World and the Gray Zone

Books, The very thing Yi Chen was best at during his life.

Paired with the brand-new "Student" profession, He didn't even realize how fast he flipped through the pages, spending no more than a second on each, as casually as drinking water.

It only took about ten minutes to finish reading the entire "World History" book, His entire brain felt refreshed and invigorated from reading, experiencing an unprecedented sense of intellectual satisfaction.

All the information about the continental structure of this world was now stored in his brain.

This world bore a certain resemblance to Yi Chen's original world, Earth, being primarily composed of land and oceans, accounting for 37.1% and 62.9% respectively.

The landmass consisted of one supercontinent and five surrounding continents.

Supercontinent - Middle-Earth

*Vast, almost equal to the combined area of all the continents.

1. Shambles

*A continent with the most suitable climate for life, the most developed livestock industry, and the largest meat exporter. It even resembles a steak on the map.

2. Everglade

*Most of its territory is covered by rainforest, also home to the world's largest rainforest. It nurtures several ancient civilizations, with many primitive tribes that have fallen out of sync with the times living within it.

The coastal areas are heavily influenced by modern industry, Mostly port cities, primarily focused on fisheries and forestry.

3. San-Carlos

*A continent dominated by plains, appearing square-shaped on the map with numerous rivers. It is the most populous continent besides Middle-Earth, and the developed countries located on it are second only to Middle-Earth.

4. Quechua

*Mainly characterized by mountains and valleys, the continent has a rich vertical structure. It is abundant in mineral resources, naturally attracting significant capital. Large factories and rows of giant smokestacks can be seen in almost every city.

The landmass is shaped like a vertical strip, with its northern part close to the pole, where the mountain ranges are covered in snow year-round.

It's worth mentioning that this is the continent where Yi Chen is currently located.

The headquarters of G&D, Zion City, is situated on one of the mountain peaks near the central mountain range, surrounded by other mountains, occupying a high and relatively secluded position.

5. Broken-Islands

*This is the only continent in the Southern Hemisphere, and tens of thousands of years ago, it was fragmented into thirteen islands due to severe earthquakes.

Each island is home to a nation, with relatively backward development.

The above is a general overview of this world.

One noteworthy point is a small text marked with an asterisk in the lower right corner of the world map.

[This map was drawn fifty years before the Diseased Era]

"The Diseased Era... So, people started re-dating the calendar when 'Diseased Symptoms' began appearing worldwide, posing an irreversible threat to human society?

Speaking of which, what year is it now?"

Little Grape responded:

"According to the integrated memories in my head, it should be the 371st year of the Diseased Era.

The connection between our continent, Quechua, and the other continents, as well as Middle-Earth, was completely severed about two hundred years ago.

The reason I mentioned before was the forced end of the electrical age due to the spread of the Gray Zone, leading to technological regression, and the eventual abandonment of all the interconnected facilities that human society had built.

No one knows the situation in the other continents, no one knows if Quechua is the only continent with survivors.

How about it, feeling a bit desperate, aren't you?"

"No... it's quite interesting~ This is what it feels like to explore, isn't it?

Besides, aren't our clothes capable of resisting the disease and exploring the Gray Zone?

With so many talented and capable individuals within the Organization, if they prepare thoroughly, dispatching elite squads like Professor Chamberson's, or even large-scale expeditionary forces, they should be able to reach other continents, right?"

"Don't think of it so simply.

The Gray Zone is extremely dangerous, and it also has different levels of severity.

In the most terrifying Gray Zones, the pathogens within are disaster-level~ Even if you don't touch them, just getting close enough will turn you into dust.

The Gray Zone you passed through by carriage earlier was just forming, the lowest grade.

And the carriage itself has resistance properties, and you were merely passing through as travelers... true exploration is incredibly dangerous."

"Little Grape, your memories seem to have increased?"

"Huh? It might be related to me swallowing that Giant Eye, allowing more fragmented memories in my brain to be pieced together. You'll have to feed me more delicious grapes in the future, and maybe I'll remember more useful things."

"Then tell me quickly about the gradient of the [Gray Zone]."

At Yi Chen's request, Little Grape directly transmitted the memory file via consciousness.

Different Gray Zones are divided into five levels based on their degree of contamination, time, and the influence of certain unknown factors.

[Thin]

[Middling]

[Severe]

[Forbidden]

[Dead]

Regions covered by Gray Zones may undergo changes in their species composition, geological structure, and even fundamental spatial structure, harboring unpredictable dangers.

Gentlemen from organizations typically explore the first three levels of Gray Zones.

The fourth level of Gray Zone is almost impossible to explore completely.

Being able to obtain some items and information from a fourth-level Gray Zone and escape intact is already quite impressive.

As for the fifth level, Little Grape's memory fragments did not record much, only that once you enter, you can never come out.

High-level Gray Zones are randomly distributed in the oceans separating the continents.

This is also the main reason why the major continents cannot establish communication. Venturing out recklessly leads only to death.

After understanding the basic situation of the world and the Gray Zones, Yi Chen's curiosity was completely amplified. He wanted to know more, especially about the [Origin of the Disease].

Unfortunately, after searching the entire bookshelf, he couldn't find any books related to the disease.

Little Grape's memory fragments also contained no information about the origin of the disease.

Goo goo goo!

The white owl, which had been standing in the corner, had, at some point, landed on a closer branch.

A refined and somewhat aged male voice emerged from its beak:

"Books about the [Disease] cannot be written.

Even a seemingly insignificant connection in text can turn the book into a 'diseased medium,' transmitting unknown pathogens.

What you want to know can be learned in the course called [Pathology].

However, even the best teachers at this academy, even the most learned gentlemen in Zion City, only understand the [Disease] at a superficial level, or perhaps slightly deeper.

If you want to know more, then become stronger."

With that, the owl turned and flew back to its original spot.

"Understood."

Yi Chen was not surprised at all by the talking owl, as he had an even stranger little thing on his shoulder.

Since he had nothing else to do, and the reading process just now was so satisfying, Yi Chen decided to read all the books on the bookshelf once more... The large amount of dopamine produced by reading made him increasingly excited during the process.

Even his basic attribute of [Intellect] slightly increased (less than 0.1).

Two hours passed without him realizing it.

Professor Chamberson finally completed the detailed special training schedule, with every moment of every day accounted for, not a single bit wasted.

When he looked up, he saw Yi Chen placing a book back on the shelf.

"Reading? You seem quite excited... How was it?"

"I finished reading."

"Which book did you finish?"

"All of them."

"What?"