Chapter 108: Attempting Entry

The police had set up barricades, and inside the perimeter there were police cars, ambulances, fire trucks, and government vehicles everywhere. Numerous researchers stood before the containment dome, conducting experiments with various instruments.

Unfortunately, up to this point, the scene was still one of shaking heads—obviously no progress had been made.

A large crowd had gathered around the outskirts, many craning their necks to get a better look, their faces marked with concern.

Yet even more people were excitedly holding up their phones, treating the place as nothing more than a mysterious spectacle to broadcast widely.

Gao Ning suddenly stood up sharply, startling Jennifer.

She glanced around cautiously before carefully putting her orange juice back into her bag.

“Gao Ning, where are you going?”

“To the airport!”

“Let me guess, New Mexico? That ‘Mystery Town’ that’s been locked down?”

Jennifer looked exasperated. “Why are you always so interested in these phenomena? First, you were chasing after some ‘seven days to die’ tape, then you were running around strange mental hospitals and remote mountain nursing homes. Now you’re drawn to ‘Mystery Town’ again. Can’t we just go back to Hornet Town and rest for a while?”

Gao Ning looked puzzled. “Are you tired?”

Jennifer shook her head. “Not really tired—just a bit bored. We keep encountering these weird, strange things. It’s so dull. I like designer bags, pretty clothes, and luxury makeup. I enjoy shopping in big cities, chatting with my girlfriends about games, throwing parties, traveling everywhere. Can’t we live like that? Hiking, sightseeing, traveling the world—don’t you have me already?”

Jennifer blinked mischievously, giving him a playful look.

Gao Ning sighed, resting a hand on his forehead. “Looks like I’ve been too good to you lately. I wanted to keep a girl by my side to collect experiences and have fun along the way, but if you oppose it, I won’t force you.”

Shaking his head, Gao Ning walked out of the bar and straddled his motorcycle.

Jennifer hurried up, delighted, and slipped into his arms, turning to say, “Have you changed your mind? That’s wonderful!”

Gao Ning smiled. “What a coincidence, I feel the same way!”

[Confirm target retrieval?]

Gao Ning immediately selected “Yes.” Before Jennifer could say a word, a flash of white light appeared, and she vanished.

At the same moment, an engineer appeared inside Gao Ning’s castle.

Turning his motorcycle around, Gao Ning roared off toward the nearest airport.

Five hours later, a private jet landed at a rural airstrip near the town.

Gao Ning, carrying his backpack, disembarked and, finding a hidden spot, retrieved his motorcycle and headed straight for his destination.

Where there’s spectacle, crowds gather—no matter the time or place.

This Mystery Town incident had been making headlines for two continuous weeks. The crowd watching found the story only growing bigger, attracting journalists and even government attention. An expert team had been dispatched, yet no progress was apparent.

This excitement thrilled many onlookers. Numerous RVs lined up orderly on the outskirts.

Mixed among them were food trucks, mobile bars, mobile bathhouses, and pink RVs filled with young women—functional vehicles catering to the crowd.

People sat outside, gazing toward the town, chatting, gossiping, and enjoying the spectacle.

Rows of cameras stood densely packed like artillery positions.

Where people gathered, vendors naturally followed, pushing carts selling food, snacks, and daily necessities, their shouts filling the air.

By the time Gao Ning arrived, a temporary village had formed, bustling with life.

He found the RV motel by following signs, paid the steep fee of $1,000, and rented a unit.

Led by a staff member and carrying complimentary lunch and snacks, Gao Ning boarded the RV, closed the door behind him, shutting out the noisy world outside. At last, his ears found some peace.

The motel owner had installed a television set in the RV, all signals relayed from nearby base stations. Over 80% of the broadcasts were from “spectacle eaters” — live streamers filled with endless speculation and wild guesses, drawing in many ignorant viewers.

Gao Ning flipped through the channels briefly before switching off the TV.

No matter what guesses they made, before the government reached any conclusions, they were meaningless.

He checked the red alert map. The area of Mystery Town was fully enclosed, yet on the map, nothing appeared. It was as if the place were a mirage, all images illusions—no neutral gray dots to indicate presence.

Could it really be spatial isolation?

Whatever the case, he had to see for himself.

Gao Ning pondered for a moment, then deployed a large bear at the town’s center.

A flash of light in the air, and a huge black bear appeared, wearing a cute parachute, wobbling as it descended toward the town.

Approaching the containment barrier, the bear halted midair, the parachute retracted, and it vanished instantly.

Gao Ning made the bear jump vigorously, but there was no response. Even the firefighters nearby, testing with flamethrowers, detected no ground vibrations beneath.

“It looks like outsiders can’t enter; our numerical advantage is useless.”

Frowning, Gao Ning withdrew the bear from the perimeter and hid it in the nearby forest.

If deploying units was ineffective, then he would have to deploy buildings instead.

Checking the upper right corner of the screen, he saw his metal resources were still in the nine-digit range—no worries yet.

He selected the power plant icon and clicked to build at the town’s center.

An invisible force descended, piercing the impenetrable containment barrier and striking the ground.

The onlookers gaped as an upper-level Western-style building by the roadside instantly collapsed. Mechanical devices emerged from the earth and assembled rapidly into a massive power plant, five meters tall and covering over 200 square meters.

At the center's U-shaped groove, an electric current formed from nothing, gathering into a battery energy orb. Lightning visibly crackled as the machines worked at high speed.

Gao Ning’s heart leapt with joy—it had worked!

Next, he used a one-time building card to construct a warrior training camp beside it.

Energy was fundamental. Only after building the power plant could the training camp function properly.

Normally, this would be used on the front lines of battlefields, but the situation was special. To support his remaining teammates, Gao Ning had no choice.

A clever wooden door appeared out of nowhere next to the power plant. Above it, a flagpole extended, and at the top fluttered a blue flag emblazoned with a lightning bolt.

Gao Ning paused, then smiled and shook his head.

He hadn’t expected the random creation to look so good.