Chapter 69

Mu Huiyue was running forward.

After realizing this, she slowly stopped and lowered her head, looking at her hands in a somewhat inexplicable manner.

These were hands wearing tactical gloves and wrist guards. Not only that, she was dressed in a tight-fitting combat suit suitable for nighttime operations, made of unknown enhanced fibers, and beneath it, she wore a heavy bulletproof vest.

Her Martin boots were paired with long pants made of the same reinforced fibers, the soles as hard as steel, able to easily kick aside heavy obstacles and allowing her to quickly maneuver through narrow alleys.

This wasn’t the kind of simple protective uniform worn during outdoor survival competitions, designed for easy interaction and basic protection. It was real combat gear.

Mu Huiyue instinctively knew the purpose of each part—designed primarily to protect her from injury in close-quarters combat and to allow her to move stealthily in infiltration operations without being detected.

She also possessed a robust physique that allowed her to run swiftly at any time, even while wearing such heavy gear.

After moving her somewhat unfamiliar body, Mu Huiyue instinctively looked up.

She was standing on a dirty and chaotic street.

It had probably just rained, and the air was very damp. The ground was covered with filthy brown mud, and the standing water reflected the neon signboards on both sides of the street, flashing in a dazzling array of colors.

The large trash bin at the street corner had long exceeded its capacity, emitting a nauseating sour smell.

A man with a blurry face was lying next to the pile of garbage, murmuring something under his breath, with an empty alcohol bottle next to him.

Passersby paid no attention to this; not a single person stopped, and countless muddy shoe soles splashed through the standing water, shattering the colorful neon reflections into a chaotic mess.

Mu Huiyue’s heartbeat suddenly skipped a beat.

The tactical glasses on her face allowed her to see clearly at night, and some unusual details rushed into her perception.

The man lying next to the trash can had a left leg that was entirely made of low-quality mechanical prosthetics. The material had long since aged, and the joints were crooked and misaligned.

Some small animals peeking around the trash can were common low-tier elite species in Dayan City, extraordinary beings called chestnut-gray squirrels.

There was even a damaged trash-cleaning robot, but on closer inspection, it wasn’t a real robot. It was an extraordinary creature of a low-tier elite species, the “Swallowing Mushroom,” covered in a mechanical shell.

This wood-type creature, known for its indiscriminate consumption and dissolving abilities, was often used in urban waste management. Dayan even had specialized environmental companies that bred Swallowing Mushrooms for trash disposal systems, though their efficiency was somewhat low and they hadn’t yet been widely applied.

Moreover, this dirty and chaotic street looked strangely familiar.

Aside from the flashy neon signs, Mu Huiyue could see the shadow of the Jingjiang commercial district’s pedestrian street.

Following the direction in her memory, she looked ahead. Beyond this street should be the largest department store in the commercial district. Indeed, it stood in the same location, but its appearance had changed significantly, now featuring a much more streamlined, tech-forward design.

During the day, giant advertisements for popular idol Wenqing were projected onto the building, but now, under the night sky, it still emitted colorful lights, with the content switched to the latest mechanical transformation project for pet beasts.

Further in the distance, where the 40-story super-class office building of the commercial district should have been, there now stood an even taller structure.

It seemed to exceed 100 stories in height, with a base wide at the bottom and narrowing at the top, resembling a sharp sword pointing toward the sky in the night.

At the top of the building, a large glowing sign displayed the simple and strong words “Dreamscape Biotech,” forming a sharp contrast to the flashy neon signs below on the street.

Mu Huiyue vaguely remembered that this super-high-rise building was the target of her current mission.

The target of the mission?

It felt like she had just woken up from a vague and distant dream, with only a few lingering emotions left in her heart, and she could no longer recall anything else.

She frowned slightly. The more she tried to think and remember, the more distant that vague feeling from the dream became.

And these strange urban scenes seemed like a reprocessing of the memory from her shopping trip yesterday, turning the busiest commercial district of Jingjiang into, well…

Cyber Beast Tamer Commercial Street?

Mu Huiyue almost laughed at her sudden thought. Could she possibly be dreaming?

She pinched her cheek hard.

…Very well, it didn’t hurt at all. It seems she really is dreaming.

Occasionally, there are moments when she becomes lucid in a dream, and once she realizes it’s a dream, she usually wakes up soon after.

Mu Huiyue stood in place for quite some time, waiting. Even when the drunken man started sucking on the empty bottle again, she still didn’t feel like waking up.

This was the first time she had become aware of being in a dream but didn’t wake up immediately.

…Could it be because of the calming herb sachet she used before sleep?

Mu Huiyue recalled the ZH promotional advertisement she had seen earlier in the day. Could the calming herb sachet have the same effect of enhancing dream experiences and improving sleep quality?

In any case, after realizing she was just dreaming, Mu Huiyue’s mindset became much calmer.

Since she couldn’t wake up for the time being, it wouldn’t hurt to look around. She hadn’t experienced what a Cyber Beast Tamer city was like.

Mu Huiyue moved her body a little, stretching and checking the items she had with her.

She didn’t look like someone from this dirty, chaotic street. She didn’t have any identification cards or similar items on her. Besides her well-equipped combat suit, the only thing she had was a small firearm, but it wasn’t clear what type of ammunition or energy source it used.

Moreover, she felt something warm in her chest. After fumbling around for a while, she finally pulled out a familiar object from the inner pocket of her tight-fitting suit.

It was the White Tiger amulet that Su Luo had given her.

Mu Huiyue paused for a moment, a little confused, not quite understanding the logic of the dream she was in.

If this was a cyber-enhanced Beast Tamer city altered from her memories, why was she carrying something exactly the same as in reality?

The White Tiger amulet should have been stored in her Beast Tamer space.

Mu Huiyue tried closing her eyes to enter her inner vision state, but no matter how hard she focused, she couldn’t feel the presence of her Beast Tamer space.

In this dream, she seemed like an ordinary person who hadn’t awakened.

Without the Beast Tamer space, Ellen and White Fang were naturally absent as well. The only thing she seemed to be able to find in this dream was the White Tiger amulet.

Mu Huiyue put away the amulet and stowed the weapon inside the strap on her thigh, preparing to head toward the vicinity of the towering building.

After all, that was the [mission target] she couldn’t quite remember the reason for.

The tactical glasses flickered with light spots, displaying the location of the original target.

Mu Huiyue quickly ran forward, stepping through the neon reflections in the standing water, blending into the magical night city.

…

Just before reaching the building, Mu Huiyue stopped in her tracks.

Some vague perceptions became more frequent as the destination drew nearer.

She was here to… intercept something.

The interior of “Dreamscape Biotech” was extremely dangerous, with a perfect security system in place, making direct infiltration nearly impossible.

Her only chance was during the handover of that item.

With this thought, Mu Huiyue looked up and saw an ambulance parked at the entrance of the “Dreamscape Biotech” building.

The vehicle’s body was made from the hardest titanium alloy, capable of withstanding laser weapon damage, and the roof flashed with red and blue lights.

The ambulance’s rear doors were open, and through the crack, she could vaguely see the intricate infusion tubes and connecting wires inside.

After a while, a group of researchers wearing white lab coats rushed out of the building’s entrance. The leader was carrying a half-meter-tall nutrient tank, within which something seemed to be floating.

The researchers hurried to load the nutrient tank into the ambulance, and the moment Mu Huiyue saw the floating creature inside, her brain seemed to be struck by a lightning bolt.

That was her target!

Her body acted before her mind could catch up. With a large stride, Mu Huiyue leaped high into the air, moving with incredible lightness, and in the blink of an eye, she was in front of the researcher by the ambulance.

The girl in tight black clothes swept her leg, sending the nutrient tank flying from the researcher’s hands. Then, drawing her gun, she fired with precision, each pull of the trigger dropping a person.

Bodyguards with mechanical prosthetics burst out of the ambulance. Mu Huiyue skillfully flipped over one’s back, locking her legs around his neck in a chokehold. With a sharp crack, the first bodyguard collapsed to the ground.

After easily taking down one, Mu Huiyue arched her body to dodge a weapon strike, then shot backward in rapid succession.

The sound of gunfire was followed by the thud of more bodies hitting the ground. She turned to face the tall, imposing shadow before her.

Her heavy-soled combat boots kicked the second bodyguard’s weapon out of his hands. She spun forward, using the force from her waist to accelerate, creating a sharp whooshing sound as she delivered another powerful kick, knocking down the bodyguard who had tried to fight back.

After a series of swift and fluid moves, Mu Huiyue performed a backflip, landing gracefully and catching the nutrient tank that had been kicked into the air earlier.

She quickly retreated while cradling the tank, disappearing into the night like a fish slipping into the sea.

She ran for an unknown distance, and when she came back to her senses, Mu Huiyue had instinctively hidden inside a clothing store on the street.

This was probably the safehouse she had planned earlier. The store had already stopped operating, and there were piles of cardboard boxes inside. The back door led to another street, making it an ideal spot to hide after an operation.

Her breathing and heartbeat were rapid. It took her a while to calm down, resting against the boxes.

Mu Huiyue glanced at the nutrient tank in her arms, thinking that this dream was way too thrilling.

Thinking back to the smooth, movie-like battle she had just fought, she felt like an excellent agent, executing a crucial mission alone.

Not only had she planned her route in advance, but she also had multiple escape plans. She acted decisively when the time came, without hesitation, and retrieved the target in just one confrontation.

No wonder it was her!

Outside, the hurried sound of footsteps echoed intermittently. It seemed that the people from “Dreamscape Biotech” hadn’t found the store yet, so the closed clothing shop was temporarily safe.

After calming her breath, Mu Huiyue placed the nutrient tank on the ground and examined how to open it.

The researchers must have been in a rush when they took the tank, as there were no complex biological locks or other security mechanisms. She quickly deactivated the seal at the bottom of the tank.

The tank made a dull hissing sound, and the top slowly opened, spreading apart.

A soft, pink creature squeezed out of the tank, opening its watery eyes and looking at the human girl in front of it.

“Mm-mm…?”

…

…

Meanwhile, at the headquarters of “Dreamscape Biotech.”

-98F-

Disguised as a researcher, Lin Fei was walking briskly ahead. His rapid steps caused his white lab coat to flutter in the wind.

“Notify Group D to stop the experiment. I want to see the subject, now, immediately, right away!”

As soon as he woke up in the dream, Lin Fei received two major pieces of news.

The good news was that the target he was searching for was at the “Dreamscape Biotech” research facility, and he was a senior researcher at the company, responsible for managing and running the project.

The bad news was that the subject had experienced an inexplicable mutation reaction, and it was now being urgently transported to a facility for identification and treatment.

Lin Fei immediately ordered the experiment to be halted and instructed that the valuable subject be brought to him.

“Director… Director…”

A researcher, gasping for breath, caught up with him. Lin Fei furrowed his brows, sensing that he was about to hear the second piece of bad news.

“Just now, someone hijacked the transport team and the ambulance, and the subject… the subject was… stolen…”

Lin Fei stopped in his tracks, his expression darkening to the point that it seemed like it could drip with anger.

In this suddenly constructed dreamscape, there should have been only him—only him.

Now, however, the “coincidence” had occurred where the target was stolen before he could even arrive.

Was it really just a coincidence… or something else?