Chapter Sixteen: Ignore Risks, Continue Installation.

Prometheus Plaza, Block 44.

"Hey, bipedal, want some energy drink?" A green velociraptor wearing a tie-dye shirt, bell-bottoms, and flowers stuck in his hair rapped at Xia Xiu, who had been watching his performance.

"Vortex Music enthusiast?" Xia Xiu took the bottle of bubbling black soda from him and took a sip. This stuff was essentially the "happy water" produced in Three Portlands.

"Yeah, brother, you an enthusiast too?" The velociraptor’s green pupils gleamed.

"No, I just know a little. I heard Vortex Music carries memetic hazards for ordinary people, so the Sanctuary ordered a ban on its performance in the physical world."

"Those damn suits, they’re just barbarians who don’t understand art. Every day it’s 'heresy' this and 'heresy' that, shouting to the world about containing anomalies and purging abnormal states. Calling themselves the 'Heavenly Kingdom'—I think 'Heavenly Turd' is more like it," the velociraptor retorted angrily.

"Mmh, you’re absolutely right."

Xia Xiu, holder of the Red Book of the Heavenly Kingdom—the very type of person the Inquisition and the Burial Agency loved to recruit—nodded in agreement.

"You’ve been staring at me for a while now; you must need my help with something. Let me tell you, if you’re looking to buy Soma, I don’t provide that here. I’m a law-abiding citizen of Three Portlands; I never do anything illegal," the velociraptor said righteously.

"No, no, I’m not here to buy memetic drugs," Xia Xiu shook his head.

He pulled three thaumaturgy stones from his coat and pressed them into the velociraptor’s claw. "I heard that the people at Vortex Music have the widest variety of memetic antibodies in all of Three Portlands. I’ve recently been infected by an unknown memetic hazard, so I’m looking for a lead to see if I can find the corresponding antibody."

*How do you manage to ask such a ridiculous question while wearing the robes of the Deer Academy? Do you really think the Deer Academy’s antibody library is smaller than Vortex Music’s? It’s obvious you’re looking for something illicit.*

"Brother, you’ve asked the right guy. Helping others is my favorite thing to do," the velociraptor, Quinn, said, not betraying his inner thoughts as he naturally pocketed the three stones. He leaned in close to Xia Xiu and whispered the address and the secret code for contact.

"Thanks. Your energy drink was excellent."

"Don't mention it. Come by again sometime."

Xia Xiu walked away. He knew Vortex Music sold memetic antibodies because he had read a game guide in his previous life titled "Making Three Portlands Crazier." The guide taught players how to bypass the Three Portlands community security department and the Deer Academy to engage in non-sanctioned activities, including how to acquire unofficial memetic antibodies.

By the way, the application Xia Xiu intended to install was also from that guide. The Three Portlands City Council and the Deer Academy would never sell anything related to memes to outsiders, which was why Xia Xiu had to turn to Vortex Music to obtain the [Anti-Muggle Memetic Antibody].

...

Intersection of Seventh Portland Street and Multi-Position Street.

[Natural Ghost Sanctuary]

Xia Xiu looked up at the forest of tombstones before him. This was where Vortex Music sold its antibodies. It was just as Quinn had described: a beautiful home that stayed cool all year round and gave one a comforting sense of "returning home."

Xia Xiu walked into the graveyard, his feet sinking into the soft soil as his eyes scanned the markers.

Rest Area 1.
Rest Area 2.
Special Services.

Indeed a Natural Ghost Sanctuary; the service was truly thorough. Xia Xiu soon arrived at his destination. Quinn had told him to find a ghost named Alice, and now, before his eyes, a tombstone bore the inscription: *Reserved for Administrator Alice.*

Xia Xiu approached the stone and recited softly:

"The world will weep for you, like a widowed wife.
The world will become your widow, forever grieving,
For you left her no likeness of yourself while you lived—"

This was the code Quinn had given him. He waited quietly.

*Click.*

A skeleton draped in a tattered wedding dress crawled out from within the tombstone. Two vines sprouted from her eye sockets, and after a moment, wooden eyes formed within the pale, bony orbits.

"Hiss—what do you want—" the woman named Alice asked in a raspy tone.

"I want to buy a dose of [Anti-Muggle Memetic Antibody]."

"Five thaumaturgy stones."

"Can I pay in Yuanyang coins?"

"Five thousand."

"Here is five thousand."

"Wait here for a moment."

Alice took the money and turned toward a crooked tree in the center of the graveyard. She walked up to it, and her skeletal hand easily sank into the tree's trunk, the resinous bark deforming around her limb. She rummaged inside for a while before pulling out a transparent syringe filled with red liquid. She brought it to Xia Xiu.

"Here, the antibody you wanted. It’s effective immediately. Shelf life is three months."

"Mmh."

Xia Xiu took the syringe, snapped off the rubber cap, rolled up his right sleeve, and injected it directly into his body.

Alice was stunned by his bluntness. Of all the customers she had ever seen, Xia Xiu was the one who trusted their product quality the most.

"Thanks. I’ll come back again if I have the chance."

"Uh—" Alice watched his retreating figure, unsure of how to respond.

After leaving the sanctuary, Xia Xiu found a café with privacy screens. He ordered a coffee and summoned the Red Book.

[New memetic antibody inoculated]
[Current antibody count: 3]

He now had three types of memetic antibodies. The first two were injected by the Deer Academy—authentication pheromones to prevent him from being obliterated by the "Sword of Judgment" of the Deer Academy's think tank when connecting with external devices. The [Anti-Muggle Memetic Antibody] he had just injected served as another form of authentication pheromone.

Sipping his coffee, Xia Xiu used the Red Book to begin the application installation. The lineage application he wanted to install was called: [Guide to Abnormal Community Life].

[Guide to Abnormal Community Life] Installation Instructions:
1. Adjust lineage frequency to public channel—50Hz.
2. Set lineage loudness to the pitch sequence: 3, 4, 3, 3, 6 (the rise-fall code).
3. Inject [Anti-Muggle Memetic Antibody].
4. Install at the designated location (where Xia Xiu was currently located).

Xia Xiu manipulated the Red Book to adjust the frequency and volume. As he met the conditions, a red popup window automatically appeared on the book.

[Eden Alert: You are installing a high-risk lineage application device.]

Xia Xiu tapped "Ignore Risk" and continued the installation.