Thinking so, Mu Anqi took out the white whistle and blew it lightly. In the next instant, a large flock of ordinary pigeons flew over from afar. On the way, they continuously shifted their shapes, finally forming the outline of a carriage. At the moment they reached Mu Anqi, this fairy-tale-like carriage was completely constructed.
The door of the carriage, patterned with white hollow flying pigeons, opened automatically. Mu Anqi quickly got into the carriage. "Return to Miss White's special rest hall."
The carriage wheels began to roll on their own, but this carriage wasn't merely moving forward—it gradually tilted, causing Mu Anqi to be pressed entirely against the back of the carriage by inertia. Could it… fly?
Was it because it was made of white pigeons? Magic?
Truly marvelous.
The white carriage was extremely fast, and since it traveled through the air, within just two or three minutes Mu Anqi could already see the special rest hall from the window. The carriage slowed down, gradually descended, and finally stopped steadily at the entrance of the hall.
Putting away the whistle, Mu Anqi once again walked up to the white pigeon reception desk: "Hello, I still have a few questions. I wonder if you could answer them."
"Does Miss White have absolute control over Upside-Down City?"
"Of course." The white pigeon at the front desk gave a definite answer.
"And what about the other presence in Upside-Down City?"
The white pigeon didn't reply immediately; he just quietly looked at Mu Anqi. Just as she was about to repeat the question, he finally answered in a low voice: "Mr. Black and Miss White jointly manage Upside-Down City."
"They are essentially one."
One? So could this game be some kind of married couple's fun? Mu Anqi guessed. She thought for a moment and then asked, "On the other side of Upside-Down City, is there also a special rest hall?"
"Of course." The white pigeon smiled. "If you clear enough polluted residents, Miss White will look upon you differently."
"Is there a secret laboratory in Upside-Down City?" Mu Anqi hesitated for a moment before making her request. "I want a detailed map of Upside-Down City. In addition, I want the addresses of all laboratories, hospitals, prisons, or special biological factories in the city… This should also be included in the travel services, right?"
The white pigeon tilted his head slightly and gave a polite smile. "Of course. Please wait a moment; I will prepare the special map for you right away."
Before long, a map that looked very much like a game's large-scale map was handed to Mu Anqi. She unfolded it and saw that all the special buildings within Upside-Down City were marked, using various symbols and regional divisions. For example, the commercial district had a blue background, with different shops represented by symbolic icons: a drink icon for beverage shops, a food icon for food stores, a clothing icon for apparel shops, and a jewelry icon for jewelry stores. Mu Anqi quickly found the cross-shaped hospital icon and the prison icon, while special laboratories were represented in the form of potions.
However, the edges of the map were all covered in dense black. Mu Anqi also didn't find a rest hall representing Mr. Black, meaning the other side's territory wasn't displayed on the map?
Or perhaps, to reach the other city, some special medium is required?
Exploration…
Miss White, Mr. Black, day and night? When night falls, will this city undergo any changes? The territory of Upside-Down City is jointly controlled by both… Are these two "lords"? If so, surviving for seven days certainly won't be so simple.
Holding the map, Mu Anqi walked out of the rest hall and blew the whistle to summon the white carriage… hmm, perhaps it would be more accurate to call it a pigeon carriage, though its style and appearance were closer to a traditional carriage.
During the following period, Mu Anqi visited three locations in sequence: the hospital, the prison, and the laboratory. With the map in hand, she would board the carriage and state the address, and the carriage would take her straight to the entrance of the location.
With the help of the temporary residence permit, Mu Anqi had no trouble entering the hospital. However, the hospital in Upside-Down City was somewhat unexpectedly ordinary. Unlike the hospital in the Deadly Pollution area, this hospital seemed to be just a regular hospital. Consultations required queuing for a number or making an appointment, and there were all kinds of departments. Everything appeared no different from the hospitals Mu Anqi had visited in her previous life.
Even the patients waiting outside didn't show any special traits. There were no machines, no corpse-like features, no exposed bones, and no horrifying wounds. The various anthropomorphic animals inside the hospital behaved obediently, like well-behaved children. Even when conflicts arose due to people cutting in line, the hospital security would immediately rush out to stop them.
Mu Anqi also peeked into the patient rooms to look at those lying in the beds, and after touring almost the entire enormous hospital, she still didn't find anything unusual.
It would be false to say she wasn't disappointed. Just as she was heading back the same way, planning to leave the hospital and check the other two places that weren't so easy to access, she passed by a patient room again and heard crying inside, along with, "How could he suddenly disappear? He doesn't smoke or drink, he's never come home later than nine… how could he disappear, sob sob sob…"
Disappear?!
Mu Anqi carefully glanced into the room and saw that there were quite a few anthropomorphic animals inside, making it inconvenient to act. She had no choice but to restrain herself and wait outside the room, trying to catch more information.
However, the main focus of the crying inside was how exceptional and wonderful the missing gentleman was. The lady in the room was likely his wife, and as she recalled bits and pieces of the past, she was overwhelmed with sorrow.
Mu Anqi sighed, dismissing the idea of forcibly entering the patient room to seek more information. From the crying, it was clear they knew nothing about the reason for the "disappearance," not even when the gentleman had gone missing. However, from the comforting words of the other two voices, Mu Anqi sensed that "disappearance" cases in Upside-Down City were apparently not uncommon, and the families of missing residents would receive a substantial compensation.
If Mr. Black and Miss White's experiments or modifications weren't publicly visible, then "disappearing" residents would be the best option.
She might not be able to enter the laboratory… If only she had the ability to seek out alcohol like Fang Xunjiu, perhaps she could use favorability to communicate with the lab personnel and obtain information—or even gain certain access privileges.
Leaving the hospital and before heading to the laboratory, Mu Anqi approached a bird lady with striking blue feathers. Her clothes looked very high-end, and the blue gemstone around her neck seemed especially expensive. "Hello, miss. I'm sorry to bother you. I might take a minute or two of your time to ask you a few questions. May I ask how much you know about the disappearance cases within Upside-Down City?"
It was obvious at a glance that Mu Anqi was an outsider, since all the residents of Upside-Down City were various animals.
"An outsider? Regarding disappearance cases, you can buy a newspaper at the kiosk. Of course, there's also a collection of disappearance cases, though it will be a bit more expensive." The blue bird lady's voice was crisp and pleasant, and her attitude toward Mu Anqi was quite friendly.
"Is this the currency used in Upside-Down City?" Mu Anqi took out a guansi coin and asked.
"What kind of special crystal is this?" The blue bird lady seemed to have never seen a guansi before. She curiously examined the small, translucent crystal, even sensing a trace of energy she had never encountered. "Our currency is this." She elegantly took out her wallet and pulled out a pure white banknote. In the center of the note was a piece of mirror fragment affixed to it, which felt soft to the touch. On the fragment, a black "value" was displayed—the one in her hand showed "100." In addition, when viewed from a special angle, the entire white banknote appeared surrounded by a ring of black patterns.
Even the currency is different?! What exactly is Upside-Down City? Clearly, even the cities under the general's control use guansi for transactions. And the design of this currency… no matter how you look at it, it seems to have been issued jointly by Miss White and Mr. Black.
Upside-Down City…
Mu Anqi pressed her lips together and handed the guansi coin forward. "Thank you for answering my questions. If you like, you can have this."
The blue bird lady slipped the one-hundred banknote she was holding into Mu Anqi's hand, then took the guansi coin. "Consider this a purchase from me. Outsider, do you have any other questions?"
"…Do you know what a polluted resident is?" Mu Anqi hesitated several times but finally asked the question. "Or, where they might appear?"
"That's the work you outsiders are responsible for." The blue bird lady held the guansi coin, thought for a moment, and then released it. "However, there's no harm in giving you a little clue."
"Those who can move freely here are all normal residents. Any residents who accidentally discover pollution or become polluted have all disappeared."
"Try thinking in another way."
After saying this, the blue bird lady quickly left.
Mu Anqi didn't stop her, but stood there, somewhat dazed: "Think in another way?"
Upside-Down City, upside-down…
Does it mean that another world is hidden "beneath" this city? Pollution and the polluted are all gathered below, and in the "upper" city, this matter is classified as a disappearance. Yet part of the residents here know the true reason behind the disappearance cases.
A strange structure. Mu Anqi thought of the mirrors that often appeared in the maze, then looked at the mirrored surface showing the value on the banknote in her hand. She rubbed it with her fingertip; the cool touch was no different from touching a regular mirror. Pausing for a moment, Mu Anqi blew the whistle and headed toward the laboratory.
Even if another world exists, how could one reach it? She still needed to check the laboratory. What kind of experiments were being conducted there? The Upside-Down Experiment City on map, seemed to be
a massive experimental headquarters, essentially concentrating all the laboratories here in one place.