The Record of Unusual Creatures

Hao Ren's backup plans stemmed from his boundless imagination. But first, he had to understand more of planet Zorm's conditions. He knew he could not be away for too long, lest Nolan and the other mercenaries got suspicious of him. Thus, he decided to return to the Plane of Dreams in the afternoon.     

His inability to locate the correct location of Zorm in the Plane of Dreams meant that he could not use the "stable door" of the Tannagost rift. So, he decided to use the hibernation pod in the basement. This time, he wanted to bring a few helpers so that they could spread out to gather intelligence separately. After all, he would not be able to collect much information by staying in the mercenary base.     

"Sanba, Wang, and Vivian follow me." Hao Ren selected them because Nangong Sanba was an experienced demon hunter, Y'zaks was cool-headed as well as a good fighter, while Vivian had tens of thousands of years of wisdom and alertness. The natives of Zorm were unfamiliar with supernatural powers, and the three of them would be able to handle any situation even without their extraordinary abilities. In case of an emergency, they could cut off their connection with the Plane of Dreams and return safely to Earth. After all, they were only entering spiritually.     

As the hibernation pods opened slowly, Hao Ren smiled. "I never expected this… I thought since we've found the Tannagost rift, I wouldn't have to use this coffin again."     

The MDT adjusted the settings on the hibernation pods and sat on Hao Ren's shoulder. "I've issued instructions to the drones. After we arrive on Zorm and plant the beacon, the drones will capture our position from the outside. If we still can't find navigation signals, then we'll use your backup plans."     

Vivian could not wait to be the first to lie down in the coffin. Y'zaks and Nangong Sanba were next. Hao Ren sat in the hibernation pod and left Lily some instructions. "We'll be away for a few days, half a month at most. We probably won't awaken during this time, so please look after the house with Wuyue and don't create trouble. Got it?"     

Lily patted her chest and said, "You got it, Mr. Landlord! Wuyue's parents are watching me; I'm not going to create trouble."     

Hao Ren was unsure if he should compliment Lily for that, but it seemed the husky was proud of it.     

Rollie was lying next to the hibernation pod. She stared at Hao Ren and meowed occasionally. Meanwhile, Y'lisabet was talking to her papa who was in the other hibernation pod. The strange atmosphere gave Hao Ren goosebumps. He quickly waved them off. "Get out of here now. We're not on our final journey; this is not a funeral. Wuyue, don't forget to clean up the basement! At least wipe the dust off the coffins…"     

Nangong Wuyue patted Hao Ren's "coffin" with her tail. "Okay, hurry up and lie down. Don't say anything if you don't know what to say."     

As the cover of the hibernation pod slowly closed, he felt a sense of darkness and the familiar phenomenon of his spirit escaping his body. Once everything faded away, a strong foul smell hit his nostrils. He opened his eyes and found himself standing in the corner of the slums of Black Street. The air in Black Street was so unbearable that he almost wanted to come back out.     

"This is hell," Hao Ren said, scrunching his nose. He then continued without looking back. "Look, this is the place. We're going to split up. You know this side... Eh? Where are they?"     

Hao Ren turned his head and was stunned to find that Vivian and the others who should have followed him were not there. He was alone in the small space.     

He froze for a moment before he hurriedly called the MDT telepathically, "MDT, something's wrong. Transmission error. Vivian and the others have not come in..."     

Halfway through the call, he heard Vivian's voice on another channel in his mind. "Mr. Landlord, did something go wrong during our transmission?"     

He combined the calls into one channel and said, "Vivian? What about to the others? Are they with you? Where are you now?"     

"Holletta, in the wasteland near the Royal City," Vivian's voice sounded slightly distorted, but it was clear enough. "It's the default coordinates. Big Guy and Sanba are with me. We're now in Holletta."     

Hao Ren froze for a moment, then checked his surroundings as he came out from the corner. "MDT, check the parameters of the equipment. Were the settings of their hibernation pods not changed?"     

"The equipment parameters are fine; the three hibernation pods have the same spiritual path as you do. But for some unknown reason, the parameters became invalid during the mental dive. They've gone to Holletta following the previous default coordinates."     

It was an unexpected situation. Hao Ren immediately asked the three of them to return to the Surface World and allowed the MDT to remotely perform another teleportation with the hibernation pods. However, the results remained unchanged: Vivian and the others had gone to Holletta once more.     

"Try again?" Vivian asked over the comm. "Perhaps the Wall of Reality is steady today?"     

Hao Ren thought for a while and said, "Don't try again. I'm afraid there's a deeper problem. It looks like besides me and the MDT; no one can come in."     

"Do you still want to proceed with the investigation?" Vivian said, her voice sounded concerned. "Will there be problems on your side?"     

"Everything's fine here," Hao Ren replied, trying to make her feel at ease. "You three can go home and help me look after the house. Hell, it looks like the goddess isn't giving me a break yet. I'll have to get it done all by myself."     

Hearing him self-deprecating, Vivian knew that Hao Ren would be okay. She said with a smile, "Don't complain. The goddess is now your boss. Be careful over there. We're going home now."     

Hao Ren exhaled after the communication ended, thinking he had to do it all alone again in that world for the next few days. But then again, he had been alone there before—it was no big deal. Still, the situation puzzled him. "MDT, what do you think has happened?"     

"You're the only person who can reach the planet through mental projection, and I can tag along as a 'mental attachment' albeit in an incomplete state. Other than that, no one else can do it."     

"What's the key reason? Why is this happening?" Hao Ren frowned, looking up at the gray sky above. "Is there any filtering or recognition mechanism on this planet, where those who don't meet its conditions are blocked out?"     

"I don't have enough information and I can't tell. We first guessed that there was a problem with planet Zorm, but now it seems that the problem lies with you," the MDT said, sounding happy and completely ignoring Hao Ren's sullen face. "Think positive. Maybe there's just something wrong with your head? By the way, when are you going to let me out of your Dimensional Pocket?"     

"Dimensional Pocket?" Hao Ren froze for a moment, before realizing that the MDT had been talking to him through their spiritual connection. That piece of brick had failed to go through in one piece again. He quickly checked his Dimensional Pocket and was surprised to find that the MDT was lying in the form of a corpse inside.     

"The body was indeed gone when I was in the Surface World," Hao Ren said. "But when I come to Zorm, the body appears inexplicably. The Dimensional Pocket is divinely encrypted; no worldly power should affect its contents. So, how exactly does this body—"     

"When exactly are you going to let me out?" the MDT groaned. "I'm dying in here!"     

"Stop yelling!" Hao Ren yelled back in his mind. "All your senses in the corpse have stopped working, what can you still feel?"     

"Oh, maybe it's all in my mind. You can keep exploring. Let me share with you the story of Ali Baba and the 40 thieves..."     

Hao Ren shut the noisy gadget inside, leaving only an emergency channel open. Serenity finally returned to his world.     

The dirty streets of the slums stretched out before his eyes. He knew many wary eyes were peering at him behind windows and doors. He weaved uncomfortably through the terrible streets as his mind still remembered the location of the Gray Fox mercenary base. But for the time being, he was not going back there.     

He wanted to explore the messy neighborhood and learn more about it.