14: Chapter 14 Submission of Abnormal Items

At 1:20 AM, Shen Qinghe and Zhao Ye stood once again in Xinhuo Hall.

Both of them were in a sorry state.

The cuff of Shen Qinghe's jacket was torn, and there were abrasions on the back of her hand. Zhao Ye's right hand was wrapped in a makeshift bandage; the bleeding had stopped, but his face was much paler than before he had entered the mission.

Li Man had already been sent to the hospital.

In reality, Shen Qinghe only stated that she had experienced severe sleepwalking and a stress response. As for the shattered mirror, the wet mud, and that black lens in the bedroom, none of it was written into any official records.

Those things were not something that could be explained in an ordinary report.

Nor were they things that ordinary people should come into contact with.

Gray mist flowed slowly beneath their feet. The Xinhuo stele stood quietly in the center of the hall.

The evidence bag containing the black lens hovered in front of the stele.

Shen Qinghe watched with her own eyes as it was lifted by the gray mist, and she subconsciously wanted to ask a question.

"Where will the lens be sent?"

"How does the Xinhuo Council handle anomalies?"

"Destroy them, seal them away, or convert them into something else?"

But the words reached her lips, and she swallowed them back down.

She could already guess the answer.

"Insufficient authority."

Sure enough, Zero's voice rang out.

"Anomaly core received."

"Mission settlement in progress."

The black lens faded bit by bit within the gray mist, finally disappearing silently like a drop of ink falling into water.

Shen Qinghe's pupils constricted slightly.

This wasn't a normal retrieval.

It was more like it had been eaten by this place.

Zhao Ye saw it too. He didn't ask; he just tucked his right hand into his sleeve, as if he didn't want anyone to see the wound torn open by that force earlier.

Zero continued reading.

"Mission Name: The Sleepwalking Mirror."

"Mission Rank: Adjusted from Rank E to Rank D."

"Reason for Rank Adjustment: The target anomaly possesses mirror replication, sonic inducement, and low-level spatial traction abilities; original mission intelligence was insufficient."

"Mission Result: Anomaly core submitted; victim Li Man has been freed from continuous contamination."

The evaluations for the two of them appeared on the stele.

[ Shen Qinghe: Completed on-site assessment, discovered key contamination point, mission contribution high. ]

[ Zhao Ye: Successfully sealed the mirror surface, endured anomaly traction without losing control, mission contribution high. ]

[ Base Reward: 15 contribution points. ]

[ Anomaly Submission Bonus: Shen Qinghe 16 contribution points, Zhao Ye 14 contribution points. ]

[ Final Settlement: Shen Qinghe received 31 contribution points, Zhao Ye received 29 contribution points. ]

Zhao Ye looked at his settlement and frowned.

"Did I get less?"

Shen Qinghe looked at him.

Zhao Ye added, "I don't mean it's too little. I mean, I was a drag."

"You saved me twice."

"You were the one who found the key contamination point."

"If you hadn't held down the mirror, I wouldn't have been able to find it."

The two fell into a brief silence.

This wasn't just politeness.

They were both well aware that if either one of them had been half a beat slower tonight, the mirror might have produced a new copy.

Zero's voice rang out again.

"Due to a mission Rank error, the base medical treatment costs for this mission will be covered by the organization."

Zhao Ye looked up. "This can be reimbursed?"

Shen Qinghe was also stunned for a moment.

The next second, a pale cyan light screen appeared before them.

[ Basic medical treatment application approved. ]

[ Injury Type: Lacerations, mild blood loss, mild spiritual contamination. ]

[ Treatment Method: Low-level Stabilization Art. ]

[ Cost: Deducted via mission Rank error compensation. ]

On one side of the hall, the gray mist parted, revealing a narrow door they had never seen before. There were no complicated decorations on the door, only a small cyan light.

Zero said, "Temporary medical access has been granted. Please complete treatment within ten minutes."

Zhao Ye stared at the door for a moment and said in a low voice, "They're actually quite reasonable."

Shen Qinghe looked toward the Xinhuo stele.

This organization was cold, but it was not chaotic.

It would not bear dangers on behalf of its members, but it would admit its own errors in judgment and pay the price for those mistakes.

This was more believable than many empty promises.

Because once rules become stable, they turn into trust.

At the same time, deep within Xinhuo Hall, Lu Chen looked at the backend logs that only he could see.

[ Anomaly Core: Mirror Fragment, recovered. ]

[ Recovery Value: 10 source essence. ]

[ Resource Allocation Rule: Organization retains 70%, member contribution converted to 30%. ]

[ Organization gained source essence: 7. ]

[ Member Reward Pool: 30 contribution points. ]

[ Currently available source essence: 12. ]

Just as Lu Chen wanted to breathe a sigh of relief, a new deduction notification popped up.

[ Mission Rank Error Compensation: Low-level Stabilization Art. ]

[ Consumed source essence: 1. ]

[ Currently available source essence: 11. ]

He was silent for two seconds.

Very well.

Just when he felt he had a little bit of money, he got nicked again.

But this expense couldn't be cut.

The mission Rank was given incorrectly by the organization; the members executed the mission based on the organization's intelligence and ended up bearing extra risks. If medical treatment wasn't reimbursed, who would trust the mission Ranks in the future?

Lu Chen opened the Exchange Hall draft.

Several options that were previously grayed out began to light up as the source essence recovered.

[ Low-level Hemostatic Potion ]

[ Low-level Protective Talisman ]

[ spirit sight talisman ]

[ Physique Enhancement Reagent ]

Lu Chen paused on "Physique Enhancement Reagent."

This thing would be very useful for Zhao Ye.

But the price couldn't be low.

If it were too cheap, members would think they could just rely on contribution points to make up for every injury. If it were too expensive, it would make early members unable to see a goal for growth.

Lu Chen thought for a moment and filled in the value.

[ Physique Enhancement Reagent: 100 contribution points. ]

[ Permission Requirement: Apprentice. ]

[ Current Status: Insufficient contribution, compatibility review incomplete. ]

In other words, Shen Qinghe and Zhao Ye could see it now, but they couldn't exchange for it.

This wasn't intentionally blocking them.

This was a goal.

If a person doesn't know what they can become in the next step, it's easy for them to be dragged back to the ordinary world by fear.

Lu Chen confirmed the update.

The firelight in the Exchange Hall brightened slightly.

Shen Qinghe and Zhao Ye received a notification at the same time.

[ Exchange Hall inventory updated. ]

[ Some items currently have insufficient contribution or incomplete compatibility review. ]

Zhao Ye looked at the price after "Physique Enhancement Reagent" and his expression froze.

"One hundred contribution points?"

Shen Qinghe had just experienced a mission where she was nearly dragged away by the mirror, and she had only received thirty-one points.

She suddenly understood that power is not charity.

Every step must be exchanged with one's life.

Zhao Ye asked, "Will you continue?"

Shen Qinghe looked toward the Xinhuo stele, recalling the woman in the mirror, the wet footprints in the hallway, and the dazed, terrified look in Li Man's eyes after she woke up.

In the real world, there are still many people who have no idea what they are standing next to.

She said, "I will."

Zhao Ye nodded.

"Then I will too."

Deep within the gray mist, Lu Chen archived the "The Sleepwalking Mirror" mission record.

This time, the Xinhuo Council was no longer just an empty hall and a stele.

It began to truly consume anomalies, issue rewards, bear losses, and shape its members.

The closed loop was running.

It was very rough.

It was very dangerous.

But it could run.