Due to the presence of a contamination source, the entire mall was temporarily quarantined, awaiting inspection to prevent anyone from unknowingly contracting the ntal contamination and causing it to spread.
As Ascenders, Zhou Chen and Erin didn’t need to be inspected. They treated the incident as a minor hiccup and didn’t pay it much mind.
After leaving the mall, they went to a bubble tea shop on the side of the street.
Erin stared at the dazzling array of bubble tea options, hesitating.
"What’s wrong?" Zhou Chen asked.
"My mother forbids from eating sweets. She says they’ll make fat and are bad for my health."
"Well, do you want to drink it?" Zhou Chen asked again.
Erin nodded. "I do."
She had wanted to try bubble tea for a long, long ti. She had once even tried to get her family’s chef to make a cup following an online tutorial, but when her mother found out, she gave her a harsh scolding and strictly forbade her from drinking sothing as unhealthy as bubble tea. Still, she was desperate to try it.
"Then just drink it," Zhou Chen said, like a demon tempting an innocent, well-behaved girl. "Forget about etiquette and your family’s rules. You’re out here on vacation, not serving a prison sentence. Eat what you want, drink what you want. Don’t worry so much. This is what it ans to experience life... We’ll have two pearl milk teas, warm."
’Oh my, Mr. Zhou Chen ordered so quickly. If... if I don’t drink it, it’ll definitely go to waste. Wasting things is shaful, so I guess I have to drink it...’ The corners of Erin’s mouth couldn’t help but curl up slightly, but she quickly restrained herself with practiced poise. She had found a perfectly logical excuse in her mind, yet she couldn’t hide her look of anticipation at all.
A few minutes later, Erin got the bubble tea she had been dreaming of. She took a small sip, and her eyes instantly lit up, a delighted smile spreading across her face. "It’s delicious~"
Zhou Chen smiled and sipped his own bubble tea as two-thirds of a star’s worth of wish value materialized in his Wish Bottle.
’I can get this much wish value just from a cup of bubble tea... If I take Erin to do everything she’s ever wanted to do, the number of stars would probably approach twenty, right?’
Zhou Chen was happily sipping his bubble tea when suddenly, the phone in his pocket vibrated.
It was a strange spam text.
In the bustling tropolis lurks a darkness unknown to many. You, the recipient of this ssage, are now being targeted by the Ghost Killing Maniac.
It has crimson eyes, wears a wide cloak, and exudes a nauseating stench. It wields a waterlon knife dripping with fresh blood. It is a brutal Butcher that loves to torture people to death. It roams the dreams of the deep night, and anyone it targets will die in a Nightmare that very evening.
Forward this ssage to the next person before midnight tonight to escape the Ghost Killing Maniac’s grasp. Otherwise, the Ghost Killing Maniac will hunt you down and kill you.
Zhou Chen raised an eyebrow. ’What kind of ancient spam text format is this?’
At the sa ti, a series of text ssage alerts rang out one after another. Erin, the bubble tea shop employee, passersby... everyone pulled out their phones to check the ssage.
"Mr. Zhou Chen, should I forward this?" Erin asked, showing him the identical text on her phone.
"Not yet. It’s probably just soone’s prank," Zhou Chen said, pondering the ssage. ’This is most likely a prank, just like those old ghost stories where you get cursed if you don’t forward them.’
’But the fact that so many people nearby received the text at the sa ti is highly suspicious. Did the prankster hack the mobile carrier?’
After a mont’s hesitation, he took a screenshot of the text and sent it to Jiang Che, asking her to check the sender’s number to see who was behind it. As an Ascender, he knew he had to be this vigilant. ’What if it’s real?’
’Hmm... even if it is real, I’ve forwarded the ssage to Jiang Che...’ Zhou Chen didn’t think the so-called Ghost Killing Maniac could possibly invade Jiang Che’s dreams. If it dared to try, it would be instantly annihilated by the defense chanisms in her dreamscape—the dreams of key personnel in the Star Association were all strictly protected.
Then, he typed a reply to the text: "What is your purpose in sending this? Who instigated you? What is your motive? Have you received approval from the relevant departnts? What are you trying to subvert, what are you trying to destroy? Do not assu the internet is a lawless land. We will find you very soon."
"I was the CEO of a publicly traded company, but I was frad by a treacherous villain! My subordinates abandoned ! The shareholders drove out! They even liquidated my shares! Reborn, I only want to take back my company! Send $5 for a Popeyes Tuesday special, and I’ll tell you my plan for revenge!"
"This officer is about to get real mad."
No response.
"UNSUB"
"You have successfully unsubscribed."
Zhou Chen: "..."
’Unbelievable. So it really was just a spam ad.’
Just then, Jiang Che, having already looked up the sender’s number, sent over the details.
The number’s owner was a butcher who sold pork. He had mysteriously disappeared two days ago, and his family had already filed a police report. According to the investigation, the butcher’s disappearance involved Extraordinary Power.
Jiang Che called and said, "This Butcher was secretly connected to the Eternal Fire, sothing of a peripheral mber. Combined with the information in the text, the Ghost Killing Maniac is probably real."
"Two days ago, before he died, Birdman detonated Forbidden Object C-071: Corrosive Gu. Anyone who ingested the insect eggs would degenerate into a Corrupter. There have already been four corruption incidents in the last two days. This is very likely a new severe contamination event."
Zhou Chen was stunned. "But when I replied ’UNSUB,’ it said I had successfully unsubscribed. It really looks like a spam text no matter how you slice it."
"That’s probably the Corrupter’s killing chanism."
Jiang Che said calmly, "Killing is a Corrupter’s nature, but so special Corrupters and Extraordinary Artifacts only begin killing after their chanism is triggered. For example, the Yingzhou folktale of the Slit-mouthed Woman, or Forbidden Object C-155: Miss Mary... You must have accidentally stumbled upon a way to circumvent the killing chanism."
"Gather everyone on-site who received the text as quickly as possible. They need to be quarantined and protected."
After hanging up, Zhou Chen first had Erin reply "UNSUB" to unsubscribe from the text. Then he stood up, walked to an open area, pulled the Star Association Operator’s ID from his pocket, cleared his throat, and shouted:
"...All eyes on ! Look at , I have an announcent—the texts you all received are real, but don’t panic. I will guarantee everyone’s safety... Co on, everyone who got the text, please line up over here. Maintain order, please. Soone will be here shortly to take you all for a free check-up at the Star Association..."
Zhou Chen was instantly surrounded by a crowd packed three layers deep. Many people had suspected the text was a prank, but they discarded that thought after seeing the Star Association Operator ID in his hand—an Ascender from the Star Association wouldn’t joke about sothing like this.
Five or six minutes later, two familiar figures hurried over from a distance.
"Holy crap, you again?" the two Operators said, looking at Zhou Chen with an expression of indescribable exasperation.
"Just a coincidence, a coincidence..." Zhou Chen smiled and waved his hand dismissively before getting to the point. "There are forty-one people in total who received the text. The broadcast was limited to a fifty-ter radius. This is the contamination source’s first move."
"The text ssage is a Curse. The contamination source must have hacked a signal tower to send it out en masse."
The experienced Operator looked at the text. "This type of special contamination source is hidden very deep, tucked away in the gap between reality and dreams. It’s hard to find through normal ans. They spread Curses in various ways. Being afflicted by the Curse is the sa as being marked.
Once night falls, the cursed will encounter the contamination source in their dreams... I’ll contact the logistics team first to take these people back for inspection."
"Thanks for your hard work."
After exchanging a few more pleasantries, Zhou Chen tactfully slipped away with Erin. He was on leave right now and had no intention of getting mixed up in work.
’My luck is really terrible today. Two contamination incidents in a row. Can’t even get any peace and quiet on a day off...’
Before he died, Birdman had detonated the Corrosive Gu, causing many people who ingested the eggs to mutate into Corrupters and beco mobile contamination sources. One could only imagine that the Special Operations Team would be busy for a long ti to co.
·
·
In a sun-drenched villa Garden, a white-haired old man lounged leisurely on a rocking chair, his eyes closed as he enjoyed the scent of flowers on the breeze.
Li Xiaoxiao, wearing a hood, walked out from the back door of the villa. "Before he died, Birdman detonated the Corrosive Gu. In a few days, those Corrupters will mature and create enough chaos to keep the Star Association overwheld."
The old man said faintly, "But that’s not enough. Never underestimate the Power of the Star Association."
"I’m preparing to plant a few contamination sources in the bustling downtown area. Once they’re detonated, the Star Association will be forced to mobilize a large number of personnel to deal with them," Li Xiaoxiao said expressionlessly.
"Mm. I have two more Forbidden Objects here. We’ll activate them at the sa ti. That should be enough to tie up the vast majority of the Star Association’s manpower." The old man’s eyes were half-closed. "And the ritual?"
"It’s entering the final stage. Fortunately, you had the foresight to secretly form a Secret cult. With their help, the construction of the ritual has been very smooth."
"One must always have an ace up their sleeve." The old man smiled and said no more, closing his eyes as if he had fallen asleep.
Li Xiaoxiao retreated in silence.
·
「In a certain residential building.」
A young woman carrying large bags of groceries opened the door and saw the Gentleman sitting on the living room sofa, drinking. Seeing the table covered in empty bottles, she couldn’t help but roll her eyes.
"Can’t you drink a little less?"
The Gentleman glanced at her. "Did you find any intel?"
The young woman’s face shifted rapidly like lting mud, finally transforming into the gender-neutral face of the Lover.
"There have been a lot more contamination incidents lately, all caused by the Eternal Fire. I bet they’re about to make a big move."
The Lover sat on the sofa, cracked open a beer, and chugged the whole thing before letting out a satisfied sigh.
"A simp told that in the early morning hours, he saw a group of people furtively entering and exiting an abandoned factory. I snuck over to check it out today and found that soone had set up an Abyss ritual and an altar inside."
After a pause, the Lover added, "—A summoning ritual."
"A summoning ritual..." The Gentleman’s eyes narrowed slightly, as if he were pondering sothing.
"The Eternal Fire will be making their move soon. We should get ready, too." The Lover put down the beer bottle, a wide grin on their face:
"After all these years, it’s ti to let the world witness the Power of our Fallen Paradise again!"
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