Examination Begins

Things in the world are strange.

Just like the anomalies in this fog.

When you don't want to encounter them, they appear immediately; when you want to find them, you can't.

In the last five minutes before the [Day of No Tomorrow], Chen Miemie, relying on the blessing of his Eternal Moon ability, ventured deep into the wilderness where no other student could reach.

But now, after walking in the fog for an hour, Chen Miemie hadn't even seen a single hair of an anomaly.

Qinghua and Bobo had both restored their original forms, walking on either side of him.

"Is this fog a proper fog? Why isn't it producing anything?"

Qinghua thought it was quite normal: "We anomalies also have a sense of territory. Usually, there won't be multiple anomalies in one area."

Bobo also found it normal: "Usually, anomalies are out in the wild. During this [Day of No Tomorrow], many are brought into the city by the fog, so naturally, there are fewer in the wild."

"You two stop making sarcastic remarks and work hard. Let's find an anomaly first."

Chen Miemie was a remarkably steady person. He sounded impatient to find an anomaly, but in reality, he walked and spoke very softly, afraid of being targeted by something inexplicable.

Currently, there was no moon, so his three cheats were offline. He absolutely would not act recklessly just because he had two anomaly teammates and a large backpack full of equipment.

Even if he were to encounter an anomaly, he wanted to be the one to spot them first, rather than being ambushed.

Moving in the fog was not a pleasant experience.

Visibility was very low. With Chen Miemie's eyes, he could only see clearly within a range of about 20 meters.

The diffusing mist was constantly moving, occasionally carrying strange sounds from unknown sources.

Qinghua and Bobo were very accustomed to this environment; it was like returning home for them.

Actually, they couldn't see much further than Chen Miemie.

But the mindset of anomalies was different.

If two anomalies suddenly met in the fog, it would simply result in killing each other. Everyone was an anomaly, and no one feared anyone.

If they could win, they fought; if they couldn't, they died. If neither could do anything to the other, they would ignore each other, part ways, and brush past one another.

"Qinghua, if you kill another anomaly, is there any benefit? Like getting stronger?"

"Most of the time, no. The death of an anomaly is just the dissipation of its physical form. The core of [Mystery] will condense into materials. Only when I happen to get a material useful to me, does it count as a harvest."

"Are these materials you mentioned useful to humans?"

"Yes, the seven major races' [Mystery] require corresponding materials every time they break through a major tier."

"Huh? That's not right. Last night I went to the [South Lord Society] and saw them clearly. I didn't see any materials with strange powers."

According to Chen Miemie's understanding, it was obviously abnormal for such a large society not to have a single item in stock.

Qinghua explained, "These materials have a strong time sensitivity. They generally need to be used on the spot. If the interval exceeds half an hour, the power begins to drain rapidly, and in about an hour, it completely dissipates, turning into a puddle of fog."

"Turning into fog, huh." Chen Miemie felt there was a big story hidden in this final form.

"Chen Miemie, Qinghua, an anomaly has appeared ahead." Bobo spotted a target.

Chen Miemie was a little surprised and looked at Bobo in a new light.

He had always felt that compared to Qinghua, Bobo was a bit weaker, more like the family mascot. He didn't expect it to be the first to spot the target this time.

Could it have ultra-long-range enemy detection abilities?

"Do you know what type of anomaly it is?"

Strategically, one could despise the enemy, but tactically, one must take them seriously. Every anomaly was a blind box, with their strengths varying drastically. Chen Miemie would deal with them with all his might, without the slightest relaxation.

"I know, it's a Performance Appraisal Slime, a very annoying guy." Bobo actually had specific intelligence.

"A slime? You know it?"

"I don't want to know it. I could smell its stench from far away, hmph."

"Dear Bobo, hurry up and tell me the details of this annoying guy."

"That guy is a slime that can change its volume and color. It likes to assign tasks to people and evaluate them based on the KPI completion of the person who accepted the task.

When it's not completed, it will expand and turn into a warning color, wrapping around a person's head until they suffocate to death; when over-completed, it will spit out a small gem to reward the other party."

"Sounds quite normal among anomalies. At least there are rewards and punishments. What do you hate about it?"

"Hmph, I told it to issue a task of 'must eat pineapple roast chicken every day', and its slime brain actually rejected me! Simply outrageous."

"Oh, that is indeed very annoying."

Chen Miemie thought for a moment and felt he didn't really need this anomaly's ability, so he slightly bypassed it and continued forward.

Midway, the Performance Appraisal Slime also spotted Chen Miemie's group from afar. Its tiny slime eyes blinked twice, it hopped in place, and surprisingly didn't come over either.

Perhaps, it also didn't really like Bobo, who always pestered it to issue boring tasks.

"Why do I feel like all you anomalies know each other?"

"In the fog, it's the law of the jungle. Any 'friendship' is forged through fighting. To be neighbors, it means at the very least, you won't be instantly killed by the other party. Over time, most of the anomalies that can survive near Sixiang City have more or less crossed paths.

But looking at the whole world, the other anomalies we know probably make up less than one in ten thousand."

They walked for another half an hour or so.

A small body of water appeared ahead.

Chen Miemie was very cautious. "There must be something in the water, right?"

"Huh? How did you know? So amazing."

"Hehe, I've watched Animal Planet. Water sources are fiercely contested territories in nature. Little deer going to drink water are usually ambushed by big crocodiles hiding in the water."

Bobo took out a roast chicken and threw it into the water.

Just two seconds after the roast chicken hit the water.

The originally calm water surface suddenly burst into countless splashes, as if a pot was boiling.

The roast chicken was instantly torn to shreds, devoured by some blurry shadows at the bottom of the water.

"What the hell, piranhas?"

Qinghua threw a few porcelain shards into the water.

There was no movement in the water; the porcelain shards didn't cause any reaction even as they sank to the bottom.

Qinghua reached her porcelain hand into the water and pulled out a soft, mud-like puddle.

"It's a Brain in a Vat."

Chen Miemie cast her an inquiring look.

"It means that in this water, there are countless brains, and they collectively form a single entity."

Chen Miemie's scalp went numb. "You mean, there are a lot of brains in this water? What do they, or rather it, want to do?"

"The brains jointly construct and immerse themselves in a virtual world they believe to be 'real'. Creatures that enter the water or drink this water will also be assimilated into one of them, or rather, become a part of it."

"Then every brain in this water is a victim?"

"Most are, and they don't feel like victims at all. They live very happily."

"Terrifying. Good thing we're fine as long as we don't go in the water."

"No, actually they had already made a move on you, but your [Flower Hat Jellyfish Cap] helped you resist the illusion attack."

"What would have happened if my precious hat hadn't protected me?"

"Then you would have already been lured into the water to join the perfect world created by the brains."

Chen Miemie: ......

"Hurry, let's get out of here. I can't control my goosebumps anymore." Chen Miemie held tightly onto his hat, terrified that it wasn't secured properly and might slip off.

And just like that, Chen Miemie gave up on the second anomaly he had come across.