The man led everyone to a place shrouded in mist where you couldn't see your hand in front of your face.

"Stay close."

The man pulled out a candle burning with a ghostly blue flame. The surrounding mist was instantly dispelled. The man led everyone forward, walking through twists and turns for over ten minutes before bringing them to the interior of the mist. This was a high-tech base with pure white buildings covered by a dome.

"Uncle, this mist is an anomalous domain, right?"

"Hey, young man has good eyes. It is indeed an anomalous domain. Only with these ghostly blue candles can you accurately reach the base. Otherwise, even walking for a week might not find it."

"Then, uncle, what's this cover above?"

"Oh, this makes people looking from above see a forest, no different from the surrounding woods."

"So high-tech!"

"So this is actually the headquarters of our Mutation Investigation Bureau?"

"No no no, you're underestimating our Mutation Investigation Bureau too much. This is just E City Investigation Bureau's headquarters. That underground chamber beneath the police station in the city is just for your convenience in working."

Chi Xiaoyu pulled Lin Bai's arm as they entered the building. An electronic mechanical voice sounded from above.

"Scanning... Chi Xiaoyu, welcome."

As the mechanical voice ended, the door opened. Chi Xiaoyu looked at Lin Bai with a mischievous smile.

"What's wrong?"

Lin Bai was confused.

"Nothing."

【Let me see what you do tonight when you turn into Bai Ling!】

After all, having entered, it wouldn't be easy to get out. Lin Bai currently had no authority to open the base's main door.

"I'll take you to the training ground!"

"Oh oh."

Chi Xiaoyu naturally took Lin Bai's hand. Lin Bai seemed accustomed to being led by Chi Xiaoyu. Su Wanying behind them fell into thought watching their movements.

【That's not right. Last mission they didn't hold hands either.】

Chi Xiaoyu felt the sensation from her hand. The boy seemed to have gotten used to her holding his hand, just like when she held Bai Ling's before.

Walking through the base, there weren't many people coming and going. They all greeted Chi Xiaoyu. Most were civilian staff who couldn't contract anomalies, responsible for organizing data and researching anomalous tools.

Coming to a room, the door automatically opened. Inside was an empty room with metal walls that looked very sturdy. One wall had a glass window for observing the interior.

"You can train here."

"There's nothing here?"

"You'll know soon."

Chi Xiaoyu walked out, leaving Lin Bai in the room. Through the glass window she observed the interior. After Chi Xiaoyu shouted "Training begin," the floor suddenly opened, and a rising platform brought up two weapons—a small knife and a rod.

"Choose quickly, choose quickly."

"What are you saying? I can't hear clearly."

Though he couldn't hear Chi Xiaoyu's words clearly, Lin Bai could roughly understand she was urging him to pick one quickly.

After hesitating, Lin Bai chose the rod, since its attack range was much longer.

After he selected his weapon, the platform descended. A door in one wall suddenly opened, and a lifelike goblin appeared before Lin Bai.

"Goblin?"

The goblin howled and charged at Lin Bai. Lin Bai casually swung the rod and killed it. The moment he killed the goblin, it turned into points of light and disappeared. Then two platforms appeared on the ground with 2 bullets and a red pill. Lin Bai frowned. Am I playing a game?

"Illusion?"

Su Wanying nodded slightly watching this scene.

"You use mist anomalies to confuse the surroundings, mimetic domes to hide the base. The training room should be illusion anomalies or something similar?"

"Pretty much. This training room is just like playing a roguelike game."

After just a while, Lin Bai in the training room had already upgraded to a rifle, continuously shooting low-level anomaly phantoms.

Much later, Lin Bai knocked on the window indicating he didn't want to play anymore.

"What are you saying? I can't hear clearly!"

Chi Xiaoyu pulled Su Wanying away.

"Hey? Why are you leaving me here? Don't go!"

The anomalies behind continuously attacked Lin Bai, but didn't cause him any actual harm.

"Why leave him in there?" Su Wanying was confused.

"He's gotten lazy from being idle every day. Let him train in there for a day."

"Oh oh, is that so?"

【Chi Xiaoyu is really strict】

Lin Bai was now browsing his phone, surrounded by a circle of strange-looking anomalies. Watching the time on his phone tick by, he suddenly felt something was wrong.

"Chi Xiaoyu, come let me out!"

"Where is everyone?"

Chi Xiaoyu and Su Wanying were now sitting in the base's cafeteria, drinking coffee, watching TV, leisurely enjoying afternoon tea time.

"Maybe we should let him out. It's been so long."

"No, can't spoil him too much. More training is good for him."

"Oh oh."

Taking a sip of coffee, Chi Xiaoyu calculated the time in her mind.

【Usually I see Bai Ling after 7 PM, so he probably turns into Bai Ling around 7?】

Looking at her phone showing 5 o'clock sharp, Chi Xiaoyu smiled. Little Bai Ling, time is running out.

At Lin Bai's location.

"This won't work. I need to find a way to escape."

Lin Bai explored the room while phantom anomalies clawed at him from behind. In these airtight walls, Lin Bai really couldn't find an exit.

Time slowly passed. When it was almost 7 o'clock, Lin Bai suddenly had a flash of inspiration.

【This room isn't without an exit】

He quickly killed the anomalies in the room. Two platforms rose in the center—a rocket launcher and an AWM. Lin Bai hurriedly stood on the platform and dropped the rocket launcher.

Seeing the platform had no reaction, Lin Bai guessed one platform needed to be lighter. He quickly took his rifle and shot the distant AWM, causing it to fall to the ground. As expected, Lin Bai descended slowly with the platform into the interior.

Chi Xiaoyu also came to the training room exterior, looking at the empty training room with a confused expression.

【Where is he?】

"Hmm?"

Bai Ling found herself in a warehouse. The girl sitting on the lift platform looked like a doll, pitiful and lovely.

This place was filled with various weapons. A robot was continuously moving various items.

Bai Ling quietly avoided the robot's sight, searching for an exit. She was like a headless fly, continuously wandering and running through the branching paths.

【If Chi Xiaoyu and the others see Bai Ling here, it'll be terrible】

Just then, the wandering Bai Ling bumped into a woman.

"Ouch."

"Ow ow ow."

"Eh?"

Bai Ling looked at the two people before her in shock—they were her parents.

"White hair, red eyes, this appearance looks familiar." Her father squinted as he examined the girl before him.

"Lin Bai?" Her mother recognized her child at a glance.