Chapter 27: A Report

Chapter 27: A Report

As Qi Sheng monitored the Test Tower’s operations,

In the real world, the Human Federation’s Starnet Security Center buzzed with activity.

Beep!

“Verification successful!”

The electronic voice chimed as the metal doors slid silently into the walls.

Ding Xiu stepped inside, sat at his desk, and stared at the rising numbers on the screen—new cybercrime reports flooding in by the second. He sighed.

Suddenly, the ceiling-mounted projector activated, beams of light converging to form a robotic hologram before him.

“Smart Assistant A reporting. You currently have 328 unresolved cybercrime reports. Of these, 227 have been flagged as AI-handled cases and will be processed by me. The remaining 101 require your judgment, as I cannot determine their validity with the available data.”

Ignoring the assistant, Ding Xiu pressed a blue button on his desk. More light beams erupted from the ceiling, assembling into a holographic workstation around him. Countless blue and white data points swirled lazily in the air.

“Begin work.”

With renewed focus, Ding Xiu dove into the reports. After processing four cases—deciding whether to forward them to local law enforcement or interstellar regulatory bodies—he opened another white data point.

The hologram materialized into a detailed report:

Reporter: Gameisart (Verified ID: Wang Xuexi, ID# redacted)
Report Content:
A cyber scammer in a group chat is distributing phishing links claiming to offer the latest VR game Darklands by Lunar Eclipse Clan.
(Attachments: group chat screenshots; poster’s IP address redacted)

Ding Xiu frowned. This seemed obviously fake. Lunar Eclipse Clan’s games had never been cracked, especially not Darklands, which used cutting-edge encryption.

Normally, AI should have dismissed this instantly. Why escalate to human review?

“Smart Assistant A, why wasn’t this handled automatically?”

The holographic assistant stood abruptly. “All reports undergo preliminary checks. However, three anomalies prevented resolution: First, the poster ‘Welfare Officer’ has no verified account or IP trace. Second, I couldn’t bypass the link’s encryption—a barrier beyond my A-level clearance. Third, no digital footprint exists for the account’s activity.”

Ding Xiu leaned closer. The hologram updated:

Download limit reached. Publisher has restricted new access.

“Only Lunar Eclipse Clan’s S-level systems or the Federal Mainframe could block me,” the AI continued. “Per AI Regulation 238, unresolved uncertainties require human intervention.”

Ding Xiu rechecked the data himself—nothing. No IP, no account history.

“Lunar Eclipse Clan?” The thought chilled him.

Centuries ago, Humanity’s Starnet and city Ais were built with Lunar Eclipse Clan’s tech—granting them unrestricted access. The Federation had debated this risk, but dissent died when someone asked, “If they wanted Earth, could we stop them?”

Now, someone with Clan-level clearance was distributing fake Darklands links under an unverified ID? Absurd. Yet no other explanation fit.

Ding Xiu forwarded the case to his superior, Yue Dong, then resumed work.

Ten minutes later, Yue Dong’s hologram appeared. “The Federal Mainframe confirmed: no unverified accounts exist. This must be a Clan member. We’ve identified twelve scenarios—from internal theft to high-level pranks—but none explain the behavior.”

He paused. “Monitor the link. If it reactivates, we’ll know.”

“Understood.” Ding Xiu turned to his AI. “Run high-frequency pings—check download permissions every tenth of a second.”

“They’ll detect me,” the AI protested.

“Then make them think it’s random traffic.”

---

Meanwhile, in Dizhong Village, Qi Sheng received an alert from Guide: an AI was probing Challenger System at 100,000 requests per second.

“Human Federation’s onto us,” Guide noted.

Qi Sheng wasn’t surprised. With Monster World’s player base exploding, exposure was inevitable. But Starnet’s core had long been compromised—the Clan’s network permissions were his to manipulate.

Let them watch.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end