Global Collapse

"Kuangcheng City, a city established in AD 1305..."

The timeline here obviously didn't quite match that of Gu Mian's world.

"It houses the biggest coal mine base in the world, requiring a huge amount of labor—at one point it became the city that the Lower Class People were all eager to enter."

"Here, the Lower Class People can earn substantial rewards, receive relatively good medical care, and they can even partner with the Upper Class People to establish factories or marry..."

Upon reading this, Gu Mian stroked his chin. I wonder what era it is now. From what's described in this book, it appears the tension between the Upper Class People and the Lower Class People wasn't as acute at that time.

"Yeah," Fatty added, leaning in. "People could even get married and stuff."

Gu Mian continued reading.

"Although the Lower Class People were somewhat dissatisfied with the Upper Class People controlling the economic lifeline, aside from a few intense feuds, everything was generally peaceful."

So, back then, they could actually have feuds... Gu Mian mused.

"Xiao En, the manager of the coal mine, is a humorous and responsible leader. He regularly sends his workers to the central hospital for check-ups, knowing that coal miners have a high probability of having health issues."

"If any visitors wish to tour the city, you should certainly visit the coal mine..."

Gu Mian read through the rest, which was full of praise for the coal mine base's facilities, sanitation, and support for its workforce.

It also heavily complimented Manager Xiao En, making Gu Mian almost suspect this tourist brochure was sponsored by Xiao En himself.

The last page of the tourist brochure was a detailed city map.

Finally, I don't have to rely on memory for the map anymore, Gu Mian thought with relief.

Mr. Slaughter was currently scrutinizing the screen. "They surprisingly don't know the history of our forbidden zone. It seems these two are not only Lower Class People but also smugglers."

"As everyone knows," he said, looking at the camera in front of him, "every year, countless smugglers from other worlds land in our world, crossing over from gaps between worlds. We have yet to find a way to block these gaps."

"These two are obviously smugglers. Come to think of it, there seem to have been smugglers who infiltrated this game in previous seasons too..."

Inside the library, Gu Mian tucked a tourist brochure into his pocket.

He thought for a bit and then handed two more brochures to Fatty.

Fatty, a bit dazed, caught them. "Doc... what do we do next?"

Fatty wasn't dumb, but he wasn't particularly smart either. If you gave him a task, he could probably think of numerous ways to get it done.

But if you didn't give him a specific objective and just left him there, he'd be clueless.

Fatty was currently clueless, simply waiting for Gu Mian to give him a specific command, like a greenhorn soldier on the battlefield.

Gu Mian extended his hand. "First, we need to figure out why this city became a forbidden zone. From this brochure, we can see that the relationship between the Upper Class People and Lower Class People was at least passable a long time ago."

Though it may not have been harmonious, they were able to maintain a semblance of superficial harmony.

"I suspect the city becoming a forbidden zone is related to the rupture between the Upper Class People and the Lower Class People. Something must have happened in this city to cause their relationship to deteriorate so acutely."

"So what exactly happened back then?"

"Now we have two options to explore this city's past..."

Gu Mian held up a finger. "One, we capture a native of this world and inquire about past events."

"Two..."

Fatty, not needing to be told, guessed what Gu Mian would say. "Two, we catch a ghost that can talk, torture it severely, and force it to reveal what happened all those years ago?"

Gu Mian looked at Fatty in surprise. "You're getting smarter, huh!"

Fatty laughed dryly. "Heh heh..."

"Of course, we also have a third option, albeit the least efficient one. If we can't catch a native or a ghost, we'll have to explore by ourselves."

After saying that, Gu Mian looked over at the library entrance.

So far, aside from Fatty, he hadn't encountered any other players.

But that's pretty normal, he thought. Placing a hundred people in such a vast city, constantly bumping into each other would be the truly strange part.

Fatty shone his flashlight. "It looks like we'll have to start by exploring on our own."

"Alright." Gu Mian patted his clothes and stood up. "Let me see the map. Our first destination is... the coal mine base." He pointed to a spot on the map. "It's located in the upper right-hand corner, the city's northeastern corner."

As he spoke, Gu Mian started walking towards the exit.

Fatty, a bit curious, asked, "Why the coal mine base?"

"Aside from the fact that this city is known for its booming coal mining industry, think about it. If the Upper Class People and Lower Class People got into a conflict, and this conflict could quickly spread to the entire world, what do you think would be the flashpoint for their conflict?"

Fatty racked his brain. "Interests?"

"Mm," Gu Mian nodded. "The population at this city's coal mine base is diverse, with Upper Class People and Lower Class People mixed together. It's the most likely place for disputes to erupt."

"Moreover, heavy industry is well-developed in this world; perhaps it's the very lifeline of this world. And coal is the energy that sustains this lifeline. If the world's largest coal mine base were destroyed by the Lower Class People, one can only imagine the fury of certain people."

The coal mine base was in the far northeastern corner of the city. Walking there was somewhat unrealistic.

Gu Mian looked at the tricycle crashed against the wall on the street. The white, human-shaped figure was still stuck to the front of it. He'd half-expected the thing to reanimate and flee, or something of that sort.

"I'll see if this piece of junk can still run," Gu Mian said, righting the tricycle.

Fatty hesitated. "But didn't the brake fail?"

Gu Mian paused briefly, then offered a reasonable alternative. "How about this: if you're scared, I'll drive, and you can run behind and follow?"