CHAPTER 406: CHAPTER 405: THE AGREEMENT

During the last visit, the Hoshan Road Base had been in a wartime state. Its inner walls were clad in deep gray alloy tiles, its outward-facing windows were piled high with machine gun turrets, and the floors and ceilings were adorned with complex and mystical formation patterns.

Now, however, the dimly lit hall had old furnishings, and no armed installations were visible. Along both sides of the hall, rows of benches held people in ordinary clothes. Members of the Special Affairs Bureau, clad in black suits, hurried through the corridors. LCD screens hanging from the ceiling displayed scrolling text, and a loudspeaker system announced which floors people should report to.

The Hoshan Road Base was now operating in a semi-open state. It was open not only to staff from the Special Affairs Bureau and Bounty Hunter players, but personnel from other departments could also enter to cooperate with the Bureau’s work.

As for the ordinary people in the hall, some were there to report sightings of unusual events. Others had come into contact with anomalies and were present for medical inspections. Still others were clearly in the midst of an anomalous event and had come seeking protection.

Li Ang, like an ordinary teenager, scanned the hall back and forth with a gaze tinged with both nervousness and curiosity. His hands restlessly fidgeted at his sides.

Chu Yin led them to a reception room beside the hall. Soon after, Wei Linglan, dressed in a black suit, walked in. After chatting with them for a few moments, she asked Li Ang to sit and rest while she took Wang Congshan to give a statement and undergo a full mental examination.

Two hours later, they returned.

"How did it go?" Li Ang stood up and asked.

Wang Congshan, looking somewhat bewildered, raised the examination report in her hand and said with a frown, "There shouldn’t be a problem. It says all indicators are normal."

"More precisely, her meme infection level is very low," Wei Linglan said, arms crossed and frowning similarly. "Most anomalous memes have this concept of an infection level.

"Anomalous memes, like the urban legend of the King of Shengnan itself, which can infect ordinary people on a large scale, are primary sources of pollution.

"Those who see the urban legend and then share it become secondary, tertiary, or even quaternary sources of pollution.

"Generally, the higher the pollution level, the greater the influence of the anomalous meme.

"Other bases have also taken in ordinary people who encountered and were infected by the King of Shengnan meme, but Shan Shan’s meme pollution level is much lower than theirs—the King of Shengnan story she tells isn’t potent enough to cause further meme pollution in others..."

Wang Congshan’s eyes suddenly widened. "Is that strange?"

"It’s just relatively rare," Wei Linglan shrugged. "Our understanding of anomalous memes isn’t deep enough, and sometimes special cases appear. For instance, people with strong minds and high Sanity Values have slightly higher resistance to anomalous memes than ordinary individuals. It’s nothing too extraordinary."

"Eh?" Wang Congshan blinked. "Shouldn’t that be a good thing?"

"Of course, it’s a good thing." Wei Linglan, using her height advantage, playfully ruffled Wang Congshan’s hair. Amidst the latter’s protests, she chuckled, "Who knew you had a bit of talent, kid? So, how about it? Want to join the Mobile Detachment? Your big sister here is about to become a squad leader, you know. I could use a clever little secretary, someone to just answer phones."

"PFFT." Wang Congshan stuck out her tongue and said with a sidelong glance, "Forget it. Being your secretary would probably mean taking care of your personal life too, like cleaning up that pigsty you call a bedroom."

"Whose bedroom are you calling a pigsty?!" The mature artistic young woman, her sore spot poked, glared and lightly chopped Wang Congshan on the head before turning to Li Ang. "Anyway, according to the Department of Anomalous Memes and Information Hazards, this King of Shengnan meme doesn’t seem to pose any particularly great danger. Plus, colleagues over there are already dealing with it and should be able to find a solution before the meme mutates and becomes hazardous. So, Shan Shan is relatively safe."

"That’s good." Li Ang breathed a sigh of relief and nodded gratefully to Wei Linglan.

"However," Wei Linglan said with a mischievous grin, suddenly yanking Wang Congshan into an embrace. As Wang Congshan protested, Wei Linglan leaned in, a roguishly charming expression on her face like a domineering CEO. "Just to be safe, you’ll stay in the staff dormitory at the base tonight. Sleep with your big sister here. Don’t worry, my single room is huge! It’s filled with lots of goodies—game consoles, everything..."

Wei Linglan teased Wang Congshan for a while before finally letting her go. She then explained to Li Ang, "Safety is paramount. For the next few days, Shan Shan will probably have to stay with me. She can return to her normal life once the Department of Anomalous Memes and Information Hazards resolves the issue."

When Wei Linglan said this, her expression was very serious. Wang Congshan understood this was no joke and stood silently.

"Understood." Li Ang nodded. He smiled at Wang Congshan and said, "Cheer up. What’s wrong with a few legitimate days off? Stay here for now. I’ll come visit when I’m free."

"Okay." Wang Congshan nodded silently, clutching the test report, still looking a bit nervous.

Wei Linglan sighed inwardly. What players might see as a slightly bothersome anomalous incident could be an absolute disaster for ordinary people. Ordinary people were simply too frail in the face of anomalies. Then again, even players, within the arena game, were just reptiles slightly stronger than their own kind... barely able to protect themselves.

Wei Linglan pursed her lips, then looked at Wang Congshan and broke into a bright smile. "Don’t be sad. A few days without seeing your little boyfriend won’t kill you. Just think of it as bonding time with your big sister here. It’s been so long since we last slept together."

Before Wang Congshan could protest, blushing, Wei Linglan turned, picked up a paper document, and handed it to Li Ang. "This is a confidentiality agreement. You should have gone over these at school, right? After signing it, you cannot disclose any information related to this anomalous incident, nor can you spread memes about the King of Shengnan online—that would be considered an act of public endangerment. I think you understand."

Li Ang took the document and quickly scanned it. Confirming there were no issues, he nodded, then took the pen and signed his name.

"Alright." Wei Linglan took back the agreement. "I’ll take Shan Shan with me now. Do you need a ride?"

"No need, I’ll get a cab myself," Li Ang replied, shaking his head. After saying goodbye to Wang Congshan, he left the Special Affairs Bureau’s base building.

He hailed a taxi home, just like an ordinary person. Once he confirmed his house wasn’t under surveillance, he used the arena game’s friend system to send a chat request to the Information Broker known as Mule: "Help me collect all information regarding the ’King of Shengnan’."