Chapter 174

Chapter 42: There’s nothing else under the heavens…

When Yuan Xiaoling called, Luo Zou Cheng and his team were in a frenzy, hearing the girl’s voice like they had seen their savior.

“Miss Yuan, we’ve finally reached you. Several incidents have suddenly broken out in the city…”

As expected, not surprising at all, aside from the two girls at Tianhai University, similar cases appeared elsewhere too. And because the signs weren’t obvious at first, no one paid attention until actual deaths occurred, causing shock among others.

Three out of five military bases received urgent reports from their respective districts and were about to dispatch forces.

“Don’t act rashly,” Yuan Xiaoling said over the phone, “Increase the number of Element-type and Mental-type fighters in your teams and make them the main attackers, with Enhancement-type as backup. Also, keep an eye out for anything unreasonable during combat; it’s likely to be an illusion.”

She then told the other side the attack pattern Bai Ling had deduced.

Luo Zou Cheng understood and promised to take immediate action.

“Oh, also, let Wu Bian follow along and investigate the enemy’s strength level.”

“Understood.”

After wrapping up the call, Yuan Xiaoling hung up and turned her gaze toward the unfortunate soul on the hospital bed.

“Can she still be saved?”

It was tragic—she hadn’t done anything wrong, just went to greet a classmate who had been missing for days, asking how things were, and ended up like this.

Bai Ling asked Gu Hui, “What does she think inside her illusions? Has she realized the truth yet?”

“She has doubts, questioning why she is having such dreams since she isn’t really that obsessed with celebrities,” Gu Hui replied.

“In that case, there’s still hope. Once she fully realizes the falsity of the illusion and concentrates hard, she should wake up,” Bai Ling estimated. “But she’ll be weak for some time.”

The main culprit behind her condition is already gone, and it died quickly, so the ‘wound’ didn’t cause much damage before stopping its deterioration. Once she breaks free from the illusion, she’ll be fine.

“Just being able to survive is already good,” Yuan Xiaoling placed her hands on her hips. “The other two weren’t as lucky—they’re completely dead. I wonder how the school will inform their families.”

Mental erosion, consciousness corruption, followed by intense hydraulic pressure—there’s no way anyone could survive that.

At this moment, a teacher messaged her with news to share.

Still the same building, but now there were far fewer leaders present, only a few scattered ones remaining, most of whom were still on calls.

“Student Yuan Xiaoling, we just contacted the parents of the students involved,” the teacher said. “For the student who was accidentally injured, her parents are trying to come here. Considering the current flight and high-speed rail conditions in Tianhai City, it might take a few more days.”

“You can advise them to wait longer. She’ll wake up soon anyway, so just give them peace of mind when the time comes,” Yuan Xiaoling said. “There’s no need for them to come—it’s dangerous around here recently.”

Thinking for a moment, she asked again, “What about the other two?”

The teacher looked somewhat awkward, and the person nearby making calls also showed a helpless expression.

“Student Yuan Xiaoling, their situations are rather special.”

He picked up an A4 sheet from the table, printed with the admission information of the two female students.

“Li Xiaoyu, a left-behind child, and her only elder relative cannot be reached.”

“Zhang Lili’s family situation is also very complicated. We heard they’ve been filing for divorce these past few years, arguing fiercely over property division. After we informed them of her death, besides some surprise, there didn’t seem to be much more reaction.”

Yuan Xiaoling could hear faint voices through the ongoing call, saying something like, “In a cursed place like Tianhai City, dying suddenly is normal.”

At this point, she seemed to understand why “go home” were the only words left in Li Xiaoyu and Zhang Lili’s fragmented consciousness.

“Student Yuan Xiaoling, regarding the aftermath of this incident, do you have any suggestions?” the teacher tentatively asked.

Dead men tell no tales. Though the two girls responsible were pitiful, they were ultimately dead. Luckily, one was saved. The school’s top priority now was handling the aftermath properly.

Don’t underestimate the absence of the school leaders. After Yuan Xiaoling left for the first time, the old principal immediately pulled them into an emergency meeting.

“No, I don’t have any suggestions for this aspect. You guys figure it out yourselves.”

Walking out of the office building, Yuan Xiaoling received “good news” from Wu Bian:

“Miss Yuan, I’ve investigated clearly—it’s at least late third-tier, and I even sensed peaks reaching fourth-tier.”

The Blonde-haired Maiden glanced at her mobile phone, noting the weather forecast: partly cloudy after clear skies.

Late third-tier to early fourth-tier, similar to the “Rotting Wood” member of the Yun Family she encountered before—all products of Foundation Stone mutation, right?

“And they’re quite troublesome. I… ”

Wu Bian recounted his thrilling battle experience. When the enemies were controlled by their own troops, he cautiously approached to activate his abilities, only to fall victim himself. In the illusion, he was an unrecognized artist in a small town, unable to enter his dream art academy, which enraged him enough to…

…snap back to reality due to the absurdity of it all.

“I guess he saw my braids and assumed I was some kind of artsy youth. This preconceived notion based on appearance is truly annoying,” Wu Bian angrily said.

“Hmm, so you’re not an artsy youth?” Yuan Xiaoling blinked. “I always thought you were.”

“That must be my fault then,” Wu Bian instantly retracted his complaint. “There shouldn’t be any annoyance.”

Flexibility is the hallmark of a true man.

“Alright, I get it. You guys release the information later,” Yuan Xiaoling said.

With such an event happening, if Miss Long Wang doesn’t say something, Tianhai City would descend into panic.

…

For most people in Tianhai City, this day remained relatively calm. People worked, studied, or slept as usual.

Until they picked up their phones and saw overwhelming news, realizing something major had happened.

[Tianhai City Crisis Re-emerges? Sinister Shadows in Schools!]

[Security Guards and Shop Owners in Old Neighborhoods Behaving Strangely.]

[Why Do Blood Relatives Turn Deadly?]

Official news hadn’t come out yet, but sensationalist titles from marketing accounts were already flying everywhere. At this point, someone pointed out in the comment section to check the game update instead.

Heart’s Sea, activated!

After a period of hot updates, everyone saw the newly added enemy in the game.

[Sleepwalkers

Description: Due to mental trauma, they were corrupted by dark forces, transforming into monsters existing between reality and spirit. They prioritize contacting people they knew in life based on residual memories.

Attack Method: Touch and proximity—the closer, the stronger. It pulls people into illusions. If they can’t wake up in time, their consciousness will be continuously eroded in the illusion until brain death occurs.

Strength: Late Third-Tier ~ Early Fourth-Tier.

Defense Method: Extremely high physical resistance, almost unaffected. Elemental and mental attacks can cause significant damage.

Recommendation: When encountering unusual events, question whether you’re dreaming, but don’t pinch your thigh—it won’t work. Instead, focus your attention. If someone acts strangely, especially looking like they have a hangover, stay highly vigilant.]

The Mental-type, the most mysterious category in spiritual energy classification, along with its spawned monsters, appeared in the public eye for the first time described in gaming terms.

Of course, to ordinary people, Mental-type and Element-type are pretty much the same, just slightly weirder in manifestation.

As for those who know a bit more, they were starting to lose sleep.

What? Isn’t Mental-type supposed to be support? How did such bizarre monsters appear?

…

“So that’s what happened.”

Back in her dormitory, Yuan Xiaoling sat at the bedside, facing her two roommates and Bai Ling, who was peeling an apple.

Just returned and ran into this issue, lunch uneaten.

After listening to Yuan Xiaoling recount the family situations of the two girls, Qiao Lili sighed:

“So, the reason they went drinking could be due to changes at home, coinciding with bad luck.”

“Yes, but from another perspective, if not for these reasons, they wouldn’t frequently go out to drown their sorrows.”

“I just found out too. They never mentioned it before, and most people thought they acted this way because their lives were too fulfilling,” Gu Hui softly said. “Actually, they were quite nice, willing to lend their dorm rooms whenever asked.”

At this point, the girls all felt a tinge of melancholy, suddenly experiencing a strange sense of sorrow.

Only Bai Ling remained expressionless, pinching a slice of apple and sneaking it into the Blonde-haired Maiden’s cherry mouth while she wasn’t paying attention.

She couldn’t understand why they were so dramatic about family issues, running off to drink away their troubles. Look at herself—her family was… well, like that, and nothing happened.

Buzz buzz buzz. Her phone vibrated. Yuan Xiaoling picked it up to see it was from the base.

Since the incident, messages kept coming from the base, either from Luo Zou Cheng or Wu Bian. Sometimes, when they were too busy, Ah Lan and Ting Ting would step in, all asking for opinions on handling the matter. Occasionally, when they encountered enemies with distinct features, they’d send messages to inquire.

After all, it was the first time everyone encountered such bizarre entities, and without guidance from Miss Long Wang, they felt uneasy.

However, this message was different—

[Luo Zou Cheng: Miss Yuan, the municipal staff came by earlier, asking when you’re available and hoping you can find time to attend a meeting to discuss the handling of this incident.]

Initially, they wanted Yuan Xiaoling to come as soon as possible, but during a temporary meeting, someone suddenly said, “If the esteemed Miss Long Wang comes now, what happens if those half-man, half-ghost things run amok?”

Everyone exchanged glances, reconsidered, and altered the wording.

Yuan Xiaoling paused slightly upon reading this, typing back: [Do I even have the ability to deal with Four Squares Academy right now?]

We need to completely eliminate the Inner Stone of the Mind to stop the erosion, don’t they know?

[Luo Zou Cheng: Uh, they meant handling the public opinion aspect.]

[…]

Yuan Xiaoling sent an ellipsis, pondered for a moment, and replied: [Then tomorrow morning, I’ll go to the Municipal Building.]

Putting down her phone, she met her roommates’ gazes, the Blonde-haired Maiden puzzled. “Why are you all looking at me?”

“We’re waiting for your word. How exactly is today’s situation?” Qiao Lili said. “Without your input, we’re all unsure.”

Okay, it seems not just Luo Zou Cheng and the others, but everyone needs Miss Long Wang.

“In fact, it’s within expectations. I’ve known about their existence for some time,” Yuan Xiaoling said. “And I’ve fought them before, winning a small victory against greater numbers.”

Beside her, Bai Ling nodded.

A small victory refers to the time when the Blonde-haired Maiden almost got overwhelmed in a group battle, only saved by Bai Ling’s intervention and the enemy’s inexplicable retreat.

“Ah, I see.”

“Got it.”

Uninformed roommates, seeing Bai Ling nod, believed Yuan Xiaoling’s words held credibility.

“So I’m saying, after working so long today and having a meeting tomorrow, let’s not talk about them anymore,” Yuan Xiaoling suggested. “Let’s chat about something lighter to cheer ourselves up.”

Since returning to school at noon and fighting two half-dead enemies, every move she made dealt with them, and every message on her phone was about them. Ning Ning was getting a bit tired.

Bai Ling agreed with a nod, indifferent since the bustling around was Yuan Xiaoling’s doing. She enjoyed the tranquility, allowing herself time to reflect…

“If we’re cheering up, let’s talk about something cheerful. Hey, Xiao Ning,” Qiao Lili suddenly remembered something. “Didn’t you guys take wedding photos today? How did it go?”

That reminded Gu Hui too: “Right, right, I almost forgot. You were out all morning. They must have turned out beautifully. Let us see?”

Huh?

Bai Ling’s heart skipped a beat, her face tightening instantly.

Oh no, how did the topic shift to this?

Is there no other joyful news under the sun?

“It’s still in the preliminary draft at the studio, not yet finalized…”

Before the White-haired Maiden finished speaking, the Blonde-haired Maiden excitedly fished out her phone and interjected, “But I can ask the studio for a copy. The preliminary draft is already perfect. Let me tell you, you wouldn’t believe what Bai Ling wore today—it was absolutely stunning!”

Bai Ling: “…”