Floating life reflects two lotuses

In the corridor deep inside the laboratory, cold lights cast a pale white glow, and footsteps echoed through the long corridor, as if each step was striking the heart.

Chu Wanlian clenched the electronic card in her palm, her sharp gaze sweeping across her surroundings as she tried to conceal her nervousness. Li Chenyao walked beside her, his expression cold and stern, his usual calm demeanor appearing even more unfathomable.

"Are you sure this is the core area?" Chu Wanlian asked in a low voice.

Li Chenyao didn't answer, but slightly turned his head, gesturing for her to quicken her pace. He stopped in front of a huge metal door, extended his wrist, and held his name tag close to the scanner on the door. Infrared light swept over it, and he calmly said, "Identity confirmed, Li Chenyao."

The door lock beeped softly, followed by a low "beep," and the heavy metal door slowly opened.

Chu Wanlian held her breath slightly, lifted her foot to follow, and scanned the scene before her. In the center of the room, more than a dozen electronic screens were running simultaneously, with data streams flashing rapidly on the screens. The air was filled with the distinctive high-temperature smell of technological equipment, and in the very center, a translucent rune fragment floated in the energy magnetic field, emitting a ghostly blue glow.

Chu Wanlian's pupils contracted slightly, and her voice suddenly turned cold: "So they're still using rune fragments for experiments!"

"Xiao Jinlian, welcome to the core laboratory."

A cold voice suddenly came from above. Chu Wanlian looked up and saw the figure of a senior laboratory executive appear on the screen. He was a man around fifty years old, with sharp and sinister eyes and a meaningful smile on his lips.

"You think we'll stop once the soul passage is destroyed?" the man said slowly, his tone brimming with confidence. "Jinlian, you're too naive. The power of the runes never belongs to one person; it belongs to us."

"You're playing with fire!" Chu Wanlian interrupted coldly, anger spreading in her eyes. "You have no way of controlling these powers; they will only destroy yourselves!"

Li Chenyao's eyes darkened slightly, and he said coldly, "The higher-ups have gone mad. For the sake of the so-called 'cross-time soul binding,' they have abandoned all principles."

The man on the screen sneered: "Director Li, I didn't expect you to be on Miss Xiao's side too. It seems I underestimated your awareness. However—"

Before the words were even finished, all the electronic screens in the room flashed simultaneously, and a piercing alarm suddenly went off.

"Laboratory defense system activated. All non-core personnel are requested to evacuate immediately." The mechanical warning echoed in their ears, and the laboratory door slammed shut behind them.

Li Chenyao frowned, his gaze suddenly turning sharp: "They want to trap us."

"Do you have any other ideas?" Chu Wanlian turned to look at him, her voice tinged with urgency.

Without hesitation, Li Chenyao calmly locked his gaze on the central energy field device: "I want to destroy it, but it will take a few minutes."

"I'll hold them off, you hurry up." Chu Wanlian gritted her teeth and quickly connected the tablet in her bag to the lab's system, attempting to disrupt the security procedures.

Hurried footsteps came from outside the room, the door was slammed shut, and the clicking of the mechanical lock sounded unsettling.

"Their people are here!" Chu Wanlian whispered.

Li Chenyao had already taken off his coat, rolled up his shirt sleeves, walked to the energy field, took out his toolbox, and his gaze was sharp as a knife: "I'll shut down the magnetic field. You guard the entrance."

“Okay!” Chu Wanlian took a deep breath, picked up the defensive baton on the table, and stood in front of the door.

"boom!"

The metal door was forcibly pried open, and a group of researchers in security uniforms rushed in. One of them was holding a stun gun and charged straight at Chu Wanlian.

"Get out of the way!" Chu Wanlian dodged to the side, raised her hand and smashed the defensive baton into the other person's shin, causing the other person to fall to the ground in pain.

"Hold them off." Li Chenyao commanded calmly, the tools in his hands humming, and the light from the magnetic field gradually weakened.

"Bang, bang!" Two security guards rushed in again, but Chu Wanlian calmly met them. She stood guard at the door, her stick flashing and creating a sharp whistling sound.

In her mind, Xiao Jinlian's voice suddenly rang out: "Princess! These unruly commoners are so unreasonable, be careful!"

"I know you can rest assured!" Chu Wanlian roared inwardly as she swung the stick.

"Xiao Jinlian, hold on! It's almost over!" Cold sweat broke out on Li Chenyao's forehead, and the rhythm of the tools striking the device quickened.

"Li Chenyao, hurry up!" Chu Wanlian swept aside a security guard, and when she turned to look at him, she found that he was looking at her with a deep gaze.

“Xiao Jinlian,” he said in a low voice, his tone filled with an unprecedented firmness, “Actually, from the first time you entered the laboratory, I knew you were different from others.”

Chu Wanlian was stunned. In a flash, she dodged the attack and looked at him in astonishment: "What did you say?"

“I know you don’t belong here.” Li Chenyao took a deep breath, his hands still moving. “But no matter what, I will not let them hurt you.”

Chu Wanlian's heart skipped a beat, and her fists clenched even tighter: "You knew all along? Why didn't you say so?"

Li Chenyao sneered: "What's the use of telling them? They won't let you go. I can only try my best to hide you."

"You..." Chu Wanlian's voice caught in her throat, her eyes slightly reddening.

“But now, they can’t succeed.” Li Chenyao threw the tool to the ground. The magnetic field device made a piercing “crack” sound, the light of the rune fragments dimmed suddenly, and the energy fluctuations stopped abruptly.

Upon seeing this, the security personnel's expressions changed drastically, and they all retreated.

"Let's go!" Li Chenyao quickly grabbed Chu Wanlian's hand, and the two rushed out of the laboratory, the alarm sounding throughout the entire building.

Outside the building, Li Chenyao and Chu Wanlian stood under the night sky, watching the laboratory building behind them gradually calm down.

"What do we do now?" Chu Wanlian looked at him, her voice trembling slightly.

Li Chenyao's gaze was deep as he said in a low voice, "This is just the beginning. They will come back, and we must find the remaining rune fragments to stop them completely."

Chu Wanlian looked at him, her heart warmed, and the corners of her mouth slowly curved up: "Okay, let's face it together."

Li Chenyao turned to look at her, his gaze gentle: "Chu Wanlian, remember, no matter what the future holds, I will always be by your side."

The night wind blew by, and the two stood in the darkness, as if the vortex of fate had quietly arrived, and their choices would determine everything.