22: Chapter 22 Anomalies

Sun Yi and Wei Guoliang had both left. The square was becoming increasingly empty, and the light curtains of the portals appeared exceptionally bright in the night.

Zhen Lu was in no rush to leave. He stood at the edge of the square, opened his personal panel, and glanced at his skill bar. Basic Cycling, which he had brought back from the downhill race, was also there.

He would enter the Wuxia World tomorrow and stay for ten days. The boss gave him two temporary combat skills.

He felt that the more things he had, the better. He leaned against a stone pillar, staring at the task hall panel, scrolling through it aimlessly.

The Temporary Summoning tasks refreshed quickly; most were things like carrying or digging, with low rewards and short durations. He looked through a few pages but found nothing of interest.

When he scrolled to the third page, a new task popped up.

[Temporary Summoning] World: Rocky Beach · Requirement: None · Number of People: 12/20 · Reward: 180 Credits/2 hours · Bonus Skill: Basic Dodge

Introduction: A rocky river beach with frequent rockfalls. The Summoning Master needs to collect ore from the beach and is hiring temporary workers to help dodge the falling rocks.

Zhen Lu's eyes lit up—Basic Dodge.

Dodge was something that should be useful in the Wuxia World. Dodging hidden weapons, dodging blades—it all relied on dodging. He clicked accept immediately.

A white light flashed.

He spent less than two hours at the Rocky Beach, running along the beach with the Summoning Master and dodging rocks rolling down from the slope. There were no complications; it was just dodging, running, and flashing to complete the Summoning Master's task.

When he came out, Basic Dodge was already in his skill bar.

As soon as he steadied himself, he casually refreshed the task hall again. A new task happened to pop up.

[Temporary Summoning] World: Misty Forest · Requirement: None · Number of People: 8/10 · Reward: 200 Credits/2 hours · Bonus Skill: Basic Tracking

Introduction: A dense forest shrouded in mist all year round. The Summoning Master needs to find a missing caravan and is hiring temporary workers to assist in tracking the traces.

Another useful one: Basic Tracking. An Embroidered Uniform Guard investigating a case would definitely need to know how to track.

He didn't hesitate and clicked accept.

The white light flashed again.

The Misty Forest was foggy, the ground covered in fallen leaves and dead branches, with intermittent footprints. The Summoning Master had lost something and had a group of people search by following the tracks. After searching for two hours, when he came out, Basic Tracking was also in his possession.

The two trips were back-to-back, adding up to less than four hours. The notification sound from Xiaoguang rang twice in succession.

"Summoning task completed, the reward of 180 Credits has been deposited into your account."

"Summoning task completed, the reward of 200 Credits has been deposited into your account."

Zhen Lu opened his personal panel.

[Player: Zhen Lu]

[Strength: 6]

[Agility: 6]

[Constitution: 5]

[Spirit: 5]

[Tier: F]

[Assets: 145,680 Credits]

[Skills: Basic Spear Technique, Basic Combat, Basic Formation, Proficiency in vehicle repair, Pain Suppression, Basic Reconnaissance, Basic Force Application, Basic Balance, Basic Coordination, Basic Cycling, Basic Dodge, Basic Tracking]

Zhen Lu leaned against the stone pillar and scrolled through a few more pages of tasks but didn't see anything else useful.

It was getting late, and he had to gather at six tomorrow morning.

He exited the Realm of Holy Light, the white light flashed, and he returned to the Beehive Apartment.

The light from the streetlamps outside shone in through the gaps in the curtains; the neighbors were quiet, and downstairs was also quiet.

The whole building was left with only the low humming sound of the heat exhaust pipes and the sound of flying cars occasionally passing by in the distance. He turned over, pulled the blanket up to his shoulders, and quickly fell asleep.

When he opened his eyes again, it wasn't fully bright outside. Gray light squeezed in through the gaps in the curtains, barely enough to make out the outlines in the room. Zhen Lu reached for his phone on the bedside table and glanced at it: 5:03 AM.

An hour earlier than his alarm.

He didn't lie back down, sat up, and rubbed his face. His body's recovery ability was much better than before; he had slept for less than six hours, but he was full of energy.

He washed up briefly, put on a dark jacket, and went out.

Morning in Radiance City was different from the daytime. The dome projection hadn't switched to "Morning Light Mode" yet; the sky was a uniform grayish-white, with no clouds and no sun, as if covered by a huge gray cloth.

The holy light cross hadn't lit up either, hanging at an altitude of three hundred meters, looking dull and dusty, like a light someone forgot to turn off. There were very few people on the street; occasionally, one or two passersby out for a morning run would pass him, their footsteps exceptionally clear on the empty street.

Zhen Lu walked east along Ring Road. He knew there was a breakfast shop on the street ahead that opened very early; he used to buy pancakes there often when he was working.

Rounding the corner, it was indeed open. White steam poured out from the shop entrance, mixed with the aroma of batter and eggs. The owner was a chubby aunt in her fifties, standing in front of the iron plate flipping pancakes.

"The usual," Zhen Lu said.

"Coming right up." The owner was nimble; she scooped the batter, spread it out, cracked an egg, sprinkled green onions, flipped it, brushed on the sauce, added the crispy cracker, folded it, and put it in a bag—all in one smooth motion.

Zhen Lu took the pancake and took a bite, hissing at the heat but not spitting it out. It was hot and delicious. He sat down on a small plastic stool at the shop entrance and ate slowly.

Halfway through eating, he noticed two people.

They weren't out for a morning run, weren't buying breakfast, and didn't look like they were just passing by.

Two people were standing under a streetlamp across the street, both wearing dark coats; one was taller, the other shorter.

The tall one had his hands in his pockets, and the short one was holding a phone, but the screen was black, and he wasn't looking at it.

They had been standing there for a while.

Zhen Lu had seen them when he first sat down, but hadn't paid attention at the time. But now that he was almost finished with his pancake, they were still standing there.

The tall one's gaze wasn't on his phone or the road; he was scanning. Scanning from one end of the street to the other, and back again.

The short one's phone would occasionally light up, but each time it was only for a very short moment, as if he glanced at it and then turned off the screen—not like a normal person scrolling through something.

Zhen Lu took a bite of the pancake and chewed slowly.

Basic Reconnaissance skill automatically activated in his mind. He organized the information: two people, dark coats, similar style but not a uniform, clean shoe soles—they didn't look like they had walked a long distance, stable stance—not like they were waiting for someone, positioned under a streetlamp where the light was best and the view was widest. They weren't passing by by accident, and they weren't waiting for anyone. They were watching.

Watching what? Watching this street? Watching this building? Watching him?

Zhen Lu stuffed the last bite of the pancake into his mouth, stood up, and threw the plastic bag into the trash can nearby.

He didn't look in the direction of those two people, but turned around and walked a few steps in the direction he came from, pretending to reach for his phone.

Then, using the reflection of his black phone screen, he glanced at the street scene behind him. The two people were still there, and the short one's phone lit up again. This time, he noticed a detail: the angle at which the short one was holding his phone wasn't aimed at himself, but at the direction across the street.

At the direction of Beehive Apartment.

Zhen Lu put his phone away and continued walking back. His pace wasn't fast, and his expression didn't change. But his mind was racing.

That alley, that ring, that explosion. The day he picked up the login device, there was a loud bang overhead, debris fell from the sky, and the ring rolled to his feet.

He hadn't cared at the time, just picked it up and left. Now that he thought about it, that aircraft had exploded, debris had scattered everywhere, the security team had arrived, but he hadn't heard of anyone looking for the ring.

Login devices could be bought on the market for tens of thousands of Credits; it wasn't worth causing such a huge commotion over.

But what if there was more than just a login device on that aircraft? What if that person had something else on them?

He didn't know. But he knew one thing: those two people loitering downstairs at his apartment building was not a good sign.

He quickened his pace a little. When he reached the entrance of the Beehive Apartment, he looked back; those two people hadn't followed him.

He swiped his card and entered. The elevator happened to be on the first floor. He pressed the button for the 42nd floor, the elevator doors closed, and it slowly ascended.

Back in his room, he closed the door and leaned against the door panel for a while. His heart was beating a little fast—not from fear, but from the tension of having things outside his control.

He took a deep breath, walked to the bed, and sat down. He glanced at his phone: 5:40 AM. Twenty minutes left.

He lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling.

Two thoughts were fighting in his mind. One: The login device was something he had picked up; if those two people were really here to find it, what should he do?

The other: Maybe not, maybe he was overthinking it; there were so many strangers in Radiance City every day, why would it have anything to do with him?

But he knew Basic Reconnaissance wouldn't lie to him. Those two people weren't normal.

He sat up again and went to the bathroom to wash his face. Cold water splashed on his face, and he felt a bit more clear-headed.

Regardless, he had to go to the Wuxia World today; the mission couldn't be delayed. Even if those two people were really here for him, they couldn't break into the Beehive Apartment in broad daylight.

This was Radiance City; there were security teams, surveillance, and access control. It wasn't a lawless place.

He changed his clothes, tucked away his phone, wallet, and keys, and touched the ring on the ring finger of his left hand. The silver-gray metal was warm.

5:58 AM.

He lay back on the bed.

"Enter."

The white light exploded.

The square of the Realm of Holy Light. Dark purple starry sky, glowing white stone.

After Zhen Lu steadied himself, he opened his friend list. Wei Guoliang's avatar was gray; he was offline. Sun Yi's avatar was lit; he sent a message over: "I've arrived."

The reply came quickly. "East district of the square, next to the golden portal."

Zhen Lu walked over. Sun Yi was already there, with a group of people standing next to him. One of them, in his early thirties, was wearing a dark robe with a cloth belt tied around his waist—it looked like the attire of that Wuxia World.

Sun Yi saw Zhen Lu and waved.

"Zhen Lu, this is Old Chen, my friend. He's been into that world several times, and he's taking us in today."

Old Chen looked Zhen Lu over and nodded.

"Alright, let's go." Old Chen turned and walked toward the portal. "The timing is just right; everything is ready on the other side."

The group walked in together.