Chapter 47 Extra 1 His Name

Chapter 47 Extra 1 His Name

"Didn’t you get the message? Staff are prohibited from entering now."

The scorching sun beat down, and the ground gave off a steaming, earthy stench that made people feel dizzy.

The speaker was crouched on the ground.

The phone announced, "An employee is within 0 meters of you."

After getting no response for a while, he looked up at the figure looming behind him.

The other person stood under the blazing sun, wearing sunglasses.

Perhaps because the distance was close, from his vantage point below, he could see the eyes behind the lenses staring straight ahead.

It seemed his words had no impact on the man.

The guy stayed still, casually reaching for his coat. Was he about to light up a cigarette?

What’s going on here?

Didn’t you hear me? This area’s been locked down.

"You’re not a special-grade, right?" he squinted and said, "Headquarters just sent out an alert that specialists are on their way to handle this—if you’re not one of them, get out of here fast. The infection here is spreading, and I’m almost out of saliva just explaining to the random folks trying to get in."

The situation here—it’s complicated, but I’ll keep it short.

To summarize briefly, there is an infection source labeled 2811 that suddenly acted out. The original entity is already dead, so the existing form is enough to open a domain, and the timing couldn’t be worse—it happened during an open-air concert.

Because the distance was too close, hundreds of people got infected all at once.

Plus, the effect of the infection is to make people lose their minds, so the scene inside is straight out of a zombie movie.

People biting each other’s faces—something he’d only seen in nightmares.

A few first-grade staff members have already gone in, but there’s been no word from them. Even when actively calling, all you hear is a harsh, static buzz—no sign of being connected, meaning their fate is unknown.

He’s already reported the situation to HQ.

HQ gave a vague reply—"Wait."

What are we even waiting for...

But even if more first-grade staff are sent from nearby districts, it would be of no use in this situation.

However, special-grade employees are rare.

The nearest employee will take five hours to arrive.

Five hours...

It’s only been one hour since the incident, and the infection has already spread to five times the original area.

If we wait for five hours, the situation will spiral out of control.

"What on earth is going on recently?? Those sources of infection have gone crazy, what are they doing!"

He let out a heavy sigh and looked at the indifferent man in sunglasses. "You, I said, if you're not top-level, leave immediately."

The first-level employees were no longer sufficient.

Even if it was an order or out of a sense of duty, it was better not to go in and add to the trouble.

Yet, under his gaze, the other man finally retrieved what he had been searching for from his jacket.

It was—

A phone.

"...What are you doing?"

As the words fell,

The other man just glanced at him and quickly looked away.

"...What?"

He saw the man’s fingers scrolling through the screen, as if searching for someone in his contact list. Then, under his bewildered gaze, the man tapped the screen and placed the phone to his ear—clearly calling someone.

"Do you have time now? Yeah, about a ten-minute drive."

Who is he contacting? He involuntarily sat up straight.

He vaguely remembered that the headquarters had mentioned something about a special contact... or something like that.

Could the contact be this man in sunglasses? Who is he trying to reach? he wondered. But if he’s not top-level, what’s the point of a special contact? Or does the headquarters have some weapon specifically for extreme situations? Only to be activated in cases like this.

But I’ve never heard of such a thing...

Countless thoughts raced through his mind, too jumbled to distinguish which one was the normal thought at this moment.

"What class? Hmm... I see, come over after the attendance is taken, right."

Wait, wait—

Hearing the key words, he stood frozen. He couldn’t believe his ears.

Class? Attendance?

What does this mean, he thought. Is it what I think it means? Or have I forgotten how to understand Chinese?

What is the identity of the person on the other end of the phone? Could it really be a student? Or is it just some kind of code? After all, it’s a special contact, and it’s not unreasonable to use some special words to cover their tracks...

His mind grew even more confused.

Sweat seemed to drip down his back.

Because he couldn’t understand, when the man in sunglasses hung up the phone and knelt down in front of him, he was still in a confused daze.

Until—

The man’s voice sounded in front of him.

Although they were at eye level, the man wasn’t looking at him but wore a troubled look.

"Ah, well," he muttered. "Sighed—I didn’t want to call upon that person either. After all, it’s not yet his official introduction. But because he’s the closest and others can’t get here in time, for the sake of everyone’s safety, this is necessary."

"What is he talking about?"

His face clearly showed that thought.

Wei Yangze ignored the chaotic emotions of his colleague, since he too felt overwhelmed.

Since "that incident" was revealed, he had become the contact person for "that person."

Because Lin Lin was a second-level employee on rotation, he was quickly transferred to another district, but since Wei Yangze was first-level, he couldn’t be easily moved from his district. Additionally, having already become an insider, he naturally became the "guardian."

...Although he felt that he didn’t really qualify to be called a "guardian." The real guardian, or rather protector, was another person.

Let’s just call him the contact person.

He only dialed the number in his phone in special cases.

Now was one of those times.

This was an order from headquarters. Plus, the other party had already agreed to the Bureau’s request, so the contact was justified and reasonable... He hoped "He" would get it.

While he was unconsciously lost in thought, he heard a heavy, burdened breath.

Wei Yangze snapped back to reality.

His colleague, pale-faced, seemed to have realized something.

"Are we finished? Or am I imagining things... Maybe no one’s coming..."

"The mind is already infected."

Wei Yangze: "Relax. It’s a small problem. It’ll be fixed soon."

"..."

A small problem? Fixed soon? He must be losing it!

Seeing the person in front of him barely snapped back to reality after the interruption, yet still wearing an incredulous expression, Wei Yangze thought, 'Just as I expected.'

It was no surprise.

No one would believe him if he told them.

They’d need to see it themselves. Only then would they feel the shock he felt when he first found out about the other person.

The wait felt endless.

Especially at this moment, with the summer heat still blazing, even the shade was stifling.

The cicadas’ buzzing only made it worse.

But when he checked the time on his phone, less than ten minutes had passed.

"What on earth—"

"Mm. Not mistaken."

The next moment, a calm voice sounded from behind.

Hearing this, Wei Yangze spun around, and the other person’s face appeared instantly.

The summer heat suddenly subsided.

The surrounding noise faded away, only the refreshing figure remained in view.

"No matter how many times I see them, they always seem... so calm."

This is not a derogatory term.

It's just that I can't find the right word.

It's as if just being by their side can soothe a restless and chaotic mind, making you feel like you've been cleansed.

Wei Yangze could sense that his colleague beside him had also frozen, the constant murmurs of despair stopped, replaced by a dazed look at the other person.

I wonder if they felt this strange pull too.

Normally, the other person keeps a low profile, but once exposed to such a high-concentration infection zone, a strong urge to get closer arises.

Soon, the person being intensely watched approached Wei Yangze.

"What happened."

"..." Wei Yangze, "There's a music festival here."

"Oh. Hmm... I understand."

In Wei Yangze's gaze, the other person had already looked down and started searching for the music festival venue.

It's easy talking to smart people.

Just by naming the event, they knew what to do.

"I'm going over," they said.

Wei Yangze: "...Okay."

There was no small talk, barely any conversation, just their usual no-nonsense style.

In a way, it's pretty handy.

He watched as the other person headed directly towards the area that was already sealed off, foreseeing that the matter would soon be resolved. However, his colleague, finally coming out of their shock, grabbed the wrist of the person passing by: "Wait, no, you can't go in!"

"Are you serious? Is this a high schooler?! Why involve an innocent person??"

Wei Yangze: "They're not a high school student."

"Ah—!? But even if they're not a high school student, this still isn't right!"

He had seen it.

The other person didn't have any Bureau of Infection Management and Control identification.

In other words, this outsider called in by phone wasn't part of the Bureau. If they weren't from the inside, sending them in would be a death sentence. What kind of person would do such a thing? They probably don't even have the right clearance...

However, the person he questioned simply withdrew their wrist from his grip, expressionless, but their eyes said 'what a hassle.'

"I'll make it clear," Wei Yangze said.

The other person just hummed in acknowledgment and walked into the high-concentration infection zone.

...!!!

Unable to stop him in time, he could only watch helplessly as the other person walked towards the building complex.

The level of infection here was extremely high. Even the buildings were warped, with originally normal skyscrapers now showing a curved appearance, and the reflections in the glass were entirely of eyeballs. Walking on the road, there was a sensation like rubbing against rough skin.

When new humans appeared, the buildings would twist and cackle. Witnessing such a bizarre and insane scene, people would be mentally broken before even reaching the center of the music festival—he had seen many people like that.

Therefore, a barrier that did not allow passage was set up in the outskirts.

—If they couldn't stop him, he should at least know to retreat in that place!

However, before he could even lower his outstretched hand, he watched in disbelief as the person, who showed no signs of being a Bureau employee, passed through the tightly sealed barrier.

"...!!"

Impossible—it couldn't be!

That was a valuable innovation specifically designed to slow the spread of infection. Ordinary people couldn't possibly pass through; instead, they would bounce off as if hitting a glass wall. That's why personnel were stationed in these areas to prevent anyone from accidentally entering and discovering this situation that defied common sense.

But this seemingly young person floated through it effortlessly.

"Did I just see that?"

He couldn't help but utter such words.

At the same time, his eyes were fixed on the incredible sight before him.

He thought he would see some reality.

However, something even more unexpected happened—

The already warped buildings suddenly returned to normal, with no eyeballs or skin appearing.

It was like a perfectly normal stretch of road.

Even after the other person left that path, the abnormalities behind did not reappear.

That was—a place where numerous high-level infections had occurred!! But that outsider did nothing.

The only thing he did was walk through it normally.

Witnessing this scene that defied all logic, his mind reeled, and his heart was greatly shaken. He could no longer comprehend what he had seen.

"I must be hallucinating."

Could there really be someone that strong? Wasn't that a complete counter to the source of infection? ...This is just too absurd. If that's the case, why had he never heard of this person before? Was he carefully cultivated and protected?

Overcome with exhaustion, he slumped to the ground again.

"You're not dreaming."

As if knowing what he was thinking, a familiar voice sounded from above.

Like grabbing a lifeline, he quickly turned towards the source of the sound and saw a person wearing sunglasses lighting a cigarette with a lighter.

"This is indeed the Bureau's 'secret weapon.'"

He stared unblinkingly at the figure disappearing from view, muttering to himself.

"..."

"What you saw today, I suggest you keep it to yourself," Wei Yangze said, glancing at him sideways until he was out of sight. "However, besides me, the Bureau of Infection Management and Control will send someone to warn you later. I won't go into the details because it's a long story. It's complicated."

"..."

He didn’t know what to say.

Then, he saw Wei Yangze turn around and walk towards his car.

"What are you planning to do?"

"Just give it a few more minutes, and it’ll be taken care of," Wei Yangze said. "I’ll drive him back to school. I don’t want Him to show up after class looking for someone and find that the person He cares about isn’t in the classroom... It’s not life-threatening, but it’s best to avoid that if we can."

"..."

How could a disaster of that scale and intensity be resolved in just a few minutes?

Actually, it took longer than a few minutes.

Since the other guy walked to the venue, and even though he grabbed a shared bike along the way, it still took longer than planned.

Even as the guy settled into the passenger seat, he was still in a daze, trying to process what had just happened.

It was unbelievable.

A crisis had been averted just like that.

The guy noticed him staring and looked confused and hesitantly said, "Goodbye."

"...Goodbye."

His mind went blank, and the words just slipped out.

The car sped off.

He stood there, stunned, before suddenly clutching his head.

What the hell just happened?

But what really made his heart race was this.

After all this, he didn’t even know the other person's name...

But he wouldn’t get any answers.

Because it wasn’t until much later.

That he found out the other person's name was—"Ye Jishu."