To make matters worse, even if a native wasn't important—even if they, like countless other polluted worlds, had to be abandoned for the sake of the real world's survival—Wen Xiang Yuan's existence revealed something far more terrifying.
They weren't even isolated from the real world.
They could indeed permeate each other.
And they, as scavengers of the real world responsible for protecting it and preventing the infiltration of pollution, had been completely oblivious.
Was their world still safe?
To what extent had the purification progressed?
Did the natives of the polluted worlds actually carry pollution on them?
Nan Yue herself was a prime example. This mission had proven exactly what she suspected: there was pollution inside her body.
She hadn't died only because of her sheer luck, but where did that pollution come from?
It had been with her for as long as she could remember, threatening her life like a malevolent ghost at any moment.
Did that prove their world had been invaded and infiltrated by pollution long ago?
The more Nan Yue thought about it, the more her skin crawled. She hadn't felt it while she was fully focused on the purification during the mission, but now that she had calmed down, she realized this wasn't just a problem concerning her and Wen Xiang Yuan.
This seemed to involve the millions of scavengers in this world.
"Wen Xiang Yuan's identity isn't actually the most important thing," Jiang Siyan said slowly. "What's most important is what her identity represents."
"If her identity is truly what we suspect, then just the few of us might not be enough."
Jiang Siyan spoke very carefully. Nan Yue understood his intention; he had only recently joined the team, and given his guarded nature and lack of a sense of belonging, he was naturally considering things from an outsider's perspective.
He didn't view himself as a close teammate like Gu Xiang Kai and the others.
He was merely offering advice from his own standpoint.
However, Nan Yue was somewhat surprised. She had thought that with Jiang Siyan's personality—one where he wouldn't even react much to his own death—he would be too lazy to care about such a mess.
It seemed she had judged him too harshly.
"I know what you mean, Old Jiang."
Zhu Xi Ning sighed. "But we don't have many people we can trust. The ones I trust most are you guys... oh, and Wenwen."
Gu Xiang Kai agreed. "This is too big. Even if we know people from missions who are trustworthy, we can't just reveal everything to them."
Gu Xiang Kai scratched his head. "And Brother Jiang, you might not know, but... well, not many people usually survive the missions we go on together."
Jiang Siyan: "..."
He was quite surprised by Zhu Xi Ning and Gu Xiang Kai's words.
Because he lacked a sense of belonging and security, he had always maintained a polite and distant position on the periphery.
He never trusted others, so he naturally knew how difficult it was to get others to trust him.
He hadn't expected these two to actually treat him as a companion after just a few missions.
And what Gu Xiang Kai said...
He had noticed it too. The overall difficulty of missions Nan Yue participated in tended to be higher, especially when she did them alone; ghosts that broke the rules frequently appeared.
In those situations, the only option was to brute-force the situation.
But he now knew those ghosts were drawn by the pollution on Nan Yue. To them, she was likely the most attractive snack.
It was just that the snack was too hard for them to bite.
Nan Yue hadn't shared much of her own opinion, but listening to their conversation, she finally spoke up slowly.
"Actually, I think we're looking at this the wrong way..."
"On a major issue involving the operation of the entire world, we shouldn't be looking for trustworthy companions. Instead, we should be looking for allies who can counterbalance interests and exchange benefits."
Jiang Siyan looked at Nan Yue with a hint of admiration in his eyes. He found that she always managed to surprise him.
"Friends are too much of a luxury. Even if we've collaborated in missions, everyone has their own lives and their own concerns. No matter how well we get along, no one can bear the weight of such a massive secret."
Nan Yue had met many people in missions. Some were highly capable, like Chi He and Huo Fuyu.
She admired the way some handled things, like Bi Danyuan and Shang Xi.
There were also those who could be considered guides, like Lan Jing Shui and Dongfang Yuelai.
But no matter how good her relationship was with them, it was limited to pleasant cooperation and a mutual recognition of their purification methods.
If it came down to a matter involving the lives of her teammates or the very operation of the world, Nan Yue wasn't sure how they would react or what they would do.
Only teammates, who had experienced life and death together and lived side-by-side day and night, could develop enough emotional support.
Of course, this was based on Nan Yue's understanding of Gu Xiang Kai and Zhu Xi Ning. As for Jiang Siyan, she might not know him as well, and his cunning far exceeded the other two.
However, Jiang Siyan needed something from her. He wanted to unearth things from her that he was interested in—things that could give him hope for living.
To put it simply, there was an involvement of interests.
Nan Yue paused at that thought. But considering how Jiang Siyan had been looking out for them today, her understanding of him was still a bit one-sided.
He was actually a good comrade.
Nan Yue decided she should be warmer and more trusting toward Jiang Siyan in the future.
"So you mean... we find someone with common interests and use those shared interests to ensure they stand with us, keep our secrets, and even help us find clues."
Nan Yue corrected Gu Xiang Kai's phrasing. "It's not for us. Their goal must be the same as ours."
"At least, the general direction needs to be the same."
As Jiang Siyan listened, he seemed to understand Nan Yue's point.
He was a bit surprised. "...Isn't that a bit too risky?"
Nan Yue gave a bitter smile. "Given the current situation, is there any other way forward besides taking a risk?"
Although Nan Yue could be a bit "crazy" during missions and in how she treated herself, she was essentially very cautious. This caution had been ingrained in her mind, especially since she became a shepherd dog.
She was truly being forced into a corner now. It wasn't just because of Wen Xiang Yuan's disappearance, but because after realizing she could devour and purify pollution, she understood that this world was indeed different from what they had always known.
She wanted to protect herself and her teammates, and she also wanted to know the truth of the world.
Whether it was a good thing or not, these two wishes were actually inseparable if she wanted to achieve them.
"What kind of riddles are you two talking in?"
Looking at the expressions of Jiang Siyan and Nan Yue, Zhu Xi Ning instinctively felt that whatever Nan Yue wanted to do was not simple.
"I want to meet the leader of Sharp Blade, Fu Xi Ming."
Lan Jing Shui was somewhat surprised when he received Nan Yue's message. After all, Nan Yue's attitude toward Sharp Blade had always been ambiguous.
"You want to see Fu Xi Ming?"
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