After leaving Area-14, Luo Shu first returned to Anomalous Item-100 to rest and allow his Transformer pickup truck—fresh from a 10,000-kilometer endurance test—to optimize its form.
The second-stage transformation blueprints had been drafted from scratch by Luo Shu, with no professional evaluation or wind tunnel testing.
That the vehicle hadn't crashed mid-flight was already a miracle—minor issues were inevitable.
Fortunately, the Transformer pickup now possessed Silicon-Based Intelligence, understanding itself as intuitively as a human knows their own strength or hunger.
In just one day, it fine-tuned itself to peak performance, even boosting its flight speed to 550 km/h.
So on the night of June 14th, Luo Shu set off again.
The Transformer pickup raced along the western Atlantic coastline, reaching Site-19's entrance in under two hours.
Luo Shu glanced back at the Capitol Building at the end of the road before stepping inside.
Site-19 was the Foundation's first site—where everything began.
Don't ask why Site-19 was first, just as Anomalous Item-173 (The Sculpture) was the first anomaly. You can't argue logic with higher-dimensional creators.
If the authors wanted, they could use flashbacks, nonlinear narratives, or pure chaos—let alone arbitrarily assigned numbers.
For Luo Shu, too, Site-19 was where it all started.
Here, he had opened the Anomalous Item Catalog and begun his story.
Now, seeking the truth, he had returned.
Entering the underground facility, Luo Shu headed straight for Anomalous Item-055 on Sublevel 5.
The reunion was warm.
Anomalous Item-055 greeted him first:
"Seeker of Truth, long time no see! Are you ready?"
"Ready!" Luo Shu activated Enhanced Memory.
"This world S█X█J█D█, the Foundation Y█Z█C█D█J█X█."
No good—the third effect of his Level 2 Containment Expert milestone didn't let him hear more.
Though Enhanced Memory was 10% stronger, it only sharpened his recall and awareness against 055's anti-memetic effects, not his hearing.
Disappointed but undeterred, Luo Shu tried a new approach:
"Let's do this: I'll ask, you answer. Just say 'Yes' or 'No.'"
Even if only one syllable got through, he could deduce the meaning.
"Sure, go ahead!" 055 agreed.
"First question: Is this world a story?"
"Y█, N█."
"Huh? You mean 'yes and no'?"
"Y█."
Luo Shu was baffled.
This world was both a story and not?
What did that even mean?
"Is it a real world that someone wrote into a story?" he guessed.
But 055 denied it: "N█!"
Wrong again. So what was this world?
"Is it a game?"
"N█."
At least he wasn't an NPC—that would've been worse than a story character.
"If it's both a story and not, then it's not real?"
"Y█."
"Then what is real? Or rather, what exactly is this world?"
055 hesitated for a long time before admitting: "I don't know."
Just as people knew what 055 wasn't but not what it was, it only knew what this world wasn't, not what it was.
Fair enough—this question was too deep. Luo Shu moved on:
"Am I a higher-dimensional projection? Is 'Him' one?"
"Sorry, I don't know."
This time, 055's voice wasn't censored, but the answer was useless.
Clearly, 055 wasn't omniscient.
"Do you know the full truth of this world?"
"N█, I Z█Z█W█B█F█Z█Z█."
"You only know part of the truth?"
"Y█."
Luo Shu switched to targeted questions:
"Was this world reset by Anomalous Item-2000, causing everyone to lose their memories?"
"Y█."
"And as an anti-meme, your memory isn't erased, so you became the Keeper of Secrets?"
"Y█."
"Did you uncover these truths yourself?"
"N█."
"Then someone told you?"
"Y█."
"Who?"
"Y█."
"Yes"?
I asked "who," and you said "yes"?
Wait—in English, "Y" could start many words, like... "You"!
"Are you saying I told you these truths?"
"Y█."
"Before the world reset, I shared what I knew so you could remember for me?"
"Y█."
"You can do that?! Then how many 'loops' has this world gone through?"
"I don't know... Time means nothing to me. I just remember every word you told me and repeat them when asked."
So you're basically a smart answering machine?
Luo Shu couldn't help but mentally facepalm.
"Are there other anti-memes who know the secrets?"
"I don't know."
After all this, Luo Shu felt more confused than enlightened.
The Anomalous Item Catalog claimed this world was "another ending" to a story, while 055 said it wasn't entirely a story.
Who was right?
Actually, both were—but incomplete.
055's knowledge was limited, and the Catalog couldn't hold a conversation.
After a long pause, Luo Shu checked for eavesdroppers before asking his most guarded question:
"Do you know about the Anomalous Item Catalog?"
"No."
Well, if it didn't know that, further questions were pointless.
Realizing 055 was just a "recording" left by his past self, Luo Shu accepted that he'd have to uncover the truth alone.
"Alright, anything else you want to tell me? If not, I'll go."
"Sorry I couldn't help more."
"No, you did great. Maybe next world reset, I'll need you again."
As he turned to leave, Luo Shu remembered one last thing:
"Wait—do you know Xi Juan?"
"Of course. He's right at..."