Chapter 97: Prophecy Book Event

Chapter 97: Book of Prophecy Incident

Shen Ji opened his eyes.

The white in his eyes faded instantly. He took a soft breath, his gaze showing little emotion, as if he were simply staring blankly at a point in the air.

Li Zhiyan noticed his movement and turned to look at him.

"Shen Ji?" Li Zhiyan said. "Not sleeping anymore? You've only slept for less than half an hour."

Shen Ji turned to look at Li Zhiyan. The moment their eyes met, Li Zhiyan felt a sense of dissonance.

Just as he was about to sit up, Shen Ji flipped over and pinned him down, sitting directly on Li Zhiyan's hips.

Seemingly uncomfortable, Shen Ji unbuttoned his outer coat with one hand, then slowly undid the buttons of his white shirt. The area there was severely bitten; even after a night, it was still swollen and red. Shen Ji glanced down at them, then looked at Li Zhiyan beneath him.

Li Zhiyan sensed trouble and tried to get up, but Shen Ji’s teeth were already on him, so Li Zhiyan raised his hand to block.

Shen Ji bit down hard on his wrist, without holding back—blood immediately welled up.

"Ouch." Li Zhiyan sucked in a sharp breath. "Are you so hungry you want to eat me?"

"Filth?"

Shen Ji released his bite, then spoke word by word: "Don’t call me Filth!"

That tone—Shen Ji?

Li Zhiyan felt like he had adopted a strange black cat—one that clung to him and loved him but occasionally acted out, biting him hard enough to draw blood.

But what could he do? He loved the cat too.

Li Zhiyan reached out and pulled Shen Ji into his arms. "What’s wrong?"

"Did you have a nightmare?"

Shen Ji thought: If only it were a nightmare.

So he opened his mouth and bit Li Zhiyan’s shoulder. Li Zhiyan hissed in pain, his muscles tensing instantly, but he soon relaxed and let Shen Ji bite.

"Shen Ji?"

Shen Ji closed his eyes, slowly released his bite, and finally buried himself in Li Zhiyan’s embrace.

His head was pounding with intense pain.

It wasn’t an illness or the influence of pollution—he was regaining his memories.

As the small mushrooms continuously devoured the surrounding Moth Flowers, pollution built up inside him. The memories that had been forcibly suppressed began to loosen, and thirty years' worth of recollections flooded into his mind, relentlessly overwhelming his beliefs and perceptions.

It wasn’t easy to get used to.

He saw himself hunting Pollutants in the wild, hiding in the shadows observing human exploration teams, and conversing with Wrath in the Zero Abyss.

Wrath was the only S-class Pollutant without much territorial awareness. Instead of being angered by another S-class entering his domain, he asked curiously what the outside world was like.

Filth told Wrath he didn’t know either, because he had never been to the human world.

"But aren’t you human?" Wrath asked strangely. "Little mushroom, you smell strongly human."

"I’m human?"

"Maybe you were human once." Wrath propped his chin on his hand and looked at him. "I can see the truth of Pollutants. I can see the essence of many things. Through your body, I see your soul is human."

Filth thought for a moment. "But I’ve forgotten my experiences as a human."

"So you’ve lost your memory? Both human and Pollutant but with amnesia? I’ve never seen an S-class Pollutant with amnesia before!"

Wrath grew even more curious. "What does it feel like to be human and amnesiac? Can I try it out?"

Filth: …

He sternly refused and tried to beat Wrath up, but Wrath ran away insanely fast, cursing him for being mean as he fled.

"Shen Ji?" Li Zhiyan’s voice interrupted his thoughts. "Do we need to leave here first?"

Shen Ji looked into Li Zhiyan’s eyes, then followed his gaze to their surroundings. The hyphae had already begun expanding wildly, almost out of control, taking over the entire Moth Valley. They were devouring the Moth Flowers there, leaving only the roots behind.

Pollution was rising continuously. The pollution level emanating from Shen Ji had reached its limit. Any further diffusion would be detected by the Pollution Prevention Center.

Watching this scene, Shen Ji’s head throbbed with pain, and he was instantly transported back to that hospital.

Devouring wasn’t the small mushroom’s pollution talent—it was Shen Ji’s innate pollution talent. He could consume all pollution around him. After turning into a Pollutant, his ability was magnified to the extreme, especially after devouring the mushrooms, granting him the ability to conceal pollution.

The blood flowing from his body turned into white hyphae, which then grew into small mushrooms. Shen Ji watched them expand once more.

But this time, it was to provide pollution for Shen Ji.

At this moment, Shen Ji was still Shen Ji.

He supported himself against the wall and stood up. His blue-and-white hospital gown was stained red and white. His long black hair dragged on the floor, transforming into black hyphae at the ends, shedding a pile of small black mushrooms.

Shen Ji walked out, leaning against the doorframe, leaving his phone behind.

He thought: This place isn’t right. I need to call the police and get help.

The corridor was even worse than the ward. The windows were shattered messily, glass fragments everywhere. IV bottles and medicines were scattered on the floor. The nurse’s station was a mess of scattered papers, white papers covered in footprints, some stained with blood.

At the nurse’s station, Shen Ji encountered his first Pollutant.

A monster with barely a human shape was digging through a pile of corpses. Shen Ji watched as it dug something out and attached it to itself.

"Class C Pollutant, formerly known as Jin Tian, ophthalmology inpatient. Diabetic complications led to blindness. Turned into a Pollutant due to obsession during the Red Mist Event."

"Who’s talking?"

"Ding! System awakened. Host bound: Shen Ji."

The monster heard Shen Ji’s voice and whirled around. Shen Ji saw countless eyes covering its head, crooked and misaligned—clearly forcibly dug out from others and attached to itself. Even as a journalist, Shen Ji had never seen such a scene.

But despite the utterly disgusting sight, Shen Ji felt ravenously hungry.

He wanted to eat this monster.

This discovery made Shen Ji extremely uncomfortable.

Small black mushrooms spread from under his feet. The monster tried to attack Shen Ji but was pierced by countless hyphae. The hyphae greedily devoured the pollution within the monster until it collapsed, unmoving.

Shen Ji felt his hunger easing. He knelt on the ground, clutching his temples as rationality battled instinct.

Instinct told Shen Ji: he's starving, he wanted to eat more monsters; reason told Shen Ji: he was human, he couldn't eat monsters.

He looked up and saw the corpses of the humans the monster had killed, then he realized he was starting to get fascinated by the mutilated human remains.

No, absolutely not!

"A Class C Pollutant was taken down that easily?" The system's voice was filled with surprise.

"But your psyche is about to shatter."

"You have the potential to become an S-Class Mutant, but you were also exposed to two S-class pollutants, so you could only mutate into a pollutant. Pollutants are creatures of pure obsession, and as someone just contaminated, you have no way to resist the erosion of pollution. Soon, you'll be just like that monster, left with only obsession and instinct."

Shen Ji looked up, keenly discerning the meaning behind the voice.

This unfamiliar thing had a way to stop him from turning into a monster.

"What should I do?"

"Temporarily lock away your memories and pollution level, only let your subconscious keep a grip on basic rationality. Rebuild your thought patterns from lower-level pollutants, and get your memories back after fully adapting to high-level pollution."

"How long will it take?"

"Thirty years."

A hazy thirty years, to preserve a human soul and become yourself again.

Shen Ji dazedly shifted his gaze, and the scenery before him returned to Moth Valley.

His headache began to ease, and the small mushrooms stopped their wanton devouring of the surrounding Moth Flowers. They twisted oddly and finally let out a tiny burp.

Hm?

The small mushrooms swayed happily.

Master! The small mushrooms are full!

They cheered.

The system's voice then rang out.

"Three decades flew by. Congratulations, host, for maintaining your consciousness in the most complete form. You are the S-class pollutant, 'Filth,' and also the human reporter Shen Ji from back then."

"I finally get to say congratulations!"

"This system is about to cry from how moving this is!"

/

Shen Ji did up the buttons he'd undone one by one. Li Zhiyan sat beside him, still looking worried.

"Shen Ji?"

"I'm okay," Shen Ji said with a smile. "Really."

At the same time, Shen Ji was still talking with the system, its voice sounding calm and methodical in his ears.

"The Time Forest itself is a huge pollutant, but it's not a conscious S-class pollutant with a physical form. Instead, it upholds the rules governing a region. There are also countless pollutants within the Time Forest."

"Two S-class pollutants were born in the Time Forest: one named 'Prophecy Book,' and the other named 'Illusion Mushroom'—yes, that's the small mushrooms around you."

"So, the Time Forest is in the city I worked in?"

Shen Ji encountered the pollution of the "Prophecy Book" at his home, got stabbed and was taken to the hospital, and then bumped into a bunch of small mushrooms.

Aren't main characters supposed to be lucky?

Why is Li Zhiyan unlucky, and why am I even more unlucky than him?

Li Zhiyan paused, stunned. "Time Forest?"

Shen Ji looked at Li Zhiyan. "Li Zhiyan, do you know where Donglin City is?"

Donglin City was where Shen Ji had worked. The hospital that had treated him back then was called "Donglin City First People's Hospital."

Li Zhiyan didn't answer right away; he seemed to be thinking about something.

After a long time, he said, "In a way, Donglin City doesn't exist."

"After the Red Mist Incident, the cities were rezoned for better administration. Many cities no longer use their original names; some directly merged multiple cities into one. As for Donglin City..."

Li Zhiyan thought for a moment. "It seems like Donglin City never existed."

Shen Ji found it strange. "But you still remember Donglin City?"

"Of course I know, because my home is in Donglin City. I grew up there, but I haven't been back in a long time."

Li Zhiyan sighed softly. "So after I woke up, I wanted to find my family and investigated, but it seems like there's no place called Donglin City anywhere in the world. It disappeared along with the people inside, wiped completely from human history and memory."

After saying this, Li Zhiyan asked cautiously, "Shen Ji, are you also from Donglin City?"

"I worked there."

"Ah, how much did I miss out on!"

Li Zhiyan groaned. "If I had stayed in Donglin City after graduating from university, would I have read your articles? Maybe I would have even bumped into you on the street!"

"If only I hadn't run so far away!"

Shen Ji: ...

"..."

"The Time Forest is a really unique form of pollution. It doesn't allow itself to exist in the real world. Its influence is immense, it's normal for it to make humans forget Donglin City exists. You and the protagonist can remember only because you're both S-class and weren't affected."

"I haven't asked you yet, what's the 'Prophecy Book'?"

Li Zhiyan looked at Shen Ji, slightly raising an eyebrow.

Actually, he had found it a bit strange before; he had seen Shen Ji talking to himself many times.

It wasn't exactly talking to himself; Shen Ji seemed to be talking and chatting to someone who wasn't there.

If it were a normal person, Li Zhiyan would think they were contaminated, but since it was Shen Ji, Li Zhiyan wondered if there really was someone he couldn't see.

Now Li Zhiyan was even more convinced.

There must be something he couldn't see, talking to Shen Ji.

"The Prophecy Book is an S-class pollutant born from the Time Forest. It represents the future defined by time: prophecy, but it's actually just a moronic AI, only running on its programmed instincts."

"Its process is: prophecy, spread it, cause panic, obtain more pollution from that, and continue prophesying."

"And what about you?"

"You can think of this system as a suppressor for the Prophecy Book. When the Prophecy Book loses control and disrupts time, this system awakens, and then you swallowed me right off the Prophecy Book."

Shen Ji: …?!

"Back then, not only did you swallow this system, but you also took a bite out of the Prophecy Book and crippled it. As a result, all the Contaminated Patients of the Prophecy Book were unable to spread panic, and the Prophecy Book Event came to an abrupt end. You then sealed your own memories and forgot the prophecy. The Prophecy Book was left severely weakened and could only create panic through another method—the Pollution Forum."

"...So that’s why you said I’ve transmigrated into a book? You’re doing your best to make me not believe the original work is reality?"

"Yes."

"Originally, you shouldn’t have regained your memories at this time, but I noticed your actions are aligning with your final prophecy."

"While sealing human memories, you became an S-Class pollutant, and you’re also searching for Li Zhiyan. What’s more, a pollution leak incident occurred at the Q City Containment Facility. I was worried that if no changes were made, you would truly follow the prophecy and walk toward a dead end."

"So I awakened you and told you the truth in another form."

But the system never expected—

Although the worst outcome was avoided, the protagonist and the antagonist actually ended up together.

And Li Zhiyan was fucking not even purely human.

Just perfect.

Shen Ji let out a heavy sigh.

Li Zhiyan looked at him. He didn’t ask why Shen Ji was sighing, nor did he ask why Shen Ji was talking to himself.

He had always known that Shen Ji had many secrets and was hiding certain things.

But it’s perfectly normal for humans to have secrets. People are inherently private creatures; everyone has things they don’t want to voice aloud. Li Zhiyan didn’t expect Shen Ji to tell him everything either. An independent, free Shen Ji with his own little secrets was exactly the version he liked the most.

Yet Li Zhiyan wondered: Is Shen Ji waiting for me to ask him?

His talking to himself wasn’t avoiding Li Zhiyan; he was speaking normally right beside him.

He didn’t seem to mind if Li Zhiyan heard these words.

Li Zhiyan felt conflicted, unsure whether he should ask or not.

But Shen Ji turned to him. "The current Pollution Forum is the pollutant that once contaminated me—the Prophecy Book."

"Did you want to ask me: Who am I talking to?"

Those black eyes reflected Li Zhiyan’s figure. Shen Ji reached out and touched his eyes. Li Zhiyan didn’t dodge, only closing his eyes as Shen Ji’s hand approached. He gently nuzzled against Shen Ji’s palm.

Like a jealous little dog, soothed by its owner after a fit of frenzied jealousy.

Li Zhiyan realized: he was actually jealous.

Jealous of something he couldn’t even detect felt utterly absurd, yet it was the truth. Shen Ji was chatting with something that didn’t exist, without telling him. That thing might have consciousness, or even a physical form.

Shen Ji might trust that thing more than he trusted Li Zhiyan.

Love is about wanting the best for someone, but love is also about possessiveness.

He wanted to monopolize Shen Ji, didn’t want Shen Ji talking to something he couldn’t see.

No wonder Shen Ji is a journalist—with just one glance at Li Zhiyan, he could see the helpless, suppressed jealousy disguised as indifference in his eyes.

And who made it so that Shen Ji liked Li Zhiyan so much?

So, he transformed that jealousy back into love, deep and vast as the ocean.

Love is mutual care, and mutual fulfillment.

/

Shen Ji and Li Zhiyan left Moth Valley. Li Zhiyan reached out and pulled him out of the valley depths. They decided to return to human cities.

"Is there any danger in letting the Prophecy Book continue making prophecies?" Li Zhiyan asked.

"The Prophecy Book Event during the Red Mist Incident didn’t cause much damage. Only a few people died because of it back then, and the danger level was at most E-Class."

"That’s only because Shen Ji devoured the Prophecy Book, which ended the event prematurely."

"This thing has an inseparable connection with you two. I still suggest you help me deal with it."

"Because the Prophecy Book has the ability to alter time. It’s highly likely that after recovering, to ensure its prophecies are accurate, it will revert time to before you knew each other to guarantee the 'original story' unfolds perfectly. In the 'original story,' you both nearly ended up dead."

"It’s not like it hasn’t done this kind of thing before."

Shen Ji was stunned. "What do you mean?"

"This system records awakening times. Last time I awoke, the Red Mist Incident broke out a week later than it did this time. So the Prophecy Book has already altered the future once—it pushed the Red Mist Incident’s outbreak forward by a full week."

"In the previous timeline, Li Zhiyan was one of the early-awakened S-Class Mutants, not in this half-human, half-polluted state."

"Why would it do that?"

"Judging by the Prophecy Book’s portrayal of Li Zhiyan as the protagonist, perhaps in the original timeline, the Prophecy Book was killed by Li Zhiyan before it could spread pollution on a large scale. Its survival instinct as a pollutant made it alter the timeline, trying to turn Li Zhiyan into something that wouldn’t hinder it. And then an accident happened."

Here, the system even sounded a bit gleeful.

It managed to avoid Li Zhiyan, but it never expected that the early outbreak of the Red Mist Incident would save someone who was supposed to die.

Shen Ji—if the Red Mist Incident hadn’t occurred early, he would most likely have died in the operating room of Donglin City First People’s Hospital.

But because the Red Mist Incident broke out early, he survived due to pollution mutation. Awakened with the Prophecy Book’s pollution and the Devouring Talent, he not only devoured the small mushroom but also took a bite out of the Prophecy Book, leaving it mangled and incomplete.

"Gambling and losing everything" perfectly described the Prophecy Book’s situation.

Now, not only did the Prophecy Book lose its ability to restart time, but it also had to cling to life and recover its power through another method.

The Pollution Forum is that other form of pollution.

Shen Ji and Li Zhiyan walked out of Moth Valley’s range and finally reached an area with signal. Before they could even open the Pollution Forum, Li Zhiyan’s phone started ringing—it was a call from Jiang Ying.

Li Zhiyan answered the phone.

"Hello?"

"Boss!" Jiang Ying’s voice carried a hint of panic. "That Pollution Forum is updating. Your location and No. 2 pollutant’s location are changing."

Their current location simultaneously changed to Moth Valley.

Many people knew Li Zhiyan had gone to Moth Valley. Zhou Ye was the one who sent him there; he knew better than anyone that the people who entered Moth Valley were Li Zhiyan and Shen Ji. Zhou Ye realized something and called Jiang Ying.

After receiving Zhou Ye's call, Jiang Ying immediately prepared emergency measures and tried to contact Li Zhiyan.

But there was no signal in the Moth Valley; she couldn't reach Li Zhiyan at all.

Meanwhile, Shen Ji had already opened the Pollution Forum, where a new post had been updated on the homepage.

"The S-class pollutant Really Exists" by Forum Owner

"The S-class pollutant has been hiding among humans. It is the most terrifying pollutant, disguising itself as a human and lying in wait, seeking opportunities to strike at the Pollution Prevention Center. It is the most cunning and sinister pollutant with intelligence, willing to go to any lengths to plunge humanity into eternal damnation.

Please be aware—it is among us."

"Do not believe any information posted on this forum," Li Zhiyan said while reading the post's content. "The more you believe it, the more easily you can be polluted."

Jiang Ying frowned. "So, it's framing Mr. Shen, right?"

"Exactly," Li Zhiyan replied. "Shen Ji previously asked the Pollution Prevention Center to organize a list of forum users. Has it been completed?"

"Pay attention to their status."

"Understood," Jiang Ying nodded. "I'll follow up on it now."

Jiang Ying hung up the phone and began contacting the senior staff at the Pollution Prevention Center. After two rings, the other end picked up.

"This is Jiang Ying, deputy captain of the Special Operations Team," she said, snapping into professional mode.

She thought to herself: How could Shen Ji possibly be the S-class pollutant?

The powerful pollutant ranked NO.2, and Mr. Shen—a pollution doctor with no aggressive traits but who had saved innumerable people.

She had only heard of pollutants killing and eating people, but never of pollutants saving anyone, let alone polluted patients.

Trying to frame Mr. Shen, yet this is the best they could come up with? Such a full of holes approach?

What a dumb AI.