One thousand Guijing meant the main map's exploration range could be upgraded one more time.
This alone would elevate Xin Huo's income by another level. Moreover, the current erratic appearance of the Gate of the Ghost Realm caused worry and necessitated map exploration to gauge the situation.
Fang You returned to the lounge and solemnly took out his phone.
The Guijing displayed "1008." The record showed that Black Blade had just completed a three-star group mission.
The number had just reached the required amount, but Black Blade was still on a mission, so there was no need to worry about all the Guijing being spent on an upgrade.
He tapped lightly.
The four-digit 'large pile of Guijing,' which hadn't been held for long, quietly evaporated.
In its place came a not-so-crisp notification sound and the gradually expanding map boundaries.
This time, the upgrade lasted a full five hours. During this period, Fang You did not just wait idly but continuously adjusted his state.
The opportunity for the third awakening was singular.
Should it fail, whether it was adjusting one's state, self-recovery, or accumulating mystery anew, none could be achieved in a short time.
In the training ground, Fang You continuously swung his sword, and his restless heart gradually calmed.
When the time was almost up, he had Xiao Huan bring up the game interface.
"Ding!"
"Notification: The current main map range has been upgraded to Lv5. As 'Yunling Anchor Point' and 'Baijiang Anchor Point' are now covered, both anchor points have been automatically reclaimed. Guijing +60. Remaining deployable anchor points: 3."
The map interface expanded.
The illuminated area on it already enveloped more than half of Donghuang, leaving only a few areas in the west and north that had not yet fallen within the map's detection range.
And those already detected...
Xiao Huan thoughtfully compiled and summarized the general situation for him.
The focus was naturally on the Gate of the Ghost Realm.
There were six in total!
Not the four previously discovered!
In fact, there were a total of seven 'Gate of the Ghost Realm' marked on the map with presages. However, one of these was a nascent presage, with its opening still two or three days away.
According to Xiao Huan's analysis and judgment, this was 99.9% unrelated to the other gates, as the countdowns on the other gates were precise to the second!
There was a problem, a big problem indeed!
"How many did the Investigation Bureau discover?"
"It's five. Yesterday, the Investigation Bureau conducted a thorough search and found one more. However, this particular location's Gate of the Ghost Realm was not found by the Investigation Bureau."
She pointed to an area on the map, a Gate of the Ghost Realm located in Yunling State.
Two of the six presage points were in Yunling State, one of which was near Silver City, posing a greater danger. The other was located deep in the mountains and forests.
This mountainous forest was distinguished on the map with a special outline, indicating 'Contaminated Zone · Medium.'
Within the map's range, it was the only medium-level contaminated zone!
This place was still far from any city. Logically, even if a Gate of the Ghost Realm appeared and spawned a tide of malevolent spirits, its threat would be far less significant than the other five. But...
Simultaneously appearing, the only hidden one was in the contaminated zone.
And contaminated zones were practically the gateway to the Ghost Realm.
His intuition told him this might be the crux of the problem, but intuition alone was not enough, and the other Gates of the Ghost Realm could not be ignored.
"Remaining time: 13:25:59"
Fang You mused.
This contaminated zone harbored a very large number of malevolent spirits. Xin Huo alone would not suffice.
Currently, the Investigation Bureau was the largest force.
He needed to inform the Investigation Bureau.
It was much easier and more discreet to do so now.
Fang You spoke, "Xiao Huan, please organize this information and send it secretly to the Investigation Bureau Headquarters."
She nodded cheerfully, then leaped lightly, zipping into the phone screen and disappearing.
...
Investigation Bureau, Headquarters.
The secret underground hall.
Huang Hongtian, one of the three deputy directors of the headquarters, strode in. "A nationwide search, and only these five Gates of Hell have appeared simultaneously?"
"All these Gates of Hell have appeared near cities. Once discovered too late, they will lead to immense disaster!"
He too felt immense pressure, having barely slept these past few days.
But by today, he could no longer stay awake. He himself was a crucial combatant and had to be in peak condition when the Gate of the Ghost Realm opened.
Yet, how could he close his eyes!
"Old Huang, you should go rest. Tomorrow's battle will require you more. I'll watch things here."
The speaker was another deputy director, surnamed Liu.
He was in charge of the Investigation Bureau's various affairs.
Compared to Director Tang, who was often absent, and Deputy Director Huang, who either went out or stayed in the training grounds lifting weights, this man was more like the director.
However, he was not an awakened individual, and when major disasters were involved, Director Huang couldn't be at ease.
"I'll take another look, then go rest."
"Any news from her?"
"Her?" Director Liu said, "You know her abilities. Proactive prophecy has many limitations and cannot be precise. Only passive precognition through dreams is the most accurate and miraculous. But even she herself cannot say when such a premonition will occur."
"She has had many premonitions and is certain that more than five Gates of Hell are related to this incident. However, she also cannot predict the specific location."
Indeed, there was another one.
Director Huang had felt something was amiss all along. Five Gates of Hell appearing simultaneously; it was as if a great hand was manipulating things from behind the scenes. But it was too obvious, constantly making him uneasy.
The existence of a sixth one was logical!
It was just that...
Without the location of the sixth Gate of Hell, this prophecy was only half fulfilled.
Director Huang's pressure intensified.
However, apart from ordering continued searches and preparing a rapid response team, there was nothing else to be done.
He had to return to his dormitory.
There was a major battle tomorrow, and he had to force himself to rest.
Suddenly,
Director Huang's gaze sharpened. The patterns on his skin seemed to come alive, and a terrifying pressure rippled outwards, stirring up a strong wind.
His work laptop in front of him was glowing.
A map was being continuously zoomed in, focusing on a deep mountain area in western Yunling State, with the label 'Gate of Hell-6' marked on it.
"The location of the sixth Gate of Hell?!"
He widened his eyes, looking at the scrolling small text, and a tumultuous wave began to rise in his heart.
It was very likely true!
Based on his experience, the information above was highly reliable.
Moreover, his work computer was not connected to the network at this time. How had it been hacked? Even the most top-tier hacker couldn't achieve this!
This was not scientific!
However, whether it was scientific or not would be determined by specialists. What Huang Hongtian wanted to know now was only about this sixth Gate of Hell.
"Contaminated Zone? The closest location to being submerged beneath reality?"
"Even the surrounding powerful malevolent spirits have been identified?"
Director Huang could no longer sit still. He stopped resting and immediately took his laptop and hurried out.
However, he was still somewhat astonished.
Where did this intelligence come from?