Life Game In Other World
Chapter 715: Disappearance and Undercurrents (Extra-long - , Seeking Monthly Pass)

Chapter 715: Chapter 715: Disappearance and Undercurrents (Extra-long Chapter, Seeking Monthly Pass)

"Morning, He Ao little brother, let your sister take a look at your cute, half-asleep face."

He Ao had just connected to the video conference when Wu Lan’s face crowded close to the screen.

Honestly speaking, Wu Lan was actually quite attractive, her skin well-maintained; even with her face so close to the camera, one couldn’t see any pores or wrinkles. Coupled with the fact that her makeup today gave off a valiant vibe, blending with her inherently mature and charming temperament, she had a uniquely seductive beauty.

"Yikes, Wu Lan, how come there are no wrinkles on your face?"

Another voice rang out, belonging to Ji Po, another deputy director of the field operations department, "Did you turn on the beauty filter again?"

"Your mother never uses the beauty filter!"

Wu Lan sat up straight and slapped the desk beside her with a bang. "I’m so young, my face is full of collagen, is it strange not to have wrinkles?!"

"Yes, yes, a young girl in her nearly-forties."

Ji Po quickly quipped.

"Muscle man, looks like you’re asking for a beating again!"

Wu Lan rolled up her sleeves.

"Cough cough—"

A slight cough interrupted their banter; Yang De’s image appeared in the center of the screen.

He glanced at the two who had quieted down, then at He Ao, who was wearing pajamas, his hair still wet as if he had just taken a shower, "How are you feeling, He Ao?"

"Pretty good, I’ve mostly recovered."

He Ao smiled as he replied.

He Ao had been injured onboard the Navigator, suffering not insignificant injuries. Even though he had mostly recovered, thanks to the effects of the ’Nutritional Canned Food’ provided by Yang De, there were still some minor injuries to tend to, and he had been recuperating and taking medication since returning.

However, with the powerful physical constitution of a Transcendent, such injuries actually healed quite quickly.

After returning from the Navigator, Yang De and the other two had made a special visit to the Rodan Kingdom. They celebrated briefly, and after He Ao showed them around the capital of Rodan, Eren, they each returned to their respective posts.

Yang De went back to Central Earth, Ji Po to the north of the Western Lands, and Wu Lan stayed near the Tia Empire.

Now, although the few C-level members of the field operations department were in different areas, whenever something happened, Yang De would convene everyone for a virtual meeting.

The call that He Ao received before taking his bath was to summon him to such a meeting by Yang De.

"Minister Yang, is there something going on?"

After responding to Yang De’s question, He Ao took the opportunity to ask his own.

He Ao’s query obviously echoed the concerns of the other two deputy directors, who also sat up straight, waiting for Yang De to speak.

"There’s some bad news,"

Yang De looked down at the documents in his hand, "Our personnel in Newland City-State are missing."

"Who?"

Upon hearing this, Ji Po was taken aback, "Which Transcendent is missing?"

"The entire branch, everyone."

Yang De spoke slowly.

The atmosphere suddenly became somber.

"I remember that Newland City-State is under the control of the Tia Empire, aren’t they? Hasn’t any information come out?"

Wu Lan asked quietly.

"No,"

Yang De shook his head, "Since last night, Central Earth time, headquarters has completely lost contact with that place, as well as with any of our contacts, both Transcendents and ordinary people."

"I recall that Newland City-State is a fully autonomous commercial city-state,"

Ji Po picked up the conversation,

"Although they acknowledge the Emperor of the Tia Empire as the ceremonial head and lord of the city-state, it is not directly governed by imperial officials. The actual leader of the city-state is the ’City-State Prime Minister,’ elected by the City-State Council. Because of this relationship, it’s essentially a buffer zone exposed to the Moonlight, and our branch there is somewhat semi-official."

As Ji Po spoke, He Ao also remembered some documents he had seen from the Research Institute that indeed mentioned this Newland City-State branch.

This branch was not in the core territory of Moonlight’s influence in the Tia homeland, but rather on the periphery, existing in a semi-official capacity.

In a sense, it was more of a diplomatic outpost, with Moonlight using this outpost to directly communicate with the Research Institute.

Such a branch was directly subordinate to the Research Institute headquarters and was managed by headquarters itself.

He Ao opened his map software and casually searched for this Newland City-State.

"What does Moonlight say?"

Wu Lan asked, puzzled.

For these semi-official branches, Moonlight would usually not interfere with them, at most keeping them under surveillance, and might even actively protect the safety of the branch.

Because if any problem occurred at such a branch, Moonlight would be the most likely suspect, easily taking the blame.

Now that there was a problem with the branch, whether it was their doing or not, they would need to provide an explanation.

"Moonlight’s response to the Research Institute was that they didn’t know either,"

Yang De tapped on the computer, and a simple investigative report from Moonlight to the Research Institute was sent to everyone, "Their people didn’t notice anything unusual about our branch until we sent a letter of inquiry. Only after that did they send someone to check, and the result was..."

He paused for a moment, "Deserted, not a trace of life-breath in the building where the Newland branch is located. There were opened documents and cooled coffee on the desks, all the lights were on, but there was not a soul in the building."

As Yang De described the situation, He Ao also flipped through the investigative report that Yang De had sent.

The report included a photo taken by Moonlight’s staff of the main office hall.

The spacious and bright main hall, open book pages, switched-on computers, coffees at desk edges, and jackets resting on office chairs—all came into He Ao’s view in succession.

He Ao’s gaze swept across some of computer screens captured by the camera lens; a few computers were frozen at the game selection screen, waiting for players to make their next move.

The entire hall was clean, with no sense of hurried escape or signs of any sudden disturbances.

It was as if one moment, everyone was still in the office, having a normal workday, working or slacking off, and then the next moment, everyone had ’vanished.’

They didn’t even have the chance to make any move to flee before they abruptly ’disappeared.’

"Is this some sort of ’bizarre event’? What level of strangeness must it be to have such an effect?"

At this moment, Ji Po was also looking at the report, his eyebrows tightly knitted, he asked with some confusion, "I remember that the person in charge of the Newland City-State branch was a D-level peak Transcendent? She didn’t leave behind any message?"

"According to the information from Moonlight, there were signs of fierce combat in the office of the person in charge, but Moonlight’s people didn’t find any clues left behind."

Yang De said.

"She might not have left a signal that Moonlight’s people can understand."

Wu Lan pondered.

"After discussions with the Director and Moonlight, they agreed to allow us to send a C-level to investigate in Newland City-State, and they will also send a C-level to assist us."

Yang De glanced at everyone before continuing.

Upon hearing this, Wu Lan looked up and said directly," Minister Yang, I’ll go."

"Hmm?"

Minister Yang looked at her.

"I’m the most suitable candidate,"

Wu Lan leaned back in her chair,"I’m currently near the Tia Empire, the closest to Newland City-State, and I’m overseeing the nearby Research Institute branches. I can also gather suitable personnel the fastest, and while investigating, set up the temporary framework for the Newland branch all over again. Moreover,"

She paused for a moment, saw that Yang De was not yet convinced and continued," As you know, the person in charge of the Newland branch joined the Research Institute with me. If she truly left any traces, I might be the only one who can understand them."

He Ao could tell that although Wu Lan was deliberately using a light tone, her voice was not light at all; it was somewhat heavy instead.

Hearing this, Yang De was silent for a moment, then replied softly," This incident is not simple; it very likely involves C-level oddities. Though Moonlight claims they will cooperate with our investigation, be careful of their potential backstabbing."

After thinking for a while, he continued," In that case, Ji Po, you go to the vicinity of the Tia Empire and temporarily take over Wu Lan’s duties. If there are any issues, you’ll be able to provide immediate support."

"Okay!"

Ji Po nodded.

Then Yang De turned to He Ao," He Ao, you’ll temporarily take over Ji Po’s responsibilities in the Western Lands."

"Okay!"

He Ao nodded as well.

If a peak D-level Transcendent was able to detect that strangeness, based on the current data, its strength couldn’t exceed D-level by much, likely around C-level.

Clearly, the upper echelon of the Research Institute had made the same assessment.

This matter was significant, but not overly so. The most difficult aspect was that the incident occurred in the ’territory’ of the Tia Empire, within the primary influence area of Moonlight.

During the investigation, it’s necessary to be on guard against not only the bizarre event but also extra cautious of Moonlight—a slip could easily provoke conflict between the two powers.

Finally, Yang De’s gaze returned to Wu Lan," This time you are entering Moonlight’s territory for the investigation, don’t be impulsive, report back immediately if there’s any danger. Without the Research Institute’s support, do not venture into any hazardous areas."

"Okay!"

Wu Lan nodded, her lips curving up into a smile," Minister Yang, don’t worry, do I look like someone who would be impulsive?"

"Yes."

Suddenly, Ji Po next to her interjected out of the blue.

Slap—

Wu Lan slapped right through the desk in front of her," Ji Po, it seems like you’re asking for a beating!"

Yang De held his forehead.

He Ao watched the scene with an amused, speechless smile.

He could distinctly feel that following Ji Po’s interruption, Wu Lan’s repressed emotions had eased up a bit.

"Alright, alright, there’s also another matter,"

Yang De steered the conversation back on track," The comprehensive exploration report for this relic has been released, and I’ve opened up access. You can directly visit the backend of the Research Institute."

This time, there were two comprehensive exploration reports for the relic opening.

A comprehensive exploration report on the Navigator, this report’s reference material is the information provided by He Ao’s team, the returnees from the Navigator.

Another one is the ’Exploration Report’ of the ruins, with reference material coming from those survivors who went to the actual ruins and came back.

He Ao knew the information from the Navigator well, very thoroughly, in fact, but this time he wasn’t too clear about the information from the ruins, as most of the key information about the ruins had been classified as top secret before the comprehensive report was released.

Speaking of this comprehensive report, Wu Lan seemed to remember something, she smiled at He Ao, "Little brother He Ao, you’ve become famous again this time. I didn’t do anything, though."

Hearing this, He Ao rubbed his eyebrows helplessly.

Although key information was top secret, some basic matters that didn’t involve Transcendents, or were simply narrative, could be discussed.

Thus, after Zhang Yusi and others returned, they simply summarized some things about the Navigator and shared them on the Research Institute’s forum.

Then... it blew up...

In truth, their share didn’t contain any particularly key content, they just introduced the appearance of the Navigator and the dangers they encountered.

But even though they were elusive, most things were not and could not be shared.

The spectators, the melon-eating public, were still very enthusiastic and pushed these posts to the top of the trending searches.

The ruins were a hot topic in themselves, and topics like the Navigator, which was entirely different from the ruins previously explored and were tagged with hot topics such as space, spaceships, and future, were even more explosive.

Some even compiled Zhang Yusi and others’ bits and pieces into a bound volume.

And in this bound volume, the person with the most content wasn’t the narrators like Zhang Yusi, but He Ao.

Propping a falling building, turning back the overwhelming currents after it had already collapsed.

Though the information was lacking by a lot, everyone could see clearly that it had a lot to do with He Ao that the people from the Navigator came back alive this time.

Thus, He Ao became famous again, his previous popularity hadn’t even subsided, and now he was directly at the top of the trending search.

Of course, it wasn’t just him who was famous, but also Hao Yi.

Lin Chichi specially posted an article, with no key information, but based on a few phrases, she began to rave about her ’Brother Hao Yi,’ without any basis, she just forcefully praised it.

For instance, she wrote something like ’All of this was within Hao Yi’s control, he had foreseen that the opening of the ruins this time would go awry, so he laid the groundwork early, just waiting for the real culprit to appear at the end and deliver a fatal blow.’

He Ao himself didn’t even know he was that awesome.

But Lin Chichi indeed had a way with words, and even though what she wrote was mostly unrelated to the facts, her logic was consistent, so she still attracted a bunch of spectators and melon-eaters.

Right now, on the Research Institute’s forum, the top trending is He Ao, the second is ’Hao Yi,’ and the third is ’How to get transferred under Minister He Ao.’

It’s a bit ridiculous.

This trending list had been up for two days now, and He Ao thought the popularity would soon die down.

But the release of the report on the exploration of the ruins meant that some information could now be declassified.

It seems this trending list would stay up for a few more days.

He Ao rubbed his eyebrows again.

At that moment, He Ao’s phone vibrated, it was a message from C-level Ye Yun, who had gone to the ruins, sent through the Research Institute’s software. The message contained only two words,

[Awesome!]

It seems he had already read the exploration report on the Navigator.

----

Velora

The rising sun reflected on the vast and boundless sea surface, filling both the sky and sea with golden brilliance.

An old-fashioned train emerged from the void, its wheels sliding over the sea that rippled with golden waves, steadily traversing the vast ocean.

"Has the discrepancy in the flow of time between the ruins and the main world decreased?"

He Ao’s clone was leaning on a chair in the dining car, looking at the bright sunshine outside the window.

At that moment, he was opening his computer to access the Research Institute’s report on the exploration of the ruins using ’Hao Yi’s’ authority.

The report contained a lot, but it essentially boiled down to two points.

Firstly, the discrepancy in the flow of time between the ruins and the main world has decreased.

Originally, the time flow ratio between the ruins and the main world was twelve to one, meaning twelve hours in the ruins for every one in the main world.

So when He Ao explored the ruins in the past, he stayed there for three days, but only six hours passed in the main world.

But this time, those who entered the ruins stayed for three days, yet twelve hours passed in the main world.

He Ao had actually anticipated this.

He also knew that the time ratio between the Navigator and the main world was three to one.

This might mean that the ruins were getting closer and closer to the main world.

The second key point of the exploration report was about ’newbie protection.’

Originally, when Explorers entered the ruins, they would be sent to relatively safe areas where, if they were cautious, they could still come back alive.

This time, however, that ’protection’ was gone.

Many Explorers, upon entering the ruins, encountered D-level or even C-level monsters; those who survived either carved a bloody path for themselves or were lucky enough to evade the monsters’ hunt.

This perhaps meant that the exploration of the ruins would become even more dangerous and terrifying in the future.

Taken together, these two points might just be changes that occurred after the ruins neared the main world.

Tick tock—

A phone ringtone roused the contemplative He Ao.

He Ao picked up the satellite phone, glanced at the incoming call information, and answered the call.

"Speak."

He responded with Hu Wen’s voice.

"Lord Hu Wen,"

The voice on the other end trembled; it was none other than Noding, He Ao’s current ’assistant’ in Daybreak.

After the ’Boss’ died, ’Hu Wen’ took over the power left by the Boss, becoming the third in command of Daybreak. He Ao had no time to deal with these matters, so he set up some rules and left it all to Noding to handle.

Hearing Noding’s voice, He Ao did not speak but waited for him to continue.

"The deputy leader sent someone to say that he needs some manpower support for a task and hopes we can assign some over."

Noding continued with a quivering voice.

"Deputy leader?"

He Ao raised an eyebrow.

He remembered that Daybreak had a total of two B-level individuals on the surface, a Leader and a deputy leader.

Then, he naturally asked in a cold voice, "Why didn’t he come to find me directly?"

"Lord, the deputy leader has never shown his face; he always assigns his subordinates to do the work."

Noding replied with a tremor, cautiously explaining.

"What does he want those people for? Where are they to be sent?"

He Ao continued to inquire.

"He didn’t say, just mentioned he needed people," Noding answered softly, "They’re to be sent to Weilun City in the Tia Empire."

"Weilun?"

He Ao was taken aback; he always felt that name sounded somewhat familiar.

He opened the map software on his computer and searched for Weilun City.

"Yes, that is at the edge of our influence."

Noding replied softly.

At that moment, He Ao also saw the map location of Weilun City and he looked upward.

Weilun City was situated next to the Newland City-State and was a must-pass city for those traveling from the Tia Empire to Newland City-State.

Coincidentally, in the internal division of Daybreak, although this Newland City-State was close to the Tia Empire, it was not under the control of He Ao, who led the Daybreak faction responsible for the areas near the Tia Empire.

He Ao narrowed his eyes slightly and said calmly, "Tell him to come and find me."

"Lord Hu Wen!"

Noding on the other end of the line hurriedly spoke up, seemingly thinking that his new boss was somewhat green; after all, the person on the other side was B-level.

But he had just started speaking when he stopped, while He Ao did not say anything, apparently just listening quietly to what he was about to say.

On the other end of the line came the faint sound of someone swallowing their saliva.

The person on the other side was B-level, but the one here was also not one to blink at murder.

In the end, Noding said in a low, trembling voice, "I will do it immediately."

He Ao reached out and hung up the phone. He turned his head and looked at the morning sun outside the window.

This peaceful world was like a person walking on a tightrope in the fog, one misstep and it would be an irreversible disaster.

Daybreak, B-level.

The matter with Newland City-State may not be so simple.

But for now, neither ’Hao Yi’ nor ’Hu Wen’ is particularly suited to appear there; the targets would be too large.

He Ao raised his hand, and a cloak fell from the sky into his grasp.

’Cloak of Replacement’

This Transcendent item left by the ’Boss’ had two abilities.

First, it could change one’s physique.

Second, it could acquire another person’s identity and appearance.