In the Special Operations Bureau, deep divers are combat elites who emerge from rigorous selection and harsh training.
They endure numerous trials to rise above ordinary agents.
These specialized individuals are always sent to the most dangerous places, confronted with extreme challenges that test the limits of human reason.
They know how to survive in lethal environments of alien worlds, how to chase after frenzied cultists in lawless territories, and they can even charge into the unknown, facing the most dangerous entities.
They venture into nightmares, rescuing fallen souls from the intricate labyrinth woven from spirits and consciousness.
Deep diving is about sinking from the quiet, peaceful world into a dark dimension beneath reason—this is their work.
Yet, in this world, there are always things that human wisdom cannot comprehend or combat.
Even the sharpest deep divers encounter failure, and it often happens.
At this moment, the situation was beyond Song Cheng's work experience—almost unexpected even for the bureau chief.
Six deep divers were urgently transported from the “water tank” to the outside world.
Their powered armor automatically executed emergency medical procedures as they returned to the real dimension.
The armor's built-in injection system delivered a large dose of sanity blockers and protective medicine, calming them quickly.
Soon, support staff approached to inspect each individual for signs of contamination, confirming whether their consciousness had returned to the material world alongside their bodies—and whether anything else had “returned” with them.
Song Cheng and Bai Liqing stood aside, their brows furrowed, watching this scene unfold.
“Math problems?” After a long silence, Song Cheng couldn't help but break the quiet. “Can math problems hit so hard?”
Bai Liqing shook her head gently. “Professors from the Terra ‘Academy’ can indeed attack opponents by flooding an ordinary person's brain with excessive knowledge in an instant, but that wouldn’t produce this kind of effect. Besides, our deep divers are professionally trained to adapt to knowledge-based attacks. Not only do they have considerable learning ability, but their brains can also enter a state of dormancy when faced with an overload of knowledge.”
Song Cheng frowned. “So you mean...”
“The math problem mentioned by that deep diver before he fainted was probably just some kind of visual impression they encountered during the dive. The real cause of contamination... should be something else,” Bai Liqing said solemnly. “There was no nightfall valley at the end of the channel... but why a math problem?”
Song Cheng held his tongue, wary of interrupting the chief’s train of thought.
After a brief silence, Bai Liqing suddenly turned to him. “Xiao Song, you haven't had contact with that ‘Yu Sheng’ yet, right?”
“Yeah, I planned to reach out to that person today, but didn't expect all these unforeseen incidents...”
“Don’t go,” Bai Liqing said lightly.
...
Yu Sheng heard a bit of noise and looked around, failing to locate its source.
The café was quiet, with only a few patrons scattered at distant tables.
Two staff members nearby were bored, scrolling on their phones; the place felt rather deserted.
Occasionally, someone would glance over, perhaps wondering why a young man in his twenties was sitting in a café, engrossed in transcribing a thick stack of high school homework.
Yu Sheng sighed as he looked at the remaining half of the papers, feeling a bit of strain in his hand.
He had tried to scribble through the work, but much of it looked like scribbles from a ghost.
After years of typing, his hands were not used to writing so many characters; this task was unexpectedly exhausting.
But it was hard to say what was more tiring: doing this homework for a high school student or dragging a clueless fox through a shopping mall for clothes.
Yu Sheng thought it over and felt it was better to be here copying the papers—he really lacked the courage to bring Hu Li into an underwear store.
That would make him feel like a creep.
Especially when Hu Li showed that innocent naivety; he could easily be mistaken for a pervert and reported by shop staff.
At that moment, a voice echoed in his mind: “Hey hey~ Yu Sheng, how much have you written over there?”
Yu Sheng continued his task without stopping. “I’m halfway through. High school students are really piled up with work; why is there so much homework?”
“Keep at it! I heard Little Red Riding Hood mention that she has another physics assignment, but she forgot to bring it...”
“Let her go home and write it herself, I’m not dealing with that,” Yu Sheng replied irritably. “What about you guys? Is everything going smoothly?”
“Not bad. Hu Li struggles with zippers; Little Red Riding Hood taught her for ages. They are now together in the fitting room... I’m stuck outside on a bench,” Erin sounded cheerful. “Little Red Riding Hood even bought me a hairpin! From the doll store, it’s red...”
Yu Sheng thought for a moment and realized, “That’s using my money!”
“I know, I know,” Erin hurriedly said. “Consider it a gift from you... I asked for nothing else, just a hairpin. It’s not expensive...”
“Alright, alright, I didn’t say you couldn’t buy it,” Yu Sheng responded amusingly. “Just a reminder, don’t get too carried away shopping. Also, don’t forget to get Hu Li some toiletries, and sheets and covers. You didn’t forget the sizes, did you?”
“Of course not, I remember! Don’t worry, I’m sharp...” Suddenly, Erin paused, her tone shifting. “Hu Li’s brain...” Yu Sheng fell into a strange and awkward silence.
That’s how it is when a team can’t seem to manage.
“What size is her bed?” Erin’s voice seemed particularly uncertain now.
“One point five by two meters,” Yu Sheng sighed. “Tell Little Red Riding Hood that, let her keep track of what you two want to buy. She’s a high school student; her brain works better than yours.”
“Okay, okay...”
Yu Sheng helplessly ended the conversation in his head and leaned down to continue copying.
But just then, he suddenly felt something was off around him.
Silence—when did it become so quiet? He couldn’t even hear the hushed conversations from the couple of nearby tables.
Yu Sheng jerked his head up, quickly scanning the area.
He was still in the café.
Countless tables and chairs stood neatly aligned, extending infinitely forward and backward.
In this boundless, empty café, there wasn’t a soul to be found; all that filled his sight were rows of tables and chairs.
To his left was a window facing the street—now, the window seemed to stretch indefinitely too, but outside, all he could see was a dense fog.
A hulking shadow moved slowly through the mist, occasionally approaching the nearby window as if watching the café.
Regardless of how closely he looked, those shadows only had indistinct, hazy outlines.
Yu Sheng gazed at this scene in shock, slowly rising from his chair.
However, just as he was about to push open the door and leave, a voice suddenly came from across the table. “Hello.”
It was a slightly hoarse, yet youthful female voice.
Surprised, Yu Sheng looked up to see that someone had taken a seat across from him without his noticing.
It was a woman who looked to be under thirty—dressed in a fitted white suit, her gray-white hair in a ponytail.
She was beautiful, yet an unspoken distance and chill emanated from her.
But Yu Sheng's attention was drawn mainly to her eyes, which were a light gray color, as if all color had drained from them.
The border between her pupils and sclera appeared quite blurred, making it seem... not entirely human.
Next, he noticed a bewildering sight—everything around the woman rapidly lost its color, from the nearby café table and chairs to the floors and other furnishings, all turning a pale gray.
The range of this fading extended over ten meters before it finally started to weaken.
Only the woman herself, and Yu Sheng, retained their original colors.
Yu Sheng steadied his mind, recalling what Erin had told him— there could be rational entities in foreign realms, but even human-like entities would show glaring, unnatural traits.
This woman looked peculiar but clearly not “abnormal,” which meant she should be human.
Since she was human, and was initiating conversation, it meant they could speak properly.
Yu Sheng set aside his intention to leave, sitting back in his chair, eyes curious as he asked, “Who are you?”
“Bai Liqing, director of the Special Operations Bureau under the Boundary Geography Council,” the woman opposite him nodded gently. “I apologize for meeting you in this manner—it's for the sake of confidentiality and certain safety considerations.”
Yu Sheng was taken aback.
So the Special Operations Bureau really did come to find him—but at such a high level? The director herself had come?!
While Yu Sheng was dumbfounded, Bai Liqing casually glanced at the pile of papers on the table.
She saw the stack of math problems— all of them, just math problems, real questions from past college entrance exams.
(End of Chapter)