DIM Chapter 4

Translator: Abo Dammen

“Captain Fei.” Tian Bin entered the room. “The information you requested from the Public Security Bureau has been compiled.”

“Chen Yi, 16 years old, a resident of Xinhai. Half a month ago, he accidentally consumed an anomalous creature and gained extraordinary abilities. Preliminary assessment indicates his abilities are similar to those of a flea-like organism, with a preference for blood. Unable to obtain official suppressants, he resorted to stealing from hospital blood banks with other small gangs.”

“What about his guardian?” Hearing Chen Yi’s age, Fei Shilan’s smile faded.

Tian Bin added, “His mother passed away early, and his father works out of town. He lived with his grandparents, but they passed away two years ago, leaving him unsupervised. His father only recently returned after Chen Yi kept asking for money.

“When he found out his son was involved in petty theft with a gang, he lost his temper and beat him half to death. In retaliation, Chen Yi turned dark, biting his father’s neck and draining him dry.

“For the next week, he acted as if nothing had happened, attending school during the day and killing homeless people at night. He hid well, and it wasn’t until early morning that the officers confirmed his identity and tracked him down. By then, he had already destroyed the surveillance cameras and streetlights. We were hoping to get more detailed information from the Anomaly Investigation Bureau.”

The investigation results were out. The pile of writhing flesh with no discernible properties was indeed Chen Yi. But knowing this only made it harder to understand—what kind of person could have done this to him?

“I’ll send you a copy of the investigation report.”

After Tian Bin left, Fei Shilan rubbed the document in his hands.

Chen Yi wasn’t dead, but he wasn’t conscious either, existing in a state that defied description.

The bureau had retrieved all the surveillance footage near the crime scene, but unfortunately, Chen Yi had already destroyed most of the cameras along the way, leaving limited information.

It was known that the broken watch couldn’t turn living beings into half-dead lumps of flesh, so it was suspected that he had been influenced by some entity from an unknown dimension.

But what exactly was that unknown entity?

“Are you busy?” The bureau chief knocked on the door.

Fei Shilan’s thoughts were interrupted.

The chief entered with another investigator.

The girl looked around 17-18, dressed in a formal white uniform with a butterfly brooch on her chest and black-framed glasses, giving her a scholarly air.

“Chief, who is this?”

The chief stepped forward and chuckled. “Let me introduce you. This is Lu Ying, an A-rank investigator from the capital.”

Fei Shilan stood up, hesitated for a moment, then shook her extended hand. “Hello, Captain Lu. I’m Fei Shilan.”

Lu Ying shook his hand vigorously. “Just call me Lu Ying. I’ve heard of you. You’re the one who contained that watch, right?”

Fei Shilan smiled. “Just got lucky.”

After they sat down, Fei Shilan asked, “Are you here on business alone?”

Lu Ying scratched her cheek. “Captain Lin had some things to take care of. He might arrive later.”

“He’s always so busy,” the chief said with a laugh. “Do you need any help from us this time?”

She nodded. “Actually, there is something…”

Fei Shilan waited for a few seconds, but Lu Ying just looked at them without speaking.

“Lu Ying?”

Lu Ying blinked. “Oh, sorry, I forgot. Hold on.”

She pulled out a small notebook from her pocket, attached to her waist by a thin metal chain.

Her fingers quickly flipped through the pages before stopping. “Found it. Regarding the containment of [A349-Broken Watch], we need to send it to headquarters for further investigation.”

The chief’s smile faded slightly. “Its containment conditions aren’t strict. Xinhai is fully capable of handling it. We’ve already submitted detailed reports. Is there still an issue?”

Lu Ying, “I forgot.”

…The room fell silent.

“I only noted that it needs to be contained and sent to headquarters, but I didn’t write down the reason.”

So the notebook is your external hippocampus?

Just when we finally had a powerful tool, it’s being transferred to headquarters, and who knows when it’ll be returned!

The chief glanced at Fei Shilan.

Catching the signal, Fei Shilan smiled. “For inter-regional transfers, are the documents ready?”

Lu Ying shook her head. “I didn’t bring the documents. Captain Lin doesn’t let me handle important things like that.”

The chief immediately spoke up. “Then we’ll discuss it when he arrives.”

Lu Ying, “Okay.”

The chief took a sip of tea and asked, “You mentioned earlier that you came to Xinhai to track another anomaly?”

Lu Ying nodded. “Yes. [Anomaly D172-Identity Hat].”

“A D-grade anomaly?” Fei Shilan was curious. “It requires both of you to track it?”

Lu Ying didn’t respond immediately, looking deep in thought. “Because it stole Captain Lin’s identity to escape.”

[Anomaly Name: D172-Identity Hat]

[Anomaly Description: This anomalous object takes the form of a hat or other headwear. When placed on a subject’s head and exposed to a biological sample of another person, it can transform the subject it possesses into that person’s identity.

After the transformation, no external means can detect the change of the subject, and the subject can seamlessly integrate into their corresponding social relationships until the next transformation or until the anomaly and the original identity owner appear simultaneously.]

“It plotted for years, finally ambushing a guard, taking control, and finding an opportunity to escape. This time, it stole Captain Lin’s identity.”

Lu Ying pulled out a photo from her pocket, showing an investigator’s ID photo with a long scar on his right cheek, looking somewhat terrifying.

The chief’s hand trembled slightly. “This anomaly is quite something.”

He had heard of Lin Lin.¹ For the anomaly to steal the identity of such a top investigator from headquarters showed how much effort it had put into its plan.

Lu Ying agreed wholeheartedly, sighing, “Picking a fight with Captain Lin? It’s like kicking an iron plate!”

E-grade anomalies don’t require significant resources to contain and pose no threat to life.

D-grade anomalies require some resources to contain and have low risk, though they may threaten life.

Grades C to A, even S anomalies pose significant threats to personal safety.

With the increasing frequency of anomalies in recent years, anomalies with no side effects that can still be of great help have become increasingly valuable.

The chief sighed, suddenly feeling even more reluctant to let go of the treasure Fei Shilan had found.

As they continued talking, the office alarm sounded.

“What’s going on?”

An assistant rushed in. “We’ve detected a set of anomalous network code spreading rapidly.”

The chief, “What about Information Security?”

“They’re already on it, and network management has intervened, but it’ll take time. The code is spreading too fast. Currently, Xinhai City, Runze City, Linquan City, Dong’an City… even other provinces have reported numerous victims.”

Fei Shilan grabbed his coat from the chair. “Specifics?”

“Preliminary assessment indicates the contamination is caused by a video. After being contaminated, victims lose control and laugh uncontrollably, expelling large amounts of air from their lungs until they suffocate.”

The assistant pulled up a processed video and projected it onto the screen. “After the victim dies, the message is automatically sent to all contacts. Once opened, the cycle repeats.”

The video showed a pixelated figure convulsing on the ground, the sound muted, but the  despair was palpable even through the screen.

“Cut off Xinhai’s internet immediately!” The chief’s voice was stern. “Information Security must intervene at once.”

The motel was owned by Zhong Renbao’s uncle, who rarely visited. Zhong Renbao usually managed the front desk on his own.

When he found out Ruan Zhou was homeless, he generously offered him an unlimited refill package and even moved the carp from the basin to a luxury bathtub.

Not only that, he planned to contact his friends to help Ruan Zhou find a job!

Ruan Zhou couldn’t help but marvel at his good luck. “I’ve really met a kind soul!”

However, due to his undocumented status, some jobs were off-limits.

Zhong Renbao, however, thought Ruan Zhou had some unspeakable difficulties.

Looking at Ruan Zhou’s pitiful state, one might think he was some big shot’s kept person who had escaped.

At this thought, Zhong Renbao slapped himself.

Since his hysterical episode, his mind had been getting increasingly unstable.

Ruan Zhou sat across from him as Zhong Renbao called his friends.

After several attempts, all calls went unanswered.

Zhong Renbao felt embarrassed. He had promised to help, but now his friends weren’t picking up.

To make matters worse, the motel’s internet was down, leading to numerous complaints from guests.

Zhong Renbao was overwhelmed, calling the service provider repeatedly but unable to get through. When he finally did, they said there was a network outage with no estimated restoration time.

Zhong Renbao spent the rest of the day apologizing to guests and making amends, working late into the night.

“Bro, I’ll keep trying to contact them after I’m done here.”

“It’s fine, you’ve worked hard.” Ruan Zhou handed him a bottle of energy drink.

Zhong Renbao gulped it down, smacking his lips as he examined the bottle. “Bro, what kind of drink is this? It’s really good. I’ve never heard of this brand.”

Ruan Zhou smiled. “Just drink it.”

The two chatted at the front desk when the doorbell rang, and a young man with white hair entered the hotel.

Even with the brim of his baseball cap pulled low, his striking looks were undeniable.

Zhong Renbao glanced at him briefly before returning to his match-3 game² and continuing his conversation with Ruan Zhou.

The man asked Zhong Renbao, “Can I use the restroom?”

Zhong Renbao didn’t look up, just pointed in the direction of the restroom. “Over there.”

The man nodded. “Thanks.”

Seeing that he wasn’t a paying customer, Zhong Renbao complained to Ruan Zhou, “I hate it when people come in just to use the restroom.”

A few minutes later.

“Renbao!” Someone called his name.

Zhong Renbao looked up to see a tall middle-aged man approaching from the restroom.

“What are you muttering about?”

“Uncle?!” Zhong Renbao stammered. “When did you get here?”

The middle-aged man wore a brown fedora and smiled warmly. “What, can’t I just drop by?”

Zhong Renbao, “Of course not! I just didn’t see you come in—”

“That’s because you weren’t paying attention!” The man scolded. “I put you at the front desk to work, not to play games! You wouldn’t even notice a thief coming in!”

Zhong Renbao was used to his uncle’s lectures and mumbled, “I’m sorry, Uncle.”

The man’s expression softened. “That’s more like it.”

Ruan Zhou watched the middle-aged man with a long scar on his face, then glanced at Zhong Renbao, thinking to himself that both uncle and nephew were quite the drama queens.

Earlier, when the uncle had come in to use the restroom, his tone had been so stiff that Ruan Zhou had thought he was a stranger. Turns out he was just testing whether his nephew was working diligently.

Serves the kid right for being so engrossed in his game.

The man nodded at Ruan Zhou. “You’re Renbao’s friend, right?”

Ruan Zhou responded, “Hello.”

The man nodded and said to Zhong Renbao, “I’m here on some business. I’ll stay at the hotel tonight.”

Zhong Renbao, “Okay.”

He rummaged through a drawer and pulled out a key.

“Here, you’re right next to Brother Zhou.”

That night, all was quiet.

The middle-aged man slipped out of his room, quietly closing the door behind him, and made his way to the next room.

Lin Lin’s identity was too high-profile, and the hotel owner’s identity was also too complicated, making it unsuitable for his escape.

He had asked the front desk guy and learned that the young man next door had no connections in the area, making his clean identity perfect for his escape.

Moving stealthily, he pulled out a spare key card from his pocket.

After steaLin Ruan Zhou’s identity, he would flee far away, never to be caught again. If he fell into Lin Lin’s hands, he’d be turned into a porcupine.

Just as he was about to use the spare card, the door opened from the inside.

“Huh? Mr. Zhong? What are you doing out here?”

The man quickly hid his hands behind his back and straightened up. “Ah, my room’s pipe burst. I came out for some air. Thanks for saving Renbao yesterday. His parents are grateful.”

His eyes scanned Ruan Zhou’s shoulders, disappointed to find no fallen hair or skin cells.

Ruan Zhou exchanged a few polite words.

Seeing his plan half-foiled, the man had a sudden idea. “By the way, the leak is quite troublesome. I’m not sure if it’s spread to your room. Can I come in and check?”

The young man in the T-shirt, completely unsuspecting, stepped aside. “Sure, come in.”

D172 entered the room, a standard double room with a slightly messy bed in the center.

A pair of sneakers sat by the entrance, covered in a bit of dust.

“Where’s the leak? I’ll help look.” Ruan Zhou was helpful.

The middle-aged man smiled. “Let me see.”

His sharp eyes scanned for places where hair or skin cells might fall, but the bedside and carpet were spotless.

How strange. How can a normal human not shed any hair or skin? Even someone as meticulous as Lin Lin couldn’t manage that, which was how he managed to steal his identity.

He thought for a moment. “It might be near the bathroom.”

No one can avoid shedding hair after a shower.

Ruan Zhou hesitated.

“What’s wrong?” D172 chuckled. “I’ll just check for leaks.”

Ruan Zhou hesitated. “Well… it’s a bit messy in there.”

Who cares about cleanliness? The messier, the better! How else am I supposed to find a biological sample?

“It’s fine. I’ve seen it all.”

His smile grew more genuine as he casually opened the bathroom door. “Let me take a look—”

His smile froze.

In the bathtub, an indescribable creature waved its massive, soft limbs, its mouth wide open, reveaLin a pitch-black void that seemed to lead to another world, filled with chaos and disorder.

A terrifying aura emanated from it, something that could easily crush him.

Ruan Zhou, “Sorry, I didn’t have anywhere else to put the fish. I’ll clean up before I leave!”

Fish?

This is a fish?!