Stakeout

"Let's go, target is the City Library." Chen Miemie was about to set off.

The Forbidden Fruit Codex poured cold water on him: "If you go now, the library will be nearly closing. Besides, how could an ordinary visitor ever get access to the sealed books?"

"You have a way?"

The Forbidden Fruit Codex fluttered its little wings twice: "I don't. If we could break the sealing state ourselves, why would we have been sealed in the first place?"

"What time does the library close?"

"5:00 PM sharp."

He checked his watch. It was 3:20 PM now.

"Forbidden Fruit Codex, can you get into the city?"

"I can. But if someone spots me, they'll immediately reinforce the sealing on my main body, and I'll be sealed back. This avatar here will revert to an ordinary book."

"Don't worry, I'll hide you in my backpack."

Chen Miemie and Loop hurried back into the city.

When they entered the city, the duty staff had already changed shifts, so Old Wang wasn't there anymore.

They arrived at the library at 4:25 PM.

But they were stopped at the entrance.

"Sir, to enter the library, you need to get a library card at the service desk first."

Chen Miemie went to the service desk.

"Hello, I'd like to apply for a library card."

The person serving him was a young woman in a uniform, a clean-cut beauty with long, straight black hair.

"Alright, sir. Please scan your wristband so I can retrieve your identity information.

Scanning the card, processing the application—the whole procedure was highly efficient.

"Here you go, this is your library card. According to the relevant regulations, you have Level 3 borrowing privileges, which allows you to go down to the third underground floor. Books on the underground levels can only be read on-site; they cannot be checked out."

Chen Miemie took the card and was about to leave.

The black-haired woman finished her formulaic smile and service, then casually added,

"Mr. Chen Miemie, have you just arrived at the Sealed Book Library? Your name sounds familiar."

Chen Miemie didn't know her, and he was pressed for time, so he just brushed it off:

"There might be someone with a similar name. This one probably leaves a strong impression on people."

With that, he left.

When he finally stepped into the library, even with some mental preparation, he was stunned by the sight before him.

Just how many books were in a library in a city of books?

Chen Miemie's answer: Countless. Impossible to tally.

Before him stood a massive building, twenty stories high indoors.

Standing on the first floor, he could look straight up and see the corridors of all the circular levels above.

Everywhere were bookshelves; everywhere were books. From the first floor to the top, it was an endless ocean of books. Coming here was like entering the world of books.

"With a scale like this, it'd be normal for some anomalies to show up even by sheer probability, right?"

From inside his backpack, the Forbidden Fruit Codex's muffled voice came: "Snap out of it, don't just stare. The books on the ground level are all ordinary. The real stuff is underground.

The library has five underground floors. Ordinary people don't have access to the underground book storage.

School students can go to the first basement level;

Graduated ordinary mystics can go to the second basement level;

You can go to the third basement level, which means you're among the elite of human mystics—equivalent to the authority of a typical society president or vice president;

The fourth basement level is only accessible to people in special positions or on academic projects, and even then, only to specific areas;

The fifth basement level is where the physical bodies of anomalous books are sealed. Usually, only people reinforcing the seals can go down. Many don't even know it exists."

Using his legitimate authority, Chen Miemie went to the third basement level.

Compared to the first and second basement levels, the books here didn't fill the shelves, but every single one involved advanced applications of mystical powers. Back in Sixiang City, such books would likely be treasured secrets hoarded by the families.

"No wonder this is the city of knowledge and books. This foundation is truly the depth of civilization. And the magnanimity to share knowledge openly, not fearing others learning it—that's incredible."

The Forbidden Fruit Codex let out an almost inaudible sigh: "This was all set up by that legendary librarian long ago."

After the admiration, Chen Miemie got back to business: "Alright, tell me where the way down continues."

There were no staircases connecting the underground floors. Without the corresponding authority, you couldn't find a way down from any floor.

The library's walls were covered not only with books but also with dense layers of runes—fire prevention, pest control, hardness reinforcement, spatial sealing, and all sorts of functions. Even if a super powerhouse forced their way in, they'd at least trigger an alarm, so nobody could come and go freely without being noticed.

"See that statue ahead?"

Chen Miemie looked forward and saw a sculpture of a turtle carrying a stone tablet on its back.

"You mean the Bixi?"

"Yes. You need to press certain words on the stone tablet in a specific order. I don't know exactly which ones. All I know is that if you press them right, the Bixi will move aside, and underneath where its belly was, a hole will appear. Jump in, and you'll reach the fourth basement level."

"And going from the fourth to the fifth basement level?"

"That's both simpler and harder. Simple because you just need to break a single seal; hard because even if someone goes down through the proper procedures, breaking the seal will inevitably trigger an alarm."

"So, anyone trying to get to the fifth basement level will unavoidably trigger an alarm, no matter what?"

"That's right."

"Is it possible to use mysticism to phase through walls or dig a tunnel, to get in from outside without following the usual path?"

"If you're strong enough, you could, but it would still trigger the alarm."

"Alright, I understand. Leave the rest to me."

The Forbidden Fruit Codex was surprised to see Chen Miemie had no intention of giving up: "You can figure this out?"

Chen Miemie didn't have a good plan yet, but his mouth was tough: "Problems that can't be solved by common sense—leave them to mysticism. Let's go. This trip was just for scouting, and we've achieved the goal of finding the route."

Once out of the library, the Forbidden Fruit Codex said, "Chen Miemie, if there's nothing else, I'll be off."

"Do you have somewhere to go?"

"I'll wander around the city or the outskirts. I've been sealed for a long time, and it's not easy to get out."

"Ever thought about sticking with me?"

"You?"

"What, you've seen my strength, haven't you? Besides, you're involved in this case too. Don't you want to see it through to the end? Following me is surely more interesting than heading out of the city, losing control and causing trouble for a few random passersby."

"You make it sound reasonable. I almost can't find a reason to refuse."

"Of course. This will be the best decision of your life."

"Quite the big talk. Fine, I'll stick with you for now. Where to?"

"It's almost time to open the shop. Let's go home—19 Fairytale Lane."

Chen Miemie didn't notice.

For the rest of the journey, the Forbidden Fruit Codex didn't say another word.

If it were a person, its expression right now would be "dumbfounded."

Its mind was churning like a stormy sea.

'19 Fairytale Lane! That familiar address. How long has it been? I'm finally hearing it again!'