I thought, We’re done for; this is it.

But just as the monsters launched themselves into the air, several beams of light suddenly shot down from above us, followed by a burst of rat-a-tat-tat machine-gun fire.

A few bullets zipped past my ears, striking the stone slabs and kicking up countless fragments that stung my legs. I quickly looked up and saw three light helicopters hovering over us—I had no idea when they had arrived.

Because the searchlights from above were so intense, I couldn't see who was inside at all.

However, the humanoid monsters that had been shot down onto the ground immediately began struggling to climb back up; clearly, bullets weren't enough to kill them.

But the moment they started moving, the machine guns above would fire again with that familiar rat-a-tat-tat, stirring up another shower of dust and debris.

Luckily, whoever was up there seemed to have decent aim, as none of the three of us, nor the two injured men, were hit by stray rounds.

Seeing the overwhelming firepower from the helicopters, the black monsters couldn't hold their ground any longer and finally jumped back into the water one by one.

At this moment, a loud voice boomed from the helicopters' loudspeakers.

What they were saying was in Japanese, which we couldn't understand at all, nor could we respond. I simply waved my hand and pointed to Jie Yuting and Daxiong lying on the ground, signaling that we had casualties.

Before long, one helicopter descended lower, positioning itself directly over us.

Several figures, secured by ropes around their waists, rappelled down.

When I saw them, I recognized the uniforms of the Special Assault Team (Tokkōtai). Though they were a bit short, every single one looked incredibly sharp and competent.

One of them asked me in English, "You are not Japanese? What are you doing here?"

His English sounded rough, like someone from China's Xinjiang region, which made me worried I wouldn't be understood. So, I replied, "It’s dangerous here. We can talk later, back outside."

The officer agreed with our suggestion and made a gesture toward the other helicopters hovering in the sky.

Then, Nie Chuan and I boarded one helicopter; the two injured men took another; and Zhang Jia Xiaoge boarded the last one.

Even though they were light helicopters, the downdraft they created was immense, blowing away all the rising heat vapors from the water.

I leaned against the window and kept looking down, watching the upturned flagstones stretching out in a radiating pattern for over ten li.

In the water between the slabs, bubbles occasionally surfaced, and dark shapes could be seen swimming beneath them—and there were quite a lot of them.

During the flight, the Special Officer sitting next to me was constantly reporting something over his radio, but I couldn't catch a single word. Based on the tone of his voice, though, the situation sounded extremely grim.

Once he finished his call, I tentatively asked him in English, "What exactly happened here?"

The officer shot me a sidelong glance and asked, "You're not Japanese, are you? I should be asking you what you were doing out there. Don't you know how dangerous it is for tourists to be in that area?"

His words effectively silenced me. After fumbling for words for a long time, I managed to say, "We... we just got lost while exploring."

The officer looked at me suspiciously and remarked, "Is that so? You daredevil explorers—you people are something else. The mountains and rivers of Japan hold many mysteries, and today you've learned a hard lesson, haven't you?"

Hearing his tone, I took a closer look at him and realized, to my surprise, that this officer was actually a woman. And she was quite attractive, too. It was only because the Special Assault Team uniform was so bulky and she was wearing a helmet that I had assumed she was male.

Women are generally easier to talk to than men, and this young woman looked like she had only recently started working; there was a slight immaturity in her voice.

Though I’m not the best judge of character, I knew that girls like her were the easiest to pry information from. A little flattery and going along with what she said, and I could likely get the intel we needed.

So, I said, "You’re right. Japan has many legends about Yōkai and divine beings. I wonder if they aren't all just fiction. Perhaps Son Goku or Uzumaki Naruto really existed?"

The girl laughed heartily, "Haha, you’re a funny one! How could that possibly be true? Our Japanese ninjas only know how to throw a few shurikens!"

I laughed along with her, and after the laughter subsided, I asked, "I see you’re carrying a new model submachine gun, and you have these highly maneuverable, elite assault helicopters, plus all of you are such competent and brave Special Officers. This mission must be very important, right?"

The girl smiled and spoke casually, "Of course it is. This entire area used to be an uncharted swamp shrouded in miasma. Anyone who went in would generally disappear, and eventually, it just became desolate wasteland that no one bothered with. Furthermore, local residents claimed Yōkai sightings. But recently, we received a report that a meteorite crashed somewhere near this swamp. The Meteorological Agency never received any warning about an asteroid approaching, and space agencies worldwide didn't spot any meteorite entering Earth’s atmosphere. We don't know where this thing came from. Once we received the report, we rushed over to investigate and indeed found a meteorite crashed in the center of the swamp. It seems to have fallen about a week ago, and the meteor is over one hundred cubic meters in size. It’s still burning intensely, causing the lake water to constantly boil. After several days of investigation, we discovered an unidentified life form becoming active in this water—an S-class dangerous unknown biological entity. All residents nearby have been evacuated, and the area is now under military lockdown. We are the final team of investigators, just finishing our last patrol run today, and we are about to pull out. You are quite lucky; if you had been just a few hours later, no one would have been here to save you..."

I nodded and said, "Thank you very much. Could you tell me the specific location of that meteorite?"

The girl pointed toward the window on the right side of the helicopter and said, "It's right around here. See that reddish mass over there? That’s it."

Since I was sitting on the left side of the helicopter, I had to stand up to see.

When I stood, I could make out with some difficulty, slightly below and to the right of the helicopter, an area the size of a football field glowing intensely red, like looking at a volcano on the verge of eruption. Where the meteorite lay, thick black smoke billowed upward, reaching over a hundred meters high.

Noticing my look of astonishment, the girl commented, "It’s a good thing this is in the mountains, or it would have caused a massive sensation."

I nodded and continued gazing at that crimson area when suddenly my head felt dizzy, and I lost my balance, stumbling forward.

Nie Chuan and the girl rushed to support me when they saw my condition.

That bout of vertigo passed quickly, and my mind cleared again. I waved my hand, assuring them I was fine.

However, as soon as I sat back down in the chair, my head was pierced by throbbing, sharp pains, as if pricked by needles.

Seeing my pained expression, the girl said, "It seems your injury is quite serious. Once we fly over this mountain range, we'll be close to Kobe City, and you can get medical attention there. Hold on a little longer."

My head was ringing with pain, making it impossible to answer her.

I sat there like that, clutching my head, enduring the pain for about an hour until the aircraft finally touched down amidst a cluster of high-rise buildings. I just glanced up, realizing we were in a city. The instant my tension eased, I lost consciousness.

I don't know how long I was out, but I had many strange dreams—most of them involved fleeing from an explosion site, but each time I failed to escape and was consumed by flames.

After what felt like days, I suddenly bolted upright from the bed, drenched in sweat.

The sun was blinding, streaming in through the window. I shielded my eyes and looked outside, seeing only lush greenery and tall trees under a gentle, warm sunlight.

My mind was still hazy. After fumbling on the bedside table for a long time, I managed to find a glass of water. I didn't care when it was filled, and I gulped it all down in one go.

Just then, the door opened, and two nurses walked in.

The nurses were quite short and didn't look Chinese; one telltale sign was that their nursing dresses were much shorter than those in China, much like their student uniforms as well. They didn't seem overly excited to see me awake. I figured I wasn't seriously ill, perhaps just needing rest, which explained their composure.

Sure enough, one nurse approached and handed me a form.

It was a medical report written in English: Multiple contusions to soft tissues, mild concussion, moderate dehydration.

Reading to the bottom, I realized the fees had already been paid. Though I didn't know who paid, the fact that the nurses brought the report in meant no one had come to claim it. This implied that someone had covered my medical expenses after I was brought to the hospital and then left. I thought back: the last I remembered, I, Nie Chuan, and Zhang Jia Xiaoge were all conscious. Nie Chuan and the other man couldn't have been so badly injured that no one would claim my discharge papers.

Just as I thought this, one of the nurses placed a white box next to me, and the two of them walked out, chatting merrily.

I stared blankly as they left, then looked at the box. It was a newly released Apple 5S. Someone had sent me a phone?

Without hesitation, I opened the box and took out the device. As I powered it on, I heard the distinctive Apple chime—and there was a new message.

I opened the message; it was from Nie Chuan.

The text read: "* [censored for context], I heard Liang Qian’s condition has become unstable. I have to take the seeds and return immediately to save her. Zhang Jia Xiaoge vanished by the time I woke up, so Daxiong and Jie Yuting are up to you. This phone has my number; contact me the moment you get back to the country."

Seeing how urgently he was leaving to save Liang Qian, the lingering suspicion I’d had about him vanished instantly. Furthermore, I felt a small pang of jealousy, a slight annoyance churning inside me.