Light rain was falling, pattering gently as it hit the ground and splashed into tiny droplets, making soft rustling sounds.

People moved in and out of the quarantine zone.

Most were guards changing shifts and workers clearing accumulated water, hurrying through the curtain of rain with quick steps.

After several heavy downpours, the rainy season belonging to Happiness City, belonging to Shi Province, had finally arrived.

According to records from previous years, this rain would last at least from mid-July to early August, continuing for nearly half a month.

When the rain lines finally departed and the weather cleared again, the bountiful autumn would slowly begin, treading on summer's tail.

Night, just past seven o'clock.

The tall pole lights in the center of the checkpoint lit up on schedule.

Like a lighthouse, the warm yellow glow pierced through the pervasive mist, casting a hazy halo on the wet ground.

Fine water vapor filled the air, blurring the outline of the isolation nets somewhat.

At first glance, the entire scene appeared dreamlike and fantastical, yet carried the particular chill that comes after rain.

By this time, although the checkpoint hadn't closed yet, there were basically no people in Quarantine Zone B.

According to convention, scavengers generally wouldn't return at this hour, arriving at the checkpoint by six o'clock at the latest before dark.

After all, the danger coefficient in the wilderness increased dramatically at night. Both mutant beasts and infected entities became more active in darkness, and combined with the effects of rainfall, traveling rashly would be tantamount to seeking death.

Only Zones A and D still had scattered personnel entering, sparse and few.

Most were merchant caravans that had left in the morning, or sentries ordered to investigate the scope of the aerial fog outside.

Gone was the daytime clamor, and no longer could gunshots be heard. The entire checkpoint gradually sank into the particular tranquility of a rainy night.

Quarantine Zone B.

Corner of the inspection area.

Cheng Ye had Hulu bring over a reclining chair, which he leaned against the isolation net at an angle.

Initially, he kept his eyes wide open, watching Wang Kang's movements, afraid the young man couldn't handle things.

But after observing for a while, he found that although Wang Kang's movements were still somewhat awkward, his approach was clear and orderly.

Inspection, questioning, guidance, all done properly, quite resembling his own style when he first started duty.

Plus, the foot traffic in Zone B was becoming increasingly sparse, with more than ten minutes passing without seeing a single person.

Cheng Ye completely relaxed, comfortably leaning back in the reclining chair and closing his eyes for a nap.

When he fell asleep, the last trace of dusky yellow light still hung on the horizon, with raindrops falling like silver threads in the twilight.

When he woke up, everything around was completely dark.

The rain had basically stopped, leaving only scattered drops falling from eaves, wall corners, and isolation nets.

The warm yellow light was softened by the mist into a mass, barely allowing visibility of the inspection passage, while beyond lay a vast expanse of white fog.

"Xiao Kang, what time is it?"

"Eh, Brother Cheng, you're awake?" Wang Kang was writing something in a notebook with his head down. Hearing the voice, he quickly turned around, the pen still in his hand. "It's five minutes before nine o'clock."

"Why is it so cold?"

Cheng Ye sat up slightly, moved his body a bit, and only then noticed he was covered with a thick coat.

It was the checkpoint's duty coat.

Normally no one would wear this thing, because the prominent "INSPECTION" character on the back was too conspicuous.

Instinctively pulling open a corner of the coat, Cheng Ye couldn't help but shiver, feeling waves of cold air instantly drilling in through his neck, causing goosebumps to break out.

After practicing martial arts, his blood circulation speed had increased, making warriors increasingly sensitive to changes in their surrounding environment.

In the past, Cheng Ye would have a vague sense of even a two or three degree temperature rise.

For him to clearly feel cold and discomfort now, the temperature must have dropped at least ten degrees, possibly even more.

"The temperature dropped. The higher-ups issued a notice saying it's the effect brought by the aerial fog."

"Is that so?"

Cheng Ye frowned as he sat up, draped the coat over himself, and walked several circles around the area to warm up his body.

When a warm current rose from his dantian and spread to his limbs and bones, driving away the cold.

He then took out his defense communicator to check the latest messages.

This nap had probably started around 7:15, and now it was just past 9 o'clock, so he had slept for an hour and a half.

The defense communicator had a pile of unread messages, including public warnings and broadcast messages from the checkpoint.

There were also three missed calls.

One was naturally from Luo Xiaoxue, another from an unknown number, and one from the checkpoint's official number.

Was the unknown number from Brother B?

Cheng Ye called back using the number, but the receiver only gave a no permission prompt.

"Hmm, seems I missed Brother B's call while sleeping."

For security reasons, the defense communicator was in silent mode by default. Unless identity was verified and unlocked, then pressed three times consecutively to enable sound, it wouldn't make a sound even if the sky fell.

Moreover, this prompt would only last eight hours at most, after which it would automatically return to silent mode.

However, Cheng Ye wasn't too worried about missing Liu Bi's call. As long as he could apply for permission on his end, he would call again tonight or tomorrow.

"Hey, Sister Luo, I was so drowsy earlier that I dozed off and didn't see the phone."

"You finally answered!"

Luo Xiaoxue's voice carried some urgency. "Remember to turn on alerts when you sleep in the future. Fortunately, I had Station Chief Lei's number saved and confirmed with him, or you would have scared people to death! What, a suspected mother source ran out from a fog passage at the hydroelectric station?"

A bombshell message came through the receiver.

Cheng Ye suddenly stood up, gripping the defense communicator tightly, his voice changing pitch as he instinctively lowered his volume. "Is Brother B okay?"

"He's fine. The hydroelectric station now has transcendent beings standing guard, also veterans who came out of the checkpoint."

"Is it Reagan Carl?"

"You know?" Luo Xiaoxue paused slightly. "Your Brother B called back, but you probably didn't answer. This time the aerial fog affects a very large area, almost half of Shi Province is covered!"

"Half of Shi Province?"

Cheng Ye couldn't help but suck in a cold breath.

The area of Shi Province wasn't calculated according to the old Earth standards. The native residents of New Era's Shi Province had annexed considerable territory from surrounding areas during pioneering, with a total area of 550,000 square kilometers.

Half of Shi Province, wouldn't that be equivalent to Guangxi Province?

"Yes, according to reports from Sha Province, it can basically be confirmed that this is a special mobile-type transcendent curse. The super shelter city there has tried various methods to disperse the fog, but nothing works. They can only wait for the aerial fog to dissipate automatically. Your Brother B doesn't know the specific situation either, but it should be distributed to you once the higher-ups organize the information."

Luo Xiaoxue finished in one breath, her tone becoming grave. "That suspected mother source at the hydroelectric station is still being hunted. Although there's a high probability it won't leave the industrial area, you're guarding the checkpoint, so you must stay fully alert. The frequency of infected entities will definitely surge dramatically in the coming days!"

"I understand. Sister Luo, you also need to be careful. Fog passages appear randomly!"

"Yes, judging from the higher-ups' intentions, they want to establish several concentrated shelters in the buffer zone. I'll see how things go, and if it really doesn't look right, I'll take Yi Yi to the shelters to hide for a while."

"That's good. Let me know if you have any arrangements, and I'll get people to help you out."

After synchronizing information, neither felt like chatting, leaving only each other's breathing in the phone, carrying a heavy sense of worry.

"Let's hang up. Contact me immediately if anything happens."

"Yes!"

The call ended.

Cheng Ye stood in place holding the defense communicator, frowning with his knuckles turning white.

Although he had kept his voice very low, Wang Kang sitting at the desk still caught fragments of the conversation, his face somewhat pale.

"Brother Cheng, is there another..."

"Shh, there's no such thing. Just pretend you know nothing."

Cheng Ye turned around, shaking his head slightly. "Rather than worry about strays from the industrial area, you should worry about another fog passage opening at the checkpoint with something jumping right out of it. In the current situation, half of Shi Province is covered. To put it bluntly, it's all about luck. No matter where you stay, you can't escape."

Even if they packed up and ran immediately, there was absolutely no way they could escape this area on foot before the aerial fog dispersed.

As for driving vehicles to leave, this thought was extinguished as soon as it emerged.

All vehicles in Happiness City were battery-powered, with a maximum range of 1,000 kilometers, relying entirely on solar power for energy in the wasteland.

But now with the fog covering everything, solar panel efficiency was less than one-tenth of normal. If they really drove into the wilderness, they probably couldn't even supplement 200 kilometers of range in a day. Getting stuck in the fog would be extremely dangerous if they encountered anything.

Wang Kang's lips moved but he said nothing.

He just stared at the heavy fog in the distance, murmuring "luck" under his breath.

Having left the inner city, harsh reality had shattered his understanding again and again.

Thinking about it now, their ability to live peacefully until now, wasn't that also gambling on luck?

But could human effort really not overcome fate?

What if he and Cheng Ye encountered a mother source while on duty, encountered something transcendent, what should they do?

Could they only sit here, waiting to die in endless despair and fear?

Leaving Wang Kang sitting at the desk in a daze, Cheng Ye called back the checkpoint's official number.

What surprised him somewhat was that Lei Hu should have known he bought salted fish from the merchant caravan and gotten a share of beef, asking if he had somewhere to store it, and could arrange for the checkpoint's van to deliver it back for him.

"I contacted a bus earlier, it's a friend's vehicle. Can you coordinate with the Works Department to let him come pick up some things conveniently?"

"No problem, Inspector Cheng. Just give us the vehicle number and we'll immediately contact the Works Department for coordination."

Perfect.

Cheng Ye remembered Master Zhang's vehicle number but didn't know his full name and defense communicator number. Having the checkpoint coordinate would save a lot of trouble.

The call wasn't hung up, and the operator on the other end arranged everything in less than half a minute.

"Due to special circumstances, we've already applied for this bus's usage rights for the next half month. If you don't need it, it will continue operating on normal routes. If you do need it, you can contact the bus driver Zhang Yong directly, and Master Zhang will immediately drive over to serve you."

"Zhang Yong?"

Cheng Ye silently repeated the name, committing it to memory. "Good, thank you very much."

"You're too kind."

The operator's voice carried sincerity. "During the aerial fog period, all duty inspectors are fighting on the front lines for Happiness City's wellbeing. Whatever you need, we'll spare no effort to resolve."

Cheng Ye hung up the phone, somewhat surprised but quickly understanding the source of these privileges.

Indeed, as the operator said, during the days when the buffer zone was shrouded in aerial fog, those guarding the front lines were undoubtedly among the most dangerous groups for the next half month.

Some privileges were both appeasement and necessary guarantees.

"If only I could apply for charging privileges, but unfortunately there's no way to explain why I need charging..."

Cheng Ye looked up, the lights blurred into a mass in the fog like a piece of butter soaked in water.

He moved the reclining chair closer to the light, then opened the defense communicator again, his fingertips sliding across the screen.

He quickly skimmed through the repetitive warning messages, mostly repeated weather reports, surrounding environment warnings, and supply distribution point changes, nothing new.

Worth noting were three public announcements and one internal notification limited to checkpoint duty personnel.

[Aerial Fog Temperature Impact Notice: Due to continued aerial fog effects, local temperatures have dropped to 3-15°C. Please take care to add clothing and stay warm. Multiple temporary medical stations have been added in the buffer zone. Residents can present valid identification to receive fever reducers, cold medicine, anti-inflammatory drugs and other epidemic prevention medications.]

[Checkpoint Operating Hours Adjustment Notice: Due to aerial fog effects, checkpoint operating hours will be adjusted from tomorrow to daily 7:00-20:00. Please plan your travel reasonably and ensure return by 20:00 daily to avoid being unable to enter due to overtime.]

[Public Announcement Regarding Wilderness 'Fog Passage' Phenomenon: Investigation shows that due to aerial fog effects, special 'fog passage' phenomena randomly appear in wilderness areas. They typically appear as cloud-like spheres with diameters of 1-3 meters. When living beings touch them, they briefly form transit passages that can reach unknown locations thousands to tens of thousands of kilometers away.

For city safety, the Blood Dragon Corps will initiate round-the-clock patrol and lockdown mechanisms, strictly prohibiting any residents from unauthorized passage through fog passages to unknown areas. Special serious reminder: Crossing fog passages will be entirely at personal risk, and once fog passages disappear, those who crossed will permanently be unable to return to Happiness City. Please exercise extreme caution.]

[Checkpoint Upgraded Control Announcement: Effective immediately, all checkpoints will increase inspection intensity to Level 4 standards. Any residents confirmed to have records of crossing fog passages must undergo quarantine processing if there are data anomalies.

Identifying features: Those who cross fog passages will develop cloud-like markings on their arms that will persist for at least 72 hours.

Please treat this matter carefully, inspectors. Those who traverse fog passages may carry large amounts of unknown infection sources.

Checkpoints are currently temporarily adding quarantine chambers along the Happiness Defense Line. All inspection procedures must be strictly executed, with no unauthorized clearances permitted.]

"The temperature really dropped dramatically."

Cheng Ye breathed out a puff of white vapor. He still remembered checking the weather at noon, when the reported temperature was 21 to 29 degrees.

Unexpectedly, in just a few hours after one nap, the temperature had plummeted so severely.

The minimum temperature was cut by a full 18 degrees, and the maximum dropped 14 degrees.

Fortunately, neither Happiness City nor the entire Shi Province could grow crops, otherwise this round of temperature drop would have destroyed the entire autumn harvest.

As for the checkpoint operating hours adjustment and the subsequent two announcements prohibiting residents from approaching fog passages.

These were all within Cheng Ye's expectations.

During the day facing fog passages, they could at least barely make out what monsters emerged from inside.

If duty really extended until eleven at night, encountering fog passages in complete darkness would be terrible for the inspectors inside.

The current adjustment to 8 PM was perfectly timed just before complete darkness.

It both gave those outside sufficient time to return while allowing duty personnel to face less risk, a moderate and prudent approach.

As for prohibiting residents from approaching fog passages, it was more like a reminder of fog passage risks.

If the Blood Dragon Corps could really monitor all fog passages round-the-clock and lock down every spatial rift tightly, there would be no need to issue such announcements, they could just deploy troops to guard directly.

Since there were reminders, even specifying that fog passage disappearance might mean permanent inability to return, it meant the aerial fog coverage was too vast for the corps to have sufficient manpower, relying only on rules and warnings for restraint.

And fog passages inherently carried the mysterious nature of random appearance.

Appearing at the checkpoint today, tomorrow they might drift to somewhere in the inner city. No one could predict where the next one would emerge.

In such situations, there would always be people willing to take desperate risks.

Gambling with their lives!

Gambling on luck!

For those scavengers who feared no danger and constantly walked the line between life and death, as long as one person brought back something rare from the other side of a fog passage.

Within half a day, there would be a second, third person actively seeking fog passages to dive into.

This was human nature, completely impossible to prohibit.

Unless Happiness City's leadership was determined to lock all residents dead inside the buffer zone, not allowing them to take a single step out.

But this was impossible. Even when infection tides came, the leadership hadn't locked down population movement.

Even less likely would they confine people to their homes afraid to venture out because of an aerial fog.

Of course, this would be hard on the checkpoints.

"But this way is also convenient. Since crossing fog passages leaves marks, inspection difficulty isn't too great."

"Plus Level 4 intensity saves a lot of trouble. Anyone with data anomalies gets dragged to quarantine wholesale, saving arguments."

From initially checking everyone to now following regulations.

Cheng Ye had adapted and become familiar with it in just one week.

This wasn't because he had become lax about this job, but special times required special methods.

Under the current aerial fog shroud, any luck might brew great disaster.

Once encountering some infection source with extremely strong lurking ability, it might destroy all of Happiness City.

Isolating risks at the source was the most correct approach.

"Xiao Kang, I need to leave first to move the salted fish and beef back, and go to the Works Department to discuss step pedestrian street construction planning with Engineer Liu. By the time you finish duty, I'll probably just be finishing up."

Cheng Ye stood up, stuffing the defense communicator into his pocket.

Wang Kang instinctively turned around, forcing a smile on his face, not because he was leaving, but because his heart was still worried about the dangers brought by fog passages.

Cheng Ye saw this and softened his voice. "Don't worry, even if a mother source infected entity really comes, Brother Cheng has ways to make it sit down, at least I can buy us both time to run."

"I believe you, Brother Cheng."

Wang Kang nodded woodenly, but his smile was stiffer than before.

Clearly he hadn't taken these words to heart.

"Brother Cheng, you go ahead. Zone B probably won't have anyone else coming at night. With the schedule adjusted to 7 AM tomorrow, not resting well won't do."

"Alright, call me if anything happens."

Cheng Ye agreed, turned and walked out of the inspection area.

Busy from morning until now, fortunately he had dozed in the reclining chair earlier and recovered some energy, otherwise even with martial arts practice doubling his vitality, it would be hard to sustain.

Arriving at the quarantine zone, waves of cold air surged like tides, truly feeling like winter's arrival.

Cheng Ye instinctively pulled his coat tighter, calling several workers and guards on duty in the public area to help carry the salted fish and beef to the checkpoint entrance.

"Second Dragon, you can come over now. I'm waiting at the checkpoint entrance."

"Alright, we're waiting on Master Zhang's bus."

The cold wind was bleak, chilling hands and feet.

When the operator finished coordinating, Master Zhang's bus was already heading toward the South Station.

In just two or three minutes, two dim yellow headlight beams pierced the thick fog, and bus number '86' slowly stopped in front of the checkpoint.

The door opened with a "hiss," and Second Dragon led seven sturdy young men filing out, each carrying empty burlap sacks. Without a word, they rolled up their sleeves and got to work.

"Be careful, these salted fish have very sharp mouth parts, don't get scratched."

Second Dragon was bending over to lift a bundle of salted fish when he heard this, looked up and grinned. "Sir, don't worry. We've seen plenty of these swordfish when we used to run with the corps, even ate fresh ones."

"Fresh ones?"

Cheng Ye raised an eyebrow. "You've been to Hai Province before?"

"That's right." Second Dragon continued talking while his hands never slowed in their work. "That was over ten years ago. Back then in the Pioneer Corps, we followed the team to build docks, then followed supply ships on a long journey to Hai Province."

"How much would a fresh swordfish be worth in Hai Province?"

"It wasn't worth much back then. The coastlines were full of these fish everywhere. If you wanted to eat them, you could just cast nets and catch them yourself. The only trouble was processing them, you had to smash the mouth parts before cooking. Later, unexpectedly returning to Happiness City, we haven't seen these things for so many years."

Worthless items brought to Happiness City could sell for 240 points per ton?

Cheng Ye nodded thoughtfully. This seemed to be another method Happiness City used to attract merchant caravans.

Using resource premiums to purchase cheap goods from coastal cities both enriched food reserves and allowed caravans profit, maintaining inter-regional trade chains in this chaotic world.

Otherwise, once prices adjusted and crashed, if caravans couldn't make money and even lost money on trips, next time probably not even a shadow would appear.

The current situation was good, bringing one or two cars of food as a guarantee, earning something no matter what.

Items like those in the Red Mountain merchant convoy's third car were choices made after having this guarantee. Whether losing or earning, it wouldn't greatly affect the caravan's total revenue.

A total of two and a half tons of dried fish.

Because they were thoroughly dried, densely packed, and carefully loaded, 85 burlap sacks contained everything.

Second Dragon led two young men nimbly climbing onto the roof, while four people below formed a line, aiming accurately to throw upward.

These buses were originally modified from truck chassis and could transform into cargo vehicles at any time when encountering dangerous situations.

Nearly fifty bags of dried fish were spread flat on the roof, secured with thick nylon ropes in cross patterns, edges pressed with anti-slip nets. No matter how much the vehicle bounced, they wouldn't shake loose.

The remaining thirty-plus bags were stuffed into the rear of the passenger compartment, squeezed together with half a Yaksha Bull wrapped in waterproof cloth, exactly filling the back half of the compartment.

"Master Zhang, I'm really sorry."

Cheng Ye smiled embarrassedly, his nostrils filled with a fishy ocean smell. "These dried fish have a strong odor. You'll probably have to wash the vehicle thoroughly when you get back."

"Inspector Cheng, please don't say that. Being able to help you is my good fortune, Old Zhang. Besides, the Works Department already instructed that for the next half month, I'm your dedicated driver. Wherever you want to go, just say the word. My defense communicator number is 317550, please remember it and call me anytime."

Zhang Yong quickly waved his hands, the wrinkles at his eyes squeezed together.

From an ordinary bus driver to connecting with an inspector, connecting with the Tianyuan Community, these past days the other drivers running together were dying of envy.

Not to mention Cheng Ye had no airs at all, even more amiable than minor leaders in the Works Department.

"Good, then I won't be polite."

Cheng Ye pulled up his contact list, saving the number. Everyone gradually got on the bus, crowding in front.

You squeeze me, I squeeze you, everyone's blood and qi burning hot, immediately dispelling much of the cold air in the compartment.

"Master Zhang, first to the Works Department. I need to discuss pedestrian street construction with Engineer Liu."

"Right away!"

Master Zhang shifted gears and pressed the accelerator. The bus slowly drove away from the checkpoint.

The guards on duty at the entrance couldn't help but peer over, their eyes full of amazement.

They had been guarding here for several years and all knew inspectors held lofty positions. When they really needed things done, plenty of people competed to help.

But they had never seen any inspector actually do this. Most were aloof and independent.

Someone like Cheng Ye was the first they'd seen. From the respectful look in Second Dragon's and others' eyes, he was as impressive as the station chief!

The vehicle drove forward for a while.

Cheng Ye sat by the window. The glass was covered with white fog, which he cleared with his finger to look at the retreating foggy scenery outside.

The tent camps that had been full of life when he passed during the day had shrunk into gray shadows in the cold mist by evening, like grave mounds rooted in the wilderness. Without the shouts and cooking smoke, even the sound of wind through canvas carried an air of death.

Driving further ahead, the outline of the shantytown emerged in the fog.

Low earthen houses crowded together, with scattered lights in a few windows, the entire area terrifyingly quiet.

Gone were the clamor and chaos that couldn't be suppressed!

The vast buffer zone had become desolate again in just one day, even the air carried an indescribable oppression, even bleaker than after the last infection tide.

"Was it always like this in winter before?"

"Winter was much more desolate than now." Second Dragon immediately responded. "This is because everyone's afraid of coming out and encountering fog passages, encountering danger. It's not because the weather's too cold. Actually, this temperature is just right for daytime work, neither cold nor hot, much better than sweating in summer!"

"Hmm..."

Cheng Ye didn't respond, just gazed out the window.

Until leaving the shantytown and entering the city outskirts, only then did he speak:

"Second Dragon, go find some pots later and stew up this salted fish and beef for us. Tonight I'm treating, giving everyone a meat feast, not letting you run for nothing."

"Sir, how can we accept this!"

Second Dragon quickly waved his hands, his dark face flushing. "You give orders, we'd run our legs off happily. How could we let..."

Before finishing, Cheng Ye glanced at him with eyes that held no authority but carried a gentle insistence.

Second Dragon sheepishly closed his mouth, but couldn't help the corners turning up, his heart sweet as honey.

Working with Cheng Ye was completely different from following orders in the corps before.

Everyone could clearly feel that although Cheng Ye was directing and instructing them, on a personal level everyone was equal. He didn't treat them as tools.

The compartment fell quiet for a moment, no one speaking, but several young men glanced at each other with brightened eyes.

This bit of respect, in the wasteland where human life was worth less than grass.

Perhaps in some people's eyes it was worthless, couldn't be traded for bullets, couldn't fill bellies.

But perhaps... it was more precious than anything else!

[NEXT CHAPTER]