Chapter 17: The Disappearance of Line 5 (1) “Now it seems that we are all…
Whether it is the overall game system, the copy system, or the Abnormal Monitoring Bureau, their essence is the same, and they exist to maintain the operation of the world of ghost stories.
Belonging to that strange world full of madness and despair.
The advent of strange stories has crossed the barrier of isolation. From that moment on, the concepts of game and reality are no longer clear, but vague and replaceable, and will one day be completely overturned.
The main system had foreshadowed that the game would cover reality, and it was even more impossible for the surveillance bureau to be completely unaware of it. Only Fei Yu was kept in the dark. As the only aliens in the world of ghost stories, "humans", he did not trust them, and they also had reservations.
Just as Shen Que had said before, no player could survive in the area outside the game venue. That world strongly rejected all non-kaitan life forms, but he was not only safe and sound, but could also move freely between reality and the world of kaitan.
It was also from that time that Bai Bei began to doubt what kind of existence he was.
He can see the barrier as nothing, and only him.
Even if the monsters came here for unknown reasons, the system and the Abnormal Monitoring Bureau were still bound by the rules and could not come, and they still needed to be mapped.
"What does it want to do? I know the system hasn't entertained such frivolous thoughts as destroying reality. It might even prevent more strange stories from happening, as they damage the interests of the game."
There was no response from the system. Bai Bei calmly took a cup of warm water, turned around and went upstairs to continue waiting.
He waited for a long time until someone knocked on the door. A deep, steady voice followed, reminding him to go downstairs for dinner. Only then did Bai Bei close the computer screen, and the system's reply finally rang out: "The person said that they can't reveal it to you at the moment."
[The overall system of the game... including us, the existence of the Kwaidan world will never harm you. This is the answer.]
A cunning and meaningful answer.
"You know what I'm worried about." Bai Bei stepped onto the stairs and walked down step by step. He saw Chen Que in front of the table, and also saw the illusion of blood flowing down the hole in his chest.
It was as if the strange scene called "Reflection in the Mirror" was reappearing.
"Can the Surveillance Bureau guarantee that something like that won't happen?"
The system remained silent. It couldn't tell Bai Bei that the Abnormal Monitoring Bureau would only ensure his safety. As for those humans, the monsters in the Monitoring Bureau naturally had no obligation to pay attention to them.
"You don't want this world to experience the devastating ending of the 'previous manga'. If all the kaidan stories finally appear in my reality, the kaidan world will completely spiral out of control, swallowing up my reality. This goes against the original rules."
There is no such thing as ambition in strange stories; rules are the entire reason and meaning of their existence.
Bai Bei sat down and started eating. While chatting with Chen Que, he did not forget to ask the system: "So why didn't you tell me when the first ghost story came? Even if you had concerns, there was no need in the face of something like this."
[…It's no use telling you.] The system muttered softly, [The barrier is hard to repair, and if I tell you, you might catch me and scold me. It's useless.]
Bo Bei, who would indeed do this: "...I can hear it."
This topic came to an abrupt end for the time being. Bo Bei actually wanted to know whether the ghost story coming to reality had anything to do with him. It was hard for him not to suspect that it was a series of influences brought about by his completion of the game. However, judging from the attitude of the Abnormal Monitoring Bureau, it was likely that they would remain in the dark.
If he could still log into the world of ghost stories, Bai Beida could directly interrogate him on the spot, but now the world of ghost stories is in a closed state as a whole, and he can't even get in.
The meal was dull and boring. Shen Que noticed that he was worried, but he didn't say anything. He picked up the only spicy dish on the table with chopsticks and put it into his bowl with malicious intent.
Bai Bei, who was touched by the spiciness, finally came to his senses.
Tonight was another peaceful night without any unexpected incidents disturbing it. Bai Bei felt that Shi Yu finally stopped running around. It was a wonderful day without ghost stories and strange noises in the barrage.
This warm thought lasted until he woke up.
Bai Bei didn't want to go to the studio, let alone the new studio which was farther away and near the Operations Department headquarters.
It may be a great sense of security for an ordinary citizen who has just learned about the existence of ghost stories, but Bo Bei only knows that it means he will have to spend more time commuting!
Bai Bei followed Shen Que into the car in a daze and almost missed his destination. If he had been ten minutes later, he would have had to visit the Shen family business.
Xie Jianshan even sent a special message to ask him how he felt today and whether his work was going well. After chatting for a while, he stopped pretending and asked him directly when the complete content would be released since the theme of the new copy had been agreed upon.
Bo Bei: [I'm arranging it. Stop rushing me. Are you an undercover agent planted by the Operations Department to urge us to update our game?]
Xie Jianshan: [Oops, I’ve been discovered^^]
As a result, on his way home from get off work, he once again ran into the captain of the Operations Department who was in charge of urging for updates on the ninth day.
"Oh, what a coincidence."
"...Unfortunately, you don't have a mission today?"
"It's out. It just ended." Xie Jianshan suddenly grabbed the man's shoulders and brought him closer, lowering his voice just enough for Bai Bei to hear clearly, but no one else could hear it. "B-level ghost stories are not easy to deal with. My combat uniform is covered in blood, so I have to change clothes."
Xie Jianshan was tall, often went on missions, and was diligent in exercising. Although he looked like a standard physique, Bai Bei was almost overwhelmed by his true feelings. "Why don't you just not talk about things that shouldn't be known to others?"
"I'm the only producer on the Ninth Day. If I die, you can just find a place to cry."
Xie Jianshan quickly cooperated by letting go and taking a harmless step back. "How dare I hurt you? If anything happens to you, I'll be the first one to be scolded."
"What? You've even accepted the mission of secretly protecting me?" Standing at just over 5'8", Bai Bei was shorter than Xie Jianshan. He grumbled, "Can I request a replacement?"
Xie Jianshan laughed heartily upon hearing this, with a familiar feeling of a bad friend to Bai Beiji. "It's too late. I'm the only captain in the executive department, and the higher-ups think I'm the most suitable."
Bai Bei: "...I refuse and reject it."
"You can reject it later. The subway is coming."
The train pulled into the station and the crowd suddenly became agitated. After the people in the carriage came out, Bai Bei was just about to step forward when those mysterious barrages of comments jumped out in front of him, causing him to slow down.
[No... I remember thinking Line 5 might be annexed by the Kwaidan line.]
[Ahhhh, the protagonists are planning to take Line 2! What the hell should I do?]
Please don't come to Line 2, please.
[I'm counting on you guys to take care of the reliable action department and the MAX sense of security, Fei Shen! ]
[However, Lin Yuan might reveal Xiaoyu's contact information if he knows it... Who would have thought that Xiaoyu would be completely unconscious and didn't even see Captain Xie? Even now, he still doesn't know that our friend is the chief of the operations department (smile)]
Bai Bei stood inside the carriage of Line 5, with the sliding door slowly closing behind him. As far as he could see, there were no extra seats, and people were scattered in the spacious aisle. He silently reached out to grab the handrail to prevent himself from falling.
...It's really hard to describe his luck.
"I'm starting to believe it now." The system was also stunned. "Is it such a coincidence? I've encountered strange stories while going to the hospital, and even while eating. Now I've encountered strange stories again while riding the subway."
Bai Bei tried to salvage the situation: "...The incident with Jiuyou was caused by someone from U, so it doesn't count."
System: [Okay, okay.]
Xie Jianshan opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something, but his expression suddenly changed. He took out the detector hanging on his belt. The originally normal black screen gradually turned into a warning deep red, and a few words appeared in the center.
[Detected that an unknown ghost story is about to arrive...]
[Location confirmed, information transmission in progress, starting to check the level of the ghost story... The risk factor of this ghost story is medium.]
[B-level ghost story "The Disappearance of Line 5" is expected to occur in three minutes. Please remain vigilant and deal with it in time.]
Xie Jianshan looked up and made eye contact with the curious Bai Bei. A certain horror game producer instantly revealed a half-hearted expression of fear, mixed with inexplicable excitement. "Are we about to enter a ghost story? Do you need help?"
Xie Jianshan: “…”
He calmly put away the detector and said he didn't need it. The communicator was not on him, so he quickly called Lin Yuan to explain the situation. Others also received the news, but except for Xie Jianshan who was at the subway station, they were all far away.
The emergency stop buttons were set up at both ends of the platform, but they were now inside the carriage. Xie Jianshan's eyes finally locked on the emergency call button. He strode forward, opened the protective cover, pressed the button and waited for the response from the driver on the other end.
Even earlier came the announcement: "Welcome aboard Line 5. This train is heading to the Olympic Sports Center. Please stand firmly and hold on to the train while it's running. We wish you a pleasant journey. The next stop is Xinwan Square. Please get off from the right, side... first? then... "
The comfortable and smooth station announcements became choppy and strange. The female voice announcing the station was no longer friendly, but instead coldly repeated the same sentence over and over again: "Don't take Line 5, don't take Line 5, don't take Line 5..."
...The strange story arrived early.
The uninformed passengers simply thought that there was a problem with the subway. The lack of any fluctuation in the tone of the broadcast and the gradually increasing speed of speech were creepy.
Someone said, "Strange, my phone can't receive any signal," but the other passengers finally realized something was wrong and started trying to contact the outside world.
All failed without exception.
"What's going on? The signal shouldn't be so bad that there's no service... Is the subway station down for repairs?"
"Damn, that announcement just now really scared me. Today isn't April Fools' Day. I thought a horror dungeon was going to drop."
"Hahahahaha then you really have a rich imagination."
The system, eager to watch the fun, improvised and chuckled sinisterly, mimicking the passengers' playful laughter. "I want to see if these bastards can still laugh later."
Bai Bei, whose ears were injured, said: "..."
Xie Jianshan had already walked back to Bai Bei's side. His hand was on the detector that was hung back on his belt, and he lowered his head as if thinking about something. Unless they were dealing with strange incidents, the executive department usually did not carry guns when traveling.
Moreover, there were many people on the subway. If this ghost story was a type of escape and kill, casualties would be inevitable.
This time we are really in big trouble.
"Don't look so gloomy, Captain Xie." Bai Bei wasn't too worried. He consoled him, "Maybe it's a mystery-solving story like the one we entered last time."
"...If only you had said this earlier."
Xie Jianshan listened to the broadcast, whose content had changed but the tone remained the same. He sighed, "Now it looks like we're all doomed."
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