STB Chapter 19: Fog

This is machine translated and all copyrights belong to the author. Please note that the translator might take creative liberties for better readability. Thank you for reading.

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If you want to be safe, pray not to be at an overlap point.

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[Abandoned World is the term used by informed individuals to refer to a specific type of parallel world.] Jian Hua, while reading the documents left by Zhang Yaojin, paused at a certain term and took a sip of strong tea from his cup.

The faint daylight was delayed in the morning due to the influence of thick fog outside the window.

Since Zhang Yaojin’s departure, Jian Hua had stayed awake all night, feeling the urge to flip through his contacts and call Li Fei.

However, they hadn’t gotten close enough to exchange secrets without any grudges, and Jian Hua wasn’t sure if the number he had was Li Fei’s own. Besides, it was said that the film emperor had been taken away by Red Dragon for investigation, so calling wouldn’t be of any use.

Jian Hua stuffed two M&M’s into his mouth, reluctantly suppressing the restlessness that made him want to smoke for emotional relief.

Regarding the invitation to join the Red Dragon as an external member, Jian Hua replied “still considering.”

Being bombarded by both monsters and people with abilities, Jian Hua presumed that Major Zhang thought it would take time for a regular person to accept. He didn’t make things difficult for Jian Hua and simply left after leaving a stack of documents. However, Jian Hua felt certain that there must be someone stationed near his home 24 hours a day.

The feeling of being watched by the secret service of the country—-

Rubbing his forehead, Jian Hua reconsidered the documents in his hands.

The term “informed individuals” referred to people who know the truth from different sources. The girl in the elevator of the Huan Yu Cinema, the mob in the Pearl Hotel, the young man on the mountain bike who died innocently on the street, and even Lu Zhao, were all aware.

This made Jian Hua couldn’t help but suspect that there was something he should know but missed out on.

Feeling like being the only one in the dark while everyone else understood was truly unpleasant.

Jian Hua dropped out of high school and struggled to make a living, so much of his knowledge was self-taught. “Parallel worlds,” being such a grand concept, was clearly not within his area of expertise.

Fortunately, the film industry offered a wide range of genres, and Jian Hua had seen a few foreign films that involved time travel and parallel worlds. He understood the general idea.

[Using parallel space to define the abandoned world is not accurate. It is not like a branch appearing on a tree of time. The majority of life forms (such as humans and animals) cannot appear in the abandoned world. It consists only of towering skyscrapers and the facade of modern society, devoid of vitality and unable to change. It could be the desiccated remnants of life at the end of time or a frozen corner of the world. Until there is a better scientific explanation, the term ‘parallel world’ is still used for simplicity and understanding.]

Jian Hua couldn’t figure out which part of this passage was supposed to be simple and understandable!

Nevertheless, the documents in his hand were more important than any script, so regardless of how absurd the metaphors might be, he had to continue reading.

[Special Note: The abandoned world is the term for ‘this specific type of parallel world.’ Specific individuals with exceptional abilities or those with potential can enter the abandoned world through various means. It may have very small points of connection with the real world. When your room overlaps with the abandoned world, you will be pulled into that world. So when you open the door, you will be trapped in fear and unease, as if the real world has abandoned you and everyone has disappeared.]

[Sometimes, the range of this overlap can be quite large, such as an entire city.]

[If you are an individual with exceptional abilities and happen to be located at the overlap point, then you will enter the abandoned world. Conversely, even if you are an awakened individual with abilities, if you are not standing at the overlap point between the two worlds, you don’t need to worry about encountering trouble.]

Jian Hua was puzzled. He felt that the wording was leaning towards being internet-based, like commentary in a live game or the rules introduction of a forum for role-playing. In any case, it didn’t resemble formal military documentation.

The information left by Zhang Yaojin appeared to provide a thorough explanation, but Jian Hua believed that there was much more hidden behind this report.

For example, based on his own experiences, the first time he entered the abandoned world was through the elevator in Huan Yu Cinema.

The second overlap point wasn’t the clinic, but the entire Huai City.

If the third time was his deliberate entry into the abandoned world, why did the range of the overlap point have such a wide impact? Normally, it should have only encompassed his own home. Since Jian Hua was there to destroy evidence, his subconscious wouldn’t allow more people to interfere with his actions.

According to the formal interpretation in the document, in order to live a peaceful life, one should pray not to be unlucky enough to be located at the overlap point.

However, Jian Hua frustratingly discovered that it seemed his own abilities could autonomously open the path to that bizarre world—-a power with unknown magnitude, range, and consequences!

This series of unknowns was driving him crazy.

Just by watching a movie, his entire life had been turned upside down. In a world as unreliable as this, how should he live?

***

Major Zhang Yaojin, who had slept for four hours in the car, answered the call from Haicheng with closed eyes, his voice filled with tiredness. “Hmm… Have there been any leads on the two missing girls from Huan Yu Cinema?”

His chaotic and drowsy mind couldn’t grasp the main point, so the voice on the other end of the phone had to slow down its tone. “Yes, a floating body was found on the water near the Linjiang Bridge in Huai City. Based on the clothing, it is believed to be one of the missing girls. The detailed autopsy report will be available in the afternoon.”

Zhang Yaojin rubbed his face forcefully and tugged at his hair, forcing himself to wake up.

He didn’t say anything and silently hung up the phone.

The explosion at the Pearl Hotel didn’t result in any casualties, but the young college student lying dead on the street, according to the investigation, had shown drastic changes in temperament recently, and his behavior indicated that he was someone prepared to get involved in these incidents.

Or should they be called “book jumpers”?

However, both the couple from the elevator accident at Huan Yu Cinema and the two missing female students showed no abnormalities before their deaths. They were innocently drawn into it and might never have known what exactly had happened.

What was even more frightening was that such incidents would happen again soon. The crisis from the abandoned world threatened not only the lives of ordinary people but also the awakened individuals who were trapped in that world. They had to face life-and-death choices—-whether to kill the monsters, evade their attacks, and survive or be devoured by the monsters.

“Major, the report sent to headquarters has been confiscated.”

Zhang Yaojin’s subordinate spoke cautiously. “There’s a message from there saying that Colonel Lu didn’t even finish reading the first page of the report and scolded you like hell, saying they’ll send you to a mental hospital.”

Zhang Yaojin chuckled lightly while lighting a cigarette. “I’m not afraid of that.”

The situation was beyond human control. If the disaster occurred as scheduled, the confiscated report would be handed over to the higher-ups at the first opportunity. Who would dare to utter a word then?

“How’s it going with Jian Hua?”

All the people sitting in the car with Zhang Yaojin were his old subordinates and comrades. Usually, they would laugh and joke around, but now, there was not a trace of a smile on anyone’s face. When Zhang Yaojin safely came out of that building in the morning, they all breathed a sigh of relief and didn’t inquire about the negotiations between Major Zhang and Jian Hua.

“It’s tough!” Zhang Yaojin took a drag of his cigarette, casually rolled down the car window, and let the fresh morning air clear his mind.

The thick fog covered everything outside the car window, and nothing could be seen on both sides of the highway.

Zhang Yaojin recalled the person he had met a few hours ago and casually remarked, “If this person is a kidnapper or a suicide jumper, they are definitely the type that negotiators dread the most.”

It’s not that they don’t listen to persuasion, but they only listen to their own words.

“Stubborn, highly vigilant, and probably naturally suspicious…” Zhang Yaojin counted them one by one, sighed, and said, “We can’t tell him the whole truth in one go. The reality is too absurd and can easily backfire.”

“Did he believe what the Major said?”

“No, he didn’t. It’s just that he couldn’t find a better explanation to account for the strange occurrences around him.”

Zhang Yaojin rubbed his temples and nose to wake himself up, self-deprecatingly saying, “He’s not to blame. Even if it were me, I wouldn’t believe it.”

Suddenly, the car screeched to a halt. The people inside the car instinctively steadied themselves, then quickly reached for their waist.

“What’s happening?”

The driver’s hands gripping the steering wheel were trembling. He looked at the dark figure slowly emerging from the fog ahead, his body stiff as he asked, “What’s the method to test if someone had the potential to acquire abilities? If all of us in the car have potential, could we… unknowingly enter an overlap point?”

Zhang Yaojin widened his eyes.

A massive shadow, like a tentacle, appeared in the fog less than twenty meters away from the car, crossing the highway before disappearing into the dense white mist again.

The people in the car held their breath, drew their handguns, and listened carefully to the sounds outside.

“Hoo… Hoo…”

It sounded like someone panting for breath or something leaking air.

Soon, the peculiar sound ceased, and the surroundings were still engulfed in the white fog.

Zhang Yaojin and his subordinates waited patiently for five minutes, beads of sweat forming on their foreheads as their highly tensed muscles and nerves were put to the test. Finally, they concluded that the monster had left.

“What’s going on? Wasn’t it said that the monsters would only appear next year?”

It was November now, and the chat group records mentioned spring next year.

Zhang Yaojin didn’t have time to ponder over this. He pressed the driver for more information. “Lao Zhang, describe what you saw earlier.”

“When I saw the shadow in the fog, I stepped on the brakes…”

“Not that! I mean, what did you feel when we entered the abandoned world while driving?” Zhang Yaojin interrupted.

The driver shook his head. With such thick fog and the highway closed, they could still see some vehicles in the beginning, but once they entered this stretch of road, they were the only car moving. Despite driving carefully and encountering no bumps on the road, one’s eyes would naturally blink. Who knew when they had run into trouble?

“Continue driving ahead!” Zhang Yaojin patted the driver’s shoulder.

Everyone in the car couldn’t sit still and kept their eyes fixed on the windows and the rear of the car. The jeep started again, moving at a slow pace of 20 mph. They didn’t spot any suspicious shadows this time. When they exited the highway, they confirmed the horrifying news—-they had entered the abandoned world.

A long line of vehicles awaited at the toll plaza, but not a single person was visible.

Zhang Yaojin leaned heavily against his seat, feeling a slight headache coming on.

“Major, this is somewhat of a good thing, right? At least we know what’s happening in this damned world, don’t we?”

Zhang Yaojin’s subordinates were still interested in becoming individuals with abilities.

“Do you guys have any food?” Major Zhang glanced at them askance.

“…”

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Last Edit    06-16-2023 5:00 PM

This is machine translated and all copyrights belong to the author. Please note that the translator might take creative liberties for better readability. Thank you for reading.