Kaidan Game Train: Abide Rule or Die!
Chapter 603: The Generous Xu Huo

Sima Xiao’er was so happy he almost jumped up.

Nie Xuan stopped outside the restaurant, looking at the black bacteria on the ground, "This will probably take some effort to clean up."

Wearing prop shoes, Xu Huo came out and immediately wrapped and threw his shoes in the baggage compartment, "It’s best not to touch them. This stuff might consume an Antidote Fungus, but the Special Defense Department could study these bacteria. It’s not rare to see players using poison and pollutants in the game."

"Chief Song may not be good at other things, but he’s quite capable in handling such matters," Nie Xuan said.

Both of them smiled, and Xu Huo said, "I’m heading back to the hotel to wait for someone."

"When are you going back to Ting City?" Nie Xuan checked the time. "I’ll be heading back too once I’m done here; I can take you all with me."

"Tomorrow, I guess. I’m meeting a friend for dinner." Xu Huo nodded toward Chief Song, who was walking over. "Chief Song, want to join us?"

Chief Song was green with anger. He lifted his foot and kicked towards the flowerpot outside the restaurant, then shouted at the Special Defense Department personnel who turned to look, "What are you staring at? Get back to work!"

Xu Huo laughed, "Don’t be so hot-tempered. What if the flowerpot is contaminated? Normal antitoxins won’t work."

Chief Song reflexively wanted to check but lowered his head and realized what was happening. He didn’t engage in any more sarcastic exchanges and just walked away.

Xu Huo noticed that Nie Xuan’s gaze lingered on Chief Song’s back for a few seconds and then said, "The Special Defense Department sure is lively."

Nie Xuan looked away, "It’s always lively, but as long as they get things done, it’s fine."

"Seeing that you could come back, it seems the border issues have more or less been settled," Xu Huo said.

"One thing after another, it never ends." Nie Xuan wasn’t as relaxed. The consecutive days of travel had left him somewhat exhausted. "In Zone 014, we’ve gauged the situation well, which is both good and bad. With internal and external imbalances, the situation will never stabilize. However, the Antidote Fungus you brought back has solved an urgent need. Having some hope is better than nothing."

Xu Huo nodded, "Then you get busy first, and we’ll catch up later."

Nie Xuan still let Sima Xiao’er follow him. Just after leaving the Taole Club, Xu Huo received a call from Zhou Ning. She had already returned to Yang City, but now the patrol cars in Yang City were out in full force, requiring everyone outside to confirm their identity. They were particularly focused on checking players from other cities and told him to avoid the patrol cars as much as possible when returning to the hotel.

"Do patrol personnel often clash with players?" Xu Huo had also seen quite a few such news reports before.

"There’s no other way," Sima Xiao’er, who knew the inside story, said. "No matter how many times we say that it’s unsafe to go out at night, some people just can’t stay put at home. When something happens, their families make a big fuss at the Special Defense Department, questioning the patrolling players’ abilities. They’re all ordinary people; there’s nothing we can do to them. Even the detention center can’t hold so many."

This was an unavoidable situation, relatively better compared to abroad.

Xu Huo and Sima Xiao’er took a ride back to the city. Sima Xiao’er had an ID, so although they were stopped several times for checks, there were no delays. However, after entering the city, Xu Huo could clearly feel that the streets were busier than a few days ago with people who seemed to have migrated from elsewhere, bringing along their families and belongings.

He searched online for information, but unfortunately, all the major internet platforms were now dominated by the Twin Snakes incident. By this time, there were already "professionals" who had articulated the causes and effects and even expressed admiration and concern for his bold stand against the Special Defense Department.

In any case, his disguised face had gone viral.

"No wonder my colleagues were staring at you earlier. It turns out it’s because of this!" Sima Xiao’er was also browsing on his phone and excitedly gave a thumbs up, "Although I belong to the Special Defense Department, I gotta say Brother Xu, you were awesome just now. Apart from Captain Nie, you’re the person I admire the most!"

Xu Huo took off the fake face, "Can you ask your colleagues if something’s happened in Yang City?"

Sima Xiao’er immediately started chatting with the patrol personnel mid-way, and after a while, he brought back news, "The area along the national road suddenly experienced a heavy fog, so they evacuated the local residents first. Don’t worry bro, it’s still far from Yang City. Are you hungry? Shall we go for hot pot?"

Sima Xiao’er, who had narrowly escaped being hot-potted himself, had no psychological barriers and planned to invite Zhou Ning and the Girl in the painting, who would return later, to join them. However, many stores in the city were closed today, so they had to buy ingredients and cook at the hotel instead.

After enjoying a hearty dinner and a night’s rest, by the next morning, news finally emerged about the foggy area near Yang City.

The official notice from the Special Defense Department was that a random dungeon might be forming, but as of yet, there were no reports of missing people. All roads nearby were blocked, and even helicopters were not allowed to pass through.

The entrances to the random dungeons varied: some were small and inconspicuous, swallowing only a few people, while others appeared with a large number of disappearances. However, these were usually only determined to be random dungeons after people went missing. The appearance of this foggy area was unusual compared to the regular dungeon patterns.

There were related doubts on the Pioneer Forum, and Tang Guangbo’s paper provided the most rational explanation.

He believed it was a manifestation of Zone 014 merging the real world with the game world, since the Special Defense Department had already clarified that the game areas would eventually become entirely game venues. Therefore, the presence of the foggy area might be a precursor to the birth of a permanent dungeon.

Of course, this might not necessarily result in the birth of a permanent dungeon; it could likely be environmental changes during the merger period. Such changes would inevitably lead to a widening range of mutations. From now on, the people of Zone 014 would have to worry about more than just Cannibal Players, Alien toxins, and small animal mutations within the city. They would also have to prepare for large-scale mutations in fauna and flora, build defensive structures, stockpile resources, and strengthen the surveillance of critical assets like reservoirs and plantations.

Tang Guangbo also highlighted the mutations of toxic substances, including not only naturally toxic things but also pollutants created by humans in the past—mutations in bacteria are more frightening than toxic fauna and flora.

In fact, some people had already experienced nature’s backlash. Under this forum post, a player reported that a garbage disposal plant near their home had developed an itchy bacterium, spreading through the air and between people. Though momentarily non-lethal, there were no good treatment methods yet. Walking on the street, the whole town looked like they had the plague, covered in pustules, a veritable hell on earth!

As the environment in Zone 014 deteriorated, discussions began on the forum about settling in other game areas. However, the original poster was attacked, implying that they were cowardly, willing to abandon even their family members.

But this same poster replied that he knew of a way for ordinary people to transfer areas and if anyone wanted to know, they could ask to buy the information from him.

Some were willing to believe and wanted to purchase the information, while others were skeptical and attacked him. Xu Huo didn’t finish reading the post. Instead, he registered an anonymous account and straightforwardly posted how to obtain tickets for the non-player train and some information about the Game Government and Grey Players.