Lost in the Otherworld

Wu Dahai interjected again, as he had a say in this matter. "Gaoyang, the place you mentioned, Niu'erdaifu, I’ve been there a few times. I even made it a point to explore it thoroughly. I found its boundaries quickly—it’s far smaller than our Licheng."

Bunny Rabbit leisurely chewed her food, giving everyone a moment to digest the information.

A minute later, she cleared her throat. "Now, please listen closely and understand thoroughly. First of all, forget everything you’ve learned from geography textbooks."

"Now, close your eyes and imagine our world as a vast ocean. On this ocean, countless islands float—some are enormous, like Licheng, where we live, home to 4 million people. Of those, only a little over 400 are human. The rest are 'little darlings...'"

"Little darlings?" Fat Jun interrupted.

"It’s jargon," Wu Dahai explained. "'Little darlings' refers to beasts."

Bunny Rabbit raised her chopsticks and continued, "Some islands are very small, like the Niu'erdaifu you just mentioned."

"All these islands can only be reached through 'official channels,' but no living creature can enter the sea. At most, you can walk along the beach and take a look. But what you’re seeing is merely the mist over the sea. What lies within the mist, no one knows. As for how this world came to be, its past, present, and future—no one has any idea."

"This is madness," Officer Huang muttered, taking a long drag on his cigarette. "Absolute madness!"

Gaoyang was utterly stunned. This upended everything he had ever known. What kind of world had he crossed into?

Fat Jun clutched his hair, on the verge of breaking down.

Only Qingling remained indifferent, focused solely on leveling up.

"It’s hard to accept, I know, but this is the reality of our situation." Bunny Rabbit was about to say more when the waiter served up a spicy rabbit head, and she beamed with delight. "Wu Dahai, I’ll leave the rest to you!"

On the white plate lay two crimson, roasted rabbit heads, drenched in chili and pepper. The sight alone was almost cruel.

Bunny Rabbit's eyes gleamed. Without bothering with chopsticks, she grabbed a rabbit head with both hands and began tearing into it. Spicy juices dribbled down her mouth as a crunch echoed with every bite, her voracious appetite transforming her into a completely different person.

Everyone silently watched Bunny Rabbit's "rabbit head feast" for a while before Wu Dahai resumed, unhurried, "Now, where were we?"

"The twelve rune circuits are extremely valuable," Gaoyang reminded.

"Ah, right. All the awakened ones are after them. Our group has already secured the ‘Life’ rune circuit, which allowed Meng Xiaoyang and Dead Pig to break through to the fourth level in their talents." Wu Dahai’s tone was filled with pride as he lowered his voice. "Today, we’ve obtained another one. Once we examine it, we’ll know its properties."

He glanced at Qingling. "I doubt it’s an elemental one. Doesn’t feel like it. Your metal talent won’t likely hit level four."

A flicker of disappointment crossed Qingling’s eyes, but she showed little interest in continuing the conversation and returned to her spicy rabbit head.

"Have all twelve rune circuits been found?" Gaoyang asked.

"How could they be? Including this one, only six have been discovered so far," Wu Dahai replied. "The other four are in the hands of different organizations, treated as their most precious treasures."

"And where are the remaining circuits?" Gaoyang pressed.

"No one knows." Bunny Rabbit, having finished most of her rabbit head, her lips now red and swollen as if painted with lipstick, savored her fingers. "If it weren’t for an awakened one stumbling upon the first rune circuit by chance twenty years ago, none of us would even know such things existed."

"In short, the rune circuits are hidden away. They could be in some obscure realm, inside a beast, or gathering dust in an antique shop—there’s no pattern to it. Ever since the discovery of the first rune circuit, awakened ones have been frantically exploring this city. That’s when the conflicts and deaths started to spiral."

Bunny Rabbit finally finished her rabbit head, contentedly wiping her mouth. "Alright, now that the basic information is covered, let’s go over the ‘Gujiacun Operation’ in detail."