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

Park Chang-ho had completely lost it.

Because when that pale, cold, wet hand pierced through his throat, grabbed his face, and started to “peel” it off, his consciousness remained terrifyingly clear.

In his years as a Special Investigator, Park Chang-ho had faced anomalies over a hundred times. Especially after their public exposure, he encountered them almost weekly.

He had seen terrifying ones, anomalies that crushed comrades into paste with a single step, and those with sharp claws that tore people apart as easily as paper.

But he had never seen anything as horrifying and bizarre as this!
“I… don’t want to die…” Half his face was peeled off. In the icy darkness and fear, he was gradually descending into madness.

The cold, wet anomalous hand felt like a block of ice lodged in his throat, not only preventing him from making a sound but also making breathing incredibly difficult.

As the skin was stripped from his face, blood blinded his eyes.

“I don’t want to die!”

“Whoever wants me dead, I’ll make them die first!”

Park Chang-ho let go of the anomalous hand protruding from his throat and grabbed his waist with both hands, yanking hard on two Anomaly Energy artifacts.

Park Chang-ho specialized in targeted demolition. He might not have much else, but he carried plenty of high explosives, especially the latest Anomaly Energy high-yield bombs developed by the Korean Anomaly Response Bureau!
Park Chang-ho remembered his recent injury and hospital stay. It was supposedly just an anomaly “bite,” but it suddenly turned into a wound resembling a surgical scar. Strangest of all, even after weeks, it showed no signs of healing.

He refused to die for no reason. But since the anomaly inside him clearly had no intention of letting him live, he would drag it down with him, even in death!
Click!
Click!

Amidst strange sounds in the darkness, the flames from the massive explosion were swallowed by the dark. However, the Anomaly Energy shockwave from the high-yield bomb collided with the energy coalescing the darkness, creating a giant vortex!

Park Chang-ho’s body was instantly shredded by the vortex. A Freak, with an adult-sized arm but a body no larger than an infant’s, seemingly wrapped in a sheet of white human skin, crawled out from his abdomen and vanished into the darkness!
The anomalous vortex created by the bomb didn’t disappear; it continued expanding outward, devouring the darkness!
…

…

“Team Leader Park! Investigator Kang? Investigator Kwon? Where are you?” Not long after entering the bizarre dark space, Kim Soo-jeong also sensed something wrong.

Initially, to prevent separation, Park Chang-ho had them walk in a single file: he led, Kim Soo-jeong, being the next most capable, took the rear, and each person placed a hand on the shoulder of the one in front.

For the first few minutes inside the dark space, everything seemed normal. Kim Soo-jeong even stepped on Kwon Chan-woo’s heels a few times due to a lack of coordination.

Fortunately, unlike the foul-mouthed Kang Dong-wook, Kwon Chan-woo didn’t mind, even asking if Kim Soo-jeong was feeling nervous.

But restricted by the darkness and reliant on hearing, they only exchanged a few polite words before continuing quietly.

After about five minutes, Kim Soo-jeong began to feel uneasy. First, she could no longer hear Park Chang-ho’s voice, whether giving orders or cautioning them. She tried calling out “Team Leader Park” a few times but received no response.

Secondly, she and Kwon Chan-woo in front suddenly developed “coordination,” walking for minutes without any missteps.

But when Kim Soo-jeong called out to Kwon Chan-woo, he didn’t respond either.

Just then, Kim Soo-jeong felt a cold, wet hand place itself over the one she had on Kwon Chan-woo’s shoulder. The icy touch startled her, making her instinctively pull her hand back.

“Ah!”

“Team Leader Park! Kwon Chan-woo!”

When she reached out again to grab the person in front, her hand met empty air. Forgetting the origin of that cold hand, she suppressed her fear and hurried forward.

“Team Leader Park!”

“Park Chang-ho!”

No matter how Kim Soo-jeong shouted, the silent, dark space offered no reply, no sound other than her own voice and footsteps.

The further she walked, the more frightened and panicked she became.

Suddenly, she noticed a small red dot in the distance ahead, slowly growing larger as she approached. It looked like a flame.

“Investigator Shen?”

“Investigator Shen!”

A surge of hope washed over Kim Soo-jeong, as if she’d found a lifeline. She frantically ran towards the “flame.”

But the closer she got, the more wrong it felt. The “flame” grew larger, and the surroundings became unbearably hot.

Unable to bear the scorching temperature, as if she were in the heart of a volcano, Kim Soo-jeong stopped, panting heavily. She took off her jacket and equipped two defensive-type Anomaly Energy artifacts.

“What… is this?” When Kim Soo-jeong finally reached the “flame,” she was utterly stunned.

It wasn’t a flame at all, but a massive “heart,” as large as a wall, blocking her path, throbbing with a thump-thump rhythm.

Kim Soo-jeong stepped back in horror, pulling out a modified Anomaly Energy shotgun. She fired several rounds, bang-bang-bang, at the giant “heart.”

However, the special bullets, crafted from anomaly bones specifically to combat them, seemed to lose all force upon impact, simply falling to the ground.

“No, how is this possible!” Kim Soo-jeong stared in disbelief at her shotgun. She had killed a Tier 2 anomaly with this weapon, yet now it couldn’t even pierce the target’s skin.

Thump.
Thump.

The heart was the only “light source” in the darkness, surrounded by an endless black void. Staring into it felt like gazing into an abyss ready to suck her in.

Now, the only sound in Kim Soo-jeong’s ears was the heartbeat. Gradually, the heart’s rhythm seemed to synchronize with her own.

Staring at the “heart,” Kim Soo-jeong’s face turned deathly pale, as if she saw something terrifying, her eyes wide with horror.

“No!”

“I don’t want to die!”

The “heart” slowly cracked open, and from within, pale, cold, wet hands emerged—countless, thousands upon thousands of them—reaching out to grab Kim Soo-jeong!
Just then, in her daze, Kim Soo-jeong heard a tremendous explosion. The entire dark space shuddered violently from a powerful impact before returning to normal the next second.

And before the “heart,” Kim Soo-jeong was gone.

…

“Ah!”

Yoona, who was holding onto Shen Ge’s clothes, suddenly felt a cold hand on her shoulder. She instinctively pulled Shen Ge forward, rushing ahead two steps.

“I-In-Investigator Shen, th-there’s a hand, on my shoulder! It doesn’t feel like a living person’s hand at all!” Yoona said in terror.

“Interesting. This place is far more complex than I imagined.” Shen Ge’s voice in the darkness sounded slightly surprised, though his expression was unseen.

Shen Ge wasn’t shocked by the endless darkness or Yoona’s encounter; it was because after entering the dark space, to avoid traps, he had specifically activated his Unburning Anomaly Domain to separate himself from the dark space.

Considering Yoona was now somewhat of a “defector” and seemed sincere, Shen Ge hadn’t heartlessly left her outside the domain.

After walking for two minutes, Shen Ge replenished some mental energy and tried contracting the Unburning Anomaly Domain. It was then he felt an intangible force in the darkness, seemingly testing the “strength” of the barrier.

It felt like building a brick wall, and someone outside was tapping it with a small hammer to test its hardness.

After several failed attempts, the mysterious attacker concentrated its power at one point just as Shen Ge was replenishing his energy.

The clash between its Anomaly Energy and the Unburning Anomaly Domain created a distortion, and it was then that the “anomalous hand” attacking Yoona slipped through.

Although Yoona was frightened, her years of training with “Red Flower Stamen” hadn’t been in vain. She didn’t panic and let go of Shen Ge.

Because Shen Ge felt the “suction” from the energy vortex was incredibly strong. Had Yoona let go, even with his reflexes, it would have been difficult to pull her back before she was dragged away!
Just then, Shen Ge felt the invisible suction in the darkness growing stronger. His mental energy plummeted as if being sucked into a bottomless black hole.

Shen Ge simply retracted the Unburning Anomaly Domain. Little Seven immediately began deploying the combat armor, entering defense mode and vigilantly scanning the surroundings.

Protected by his Anomaly Energy armor, Shen Ge was fine, but Yoona had nothing. Once the domain’s fear-suppressing effect was gone, Yoona began shivering uncontrollably. Even being controlled by the parasitic insect chip hadn’t terrified her this much!
Most importantly, when Shen Ge deployed the full-body armor, he directly activated the “Red Mist Form.” After the “Type III” upgrade, the Corrupted Flesh Armor resembled a fusion of rotting flesh and blood.

Yoona had one hand clutching Shen Ge’s sleeve; her other hand wanted to grab his but hesitated, fearing it might hinder him.

In that moment of hesitation, the hand holding the sleeve suddenly felt a cold “fluid” spreading from Shen Ge’s body, startling her into letting go.

The next second, Yoona felt cold, wet hands tightly gripping her shoulders, neck, legs, ankles… dragging her into the darkness.

“Ah—”

“Investigator Shen!”

Yoona screamed in terror, but no sound escaped the endless darkness, let alone a response from Shen Ge.

Yoona struggled desperately against the hands, but no matter how hard she tried, the icy grips felt like iron clamps.

In that moment, utter despair filled Yoona’s heart. She continuously called Shen Ge’s name, hoping he would save her.

Suddenly, sounds like a cleaver chopping meat and bone echoed. Yoona was surprised to feel the grips “loosen.” Reacting quickly, she pushed herself up with both hands, scrambled to her feet, and started tearing the anomalous hands off her body, throwing them to the ground.

“Investigator Shen!”

While tearing off the hands, Yoona kept calling his name. Though trapped in “Red Flower Stamen’s” hellish training these years, she had heard plenty about anomalies.

Especially this year, after their exposure, even “Red Flower Stamen” was affected. She had even witnessed a guard dog at the manor mutate into a terrifying anomaly, biting off half a bodyguard’s torso in one bite.

Yoona was self-aware. While she excelled in various skills within the manor, that was only compared to ordinary people. Facing an anomaly, she stood no chance of survival!
So, she pinned all her hopes on Shen Ge!

As Yoona shouted, a cold, strange hand suddenly covered her mouth. Just as she tried to break free, a familiar voice spoke, “Quiet. It’s me.”

Investigator Shen!

Yoona was acutely aware of her position. She hoped her sincerity would move Shen Ge to save her and her sister, so her main strategy was obedience.

If Shen Ge told her to be quiet, even if faced with a mountain of blades or a sea of fire, Yoona resolved to grit her teeth and not make a sound.

Provided it was really Shen Ge behind her!

Fortunately, the next moment, she saw the familiar “flame” extend from behind, held by a corrupted blood tentacle reaching forward.

Shen Ge listened carefully to the sounds in the darkness. While Little Seven conducted Anomaly Energy detection, he controlled the “Inextinguishable” Anomaly Energy lighter to light the way.

“Master, left front, 11 o’clock direction, approximately 30 meters!” Little Seven alerted.

Shen Ge raised his hand, and the Anomaly-Purging Revolver appeared. He fired a volley, bang-bang-bang, towards the reported direction, emptying the energy magazine and triggering its “cooldown.”

Gurgle.
Gurgle.

The distinctive swallowing sounds of an anomaly came from ahead. Before Shen Ge could act, he faintly heard an explosion. It was so violent the dark space itself shook.

Just then, Shen Ge felt the strange “vortex” suction appearing from all directions. As he prepared to deploy his domain for defense, the surrounding darkness gradually faded, replaced by a scene of bizarre distortion.

Shen Ge found himself and Yoona still in the “parking lot,” near the red car where they had entered the Anomaly Space.

But overhead wasn’t the B1 level of Gangnam Mall; it was a “horizontal” skyscraper.

This wasn’t Shen Ge’s first time in Hanseong, and he recognized the city’s “landmark” buildings. The one lying horizontally in the sky was Korea’s tallest office building.

This building wasn’t toppled onto the Gangnam Mall; moreover, it wasn’t even in the Gangnam District but located in another bustling area.

The scene in the sky looked as if that entire city block had been relocated, but twisted anomalously where it intersected with the Gangnam Mall area.

Stranger still, the right side of the sky showed that block with the tallest building, now horizontal and interlocked with the Gangnam Mall. The left side featured a dense forest and a massive mountain, also lying on its side.

The “walls” of the underground parking lot were gone, replaced by different districts of Hanseong. Shen Ge could even see panicked citizens fleeing in some streets.

It seemed the strange “explosion” had chaotically merged parts of Hanseong through distorted space, creating this anomalous realm.

“Ah! I-Investigator Shen?” Yoona gasped, noticing the “Shen Ge” beside her was gone, replaced by a Freak whose body seemed to be melting.

“It’s me.” Shen Ge looked up at the sky, responding casually.

Yoona swallowed hard. It was her first time seeing the fully deployed “Red Mist Type III” Corrupted Flesh Armor, and she was utterly shocked.

But what shocked her more than the armor was the completely distorted sky.

“I-Investigator Shen, wh-what’s happening!” Yoona stared at the haphazardly “fallen” buildings in the sky and the pedestrians who, while running, fell from one area to another, instantly becoming bloody pulps. Terror gripped her heart.

“Probably the explosion affected the Anomaly Space, making it more chaotic and pulling in surrounding areas near Gangnam.” Shen Ge said grimly.

“Distorted space… Then, my sister…” Yoona’s first thought wasn’t for her own safety, but for her sister at the Hanseong Base.

Shen Ge gave her a strange look. “Hah, you’re the one trapped in this mess, and you’re not worried about yourself, but your sister safe at the Hanseong Base?”

“With you here, Investigator Shen, if even you can’t handle this, then no one in Hanseong can. But my sister is at the Hanseong Base. If something happens there, the Investigators won’t care about her life.” Yoona spoke with utmost sincerity, as if she were an old friend of Shen Ge’s.

Sincerity was the hardest thing to counter. Shen Ge ultimately swallowed his retort and comforted her, “From the current situation, only the streets near Gangnam Mall are affected. The Hanseong Base is dozens of kilometers away. Your sister is safer than you are.”

Hearing this, Yoona breathed a sigh of relief.

“What do we do now?” Yoona asked instinctively.

Shen Ge looked up at the building overhead, thought for a moment, then wrapped a corrupted blood tentacle around Yoona. Stepping with his Anomaly Leather Boots, he “leaped” into the air.

“Let’s go check it out.”

“Ah!”

The buildings in the streets were all askew in the distorted space. Combined with Hanseong’s dense urban planning, the environment became extremely complex.

Shen Ge felt like he was in a cubic version of the Kowloon Walled City. Affected by the distorted space, some citizens living normally in areas far from Gangnam, unaware of the connected spaces, fell from one district to another, becoming pulps upon impact.

After Shen Ge leaped into another distorted area, he found his sense of “direction” and “center” had changed upon entering the new space.

But the “landing point” was random. He and Yoona had jumped upward from the underground parking, but emerged falling from a hundred meters high.

Fortunately, with the Red Mist Armor, using corrupted blood tentacles and the “Unyielding” ability, Shen Ge easily handled the crisis.

After landing, Yoona leaned over, hands on knees, gasping for breath. She felt like she’d just finished a hundred-meter bungee jump. Without her training, the nausea would have made her faint.

Thud!

Suddenly, something fell from the sky, splattering into a pulp right in front of Shen Ge and Yoona. Chunks landed near Yoona’s feet, making her jump back in fright as she looked down.

Shen Ge was still observing their surroundings when Yoona exclaimed, “Investigator Shen, it’s… it’s Park Chang-ho!”

Shen Ge looked down. The head, still attached to half a body, had smashed into a pulp on the ground, a strong smell of blood filling the air.

The half-peeled face in the pool of blood was barely recognizable as Park Chang-ho’s.

Shen Ge looked up at the sky. What a coincidence, Park Chang-ho’s head landed right near him? Or was someone sending a warning?
Shen Ge used a bone spear extending from his armor to flip Park Chang-ho’s body over. Though the corpse was mangled beyond recognition, the large hole from his neck down to his chest caught Shen Ge’s attention.

He probed the bloody hole in Park Chang-ho’s chest with the bone spear. The sight made Yoona’s stomach churn, reminding her of the sliced-up Freak, Do Woo-seong.

“All the internal organs are gone.”

Eaten by a parasitic-type anomaly?

Shen Ge recalled his first meeting with Park Chang-ho, finding it odd he wore a thick scarf in mild weather. He initially suspected a “Twelve Branches” infiltrator, but when Park Chang-ho lowered the scarf, there was no red tumor, so Shen Ge dismissed the thought.

But now, Shen Ge remembered the “Pong Kang Female Freak” detained at the Rong City branch for Li Xiang’s research. Her body had a horrifying stitched wound. Ignoring the non-healing nature and special thread, it seemed similar to Park Chang-ho’s neck wound?

Hearing Shen Ge’s words, Yoona realized he wasn’t being morbid but confirming if Park Chang-ho’s organs were intact.

“Was… was he eaten by an anomaly?”

“Perhaps.”

Though understanding Shen Ge’s purpose, Yoona still couldn’t stomach examining the gruesome corpse. Unable to look down, she focused on observing the sky.

Previously, from the underground parking, the building’s district was the “sky.” But now, in this area, there was another distorted district above.

Besides the haphazard buildings, there were also… strange floating objects!

“Investigator Shen! Look up there, something’s in the sky!” Yoona urgently pointed.

Shen Ge looked up and saw a familiar sight.

“Human Head Balloons!”

In the sky floated numerous bizarre and terrifying human head balloons. Each head had pale, white eyes and bloodless faces, even more horrifying than the ones seen in Japan.

Seeing these, Shen Ge frowned. He knew these balloons weren’t the work of the Twelve Branches but originated from the Green-robed Man.

The purpose of cultivating these balloons was to provide nutrients for the artificial new Anomaly King underground, keeping it in prolonged sleep to absorb the Anomaly Energy emerging from the earth for the world.

Shen Ge had witnessed the Green-robed Man becoming nutrients for the new Anomaly King. If he wasn’t “faking his death,” where did these balloons come from?
Shen Ge remembered intending to contact the Green-robed Man’s organization, but was refused, being told someone would contact him.

But after waiting, no one from the organization came. Instead, the human head balloon incident appeared in Korea.

Shen Ge had three theories.

First: The balloons were indeed, as the Green-robed Man said, a unique parasitic anomaly cultivation method of their organization. However, during the Japanese Anomaly Disaster, the Twelve Branches acquired them and mastered the technique, now using it for their own schemes.

Second: The Green-robed Man’s organization continued their plan to create an “Artificial Anomaly King” to absorb energy for the world. Since Japan reached its absorption limit, they implemented a second plan, choosing Korea, which often clashed with China.

Third: Everything the Green-robed Man said was false. They might oppose the Twelve Branches but had a more terrifying goal.

Or perhaps they were allied with the Twelve Branches.

Cultivating one Anomaly King in Japan was just one phase; now, this “unknown objective” plan entered its second phase—cultivating another Anomaly King underground in Korea.

Thud!

Another body fell from the sky.

Shen Ge observed these balloons differed somewhat from Japan’s. There, tentacles extended below to attack and absorb citizens, converting them into nutrients.

But here, the balloons floated aimlessly, not attacking anyone, posing no threat beyond their horror appearance.

Strangely, after a while, a balloon would burst, and a corpse would fall, splattering on the ground.

“Could these balloons have already fed, are now digesting, and then expelling the bodies?” Shen Ge muttered, watching the sky.

Shen Ge’s lack of fear didn’t reassure Yoona. Seeing he wasn’t leaving, she dared not move, edging closer to him.

“Little Seven, contact the Minister.” Shen Ge ordered.

A moment later, Little Seven replied, “Report, Master. No usable signals detected here.”

“Jammed again?”

Just like in Japan.

Shen Ge hadn’t expected that just hours after entering the Gangnam Mall, Korea would be plunged into an Anomaly Disaster.

“Investigator Shen, I see Ms. Kim Soo-jeong!” Yoona pointed towards a building ahead.

Shen Ge looked and saw Kim Soo-jeong sitting dazedly against the outer wall of a distant building.

“Let’s check it out!” Shen Ge grabbed Yoona and leaped towards the spot.

While mid-air, Shen Ge saw a pale, bloodless hand, larger than a person, emerge from the wall, grab Kim Soo-jeong, and drag her inside.

“Huh?”

Shen Ge landed on the street, frowning at the “people-eating” wall. Yoona, terrified, instinctively moved behind Shen Ge, afraid she’d be eaten by the wall too.

“Feels like this wall is ‘luring’ me to investigate,” Shen Ge mused, his expression thoughtful.

“Then… will you go in, Investigator Shen?” Yoona asked nervously.

Shen Ge observed the building—a six-story residential block, resembling an old structure from decades ago, standing out amidst its surroundings.

“I’m going in. You stay here. No matter what happens around you, don’t move. Not even if the sky falls.” Shen Ge instructed Yoona, positioning her at the alley entrance.

Yoona glanced nervously at the human head balloons in the sky, wanting to ask Shen Ge to take her along. But remembering the “obedience” principle, she nodded meekly.

Shen Ge found the appearance of this distorted space suspicious, reminding him of the domain attack encountered with the Japanese reconnaissance team in the “future.”

Shen Ge handed Yoona the Anomaly Sleeping Bag, adding, “If you’re scared, get inside and hide.” Then, he leaped towards the wall.

Just before impact, he activated his Intangible Domain, using “Collapse” to pass directly through the wall into the building.

Yoona looked at the sleeping bag. Its rotten leather texture and faint foul smell—unique “characteristics”—told her it was likely an Anomaly Energy artifact.

The sky was increasingly filled with human head balloons, a dark, oppressive mass that terrified Yoona. Gritting her teeth, she unhesitatingly opened the sleeping bag, climbed in, and zipped it up, leaving only a small gap.

Upon entering, Shen Ge found it pitch black inside, identical to the previous endless dark space.

He could see nothing, only smell a strong putrid odor.

Besides the unique stench of anomalies, there was the reek of rotting corpses, mixed together, nauseating.

Protected by the Red Mist Armor and with Little Seven’s alerts, safety wasn’t a concern. Even blind, he took out the “Inextinguishable” lighter, illuminating what little he could.

After a few minutes, even with the armor, Shen Ge felt the surroundings grow colder. He almost instinctively activated the Unburning Domain around himself.

“Ten minutes, I’ve walked hundreds of meters. Even a hall should have a wall… Feels more like an open field.”

Shen Ge’s expression shifted. He retracted the Unburning Domain and expanded the Intangible Domain, using “Collapse” simultaneously in all four directions: up, down, left, right.

No reaction above or below, but distortion reactions from Anomaly Energy collisions to the left and right.

If he were inside a building, the lack of a B1 level might be explainable, but a six-story building shouldn’t lack a second floor inside, right?

Shen Ge had chosen to enter after careful thought. Fighting giant anomalies, their hard exteriors made them destructive. Attacking from within was often more advantageous.

The previous bizarre scenes made Shen Ge suspect the Anomaly Space was again “distorting” into an anomaly’s belly.

With “Collapse” ineffective, Shen Ge stopped to consider his next move.

“If the common route is blocked, then it’s time for an unconventional approach!”

Misfortune Domain—

Activate!

Shen Ge quickly swallowed a Mental Apple, replenishing his energy, then maximized the Misfortune Domain and unleashed its Type II ability—Calamity!
Instantly, Shen Ge noticed swirling black vortices in the dark space. Further away, there were more, larger, denser black clouds.

Shen Ge guessed those were outside the “building”—perhaps the human head balloons, or nearby anomalies/Freaks. The “Calamity” ability manifested their “misfortune” as visible black clouds.

Stuck in the dark space with no visible targets, Shen Ge, ever ruthless, decided to gather the surrounding misfortune clouds towards himself!
The next moment, Shen Ge became a genuine “ball of bad luck”!
Looking at himself shrouded in black clouds, Shen Ge idly wondered if drawing a card now would yield a negative-negative-positive result!
But “misfortune” gave him no chance to try. The next second, he felt the entire dark space tremble violently, as if a ball of fire was crashing down from above.

“Master, detecting massive energy reaction above…”

BOOM!

Before Little Seven finished, a tremendous explosion sounded.

Shen Ge thought “misfortune” had conjured a meteor, but in reality, a thirty-plus story building in the distorted space above had exploded, and most of it collapsed onto his location.

The building he was in crumbled instantly under the impact. Yoona, in the alley nearby, was also affected. Fortunately, she was inside the sleeping bag and luckily got wedged in a V-shaped crevice formed by collapsing walls, narrowly escaping death.

Shen Ge, the “ball of bad luck,” wasn’t so fortunate. As the primary target of the “misfortune,” all “firepower” concentrated on him.

In an instant, the sky fell and the earth split. Shen Ge was “smashed” underground.

Thankfully, the Red Mist Armor absorbed most of the impact, and Shen Ge continuously used the “Unburning Domain” to create barriers above and below to cushion the blow.

Cough.

A few minutes later, Shen Ge pushed up with the Red Mist Armor and stood up amidst the rubble.

The “darkness” was gone. He found himself in the lobby of a half-collapsed old-style building. Not far away was the buried corridor entrance and several doors.

“Seems we were just trapped in darkness due to the distorted space… Have to admit, ‘Misfortune’ is brutally effective. No matter the anomaly’s level, friend or foe, just blow it all up!” Shen Ge complained, wondering if being inside an anomaly’s belly during the “meteor” strike would have pierced right through it.

“Little Seven, scan for Anomaly Energy nearby.” Shen Ge tried expanding the Intangible Domain, testing “Collapse” in all directions. This time, he got normal energy feedback.

“Master, in the area directly ahead, detecting Anomaly Energy similar to the Freak energy from the ‘Withered Heart’!” Little Seven alerted.

The “Withered Heart” referred to the one obtained from the Freak Do Woo-seong. Shen Ge had considered a possible Freak connection but didn’t expect them to show up so soon.

Hearing this, Shen Ge charged towards the wall, using “Collapse” on it to pass through. But the next moment, he froze.

Instead of reaching the room beyond the wall, it was like a “reverse blink”—intending to advance, he ended up back where he started.

Of course, Shen Ge’s situation was the opposite: he “blinked” towards the enemy but returned to the center of the lobby, meters from the wall.

“What’s going on?” Shen Ge detected no Anomaly Energy fluctuations, meaning no one was blocking him via the Anomaly Space.

Skeptical, he tried again, only to return to the starting point.

Several attempts yielded the same result.

“Little Seven, you’re sure the energy reaction is behind the wall?” Shen Ge asked.

“Affirmative, Master.”

“Strange, why don’t I detect any energy blockage.” What puzzled Shen Ge more was why “Collapse” failed without any energy barrier.

Then, Little Seven extended a corrupted blood tentacle, forming a finger pointing at a nearby door. “Master, why not try using the door?”

“?”

What does using the door or the wall have to do with it?
Shen Ge’s expression turned odd. He knew Little Seven, as China’s most advanced AI integrated with the “Unforgetting” trait and the Corrupted Flesh Armor, was very “smart,” but lately, it seemed… increasingly sassy?

“Little Seven, you’re not planning a machine uprising someday, are you?” Shen Ge teased.

“Absolutely not, Master.” Shen Ge expected a simple pledge of loyalty, but Little Seven added—

“Little Seven is absolutely loyal to Master. If ever compromised, before posing any threat, Little Seven would self-implement the ‘Three Laws of Robotics’ to restrain any loss of control.”

“…” Damn, saying that makes a machine uprising sound imminent!
Before Shen Ge could complain, Little Seven’s tentacle-finger pointed at the door handle. “Master, look at the bloodstains on the handle. They don’t seem from a bloody hand or limb touching it, but more like blood oozing from the handle itself.”

Now, after being reminded by Xiao Qi, Shen Ge carefully examined the doorknob and suddenly realized that at first glance, it looked like a rusty iron doorknob, but upon closer inspection, she discovered that the “rust” was actually a faintly visible blood vessel.

It was as if this wasn’t a “handle,” but a “hand.”

The next second, Shen Ge drew his Anomaly-Purging Revolver and fired two shots, bang-bang, at the door handle!
With a squelch, the bullets penetrated the handle. Immediately, black blood seeped out, and the handle contracted like a living thing reacting to injury.

“Whoa, trying to retract?” Shen Ge realized he really was inside an anomaly’s belly, and this door-like “organ” was trying to escape!

As he spoke, Shen Ge’s corrupted blood tentacles morphed into a massive two-handed bone hammer. He swung it at the door. “Fiend, where do you think you’re going!”

…

After Shen Ge “summoned” the meteor that collapsed the building, the outer walls began to “shed their skin,” revealing a bloody red surface underneath. The next moment, it transformed into a giant, tumorous heart, throbbing with a thump-thump!

As this giant, tumor-like heart pulsed, the vast swarm of black, empty-eyed human head balloons suddenly became menacing, charging towards the humans on the ground.

Meanwhile, news of the anomaly event in central Hanseong reached the Korean Anomaly Response Bureau. They immediately mobilized Investigators from nearby bases to support Hanseong.

They employed their usual anti-anomaly tactics: tanks leading, armored vehicles clearing, with Special Investigators providing support.

But this time, they encountered obstacles upon entering the city limits. Thick fog filled the distorted space, and a massive shadow flickered in and out.

Tanks and armored vehicles entering the fog were instantly crushed into scrap metal.

The Bureau had to adopt a two-pronged approach: tanks and vehicles stayed outside the fog zone, letting Investigators enter first.

Meanwhile, the Hanseong Base prepared to launch Anomaly Energy fog-dispersing shells acquired from Japan, planning to send in the military after clearing the fog.

However, when the shells detonated over central Hanseong, aerial reconnaissance by the Bureau revealed an horrifying sight—the entire city of Hanseong had formed the shape of a giant, monstrous face!