Infinite Nightmares

"No way, absolutely not! I don’t care what you say, I don’t agree!" Zhang Wenda flatly rejected 2826’s proposal.

"I joined you guys in the Third Line to save my life, not to get myself killed. Forget 120 a month, I wouldn’t do it for 1200 a month!"

You have to be alive to spend the money, and Zhang Wenda wasn’t foolish enough to earn money just to have it buried with him.

"Who said you’d definitely die? Look, I went undercover too. How come I’m not dead?" 2826 persisted, not giving up.

"Are you kidding me? Not dead? If we hadn’t saved you back then, you’d have been sent to Uncle Niu’s field as fertilizer long ago!"

An agitated Zhang Wenda had just stood up and finished speaking when he saw a hand flying toward his face.

He swung his right hand, forcefully blocking Song Jianguo’s hand with a loud clap. After sitting back down and steadying his breathing, he said to 2826, "Let’s drop the other stuff. We’ll do it my way. Just get a team together, set a trap, and kill that ’Bird’s Nest.’ The contribution points from that will be enough to get me through my probation period. I’m not greedy. I’m very easy to please."

still hadn’t given up on the idea of getting Zhang Wenda to go undercover. "Have you ever thought that if we really do it your way, you and the Big Circle will become mortal enemies? Do you think you’ll ever have a peaceful day again?"

"Only by infiltrating them from the inside and completely annihilating the Big Circle can we eliminate this threat for good. It’s the only way for you and I to avoid their retaliation."

"Stop feeding me empty promises! I’m stuffed full of them. Oh, so me, all by myself, infiltrating the Big Circle Gang is going to solve everything? How come I never knew I was so damn amazing?" Zhang Wenda spread his hands in a shrug, deciding to just give up on the argument. He had made up his mind; no matter what 2826 said, he would absolutely not agree.

"You don’t understand the significance of the name Tang Xingxiong. She’s a high-ranking member of the Big Circle, and she’s extremely cautious. The agents we’ve sent in can’t even get close to her. If you can get undercover by her side, you could provide a huge advantage to our other comrades within the Big Circle Gang."

"Nope, no way, not doing it." Zhang Wenda shook his head frantically, his stance resolute. Although he agreed with Bureau 507’s values, he still wouldn’t bite on the empty promises they were offering. No one was going to trick him into eating that pie.

Seeing how stubborn Zhang Wenda was, 2826 knew that just talking about the standard rewards probably wasn’t going to move this kid. It seemed they had to play their trump card.

After a moment of silence, they took out a phone, made a call, whispered a few words, and hung up before looking at Zhang Wenda.

"What will it take for you to agree to this plan? Name your price. As long as you can help us completely wipe out the Big Circle, the Bureau will find a way to meet any of your conditions."

"Tch, ’any condition’? Do you think you’re the Lamp God or something? ’Any con—’" Zhang Wenda, his face full of contempt, suddenly stopped mid-sentence. He stared suspiciously at the drone head before him. "Did you just say *any* condition?"

"Any condition!" 2826 repeated with utmost seriousness.

After giving Teacher Rabbit a look, Zhang Wenda’s body began to change rapidly. A moment later, a hollow, scythe-limbed monster stood before everyone present.

Zhang Wenda raised his menacing right hand and tapped his own chest. "Can you also completely get rid of this monstrous transformation of mine?"

When he saw 2826 nod with absolute certainty, Zhang Wenda was simultaneously shocked and overcome with ecstasy.

He hadn’t expected Bureau 507 to actually have a solution. If they really could do it, the danger of being completely assimilated by the monster at any moment would be gone forever!

Then, a thought struck him. He hurried over to the tall Teacher Rabbit, grabbed her arm, and turned back to 2826 to confirm, "You can completely get rid of the transformations for *both* of us?"

"Absolutely! As long as you agree to our plan, we’ll make it happen, no matter the cost!"

Hearing this, Zhang Wenda couldn’t contain his excitement. He turned to Teacher Rabbit and said, "Teacher! You were right, there’s always a way! We’ve found it!"

Although Teacher Rabbit’s expression didn’t change much, its clenched paws proved that it was also extremely excited.

After quickly turning the whole thing over in his mind a few times, Zhang Wenda spoke up. "Well, if that’s the case, maybe a risky job like being a spy is worth a shot."

’It’s dangerous, sure, but living in this damn place, what isn’t dangerous?’

’Besides, I already have a score to settle with the Big Circle. This way, I can get rid of my monster problem and get revenge at the same time—killing two birds with one stone. Aside from the genuine danger, everything else about this deal is as good as it gets.’

"So you agree?" 2826 asked nervously.

"I agree, but I have one condition." Zhang Wenda held up a single finger. "I want to meet face-to-face with someone from Bureau 507 who has real authority. A plan this big... just discussing it with you from start to finish doesn’t seem right."

didn’t quite understand what he was thinking, raising another demand at the last minute. "Just communicating with me is enough. What I say is official. Besides, it’s a long trip, and we don’t have much time."

"It’s fine, I don’t care how far it is. Tang Xingxiong gave me three days to think it over. For something this important, I have to go to Bureau 507’s turf and discuss it in person. I want a contract and a recording, nothing less."

’It’s not that I think 2826 is lying to me; they don’t seem the type to make empty promises. But I’m afraid its superiors will.’

’What if I barely make it back alive with the results, and they just deny everything? They could steal all the credit and kick me to the curb. Then I’d be totally screwed.’

Zhang Wenda didn’t think he was overthinking it. It wasn’t like he hadn’t run into similar situations back when he was a corporate drone.

could only take out its phone and type quickly. After receiving a definite reply, it nodded. "All right, then. But you have to go alone."

"No problem. So, where are we going now?" At a touch from Teacher Rabbit, Zhang Wenda’s body changed back to its original form.

"First, to Thought Wave Two." As 2826 spoke, it rolled up its sleeve and pressed the Yellow Core.

"You guys wait for me, I’ll be right back. Stay right here in the meantime, don’t go anywhere," Zhang Wenda instructed, then pressed his Yellow Core.

When Zhang Wenda arrived in Thought Wave Two again, he was surprised to find that, aside from the brighter and more appealing decor, the Xinhua Bookstore was still the same Xinhua Bookstore. It hadn’t changed at all despite the shift in Thought Waves.

Next to him, besides Song Jianguo, who was now a small cat, stood a person in a purple rabbit costume. This was the Teacher Rabbit of Thought Wave Two.

The Teacher Rabbit of Thought Wave Two was shorter, not huge like the one in Thought Wave One. It was, one might say, more animal-like, and cuter.

"Teacher, can you also see Thought Wave Two?" Zhang Wenda started to reach out, but he pulled his hand back at the thought of his scythe-like fingers.

"Are you coming or not?" 2826, completely unchanged, had appeared at the top of the stairs and was asking.

"Coming!" After giving the other two a look that said not to worry, Zhang Wenda quickly followed 2826 toward the second floor of the Xinhua Bookstore.

led Zhang Wenda out of the Xinhua Bookstore, and they drove off in a car made of prefabricated human fingers that was parked by the entrance, weaving quickly through the streets.