Shadow Tracking

In the early hours of dawn, a disheveled vagabond, drenched in blood and crazed in demeanor, darted into the wooded expanse of the park, hurling himself at any passerby—a spectacle both alarming and out of the ordinary. Coupled with the possibility of the man harboring some ailment, his appearance proved excessively unsettling, rendering the onlookers momentarily speechless. Retrieving the flashlight from Ji Yushi's grasp, Song Qinglan extinguished its beam.

Plunged anew into darkness, Ji Yushi overheard his remark, "Well, one should have consulted the almanac before venturing out; we've just shattered the Guardians' record for the quickest detection by indigenous inhabitants in history. Let's not report back; if we lose points, Squad Nine will surpass us." Ji Yushi remained silent.

Song Qinglan's demeanor remained unchanged, deftly extricating everyone from the eerie ambiance. It served as a reminder: they were Guardians, currently occupying a time and place they should not.

"Let us leave the man temporarily nearby; someone will surely discover him and alert the authorities," Song Qinglan proposed. "In the pitch-darkness, we must find a way to contact the celestial dome of this era. When venturing out, be attentive to the surroundings, stay vigilant, as we may encounter crime scenes." The team responded affirmatively.

Before departing from their base, they distributed equipment as customary. Zhou Mingxuan unlocked the arsenal, offering an array of firearms and blades. As Guardians, they possessed state-of-the-art gear, each item tailored to their individual expertise. Preparedness for exigencies in future temporal dimensions required them to adopt necessary measures.

It was Ji Yushi's first time carrying a weapon on a mission. When his turn arrived, he selected a handgun he had frequently used in the private training room over the past few days. The silver-colored firearm, compact in design, was highly concealable.

"Diamond Bird," Song Qinglan remarked, standing beside him, unveiling the gun's name. "A replica of the PPK from the last century, used by figures like Hitler and Bond. Consultant Ji, quite vintage of you." Perplexed, Ji Yushi questioned, "What?" Unexplained, Song Qinglan continued, "If it were me, I'd opt for a weapon better suited for self-preservation. However, it suits you quite well." Ji Yushi remained silent; he knew some in the unit referred to the Diamond Bird as the "woman's gun."

Skilled in close combat, Song Qinglan's well-defined muscles attested to this fact. Methodically, he first selected two daggers and tucked them into the garters wrapped around his slender calves, then chose a pair of gloves and brass knuckles, before finally selecting a shotgun.

"Requiem," he stated. The weapon itself was weighty and possessed formidable firepower, much like the audacious and domineering aura exuded by Song Qinglan, impossible to ignore.

After selecting their gear, Song Qinglan inquired, "Weapons are meant to be used when necessary and should ideally remain close at hand. But do you know what to do if the indigenous inhabitants discover you carrying a firearm?" His dark eyes fixed on Ji Yushi, carried a hint of jest as he instructed, "Simply claim you're a policeman."

As they emerged from the woods, the group realized they had arrived at a park. Indeed, as Song Qinglan had predicted, they stumbled upon a corpse beneath a streetlamp upon entering the park's main thoroughfare. Though referred to as a corpse, it was hardly intact, with substantial portions seemingly gnawed upon by some creature, bringing to mind the unsettling and frenzied vagrant encountered earlier. Combined with the chunks of flesh found on the vagrant, the sight made everyone queasy. Had the person been devoured?

This was not only their earliest detection by indigenous inhabitants but also the most disturbing. The park was substantial, located in the city center, surrounded by towering buildings. Despite the early hour being conducive to morning exercises and walks for the elderly, they had encountered no living soul along the way. Rubbish scattered about, and dried dark red bloodstains dotted the pavement, indicating more than one violent incident had occurred here.

Looking around, apart from a few streetlamps within the park, hardly a glimmer of light could be discerned. Furthermore, the windows of the distant high-rise buildings were dark, their lifelessness stark against the deep gray sky. The city was eerily quiet, devoid of the usual hustle and bustle of early morning, almost as if plunged into silence.

Even more peculiar was the increasingly perceptible faint, putrid odor in the air, the farther they ventured from the woods. It seemed as though more ominous things awaited them beyond their sight.

What had transpired here? As the skyline began to show a hint of pale light, indicating the impending sunrise, the vast park remained shrouded in shadows, ominously silent. Sensing danger, Song Qinglan gestured silently.

The team promptly went on high alert, marching in formation, examining their surroundings. Walking to the left of Song Qinglan, Ji Yushi's graceful fingers gripped the gun, deftly loading the Diamond Bird, displaying a silent understanding with his teammates. However, considering Ji Yushi's response to danger in the woods, Song Qinglan tilted his head slightly, implying Ji Yushi should position himself in the middle of the team.

Yet Ji Yushi displayed no inkling of being a mere ornament, continuing forward as if oblivious to the implied directive. Seconds later, he lowered his voice, speaking rapidly, "Captain Song, at eleven o'clock, the park management office."

Following his indicated direction, Song Qinglan narrowed his eyes, but saw nothing in the darkness. Ji Yushi added, "There seems to be light inside."

The minimum requirement for an observer is keen eyesight and hearing. During the tenure of former observer Lao Yu, Song Qinglan regarded him as the team's eyes, never doubting his judgment.

Therefore, Song Qinglan intoned solemnly, "Let's go take a look." It turned out that Ji Yushi's vision was exceptional. Prompted by him, the group walked a distance before discerning a building concealed beside the shrubbery. A modest structure bore a sign at its entrance: Central Park Administration, PU-31.

"What is PU-31?" someone murmured softly. "I've never heard of this place."

Doubt lingered in everyone's mind. The current temporal coordinates were in the year 1470 of the Star Era. Even though they hailed from over a decade earlier, using such place names seemed incongruous. How did Ji Yushi manage to read the small print from such a distance?

Upon entering, Song Qinglan discovered the supposed source of illumination was merely a desk lamp perched in a corner atop a solid wood desk. Could this person's eyes magnify the focal length?

The park administration office was deserted, mirroring the outside world's profound silence. While a few teammates explored other rooms, Song Qinglan picked up the communicator from the administrator's desk, only to find it powered off due to lack of electricity. The desk was cluttered, adorned with keys, newspapers, logbooks, and takeout boxes.

Soon, Tang Le emerged, announcing, "Captain Song, a body was found in the restroom!"

The corpse in the restroom wore a uniform, presumably belonging to the administrator. Lying face down on the floor, a gaping wound in the neck pierced through the brain, with decaying flesh and visible arteries. Song Qinglan casually draped a towel over his hand and flipped the body over, revealing a pallid face akin to the earlier vagrant. However, unlike the vagrant, the deceased's visage was rigid, eyes tightly shut, frozen in a state of agony. A swarm of maggots wriggled in the gaping mouth, sending shivers down the onlookers' spines.

In the confined space, with stagnant air and a pungent stench, faint retching sounds could be heard.

Without looking back, Song Qinglan remarked, "Li Chun, try vomiting again for me."

The others glared at Li Chun, who raised his hands innocently, saying, "This time it really wasn't me!"

Ji Yushi, standing at the doorway, covered his mouth and quickly retreated.

Can't hold it anymore? Song Qinglan thought. Regardless, he had no time to manage the team members' psychological states now.

After pondering over the body for a few seconds, instead of directly examining it further, Song Qinglan extracted a dagger from his leg holster and used the handle to pry open the deceased's eyelids. True to his expectation, like the vagrant, the deceased's eyeballs were also a milky white, their opacity making it difficult to discern the iris.

Li Chun exclaimed, "Damn, the same symptoms as that madman earlier. What is this? An infectious disease?"

Recalling how close he had come to being bitten, almost infected, Li Chun shuddered in horror.

"It's possible, but we can't be certain," Song Qinglan responded.

Considering the corpse in the park and the other bloodstains... Could a deranged vagrant truly be responsible for so many homicides? He expressed skepticism.

Ji Yushi managed to keep his composure and didn't actually vomit.

When Song Qinglan returned to the administrator's office, Ji Yushi was examining the communicator, now devoid of signal. Despite his slightly pale complexion, he had composed himself.

Seeing them emerge, Ji Yushi said, "I found a video."

"I found the charger port for the communicator in the drawer." Apparently not accustomed to expressing opinions in front of others, Ji Yushi continued in a detached tone, "After turning on the communicator, I discovered this video downloaded a month ago."

The communicator projected the video.

A man with a pallid face and blue-green veins appeared in the footage, his gray-white irises bulging as he charged toward the camera in frenzy. The screams of the cameraperson echoed as the footage shook; the man was restrained by an iron chain around his neck, bloodstains marking his throat where the chain had violently pulled, yet despite this, he continued to lunge, emitting guttural growls from his gaping mouth.

The cameraperson, a woman, cried out in the video, "Help! Someone save me... My husband has mutated! There are many others outside! Save me, I don't want to die! I haven't been bitten! Who will save me?"

The video ended with a grim close-up of the man's face.

The group shuddered in horror.

"It's a zombie!"

"If it's really a zombie, then how many of them are out there?"

"No wonder this place is so bizarre!"

"And this video is from a month ago!"

After watching a terrifying real-life horror movie, Ji Yushi's complexion also turned strange. "The communicator has no network, but I just received a text message, presumably meant for us."

Zhou Mingxuan wondered, "The message is on the dead person's communicator, but it's meant for us?" He emphasized the word "us."

This was too absurd.

However, Ji Yushi affirmed this notion, saying, "I think so."

In a composed manner, Song Qinglan instructed, "Open it."

A faint blue light flickered, and the holographic projection gradually illuminated.

The team formed a circle, exchanging bewildered glances as they gazed at the information projected before them.

[Welcome, Guardians from the year 1456 of the Star Era, welcome to PU-31.]

The familiar greeting from the celestial system should have been reassuring, but amidst their perplexity, everyone felt a chill run down their spine.

Not only because the message was indeed intended for them but also because a second line of text, then a third, swiftly appeared on the projection.

[This jump has been locked, to be unlocked upon successful completion of the mission.]

[Mission Mode: Ouroboros.]

[Mission Rule: Death Elimination.]

"Look!!" Tang Le, stationed by the window, suddenly shouted.

The others hurried over, utterly dumbfounded.

Before their eyes, a black wall emerged abruptly, spreading from the direction they had just come.

No, it couldn't be called a black wall.

If one had to describe it, it resembled the loading screen of a model game, moving swiftly, engulfing everything visible from sky to ground, until it barely halted just before the park administration office.

"Drip—" The communicator emitted a prompt sound.

The last line of text appeared on the projection.

[Mission Target: Chaser of Darkness.]