Origin Paradise!

The cliffs, as pure as crystal, are rugged yet layered upon closer inspection. Wisps of icy mist linger in the air, and hundreds of crimson waterfalls cascade down into bottomless caves, emitting a strong, pungent smell of blood that even the extreme cold cannot mask.

Old Hei was a little embarrassed. "Similar and dense" describes social wild animals, and it seems that he has led the wrong way.

“There are sheep up there,” Jiang He said softly.

On the cliff face, ibex, resembling ice crystals, moved slowly, almost blending into their surroundings, licking at the blood-red salt grains that had splashed out and then solidified.

In the natural world, blue sheep can climb near-vertical cliffs with ease, and the extraordinary species before us is no different.

"Find a way to make these ibex fall down. At this height, ordinary mutants would probably die, unless they are all elite monsters of the level of monkeys and jackals."

Old Hei stared at a huge male argali sheep with two horns. The sheep was nearly three meters long and looked like a formidable creature.

Jiang He approached the icy blue cliff, holding a black gemstone in his hand. He planned to use the shockwave from the explosion to make his prey lose its balance and fall. However, as if sensing the approaching danger, the alien ibex stopped in their tracks. In the instant they stopped moving, they transformed into crystal-clear ice sculptures, freezing tightly to the cliff face.

With deep, dark caverns on both sides, Jiang He frowned slightly and retreated the way she came.

"They're hard to kill. I can keep them at bay, but it's not cost-effective. It might take more than ten days."

Old Black sat on the ground in thought, stroking his chin with his paws like a human, and after a moment said:

"There's humus in the forest, so there's a good chance of earthworms. Poisonous insects like centipedes love to eat sticky insects. If we catch a bunch, we might be able to attract the centipedes. The three-colored centipedes we saw the first time we came here were obviously highly poisonous. If your hypnosis works, we can control the centipedes to poison those argali sheep."

Jiang He nodded, "Then let's give it a try."

The man and his dog returned to the forest. Old Black, relying on his sense of smell, found a damp spot with a strong earthy smell.

Jiang He chopped tree branches, whittled them into sticks, and then used another stick to continuously saw through the ground.

Earthworms crawl out of the soil and onto the surface on rainy days because rainwater blocks oxygen. For earthworms, the friction and vibration of a stick is similar to rain.

Old Hei stared at the ground. A dozen minutes later, the first earthworm emerged, and he pinched off a black hair and pinned it down.

As time passed, the number of earthworms gradually increased, then piled up into a small stack before suddenly decreasing.

The man and dog moved to a new location, continuing their search for damp areas.

After a busy night, Lao Hei's dog skin was bald, and he had caught countless earthworms, filling three full bark bags. The resources in the Borderland Wilderness were astonishingly abundant.

Jiang He used the Long Hatred Spear to dig a large pit in the woods and poured a bag of earthworms into it. The earthworms, pierced by the black hair, could not re-enter the soil and curled up densely in the pit.

"Let's light a torch to dissipate the smell."

Old Hei sat down and rubbed the ground together to start a fire, then carried the torch in his mouth and circled the pit dozens of times.

With preparations complete, the man and his dog climbed a tall tree, quietly waiting for their prey to come to them.

The sun rose and set over the border, and as a day and night passed, a large number of earthworms died, and the peculiar earthy smell grew even stronger.

Old Black let out a yawn, jumped down from the tree to find a corner to relieve himself, and when he came back, he saw Jiang He had also climbed down the tree, his whole body tense, in hunting mode.

Old Hei looked closely and realized that the prey was not the tricolor centipede he had expected, but a bright red spider the size of a fist. The red spots on its back were particularly eerie, and even from a distance, they could cause psychological discomfort. However, there was a conspicuous scar that looked like a bird's beak.

“This guy isn’t very smart,” Jiang He suddenly said, standing up straight.

Old Black breathed a sigh of relief and guessed, "It's probably one of those that failed to win the previous battle and is eager to replenish its food."

The bright red spider crawled into the pit and then spun its web at an eerily fast speed. Its sharp mouthparts cut the earthworms, and its appetite far exceeded its own size.

Jiang He picked up a wooden stick he had prepared beforehand, the tip of which was covered with black hair and pierced with a large number of earthworms. Then he put a leaf in his mouth and gently tapped the spider web with the stick.

The vibration caught the attention of the bright red spider, which observed it for a moment before suddenly pouncing on it.

Jiang He pulled away the wooden stick and whistled with a leaf, while simultaneously activating her active skill, Hypnosis.

The bright red spider became alert, and Jiang He blew the whistle again, a sound that symbolized advancing.

For a full three minutes, the bright red spider hesitated and moved forward a distance, getting close to the earthworm on the stick and about to bite it when Jiang He used his Ming Jin to shake it up half a meter.

Another whistle blew, completely different from the previous one; this time it symbolized tearing.

Seeing this, Old Black's face twitched. Before he gained wisdom, this guy was the one who lectured him.

As the whistle rang out again and again, the crimson spider slowly came to understand its meaning, and its movements became increasingly fluid in response.

As a reward, a whole bag of earthworms was poured out.

Suddenly, the bright red spider broke free of its restraints and charged madly at the bark bag. Jiang He had anticipated this and swept out with his gun, sending the spider flying hundreds of steps away.

By now, nearly half of its energy had been used up. A whistle signaling progress was blown, and the Crimson Spider obediently returned to its original position to wait.

As the tone representing eating played, Jiang He activated hypnosis and said in her own voice, "Gnaw."

The bright red spider feasted.

Once it finishes eating, the second round of taming begins.

Jiang He responded to the whistle with his own voice and words, taking turns to replace it. After completing the second round of taming, he was rewarded with a bag of earthworms.

The whole process took several hours, and the energy level was depleted to nearly 100.

"Just make do with it."

Jiang He wiped the sweat from his forehead. He felt a little tired from frequently activating his hypnotic skills while fully focused on it.

Old Black led the way, and the man and dog led the spider back to the icy blue cliff. The alien goats were still licking the blood salt. Upon discovering that the hunters had returned, ice sculptures were regenerated one after another.

The bright red spider climbed the cliff on command, tearing at the ice with its mouthparts. Before long, a different species of ibex fell down, its warm and thick fur relatively intact.

The second one landed, followed closely by the third.

The lead male ibex became agitated. Jiang He walked straight over and used his hand to hold the Chaos Bomb against the cliff. He didn't mind these guys breaking out of their ice sculpture state. If the tribal leader was willing to sacrifice himself to kill the Crimson Spider, he could accept the result. After all, the level of life affects the quality of the fur, and the buyer should know its value.

When the twenty-fourth ibex was thrown to its death, the male ibex almost lost his temper, but at the same time, the hunt came to an abrupt end.

Old Black dragged its prey into the forest, and Jiang He recalled the Crimson Spider and retreated.

"In three seconds, this group of exotic argali sheep died in mid-air. If it were an ordinary person, they would probably be poisoned to death instantly."

Old Hei reported his observations: the scarlet spider is not strong in direct combat, but it contains potent venom, making it suitable for assassination due to its size.

"Go back and get some healing potions to try. If they can cure the poison, keep them with you," Jiang He said. Despite having undergone two rounds of taming, he couldn't guarantee that the scarlet spider wouldn't bite him under special circumstances, and could only hope to find a solution from the hunter system in the future.

"Safety first." Old Hei nodded steadily.

Each argali sheep appeared normal on the outside, but when Jiang He peeled off the hide, he found that the flesh inside was covered with mottled patterns, the tissues eroded by toxins were severely necrotic and had completely lost their vitality, and the heart had strangely dried up.

The man and his dog headed back home. On their way down the mountain, they stopped at the market and bought a live pig. Their wages for the month had already been deposited into their account.

Back in the red brick building, Jiang He bought two bottles of healing potions from the Origin Game's public shop. He had used one of them when he healed his burns after the spin-off quest ended.

[Game Coins: 925]

"Gnawing".

A bright red spider pounced on the back of the pig's neck and bit it, and in the blink of an eye, the pig began to tremble.

Jiang He promptly administered the small dose of healing medicine into the experimental pig's mouth. After resting for half an hour, the pig finally had the strength to stand up again.

"Gnawing".

This time, the live pig only lasted for less than two seconds before the experiment ended, and the person did not consume a second dose of the healing potion.

"If a low-level player cannot take the healing potion within seconds, they will also die... The spider seems to have evolved."

Jiang He beckoned, and a bright red spider crawled onto his shoulder, its back now bearing a red spot.

When Lao Hei dissected the live pig, its heart also showed signs of drying out.

"Twenty-four exotic blue sheep, whose staple food is heart blood."

Jiang He thought for a moment and said, "She has great potential, so let's name her Xiao Hong."

Old Black: "..."

It's so sloppy.

Old Hei said helplessly, "I gave myself a name. In ancient times, the elegant name for a wolf was Danglu Jun, so I called myself Jiang Danglu."

Jiang He smiled and said, "It's more meaningful for you to choose your own name. You don't have to bear my expectations. Besides, I plan to complete that daily task after dark. The location is in Shanghai. If I don't take you with me this time, I might not even be able to take care of myself when we get there."

Old Hei nodded, agreeing with the other party's decision.

At night, Jiang He pulled out the Glock 17 rifle and two magazines full of bullets from under the bed. After stuffing Xiao Hong into his inventory, and seeing that it was still alive, he took off the mission pendant he had obtained on the island.

The moment the mission began, his figure vanished from the spot.

Chapter 31 Retrieving the Sent Letter

2028, April 9.

Shanghai, the Great City.

On a bench in Donghai Park, a young man in a gray-white jacket surveyed the distant streets. Shanghai was bustling with activity, and the city center was filled with cars flowing endlessly under the night sky. Dazzling neon lights filled the view, and figures could be seen moving in the skyscrapers.

Jiang He touched his cheek. His monocle was embedded in his eye socket. He was now in a disguise with blond hair and blue eyes, but this disguise was slightly different from before. The pendant that served as the medium for the mission had turned to ashes.

[Task trigger conditions have been met]

[Note: Single-player chain quests are now available]

[Note: Camouflage adaptation adjustment has been enabled]

[Quest Name: Regret and Vengeful Spirits]

[Main Quest 1: Retrieve the Sent Letter]

[Task Rewards: ① 100 experience points and game currency ② Targeted Common Quality Skill *1]

[Task Time Limit: Three days and seven hours]

As the notification tone ended, Jiang He reached into the briefcase beside her. It had a red diamond pattern on it with a cross in the middle. Inside, there was only a wallet, passport, cell phone, and a stack of documents written on A4 paper.

He successfully unlocked his phone with his fingerprint, and then took a selfie. The disguised image in the photo was extremely similar to the face on his passport.

"Rhein Augustus".

The phone was completely blank, as if it had just come out of the factory. The data was all in English, and there were a lot of professional names, which Jiang He found a little difficult to read.

"Weapons manufacturing experts, the data introduces a new type of exoskeleton assistive device and two low-cost assault rifles."

Jiang He focused his attention on the title of the document, which prominently displayed the words "Maritime Trade Talks".

"The situation is quite vague. My current identity should be that of the death row inmate on the island. He was wearing a disguise before he was ambushed and killed. He might not be simple, but he doesn't seem to be strong either."

Opening the wallet, there was three thousand dollars and a piece of paper with the date 1999.07.25 written on it. In the tucked compartment was a photo of Rhein Augustus and an unidentified middle-aged man.

"The Maritime Trade Talks seem to be a key clue."

Jiang He packed her things, left the park and walked onto the street. The noise and commotion were overwhelming. With a population of over 20 million, Shanghai meant that any private action would be much more difficult, especially since this was the headquarters of the Eastern Region of the Bureau of Order.

A series of almost spying gazes came from above. Jiang He lowered his eyelids slightly to sense them. Out of a hunter's instinct, he could distinguish the differences between them. One was the warm gaze of the passersby, while the other was the cold gaze of the surveillance cameras.

“Shanghai is completely different from Anping Island.”

Jiang He began actively searching for the location of surveillance cameras, and over the next half hour, he entered shopping malls, restrooms, subway stations, and other places in turn, eventually walking into an internet cafe.

"If you don't have an ID card, just bring your passport."

The internet cafe owner wasn't too surprised to see that the visitor was a foreigner. Shanghai is in line with international trends, and you can see tourists from all over the world here. She quickly completed the process.

"It's 30 yuan an hour outside, and the other screens all say the same thing. How much do you want to top up?"

Jiang He was secretly shocked by the price, but outwardly remained calm and took out a hundred-yuan bill.

"Private room, two hours."

The proprietress reached out and took the money, returned the passport, and then continued scrolling through short videos.

Lately, strange things have been happening a lot, with the number of murders increasing exponentially compared to previous years. A while ago, a fierce battle broke out on the Bund; the official explanation was that a director was making a new film about a beach landing, taking a documentary-style approach. Yesterday afternoon, a blogger who was idly compiling statistics on gas explosions across various regions was taken away by creditors right after posting a video.

Jiang He glanced at it casually, then turned and headed to the private room. Not only the Great Xia Order Bureau, but also information about the Origin Game was kept under wraps worldwide.

Based on Chu Fuqiang's personal speculation in previous derivative missions, this relationship is somewhat similar to that between military and civilian technologies. It is necessary to ensure the dominant position of the powerful in order to maintain the existing order more effectively. Otherwise, the underlying rule that players can plunder by killing others could easily cause unpredictable chaos.

The first principle of the Order Bureau is order, because stability is suitable for the survival and reproduction of the race. Based on this principle, all parties jointly established the Current Defense Council.

Inside the private room, Jiang He turned on his computer and began searching for news about the "Maritime Trade Talks." During this time, he completed his summary of the surveillance.

"Considering the cost, the purpose of deploying surveillance is to achieve the objective."

"First of all, it is public. There is a high probability that surveillance will be present on the routes that people must take in public places, such as subways and stations."

"Secondly, it's protective; the entrances to shopping malls and shops are basically under surveillance."

"Secondly, there is the traditional aspect: there is no legal surveillance in any place where the body can be exposed below a moral standard, such as changing rooms and toilets."