"So, what you mean is, the weird room on the second floor of your house suddenly once again had a brief passage, and this time it directly connected to the Dark Angel wandering at the edge of the world— the one even suspected to be the 'Beauty God'..."In the director's office at the Special Service Bureau Headquarters Building, Baili Qing gently rubbed her forehead, looking expressionless at Yu Sheng who had suddenly opened the door in front of her, claiming to deliver a big piece of news. For a moment, she seriously began to wonder if she really owed this man something in her previous life, making her repay as an ox or horse in this life.
"...And then Erin just sat around the room, chatting with her 'Dark Angel friend' all morning?"
"That's one way to summarize it."
Yu Sheng adjusted his sitting position on the chair, feeling a bit awkward under the Dragon Lady's expressionless gaze opposite him. He seriously suspected that the other party might still be recovering from hibernation, but the last bit of conscience in his belly made him embarrassed to continue thinking that way, so he maintained an awkward yet respectful smile.
"However, the real point of concern isn't the additional hole in the house, but the content of the 'cosmic radio signal' Erin received from her 'electronic friend'..."
Baili Qing rubbed her forehead again.
Baili Xue then emerged in the air between her and Yu Sheng.
"So judging from this, the rift that appeared under the Boundary Land is related to this matter, right? There's a loophole in the Deep Layer of this world, and no one has discovered it yet, whereas a group of Dark Angels either strive uncontrollably to break in or rationally help repair the hole..."
Baili Xue swayed a bit in place.
"Honestly, even the mad doctors from Terra University who can't graduate in ten years wouldn't dare write about this in their thesis. This kind of topic is something only crazy advisors would touch..."
"I think crazy Masters might dare to," Yu Sheng edged forward, "I heard Luo say they're quite bold..."
Baili Xue: "True, true."
Then both of them shut their mouths simultaneously under Baili Qing's icy and authoritative gaze.
"In any case, the significance of this matter has surpassed the capability within the Special Service Bureau's scope. I will immediately inform the Council members with the full details and contact other Civilization Circles," Baili Qing said particularly gravely, "If the intelligence is true, this will be the first time we establish communication with a known and still active Dark Angel... albeit indirectly through Erin's special channel."
She paused suddenly, a trace of subtle emotion flashing in her expression.
Then she hesitated to speak again: "But, considering it's something conveyed by Erin... is this reliable?"
Yu Sheng: "..."
Baili Qing's words carried a hint of stereotype, yet when applied to the little puppet, it was genuinely unflattering.
But after a moment's hesitation, he nodded resolutely.
"Erin may often mess around, but when something serious happens, she's genuinely competent, and she's never dropped the ball in matters this significant."
Baili Xue: "Remember the first task she took when she left and immediately got smashed... Alright, sister, I'll stop."
Baili Qing quietly shifted her gaze from Baili Xue.
Yu Sheng couldn't help but steal a couple more glances at Baili Xue.
"...That's just how she is," he suddenly remarked quietly.
"Perhaps it's related to the end of my hibernation period," Baili Qing said blandly, "These last few days, she's been quite energetic, even a bit... noisy. But fortunately, I don't mind too much."
Her last sentence seemed specially meant for Baili Xue— the latter swayed back and forth in the air, looking quite cheerful.
Then Yu Sheng informed Baili Qing further about the specific details of the mutation that happened this time in the room on the second floor at No. 66 Wutong Road, and mentioned another suspicion.
He suspected that the "Angel Communication Channel" appearing at No. 66 Wutong Road this time was somewhat related to the Dark Meteor Domain's Black Star, or perhaps to the growth of the Boundary Tree in the Soul Wilderness.
"After all, the World Bridge was constructed by those Dark Angels. By planting it in the Soul Wilderness, it might have activated some communication channel on the bridge..."
"This possibility cannot be excluded," Baili Qing frowned slightly, nodding very seriously, "But what I'm currently pondering is another matter."
"Another matter?" Yu Sheng raised an eyebrow.
"Beauty God," Baili Qing nodded slightly, "This is a known Dark Angel, and has invaded the reality Universe more than once. The Algredians even engaged in a 'war' with this Dark Angel... Judging from the previous descents, He never exhibited any characteristics of being capable of reasonable communication, yet this time, He conveyed crucial intelligence... I'm somewhat baffled."
Yu Sheng thought for a moment, touching his chin: "Is it possible that this Angel's every descent is actually an effort to communicate with the locals— but humans cannot comprehend the messages He sends, and instead, they can only suffer contamination, yet only this time, Erin's unique half-angel, half-puppet condition finally made it possible to understand what He's saying."
Yu Sheng extended his hand.
"After all, from my prior encounters with several Dark Angels, even those like the Inference Star Body which are already completely out of control, they still retained a bit of rationality or retrievable memory content, it's just that even I struggle to read it— let alone ordinary people who would find tentacles emerging from their mouths just at a glance..."
Baili Qing: "This... indeed is a possibility that cannot be ruled out."
"Right, but for now there's no way to confirm it. The key is to find a way to contact them again. Later, I need to research with Erin to see if she..."
Yu Sheng started speaking but at the mention of Erin's name, he suddenly felt a stir in his heart. Shortly after, a commotion from the little puppet echoed in his mind: "Yu Sheng, Yu Sheng, Yu Sheng—something's wrong!"
Yu Sheng was startled, urgently speaking in his mind: "What's the situation? Did the room on the second floor break again? Or did the nephew get captured by a demon again?!"
"None of those," Erin quickly responded, "A Special Service Bureau team I was with ran into trouble in the Exotic Realm! The Stone Lion led an Undead Calamity in a battle against the merry-go-round and the pink plastic elephants. We felt we couldn't handle it and ran back..."
The little puppet then chattered non-stop, and in a jumbled mess, relayed the situation reported by three mass-produced machines.
Yu Sheng was completely bewildered upon hearing this, but having been around that little thing for so long, he managed to barely comprehend what was going on. Raising his head again, he met Baili Qing's questioning gaze.
"I have to go back; Erin's mass-produced machine encountered a special situation in the Exotic Realm—I'll confirm the situation and contact you again. You should be receiving a report soon, too."
"Alright." Baili Qing nodded without saying more.
The next second, Yu Sheng directly opened the door and returned to No. 66 Wutong Road.
Upon entering the living room, he overheard the little puppet chatting with Hu Li: "...Gotta say, the Special Service Bureau officers are truly well-trained, not just boasting. Despite their faces turning blue, when transported to the valley, not a single one threw up—it's really impressive..."
The fox girl listened while nodding her head with a chicken leg in hand: "Yes, yes, and then?"
"Seeing how impressive they were, I used the mass-produced puppets to transport them back to the Special Service Bureau again—since it's a specialized rental model, these puppets have the coordinates of the Bureau recorded inside."
"Yes, yes, and then?"
"Then I realized they could only hold it once..."
"Why didn't you just send them back to the Special Service Bureau the first time?"
"Didn't think of it, was too focused on running away... Ah, Yu Sheng's back!"
Yu Sheng walked over and sat down on the sofa in front of Erin: "I've heard the general situation from you. Are you suggesting that another suspected Exotic Realm has invaded the amusement park Exotic Realm you're exploring?"
"That's what the team leader said it seemed like," the little puppet nodded, "Anyway, it looked like a pile of completely different architectural styles suddenly appeared in the amusement park, resembling a medieval castle, and stone monsters also popped up with it..."
The little puppet gestured and swiftly described the situation, but she suddenly stopped.
Yu Sheng looked curious: "What is it? Did you remember other details?"
"No, a mass-produced puppet seems to have brought back something strange, stuck on its back zipper, I just noticed."
Yu Sheng: "Something strange? What is it?"
"Wait a moment, I'll bring it."
Erin said as she casually waved her hand to the side, creating a twisted space rift. Shortly after, a dazed mass-produced puppet fell out, holding a tattered piece of paper.
A piece of paper?
Yu Sheng looked at the scene with confusion, while Hu Li also peeked over: "Ah? Savior, there seems to be something drawn on it."
Yu Sheng retrieved the paper from the mass-produced puppet's hands.
It was a crumpled piece of yellowish paper with frayed edges, about the size of a child's practice sheet. It seemed to be torn from a larger piece, and on the wrinkled surface, some simple lines were crudely drawn with rough and immature strokes.
A twisting city wall, adorned with tower-like sketches, and a massive beast with messy lines stood imposingly in front. Several simply drawn little figures were arranged on the wall, resembling soldiers.
What can you say, it's almost on par with Erin's drawing skills.
Even Hu Li glanced suspiciously at Erin: "Are you sure you didn't draw this?"
"Impossible! My skill level is way higher! I, as an Alice Puppet, have artistic expertise inherited from the Star Domain..."
"The content on this drawing..." Yu Sheng paid no mind to the puppet's chatter, instead touching his chin with a thoughtful expression, "It seems to be what you described, right?"
"Looking at it this way, it really does seem so," Erin took the piece of paper from Yu Sheng, flipping it around several times, "It's just drawn a bit crudely. Ah, does the back have words on it? A lot is torn off; can't see clearly..."
Yu Sheng hurriedly leaned in upon hearing that, staring at the remaining words beneath his furrowed brows with difficulty, finally deciphering some meaningful words—
"...After the witch descended with her curse, the giant beast Gron sealed the high walls of Lodaxim... clumsy knight... refused return to their homeland..."