during the pre-operation training had been vague, mentioning only that suspected signs of dragon resurrection had been discovered in the Three Gorges. Only a handful of core members had known the true significance of this operation in advance.

The personnel participating in the training had been through a stealth screening for mental resilience. Knowing that their opponent was not an ordinary dragon species, but rather a noble Dragon King, they became even more excited instead of fearful, and a clamor of noisy chatter filled the air.

Helleto clapped his hands:

"Ladies and gentlemen, calm down for a moment while I continue to brief you on the details of the mission."