Chapter 171

Chapter 171: The Boundless Dark Realm Part 26

12L: So the wild boars in Tonglin City are mutated beings that have been polluted?!

13L: How large is the scale of these mutated creatures? Are their numbers outlandish?

14L: What I’m most concerned about is, what’s the source of the pollution? Did the pollution just appear out of nowhere? Did the biological mutations occur after the ‘Dark Boundless Realm Descent’ event, or were they already present beforehand? When reports of wild boar attacks began to spread, wouldn’t it have been around that time that the Game System issued its tasks. This suggests that the mutated creatures might have appeared before the Dark Boundless Realm Descent.

There weren’t many clear-sighted individuals who had managed to survive for weeks in the Second World, naturally not all through luck alone.

Kui Xin didn’t look at the replies from the earlier posts, she continued typing her response to summarize the information gathered: “Currently, the scale of mutated creatures is still relatively small and aren’t encountered often. After initial evaluation, the source causing mutations seems to be a higher-level Heterogeneous Blooded individual. Upon the death of a Heterogeneous Blooded, their bodies transform into blood water, which holds strong polluting properties that contaminate the species in the First World. These contaminated species then go on to further pollute other species that haven’t been infected, leading to a chain from Heterogeneous Blooded —> Mutated Beings —> Ordinary Beings. However, when the polluted blood water is sufficiently diluted, its polluting power weakens. It’s uncertain whether this means that the pollution becomes fully ineffective or if it might delay in its effect.”

She clicked to post her reply, which instantly triggered yet another round of discussion.

36L: There was a Heterogeneous Blooded who died in Tonglin City, causing such pollution. The dead Heterogeneous Blooded, probably, was Fang Zhi.

37L’s reply to 36L: Mystery solved! All clues come together! The source of the pollution is Fang Zhi, he was killed by Remover 233. The majority probability is that the location of his death was Tonglin City, hence leading to the outbreak of a blood contamination crisis.

38L: I don’t understand, there are Heterogeneous Blooded in the Second World and ordinary species in the First World. But I’ve never heard that Heterogeneous Blooded can pollute ordinary species; I only know divine blood can have this effect. Perhaps Heterogeneous Blooded evolved differently in our First World… Could this pollution characteristic be part of ‘Dark Boundless Realm Descent’?

39L: Thanks, Master. It must be hard gathering so much within a short time. The timeline of Dark Boundless Realm events is too short; many details are hard to confirm.

40L: Did you manage to get any concrete location of Fang Zhi’s death? That place should probably be prioritized for examination.

Kui Xin was indeed considering if she should announce the rough areas where Fang Zhi died; she deliberated long and eventually decided to disclose.

Posting these messages on the forum was originally meant to unite players and help them collectively face ‘Dark Boundless Realm’. With high-action players gathering in Tonglin City, it would make little sense to hold back now. In fact, it would only hinder investigation progress.

Kui Xin therefore outlined the primary search area:

“Around northwestern outskirts of Tonglin City, the Old Industrial Zone.”

The industrial area was vast with the tobacco factory located within; she defined a zone but didn’t disclose more detailed information. She hoped the players could investigate how far they could extend their findings.

56L: A word of advice for those who are already heading to Tonglin City, please proceed with caution. You just dive in upon seeing 233’s intel released? What if it’s a trap? Maybe 233 will capture you all in one fell swoop? Open your eyes; I strongly suspect that Remover 233 is actually the forum account 233! He has laid out these clues for this moment, aiming to gain players’ trust and ensnare them unsuspectingly into his trap!

57L’s reply to 56L: …so many complaints, couldn’t even find proper words.

58L’s reply to 56L: Has 233 shown clairvoyancy? Every time he posts information, hasn’t it always aimed at alerting players?

59L: If he really took a significant amount of time to plan all this and lure us into trusting him purely with disinformation, then I must question whether he is affiliated with the game’s authorities. From all events such as Fang Zhi, each catching us unawares. I seriously doubt 233 is powerful enough to predict the game’s movements.

60L: Don’t misinterpret me, but I share the same feeling… I worry this might be just bait. Our Host is acting overly kind…

61L: Laugh, why would anyone benefit from tricking you?! Have you been to Tonglin City yourself and are now just being overly concerned? Those who go to Tonglin City must believe in themselves and their abilities – the risks, they certainly take them into account, so no need for concern for you.

“Tsk.” Kui Xin clicked her tongue.

Indeed, person fifty-six somewhat guessed her intentions; she wanted to gather players in Tonglin City in one focal point to guide them to examine the tobacco factory. But Kui Xin wasn’t doing this to kill them but rather to identify their identities and scrutinize them.

She checked Tang Guan, and she also looked into Song Tingshuan who lived close to He Kangshi. Including Su Rong and the hacking trio, she had currently confirmed seven players’ real-world identities.

Moreover, she was confident that Song Tingshuan, who sought her aid via private message on the forum and later joined an organization, was discovered by her monitoring of Song’s communications, thereby confirming certain matters.

Song Tingshuan wasn’t alone; she had numerous supporters behind her. Even in Tonglin City, multiple players were sent here for the investigation of the Dark Boundless Realm descent. She brought another player but this time not in the same batch or possibly knowing their true identity.

This was for information security; danger threatened both worlds simultaneously. By avoiding the dangers of the First World, it didn’t guarantee safety from the Second World, let alone for Kui Xin herself.

In such conditions, withholding identity is beneficial for both protection and responsibility.

Kui Xin ate a quick meal and prepared to go teach Su Rong home tutoring.

Su Rong messaged early morning saying she wanted to join the Night Patrol, although being unable to attend personally she could send along her shadow double. After consideration, Kui Xin agreed.

Tonight Kui Xin wouldn’t investigate deeper into the tobacco factory and instead patrol the perimeter. Reasons…

…

“Industrial waste leak, on-site lockdown cleanup, release date uncertain?” Su Rong read out an urgent news pop-up on her phone. “Wow, the Old Industrial Zone is sealed off, even small factories operating are now temporarily closed, claiming toxic chemical waste leakage…”

“We reacted quickly,” Kui Xin affirmed her speculation.

“Did that catch the attention?” Su Rong whispered. “We cannot let this escalate… I’ve seen threads saying prices of some local food spiked, then rapidly controlled, hinting people realized things aren’t right.”

“This is expected,” Kui Xin responded, “It can only be contained. Imagine if the message about the Dark Boundless Realm descent leaks worldwide, what dire consequences could arise?”

“Securities market chaos, stock plummeting, Wall Street full of suicide lines. Widespread riots, uncontrolled food prices, increasing crime rates. Plus, war-prone regions can become extremely risky.” Su Rong explained, “Abroad, it’s becoming a problem, but domestically it’s contained well…”

She patted her chest and said, “Let’s keep things under wraps, preserve order.”

“Correct,” replied Kui Xin.

Su Rong switched to another TV channel and saw an announcement on air for public awareness regarding the air-raid warning.

“Speaking of which, last night when my family and I left the house, there was an advertisement screen displaying the warning.”

“Always good to stay prepared, since we don’t know how disasters might present themselves…”

The appearance of the twisted, black shadow from the tobacco factory still baffled her completely.

At any rate, these were definitely signs of ominous occurrences.

As evening approached, Kui Xin returned home to tend to the lab mice, making sure only the healthy ones remained and that the others continued their agitated behavior. Confident that the cages hadn’t been tampered with, she threw some meat to the agitated mouse, Number Three, and then stealthfully prepared to leave.

She walked down a quiet stretch of road and disabled the cameras while waiting. In less than two minutes, a dark, formless substance moved through walls and barriers, pooling up beside her in the shape of a man.

The figure extended an open palm, revealing a note saying: “Trouble with Sister Xinxin tonight.”

With her mobile phone, she messaged Su Rong: “Wasn’t a message possible? Why the note?”

“Hmmm, just because it feels formal?” Su Rong responded quickly. “A double can respond to spoken commands and be controlled directly. It is disposable though; it can reform after dispersing near me. I can connect with it mentally, but the connection weakens at a distance. Uncertain if separation farther apart might cause it to vanish completely.”

“It’ll be interesting to test this,” said Kui Xin.

“Sure thing, thank you, Sister Xinxin,” replied Su Rong.

Kui Xin stashed her phone and spoke to the Shadow Double: “Hide.”

The double melted away like black mud, blending into the ground, but Kui Xin wanted to keep it at a distance. She stepped back and said, “Stay in a shadow by the roadside, keep enough distance but follow me.”

The black mass listened obediently by the wall.

Internally, Kui Xin felt a bit stunned.

The Shadow Double had remarkable concealment. Her Shadow Transition abilities, belonging to the semi-space semi-shadow category, were ideally suited for concealment.

With the night setting in, various forces began to mobilize. The night promised unrest.

…

“Anything found yet?” Song Tingshuan asked impatiently.

“It’s quite a mess… Too hard with the time passed. Just yesterday evening and the day before.” A woman with long curly black hair replied. Despite her altered appearance, her voice was cultured and pleasant. “I can only review from recent days, having a limit on my ability to recall the past.”

“Last night, there were two figures. A man and a woman… no, a girl,” she stated while her gaze fixed on the rusted stairs. It seemed she perceived two ghostly shapes standing there, talking amicably.

“Any specific details of their conversation?” Song Tingshuan frowned.

“The recall isn’t all-knowing; it can view scenes but not hear sounds,” replied the woman with the long black curls.