The System Arrived Four Years Early, but the Anomaly Is Still a Juvenile - Chapter 192

The people mimicked by the monstrous fish anomaly’s tentacles were incredibly lifelike. Shen Ge suspected these were images from his “memory,” the scenes he “saw” under the influence of the mental interference.

If Shen Ge could shake off this “mental interference,” he would see that the tentacles beneath the fish anomaly remained in their original form, not transformed into human shapes.

The “himself” Shen Ge saw earlier on the lake surface, without the mask, was also a result of this mental interference.

The 37 bodies at the bottom of the lake were likely all lured to the shore by the fish anomaly using this method. The mimicking tentacles pretended to be someone they knew, then dragged them underwater. The mimicry was so convincing it was hard to distinguish from the real thing.

“Could the ‘person’ He Jiayu and the others saw at the gas station also have been an illusion?”

After a moment’s thought, Shen Ge dismissed this idea. While he was acquainted with He Jiayu and the others, they weren’t so close that they would constantly think about him.

“Shen Ge.”

“Shen Ge.”

At that moment, the figures mimicked by the fish anomaly began calling his name in familiar voices, slowly beckoning him to come closer.

“Quite intimidating,” Shen Ge remarked.

Xiaoqi suddenly said, “Master, you’re not actually scared by a big fish head, are you?”

“By the way, what does the fish head look like to you?” Shen Ge asked.

Xiaoqi briefly described the appearance of the monstrous fish anomaly. Sure enough, it matched Shen Ge’s suspicion: only those affected by the mental interference could see the tentacles mimicking people.

The highly realistic appearance and voice, combined with mental interference that made one overlook the surroundings and the fear induced by the anomaly, were indeed very persuasive to ordinary people.

Even if one didn’t recklessly step onto the lake surface following the summons, they might hesitate, worried it could be a real person, thus missing the chance to attack.

So, Shen Ge took out his Anomaly Energy Rocket Launcher.

Whoosh—

Without hesitation, Shen Ge shouldered the rocket launcher, aimed at the tentacle mimicking Wang Han, and fired!

BOOM!

The Anomaly Energy rocket exploded. Its power, capable of severely injuring a Tier 2 anomaly, only managed to blow off that one tentacle of the fish anomaly, demonstrating its high physical resilience.

Gulp—

Suddenly, after being attacked, the fish anomaly opened its mouth and let out a swallowing sound that transformed into a powerful sonic attack.

But Shen Ge reacted quickly. Sensing something off about the sound, he immediately deployed his “Domain of Silence,” neutralizing the sonic attack.

BOOM!
BOOM!
BOOM!

The previously calm lake surface erupted into towering waves from the sonic attacks, yet the area around Shen Ge’s small boat remained perfectly tranquil.

The fish anomaly, lacking intelligence, naturally didn’t realize its attacks were being negated and kept bombarding Shen Ge with sound waves.
Shen Ge, safe within the Domain of Silence, could neutralize all sonic attacks. Only if the fish anomaly’s tier were several levels higher could it potentially overpower his domain.

Unfortunately, the fish anomaly was not only not higher tier than Shen Ge, but was actually one tier lower, so it was completely suppressed by the Domain of Silence.

Shen Ge had used less than a fifth of his Anomaly Energy during the strength amplification to pull the fish anomaly from the lake bottom, without even needing the Crimson Mist Armor’s energy conversion. He certainly wasn’t short on energy now.

Using the Domain of Invisibility to neutralize the sonic attacks, Shen Ge closed in, then fired another Anomaly Energy rocket directly into its gaping maw.

Guh—

The fish anomaly’s roar was cut short. Shen Ge retracted the Domain of Silence and deployed the Domain of Invisibility, using “Heart Snatcher” to lock onto its heart location.

The fish anomaly’s body was incredibly tough. Even though it was a Specialist-type anomaly without enhanced physical defense, its resilience was higher than most Tier 2 Enhanced-type anomalies.

Before, Shen Ge might not have had the strength or energy to break its defense. But after reaching Tier 4, his Anomaly Energy had increased significantly, making dealing with a Tier 3 anomaly more than manageable.

“Strength Amplification!”

Heart Snatcher!

The collision between Shen Ge’s released energy and the fish anomaly’s defensive energy created a violent reaction. The distorted energy churned the once-calm lake into a tsunami-like frenzy, forming water spouts that surged outwards only to be torn apart by the distortion space, falling as a torrential downpour!

Shen Ge’s energy plummeted. Just as it seemed half was consumed, the Tier 3 fish anomaly ran out first.

Then, with a sound like flesh being pulverized, the fish anomaly’s heart was crushed. Its massive body instantly went limp and sank into the lake.

“Xiaoqi, tie it up, pull it to shore!” Shen Ge called.

“Received, Master!” As Xiaoqi responded, over a dozen Corrupted Blood Tentacles extended from the Crimson Mist Armor, binding the fish anomaly’s corpse and dragging it towards the shore.

[Host, majestic and peerlessly brave, single-handedly slays a Tier 3 anomaly. Reward: System Points x300, Random F-grade Supply Item x1.]

[Sell Tier 3 anomaly corpse? Price: 1500 System Points.]

“No.”

This time, Shen Ge wasn’t in a hurry to sell the fish anomaly’s corpse. Before, he sold immediately to prevent the Twelve Branches from stealing it and causing losses. Now, he almost wished the Twelve Branches would make a move, saving him the trouble of finding them.

Whether this fish anomaly was related to the entity maintaining this supernatural space or not, it was a good bait.

[Crisis Mission “The Hidden Anomaly” completed.]

[Reward: System Points x3000, Random E-grade Recovery Item x1, F-grade Recovery Items x3.]

[Extract rewards?]

“No.”

Shen Ge originally had 13,580 System Points. After killing this Tier 3 anomaly, the mission rewards alone gave him 3300 points, so he wasn’t desperate for the 1500 from selling it.

With the crisis mission’s Tier 3 anomaly dealt with, the next task was to find the monster maintaining the supernatural space. However, its ability had a “Containment”-like jamming effect, making the search difficult.

Shen Ge dragged the fish anomaly’s corpse to a small shop near the shore, then entered. He had Xiaoqi scan for surveillance devices inside. Confirming it was safe, he hid in a corner, activated the combined “Invisibility + Silence + Untraceable” state, used “Collapse” to phase through the wall, circled back to the front, and sat on a park bench opposite the shop.

He absorbed energy converted by the Crimson Mist Armor to maintain the triple-trait state while monitoring the area around the fish anomaly’s corpse.

If the Aberrant that killed He Jiayu and the others was unrelated to his missing blood, treating it as a standard Aberrant incident would be simpler.

But if it was truly an Aberrant created from his blood, like Du Yusheng, then that blood sample from that time should also contain the “Silence,” “Immobility,” and “Invisibility” traits. Even if what they obtained was a weakened version, it would still pose a significant threat.

Therefore, Shen Ge’s first priority was to confirm whether the Aberrant was connected to him and to what extent the “cloning” ability could replicate.

Honestly, based on Shen Ge’s years of experience with online novels, if it were a genuine system, even if “cloned,” special abilities shouldn’t be copied. But his system was “atypical,” essentially a real anomaly, and the Twelve Branches happened to be quite proficient in anomaly research.

Shen Ge understood the necessity of rooting out the problem. He had never felt such a strong urge to eliminate a threat, even when facing the Twelve Branches before.

The mere fact of an “identical appearance” was a huge liability!
Shen Ge focused intently on the area around the fish anomaly’s corpse, while Xiaoqi continued its comprehensive surveillance.

Ten minutes.

Thirty minutes.

One hour.

There was still no movement around the fish anomaly’s corpse. No other people or anomalies appeared. The silence was eerie.

Shen Ge could only afford to wait for an hour at most. The opponent might be using a “diversion tactic,” attacking the Special Countermeasures Department while he was inside the supernatural space.

After waiting so long with no activity, Shen Ge lost patience. He went behind the shop again, used “Collapse” to enter, and retrieved the lump of Corrupted Blood he had left as a “monitor.”

Xiaoqi absorbed the blood and analyzed it. “Report, Master. Confirmed, no one entered this area in the past hour, and no supernatural energy reactions were detected.”

However, based on the recorder from Wang Yufang’s equipment, the Aberrant seemed to have jamming abilities, so it might be able to block the armor’s blood scan.

To be safe, Shen Ge deployed his “Domain of Misfortune” to detect the black aura of misfortune. This was a new method he had discovered.

If someone was hiding nearby invisibly, like him, even if he couldn’t see them, he could see the concentrated black aura above them.

Of course, this “detection method” had two flaws: first, if the target’s anti-detection ability was higher tier than Misfortune; second, if the target was extremely lucky and had no negative emotions.

The former was possible. For the latter, as an Aberrant, a being that aggregated Earth’s negative emotions, it was impossible to have no negative emotions.

After confirming with “Misfortune” that no one was inside, Shen Ge canceled the triple-trait state and emerged from behind the counter. Fighting an invisible enemy might seem foolish, but when the opponent was an Aberrant, potentially a trait-wielding Aberrant “cloned” from his blood, caution was necessary.

Shen Ge walked out of the shop, stretched, and headed towards the fish anomaly’s corpse. “I’ve already had a nap. I gave you a chance, but you didn’t take it. I won’t wait any longer. I’m leaving. Next time, if you have business, come find me directly. Don’t pick on the weak to feel important. Is that all you Aberrants are capable of?”

“Just like mutated rats and cockroaches in the sewors, you can’t show your face, only know how to scheme behind the scenes. How boring.” Shen Ge’s tone was full of impatience and disdain, as if dealing with the Twelve Branches was utterly disgraceful.

He ranted for a full ten minutes, but the surroundings remained silent, his words faintly echoing through Donghuan Park.

After his tirade, Shen Ge extended a Corrupted Blood Tentacle, wrapped up the fish anomaly’s corpse, and dragged the nearly five-meter-tall fish head towards the entrance.

At the intersection, turning right led to the entrance he came from. But he noticed a woman with long hair, pale and staring blankly, standing beside a candy pancake cart on the left side of the intersection.

Looking closer, Shen Ge saw black supernatural energy emanating from her. According to the system’s “Anomaly Eye,” the energy intensity was close to a Tier 2 anomaly.

Shen Ge walked past her, dragging the fish anomaly’s corpse. The woman kept her head down, showing no reaction, muttering something under her breath.

Shen Ge let go of the corpse and walked directly in front of her, waving a hand in front of her face. “Good afternoon. Is this candy pancake cart yours?”

“…”

No response. The muttering grew slightly louder but still unintelligible.

Shen Ge found it strange. Since the capital’s anomaly disaster, he had encountered many Aberrants. But Aberrants only retained some instinct-driven “vocabulary” during the initial parasitic stage, like telling people to eat anomalous food with them or repeating meaningless phrases.

This woman’s energy intensity was close to Tier 2. Aberrants of this level, unless they were from the “Twelve Branches,” were generally mindless monsters.

There was one exception—

The “Kuchisake-onna” from Tuokou City.

“Did you leave your vocal cords at home? Speak up! Show some Aberrant spirit!” Shen Ge shouted at the woman.

“Daughter…”

“Huh?”

Shen Ge heard the woman murmur what sounded like “daughter.” Before he could follow up, the woman suddenly looked up.

Her pupils were completely crimson, eerily similar to the Aberrant that looked identical to him in the morning video.

“Daughter, give… daughter… back… to me.” The woman’s expression gradually turned ferocious, and she opened her mouth.

This was a literal “opening wide.” The most horrifying part was her mouth was expanding infinitely, large enough to swallow an adult in the blink of an eye.

Shen Ge extended a finger. The Crimson Mist Armor formed a small flashlight at its tip. He casually shone the light into the woman’s throat.

Inside, he saw a human face, identical to the woman’s, but with closed eyes.

This instantly reminded Shen Ge of the anomalous taxi driver he encountered before, who also hid his Aberrant feature in his throat.

“Miss, you seem a bit inflamed lately. Look, there’s an ulcer growing in your throat.” As he spoke, Shen Ge reached for the face inside.

Ah—

AHHH!!!

The face in the throat suddenly opened its eyes, let out a piercing shriek like a vengeful spirit, and then the massive mouth snapped shut!

CRUNCH!

The woman’s enormous mouth clamped down on Shen Ge’s arm and half his body. Not only could she not bite through, but her teeth were on the verge of shattering.

Meanwhile, Shen Ge had grabbed the head and pulled it out from the woman’s body. It stretched into a soul-like form, exactly like the anomalous taxi driver before.

“Tsk, so it’s the Twelve Branches’ Aberrant variety. After all this time, haven’t they evolved?” Shen Ge asked the struggling head in his hand.

“Give back… to me, give daughter… back to me!” The captured soul-face screamed wildly, struggling to break free. But the Crimson Mist Armor’s gloves had the “Unyielding” trait. As long as Shen Ge didn’t let go, she could shatter herself and still not escape.

Shen Ge asked, “Who is your daughter? Where is she? Who took her? If you can answer, I might be able to help you find her.”

“Give back… to me, give daughter… back to me!” The woman kept repeating.

Shen Ge frowned. It seemed communication was impossible. Just as he prepared to destroy the “soul,” the woman’s giant mouth biting him retracted, returning to its previous state.

Then, she ran.

Shen Ge looked at the captured soul-face in his hand, then at the woman sprinting towards the distant woods, utterly baffled.

She ran?

“Hey, don’t you want your soul?” Shen Ge stared at the struggling soul-face, confused about which one was the “main body.”

What was this?
Abandoning your soul and fleeing?
Since she didn’t want it, Shen Ge saw no reason to hold back. He deployed the Domain of Non-Ignition, enveloped the soul-face, lowered the “Ignition Point” to minimum, and lit it with the Anomaly Energy Lighter “Inextinguishable”—

Whoosh!

Amidst the soul-face’s piercing shrieks and struggles, the anomalous fire slowly consumed her entire soul, burning it to nothingness.

The soul-face was reduced to ashes, but there was no system notification for a kill.

“Was the one who ran the main body after all?” Shen Ge looked towards the woods. The woman was about fifty meters from the tree line.

Shen Ge took out his Anomaly-Killing Revolver, aimed, and fired two shots—one to the head, one to the back. The revolver, capable of easily piercing Tier 3 anomalies, had no trouble with a sub-Tier 2 Aberrant.

Bizarrely, even with her head and chest pierced by the energy-piercing rounds, the woman kept running.

“Impressive. A new variety, huh?” Shen Ge decided to capture this one and let the Research Department examine it, see if the Aberrants had updated their species, changed their vital spots.

The woman’s two legs were no match for Shen Ge’s Anomaly Leather Boots’ “Flight.” He caught up in an instant, kicked her to the ground, wrapped her tightly with Corrupted Blood Tentacles, and prepared to take her away.

“Daughter, give me back my daughter, give her back!” Strangely, the woman’s speech, previously broken, was becoming clearer.

“Who are you? And who is your daughter?” Shen Ge asked.

The woman seemed stunned by the question, actually lowering her head to think about who her daughter was, and who she was.

“I’m an investigator from the Special Countermeasures Department. Answer my questions, and I’ll help you find your daughter.” Shen Ge also realized this female Aberrant seemed different. Her consciousness appeared to be gradually returning.

“I, I don’t know. They took my daughter. Monster, there’s a monster in the lake.” The woman seemed unable to control her expressions, switching between ferocious and numb, unrelated to what she was saying.

Shen Ge asked again, “What else can you remember?”

The woman paused, her expression dazed. “Morning. Park. People in… uniforms came. They… took my daughter. Monster, monster in the lake, they… ran— Ah! Aah! Monster, that monster!”

The woman was struggling to remember when she suddenly noticed the fish anomaly’s corpse behind Shen Ge, pointed at it, and screamed.

Her eyes, which had lost their crimson hue, began turning red again. She opened her mouth wide, biting at the Corrupted Blood Tentacles restraining her.

“Master, while she’s biting the Crimson Mist Armor, the images transmitted through the tentacles show something like the soul-face has reappeared in her throat, but it’s fainter than the one you burned.”

“Anomaly Energy black mist is emanating from her body, gathering around the soul-face. The more the soul-face absorbs, the clearer its features become.”

“Master, as the soul-face consumes more black mist, the woman’s energy intensity is increasing. She’s beginning her Tier 2 evolution.”

Shen Ge’s eyes narrowed. He immediately thought of the examination of He Jiayu and the others’ bodies earlier that day, where Aberrant cells were found inserted into their abdomens. As those cells emitted energy, their bodies gradually “mutated.”

“What are the Twelve Branches trying to do? Research ways to mass-produce Aberrants without relying on parasitic anomalies?” As he pondered, Shen Ge raised his other hand, formed an Anomaly Bone Hammer, and slammed it down on the woman’s head, denting her skull.

An ordinary person would have died instantly, but the woman just paused, then let go and stared blankly at Shen Ge.

Shen Ge continued, “Was your daughter taken by the people in uniforms who entered the park this morning, or was she eaten by the monster in the lake?”

“I… don’t know. Passed out. Woke up, saw in the lake… daughter. Daughter! Monster, aah—” The woman became hysterical whenever she saw the fish anomaly’s corpse.

However, for an Aberrant, to go from having her consciousness consumed by the anomaly to gradually regaining it was already a miracle.

Shen Ge wondered if, like in those zombie movies where some people naturally had immunity to the virus, this woman might have immunity to anomalies?
Whether she had immunity or there was another reason, her current demonstrated value was certainly more than the 500 points selling her to the system would yield.

So, Shen Ge used Corrupted Blood Tentacles to restrain the woman and said to Xiaoqi, “Go check how many bodies are in the lake.”

“Okay, Master.” Xiaoqi responded. A fist-sized piece of Corrupted Blood separated from the Crimson Mist Armor, dropped to the ground, and transformed into a “drone” resembling a blood spider, scuttling towards Donghuan Lake.

The Crimson Mist Armor had gained the separation ability after upgrading to “Type II.” During a previous anomaly disaster, Shen Ge had left a “sub-unit” with Cheng Shengnan.

But the “sub-unit” only had basic defensive functions, activating only when the user was harmed or the defense mechanism was manually triggered.

Beyond a certain distance, Xiaoqi couldn’t control the sub-unit, meaning it only operated on pre-set commands.

If the “sub-unit” was destroyed, it would significantly damage the main armor. Thus, Shen Ge had only used it once, during the banquet.

Releasing the blood spider now carried similar risks, but compared to deploying a full “sub-unit,” the risk was negligible.

After all, sending the blood spider to scout was safer than Shen Ge diving into the lake himself. If something went wrong, he’d only lose a small piece of the armor, not get trapped underwater.

Moreover, after dealing with the fish anomaly, the supernatural energy black mist over the lake had dissipated. The water was still murky, but not as impenetrable as before.

Shen Ge had initially planned to have someone retrieve the victims’ bodies from the lake later. But now, to verify if the woman’s daughter was dragged into the lake, he had Xiaoqi investigate first.

Of course, if the daughter had been eaten by the fish anomaly, there would be nothing left to find.

A few minutes later, Xiaoqi projected the images from the blood spider onto the screen on Shen Ge’s wrist. “Report, Master. Currently detected 49 bodies in the lake. Thirteen are wearing Special Countermeasures combat uniforms. The remaining 36 are presumed civilians, including three children, but no girls.”

Special Countermeasures combat uniforms?
Shen Ge’s expression darkened. He took a Special Countermeasures uniform from his Bloodhide Backpack and showed it to the woman. “You said people in uniforms. Were they wearing clothes like this?”

The woman, who had calmed down after being tied up, began struggling frantically again upon seeing the uniform.

“Mmph, mmph mmph.”

Shen Ge loosened the tentacle covering her mouth. She immediately screamed, “It’s them. Took. Give back my daughter, give back my daughter!”

Shen Ge put the uniform away. Something felt off, but he couldn’t pinpoint it. “Xiaoqi, have the blood spider check the uniform serial numbers. Cross-reference them with the archives in your database, identify them.”

“Report, Master. I’ve already checked. Confirmed, none of the individuals at the lake bottom are currently enlisted Special Countermeasures soldiers. However… they all have legitimate serial numbers, and their equipment, aside from the standard Black Bone Dagger, Anomaly Glove, and Anomaly Energy Detector, consists of ordinary firearms.” Xiaoqi replied.

The standard three-piece set?
It had been months since the Rong City branch upgraded from the three-piece set to an eight-piece set. This detail didn’t match up.

“Can you tell anything from their serial numbers?” Shen Ge asked.

Xiaoqi replied, “Report, Master. Calculating… Master, based on the Special Countermeasures serial numbering system, they appear to be anomaly fighters enlisted in ‘early January 2029’. I’ve verified the material of their clothing and the quality of their equipment; it’s confirmed to be genuine Special Countermeasures gear.”

2029… Four years from now?

Shen Ge scanned the surroundings, finally understanding why he found Donghuan Park strange initially, why the lake water was so turbid. This place had been distortion to the timeline four years in the future!
Previously, spatial distortions caused by anomalies creating supernatural spaces didn’t involve living people, with one exception: when Shen Ge traveled through time via the Primordial Anomaly’s “leg hair (blood vessel)” in Tuokou City, going to the world four years later… So, this was the world four years later?

To test his theory, Shen Ge had Xiaoqi recall the blood spider. Then, with one hand extending a Corrupted Blood Tentacle to drag the fish anomaly’s corpse and the other carrying the bound woman, he headed towards the Donghuan Park entrance.

Back at his entry point, he couldn’t sense the supernatural space anymore. This wasn’t surprising. Even before understanding the relationship between supernatural spaces and distortion space, the department had confirmed the “randomness” and “uncertainty” of supernatural spaces.

If the entrance and exit locations never changed, the department wouldn’t have found supernatural spaces so troublesome before.

Shen Ge wasn’t worried. He continued dragging the woman and the corpse forward, leaving Donghuan Park and walking a block towards the city center before finally sensing the fluctuation of the supernatural space.

Before, Shen Ge had no way to deal with supernatural spaces. But after mastering the trick, he was arguably the only person in the world who could “freely enter and exit supernatural spaces.”

Shen Ge deployed his Domain of Containment, enveloping both the woman and the fish anomaly’s corpse, and dragged them towards the area with the spatial fluctuation.

The next moment, his domain collided with the space’s energy. The air around him shook and tore violently, as if the sky and surroundings were a pond where a stone had been thrown, creating intense ripples that made one dizzy.

Shen Ge’s energy plummeted from over two thousand, dropping below a thousand in an instant. The distortion around him intensified.

Just then, the invisible barrier surrounding him squeezed into the distortion scene. Shen Ge felt the resisting energy of the supernatural space weaken.

Shen Ge instructed Xiaoqi to increase the Crimson Mist Armor’s energy conversion, transforming his energy into “Crimson Anomaly Energy,” and pushed through the space with one concerted effort.

BAM!

With a loud crash, a Special Countermeasures vehicle appeared out of nowhere, colliding with Shen Ge as he squeezed out of the supernatural space.

“Whoa! Investigator Shen?” A head popped out of the passenger side of the lead vehicle. It was Wang Han, deputy leader of Supernatural Team 3. He immediately recognized Shen Ge under the black special raincoat.

Shen Ge had been “missing” for hours inside Donghuan Park’s supernatural space. Deng Yuqi, realizing this space was different and potentially extremely dangerous, had dispatched three supernatural teams, supported by a regiment from the Operations Department, to completely seal off Donghuan Park.

Feng Chengxiu’s Team 3 was the third team ordered. They were en route when they accidentally hit the “missing” Shen Ge.

Click!
Click!

Before Shen Ge could speak, Feng Chengxiu, Wang Han, and the investigators and soldiers from the following vehicles got out, raised their weapons, and aimed—

Shen Ge frowned. Was it really a “diversion tactic”? Had the Aberrant that looked like him struck again during the hours he was inside?

While aiming his Anomaly Energy Rifle at Shen Ge, Feng Chengxiu gestured for his team to take up positions surrounding him. “Investigator Shen, the Director has issued a new order. We need to verify your identity. State the code name for this operation!”

“…”

Under the black raincoat, Shen Ge retracted his armor, removed the hood, and looked at Feng Chengxiu with a “are you kidding me” expression. “Team Leader Feng, joking, right? Since when does our department have operation code names?”

“Correct!” Wang Han’s voice chimed in. “No choice. After you entered the supernatural space, there were two more cases of ‘you’ attacking people in Rong City. The target was specifically our department personnel. The Director ordered us to verify your identity upon contact.”

Shen Ge sounded puzzled. “Isn’t verifying with just one question a bit… flimsy?”

Wang Han pointed behind Shen Ge. A Corrupted Blood Tentacle had formed a circular frame projecting a video. Xiaoqi had directly connected to Deng Yuqi’s private line. It wasn’t Feng Chengxiu’s team that completed the verification; Xiaoqi had handled it in advance.

“Shen Ge, why were you out of contact for hours? What’s the situation with the supernatural space?” In the projected video, Deng Yuqi was directing operations from the Information Department.

Shen Ge briefly explained the situation inside. Deng Yuqi’s brow furrowed. “What? Donghuan Lake is connected to the world four years in the future?”

“Preliminary assessment suggests so. Identifying this woman should confirm it. Director, I recommend investigating her identity immediately and containing this fish anomaly. Although it’s a Specialist-type, it might revive by continuously absorbing energy.” Shen Ge said.

Typically, the best way to handle a Tier 3 anomaly was to dispose of the corpse and turn it into equipment.

Deng Yuqi immediately ordered, “Team Feng, you’re closest to the Quanlong Mountain base. Secure and transport the fish anomaly’s corpse for containment. Shen Ge, that female Aberrant is crucial. You personally bring her back to the branch. I’ve already arranged a full blockade of Donghuan Park. The supernatural space shows no signs of expanding currently.”

“Understood. I’ll bring her back right away.” After speaking, Shen Ge had Feng Chengxiu provide him a vehicle, stuffed the woman into the passenger seat, and drove back to the Rong City branch.

The Tier 3 anomaly was handled by Feng Chengxiu’s team. Over the past six months, Team 3 had dealt with two or three Tier 3 incidents, so this shouldn’t be a problem.

After several “reforms” and expanded defenses under Deng Yuqi, the Twelve Branches didn’t dare attack the Rong City branch or Quanlong Mountain base directly anymore, resorting to targeting patrols instead.

He Jiayu’s 3+1 team was caught off guard due to the suddenness and the opponent’s overwhelming strength.

Deng Yuqi’s quick response, banning small team operations and reorganizing based on anomaly disaster protocols, meant that during Shen Ge’s “disappearance,” two subsequent attacks resulted in only one soldier KIA and two severely wounded, avoiding a repeat of the previous night’s tragedy.

One attacked team was Yu Tiexiong’s patrol squad. Relying on experience, Yu Tiexiong had his team hold up in a shop until Lin Yin, nearby, arrived for support.

Lin Yin, already weighed down by the investigators’ deaths, was furious upon seeing a Twelve Branches team leader. She chased him for three blocks.

This team leader, “Xu,” could transform into a “Cerberus” during combat. He fought Lin Yin to a standstill until she used the latest model Anomaly Energy Gauntlet “acquired” (snatched) from headquarters, tore off one of his heads, forcing him to escape via a teleportation device.

The one KIA and two severely wounded were from another patrol that encountered the “Aberrant Shen Ge.” Like He Jiayu’s team, they were quickly overwhelmed. The sacrificed soldier detonated his Anomaly Energy bomb before death, buying time for his comrades to retreat.

Hearing about his “clone’s” appearance surprised Shen Ge. He thought the Aberrant maintaining the Donghuan Lake space was the same one. But if it was maintaining the space, it couldn’t have appeared in the suburbs attacking patrols.

Could it be… mass-produced “clones”?
Shen Ge thought of the Aberrant Du Yusheng. Even that loser had seven or eight clones. So, using his blood as material, cloning a few more seemed plausible?
Shen Ge felt a headache coming on. One was annoying enough; having several was worse.

But overthinking was useless. The enemy was in the shadows. The Information Department conducted 24/7 “Sky Net” real-time monitoring combined with Anomaly Energy Detector sweeps, yet found nothing, showing their thorough preparation in “counter-surveillance.”

After bringing the female Aberrant from the Donghuan Lake space back to the branch, Deng Yuqi immediately arranged for blood tests, facial recognition, etc., trying to find clues about the woman in the archives.

With Xiaoqi’s help, the Information Department quickly found information related to the female Aberrant in the city’s citizen records.

The woman was named Luo Yueying, 33, an accountant at a foreign company. Her husband was an engineer, and they had a ten-year-old daughter. The family lived in a neighborhood near Donghuan Park.

“I’ve sent soldiers stationed at Donghuan Park to check Luo Yueying’s residence. They’ll bring them back to the branch if found.” In her office, Deng Yuqi sat at her desk, reviewing reports from various departments while speaking to Shen Ge opposite her.

“I’m curious whether the Luo Yueying I brought back is the one from our world who went missing in Donghuan Park this morning, or the future Luo Yueying from the distortion space.”

Shen Ge thought the former was more likely, but combined with the future Special Countermeasures investigators, he wasn’t so sure.

Deng Yuqi was viewing the photos taken by the blood spider at the lake bottom, cross-referencing them with the department’s serial number archives, confirming Xiaoqi’s deduction. According to the numbering sequence, those soldiers were indeed enlisted in “January 2029.”

“If they and Luo Yueying are all from the future, then… why would the Special Countermeasures Department send people to Donghuan Park to arrest someone?” Deng Yuqi mused.

Since Shen Ge’s [Log] indicated Deng Yuqi would die in the future, she couldn’t deduce the future department’s actions based on her own behavior patterns.

Furthermore, according to the [Log], future Rong City was almost destroyed by the Invisible and was spreading to surrounding cities.

If so, shouldn’t Donghuan Lake also be affected by the “Invisible”?

As they analyzed Luo Yueying’s situation, Deng Yuqi received a call. The soldiers at Donghuan Park had gone to Luo Yueying’s residence and found the person.

It was the weekend, and Luo Yueying was off work. She had planned to take her daughter to the park but stayed home after the blockade order.

Deng Yuqi instructed them to “invite” Luo Yueying and her daughter back for investigation. Just as she updated Shen Ge, Cheng Shengnan knocked and entered.

“Director, Luo Yueying has a problem.”

Problems already, just after being brought back?

Deng Yuqi paused, then realized Cheng Shengnan meant the “Aberrant” Luo Yueying Shen Ge brought back. “What happened?”

“The Research Department says the woman… seems to be melting!” Cheng Shengnan said with a frown.

Deng Yuqi and Shen Ge exchanged glances, seeing surprise and confusion in each other’s eyes. They immediately stood and followed Cheng Shengnan to the Research Department.

In the underground containment room, Luo Yueying, trapped in a containment unit, sat in a corner. Her body was slowly melting, like a candle.