Contact (End of Volume)

[Capital City - Earth City]

As dawn broke, before the morning sun could even shine on this unique capital city, it was already assimilated by the city's own lights.

The city seemed unable to recover from yesterday's hustle and bustle.

Various surveillance robots are working in conjunction with street cleaners to refresh the city.

Amidst the bustling streets.

A young man wrapped in a trench coat was noticeably slower than the other pedestrians on the street. He first found a Chinese restaurant and, despite being alone, ordered noodles for three people.

As a customer got up to get his noodles, he caught a glimpse of what appeared to be two women's heads in the young man's trench coat compartment, and they were eating together.

But when he turned his head to see clearly, he found nothing there.

After eating and drinking to their hearts' content,

The young man's gaze was fixed on the old newsstand across the street.

Like a stubborn, isolated island transported from a bygone era, it is pieced together from rusted metal and worn plexiglass panels. The pavilion's interior is cramped, almost entirely filled with mountains of old magazines, yellowed newspapers, and layers upon layers of physical books.

An old man, wearing a standard white vest, sat hunched over behind a pile of dilapidated old books and newspapers.

"Boss, how much is this book?"

"The regular version is 800 rubles, the one with the chip illustration is 1500 rubles, and the collector's edition, which is the one with the author's signature, is 18000 rubles. I happen to have one set here."

This book was one of the best-selling books a while ago, and the collector's edition has long been sold out.

A few days ago, someone came to return the item, and I happen to have an extra one. Do you need it?

"Let's get a collector's edition."

"Okay!"

Seeing that a big deal had come his way, the old man quickly pulled out the collector's edition Gift Box from under the pile of books. The book's name, "Hell Island," was printed on it in gilded gold.

Without any hesitation, the young man completed the payment with his wristband, then turned and left with the books.

Just as the old man was overjoyed at having made another fortune, suddenly, his somewhat aged mind seemed to recall something; the young man's face seemed somewhat familiar.

He quickly took out another illustrated copy of "Hell Island" and projected the corresponding characters from the book.

The young man depicted by the protagonist is exactly the same as the person from before.

By the time the owner rushed out of the newsstand to ask, the other person had already disappeared.

[EIA World Bureau - Containment Zone]

"Agent Luo Di, your visitation permission has been granted, and Mr. Kraft has also agreed to your visitation request."

However, due to the specific nature of the target of our visit, we still need to conduct a comprehensive examination on you.

"I came back directly from the Exploration Bureau to coordinate, do I still need to be checked?"

"Yes, that's the rule. Mr. Kraft is the most special containment agent, the highest-level collaborator. Even if the Director himself wanted to visit, he would still have to go through the same inspection process."

"Can I bring this with me?"

Luo Di took out the collector's edition book he had just bought, which was the novel that Mr. Kraft had written based on his experiences on the vacation island. He thought that this might help him get closer to the other party more quickly.

"As long as the standards for carry-on items are met, it's fine."

"OK."

The examination took a full two hours.

It even includes seemingly unrelated activities such as taking a bath and getting a massage.

finally,

After changing into a simple outfit provided by the World Bureau, Luo Di boarded a special elevator and headed to the Containment Zone deep within the organization.

The vast majority of those contained here are "monster incarnations".

They were isolated from the corner using special containers, and corresponding containment rooms were designed based on their abilities.

Of course, some monster avatars that are extremely unwilling to be contained will choose to commit suicide, which will cause the Monster Main Body in the corner to be severely damaged.

The Containment Zone is mainly used by humans to learn about the surrounding area and the monsters.

Once the monster avatars meet the cooperation requirements and the corresponding containment period is reached, containment will be lifted, and they can freely return to their corner.

However, if any violations are found in the monster avatar, it will be subject to Pituitary Gland Recovery.

Of course, these are just the rules; how exactly they will be implemented is unknown.

Mr. Mr. Kraft, on the other hand, is completely different.

His avatars can exist without limit and have not shown any transgressions while cooperating with humans.

Although he may have some minor misdeeds, such as the incident at the Saiwei Resort Island, he is essentially a "well-behaved" being, and his contributions to humanity far outweigh his harms.

He himself has expressed his willingness to leave this avatar permanently with humanity and to help humanity cultivate more talent that can be used to explore every corner of the world.

Of course, he also has corresponding needs.

"Creation"

Mr. Kraft loved literary creation, especially novels, a popular form of literature expressed through pure words.

If only he could do humanity one favor.

The World Bureau needs to distribute one of his works nationwide through a legitimate publisher*.

*The content of the book will be subject to review by the World Bureau.

Staff will send daily reviews of the released works, but interaction with readers in any form is prohibited.

Even so,

It's rumored that readers who deliberately give books bad reviews mysteriously disappear. However, this is a minority, and in countries where such influence is limited, no investigators seem to be paying attention to this issue.

The elevator goes directly to an unknown floor of the Containment Zone.

Unlike the other floors with multiple containment rooms, there is only one room here, with a heavy hydraulic door located at the deepest part.

"Generally speaking, a visit to Mr. Kraft requires the accompaniment of five senior staff members throughout the visit."

However, given Agent Luo Di's special circumstances and the A-level rating you received during the inspection, you are hereby granted special permission for a one-on-one meeting.

Of course, we will monitor your personal status at any time through sensors inside your clothing.

The visit is scheduled for 15 minutes. If everything goes smoothly, you may request an extension.

You should already be aware of the other precautions, so I won't repeat them. Good luck!

The staff member who accompanied him left in the elevator, leaving Luo Di alone at the end of the corridor.

After this lengthy review process, even Luo Di, an agent who had become somewhat familiar with the situation in the corner, was taken aback and became slightly nervous.

His bracelet was changing ten digits of password every 5 seconds.

Enter the password to open the hydraulic heavy door in front of you.

What lay behind was not a containment chamber, but another passageway, with a similar hydraulic door at the end.

This action of opening the door was repeated a full ten times.

The door at the end finally became normal, a solid wood door that every household could see.

As Luo Di pondered how to open the ordinary solid wood door without a password, click! The door lock clicked and opened automatically.

Inside, there is also a typical entrance hall.

A pair of black slippers matching Luo Di's shoe size were already placed on the ground.

The moment Luo Di stepped through the solid wood door

Buzz!

A tinnitus sound came in.

The gray area between its brain cells became unstable, and the tentacles that were active in the Moon Pituitary Gland all retracted and tightened, as if they were afraid of something.

It was clear that what they were about to meet was just an avatar, which, according to the setting, could not exceed the limits of the Human World and was even weaker than an ordinary monster.

But Luo Di was sweating profusely, and he couldn't activate any of his gray-related abilities.

"Excuse me!"

Quickly adjust your mindset and suppress your inner unease.

Luo Di called out politely, but the room was unusually quiet, with no response.

He could only walk slowly into the house in his slippers.

The interior is a duplex apartment structure, with an area of no more than 50 square meters. The first floor is a regular living area, including a kitchen and a living room.

The second floor should be the area for creating art and sleeping.

Just as Luo Di walked through the entrance hall and was about to look up at the second floor...

A pair of crow-themed slippers landed right between the stairs, with pink pajamas decorated with a cartoonish, swollen brain design.

This corresponds to a middle-aged man stretching, seemingly just waking up.

He had his hair parted to the side and was wearing Round Frame Glasses.

His brown hair has a wild, bird-nest-like style.

However, when Luo Di saw what the other person was holding, he was so shocked that his eyes widened and he almost triggered the sensors inside the clothing.

What the middle-aged man held in his hand was the Iron Maiden container that sealed his fingers.

Luo Di had no idea when it was taken away; the thing was hidden deep within his body, and even the World Bureau's sensing devices couldn't detect it.

After stretching,

The middle-aged man held the Iron Maiden up to his face and examined it closely, speaking fluent Mandarin:

"You actually managed to get something that touches the root so quickly, even if it's just a small one, it's still quite remarkable."

Tell me in detail how you obtained it, and I might be inspired to write a novel.

If the story is compelling enough, I'll naturally help you handle it.

"Let those two girls come out. As the prototypes for the characters in ' Hell Island,' you're very welcome here."

"Won't we be discovered?"

Don't worry.

Since that's the case,

Luo Di then slightly lifted his clothes,

Wu Wen and Hua Yuan separated from the body in different forms. When they saw Mr. Kraft's incarnation, they both broke out in a cold sweat and hid behind Luo Di.

The middle-aged man glanced at Hua Yuan, seemingly noticing an interesting structure within her body.

"You three must all be involved. Come on! Tell me about it quickly."

Luo Di, however, was more concerned about the finger problem and wanted to skip this step as quickly as possible. "Why don't you just read the memory, Mr. Kraft?"

"Don't do such low-class things~ What is a story? It must be something that is conveyed by humans themselves, that's what makes a story."

"Knew."

"Wait a moment, I'll go get a pen and notebook... Oh, by the way! What kind of coffee or drinks would you like? Go to the kitchen and make them yourself. If you haven't eaten, there are some pizzas in the fridge that you can heat up."

"We've already eaten!"

"Okay, then wait for me over there on the sofa for a bit~ I'll take a dump while I'm at it."

The three individuals gave a detailed account of the videotape incident.

Mr. Kraft took notes diligently throughout the entire presentation.

He was particularly excited when he heard about the strange events on campus, the showdown between Luo Di and Li Beite, and the final scene where the clown stole his chicken.

"Brilliant! The event itself has isolated your memories, which saves me the trouble of explaining the relationships between the characters beforehand. I can just write it according to their identities in the setting."

Once this novel is written, I guarantee it will be even more popular than Hell Island. You guys were absolutely fantastic!

"Okay... um... Mr. Kraft, about the finger?"

"Look, you're in such a hurry~ I won't embezzle it."

You're still in the "germination" stage, so it's too early for you to get involved with this. Once you're fully mature, you can use this to move on to the next stage and explore the deeper corners of the world.

And you yourself are unwilling to accept the "finger system".

Based on the style you displayed in the videotape incident, I will make this finger into a corresponding "Movie Prop".

You can use it as a piece of equipment until it's fully matured, and then use it to break through to the next stage.

"Huh? It's already processed?"

"Wait a moment, my friend is helping to handle it." Kraft pointed to his brain, as if that That Finger was mysteriously processing his brain.

Luo Di pressed further, "So, this finger is a kind of 'qualification,' a qualification to go to a higher position?"

"I guess so. It's proof that you've touched the Essence of the Corner. With this proof, you can reach the limits of the corner."

"Whose finger does this belong? What is its true nature?"

"Hmm..." Kraft poked his glasses and then put his hand on Luo Di's shoulder. "The reason you were able to tell such a good story about the videotape incident is because you didn't know anything about it; you were in a completely unknown blank slate."

If I tell you the answer in advance, it will not be conducive to you writing the story.

Your encounter with this finger is not accidental, or perhaps there is some kind of guidance in the dark, wanting you to use it to explore deeper corners and uncover the truth behind the finger.

Instead of asking me directly for the final answer.

"Knew."

"All done! Here you go. Your visit is almost over, and I'm bursting with inspiration. Time to get to today's writing!"

Mr. Kraft reached into his ear canal and faintly heard the rustling of tentacles.

The Iron Maiden is no more.

Only one ring was taken out, which was made from a finger and looked like a finger bent into a ring shape.

In reality, the radiation effect of the finger on the outside world has been completely suppressed, and the internal structure seems to have undergone subtle changes. Some kind of craftsmanship that Luo Di has never seen before has been incorporated into the ring.

"Movie Prop?"

"That's right. From your story, although the hellish style is suitable for real combat, the portrayal in the killer movie is more interesting and is also a concrete manifestation of Corner Ability."

This ring can help you shoot movies better and achieve the effects you want.

However, don't wear it here, or it will trigger all the alarms. Go back and study it at your leisure; I won't see you off.

The other two ladies must have gained something too. We look forward to seeing more great stories from you both!

Upon hearing Mr. Kraft's words, Luo Di noticed that Wu Wen and Hua Yuan seemed to have disappeared for a while, but had suddenly reappeared, each immersed in their own self-examination.

"Thank you, Mr. Kraft."

Luo Di put the "ring" away for the time being, and just as he was about to leave, he suddenly remembered something.

He was also holding the collector's edition of Hell Island that he had bought from a newsstand, which had Kraft's autograph on it.

"By the way, Mr. Kraft, do you have a Chinese name? Or rather, a pen name?"

"Yes, I am an overseas Chinese... that's also my name."

"So from now on, shall I call you Mr. Kraft or... Mr. Han?"

"Either is fine, but those people used to call me Boss Han. If you reach a higher level in the future, you're welcome to work for me."

Goodbye, Hell Boy!

Click!

Close the door and leave...

The final shot of the camera focuses on the collector's edition book in Luo Di's hand, with a gold signature on the lower right corner of the cover.

[WN Han Dong]