The System Arrived Four Years Early, but the Anomaly Is Still a Juvenile - Chapter 157

Night.

The fog-shrouded city of Takiguchi felt even more gloomy and oppressive. The swallowing sounds hidden within the mist created an illusion that one could be devoured by a grotesque entity at any moment.

Xiao Cheng sat in the back seat of the armored vehicle. Though his eyes were closed, resting, he didn’t dare actually fall asleep. He had to stay alert at all times, not knowing when a grotesque might appear.

There were six people in his armored vehicle. Besides the driver, a special forces soldier from Sakura Country, and the liaison from Sakura’s Anti-Grotesque Organization, Natsumi, in the passenger seat, the four in the back were all Anti-Grotesque agents from the Heavenly Dynasty.

From the Dianzhou Branch: Xiao Cheng and Brother Li. From Headquarters: Luo Jing and Zhao Dezhu. Brother Li and Zhao Dezhu were both in their forties and had been in the department for several years, having collaborated on multiple missions together.

Xiao Cheng and Luo Jing rested with their eyes closed, while the other two chatted intermittently. Soon, the topic shifted to Shen Ge.

However, with an outsider like Natsumi present—who was fluent in Chinese—even though she sat in the front passenger seat, they didn’t speak too explicitly, at least avoiding any mention of classified information.

Even so, Natsumi noted the name “Shen Ge.”

She had seen this name previously on the Heavenly Dynasty’s support list. After meeting the team, aside from Xiao Cheng and Luo Jing, the others hadn’t introduced themselves.

Natsumi mistakenly thought Shen Ge was one of the three other Heavenly Dynasty Anti-Grotesque agents in the other vehicle. She sent a message via the communicator to her teammates in the adjacent vehicle, telling them to pay attention to this person named Shen Ge.

After putting away the communicator, Natsumi’s gaze unconsciously drifted to the window. She felt as if huge figures were faintly moving within the thick fog.

Natsumi subconsciously pulled her sleeve down, covering a red mark on her left wrist. She knew it was dangerous, like a demon’s curse that could take her life at any moment.

But when weighing personal safety against national survival, Natsumi chose the latter. She was willing to give everything for Sakura Country, even her life.

Time passed bit by bit. The convoy of armored vehicles moved along the highway through the Kawashina district, approaching the dangerous Tokyo Tower area.

Bang!

Suddenly, a gunshot rang out, followed by a torrent of rat-a-tat-tat gunfire. The fierce shooting shattered the silence.

Xiao Cheng and Luo Jing, who had been in a light sleep, opened their eyes simultaneously. Everyone in the vehicle instinctively pressed their hands against their Grotesque Energy equipment, ready to activate it at any moment.

Natsumi immediately picked up the communicator and inquired in Japanese.

After a brief exchange in Japanese over the comms, Natsumi turned to the Anti-Grotesque agents in the back seat. “Everyone, the rear convoy has been attacked by grotesques. After discussion, we’ve decided the four convoys will enter the Tokyo Tower area via different routes. Providing support to the severely affected zone is our primary objective.”

“What about Vehicle 4?” Xiao Cheng frowned and asked immediately. Vehicle 4 carried the other three Heavenly Dynasty Anti-Grotesque agents besides their group.

“My apologies, Vehicle 4 is one of the vehicles that was attacked,” Natsumi replied gravely.

“Stop the vehicle!” Xiao Cheng said immediately.

“Mr. Xiao, our mission is to enter the Tokyo Tower area, evacuate survivors from the severe disaster zone, and then proceed to Togane City to resolve the source of the grotesque disaster. We cannot waste time here!” Natsumi argued.

Xiao Cheng snorted coldly. “It’s true we’re here to help you, but that doesn’t mean we’ll sacrifice our comrades to do so.”

“Stop the vehicle!”

“Stop now!”

“Don’t make me break the door down!”

Brother Li and Zhao Dezhu immediately chimed in.

“Everyone, we’ve detected intense Grotesque Energy reactions in that area. There are numerous high-level grotesques there. Once we enter the overlapping Grotesque Space, escaping won’t be easy. Moreover, you are well aware of the complexities of multi-layered Grotesque Spaces. Even if we go in, we might not necessarily find them!” Natsumi explained.

As she spoke, the gunfire suddenly ceased. Presumably, the convoy attacked by grotesques had already been pulled into a multi-layered Grotesque Space.

Xiao Cheng looked at Luo Jing, clearly seeking her opinion. Luo Jing shook her head slightly, then took out a small satellite communicator.

Xiao Cheng nodded slightly, understanding her meaning.

Luo Jing picked up the communicator, briefly explained the situation, and sent the message to the behind-the-scenes commander of this support operation—Deng Yuqi.

“Have you contacted Shen Ge?” Deng Yuqi asked.

Luo Jing replied helplessly, “I wanted to ask you about that. You told me to cover for him, but you didn’t say he wouldn’t show up at all!”

“Didn’t I arrange for someone else to take his place?” Deng Yuqi retorted.

Luo Jing was speechless. “If you had a way to arrange a substitute to fool them, why did you even need us to provide cover?”

“Better safe than sorry.”

“…”

Luo Jing was going crazy.

Deng Yuqi soon sent new information: “I’ve established a connection with his AI system via satellite position. I’m sending you the password.”

“You mean I should contact him directly and have him find the trapped agents?” Luo Jing asked.

Deng Yuqi replied, “No, I want you to communicate with him and preferably avoid the areas where he’s operating… Also, he has confirmed that the Twelfth Branch is behind this again. You all should be careful too; the Twelfth Branch’s infiltration capabilities are strong. Don’t be deceived by any replacements.”

“No need to tell me that. After your Rong City Branch’s report came out, Headquarters sent files to all branches for investigation. But from your tone, it seems you want us to fully cooperate with Agent Shen’s actions. Although his contributions during the Chongqing and Daijing grotesque disasters were immense, this time is different. According to the Grotesque Energy report from Sakura Country, this might be a large-scale grotesque disaster of level 6 or above. Do you really think… one person can handle it?” Luo Jing asked.

“I trust him, just like you trust me,” Deng Yuqi simply replied.

Luo Jing sighed and quickly typed on the communicator: “Alright, if you put it that way, what else can I say? Fine, I’ll contact him directly.”

“Okay.”

Luo Jing ended the communication, entered the password Deng Yuqi sent to access the subsystem, re-established the定位 connection, and then forcibly connected to Little Classmate Seven using emergency mode.

Immediately, she received a reply.

“Women contact Xiao Cheng, men handle it yourself.”

?

??

???

What the heck?

Noticing Luo Jing’s strange expression, Xiao Cheng looked at her questioningly. Luo Jing sighed, raised her hand, and subtly showed him the communicator’s screen.

“…”

Xiao Cheng was also speechless, feeling like this support operation had been meticulously arranged behind their backs.

However, Shen Ge did answer the communicator. Although Little Classmate Seven provided a layer of interception, anyone who could contact him through a secure channel was clearly not an ordinary person.

“Shen Ge?” Luo Jing saw the connection was established and immediately sent a message.

A few seconds later, Shen Ge replied, “What’s up?”

If Luo Jing were using a standard communicator like his, Shen Ge’s replies wouldn’t be this fast. But he had the intelligent system, Little Classmate Seven, to read and transmit messages, saving him the typing.

Luo Jing briefly explained the situation and then asked, “I just checked the route map with Little Seven. The location where Vehicle 4 went missing is precisely in your area. If possible, could you go and assist our Anti-Grotesque agents?”

The nature of Grotesque Spaces, like grotesque abilities, was bizarre and varied. Some blocked signals, some altered terrain, others had distorted space and time. To this day, neither the Special Response Department nor international Anti-Grotesque organizations had an absolutely authoritative explanation for Grotesque Spaces.

The grotesque disaster in Takiguchi City was influenced by the high-level grotesque “Misfortune.” Unlike the Chongqing incident, which blocked all signals, allowing Anti-Grotesque agents to communicate via various instruments, the effects of “Misfortune” were even more bizarre and followed almost no discernible pattern.

Luo Jing wanted Shen Ge to assist the three agents for a simple reason: one of them held a key item for this support operation—a plan to infiltrate the Twelfth Branch.

“Bit busy. If it’s not urgent… let’s talk in three hours,” Shen Ge replied.

Luo Jing’s eye twitched. As expected from the same department, she thought. The tone and infuriating wording are exactly the same.

How could it not be urgent?

Deng Yuqi had repeatedly emphasized that the item must be delivered to Shen Ge. Worried about potential issues during transit, Luo Jing kept one copy herself and had the other team carry the second copy.

Now, due to Natsumi’s influence, their vehicle couldn’t take Shen Ge’s route. So, she asked Shen Ge to take another route to meet them, ensuring he could get the item.

Luo Jing thought for a moment and sent Shen Ge the route her vehicle was taking, as well as the general direction of the missing Vehicle 4, advising him to find an opportunity to meet up with one of the teams.

Unexpectedly, Shen Ge replied very quickly: “If the people you want me to assist are on the route in the eastern Kawashina district, then I’m afraid it might be a bit difficult.”

“Why?”

“Because there are quite a few high-level grotesques on this route.”

“How many?”

“One suspected level 4, four level 3s, several level 2s, and over ten level 1s… tens of thousands of infected, oh, and the evolved kind.”

“…”

Staring at the latest message on the communicator, Luo Jing was completely stunned. It took her a long moment to regain her composure. “When you said you were ‘a bit busy’ earlier, were you… dealing with them?”

“Right, I’m right in the middle of a monster horde,” Shen Ge replied honestly.

Luo Jing stared at the communicator, her expression turning rather peculiar. After a long while, a phrase that Fang Mingyue often used floated through her mind—

“Agent Shen is truly a god among men!”

If Shen Ge wasn’t one to boast, and if what he said was true, being able to reply to messages under such circumstances wasn’t just “god among men”—it was downright “divine”!

A War God!

Looking across the entire Special Response Department—no, across all Anti-Grotesque organizations worldwide—it was impossible to find someone capable of simultaneously dealing with that many high-level grotesques!

Of course, Luo Jing didn’t know that Shen Ge had omitted two words from his statement. He was indeed in the middle of a monster horde, but he wasn’t fighting them all alone. He was… “watching the show.”