Chapter 158 The Factory

Shelley cautiously followed beside Duncan. The temporary peace did not relax her; instead, she felt an increasing sense of stagnation and fear in the silence—she knew this fear did not come entirely from herself but more from A Gou.

A Gou was afraid, and its emotions were spreading through the symbiotic link.

To alleviate the oppressive feeling in the silence, she muttered, "Actually, I never got caught when I sneaked onto the train before… A Gou helped me cover it up…"

"You mean that Shallows Hound used 'camouflage' on you?" Duncan raised his eyebrows. He remembered that Shelley had previously used some kind of "camouflage" power from A Gou to sneak into the cult's den. The camouflage seemed to be a kind of cognitive blurring ability, but he quickly shook his head. "It doesn't seem very reliable. Last time someone saw through it, and this time the ticket seller caught you."

Shelley immediately felt a stomach full of resentment when she heard this—A Gou's camouflage had never had a problem! Wasn't it exposed because it was dispelled by the gaze of some terrifying existence? Was it appropriate for such a big shot to joke with her like this…

But she didn't dare to say these grievances, so after holding it in for a long time, she turned it into a series of dry laughs: "Ah ha ha… you're right, you're right…"

Duncan shook his head. He didn't care what Shelley was thinking, but he was a little curious about the things she was investigating: "Why are you paying attention to that 'accident' eleven years ago?"

Shelley fell silent, seemingly instinctively reluctant to respond to this question, but then she pursed her lips, as if realizing that there was no point in hiding such a thing in front of an almost subspatial shadow. She said in a low voice, "It's nothing, I just want to figure out… my parents' matter…"

After saying that, she quickly added, "An existence like you must find this kind of thing boring, right? I know, our mortal family ties are in your eyes…"

"No, I understand," Duncan interrupted the girl before she could spout nonsense, because he could guess what image she had of him. If she were to speak her mind, it would be at least twenty pounds of sand mixed in. "That is indeed a very important reason."

As he said that, he looked at Shelley with a more serious look in his eyes: "Your parents were involved in that 'leak' accident eleven years ago? Or were they attacked by cultists?"

Shelley looked at Duncan in surprise. She didn't understand why this big shot, who obviously didn't eat human food or do human things, cared so much about this kind of thing, but she still nodded honestly: "They… disappeared eleven years ago… well, 'disappeared' is a bit of a euphemism, they just died, but their deaths were unclear… and then A Gou and I depended on each other…"

The girl's voice was a little low. These memories were not pleasant for her. Duncan didn't let her continue: "How did you and A Gou meet? Those Sun Cultists said you were a follower of the Annihilation Sect and that only Annihilation followers could summon Shallows Demons, but you don't seem to acknowledge this."

"I don't believe in any 'sects'! I only f**king believe in myself!" Shelley blurted out subconsciously, but then quickly lowered her voice, trying to appear cultured and polite. "A Gou and I… met eleven years ago."

Duncan suddenly stopped and looked into Shelley's eyes: "Eleven years ago? So…"

"It was after the so-called 'factory leak'," Shelley also stopped quickly, explaining with her head down, "I don't remember the specifics, and A Gou said it doesn't remember either… It might have been summoned by some Annihilation follower, but the person who summoned it must have been killed by the Deep Sea Church's guardians, and then it was inexplicably 'bound' to me…"

Shelley concealed a lot of things. In her vague and brief account, too many details were skipped.

Duncan could feel the girl's concealment and avoidance, but he didn't pay much attention to it.

This was a very normal self-protection. Even when facing an irresistible powerful existence, she was instinctively avoiding exposing all her secrets.

He could perhaps force Shelley to reveal more through threats, but this might not get him the whole truth. On the other hand, he and this girl lacked the most basic trust right now, so this topic could end here for the time being.

Duncan shook his head, looked at the slightly dilapidated streets on both sides, and the passersby who were obviously more idle and slow-paced than in other districts, and said with a slight sigh, "...I hardly see any children. The people on the street are either old or middle-aged, and there aren't even many young people."

"This is how these old districts are," Shelley said as a matter of course. She seemed to know a lot. "Those who can afford it have moved to the Cross District. Those who can't move are either old people or bums. Plus, there can't be community schools in these districts, so children naturally won't stay. They must have left with their parents…"

Listening to Shelley's plausible analysis, Duncan just grunted noncommittally.

He could imagine the tendency of population aging in these old districts, but even so, the gloomy atmosphere on this street was still a bit too concerning.

While thinking, Duncan noticed an old man with white hair sitting in front of a street-side shop. He seemed to be basking in the sun, but he noticed the strangers on the street and was now staring with a somewhat dazed and confused look.

Duncan led Shelley straight over.

"Good morning," Duncan greeted the old man basking in the sun at the door. "We're from the Fourth District and want to ask… how do we get to the church?"

He didn't really care where the church was. He just found an excuse to chat with the locals.

"Church? The church isn't open these days. God knows where that nun ran off to," the old man basking in the sun woke up a little from his laziness, sat up, and curiously sized up the strangers in front of him. "It's strange. We don't usually have any outsiders willing to come here… What are you here for?"

"Visiting friends," Duncan said casually. "Usually no one is willing to come? Why?"

"Isn't it all because of that damned factory," the old man complained indignantly, seeming quite dissatisfied with the desolate state of the neighborhood. "It's been so many years! The area around the factory is still dilapidated and barren. Everyone says that the chemicals leaked back then weren't cleaned up at all. Even people in nearby neighborhoods avoid passing by here. Who dares to get close…"

Duncan and Shelley exchanged a glance, then Duncan spoke again: "I saw an old newspaper that said the area around that factory had been cleaned up…"

"What the newspaper says… the newspaper says a lot of good things! The newspaper also said that the new governor would revitalize the West City industrial zone!" The old man spat to the side. "And what happened? West City is getting worse every day, and that old factory here is still a ruin… I'm telling you, this used to be a good place when that factory was still around. Back then, Sixth Street was one of the wealthiest districts in the Lower City. Now look at what it's become…"

Once the old man started complaining, he became garrulous. It was rare for a stranger to listen to his ramblings, which made the laziness he had while sunbathing disappear without a trace. Seeing this, Duncan quickly interrupted: "By the way, I noticed that there aren't many children here… Not many young people either. Did they all move away?"

"Move? No one moves here. This dilapidated place at least has everyone's old houses. Can they easily afford the rent in other districts?" The old man shook his head. "There aren't many young people because the young people have all grown old. Children… tch…"

The old man suddenly sighed.

"This place hasn't had a child born in eleven years!"

"Eleven years without newborns?!" Duncan finally widened his eyes slightly. "Really?"

"Can that be fake? I've lived here for most of my life," the old man rolled his eyes. "If you ask me, it's all because of that factory… The nearby land has all been contaminated…"

Duncan didn't speak, but slowly stood up straight, looking towards the end of the street, towards the location of the abandoned factory that he had found on the map before.

Shelley beside him was still curiously talking to the old man. She was asking him about the factory, the residents who remained in Sixth Street, and how many people had moved away from here in the past eleven years.

However, the old man seemed to have lost his patience. He waved his hands impatiently, muttering some complaints, and mostly just perfunctorily answered Shelley's questions.

"Let's go," Duncan suddenly said to Shelley, diverting her attention before the irritable girl could lash out. Then he looked at the old man who had started sunbathing again and nodded slightly. "Thank you."

"Oh, you're welcome," the old man waved his hand. "Take care."