# 681
Chapter 682: The Mysterious Fourth Person
"I don't remember. The moment that pillar of light descended, I lost consciousness, but..." Cao Yuan paused, speaking with some uncertainty. "I feel like something came out of my body at that moment..."
An Qingyu thought seriously about this.
Using Forbidden Ruins here would attract that mysterious gaze and result in instant death. If he guessed correctly, that crimson pillar of light should be the divine punishment used here to execute Forbidden Ruins wielders. Logically, once that pillar descended, Cao Yuan should have been reduced to ashes.
But why did he not only survive, but even severely injured or killed several Oracle Envoys?
An Qingyu was very clear about what a [Wicked] level wanted criminal represented. For Cao Yuan to reach this rank, it meant his existence had genuinely threatened this country...
During the time he lost consciousness, what exactly happened?
"Jiang Er, search the database within [Pure Land] for image records of Hachimantai City from two years ago." After pondering for a moment, An Qingyu said to Jiang Er beside him.
"Okay."
Jiang Er nodded, its form dissolving into the electronic screen to access the database here.
"How about you? How did you make your way here and take control of the entire [Pure Land]?" Cao Yuan asked curiously.
An Qingyu smiled faintly. "After Jiang Er and I drifted here, we first did a simple test of the rules regarding Forbidden Ruins tolerance in this place. Unexpectedly, we attracted the pursuit of Oracle Envoys, but relying on Jiang Er's abilities, we easily escaped.
Later, I spent a week learning the local language, then brought 200,000 yen to the casino. After consecutively bankrupting four casinos and conveniently eliminating a few small yakuza groups that tried to cause trouble, I won back 940 million yen. Using the fake identity Jiang Er created for me, I established several logistics companies.
These logistics companies spread across most of Japan—from modern metropolitan cities to remote rural towns, my people were everywhere. Seemingly engaged in logistics work, but through them, the hidden cameras attached to vehicles and transportation, plus Jiang Er's abilities, I could establish eyes and ears throughout most of Japan.
Unfortunately, even after reaching this level, I still couldn't find any of you...
About half a year ago, I realized this approach wouldn't work, so I turned my focus to this place."
An Qingyu adjusted his glasses and continued. "According to the intelligence I gathered, [Pure Land] is more like an observer floating above the mortal world. And if I hadn't miscalculated, there are deep secrets hidden within this place—the deepest level secrets of this country. If I could excavate them, perhaps I could find you.
So, I began a plan that lasted half a year..."
After An Qingyu finished explaining all his strategies and arrangements, Cao Yuan fell into silence.
He gazed at An Qingyu with a helpless expression. They were all humans—how could the gap be so enormous...
The brain really was a good thing. What a pity mine wasn't particularly useful.
Cao Yuan sighed.
An Qingyu picked out the last piece of bone fragment and began carefully stitching his wound, but before he could finish the sutures, Cao Yuan's wound had essentially self-healed. From the outside, there was hardly any trace of injury.
"You have super regeneration too?" An Qingyu asked in surprise.
Cao Yuan shook his head. "I don't know. Before this, my injury recovery was relatively fast, but I don't think it was ever this fast. I always feel like something changed in me after that incident two years ago..."
An Qingyu raised an eyebrow, his gaze lingering vaguely on Cao Yuan's brain. He licked his lips and asked试探性地:
"Want me to dissect you? Then I can tell you what happened."
Cao Yuan's mouth twitched. "I don't have the habit of being a lab rat."
"How boring."
An Qingyu shrugged.
Just then, Cao Yuan seemed to remember something. "Qiye is here too."
"What?" An Qingyu was stunned, quickly coming back to his senses. "Where is he?"
"I don't know the specific location, but half a month ago, an Oracle Envoy came with his photo trying to extract information. He should have just landed, and an Oracle Envoy went after him." Cao Yuan paused, then continued. "But besides me, there are no other invaders in the Prison District, so he probably wasn't caught."
"That's Lin Qiye we're talking about. He's not so easily caught." An Qingyu smiled.
Cao Yuan gave him a meaningful look.
An Qingyu also realized he'd misspoke, lightly clearing his throat and automatically skipping past the topic. "Besides him, is there anyone else?"
"Yes, the Oracle Envoys showed me a total of five photos." Cao Yuan recalled. "The first was Pangpang, the second and third were you and Jiang Er, the fourth... was someone I'd never seen before, and the fifth was Lin Qiye."
An Qingyu's eyes narrowed slightly. "If these photos were arranged in chronological order, after you, Pangpang landed, then Jiang Er and I a year and a half ago—but why would there be a stranger? Could there be someone else like us?"
"No, that's not right." Cao Yuan shook his head decisively. "I wasn't the first to come ashore—Pangpang was. When I was first caught here, they already showed me Pangpang's photo to question me. The correct order should be Pangpang, me, you and Jiang Er, the stranger, and then Lin Qiye."
"So Jialan and Shen Qingzhu still haven't landed yet?" An Qingyu pondered for a moment, then rejected this idea. "Not necessarily. Not being captured by Oracle Envoys doesn't mean they didn't come..."
"To be honest, I'm a bit curious." Cao Yuan couldn't help but ask. "If Pangpang was first, how did someone like him—how did someone not particularly quick-witted—manage to survive here and perfectly evade Oracle Envoys?"
An Qingyu thought for a long time but had no answer.
"Regardless, you should rest well here. With your current recovery ability, you'll be able to move freely in at most a week." An Qingyu put away the surgical knife.
"What about you? Are you going to find Qiye and the others?"
"No, I'm staying here." An Qingyu shook his head. "Since Qiye is here, he'll eventually cause a big commotion. I just need to quietly wait for him to appear. [Pure Land] hides this country's secrets—I need time to crack them.
I hope that by the time we reunite, I've completely mastered the intelligence of this country... But after you recover, I can send you down to find them first. As long as you wear a communication earpiece, Jiang Er can contact you anytime."
Cao Yuan thought about it and nodded vigorously. "Okay."