Chapter 213: The Unexpected Draft

Chapter 213: The Unexpected Draft

Despite the official ban on the production and sale of superpower serums, the allure of becoming stronger with a single injection was too great.

Some dared to take the risk, manufacturing superpower serums to reap exorbitant profits.

Thus, even after the official announcement prohibiting superpower serums, low-quality serums continued to circulate on the black market and the dark web.

On the internet, some absurd speculations emerged.

There were even those who believed that the authorities banned superpower serums because they feared that metahumans would become too powerful and uncontrollable after injecting them.

As a result, some metahumans went to great lengths to acquire superpower serums, believing it to be a shortcut to strength.

The first batch of low-quality superpower serums spread throughout Great Xia, and the prices were sky-high, with the cheapest going for at least 500,000 each.

In his previous life, the price of these low-quality serums had dropped as low as 100,000.

In this life, due to the official ban, the limited supply of superpower serums entering the market caused prices to soar.

After the low-quality serums started circulating in Great Xia, the situation in other countries wasn't as dire.

According to intelligence reports, the number of superpower serums in Western countries like the White Eagle Federation was significantly lower.

This situation was highly unusual.

Lu Heng remembered that in his previous life, the superpower serum incident was global, with metahumans worldwide going crazy over these injections.

However, in this life, the serums were concentrated within Great Xia.

The Iron Blood Investigation Bureau was tasked with investigating the channels through which superpower serums were entering the market. Chen Linian and Gao Zhiting worked tirelessly for many days, managing only four to five hours of sleep each night.

To prevent the circulation of superpower serums, the Iron Blood Bureau also offered a reward for information.

Lu Heng found this peculiar as well, so he joined Su Muyu in tracking down a channel that sold superpower serums.

They discovered that these serums were not domestically produced but were smuggled in from abroad.

These superpower serums were not circulating in other countries; they were all flowing into Great Xia.

Further investigation was unnecessary; even a discerning person could see that this was a conspiracy.

Clearly, the mastermind behind this knew the kind of catastrophe these serums could cause, especially the more intense side effects of low-quality ones.

If the serums weren't banned, it was foreseeable that within a short time, there would be a large-scale injection of superpower serums among metahumans.

Within two months, millions of metahumans in the country would experience side effects, leading to mutual slaughter in the fight for these serums.

During the most brutal period, there would even be instances of metahumans consuming the blood of others.

The highest-quality superpower serum was extracted from the blood of metahumans.

Directly consuming blood could also absorb another's primal energy, akin to a low-purity serum.

When that time came, it would be the darkest moment of this catastrophe, with humans preying on each other.

Lu Heng worried that the laboratory at the Academy of Sciences might not predict this situation, so he suggested an experimental plan while speaking with a scholar from the National Defense Academy of Sciences.

They injected two small white mice with superpower serums, then placed them together for observation.

In less than a week, the mice began to bite each other, and one eventually consumed the other.

After conducting multiple experiments, the Academy's biology laboratory confirmed a conclusion: after injecting superpower serums, animals would exhibit withdrawal symptoms and cannibalize each other's flesh and blood.

One could imagine how terrifying this phenomenon would be if it occurred in humans.

Consequently, the National Defense Academy of Sciences repeatedly recommended increasing the severity of the ban on superpower serums.

Any individuals or organizations daring to produce, transport, or sell superpower serums within Great Xia were to be arrested and severely punished.

After executing a batch of daring criminals, these people began to fear the consequences.

As Great Xia was the only country with such strict enforcement, selling superpower serums within its borders became a risky business.

Unlike before, selling serums in other countries carried no punishment.

Thus, the serums originally intended for Great Xia began to spread to other nations.

Even low-quality serums could fetch prices of 500,000 to 600,000, and this profit led to the proliferation of superpower serums.

Even the White Eagle Federation started to see a large-scale appearance of these serums.

Financial capital only cared about making money, not the side effects of injecting superpower serums.

This caused the initial conspiracy against Great Xia to backfire on certain nations.

Some countries opened Pandora's box and lacked the ability to close it, reaping what they had sown.

As the tenth month of the Abyssal Descent arrived...

One day, while Lu Heng was practicing swordsmanship, Su Muyu suddenly rushed over, pulled out a photo from her phone, and exclaimed, "Look at this! I found this on the foreign web. Aren't these Banseer people?"

The photo was a bit blurry, but having lived in Stone Hammer Fortress among the Banseer tribe for several days, they were familiar with this short-statured race and instantly recognized them.

"Yes, they're Banseer people. Where did you find this?"

"I saw it on the foreign web. The poster said they spotted strange dwarves in the suburbs of Edo."

Su Muyu explained how she came across the photo and then asked thoughtfully, "Do you think a metahuman brought the Banseer tribe to Blue Planet?"

Since Lu Heng had brought the Mechanical Tiger back to Blue Planet, and Guru Master had also escaped the Abyss to Blue Planet, it was possible for intelligent races from the Abyssal world to appear on Blue Planet.

However, ordinary intelligent races would not dare to venture into an unknown world through the Rift, as the fundamental laws of the worlds were different, and doing so would result in certain death.

This was why Su Muyu believed that a human metahuman had brought the Banseer tribe to Blue Planet.

Lu Heng, after a moment's thought, dismissed this possibility, saying, "No, they were summoned here."

Hearing this, Su Muyu's face showed surprise. "Summoned?"

"Yes, summoned. Just as we were summoned to other worlds invaded by the Abyss, intelligent races from other worlds would also be summoned to Blue Planet. Perhaps your mind hasn't caught up yet, but at the moment the Abyss descended, Blue Planet also became an Abyssal Battlefield." Lu Heng spoke these chilling words.

Although this information was startling, it wasn't hard to comprehend.

Whether it was the Banseer tribe or the Sexus civilization, their worlds were originally pure, and it was only after the Abyssal invasion that humans appeared in their worlds.

This was the rule of summoning.

The human world held no special status. If metahumans could be summoned to other worlds, then it was natural for beings from other worlds to be summoned to the human world.

However, the probability of summoning was influenced by numerous factors.

The estimated number of metahumans summoned globally had already reached tens of millions.

But this was the first time a being from another race had been summoned to Blue Planet.

The reason for this was that summoning to the Abyssal Battlefield was a form of inter-civilization support.

Currently, Blue Planet had only been invaded by the Abyss for ten months, and compared to other worlds consumed by the Abyss, the survival conditions on Blue Planet weren't as dire, so there wasn't a need for as much support.

Therefore, the number of summoned beings from other worlds on Blue Planet was still relatively small.

If humanity ever faced extinction, the number of summoned beings from other worlds would increase significantly.

After understanding this information, Su Muyu took a deep breath and said, "You mean the Banseer tribe was summoned to Blue Planet?"

"Yes. If this photo was taken in Edo, then the Banseer tribe should have been summoned there." Lu Heng began contemplating their next move.

Su Muyu quickly asked, "Is there a chance Mia was summoned too?"

Lu Heng nodded. "It's possible, but we can't be a hundred percent certain. Stone Hammer Fortress is just one branch of the Banseer tribe, and we don't know if the summoned Banseers are from Stone Hammer Fortress."

"If the Banseers from Stone Hammer Fortress were summoned, then the probability of Mia being summoned is high, as her level is relatively high."

"Usually, the higher the level, the greater the chance of being summoned."

Su Muyu thought of her good friend who had given her the crossbow, and the possibility of her being on Blue Planet made her anxious. "What should we do? Should we go and help them?"

Since they had been summoned to the Abyssal Battlefield, there was bound to be danger.

Just as human metahumans received tasks upon being summoned, other races would also receive tasks when summoned.

Therefore, if the Banseer tribe had been summoned, they would not only have to face Abyssal monsters but also threats from humans.

If the Banseers from Stone Hammer Fortress had been summoned, as friends, they would definitely go to help.

Although they hadn't figured out a plan yet, Lu Heng replied without hesitation, "We must help, but we need to find them first."

...

According to the poster, this photo of the Banseer people was taken in Edo.

Edo was the capital of Fusang, which meant the Banseer tribe had been summoned there, and they should currently be in the capital city of Edo.

Across the sea, they couldn't possibly provide any assistance.

So, Lu Heng gathered his team and set off for Fusang.

For convenience, they asked Chen Lianian to arrange three new passports, and using their new identities, they boarded a flight to Edo, the capital of Fusang, under the guise of tourists.

A few hours later, Lin Zeyu hired a translator in Edo, making communication much easier.

With the translator's help, they began asking around about the Banseer tribe, hoping to find any leads on the whereabouts of these little dwarves.

Unfortunately, their inquiries yielded no useful information.

In truth, the conclusion that the Banseer tribe had been summoned to Blue Planet was solely based on Lu Heng's analysis, supported by just one photograph. Thus, they couldn't be entirely certain.

The trio found a ramen shop to eat, discussing their next course of action as they dined.

Lin Zeyu scratched his head and asked, "Were those dwarves really summoned here? It seems like no one here has ever seen them."

Su Muyu shrugged and said, "It's normal not to have seen them. When we were summoned to other worlds, didn't we also try to hide?"

"Plus, the Banseer people actually resemble humans quite a bit; they're just shorter."

"With their hoods and masks, they could easily be mistaken for human children due to their height."

Lin Zeyu picked up a clump of seaweed and chewed as he asked, "Then how are we supposed to find them? It's like searching for a needle in a haystack."

Lu Heng had already considered several options.

The first was to guess the Banseer tribe's main quest and then search for them based on that.

Guessing the main quest was challenging but not entirely impossible.

The main quest would undoubtedly involve the Abyssal Demons, implying that a significant event related to them had occurred here.

If they could investigate this event, there was a high probability of finding the summoned Banseer people.

However, this plan was too passive.

If the demon event didn't occur, they'd have to wait indefinitely.

So, Lu Heng decided to use another tactic:

"Later, we'll go to an advertising company and buy all the outdoor screen advertising slots in Edo, continuously broadcasting a message."

Upon hearing this idea, Lin Zeyu felt hopeful, "Are you going to broadcast a missing person notice?"

Indeed, a missing person notice was the most direct approach, but it was also strange and might attract unwanted attention.

Su Muyu thought for a moment and suggested, "Let's broadcast a message of gratitude to Mia for the crossbow, and then leave a phone number in Banseer script."

Lu Heng agreed, "That's a good idea."

So, after finishing their ramen, the trio went to an advertising company and spent a considerable sum to rent multiple outdoor screen advertisements in various squares.

They began broadcasting the message: "Thank you, Mia, for the crossbow. Your friends."

This was followed by a string of Banseer numbers.

Now, all they could do was wait.

...

A few hours later, in an uninhabited house on the outskirts of Edo.

Banseer scout Hack rushed in, excitedly shouting, "Leader, I saw Mia... Mia..."

A Banseer leader with a full beard, upon hearing his tribe member mention that name, became agitated, "You found Mia?"

This Banseer leader was none other than Iron Arm.

Iron Arm's eyes lit up at the mention of his daughter's name, and he grabbed Hack's arm, questioning him eagerly, nearly dislocating his arms.

"No, no... I just saw Mia's name," Hack quickly explained.

"Mia's name? Is it a code left by Mia?" Iron Arm worried, as Mia had gone out to find food a couple of days ago and hadn't returned.

He feared his daughter had been captured by demons.

If it were demons, that would be better.

Dealing with demons only required a hammer.

What he feared was that she had been taken by humans.

He had a soft spot for humans, as a human had once shown kindness to their Stone Hammer Fortress, even teaching them a lost tempering technique that had been forgotten for centuries.

So, when they first teleported here and saw many humans, they felt a sense of familiarity and even wanted to approach them.

However, they were met with pursuit and capture.

Fortunately, they managed to escape, but Mia had gone out to find food a few days ago and hadn't returned.

Hack described what he saw using all the words he could think of, "I saw a place with many people, and on the wall, there was a glowing message: Thank you, Mia, for the crossbow. There was also a string of numbers, but I don't know what they mean."

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end