Infinite Nightmares

Hearing Zhang Wenda’s accusation, 2826 offered no rebuttal.

"My apologies. Everyone who joins the Third Line must undergo a background check, myself included. It’s the same for all of us. The Third Line contains a lot of information that ordinary people shouldn’t know, so naturally, we can’t allow people with ulterior motives to join. I hope you can understand."

"I haven’t even agreed yet. Aren’t you getting a little ahead of yourselves?" Zhang Wenda said, suppressing the anger in his heart.

"This is just part of the recruitment process. If you feel offended, I apologize on behalf of Bureau 507. But rules are rules. The world is illogical enough as it is; we don’t want our organization to lack basic logic as well."

The agent’s dry apology did little to quell Zhang Wenda’s anger. He let go of the injured 2826, aimed his flashlight ahead, and forged upward with his head down.

"I’ll say this one last time: don’t investigate my past. Jianguo! You help him up!"

Song Jianguo, who was bringing up the rear, came over. At her command, the cats supported the injured 2826 and carried him forward.

"He’s just like that, kind of a psycho. He flips out over anything. Just ignore him."

"You seem to know something. Can you tell me?" 2826 asked Song Jianguo.

Song Jianguo recalled the time she lay under a bed, listening to Haozi’s mad ramblings before she fell asleep.

Song Jianguo irritably reached up and tugged at the collar on her neck. "Do I look like I’m on good terms with him? He doesn’t tell me anything. I can’t escape. If I could, I’d have been long gone."

"Hmm..." 2826 watched Zhang Wenda’s back, lost in thought. He then pulled a phone from his pocket and quickly sent a few messages.

"You were never here to help me. You didn’t even need to come. With your salary, you could definitely afford the 600. You made this trip just to recruit and test me, right?" Zhang Wenda said without looking back.

To this, 2826 neither confirmed nor denied anything. "If you decide to join Bureau 507, contact me on my pager anytime. But whether you join or not, I just want to say this: sometimes, you have to learn to forgive yourself first. If you can’t let it go, you’ll never be able to move on."

"Thanks for your concern. I can handle my own problems!"

Just as he said this, Zhang Wenda stopped in his tracks. But it wasn’t because of 2826—it was because the path ahead had disappeared.

He followed the severed network cables upward with his gaze. The area that should have been filled with Floating Islands and cables was now completely void. Utterly empty.

Song Jianguo, holding a cat, tilted her head back to look up. Mimicking Zhang Wenda’s tone, she exclaimed, "Damn, that thing ate this entire section clean. How are we supposed to get up now?"

Just as the three of them were at a loss, a rope dropped from above, almost as if it had been prepared just for them.

"Did you call for backup?" Zhang Wenda asked, looking at 2826. But the agent just shook his head.

With no better options available, Zhang Wenda decided they would use the rope to escape.

The cats acted as a vanguard, scrambling up the rope in a chain. After they confirmed it was safe, the three humans followed.

After calling out to no avail and seeing that Zhang Wenda had no intention of helping 2826, Song Jianguo could only curse under her breath as she hoisted the agent onto her back and began to climb.

"Thank you," 2826 said apologetically.

"If you really want to thank me, help me check if your organization has any of my memories. I have amnesia."

The rope was long, spanning the entire empty expanse. Zhang Wenda and the others climbed until their hands were raw and split before they finally hauled themselves onto a Floating Island. The area around them was now significantly brighter.

But to their surprise, there was no one else on the entire Floating Island—only the end of the thick rope.

"Huh? That’s weird. Who helped us?" Song Jianguo asked, puzzled.

At that moment, Zhang Wenda had a sneaking suspicion who it was, but he didn’t say anything.

He peered out, looking up at the sprawling, yet now much brighter, dark web space above. "Let’s go," he said. "First, we get out of this area. Then you’re coming with me somewhere."

"Where?"

Zhang Wenda turned to look at 2826. "The flea market."

Although the Internet World was a sprawling maze, 2826, being a Thought Wave Explorer, knew the way. He quickly led them out from beneath a giant boulder and back to the bustling flea market.

Staring at the familiar surroundings, Zhang Wenda clutched the three drops of Oil Bab tightly in his hand, his heart beginning to pound.

’Finally. After all that hardship, I’ve finally made it to this moment!’

Even though he had just escaped the jaws of death, was still injured, and wasn’t even wearing any clothes, the thought of his objective being so close to completion made it impossible for him to wait another second.

His mind made up, he clutched the three drops of Oil Bab and charged toward the onion-adorned, dog-fur hut.

As Song Jianguo started to walk inside, she heard one of the cats hiss behind her. She turned to look, but there was nothing there.

The inside of the hut was just as before, only the onion in the middle of the main room was even bigger now. The pungent odor made Song Jianguo and the cats sneeze involuntarily.

After seeing the three drops of Oil Bab in Zhang Wenda’s hand, the figure hiding behind the high counter finally revealed itself.

It was a woman with the head of a dog. To his surprise, Zhang Wenda realized her face looked exactly like the dog that carried the flea market on its back—she was even the same breed, a Golden Retriever.

’Could it be that the dog is the real one in charge of this whole street?’ Just as this wild thought crossed Zhang Wenda’s mind, the beast-woman before him began to speak.

"My name is Hu Maomao. It’s a pleasure to meet you all. This way, please." A hidden door slowly swung open from within the furry wall to their left.

Just as everyone was about to follow her in, Hu Maomao suddenly sniffed the air and blocked 2826, who was being supported by the cats. "My apologies, but people from the Third Line are not welcome here."

"I can wait outside," 2826 said, taking the hint.

After a glance at the agent’s injuries, Zhang Wenda told Song Jianguo to stay outside and protect him, then followed Hu Maomao inside.

It was unexpectedly cold inside, so cold that Zhang Wenda, wearing only a jacket, could see his breath fogging in the air. The long, narrow tunnel was lined with onion-shaped lamps.

In the past, Zhang Wenda might have joked about all the onions being there to ward off Vampires, but right now, he had no time for such idle thoughts.

He followed the tunnel downward until his body passed through a layer of a viscous, yellowish-white substance. A crimson office, seemingly formed from flesh and blood, appeared before him.

In the distance was another counter made of bone, but this one was much lower than the one outside. He wasn’t alone, either; several other people were conducting business. It seemed the dog-fur hut above was merely one of many access points.

Hu Maomao led Zhang Wenda to the far-left counter. The moment he sat down, the dog-headed person on the other side pulled a box out from beneath the counter.

As the square box opened, a chalk-like object emitting a blue glow was revealed, lying silently in the very center.