"What is it?" Weiwei looked out as well, sensing the mechs and fighter jets at almost the same time, her expression shifting slightly.

Zhong Yun did not leave. The enemy might not even be after him, and even if they were, there was nowhere for him to run. The entire city was surrounded by the military now; fleeing without understanding the situation would be the height of foolishness.

"There's grilled meat flavor and fruit flavor. Which one do you want?" Zhong Yun held out the two tubes of high-energy food in his hands.

Weiwei seemed distracted, forcing a smile. "You usually just eat this stuff?" She casually took one.

"Can't be helped, I'm poor," Zhong Yun chuckled, tearing open the outer casing of the high-energy food in his hand to reveal the pale red substance inside. These rations resembled Earth's sausage links, just with more flavor options and far more filling.

The sound of something whistling through the air arrived from outside the door—a dozen sharp cracks in succession. The mechs had indeed landed outside.

Just as he subtly heightened his alert level, a high-decibel, anxious voice pierced the air, "Young Mistress, Young Mistress..." Immediately after, a figure burst through the door.

Zhong Yun looked over. It was an elderly man in his sixties. The moment he spotted Weiwei sitting in the chair, tears streamed down his face.

"Uncle Rich," seeing the old man, the surprise and emotion on Weiwei’s face were profound. She immediately stood up to greet him. "Uncle Rich, how did you get here?"

"It's a relief that you're unharmed, Young Mistress." Uncle Rich wiped his tears with the back of his hand, his deeply wrinkled face breaking into a smile that bloomed like a...

"I'm sorry for making you worry," Weiwei bit her lower lip, her eyes filled with self-reproach.

"It’s just good that you’re alright. Just good that you’re alright," Uncle Rich chuckled heartily, clearly immensely relieved.

Zhong Yun watched the scene unfold, his curiosity about Weiwei’s identity deepening. This man, whom she called "Uncle Rich," possessed unfathomable strength. Zhong Yun couldn't sense his power at all. His intuition told him this man was even more terrifying than that 'Second Brother.'

And then there were the few guards trailing behind the old man; each carried an aura of standing on the edge of an abyss, their capabilities clearly not slight. What surprised him even more was that these guards all held respectable military ranks—all Colonel.

Zhong Yun guessed that the status of Weiwei's family in the Mings Kingdom was likely not much less significant than Yun Qi's in Davo.

Rich finally noticed Zhong Yun. By then, Zhong Yun had finished the grilled meat flavored high-energy food in his hand.

"And this is?" Rich's eyes were on Zhong Yun, but the question was directed at Weiwei.

"This is Zhong Yun, he's my classmate," Weiwei introduced him to her Uncle Rich. "Those terrorists had us surrounded in the club with Xiaozhu and the others; it was he who rescued us. Then he led us safely out of the school."

"Oh." Hearing this, Rich’s expression sobered. He walked up to Zhong Yun and spoke solemnly, "Thank you for saving my Young Mistress. Your kindness..." He started to say something more but found himself wanting to touch his nose when he tried to smile. "That, it was just a small effort."

"Regardless, the fact remains that you saved the Young Mistress," Rich insisted, his demeanor still very serious.

Zhong Yun pursed his lips and said no more, his gaze catching the apologetic look Weiwei sent him. He returned a smile.

Weiwei was ultimately taken away by Rich. Although she was deeply reluctant, she could not defy her father’s wishes.

After seeing them off, the carefree Zhong Yun began planning his next moves. The primary objective—the Origin Stones—had not been found at the Ke Dong family base aboard the Mercury vessel.

He occasionally wondered if the Ke Dong family had already sold off those more than a thousand Origin Stones. Thinking back now, the old rumors about the Ke Dong family discovering an Origin Stone mine might not have been baseless.

However, he maintained that unless the Ke Dong people were fools, they wouldn't have sold off such precious items. Even if only a few remained, they would be immensely useful to him.

The current problem: how to locate where the Ke Dong family hid the Origin Stones?

That Second Brother might know, but he was too severely injured; there was no guarantee he would wake up.

Wen Zhu—she was too young; she likely wouldn't be privy to such information.

It seemed he was going to have to orchestrate another kidnapping. Zhong Yun stroked his chin in thought. The defensive capabilities surrounding the core decision-makers of the Ke Dong conglomerate must be formidable, especially now, right after the riot; their security would be at its peak.

He’ll have to wait a while, Zhong Yun thought with a touch of frustration.

There was another issue. The Ke Dong family had always operated discreetly; he didn't even know who their current leaders were—how could he plan a kidnapping?

After much deliberation, everything still seemed to hinge on Wen Zhu. Relying on her connections was his only viable path to gain access to the Ke Dong family's high echelon.

In the end, I still have to sell my looks, he sighed inwardly. Thankfully, Wen Zhu wasn't unpleasant to look at, he tried to think positively.

It wasn't until the next day that people started returning to the school—a contingent of engineering troops who began erecting temporary housing on the open grounds. Their efficiency was remarkable; within half a day, a cluster of makeshift dwellings was complete.

Zhong Yun was the first to move in. He couldn't stay in his old dormitory. For administrative purposes, the army required every survivor to register and be assigned unified lodging.

Then, students and faculty trickled back one after another.

As the first location to come under attack, Ke Dong Academy had suffered catastrophic losses. Because the rioters attacked all school gates simultaneously, only a small fraction of students managed to survive; the rest were either killed or went missing.

Miraculously, Zhong Yun saw many Archaeology students, including his tutor, who had always treated him kindly. That tutor appeared extremely agitated.

Upon inquiry, Zhong Yun learned that when the rioters stormed the campus, the Archaeology department, being remote, only saw sporadic incursions by a few thugs, all of whom were swiftly dealt with by a few high-level instructors. They then dug several underground bunkers and hid there, managing to escape the catastrophe.

Among them was Pi Geng, the boss of his dormitory. Seeing Pi Geng safe brought Zhong Yun great joy; after all, they had shared space for over half a year, forging some bond. He was genuinely relieved that Pi Geng had survived unscathed.

However, Odin and the others hadn't shown up. Zhong Yun assumed they were with Wen Zhu, protected by Ke Dong family personnel, and were likely quite safe. Thus, he wasn't overly concerned.

Once most of the school population had returned, a simple yet solemn memorial service was held, presided over by the principal, to mourn the faculty and students lost in the disaster.

After the ceremony, everyone pitched in, commencing the arduous task of rebuilding the school—symbolizing their new beginning.

: Finally done writing, utterly exhausted, going to sleep now. (To be continued, for the rest of the story, please visit .**.m, more chapters available.)