CHAPTER 556: CHAPTER 522 KAIDAN: AMOSKA

Shi Shi had left not long ago.

Jiang Xiao was eating the meal Sun Wei had packed for him from the cafeteria.

Then, that cold, detached voice echoed across the blue sky above.

"Analog Horror game is about to descend, selecting the Chosen Ones."

It had begun!

’Bang!’

An excited Shi Shi also rushed into Jiang Xiao’s room.

"Dad!"

"Yes, it’s started, hold onto me."

"You must be obedient after you go in, got it? Don’t get into mischief just because Jiang Xiao dotes on you, or I’ll skin you when you get out!"

"And you, don’t indulge her either when you’re in there. If she needs to be disciplined... do it..."

Amidst Sun Wei’s incessant nagging, Jiang Xiao and Shi Shi’s bodies finally began to slowly vanish from the spot.

[This Kaidan’s name: Amosca, difficulty unknown, three opportunities for hints, winning condition, until at least one of the Chosen Ones clears the game.]

What the heck?

When the viewers in Dragon Country’s live broadcast room saw Jiang Xiao bringing Shi Shi with him, everyone was dumbfounded.

It’s not that Jiang Xiao was bringing his daughter into a Kaidan again.

The main point was Jiang Xiao’s condition today...

How come he looks so utterly drained?

[Cough, I know an old traditional Chinese medicine doctor, I wonder if God Jiang would like me to introduce him?]

[Ouch, Sun Wei is really fierce...]

[These last few days, God Jiang... must have suffered!]

[The culprit is Sun Wei, after all, how could an average woman withstand Jiang Xiao’s beating?]

[Beating?]

[Chicken beating... pretty much, those who know, know.]

Regaining consciousness.

Jiang Xiao found himself holding Shi Shi’s hand, appearing in... a university?

It should be a university, right?

Jiang Xiao himself had never attended university, but looking at the classrooms in the hallway and the scenery downstairs, it matched well with his stereotype of a university.

The only difference was, this university seemed to lack any signs of life, Jiang Xiao and Shi Shi didn’t see a single person, not even a dead one.

But upon closer inspection, the place didn’t look uninhabited.

There was still some household trash lying around, seemingly not thrown out for long, the colors still vivid.

Corridors, balconies, and so on didn’t have much dust accumulated either.

It was as if some sudden event had occurred, and everyone had left the university all at once.

Looking up, there was a private office.

Without hesitation, Jiang Xiao directly led Shi Shi inside.

There was no one else in the office, just a desk, a computer, a bookshelf, a water cooler.

And there was a single bed inside.

Hmm~

It seemed like a private office indeed.

And the owner must be a research maniac, otherwise why would there be a single bed in the office?

"Dad, this must be the rule, right?"

Shi Shi, standing in front of the desk, was holding a diary.

The cover of the diary had no words, just a red ’X’ drawn on the bottom right corner.

He opened the diary.

The first page, the first line was a row of bright red characters.

[Close the notebook! Do not look!!!]

Jiang Xiao: "?"

Casually flipping to the second page, he found what seemed to be medical logs.

[February 13th, cloudy]

The New Year had just passed, and without a chance to properly rest, I’m back to work, ah, but who asked for this to be my duty and passion?

Let’s get cracking!

[February 18th, cloudy]

Today a meeting was called, and as a research fanatic, I was reluctant to attend, but the leader said no one could stay out of this meeting.

After the meeting...

I realized how serious the matter was, my world view and my knowledge are facing an unprecedented challenge at this moment!

Yet, this matter is only known to a very few of us, what about the ordinary people?

[February 22nd, Overcast]

It has been overcast continually, and this year the weather in Su Province is exceptionally cold; the snow falls steadily as if it will never end.

Today, things spun out of control; some unsettling phenomena surfaced among the residents of the coastal towns.

I suggested to the higher-ups that they issue a public notice to stockpile grain, but was sadly turned down flat. They demanded the situation be kept under wraps.

Otherwise, if even a hint of unfavorable news leaked, at best, prices would soar; at worst, we might face significant social upheaval.

"Hmm?"

Jiang Xiao stroked his chin. What exactly had happened to cause the upper echelons to worry about societal unrest?

[February 28th, Sunny]

The month ends, the weather begins to warm, but the situation has not improved like the weather.

Agh...

What the hell is this thing?!

It’s as if many years of my medical knowledge are collapsing...

Medicine?

Is this a medical university?

So, the events recorded in the diary are most likely related to a disease, one that made this mad scientist doubt all the knowledge he had acquired in his life.

[February 29th, Sunny]

Word came from above, claiming they had found a way to control its spread.

But...

I have a feeling it won’t be easy to deal with; it’s something that should not exist in this world!

[March 5th, Sunny]

Crap!

It’s broken out!

This thing is contagious?

Its transmissibility is utterly unheard of!

The higher-ups have ordered our medical university to dispatch ten experts to assist the coastal cities.

The university has arranged for a holiday. All the emptied classrooms, including the gym and sports field, are being utilized for treating patients.

[March 6th, Torrential Rain]

It’s over...

In just one night, all previous rescue plans were abandoned.

The higher-ups demanded that all experts withdraw from the danger zones and return to the [X] national-level laboratory to participate in the research of the drug.

Gone?

Jiang Xiao frowned as he closed the notebook.

The departure must have been too hasty. Otherwise, the expert wouldn’t have left behind such crucial notes...

What is the disease?

Initially, it seemed manageable, but in just a single day, on the 2nd, it all exploded.

By the 3rd, the higher-ups had given up on all rescue efforts...

It’s profoundly disturbing.

Even Pennywise wouldn’t cause the higher-ups to be this anxious, right?

And tying this back to the level of this Kaidan, it’s classified as [Unknown].

Also, the way to get through it is straightforward, just need one chosen one to pass it.

That’s outrageous.

So, are all the other chosen ones just waiting to coast through, relying on Jiang Xiao to lead them?

No!

Just this diary alone doesn’t seem enough to warrant a warning on the first page that no one else should open it, right?

Jiang Xiao opened the diary again, and sure enough, although it had been carefully torn, it’s nearly imperceptible in the crease that a few pages were missing.

But when the notebook is closed, it’s evident that it feels loose towards the back...

Did the pages continue the diary, but they were torn out?

Does that mean the doctor didn’t follow the directives to go to that lab and instead stayed here?

Who else could have written the later diary entries?

The torn pages couldn’t have been simply taken away, could they?

Glancing again at the laboratory equipment on the desk, it’s clear that there’s no way to light a fire to directly burn the torn diary pages.

So...

The missing parts are likely hidden somewhere in this office!

"Daddy, I found them!"

Excited, Shi Shi flipped several sheets of paper from under the single bed’s mattress.

Clearly, they were made of the same material as the diary!