The Unfolding

Chapter Thirteen: The Unfolding

Lu Yuanming followed the officer, and they soon reached a large military transport truck parked by the roadside. A cargo container sat on its bed. "Given the circumstances, this is the best we can do," the officer said. "We've modified the container. The holding room is at the very back, with special glass walls that are bulletproof and resistant to explosives. You only need to turn on the communication switch in the Interrogation Room, and the person in the holding room will be able to hear you. The container itself is made of special steel and soundproofed, so no one outside can hear what's said inside. To be safe, we just swept the place. There won't be any listening devices."

The officer escorted Lu Yuanming to the container's entrance and watched him open the door and go inside.

The container had been converted into two rooms. The room at the back was the holding room, where a sullen-looking man sat in an interrogation chair with his hands and feet restrained. In the room in front, one wall gave a clear view into the holding room, and there was a control panel with buttons in front of the glass wall.

Lu Yuanming repeatedly checked that the door was shut, then made sure there was no one else in the room besides the death-row inmate. Only then did he approach the control panel and study it carefully. The buttons were labeled in Chinese, so he pressed the Communication Button and said, "Hello? Can you hear me?"

The death-row inmate sneered at that. Lu Yuanming paid him no mind and simply began speaking. "In Year 2028, the entire world will begin falling into the Dark Matter World. There will be no reversing the process. All of humanity and human civilization will be dimensionally reduced into the Dark Matter World. The most terrifying thing is that countless Unnamable Entities lurk there. They cannot be seen, heard, or understood, and they're full of covetous curiosity toward humanity and human civilization. Once we all fall into that world, they'll immediately swarm us and devour us..."

The death-row inmate burst out laughing and shouted, "Did you come to tell me a story? That's pretty funny. You think this story will make me talk? Don't you—"

Lu Yuanming stared at the murderer. Seeing him laugh without a care and continue speaking, he felt a surge of joy. But it lasted only a few seconds before countless mutations began appearing across the death-row inmate's skin: scales, tentacles, all kinds of hideous mouths, organs that looked like innards, and innumerable eyeballs pushing up through his skin. Worst of all, these mutations seemed to be individual living things. They attacked one another and struggled to force their way out of the man's body.

The man seemed completely unaware. He kept trying to say something, but didn't even realize that he could no longer speak. His mouth had become a tentacle studded with eyeballs, while his eyes had transformed into two writhing organs. His skin abruptly peeled back, becoming a blanket of flesh woven from countless worms. In just a few seconds, the death-row inmate had vanished completely. Inside the holding room, countless tiny chunks of flesh and organ-sized, unidentifiable creatures writhed and struggled, devouring one another. After about ten seconds, they all went still, turning into nothing but rotting flesh.

"Just as I thought..."

Lu Yuanming spoke dejectedly. At the same time, he suddenly realized he couldn't remember what the death-row inmate had looked like. He remembered only that there had been a death-row inmate, and that he had mutated into unidentifiable chunks of flesh and organs. All other memories of the man—his appearance, age, and gender—were gone.

This was indeed contamination by an Unnamable Entity.

Tang Zhean had once talked with Lu Yuanming about these Unnamable Entities. Tang Zhean believed they were so powerful because they possessed an immensely large quantity of dark matter. Dark matter interacted only with thoughts, consciousness, and souls, which meant that the Unnamable Entities possessed an absurdly vast Information Volume. Anyone who knew of their existence would mutate and become infected because of that information, while looking directly at them could even kill an ordinary person on the spot.

At the time, Lu Yuanming had asked whether living people in the Material World would be immune to the contamination because they were still in the Material World if they learned that these Unnamable Entities existed.

The answer was no!

Earth was dimensionalizing and falling toward the Dark Matter World. The entire planet was already filled with a thin scattering of Dark Matter fundamental particles. If living people in the Material World learned information about these Unnamable Entities, they would undergo even more terrifying mutations. In the end, their bodies would disappear, and ordinary people's memories of them would vanish as well. Even their files, photographs, and every other record would disappear. Only afterward could their existence be deduced from other data.

That was the great disaster that had occurred in the Year 2028 timeline. Fifty thousand people disappeared from New York in the Dark Matter World, while hundreds of thousands disappeared in the USA in the Material World. In the end, the USA didn't even know how many people had vanished. This also caused the country's original plan to develop the Dark Matter World ahead of others to fall through.

Lu Yuanming had still held on to a faint hope. Since it was only 2024, perhaps he could reveal a little about the Dark Matter World and the truth of the Unnamable Entities. But reality had slapped him in the face once again. The death-row inmate had vanished completely.

From Lu Yuanming's vantage point, the Flesh Debris, internal organs, bones, and other remains inside the holding room had already begun to disappear, simply turning into nothingness. Before long, the death-row inmate would be as if he had never existed, and every bit of information about him would disappear with him.

So far, the only thing that could resist contamination by information from the Unnamable Entities was his Colorless Light Particles. They let Lu Yuanming look directly at the Unnamable Entities and remain unharmed. But he didn't know whether the Colorless Light Particles could protect others from their contamination. Nor did he know whether one dose would offer lasting protection, or whether people would still be contaminated once the particles were used up.

Carrying these questions with him, Lu Yuanming stepped out of the container. The officer outside immediately hurried over and asked, "How did it go?"

Lu Yuanming silently shook his head. The officer didn't rush into the container. He only sighed and said, "Is it safe for us to go in now? I also have some questions I'd like to ask you, Mr. Lu. The death-row inmate in there... I can only remember that he was a death-row inmate. I personally brought him over from the prison, but I don't remember a person like that existing, and I can't remember his age, gender, or appearance. Just before you came out, I asked for his file, but they couldn't find it... Is that because it's information we shouldn't know?"

Lu Yuanming nodded solemnly. "Yes. That's why I haven't told you everything. I'm going to see Elder Wang now. There's no one inside the container, but to be safe, you should wait a day before going in."

The officer remained where he was in silence, while Lu Yuanming headed for the Private Room.

By the time he entered the Private Room, Elder Wang had clearly already heard what had happened. He silently beckoned Lu Yuanming over, then took his arm when he came close. "You've worked hard, my boy, carrying such a heavy burden all this time..."

Lu Yuanming smiled. "It's all right, Grandpa Wang. I can handle it... I'm more worried about all of you. After hearing such a hopeless future from me, I'm afraid you won't be able to bear it."

Elder Wang laughed heartily. "What's that to worry about? We've weathered so many things before. Don't worry. We'll always be the backbone holding everything up, and we'll always be here to support you!"

Lu Yuanming glanced at the dining table. "We've eaten about enough, Grandpa Wang. Take me to see the people who entered the Residual Field and mutated. I want to see if I can heal them. That Residual Field is important, too. If we're lucky, we might gain some kind of power from it—either Supernatural Power like mine, which can fight the monsters, or powerful weapons or armor. I don't know exactly what, but it'll definitely be something good!"

Elder Wang checked his watch. It wasn't even two in the afternoon yet. "All right. Let's deal with this Residual Field first, then we can discuss everything else. It's in Downtown Area, after all, and the lives of the people are at stake. It's better to resolve it sooner. Come on, I'll go see those heroes with you."

Elder Wang was a decisive man. He immediately led Lu Yuanming onto a helicopter, which flew straight to a Military Base outside the city. After a flight of just over ten minutes, the helicopter landed at the base. The One Spike One Star Officer took the lead, and Elder Wang and Lu Yuanming followed him deeper into the base toward a building.

When they entered the building, Lu Yuanming was surprised to see a familiar face: Captain Wang from CQ. He was standing by the entrance, frowning as he smoked. When he saw Elder Wang and the others, he immediately tossed his cigarette butt behind him and put on an awkward smile.

The officer glanced at Captain Wang. "Go stamp out that cigarette butt!"

Captain Wang hurried over and stamped it out, then jogged toward Elder Wang and Lu Yuanming. The officer immediately stepped in front of him. The accompanying soldiers also instinctively reached for their waists. Captain Wang panicked. "Brother Lu, it's me! Don't you recognize me?"

Elder Wang sighed and said to Lu Yuanming, "Several of his team members have mutated. A few have mutations involving their internal organs, and their bodies are rejecting them badly. It's not easy to remove them, either..."

Lu Yuanming understood what Elder Wang meant. He said to Captain Wang, "Come along, Captain Wang. Using my ability outside a field takes a lot out of me, so let's do it together. I just want to test whether I can use it to help others resist mutation."

Captain Wang was overjoyed and immediately joined the group, but the officer and the soldiers stopped him at the outer perimeter.

They continued deeper into the building, then took an elevator down. At last, Lu Yuanming reached a Sterile Ward. A semitransparent Isolation Film separated the inside from the outside. Inside the ward, doctors and nurses in Biohazard Suits were tending to the patients. There might also have been researchers among them.

"A total of sixty-two people have mutated: eighteen from the CQ Monster Field, thirty-four from the CD Monster Field, and ten from the Residual Field. They're all here." The person in charge had received word of Elder Wang's arrival and was waiting outside. As he spoke, staff brought over Biohazard Suits.

Lu Yuanming refused to put one on. He planned to unfold an Unknown Item, and the Biohazard Suit might be torn apart by his Soul Body.

Everyone except Elder Wang, Captain Wang, and the officer looked utterly astonished. They naturally knew nothing about Lu Yuanming's situation. Entering without a Biohazard Suit completely violated safety regulations, and everyone turned to look at the person in charge.

The person in charge held a fairly high rank, but he couldn't possibly compare to Elder Wang—not even to the officer. He could only rack his brain for a way to persuade Lu Yuanming. But the officer knew the details and simply issued an order. This was a Military Base, and the doctors, nurses, and researchers here were mostly members of the military as well. Faced with the officer's command, they had no choice but to salute and obey.

And so Lu Yuanming entered the Sterile Ward. He saw people with mutations on their faces, bodies, skin, or internal organs. Some were unconscious; others groaned in pain. He could clearly sense the dark matter aura coming from them.

Elder Wang told Lu Yuanming, "Do what you need to. We'll back you up."

Being trusted like this felt wonderful. Lu Yuanming didn't hesitate. He sensed the Unknown Items, caught one with his thoughts, and then "unfolded" it.

In an instant, an invisible wave spread outward from Lu Yuanming. The people around him couldn't see or feel it, but some strange instinct made them stare fixedly at him. Those with the sharpest senses immediately broke out in goosebumps.

Then Lu Yuanming's Soul Body emerged from his back, nearly three meters tall and clad in a handsome set of red-and-gold Full Body Armor.

...I can still sense the Unknown Items. One Unknown Item can unfold a Circular Space with a fifteen-meter diameter. It's slowly being dissolved by the Material World, so it can last for about ten to fifteen minutes. I can also sense that if the most intense emotions of a Sentient Being are infused into it at this moment, the field it unfolds can last much longer and cover a much wider area. So that's why the monsters keep killing people, and make them die in the most painful way possible. Emotions, or thoughts? Or souls?

As these thoughts crossed Lu Yuanming's mind, he kept moving. He immediately used his Soul Body to grasp five Colorless Light Particles. Then he froze slightly. Only now did he see at least two or three hundred Colorless Light Particles floating around his Soul Body. Some were so densely packed that they collided with one another, seeming to merge into Large Particles.

So many Colorless Light Particles? Right, the people saved from the two Monster Fields, as well as Captain Wang, the soldiers, and Elder Wang's group all know about me now... I should ask Elder Wang later if there's some way to publicize me. Maybe as a Young Pioneer... No, maybe as a Disaster Relief and Rescue Pioneer, or a hero or something?

As he thought this, he brought down the Colorless Light Particles held in his Soul Body. A burst of White Light erupted. Even ordinary people could see it clearly. It wasn't harsh, and it made everyone feel warm.

As the White Light spread, the mutations on every patient in the ward began disappearing before their eyes. The limbs of those who had been disabled or badly injured began to grow back, and their wounds started to heal.

It took no more than four or five seconds. Once the White Light faded, everyone looked around and saw that all the patients had returned to normal. Every injury and illness had disappeared. And it wasn't just them: the officer touched his chest, while Elder Wang touched his shoulder and the area over his heart. Both wore expressions of surprise and joy.

Everyone's injuries, illnesses, and mutations...

Had all been cured!