Requirements

The Fireplace Room was built from red bricks,

The burning firewood groaned its final lament like an old man whose life was nearly spent, its voice hoarse and faint.

Yi Chen and the Mysterious Figure sat facing each other on a brown leather sofa,

each holding steaming Ginger Tea, which could effectively dispel the chill accumulated from living in the Cemetery for years.

"Your elegant performance earned you the chance to speak with me here.

As an outside laborer, you must have many questions... Don't hold back. We can chat about anything."

"What should I call you?"

"Just call me Wilbert. I'm in charge of the Seven-Day Graveyard."

Just as Yi Chen had guessed, this was the Administrator mentioned in the handbook.

"I want to know why another corpse suddenly appeared in Graveyard Plot 4.

If a corpse had been brought into the Cemetery from outside,

there would have had to be a process of transport and burial. It should have been easy to notice, shouldn't it?"

Yi Chen began with the minor issue concerning him, trying to get the conversation flowing between them. If possible, he would then ask about the basic circumstances of this world.

"The 'corpse' you killed didn't come from outside. It was produced by the Cemetery itself."

"Produced by itself?"

"Graveyard Plot 4 contains the greatest number and variety of corpses.

Such disorder easily attracts 'disease.'

The Living Corpse you killed was the product of a tree developing a disease... Since the condition formed in the graveyard, the tree itself naturally tended toward the corpses here for 'morphological evolution.'"

After receiving his answer, Yi Chen came up with even more questions. "After catching a disease, did the tree turn into the shape of a corpse? Then where did the matching coffin and gravestone come from?"

"Concealment and Mimicry are what Pathogens do best. They merge into their surroundings through nearly perfect mimicry... By the time they're discovered, the pathogenization has already spread.

"However, their disguises aren't absolutely perfect.

"Once you become a Gentleman in the organization, you'll naturally learn how to identify them."

Yi Chen's face was filled with astonishment. "Are you saying that the metal coffin and gravestone were both simulated by a Pathogen?"

"Exactly. That's only the most basic form of disguise.

"You haven't seen Pathogens disguised as an entire village, a cave, or even a mountain range."

Wilbert's words were brief, but they allowed Yi Chen to envision a world completely ravaged by disease.

But,

A faint smile appeared at the corner of Yi Chen's mouth—a smile full of anticipation and a desire to explore.

He took a sip of the Ginger Tea and said softly,

"This world... is sick?"

"Exactly. For most people, being able to sit here, drink tea, and converse normally is already an incredible luxury.

"The situation outside is far worse than you imagine.

"However, we shouldn't be discussing the outside world right now. That belongs to the work of investigation you'll undertake later."

Seeing the topic being dragged back, Yi Chen no longer pressed the matter and continued asking about the Cemetery.

"I still have some questions about the Cemetery.

"The Employee Handbook records many rules and requirements. They should all be used to determine whether something has been 'infected.'

"From the looks of it,

"the entire Cemetery seems extremely prone to abnormalities and pathogenization... If we know these corpses might cause problems, why not cremate them directly? Why build this Cemetery instead?"

"The reason is simple.

"The 'benefits' produced here are greater than the 'risks' that must be borne.

"You can regard the entire Cemetery as a large factory.

"For example, this Little Meatball on your shoulder is an almost perfect product. It can effectively help us resist Pathogens."

"I see."

Yi Chen had already witnessed Little Meatball's abilities.

Without Vision Enhancement, it would have been impossible for him to confront the Living Corpse head-on.

The Administrator continued,

"Strictly speaking, this Little Meatball belongs to the organization.

"However, I'm very happy today. I'm delighted that an interesting outsider like you has appeared.

"If you can fulfill one requirement, I'll 'quietly' give this Little Meatball to you."

"What requirement?"

Yi Chen wanted this little ball of flesh badly, so he didn't beat around the bush.

"You'll know once the cremation is over."

Next,

Yi Chen asked about every area of the Cemetery.

He learned that before him, at least two hundred outside employees had worked here, and not one had managed to leave the Cemetery safely.

He also learned another important piece of information.

The organization's mark was G&D,

short for Gentleman and Doctor.

However,

the Administrator said little about the organization's other affairs, information about the world, or the cause of pathogenization.

According to him, Yi Chen would have to go outside and investigate these matters himself.

Relaying information verbally was a waste of time and completely meaningless.

Time passed quickly.

The Administrator rolled up his sleeve and glanced at his watch.

"The cremation should be about done. Come with me."

Returning to the dry, sweltering Cremation Area, thick with the fragrance of charred wood,

Yi Chen opened the metal cover of the cremator. The Plant Corpse he had cut down was already mostly carbonized, but it still retained a relatively complete form.

It was removed from the furnace, placed on a tray, and sent to the Surgery Room.

The Administrator took a large pair of tweezers and extracted a crystal-clear spherical crystal, about the size of a ping-pong ball, from the corpse's waist and abdomen.

Little Meatball, which had been resting with its eyes closed the entire time, woke up at that moment.

It revealed the eyeball inside its mouth and stared fixedly at the Orb.

Thick saliva began to drip as well, soaking all the fuzz around its mouth.

Ding~ The Administrator gently placed the Orb on a metal tray nearby,

then took a monocle from inside his suit and examined it carefully.

"Hm? To think it would have such quality and shape... I'm starting to regret this.

"This thing could be sold for a very high price within the organization. It could even help me expand and upgrade the Cemetery."

After finishing his examination,

the Administrator placed the Orb in his palm and displayed it before Yi Chen.

It was the color of white jade,

with roughly eighty percent transparency.

Inside, several drifting green points of light could still be seen clearly.

"I have to say, your luck is truly remarkable.

"The probability of an Initial State Patient producing a 'crystal' like this is less than five percent,

"let alone one whose shape and quality are both top-grade, with its internal essence perfectly preserved.

"You have three choices.

"1. Store and conceal this crystal, then travel to the city where the organization is located.

"Once you become a resident there, or are granted Gentleman Status, hand the Orb to a local craftsman and have it made into a decent piece of equipment.

"2. Do as above and become a member of the organization, then sell it at a high price through internal channels.

"Or sell it directly to me at fifty percent of its value. That would help you avoid a great deal of risk. After all, once someone else sees this Orb, it will inevitably bring you considerable trouble.

"3. Swallow the crystal here and now, turning it into a part of your body.

"This process carries the risk of death.

"If you succeed, you'll gain the 'Pathogenization Trait' preserved within the crystal... This trait will allow you to survive longer in this world and increase your chances of passing the assessment and becoming a member of the organization.

"The third point is also the requirement we discussed earlier.

"As long as you can swallow it and survive, the Little Meatball on your shoulder will be the Cemetery's farewell gift."

Yi Chen did not answer immediately. Instead, he wore a thoughtful expression.

"Administrator, I have only one question.

"If I'm not mistaken, this thing is a crystalline product of a Pathogen... After I swallow it, is there a chance I'll become infected and turn into something resembling a Living Corpse?"

"Exactly. That's where the risk lies.

"If you fail to merge with it properly and display any symptoms of pathogenization, I'll personally execute you."

"I understand."

Yi Chen carefully accepted the crystal, feeling the residual heat of the cremation on its surface.

He had already made his decision,

Gulp~ He swallowed it in one go.