"And then we barely survived, and I managed to escape," Bai Ye said gravely. "But my companions were trapped in that world, and I couldn't just leave them. I had to save them."
"But when we left that world, the crystals were destroyed by an explosion, and I couldn't use them to return. So, I left Cowboy City and started searching for those crystals."
Allen asked curiously, "What was that world like?"
"Just like this world, only with more monsters," Bai Ye replied. "If you entered through the Ruined City, you would still be in the Ruined City. However, I entered Cowboy City at the time."
Allen asked with interest, "And then?"
Bai Ye continued, "The city was the same, like a mirror world, but the people living in it were different. Besides mutated creatures, there were also the mutated humans I mentioned."
After speaking, Bai Ye grasped Allen's wrist.
"Please help me," Bai Ye said. "I only need to know where those crystals are."
Allen immediately agreed, "No problem."
How could Allen possibly refuse Bai Ye's request?
Ever since he discovered those mysterious crystal fragments half a year ago, Allen had been researching them, but without any clues.
In fact, Allen had become a laughingstock in the borderlands.
Once a renowned hunter in the borderlands, he was now researching a pile of crystal fragments, which many considered a downfall.
As for clearing out mutated creatures, everyone scoffed.
If the mutated creatures were cleared out, what would they eat?
They were the main source of food beneath the wasteland.
Now, Allen had finally learned the secret of the crystal fragments. How could he refuse Bai Ye? Let alone telling Bai Ye where the fragments were, even if Bai Ye invited him to go, Allen would go without hesitation.
"Wait a minute," the boss interrupted. "If entering Cowboy City leads to another world's Cowboy City, then wouldn't entering the borderlands lead to another borderlands?"
Bai Ye nodded. "Yes?"
The boss continued, "But you want to save your friends, shouldn't you go to Cowboy City? Are you sure the other world's borderlands are connected to Cowboy City?"
Bai Ye was taken aback. How would he know?
He didn't have any companions!
He had just made that up.
Bai Ye took a deep breath, channeling his inner actor, and said gravely, "I don't know, but no matter what, I have to try, even if there's only a sliver of hope to save them."
The boss nodded and then asked, "Second question, does that world have resources? Can they be brought back?"
Bai Ye was surprised again, then understood what the boss meant, and replied, "Yes!"
The boss inquired, "For example?"
"I don't know," Bai Ye said. "Let me put it this way, when you enter that world, you'll find it's like going from one borderland to another. There will definitely be resources, just like when the borderlands first became ruins. Humans scoured the borderlands for supplies, food, energy blocks, and various equipment."
The boss pondered, "So, it's a borderland that hasn't been scavenged?"
"Theoretically, yes," Bai Ye said. "After all, there are no humans there. The mutated Crystallized Humans, without thought, act on beast-like instincts. They wouldn't be collecting resources, would they?"
But what was the reality?
The reality was far from it.
The so-called mirror worlds were created by the Rhine Corporation.
In recent years, the Rhine Corporation's control over androids had been declining.
More and more androids were dissatisfied with their servitude, defecting from the wealthy district known as "The Castle" and hiding in the surrounding slums.
While it hadn't escalated to a full-blown war between humans and androids as it had in the past, the situation was worse than imagined.
Thus, the Rhine Corporation devised a new plan. They needed to maintain control over the borderlands and require absolute military force.
They realized that the reason for the increasing rebellion among androids was that they were created by cloning humans.
Since that was the case, it was impossible to stifle the androids' consciousness.
And as long as androids had consciousness, they would grow and evolve, eventually developing rebellious thoughts.
The Rhine Corporation simply needed slaves.
Therefore, the Rhine Corporation built the mirror worlds and secretly conducted research and human experiments within them. The new warriors the Rhine Corporation created were the Crystallized Humans.
Of course, those Crystallized Humans were not yet complete and had many flaws. Otherwise, the Rhine Corporation would have deployed them long ago to replace the androids.
As for the so-called crystals, they were actually the entrances to the mirror worlds.
This was also a new technology from the Rhine Corporation, developed in response to the sudden natural disasters like typhoons, tsunamis, and earthquakes in the wasteland environment.
The Ruined City was becoming increasingly dilapidated, and everyone worried when a strong typhoon might destroy it. However, by hiding in the mirror world, they wouldn't have to fear such disasters.
At the same time, to prevent the news of the Crystallized Humans from leaking and causing an android uprising, the Rhine Corporation placed their research facilities within the mirror worlds.
After all, if the Crystallized Humans replaced the androids, the existing androids would be destroyed. If the news leaked prematurely, even the androids who hadn't rebelled would be forced to do so.
Who would want to be destroyed?
However, the Rhine Corporation's new mirror world technology was clearly not perfect. During the creation of these worlds, there were flaws, and crystals extended outwards around the borderlands.
These crystals could also be considered breaches in the mirror worlds, allowing people to enter and exit without going through the proper channels.
What did all this have to do with Bai Ye?
Bai Ye grinned. It would soon be his concern.
Bai Ye looked at Allen, inwardly exclaiming, "Team up with me, team up with me! We'll explore the mirror world together and uncover the truth. You'll become a hero!"
But…
The boss looked at Bai Ye and said seriously, "If we can obtain enough resources, I believe I can assemble a team for you."
"You have received a hidden quest."
"Lead the hunting ground team into the mirror world for exploration. This is a time-limited quest. Time will be calculated from the moment you enter the mirror world until you leave."
"The rewards for this hidden quest will be awarded based on the completion level. Upon successfully completing the mirror world exploration and leaving, the rewards will be announced."
Bai Ye's mind was suddenly filled with question marks.
This quest was different from the one he remembered!