Hearing this, everyone present froze at the same time.
"An era out of sync, a sealed-off region, supplies appearing out of nowhere..." Cao Yuan muttered for a moment, as if something had occurred to him. "Doesn't that sound an awful lot like..."
"A Human Circle?!" Lin Qiye's pupils contracted slightly.
Lin Qiye had not realized it at all before, but once An Qingyu pointed it out, he immediately recalled what they had encountered in Japan.
Just as An Qingyu had said, every anomaly they had discovered so far closely resembled the characteristics of a Human Circle. The only difference was that the two existed on entirely different scales. Japan's Human Circle contained tens of millions of people and covered a terrifyingly vast area, while this little fishing village had fewer than a hundred residents at most and occupied no more than a palm-sized patch of land.
"But that still doesn't make sense." Lin Qiye pondered for a moment, then shook his head repeatedly. "Shouldn't a Human Circle be attached to some divine artifact? And where would the energy sustaining this Human Circle come from? This place shouldn't have the massive reserve of souls consumed in Japan, should it?"
"Qiye is right. This place may resemble a Human Circle, but it isn't one."
An Qingyu took a crumpled sheet of paper from his pocket and spread it on the ground. Everyone gathered around to inspect it closely.
"Last night, I snuck into the village convenience store and found this purchase order." An Qingyu pointed at the entries on it and spoke seriously. "This store restocks once every three days. It clearly lists where every item comes from and how much it costs."
"What does that prove?" Baili Pangpang asked in confusion.
"It proves that these supplies did not appear out of