As the white streak rapidly approached Loshu, the conversation at Anomaly-CN-1451's containment chamber in Site-CN-02 continued.
After hearing the security supervisor's explanation of the Game Activation Stone, "The Master" quickly pieced things together.
"Loshu's disappearance must be related to this anomaly!"
"Why?" Barbie's thoughts lagged behind.
"Did you notice? Anomaly-CN-1451 was originally discovered at K2 (Mount Godwin-Austen). Doesn't that make you think of something?"
"It's just a mountain. What's there to think about?" Barbie hated riddles. "Stop beating around the bush and just say it!"
The Master sighed. His boss wasn't the type to overthink things.
"Before Loshu escaped, you were handling Anomaly-3221-2's containment. And Anomaly-3221 is also near K2, in the same region—the Roof of the World!"
"So what? Probably just a coincidence." Barbie couldn't see any connection.
And honestly, there wasn't one—at least not an obvious one.
But The Master pressed on:
"Anomaly-3221-1—the world where Prester John is trapped—doesn't it seem similar to the 'game world' described in CN-1451's documentation? And CN-1451 appearing at K2… do you really think that's unrelated to Prester John?"
His words made everyone pause.
This wasn't just a coincidence.
Both anomalies originated from the same region, and both functioned as gateways to other worlds.
Many of the Foundation's anomalies, initially assumed to be independent, were later found to be interconnected.
Clearly, Anomaly-3221 and Anomaly-CN-1451 were a pair of related anomalies that had gone unnoticed.
Seeing that everyone was catching on, The Master continued:
"I suspect that before CN-1451 was discovered, Prester John was its user! Or rather, the Sarkic Cults and Church of the Broken God used CN-1451 to exile him."
The room fell silent as the realization sank in.
That made perfect sense. Without an anomaly like CN-1451, how could those cults have opened a portal to banish Prester John to another world?
"Boss, you mentioned that when Loshu confronted Prester John, 'White Eyes' suffered visual hazards and had to terminate surveillance, right?"
"Yeah, that's right! Only Jianjia was there at the time, but she… ugh, never mind."
The Master's eyes gleamed. "I think Loshu and Prester John exchanged information. That's how Loshu learned about CN-1451—and why he came to Site-CN-02 to retrieve it!"
"So they're working together!" Barbie growled.
"Most likely."
The Master's logic was flawed, but he accidentally stumbled upon one truth—Loshu and Prester John were Anomaly-Friends.
Turning to the security supervisor, The Master said, "You mentioned that 214nm ultraviolet light can terminate Anomaly-CN-1451-a events, correct? Then do it! Pull Loshu back!"
Though the security supervisor wasn't fully briefed on Anomaly-3221, he agreed with The Master's reasoning.
He immediately ordered his team to retrieve a specialized UV lamp and shine 214nm ultraviolet light on Anomaly-CN-1451.
Meanwhile, at Sea
By now, the white streak had reached Loshu.
A shark surfaced—and then stood upright on the water.
This was one of the legendary Aquatic People (Hai Zu).
Under the Aqua Agreement between the Foundation and the Hai Zu, they were required to send members to join MTF Jia Yin-18 ("Deep Sea Hunters"), stationed at LoI-CN-1451-2. Their duty was to rescue anyone emerging from the anomaly.
In return, the Foundation protected their habitats from human interference.
The shark-man stood on the water and demanded, "I'm JY-18-109. State your Foundation ID!"
Loshu noticed the IP67 waterproof tactical terminal on the shark-man's wrist—connected to the Foundation network, capable of verifying personnel IDs in real time.
If he gave a fake number, he'd be caught immediately.
But if he gave his real ID (D-20915), it'd probably be flagged as "WANTED."
Troublesome.
Maybe I should just enslave him mentally?
But Loshu quickly dismissed the thought.
First, he wasn't that ruthless—not to someone sent to rescue him.
Second, this shark-man was here to help. Betraying that trust felt wrong.
Instead, Loshu opted for deception.
"I… I think I have amnesia. Must've hit my head in that world. I vaguely remember being a researcher at Site-CN-02, but nothing else."
The shark-man stared at him for a few seconds before relenting.
"Fine. I'll take you to shore. Site-CN-06 will verify your identity."
He turned and crouched in the water. "Climb on. Hold onto my dorsal fin—I swim fast, so don't fall off."
True to his word, the shark-man was incredibly fast, maintaining 50 km/h even with Loshu on his back.
Ten minutes later, land came into view—the sprawling docks of Tanggu Port, Tianjin, stretching over a dozen kilometers along the coast.
The shark-man headed for a private yacht marina, a liaison point between Site-CN-06 and the Hai Zu.
Several security officers in guard uniforms waited on the pier, ready to receive JY-18-109.
Seeing them, Loshu knew he couldn't go further—that'd be walking straight into a trap.
He quietly activated Unobservable Antimemetics and teleported behind one of the guards.
By the time the shark-man and security team realized something was wrong, Loshu was already on the road outside the marina, hailing a taxi.
"To 'Baron Manor Resort Hotel' in Daxing District, Beijing."
Next Move
Loshu leaned back in the taxi, deep in thought.
Site-CN-02 was now on high alert. Achilles' Heel was hunting him.
But he needed to retrieve Anomaly-CN-1451.
The key question was—how?
He smirked.
Time to get creative.