Chapter 151: The Direction of the Task
Xu Huo had an expression that said, "Are you kidding me?" "How is this considered an important clue? It's all written in the game's background."
The female player paused for a moment, then said, "Don't you want to know why?"
"Why?"
"Supposedly, after the great pollution twenty years ago, people here couldn't have children anymore, and outside tourists with children aren't allowed into the city."
"Does this have anything to do with the game task?" Xu Huo asked, puzzled.
"Everyone in the city is talking about the pollution incident from twenty years ago," the female player explained. "But the air, soil, and water sources here are all normal. So why hasn't a single baby been born in these twenty years?"
"There must be something hidden behind this, and it might be related to the task."
Xu Huo thought about it seriously. "You have a point."
The female player gave a slight smile. "What about your clue?"
Xu Huo looked around before lowering his voice. "You can't just stay in any shop here. I heard in the restaurant that some shops frequently have tourists go missing, and even the meat dishes are made from people."
"So? Isn't this information important enough?"
"Look, it's getting dark. How about we team up and find a place to stay? But staying here is pretty expensive... Could you lend me some money?"
The female player pressed her lips together, her chest heaving, clearly furious. But she still tossed him five hundred White Notes and said angrily, "Here, that's enough for one night!"
Xu Huo pocketed the White Notes and watched her hurried retreat, calling out with a grin, "Hey, wait for me!"
The female player walked even faster.
Once she had disappeared from sight, Xu Huo left the museum to find a place to stay.
If what the female player said was true, it indirectly confirmed some of his thoughts.
The story the flower shop female clerk told seemed logically inconsistent and downplayed the important parts. But if you changed the identity of the protagonist and the emphasis of the events, the story became much smoother and more familiar.
First, the female protagonist's husband was a Cannibal Player and had started to mutate a few years before the great pollution.
Second, when the Xenomorphs appeared in large numbers, this husband fought them, eventually becoming severely mutated. Before he completely lost his sanity, he committed suicide.
This matched the process of the real world's gamification: first, a small number of Evolvers and Players appeared, and then the numbers expanded.
The difference was that the gamification process in Block Fairy Tale City had been interrupted. Most of the people here suddenly turned into Xenomorphs, causing the city's population and area to shrink dramatically.
The reason for the Xenomorph evolution was the toxins produced during the evolution process. These toxins weren't contagious, so there was no need for strict quarantine.
According to the female player, the soil and water here were fine, but the government of Block Fairy Tale City deliberately isolated even themselves, and the locals were spreading rumors that anyone injured by animals in the contaminated zone would be caught for experiments—all of this was actually exaggerating the danger of the contaminated area.
Whether the people in Block Fairy Tale City knew the specifics of the "great pollution" was unknown for now, but many stories told here involved the "great pollution," and the "great pollution" clearly had other hidden details. Who would believe it had nothing to do with the game task?
The Instance had three tasks, and the game hadn't indicated whether completing just one would allow clearance, so for now, all three tasks had to be treated as mandatory.
Looking at the last two tasks, they were clearly related: find the woman who tells the correct story and find her teeth. If the three options were progressive, then the first step was to find someone who told the correct story.
There were many storytellers in Block Fairy Tale City, but the "correct story" likely referred to one or a few specific stories. Regardless of truth, before finding this person, one had to figure out the general direction of the "correct story."
For now, that direction was most likely the "great pollution" from twenty years ago.
Having sorted out some clues, Xu Huo's car arrived at the Yongxing Club.
As he got out, a few tourists were being turned away at the entrance. The waiter said politely, "Sirs, this is a membership-only establishment. Only members can stay here."
"Not even if we pay extra?" one tourist asked. "We can apply for a membership card."
"Membership cards are issued by the main branch. Our local branch cannot process them." The waiter explained with a smile.
The tourists left dejectedly, and Xu Huo stepped forward to ask, "Can the Yongxing Restaurant membership card be used here?"
The waiter's smile became more genuine. "Of course. Yongxing membership cards are universal. What is your surname, sir?"
"Xu." Xu Huo handed over the membership card he had obtained on the Preliminary Examination Train.
The waiter took it with both hands, slid his finger along the edge, and quickly returned it, warmly inviting him inside while introducing the club's facilities.
"The first floor is mainly for leisure and entertainment. Mr. Xu can play ball games or have tea here. If you'd like to watch a performance, besides the cinema, we also have a dedicated performance troupe."
"The second floor is the dining area. Besides local cuisine from Block Fairy Tale City, we also offer specialty dishes from other districts. However, the restaurant does not serve human meat or any meat or vegetables produced by Xenomorphs. Please understand."
"The third floor is the swimming and fitness area. The fourth to tenth floors are VIP rooms. Mr. Xu can choose any vacant room."
"I'd like to see the night view," Xu Huo said.
"I understand. Mr. Xu can stay in the penthouse panoramic room. From there, you can overlook Fairy Tale City in a 360-degree view, and even see the lights of the government city in the contaminated zone."
The waiter smiled and handed over a signed bill, which listed the price. The panoramic room cost five thousand White Notes per night.
Xu Huo booked two nights and gave him a thousand as a tip.
"Can members bring people in?"
"I'm sorry, Mr. Xu. Yongxing only accommodates guests with membership cards. This is to ensure the comfort of all guests."
Xu Huo nodded, ordered some food, and then asked, "You mentioned you have a performance troupe? Are there any storytellers?"
"Yes, there are. Would you like to go to a private room downstairs to relax, or would you prefer to rest in your room?" the waiter asked.
"Send someone up."
The waiter quickly left. By the time Xu Huo had taken a shower, the food and the storyteller had arrived.
He sat down at the table and looked at the woman standing a few meters away. "You're quite young."
The woman smiled and said, "Sir, if you want to hear stories about Block Fairy Tale City, I know them all."
Xu Huo took a sip of wine. "Then start with the pollution incident from twenty years ago."
The woman told several related stories.
Her storytelling was much more engaging than what Xu Huo had heard during the day. At least the stories had a complete beginning and end, with no obvious loopholes. But they were still tales of uncertain authenticity, containing nothing he wanted to know.
After sending her away, he called the waiter back and learned that this club had been built ten years ago, when the tourist city model was already well-established. Storytelling was a necessary skill for locals and business owners, so the club had trained a group of storytellers, but their stories were largely the same as those in Fairy Tale City.
Standing by the window, Xu Huo suddenly noticed a few stray cats fighting in a street corner. One exhausted, skinny cat rolled off a trash can and got stuck on something on the ground. The other cats immediately swarmed it, biting its throat and devouring it.
By now, the night was deep. After the shops on both sides of the street closed, the streetlights suddenly dimmed. The darkness and silence were like a dead animal lurking in the shadows of the brightly lit buildings in the distant contaminated zone.
He withdrew his gaze, pulled the curtains shut, and lay down on the bed.