Anomaly Node

"This isn't a big problem, I have a way," Yang Lian said. "The quality of the beacons might be a bit uneven since they're being rushed, but as long as the failure rate doesn't exceed thirty percent, it won't affect the final test results."

"Alright, then this task is yours... By the way, did you get any valuable information from those who returned?" Sun Hang, mimicking Wang Xiyi, propped his legs up on the table in front of him.

Seeing the two rough-looking Hunters, Yang Lian's eye twitched twice, but she ultimately said nothing more. "The representatives from the Federation Council and the big shots from the Management Committee were taken away directly. The Investigation Bureau could only get in touch with the lower-ranking accompanying personnel... though the difference isn't significant. According to their descriptions, the flow of time within the displaced area was inconsistent with normal spacetime. From their perspective, only five hours passed from the moment the anomaly occurred until everything returned to normal."

"Only five hours?" Sun Hang frowned. He felt like something was off, but he couldn't pinpoint what it was.

"Yes, the reason they discovered the anomaly was because the livestream signal for the flower-laying ceremony was cut off, followed by the interruption of all network signals and radio communications. The accompanying security personnel immediately activated emergency protocols. While ensuring the safety of the officials, they dispatched a small team to seek help from the outside world," Yang Lian explained.

"Is this small team the twenty-seven people who didn't return?" Sun Hang asked.

Yang Lian nodded and continued, "Those who remained at the South City Public Cemetery didn't wait for the small team to return. Instead, they received the second batch of rescue personnel from normal spacetime."

"Given the current situation, the valuable information they can provide us is almost zero," Wang Xiyi sighed with some helplessness. "Frankly, it's just a different group of people who went missing."

"Wait a minute... I suddenly realized what the problem is!" Sun Hang stood up abruptly. "This anomaly isn't just a simple displacement of two locations in spacetime... Otherwise, the flow of time at the South City Public Cemetery should be the same as in the real world!"

"What are you trying to say...?" Yang Lian looked at Sun Hang, her face full of confusion.

"The first spacetime displacement occurred at 7 PM, and these missing people returned the next morning at 10 AM. That's a difference of fifteen hours... This isn't a matter of time flow speed; it's that the South City Public Cemetery that returned to our spacetime isn't the original South City Public Cemetery from our spacetime."

"What are you talking about? I don't quite understand?" Yang Lian's confusion deepened. On the other hand, Wang Xiyi's expression suddenly turned serious, and she put down her legs that had been resting on the table.

"If we take our current real spacetime at the time of the first spacetime displacement as the baseline 'zero hour,' then in the real world, the time they returned should be 'fifteen hours.' But for the South City Cemetery and those missing people, the time they were in was 'five hours'... This means they don't belong to our current spacetime, and everything hasn't returned to normal!" Sun Hang's speech sped up. "The South City Public Cemetery still belongs to the anomaly zone, and each of those missing people can be considered an anomaly node! Quick! Notify the Investigation Bureau and the Public Security Bureau immediately, gather all these missing people! Hurry!!"

"But, each of these missing people has undergone thorough testing. None of them were detected with the Anomalization Virus meme, so logically..."

Before Yang Lian could finish, Sun Hang interrupted her. "They weren't infected by an anomaly, so how could they test positive for the Anomalization Virus! But as long as they are within this spacetime, they themselves are equivalent to one anomaly spacetime node after another. If the anomaly that caused the spacetime displacement wants to attack our spacetime again, these missing people will each become a fuse!"

"You... Is there any basis for your claim?" Yang Lian's breathing hitched. "I've worked in the Investigation Bureau for seven years and read countless case files related to anomalies, but I've never heard of such a theory..."

"I knew you only read things with your ass! I'll ask you one thing: has the Investigation Bureau ever encountered an anomaly with spacetime displacement abilities before?" Sun Hang cursed impatiently.

"But..."

"No 'buts.' It's very simple to verify Sun Hang's theory," Wang Xiyi said, picking up the phone on the conference room wall. "Hello, is this Security? Have the missing people who just returned to the institute come to Conference Room One on the seventh floor, immediately! Now! ... Don't tell me the questioning is over. If you don't bring them here, I'll do it myself!"

Soon, three people, two men and one woman, were brought to the conference room. The woman was an administrative staff member from the Research Institute, and the two men were field operatives.

"Uh... Didn't you just ask us already?" The tired-looking female administrator yawned. "We've told you everything we know, there's really nothing left out."

"I can vouch for that," said a security department supervisor who brought them. "The interrogators asked every question more than three times, their answers were very detailed, and there were basically no significant discrepancies."

"That's not what I want to ask," Wang Xiyi waved her hand and walked in front of the three. "You three look quite tired?"

"After experiencing something like this, and finally returning to the normal world, it's normal to feel exhausted, right?" Yang Lian said softly.

"No, they feel tired because of their biological clocks," Sun Hang shook his head, walked to the side, pushed open the window, and looked at the three. "Tell me, is it dark outside?"

"Yes?" The female administrator at the head nodded naturally. "It's the middle of the night... Can we go rest now?"

The sun was high in the sky, the clouds were clear, and the sky, under the Tyndall effect, was a clear blue. A starling flapped its wings and soared high into the sky, heading towards the commercial district.

The expressions on Yang Lian and the security supervisor's faces froze.

Even though it was broad daylight, Yang Lian felt a bone-chilling fear, as if something was crawling up her spine, causing her to shiver involuntarily.

"What time is it now?" Sun Hang asked again, pointing to the electronic clock on the wall.

The time displayed on the electronic clock screen was 1:30 PM.

"3:30 AM," the female administrator said.

The conference room fell silent, so quiet you could hear a pin drop.