Chapter 648: A Misunderstanding by Chance

Chapter 648: A Mistaken Misunderstanding

“Buildings crawling with slime molds, fruiting bodies as dense as a tide, and bustling incubation chambers… everything you see is the current state of the eastern district of Clear Spring City.”

“The wave has ended, but no one knows how it ended—until our reporters ventured deep into Clear Spring City’s eastern district and uncovered the hidden truth!”

The entire newspaper spanned only three pages. Chu Guang skimmed through it and found that all three pages were about the eastern outskirts of Clear Spring City.

The first part revealed the whereabouts of the slime mold fruiting bodies: a large number had not been eliminated but had been relocated to the eastern outskirts.

This part was fine.

After dealing with this year’s wave, the Alliance had indeed moved the fruiting bodies to the eastern district of Clear Spring City, rather than packaging and selling them to traveling merchants as in previous years.

Chu Guang remembered clearly that this was an order he had personally given.

But by the second part, the content began to go awry.

This section cleverly shifted blame onto the Alliance authorities, using vague evidence and so-called insider sources to fabricate claims that the Alliance had reached some secret agreement with the hive in Clear Spring City’s center, thereby driving the fruiting bodies to serve the Alliance’s purposes.

In the third part, the report turned its focus to the “survivors” in Clear Spring City’s eastern district.

Several survivors claimed in interviews that Alliance troops had driven them from their homes and threatened them with being fed to the slime mold fruiting bodies if they refused to comply.

In truth, aside from a few reclusive survivors, most of Clear Spring City’s survivors had moved into Dawnlight City or Boulder City during the Bone-Crushing Rebellion.

Lone survivors wandering the wasteland around Clear Spring City were already scarce, let alone in the eastern outskirts teeming with mutants.

Those “survivors” were likely not real survivors at all, but raiders hiding in the ruins or hired mercenaries.

At the end of the report, the author left a pointed remark.

“The bomb has not been defused; it has merely been moved from one box to another. It sits right beside us, ready to explode at any moment—perhaps today, perhaps tomorrow. A victory bought with compromise is no true victory. If we do not eradicate every last slime mold, this war will never end…”

After reading to the end, Chu Guang flipped back to the first page and glanced at the header.

As expected, it was the first issue of the *Clear Spring City Daily*.

It seemed the entire newspaper had been created just for this big scoop, with the publisher banking on it to break into the market.

Watching Chu Guang’s expression, Old Charlie spoke gravely.

“I found this newspaper at a newsstand near the Merchant Guild this morning. I asked the vendor where he got it, but he scratched his head and said he didn’t remember ordering it.”

He paused and continued.

“Later, I had the Merchant Guild staff check all the newsstands in Dawnlight City. Over eighty percent were selling this mysterious *Clear Spring City Daily*, and none of the vendors could explain where it came from… as if it had just appeared on their stands out of nowhere.”

Chu Guang chuckled.

“That’s not surprising. Apart from the best-selling *Survivor Daily*, which has its own distributors, most newsstands in Dawnlight City sign agreements with printing houses. The printing houses print the next day’s papers based on the previous day’s sales at each outlet and deliver them before the morning rush. Someone probably slipped this batch into the printing house’s delivery truck, and it ended up scattered across the stands.”

Under this sales model, the vendors naturally wouldn’t know about this paper.

In fact, aside from the well-known *Survivor Daily* and serialized novels, they probably didn’t even know how many papers they had on their stands.

This three-page paper had clearly appeared on the streets of Dawnlight City for the first time, like a stubborn weed sprouting in a dark corner.

Chu Guang could guess their goal without much thought.

They were trying to exploit public fear to obstruct the Alliance’s ecological reserve in Clear Spring City’s eastern district.

As for deeper motives, the possibilities were endless.

He was actually a bit curious—what was worth such a heavy investment, risking the Alliance’s ire?

Seeing Chu Guang’s dismissive smile, Old Charlie was puzzled. He couldn’t understand why, with such a serious issue, the esteemed Administrator could still smile.

Worried that Chu Guang didn’t grasp the severity, Old Charlie grew anxious and spoke earnestly.

“Administrator, you may not realize how serious this is. Our enemies are trying to use the media to undermine our unity. And with the celebration coming up, if something goes wrong now, it won’t just affect your prestige—it will damage the Alliance’s regional standing and influence!”

He paused and pressed on.

“We must act immediately! At least before the public opinion festers, we should recall the newspapers still on sale!”

Chu Guang asked casually.

“And after the recall?”

Old Charlie was taken aback but quickly thought of a plan.

“We should establish stricter publishing review mechanisms to prevent this from happening again, and find the mastermind behind this—especially the publisher of the *Clear Spring City Daily*—”

Chu Guang shook his head with a smile.

He closed the *Clear Spring City Daily* and handed it back to Old Charlie.

“I understand your point. The mastermind behind this is clever, but their methods are not sophisticated.”

“They underestimated the unity of our society’s various strata, and they underestimated the trust the residents here have in us after a victory. They even made more than one basic mistake in their interviews. This approach might have worked in old Boulder City, but here, they’ll only make fools of themselves.”

“Our supporters aren’t that easy to fool. What we need to do now is hold our ground, not panic over a clumsy trick from our opponents. If we go to the trouble of recalling the newspapers as you suggest, it will only shake the confidence of those who support us… The one hiding in the shadows will be delighted.”

With that, Chu Guang couldn’t help but want to criticize his own *Survivor Daily*.

Those folks were usually sharp, especially during last year’s Boulder City incident, where they stole the show.

But this time, they seemed blind—something major happened in Clear Spring City’s eastern district, and they hadn’t reported a single word!

Chu Guang had assumed the report wasn’t ready yet, but two days had passed, and they hadn’t produced a thing, letting some unknown little paper beat them to it.

As a semi-official media outlet, its job was to respond to public concerns with objective and fair reporting. Otherwise, what was it for?

To sit there as a decorative vase?

Chu Guang didn’t believe his residents only cared about the celebration’s food and were indifferent to the ecological reserve in Clear Spring City’s center and eastern district.

At most, they trusted him to handle it, so no one brought it up.

Failing to address the residents’ doubts in time—that blame fell squarely on the *Survivor Daily*.

Chu Guang planned to visit the editor-in-chief later and ask what they were thinking.

Of course.

He couldn’t just let that *Clear Spring City Daily* run wild with its nonsense.

Chu Guang turned to Lü Bei and instructed.

“The photos were probably taken yesterday. Go ask the troops stationed there who approached the eastern district of Clear Spring City yesterday and what their identities were… Just find out clearly for now, but don’t take any action yet.”

It was inevitable that the ecological reserve in Clear Spring City’s eastern district would attract attention from other survivor factions. Even spies from the Legion might have made it to Dawnlight City.

But those guys were smart—they just watched from the shadows, careful not to expose themselves.

Chu Guang was curious about who had jumped out to cause trouble.

This had to be investigated.

Lü Bei snapped to attention and saluted.

“Yes!”

…

Compared to the Alliance’s scientific research cooperation agreement with the Institute, a fabricated report was a trivial matter.

Though Old Charlie looked as if he faced a crisis, Chu Guang honestly didn’t take it too seriously.

To put it bluntly,

he never believed for a second that anyone would actually buy that nonsense.

Anyone who had spent time in Dawn City knew exactly what the Eastern District of Clearwater City was really like—a place no one in their right mind would go except for players.

Survivors forced to flee their homes...

That sounded way too far-fetched.

After finishing his instructions to Lü Bei, Chu Guang returned to the shelter and discussed with Yin Fang the establishment of a special zone in the Wandering Swamp and academic exchange visits.

But what Chu Guang didn’t know was that while Lü Bei was heading to the Eastern District of Clearwater City with his orders, that fabricated report had already landed on the desk of the Enterprise’s ambassador to the Alliance.

Staring at the “sensational” content in the newspaper, Yi Chuan couldn’t help but widen his eyes. It took him a moment to snap out of his daze.

“…The hive mother, previously located in the city center, was relocated by the Alliance administrators to the Eastern District of Clearwater City for captivity, and its offspring are being driven by some evil force to serve their purposes?”

A twitch at the corner of his mouth, he finally lost his composure after reading that line. Shaking his head, he tossed the nonsensical rag onto the table.

“What the hell is this garbage?!”

Capturing a hive mother?

He had no idea their partner had such capabilities!

Ever since the Tide began, the Enterprise had been closely monitoring its progress.

Not just because the Alliance held significant importance in the Enterprise’s strategic plans, but also because the mutant slime mold itself was one of the core threats on the wasteland.

Now that the Alliance had completely resolved a problem even the Post-War Reconstruction Committee couldn’t handle, this news had made the entire Enterprise council look at the Alliance with newfound respect.

However, doubts still lingered within the council about how the Alliance had overcome the Tide crisis, how they had eliminated the hive mother in the city center, and how they ensured the hive mother wouldn’t regenerate as before. They hoped to get answers through diplomatic channels.

Especially since the council was now considering deeper cooperation with the Alliance on issues related to the mutant slime mold. Some radical council members even proposed outsourcing the cleanup of hive mothers in the Cloud Province to the Alliance.

To provide the council with more information, Yi Chuan, as the Enterprise’s ambassador to the Alliance, had instructed his secretary to purchase some newspapers from outside.

But after half a day, the guy came back with nothing but a few sheets of garbage meant to fool ghosts.

Looking at the secretary standing by the desk, Yi Chuan rubbed his temples in frustration.

“I told you to buy newspapers reporting news about the Eastern District of Clearwater City. How did you bring back this crap?”

The secretary looked embarrassed.

He, too, thought the content of that newspaper was exaggerated—full of bombast from headline to body—but he still tried to defend himself, clearing his throat lightly.

“This is the only newspaper on the market that covers the Eastern District of Clearwater City and the whereabouts of the hive mother… Other newspapers that mention the Tide or the hive mother mostly just cite reports from the *Survivor Daily*.”

Yi Chuan was taken aback.

“What about the *Survivor Daily*?”

The secretary continued with a subtle expression.

“The latest issue of the *Survivor Daily* leads with the upcoming celebration and doesn’t mention any details of the Alliance’s previous Tide campaign or the ecological reserve in the Eastern District of Clearwater City. It seems the relevant news has been suppressed. I suspect the Alliance authorities pressured the *Survivor Daily* to downplay this information… perhaps for secrecy.”

Secrecy?

After hearing this, Yi Chuan’s face grew even more puzzled.

What was there to keep secret?

If the Alliance had truly found a way to neutralize the mutant slime mold, every survivor faction on the wasteland would come to learn from them—even the Legion might lower its proud head… After all, this was a matter concerning the future of all humanity.

Shouldn’t they be flaunting this achievement loudly?

The secretary continued with a subtle expression.

“Could it be possible… that the truth is exactly as described in this report, just not as exaggerated? And perhaps this newspaper was deliberately leaked by the Alliance?”

This time, Yi Chuan didn’t immediately dismiss the idea.

He tapped his index finger lightly on the table, pondered for a moment, and said,

“What’s your reasoning?”

The secretary analyzed slowly and methodically.

“Currently, the entire Eastern District of Clearwater City is under the Alliance’s military control. Any survivor approaching is driven away. It’s impossible for an ordinary person to take such clear photos… and even if they could, they wouldn’t be able to bring them out.”

That reasoning was sound.

Yi Chuan nodded.

Though he had never been to the Eastern District of Clearwater City, the embassy had received the notice of military control.

But this was only speculation about feasibility.

“What about the motive?” Yi Chuan looked at his secretary. “What benefit would they gain from this?”

The secretary: “Desensitization.”

Yi Chuan was taken aback.

“Desensitization?”

The secretary nodded and continued.

“On some sensitive issues, first put out a seemingly unbelievable story. When everyone is shocked, then clarify that things aren’t actually that extreme.”

A glint of shrewdness flashed in Yi Chuan’s eyes.

“Before opening a window, first threaten to tear off the roof?”

“Exactly,” the secretary nodded. “I suspect they’ve developed some technology to control the hive mother… It’s probably not just simple mind control—we’ve tested that, and it’s ineffective against the mutant slime mold.”

Seeing Yi Chuan’s expression gradually turn serious, the secretary paused and continued.

“Moreover, if the Alliance authorities chose to desensitize this news, it means they’re already prepared to go public. Otherwise, this smoke screen would be redundant.”

“Therefore, I speculate they might also be using this opportunity to signal cooperation.”

“Also, I heard… a representative from the Academy appeared near the Alliance building today—that B-level researcher who’s always lurking around.”

Hearing this, Yi Chuan immediately pushed back his chair and stood up. His right hand slapped the newspaper he had tossed onto the table earlier.

“Arrange a diplomatic meeting request with the Alliance. I want to discuss this matter with their administrator in person.”

The secretary nodded.

“I’ll do it right away!”