Chapter Seventeen: The History of Palosser (Part One)

Although he possessed the original memories, the original “Song Shi” was merely an orphan from a welfare institution, working as an undocumented laborer in a factory. He had no access to the deeper truths of many matters, only hearing fragments through hearsay.

But the person before him—

Though most likely just another ordinary gray-market figure, having visited Qianxing City meant he could hardly be less informed than the original “Song Shi.”

He sought an underground arms dealer and wanted to inquire about the recent situation in Paroser?

—Damn, this really is someone from outside.

Upon hearing this, the man in the felt hat grew restless, cursing inwardly.

But soon, he composed himself and spoke:

“Let me think... Right, how should I address you?”

“You go first.”

“Uh... Tom.”

The felt-hat man spat out a name without conviction.

“That’s quite a coincidence—I’m Jack,” Song Shi smiled.

“Alright, alright, Jack, let me think how to put this...” The felt-hat man, or rather Tom, carefully chose his words and began to recount.

Paroser was a medium-sized city within the territory of the Corporate Alliance, with a permanent population of two million. It was currently controlled by the giant enterprise Emerald Pharmaceuticals, with most of the city’s industries tied to its supply chain.

Officially, the “United Government” was still the largest authority, but everyone knew that Paroser’s United Government was merely a tool of Emerald Pharmaceuticals.

Or rather, the entire Corporate Alliance’s “United Government” was just a puppet at the whim of those colossal corporations, godlike in their power.

Then, Tom recounted several major events that had occurred in Paroser over the years—

Thirteen years ago, a massive explosion rocked the original industrial zone, killing over fifteen hundred on the spot and damaging half of the equipment. A large amount of industrial materials leaked, causing extensive chemical pollution.

After the blast, many companies in the industrial zone declared bankruptcy and dissolved. Hundreds of thousands lost their jobs immediately. Due to chemical contamination, injuries, and lack of funds, many could not afford medicine and were left to await death at home.

In this critical moment, led by the United Government, Emerald Pharmaceuticals swiftly acquired assets from some bankrupt companies, provided technical support, and sealed off and cleaned the industrial zone to prevent secondary explosions and further chemical spread.

Subsequently, companies led by Emerald Pharmaceuticals established the Rota District, now commonly called the “New Industrial Zone.”

They built numerous factories there, providing a large number of quality jobs and enabling over 300,000 unemployed people to work locally.

At the same time, leveraging their advanced medical technology and expertise, they offered medical aid to victims from the old industrial zone. Even today, the city museum preserves editions of the Paroser Daily from that time, with front-page photos of the mayor and the then-general manager of Emerald Pharmaceuticals’ Paroser branch, moving countless hearts to tears.

That is the renowned “Old Industrial Zone Explosion” thirteen years ago.

Its impact still reverberates deeply to this day.

“Ha, though some say the whole ‘Old Industrial Zone Explosion’ was just a corporate conspiracy.”

“Because the old industrial zone was established late in the Seven Lands War, most of its machinery was outdated by today’s standards. Moreover, the original design was flawed, coupled with years of illegal expansions creating a tangled terrain. Upgrading or transforming the area was exceedingly difficult and costly.”

“So the United Government and Emerald Pharmaceuticals had long intended to shut down the old zone and establish a new one. After all, the Seven Lands War ended seventy years ago, and the industries there no longer fit Emerald Pharmaceuticals’ supply chain needs—it was a huge liability.”

“But outright dismantling the factories and building a new industrial zone...”

“They didn’t want to pay severance to the original workers or bear the cost of sealing off abandoned equipment. Plus, auditing the zone’s assets was complicated—it had become a financial mess over the years, probably tangled with all sorts of taxes and fees.”

“In short, led by Emerald Pharmaceuticals, a group of companies secretly transferred the high-value assets out of the industrial zone in advance, then used a massive explosion to wipe the slate clean—”

“Because of the explosion, many companies went bankrupt and restructured; employee contracts and debts became worthless. The government sealed off the old industrial zone due to risks of secondary explosions and chemical pollution, changing the status from ‘maintenance’ to outright ‘lockdown,’ drastically reducing costs.”

“Faced with soaring prices and economic turmoil, the suddenly unemployed workers with no severance had no choice but to become the cheap labor force of the new industrial zone, forced to accept harsh contracts.”

“Of course, the lockdown was officially for cleanup, but it’s been over ten years, and that place remains sealed off...”

Tom shrugged and made a gesture:

“But these are all rumors, my friend. You understand—everyone loves a conspiracy theory. People like to ascribe hidden motives to everything. Who really knows what’s true?”

As he spoke, Tom watched Song Shi’s reaction carefully, hoping to glean more clues.

“Consensus” was a psychic path focused on delving deep into the spiritual world, commonly associated with abilities like mind reading, thought control, or memory alteration.

As the first stage of Consensus, Song Shi certainly couldn’t reach that level, but he had mastered a psychic skill related to these.

—Psychic Technique: Personality Trait Archive.

Simply put, it was an ability to record “personality traits.” When encountering different people, the user would observe and record the traits displayed by each personality type.

The more personalities encountered, the more extensive the archive, improving the accuracy of personality deductions—like a form of big data analysis.

Though under “anonymous service,” voice tone, speech, and expressions might be unreliable, this psychic skill could still play a useful role.

By analyzing conversations, he could gradually infer this outsider’s personality and even their stance.

Under Tom’s gaze, Song Shi finally spoke.

“So, do you want me to say, ‘One day, with a blade in hand, I will slay all corporate dogs,’ or ‘Those people are too weak and deserve to die,’ or maybe ‘What does this have to do with me? I wasn’t the one who killed them’?”

“Is that how you want to size up a person?”

Song Shi smiled slyly, tapping his index finger lightly on the table.

“You carry the scent of ‘Consensus’ too heavily—it’s practically written on your face that you think I’m a wildborn psychic user of Consensus—”

“—Cut the probing.”

The next moment, his tone turned icy cold.

“You only need to narrate now.”