Luo Di looked at the text recorded in the fish-skin notebook.

The cowardly and miserable image of Joke, who feared death, surprisingly began to change slowly in his mind. Who would have thought that such an unreliable malevolent presence could carry out such detailed research and analysis?

Between the lines, it was evident that during his time at the Fishing Village, Joke had almost been working on his research day and night.

Moreover, he was extremely cautious, not exposing his identity nor ever using his mist abilities.

Through perfect control of Lan Chang, this fisherman, he gradually explored matters about the sea, fish schools, disappearances, and umbilical cords.

Joke has currently verified three things, and each one is interrelated, making it seem like the entire Fishing Village serves a mysterious purpose.

1. "Fish"

Somewhere in the sea lies a submerged and deceased 'mother body.' Though dead, its reproductive function is retained, producing a large number of "Living Dead Fish" each sunrise. *

* These are the fish in Stinky Nine's basket, also the ones villagers hang at their doors. Though the fish appear dead, the flesh fibers attached to them are alive.

The fishermen must catch a quantity of fish each day equal to the production quantity.

The stench emitted by the fish effectively reduces the probability of "being disappeared."

2. "Transformation"

Long-term contact with fish, regardless of the type of monster, will cause an essential transformation.

Joke, through special means, conducted "physical examinations" on five fishermen and discovered that not only were their bodies undergoing change, but even the essence of their pituitaries was transforming.

This differs from external influences brought by the Outer Realm.

It is a thorough transformation, and once completed, the type of fear related to the pituitary will change as well, and all the fishermen have the same transformation goal.

The complete transformation process is long, possibly lasting 5-20 years.

3. "Disappearance"

Here, Joke made a very bold hypothesis, writing it directly in the notebook, stating that the root of the disappearances in the Fishing Village should be the rumored exceedingly rare "Double Door Monster."

In the early stages of the forming Corner, no monsters had appeared yet, and the related system was not yet sound.

The very first arrivals in the Corner were neither trained human investigators nor monsters promoted through seams. At that time, even the "Thought Corner" had not been popularized; all humans were dragged into the Corner through the Physical Corner, undergoing a high-mortality forced selection.

Few humans could survive in such extreme conditions as the Corner.

Moreover, as the Human World began to change architectural styles, gradually erasing the Physical Corners, the number of humans forcibly dragged in decreased.

Rumor has it, despite having no concept of fear, some innocent humans survived among those earliest arrivals in the Corner.

The surviving humans underwent transformation directly within the Corner, skipping the Pseudo-Person stage and directly becoming monsters.

During that time, the Corner System was not yet perfected, and this monster possessed two different fear types.

The reasons Joke made such an assumption are threefold:

①. Even at his current level, he still feels a real danger in the Fishing Village, especially when the dense mist descends, the danger alarm goes off to the maximum.

The only possible threats giving him such a sense of danger could be of the "Garden Level." Yet, among all the monsters known in the Middle Layer at this level, no one knows that there is one hidden within the Fishing Village.

②. When the threat from the Outer Realm arrived, the Lame Walker attempted to occupy the entire Corner, and the infection spreading from the City of Sin almost covered the entire Middle Layer.

Back then, infected individuals from the Holes came to the Fishing Village, yet they disappeared without a trace before the infection could spread.

The Fishing Village never experience a Hole expansion, suggesting that the monster existing here might be powerful enough to threaten Outer Gods.

③. From samples of the dead fish and umbilical cords, Joke identified two different fear traits, Red Door and Green Gate.

The above are the research and investigative findings Joke compiled during his time in the Fishing Village.

As for why Joke would research these matters, the reason why he stays here knowing the danger remains unknown.

The only thing Luo Di knows is that someone like Joke, who carries out the "cowardice" of fearing death from beginning to end, must have huge interests backing his decision to conduct such secretive research.

...

[Joke's Secret Chamber]

As a guide and local fisherman, Stinky Nine had a talisman stuck to his forehead, freezing his thoughts.

Although he was inherently decent, sometimes he would exhibit out-of-control states. What happened here must not be known to Stinky Nine, or else the entity behind him might steal the memories.

The four-person team each relied on different sections of the room, needing to make an important decision next.

Leave or stay?

The main target of this action, the red sweater, is most likely unrecoverable.

According to the descriptions in the notebook, the disappeared individuals are closely linked to the fish rebirth, so the red sweater is likely already lost.

They can completely return now, reporting in detail to the Exploration Bureau to receive intelligence rewards, then taking on another betrayal mission.

However, Joke has already done enough research, and the hypotheses within the notebook are basically credible. If they continue to follow Joke's progress, they might unearth the truth about the Fishing Village.

Wu Wen first expressed her opinion: "The rumored Double Door Monster emerging when the Corner System was imperfect... If such an existence truly is, even if we find and see its form, the end result wouldn't be favorable.

My personal suggestion is to leave immediately and bring this information back to school for Teacher Guo to decide.

At the very least, based on what the other side is currently doing, the monster behind this surely has some mental issues, and normal communication won't be easy."

Yu Ze raised his hand to indicate agreement, "I agree to go back."

Luo Di nodded as well, as he had already located Joke's place, having nothing to regret.

The red sweater may not have been dealt with personally, but there are other monsters to target, and there's no need for a death struggle here.

As for Miss Song, she remained silent throughout, doing as Yu Ze did.

The team reached a consensus and quickly left.

Under Yu Ze's spell, Stinky Nine would return to his residence alone, forgetting everything that happened here.

The team then quickly headed to the area with the elevator, slow rising amid the fish intestines' stirring.

It was still afternoon, far from the period of thick mist Stinky Nine predicted for nighttime.

Wu Wen also disguised everyone, enveloping them in a smell identical to the fishermen. Moreover, the elevator itself is a safe area, and according to Stinky Nine, there had never been a disappearance event on the elevator.

As everyone had mentally moved beyond the Fishing Village, concentrating on what to do next,

An unusual flow sensation came about,

The mist within the Fishing Village began to move and quickly increased in density, just like before.

Luo Di's tongue severely curled, with the others also perceiving an intense approaching danger. It could basically be confirmed that the mist's manifestation was aimed at them.

"Teleport back immediately!"

The group exchanged glances, simultaneously activating the vortex structure Teacher Guo left in their palms.

Buzz!

The palm patterns spun, rapidly forming a vortex dragging everyone into it.

After a bout of spatial rotations, Luo Di's feet still didn't land on the ground, and he sensed a strange constraint.

Within the gradually clear view, the familiar teacher's office did not appear but rather a dark, damp cavern.

His body hung upside down,

Apart from him, there were other missing persons hanging here, including someone clad in a red sweater.

A myriad of fleshy fibers wound around Luo Di's legs, climbing about his body, nearing his eyes to deprive his vision.

Simultaneously, his mouth was sewn shut, nose blocked, and foreign objects drilled into his ears.

...

[Vortex Town-Fourth Middle School]

Teacher Guo, busy at work, paused slightly, feeling the whirlpool's vibration as the four students activated his vortex in crisis.

Yet, the teleport was disrupted, failing to connect back to the school.

Strangely, Teacher Guo neither actively sought them nor contacted other teachers to handle this, continuing his tasks as if nothing had happened.

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