Chapter Thirty-One: Retrieving the Sent Letter

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September 16, 2028.

Great Xia, Magic City.

On a bench in East Sea Park, a young man in a gray-and-white jacket surveyed the streets in the distance. Magic City was thriving; beneath the night sky, traffic streamed endlessly through the city center. Dazzling neon filled his field of vision, while indistinct figures moved within the high-rises.

Jiang He touched his cheek. A monocle was fitted into his eye socket. He now wore the disguised appearance of a blond, blue-eyed foreigner, though this disguise differed slightly from the one he had used before. The pendant that had served as the mission medium had already crumbled into ash.

[Mission activation conditions fulfilled.]

[Notice: Solo chain mission activated.]

[Notice: Adaptive disguise adjustment activated.]

[Mission Title: Regret and Vengeful Spirits]

[Main Mission One: Recover the Mailed Letter]

[Mission Rewards: ① 100 experience points and game currency ② One randomly selected ordinary-quality skill]

[Time Limit: Three days and seven hours]

When the notification chime ended, Jiang He reached toward the briefcase beside him. A red diamond was painted on its surface, with a cross at the center. Inside were only a wallet, a passport, a phone, and a stack of documents recorded on sheets of A4 paper.

His fingerprint successfully unlocked the phone. He immediately took a selfie. The disguised face in the photograph was strikingly similar to the one on the passport.

“Rhein Augustus.”

The phone contained nothing, as though it had just left the factory. The documents were all in English and packed with technical terminology, making them somewhat difficult for Jiang He to read.

“Weapons manufacturing expert. The documents describe a new exoskeleton-assisted device and two inexpensive assault rifles.”

Jiang He focused on the title of the documents. The words “Maritime Trade Conference” were printed prominently across the top.

“The situation is rather vague. My current identity should have originated from that death-row convict on the island. He was wearing a disguise when he was ambushed and killed, so he may not be ordinary—but he does not seem particularly powerful either.”

He opened the wallet. It contained three thousand yuan and a typewritten slip bearing the date July 25, 1999. Tucked into a compartment was a photograph of Rhein Augustus standing beside an unidentified middle-aged man.

“The Maritime Trade Conference seems to be a crucial clue.”

Jiang He gathered his belongings, left the park, and stepped onto the street. Noise and commotion surged over him like a tidal wave. Magic City had a population of more than twenty million, which meant that any covert operation would be far more difficult. Moreover, this was the headquarters of the Eastern Division of the Order Bureau.

One nearly voyeuristic gaze after another swept over him. Jiang He lowered his eyelids slightly and sensed them. Thanks to a hunter’s instincts, he could distinguish the difference between them. One kind carried warmth: the gazes of passersby. The other felt cold: the cameras.

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“Magic City is completely different from Anping Island.”

Jiang He began actively searching for surveillance cameras. Over the next half hour, he entered a shopping mall, a restroom, and a subway station in succession before finally walking into an Internet café.

“If you don’t have an ID card, use your passport.”

The proprietress of the Internet café was not particularly surprised to see a foreigner. Magic City was connected to the international community, and travelers from all over the world could be seen here. She completed the registration quickly.

“Thirty yuan an hour out there. The other rates are displayed on the screens. How much are you putting in?”

Jiang He was secretly astonished by the price, but his expression remained unchanged as he took out a hundred-yuan note.

“A private room. Two hours.”

The proprietress reached out and snatched away the money, returned his passport, and then lowered her head to continue watching short videos.

Strange incidents had been occurring with exceptional frequency lately. Compared with previous years, the number of murders had increased explosively. Some time ago, a fierce battle had erupted along the Bund. The official explanation was that a director had been filming a new movie about an amphibious landing, using a realistic documentary style. Yesterday afternoon, a blogger who had nothing better to do than count gas explosions across the country was taken away by creditors immediately after uploading a video.

Jiang He glanced over a few times before turning toward the private room. It was not only the Great Xia Order Bureau—throughout the entire world, information regarding the Origin Game was concealed behind a curtain.

According to Chu Fuqiang’s personal conjecture during a previous derivative mission, this relationship was, to a certain extent, similar to that between military and civilian technology. The dominance of the powerful had to be ensured in order to preserve the existing order more effectively. Otherwise, given the fundamental rule that players could plunder through killing, the resulting chaos would easily become impossible to predict.

The Order Bureau’s first principle was order. Stability was conducive to the survival and reproduction of every species. With this principle as their common ground, all sides had jointly established the Current Realm Defense Council.

Inside the private room, Jiang He switched on the computer and began searching for information about the Maritime Trade Conference. During the process, he completed his own analysis of surveillance cameras.

“Considering the cost, the purpose of installing surveillance is to achieve a specific objective.”

“First is publicity. On routes that people must pass through in public places, surveillance cameras are highly likely to exist—for example, in subways and stations.”

“Second is protection. The entrances to shopping malls and stores are generally covered by surveillance.”

“Third is tradition. Any place where bodies below the standard of public decency might be exposed will not have legal surveillance, such as changing rooms and restrooms.”

“Finally, inevitability. Surveillance cameras consume electricity, so they must be attached to or located near something relevant. Most are positioned in elevated corners.”

Jiang He had distilled surveillance into four essential factors. With this theoretical guidance, he could evade it as effectively as possible.

Before long, a news report appeared before him.

“...The International Maritime Trade Exchange will be held at the Xuanbin Hotel at 9:00 p.m. tonight. The executive director of Mexico’s New Bay Group has been invited to attend...”

Jiang He examined the list of attendees. He knew little about the New Bay Group, only that this behemoth was currently Mexico’s largest criminal organization. At its peak, its private army had numbered as many as one hundred thousand men. It controlled the largest port city in central Mexico and was notorious throughout the underworld.

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A moment later, he locked onto a photograph. It showed the middle-aged man who had appeared beside Rhein in the photograph.

“Rodriev. Former professor of weapons systems and employment engineering. His field is close to Rhein Augustus’s.”

Jiang He rose and left. The first stage of the main mission was undoubtedly connected to that man. The only question was how important the connection would prove to be.

...

Magic City, Ningde Road.

The Xuanbin Hotel stood along the street. Its lower structure was styled after an ancient Western church. From the upper floors, one could see the river surging eastward. Several rows of searchlights swept upward from below, illuminating the outer walls and giving the building a resplendent, gilded appearance.

Jiang He arrived at the Xuanbin Hotel by taxi. When he got out and paid the fare, his face remained expressionless. His gray-and-white jacket had been replaced by a rented black suit. He had gone out of his way to rent it so that he would not be thrown out when the time came. The price was that his remaining funds had been cut in half.

At the entrance, the attendant was a strikingly handsome young man. He stepped forward a few paces and said with a courteous smile,

“Sir, the hotel has been reserved exclusively by the New Bay Group today. The client requires all guests to present an invitation.”

Jiang He patted his pocket and replied frankly, “I forgot to bring it.”

“I’m very sorry, sir. Without an invitation, I can’t let you in. It’s my responsibility, and I hope you understand.”

Jiang He considered this. “If I force my way in, you’ll lose your job, won’t you?”

The attendant’s expression stiffened. “Please don’t say anything so dangerous. Security will arrive very quickly. Besides, I work out regularly. You can call your friends and ask them to come down to meet you.”

Jiang He nodded and activated hypnosis.

“The problem is mine. Can you point me toward another way in—perhaps a fire exit?”

The attendant pondered for a moment, glanced around several times, and lowered his voice. “There’s an iron door beside the dumpsters behind the building. That area isn’t under my jurisdiction. Once you go through, you’ll see a sign glowing green. It marks an emergency evacuation route. The iron door is usually unlocked.”

After speaking, the young attendant returned to his position, acting as though they had never exchanged a word. Someone without an invitation who still wanted to enter was certainly suspicious, but he had no desire to invite trouble. After all, the hotel’s monthly wages were barely enough to keep a person fed in Magic City.

Jiang He understood. “I found it myself.”

“Many thanks.”