The System Arrived Four Years Early, but the Anomaly Is Still a Juvenile

Chapter 76

The screen displayed footage from the outskirts of the city.

A distinctive 33-story building stood half-embedded into a mountainside, as if the mountain had been hollowed out to accommodate its construction—a literal “mountain skyscraper.”

But now, the building was engulfed in an eerie phenomenon. Thick black smoke billowed into the sky, giving the illusion that the entire structure was ablaze.

Upon closer inspection, however, it wasn’t fire at all.

The building was shrouded in a dense, swirling black mist of anomaly energy, mimicking the appearance of smoke.

The surrounding streets and neighboring buildings had been cordoned off, completely evacuated.

Deng Yuqi sat at the head of the conference table, her back to the screen, her expression grim as she stared at her laptop.

Assistant Xiao Zhang, standing beside the display, read from the report sent by headquarters:

‘adult entertainment’

Tier 2 anomaly.”

As the screen displayed the grotesque creature, Shen Ge couldn’t help but comment:

Huo Yu, sitting nearby, added:

Shen Ge asked.

Xiao Zhang answered: poodle—

Shen Ge nodded solemnly.

(…No. No, he couldn’t.)

Tap. Tap.

Deng Yuqi rapped her knuckles on the table, cutting through the chatter.

Xiao Zhang quickly resumed:

*”After the anomaly evolved to Tier 2, containment failed. The Yu Zhou team forced it into the underground parking garage and sealed it using anomaly-energy equipment. But as they withdrew,* the entire building was engulfed by the black mist,

One officer interjected:

18th floor, 17 seconds,

high-tier anomaly

Tier 4 anomaly.”*

BANG!

Section Chief Chen slammed his fist on the table, furious.

bastards! cover it up? gone

Different perspectives led to different priorities. Chen wanted swift action to minimize civilian casualties. The higher-ups, however, cared about public stability—avoiding panic at all costs.

Standard crisis management… except this wasn’t a standard crisis.

This was an anomaly event.

Delaying containment risked catastrophic escalation.

A Tier 1 anomaly could still be killed with firearms.

A Tier 2 could tank rocket fire.

And beyond that?

Xiao Zhang, nervously swallowing, continued:

10-kilometer radius,

second elite agent 57 personnel went missing.”*

Chen was seething. kept hiding it!

Xiao Zhang pressed on:

still didn’t report to HQ, private anomaly mercenaries.”*

*”On February 1, a 13-man merc team entered Dongyu Street. They reached the building… then their signals* vanished instantly.”*

Deng Yuqi took over, her voice icy:

Southwest Four Branches international incident.”*

Globally, Tier 4 anomalies were classified as worse than 8.0 earthquakes. If unresolved, foreign “aid” might intervene—with no regard for local casualties.

Chen snarled:

Deng Yuqi continued: we’re next if this spreads.

The room erupted into debate, splitting into two factions:

“Let HQ clean their own mess.”

This was only China’s second Tier 4 incident. The first had slaughtered three of the nation’s top five agents.

Rong City Branch was under-equipped, ranking last nationally in resources.

“Scout the perimeter.”

If the anomaly expanded, Rong City would be ground zero.

But beneath the arguments… fear festered.

Everyone remembered the first Tier 4 event—a biotech experiment gone wrong. Three elite agents, armed to the teeth, had gone in.

Two died. One came back crippled.

If HQ’s best had barely survived… what hope did Rong City’s skeleton crew have?

Deng Yuqi glanced at Shen Ge, expecting input from her rising star.

Instead—

Crunch.

Shen Ge was stealthily eating a braised egg, cheeks bulging like a chipmunk.

The entire room fell silent, staring.

Choking, Shen Ge gulped tea and blurted:

Deng Yuqi deadpanned: your

Shen Ge shrugged. extort HQ

out loud,

But Deng Yuqi’s lips curled. three anomaly gears our pay

Her stance was clear:

No prep, no sacrifice.

If HQ refused support, she’d station troops outside the danger zone—retreating mile by mile if the anomaly expanded.

my

Shen Ge was impressed. She wasn’t blindly preaching “glory in death.”

Chen looked conflicted but stayed silent.

At 8:00 AM, the national conference began.

As predicted, HQ pushed the crisis onto the Southwest Four Branches, demanding a joint task force.

Then—

senile retire. your understaffed underequipped— Do it yourself

Deng Yuqi’s tirade echoed live across every branch.

Even Shen Ge gaped.

(Was she trying to get fired?)

But the veterans just sighed.

Because everyone knew:

Deng Yuqi and the HQ Chief shared a surname.

Family.

…Yet they acted like mortal enemies.