The situation in Country B was somewhat similar to that of Fairy Tale City. Xu Huo had previously speculated that the monster surge in Fairy Tale City wasn’t caused by locals mutating but rather, like Country B, those monsters had entered from an external area.
The initial screening train was met with a large number of Train-Assaulting Mutants every night as it passed through various regions, indicating that many areas in the game world were occupied by these creatures. Whether the game was meant to avoid these monsters or deliberately sent the train through their territories to select players, the mutated Evolvers and players were not completely killed. Instead, they were kept in certain areas.
So, the sudden monster surge in Fairy Tale City and Country B—was it man-made, or an intrinsic selection mechanism of the game?
Granny Bai had alluded vaguely that if Zone 014 saw a surge of players in a short time, it wouldn’t become the next Fairy Tale City. Determining whether a game zone had a large number of players was seemingly impossible for those in other zones.
Thus, the most likely possibility was that the game introduced monsters into a new zone that lacked potential, turning the entire area into a Different Kind Zone.
"One third lies in the light," Xu Huo now didn’t doubt Granny Bai’s words one bit.
"Who goes there," a sudden beam of light fell upon him; he had been spotted by a patrol vehicle.
The patrol vehicles currently were equipped with heavy weaponry, and when the armed personnel spoke, all their gun barrels were aimed at him.
"I’m a player returning from a mission." Xu Huo stepped forward proactively, "My identity should be registered; you can check it."
"Do not come closer!" the armed personnel shouted then instructed someone inside the vehicle to verify his identity.
As the only player who had deciphered the Black-White Roulette game, his identity information was kept confidential in the system, with only a photo and minimal details proving his citizenship.
"Come aboard, where do you need to go? We will give you a ride," the armed personnel called him into the vehicle, then asked him about matters related to the mission.
"I was near Sea City at the time, but as the mission time was almost up, I was forcibly teleported into the game. I don’t know what happened after that," Xu Huo said.
The armed personnel then briefed him on the events that took place after the out-of-zone players had stolen the Super Prop.
The Girl in the painting had been sacrificed, and an unknown Super Player had snatched the Super Prop from a group of high-level players, then the others who had come for the Super Prop left one after another. Some went to watch the battle of the Guile Sound Knights.
No one dared approach the Guile Sound Knights because they were only monitored by satellite. However, after they began fighting, half of Sea City was forcibly demolished, and a strange, murky substance permeated the air; the specifics of what occurred inside remained unclear. However, six hours later, that murky substance suddenly vanished, as did the people involved in the fight.
The man opposing the Guile Sound Knights was in a wheelchair. After the incident, it was unclear to the outside world who had won or lost, but from then on, the number of players from out of zone gradually decreased, and only a few wrongdoers who sought to cause trouble were forced to leave Zone 014 amidst the flames of battle.
"Did the Black-White Duel also vanish along with the Guile Sound Knights?" Xu Huo asked.
"No, the Black-White Duel disappeared three hours after the Guile Sound Knights and the wheelchair-bound player began their fight, probably because those people couldn’t attend to it anymore," the armed personnel replied.
"Then, do you know how some players managed to get in?" Xu Huo asked further.
The armed personnel shook their heads, stating they didn’t know, and added, "All information regarding this incident has been compiled on the Pioneer Player Forum, you can look it up there."
"Additionally, the nation has established a brand new player department. Since you are already a player, you can go directly to the local liaison office to register. This isn’t mandatory, but if you serve the country, you can enjoy national resources."
Xu Huo thanked him, and as the vehicle passed through a ruinated area, he looked out to see the once lofty skyscrapers now leveled to the ground, with the vast ocean visible from his position.
The people still in Sea City were being evacuated by the nation, so the armed personnel took him straight to the airport, giving him a ticket to Jing City as a bonus, and saluted him, "We are grateful for the sacrifice of the Pioneer Players!"
"Thank you," Xu Huo took the ticket and boarded the plane.
Two hours later, he stood in the deserted Jing City airport. Although Jing City hadn’t suffered much from the incident, citizens, having learned about domestic and international affairs through the news, were temporarily staying home and not venturing out.
There were hardly any cars on the road outside, but as he reached the entrance, four armed personnel approached him proactively, "Excuse me, are you Mr. Xu Huo?"
The armed personnel saluted him, "Our superiors have arranged for us to pick you up. Are you feeling unwell? Would you like to visit a hospital first?"
Xu Huo roughly knew that Jing City had been informed while he was verifying his identity in Sea City, and replied, "No need, I’ll go home first."
Xu Huo’s family was well-off; his father and stepmother lived in an upscale villa district. However, when he returned, the usual security staff had been replaced with armed personnel, and there were even guards stationed outside the Xu Family Villa.
When the car stopped in front, distant neighbors peeked out, and when Xu Huo glanced in that direction, they quickly ducked back inside.
His grandmother had passed away. His grandfather, father, stepmother, and the younger brother his stepmother had given birth to, along with relatives from his stepmother’s side, were all present.
They had received notice in advance of Xu Huo’s return. Apart from Xu Huo’s grandfather, the rest had gathered in the living room.
"Cousin, you’re back!" Yu Qingqing was the first to rush up, grabbing his arm and shaking it vigorously, "I heard they said you’ve become a player, is that true? You must be really good, otherwise the country wouldn’t send so many people to protect us!"
Xu Huo dismissed her and greeted his family, "Dad, Aunt Yu."
Father Xu hadn’t seen him for two or three years and just patted his shoulder saying, "You’ve lost weight and gotten tanned. Have you been in touch with your mom?"
"I haven’t had the chance," Xu Huo had just finished speaking when one of the armed personnel interjected, "We have already sent someone to fetch Mr. Xu’s mother, Lady Fang. She will arrive in Jing City by tomorrow evening at the latest."
"Oh my, we really have to thank Xu Huo this time; otherwise, we would’ve been scared at home," Yu Qingqing’s mother nudged her sister-in-law, "Tell Tongtong to greet his brother."
Xu Huo’s stepmother didn’t know much about him, as she married Father Xu after Xu Huo had already left home.
"Tongtong, go ahead," she pulled her son, who was hiding behind her.
The young child, shy around strangers, clung to his mother’s leg and wouldn’t let go.
Xu Huo spared him a glance and said, "I’ll go have a word with Grandpa."