Ark Chess Player.

Froststar opened her eyes, her gray pupils clear and bright.

Lawyer looked at Froststar awkwardly, and the two stared at each other in silence.

"Why don't you close your eyes and sleep a little longer, and I'll wake you up later?"

The cheapskate father tried to ease the awkwardness, and Lin Lu's hand was still poking Shuangxing's cheek. He didn't expect her to wake up so quickly.

“I’m already awake…” Frostnova silently shifted her gaze and whispered, “How long are you planning to hold me like this?”

"Look at what you're saying! Little girl, you can't try to scam me! You hugged me first, and now you're turning your back on me? You think I wanted to hug you? This refrigerator is so small, I've already been quite gentlemanly by not getting 30 centimeters away from you while you were asleep—wait, sorry, I was wrong, calm down and let's talk this out! I'm warning you, if you freeze my Tower of Babel, you'll be the one crying later! Don't joke around with your future!"

"...That's enough, you're still as talkative as ever."

"That's called consistency, sticking to your own style, and being the number one tacky person."

"fraud."

Froststar took a sip and said calmly, "You've clearly lost your memory, so why are you pretending that nothing happened?"

Lin Lu was stunned for a moment. He looked at his chest and wondered why he wasn't wearing a sign that said "I have amnesia".

"How did you know?"

"That little rabbit shouted so loudly that the whole world heard it."

Froststar narrowed her eyes, carefully observing Lin Lu and his appearance.

Black eyes, shoulder-length silver hair, and a light red ribbon tied behind her head.

It's definitely Lawyer Lin.

His confident gaze has never changed.

Aside from his hair turning from black to silvery-white, his appearance hasn't changed much... In fact, it's been a full five years, so why hasn't Lin Lu's appearance changed at all? Are you Araki, you old scoundrel?

Besides physical appearance, temperament, and voice, the most important factor that allowed Froststar to identify Lin Lu was—

Froststar murmured softly, "In this world, only you can touch me like this."

"What did you say?" Lin Lu didn't hear clearly.

Froststar rolled her eyes at him, then turned and leaned close to Lin Lu's hand that was poking her cheek, and bit it with a "whoosh".

"Whoa!"

Lin Lu's PTSD from being bitten on the finger by Kal'tsit flared up on the spot; he hadn't forgotten his reputation as a walking piece of Tang Sanzang's flesh. Both Kal'tsit and Amiya liked to hug and nibble at him when they were in a daze.

Biting his fingers, an action that should be considered sassy, ​​now terrified him.

...But this time, it seems a little different?

Froststar bit Lin Lu's finger, but she only used her teeth to gently press against it, without applying any force. Lin Lu's finger was trapped between her upper and lower teeth; it was less of a bite and more of a mouthful. Her warm, moist breath returned to Lin Lu's index finger, and he could vaguely feel saliva on his finger, occasionally brushing against Froststar's delicate tongue.

It must be admitted that even under such terrible circumstances, Lin Lu's Tower of Babel still reacted.

He reflexively replied, "If I could, I'd rather do this in a warm, comfortable bed than in the refrigerator."

"Pah, what are you thinking about."

Froststar spat out Lin Lu's finger, confirming that the person in front of her was indeed Lin Lu.

“In this world, you’re the only one who won’t get frostbite from my body temperature. Otherwise, I could freeze you to death with just the slightest movement of my tongue.” Froststar glanced at Lin Lu and muttered, “How could you forget that when we first met, you knocked me unconscious and took off my clothes? It took me a long time to make you believe it.”

"Holy crap, was I really that fierce back then? I'd love to hear the details!"

"Shameless!"

Froststar bit Lin Lu's finger again, this time with much more force.

Are you scared yet?

"...To be honest, it didn't hurt that much."

Compared to the ruthlessness of Kal'tsit and Amiya, Frostnova seems much gentler.

"Squeak, squeak, squeak, squeak!"

"Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! It's bleeding! Stop! Stop!"

"Do you realize your mistake?"

"I know, I know!"

Lin Lu withdrew his hand, bloodstains still remaining on his fingers.

Lin Lu wasn't sure if it was just his imagination, but he felt that Shuangxing's pale face had become much rosier. But this didn't seem to be because of the ambiguous atmosphere, but because of... Lin Lu's blood.

"No way……"

Looking into Shuangxing's dazed eyes, Lin Lu's teeth-grinding PTSD flared up on the spot.

Even if he wanted to escape, Lin Lu had nowhere to retreat, otherwise he wouldn't have pressed his body against the other party's without their consent.

The reason the two are embracing so tightly is because the space formed by the black ice crystals has withstood the explosions from all directions, and when it fell to the ground level of the Descent Plaza, it blocked countless collapsed rubble, constantly compressing it. If it weren't for Frostnova, even if Rhodes Island came to support them, they would have had to use tweezers to collect Lin Lu, who had been blown into countless fragments, and put him back together.

"law……"

Froststar is now like a carnivorous woman who has just tasted meat for the first time; her eyes are now filled with appetite when she looks at Lin Lu.

If Lin Lu doesn't come up with a solution soon, once Rhodes Island's support team arrives and removes the rubble, they'll probably only find Frostnova inside the black ice crystals. Amiya will then take a machete, kill Frostnova, cut open her abdomen, and mutter to herself with lifeless eyes.

"Doctor, we've found you..."

Damn, just thinking about it is terrifying.

Lin Lu shivered, and to distract Froststar, he quickly said:

Is your father still alive?

Chapter 377 Yelena (Third Update)

Is your father still alive?

As soon as Lin Lu blurted it out, Shuangxing's dreamy eyes were gradually replaced by anger.

"you wanna die?"

It must be admitted that Lawyer Lin is quite adept at attracting women's attention.

Although he basically attracts attention by being annoying. An unknown Rhodes Island doctor and an unknown senior superintendent of the Guard Bureau both praised this.

“Um, don’t misunderstand. There’s a reason for this, calm down.” Lin Lu cleared his throat, pretending to cough, to ease the awkwardness. “Because you’ve been talking in your sleep, I’m concerned about your father… If it’s convenient, may I ask about your background?”

"Are we on a blind date?"

"If that's what you mean, then I'm not sleepy anymore."

Lin Lu suddenly perked up. Despite their dire situation and the uncertainty of how long they would be trapped, neither of them showed any panic. Escaping this predicament on their own would be incredibly difficult, but neither of them displayed any sign of distress.

Lin Lu always maintains a relaxed and confident demeanor, allowing those around him to forget their heavy burdens.

Froststar realized Lin Lu's intention and couldn't help but sigh, "You haven't changed at all..."

"I think I've grown a little taller."

"I mean, you're being nosy!"

Froststar looked at Lin Lu helplessly and muttered, "Memories are something you can't really get rid of even if you want to. It seems I revealed some unpleasant things in my dream... Um, sorry for saying that to you."

Seeing Lin Lu's complicated expression, Shuangxing suddenly realized that she had said the wrong thing.

The memories she wanted to discard were, for Lin Lu, an irretrievable past.

"It's nothing, don't worry about it."

Lin Lu shook his head, but a hint of melancholy still appeared in his eyes.

It's impossible to say you don't care at all about amnesia.

"hateful……"

Lin Lu desperately wanted to know why he had taken off Shuangxing's clothes when they first met. He also wondered if their relationship had progressed further. Why had he forgotten something so important? Why?!

If Froststar knew what Lin Lu was thinking right now, she would probably bite off Lin Lu's right hand without hesitation, she promises.

“Don’t be discouraged… I’ll just tell you. Anyway, we can’t leave this place for a while.” Frostnova sighed deeply. “Just think of it as a boring story. My life isn’t very interesting; in fact, it’s quite terrible.”

"I will listen carefully."

Lin Lu put away his joking expression, his face solemn, and looked directly into Shuangxing's eyes.

Frostnova shook her head helplessly. She took a deep breath and said softly, "My father died a long time ago. When I was very young, I saw him shield my mother with his body, using his bare hands to block the crossbow bolts. My mother held me in her arms and used her back to block the second wave of bolts. As for the father I am referring to now, his name was Bodrakastie. He was a lieutenant in Ursus and the leader of the guerrillas."

Lin Lu was silent for a while, then murmured, "No wonder you said that some memories are impossible to forget even if you want to."

"Yes... Actually, at that time I couldn't understand what it felt like to lose my parents. Why I remembered it so well, what the reason for this memory, was all told to me by my grandmother later. When I was little, I couldn't fall asleep. Whenever I wanted to sleep, I would feel like I was back in that scene, the same tragedy playing out over and over again. When I was almost driven crazy by this dream, I pressed my grandmother for answers. She could no longer evade the question and finally told me what it meant. From then on, I was never afraid of this dream again."

“I was once loved. My parents loved me deeply and did everything for me… I was loved.”

A faint smile appeared on Frostnova's face. Her memories of her parents ended there; everything else was blank. She had no memories of them whatsoever, and even if she wanted to avenge them, she couldn't.

She has become indifferent to many things, or rather, she can only let go.

Did your grandmother raise you all by herself?

Lin Lu asked curiously, "I have no memories of the past, which means I don't know if I have any relatives left. I don't know where I came from, I don't know where my hometown is. I yearn for the feeling of family, so I spare no effort to take care of Amiya and Ibitas. This affection also extends to Sonia, Rada, Anna, Rosalyn, Natalia, Zoya, and Misha."

“Half and half, the other half is the blood of Ursus infected,” Frostnova said calmly.

"……what?"

Lin Lu then realized why Froststar had said it was a terrible story.

Froststar narrowed her eyes slightly, her thoughts drifting to the distant, frigid north, where snow and ice fell year-round.

Frostnova's real name is Yelena. She was born in a mine in the northwestern tundra of Ursus. The mine was remote, small, and not part of any city, with no settlements nearby. All year round, nothing could be seen there but snow.

This mine was tantamount to an execution ground, built solely to glorify death and enslavement. Such mines were countless across the snowfields; in a sense, they were a symbol of Ursus.

A unique symbol for those infected.

Ursus is a vast and resource-rich land. Its expansive territory has endured countless natural disasters, each bringing both calamity and new energy sources. The war-torn Ursus Empire needs labor to mine these minerals, requiring cheap and readily available workers, and those suffering from Oripathy are undoubtedly the best candidates.

Of course, when necessary, kind and innocent ordinary people are also an option.

Yelena's biological parents were victims of this choice.

Her parents had opposed the Ursus Emperor's wartime strategies, rejecting this barbaric practice of treating human life as disposable resources for the sake of energy extraction. As a result, they were maliciously arrested by sergeants responsible for searching for Oripathy infected individuals, and their names were filled in the last two blank lines of the arrest list. Without trial, they lost their names and were forced to move from their warm town to the cold north to serve a centuries-long labor service.

Yelena's grandmother was also sentenced to mining service for the so-called "crime of harboring a criminal" and was moved to this mine.

In fact, it wasn't just Yelena's parents who suffered this treatment. Almost all the miners in the mine, except those who already had Oripathy, had the same experience.

The Emperor of Ursus, high above all others, could turn a living person into a living dead with a single word.

Because of the lack of dust protection equipment, all the miners in the mine inevitably contracted Oripathy. Even if some managed to escape the mine, no one would believe the atrocities they suffered there. Because they were infected—the most vicious, the most terrifying, the most insane, and the most extreme Oripathy sufferers.

Ursus's long-term propaganda and brainwashing have led most people to follow the news.

Those infected with Oripathy are evil; the disease corrodes their brains, turning them into deranged madmen. They will break down your doors, steal your food, and harm your family. Ultimately, they will turn you into one of them, infected with Oripathy.

This is the prevailing view among most people in Ursus, and it has been passed down from generation to generation.

Even if a lie is told hundreds or thousands of times and never comes true, it will still make people without their own opinions believe it.

If that's all there is to it, it's not the worst case.

Worst of all, the mine's overseers, the Ursus garrison, believed that the natural death rate of the infected was still too slow.

They do need labor, but they don't need elderly labor. After all, the supply of Oripathy patients is inexhaustible; once they're exhausted, they can simply recruit young men from towns and villages, and if they're lucky, they might even catch some pretty girls. Before these girls contract Oripathy in the mines, the overseers can take turns using them, and once they're completely bored, they can be thrown back into the mines. Once they're infected with Oripathy, no one will stand up for them.

It's as if Oripathy is not just a disease, but a sin, and those who suffer from it are sinners.

One day, these garrison troops decided to decide the fate of patients with Oripathy by drawing lots.

Ten people are drawn once a month. Those who draw a black lot die, and those who draw a white lot live.

The reason for not eliminating them all at once wasn't out of mercy on the part of the Ursus garrison, but because they knew that executing too many infected at once would provoke them to fight to the death. Since there was no way out, they had fought to the death before.

Even a rabbit will bite when cornered, let alone a Ursus.

Only through this gentle, insidious method can these infected individuals be slowly enslaved into mindless tools.

Those who draw a blank ticket naively believe they will draw a blank ticket again next time and continue to live. As long as they hold this pathetic thought, they are destined to never clench their fists and risk their lives to break free from this prison called the mine.

From then on, the overseers of Ursus took this as a form of pleasure in their lives. They not only enjoyed the feeling of killing, but also the taste of being high above others.