A line of people filed through the door to the real world, with Yu Sheng as usual staying at the end of the line. Just before stepping through the door, he turned back one last time to take a look at this fog-covered "neighborhood in the mirror."

The self-repairing properties of the Exotic Realm began to take effect; the streets damaged by the battle were slowly recovering in the mist. The new entities hadn't appeared yet, and all around, it was quiet—as if the earlier eerie, noisy cluster entities and the dangerous battle had been nothing but an illusion.

After a moment of thought, Yu Sheng bit down hard to pierce his finger, flicking a few drops of fresh blood onto the nearby pavement while double-checking the coordinates for opening the door in this unfamiliar "Exotic Realm", then returned through the door to reality.

In front of the Wanxiang Mall, the special "ambulance" sent by the Special Service Bureau had already arrived at the square. As soon as the fortunate youngster escaped through the door, a few Special Service Bureau officers escorted him onto the vehicle—

First, an urgent check to confirm whether there were residual mental contaminations or other "aftereffects" from the Exotic Realm contact, followed by a safety scan to prevent anything that shouldn't enter the real world from coming out with him. Then, they cleaned off the residue of "resin" on him and had professionals conduct some psychological guidance, explaining some precautions after initial contact with the Exotic Realm and entities and so on...

The biggest precaution is to keep an open mind.

Evidently, the Special Service Bureau had a very professional handling process for this aspect.

It was an hour later when Yu Sheng and the others saw the young man again.

He was holding a cup of herbal tea said to have a "mild calming effect," slowly sipping it in the vehicle cabin, his gaze somewhat vacant, until Yu Sheng's trio and Little Red Riding Hood sat opposite him. Only then did he snap out of his distraction, squeezing out a smile—still with that startled-yet-weary look on his face.

"How are you feeling now?" Yu Sheng casually asked.

"Still sticky all over, can't get the resin off, I just want to take a shower when I get home," the young man sighed, "Also, I'm exhausted, like I ran a three-kilometer race... Ah, I did run for a long time, much more than three kilometers, with all that chaos in the fog chasing me..."

"A lot?" Yu Sheng instinctively raised his eyebrow, "What kind?"

"Couldn't see clearly, and I can't remember," the young man replied with a woeful face, "I don't even dare to think about it now, it was so horrifying... I just remember being caught up by a giant tree with legs like an old lady. It knocked me down with a branch and then puked all over me—next time I opened my eyes, I saw all of you... And at that time, this lady over here was a three or four-meter-tall fox..."

As he spoke, he instinctively glanced at Hu Li, his eyes still somewhat startled, as if the memory and emotions from the ordeal were still imprinted in his mind like an "afterimage." But he quickly realized and apologized, "Ah, sorry, I didn't mean anything by it, it just surprised me at the time..."

Hu Li wasn't bothered at all—she was busy rummaging through Yu Sheng's pocket for cookies.

Though her tail held many food reserves, getting snacks from her Savior was always the fox girl's favorite thing to do.

"Still shows some signs of speech barriers and temporary cognitive numbness," Little Red Riding Hood leaned over to Yu Sheng and whispered, "Probably the effects of the drugs have not yet worn off—although the sanity treatment-type medications for ordinary people are reduced in dosage repeatedly, it's his first time using them, the effects will last a while."

Yu Sheng nodded understandingly, then looked at the young man opposite, "Do you remember how you 'fell' to the other side, nephew?"

"The two Special Service Bureau people in the car already asked me that, but I really can't recall any details," the young man said apologetically, "I don't even know at what point things started to go wrong around me—I tend to get a bit absent-minded and confused, and I wasn't paying attention when I came over this morning..."

He paused, then continued, trying hard to recall, "I just remember going through a side door in the mall... It seemed newly opened; I just walked in thinking while looking down, and as I walked, I noticed it was very quiet around. When I looked up, the people in the mall had turned into hazy shadows, fog started rising all around, and in the blink of an eye, even those shadows were gone. Suddenly I was the only person left in the mall, and the phone signal didn't work, couldn't call any numbers..."

Yu Sheng listened intently, and at this moment, Erin also asked a question, "So, nephew, do you remember tapping on the glass in the shop window at the mall entrance? Did you hear anything then? Other than sounds, could you see anything?"

"Actually, I didn't hear it clearly. Everything that happened in the fog felt like an illusion. I just sensed there was movement in the glass and went over to tap on it—I couldn't see anything in the glass, just the fog on the street," the young man tried hard to recollect for a long time but ultimately shook his head regretfully, "I couldn't remember any more."

"So, nephew, you..."

"Uh, I do have a name," the young man finally felt a bit embarrassed being called "nephew" repeatedly. He awkwardly raised a hand to point at himself, "I'm Zheng Zhi..."

As a result, it would have been better if he hadn't said his name. The moment he did, the carriage instantly quieted down, and the atmosphere became even more subtle than before.

"...Isn't that still a big stop!" Erin stood directly on the seat, hands on her hips with conviction, "Who gave you this name?"

"My grandma," the young man opposite looked innocent, "She hoped I would become an upright person..."

"Ahem," Yu Sheng couldn't help but cough twice, interrupting this meaningless conversation, "Zheng Zhi, right, okay, I'll remember that—seeing your current state, you probably can't recall any useful details, so we won't ask. You go home and rest first. The Special Service Bureau said they would arrange a car to send you back. If you remember anything when you're at home, contact us immediately."

"Okay," the young man named Zheng Zhi nodded immediately and then hesitated for two or three seconds before speaking carefully, "Also, since you rescued me, I have to give you a reward, right? I heard you're professional 'Spirit Realm detectives', and Spirit Realm detectives charge for their work..."

He paused at this point, probably worried about being misunderstood by Yu Sheng and others, and hurriedly added, "I do have money, I do, just maybe not a lot, and I don't know your industry standards for fees..."

He appeared nervous and unsure, with a noticeable lack of confidence in his voice.

Yu Sheng and Little Red Riding Hood exchanged looks, both finding the situation a bit laughable.

"Don't worry about that," Little Red Riding Hood said helplessly, "Spirit Realm detectives aren't heartless money machines—unless someone had pre-arranged a paid commission for us to rescue someone from the Exotic Realm, otherwise, by our rules, unexpected incidents like yours are first resolved by saving people, regardless of the reward. Later, the Special Service Bureau will give us rewards—they have a dedicated incentive system for this."

Zheng Zhi then let out an "oh", scratching his head with an awkward smile.

"But I have a few words of advice for you," Little Red Riding Hood continued, "I don't know if the Special Service Bureau folks told you just now... but you need to 'be careful' in the future."

Zheng Zhi's expression noticeably changed, and then he spread his hands with a wry smile, "They warned me."

"Once you've had contact with 'the other side', you've established a connection with things beyond the boundary of reason, and this connection is irreversible," Little Red Riding Hood said seriously, "In the future, you'll have a higher chance of seeing things that ordinary people cannot see, seeing those secret entrances and hidden 'exotic objects', and given your 'High Sensitivity Low Stability' constitution, this might be more severe for you. There's a high probability that you'll fall into the Exotic Realm again."

"...The Special Service Bureau told me the same," Zheng Zhi clasped his hands tightly together, his knuckles slightly white, "They said they would arrange for the community to register me. In the future, I can get medication from the 'Exotic Doctor', and after the adaptation period, I can use reduced doses of Sanity Blockers. Those things can weaken my connection with 'the other side'. They also said they would arrange follow-up 'training' for me, mainly teaching me some basic knowledge of mysticism so that I can protect myself in abnormal situations..."

He sighed as he spoke, "Sigh, my uncle feared this the most while he was alive, and now I've caught up with it."

"As long as you know," Little Red Riding Hood nodded gently, "I won't pressurize you then—when you get back, try not to overthink it, take a bath, sleep, eat well, drink enough, stress and anxiety won't help. Trust the Special Service Bureau and the Council; if anything happens, first call the emergency number they gave you, or you can directly contact us."

Zheng Zhi left with a worried look, taking the Special Service Bureau car home.

Yu Sheng walked out of the carriage, watching them leave, and couldn't help but softly mutter, "Sigh, what bad luck..."

"It's bad luck indeed," Liu Bing's voice came from the side, "But in the Boundary Land, there are many unlucky cases like his."

As he spoke, he turned his head, looking at Yu Sheng and Little Red Riding Hood.

"I've already reported the basic situation to the superiors, and the reward application has been submitted. You've saved a person, combined with the discovery of an entirely new Exotic Realm and the gathering of raw data in this new realm, the bonus won't be small. Three to four hundred thousand, which will be credited directly to 'Fairy Tales' and 'travel agency's' accounts."

Upon hearing this, Yu Sheng's smile immediately became genuine and heartfelt.

He's just that kind of simply pure person.

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