Tuesday evening arrived with cooler winds moving through the university campus.
Classes had just ended, and students were slowly leaving the lecture buildings.
Li Wei walked along the campus path with Chen Ming, who was once again talking about the robotics team.
"…and then the motor controller overheated again," Chen Ming complained. "I swear that thing hates us."
Li Wei listened quietly.
"Maybe the power regulation isn't stable," he suggested.
Chen Ming stopped walking.
"Wait… that actually makes sense."
Li Wei shrugged slightly.
"You're the robotics expert."
Chen Ming shook his head.
"No, you're secretly the expert."
Before Li Wei could respond, his phone vibrated in his pocket.
He glanced at the screen.
Mom Calling
Li Wei answered.
"Hello."
A warm voice came from the phone.
"Xiao Wei, are you busy?"
"No, class just ended."
"Good. I just wanted to check if you're eating properly."
Li Wei smiled slightly.
His mother, Li Lan, had the habit of checking on him every few days.
"I'm eating fine."
"You always say that," she replied. "University students forget to eat properly all the time."
Chen Ming watched curiously from the side.
Li Wei continued walking slowly while talking.
"How are things at home?"
"Normal. Your father is still working late at the workshop."
Li Wei's father, Li Jian, owned a small mechanical repair shop in their hometown about two hours away from Linhai City.
He specialized in repairing industrial equipment for local factories.
It wasn't a large business, but it had supported the family for many years.
"Is the shop busy?" Li Wei asked.
"Very busy," Li Lan said. "Some factory machines broke again, so your father hasn't come home before nine all week."
Li Wei nodded.
"That sounds like him."
His father was the type of person who preferred working with machines rather than talking.
Practical.
Quiet.
Reliable.
"Your sister asked about you yesterday," Li Lan continued.
Li Wei smiled.
His younger sister, Li Yue, was currently in her final year of high school.
She was preparing for the national college entrance exam.
"What did she want?"
"She wanted your old math notes," Li Lan said. "She says your explanations are easier to understand than her teacher's."
Chen Ming whispered from the side, "Your family is using you as a tutor now."
Li Wei ignored him.
"I'll send them tonight."
"Good," Li Lan replied.
There was a short pause.
Then she asked something else.
"Are you planning to come home this weekend?"
Li Wei thought for a moment.
"Maybe next week."
"That's fine. Just don't disappear for too long."
"I won't."
After a few more casual words, the call ended.
Chen Ming immediately leaned closer.
"You have a sister?"
"Yes."
"Is she cute?"
Li Wei looked at him calmly.
"She's seventeen."
Chen Ming coughed awkwardly.
"I meant… academically impressive."
"Sure."
They continued walking toward the dorm area.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the city—
Inside a quiet café near the financial district—
Two people sat across from each other at a corner table.
One of them was the director from the underground monitoring facility.
The other was a young woman wearing a dark coat.
Her name was Su Yan.
She worked as a field analyst for a special government research division.
The director placed a tablet on the table.
Several blinking markers appeared on the map.
"Five activations in five days," he said.
Su Yan studied the map carefully.
"All information storage locations."
"Yes."
"Libraries. Archives. Historical sites."
The director nodded.
"We believe someone is accessing an unknown system connected to those locations."
Su Yan raised an eyebrow.
"You're telling me someone is activating hidden nodes across the city?"
"That's the current theory."
"And you want me to find them."
"Observation first," the director replied.
"We still don't know what the system actually is."
Su Yan leaned back slightly.
"If the pattern continues, the person will visit another knowledge repository soon."
"Exactly."
She looked at the map one more time.
Then smiled faintly.
"University students visit libraries all the time."
The director said nothing.
But both of them understood the implication.
Back on campus—
Li Wei entered his dorm building.
Chen Ming went upstairs toward his own room while still talking about robot motors.
Li Wei walked into his room and placed his backpack on the desk.
The room was quiet.
Outside the window, the campus lights were beginning to turn on.
He opened his laptop to send the math notes to his sister.
As he attached the files—
The system interface suddenly appeared again.
[SYSTEM UPDATE AVAILABLE]
NEW FUNCTION UNLOCKED
Li Wei paused.
"Already?"
He leaned back slightly in his chair.
"Show details."
A new panel opened.
[ARCHIVE MAP — BASIC ACCESS UNLOCKED]
FUNCTION: DETECT INFORMATION NODES WITHIN 50 KM
Li Wei stared at the message.
Then slowly smiled.
"That changes things."
Until now, the system had only shown the next nearest node.
But if he could see all nodes within 50 kilometers…
Then the number of possible sign-in locations might increase dramatically.
The city suddenly felt much larger.
And much more interesting.
Somewhere else in Linhai City—
Su Yan stepped out of the café and looked toward the distant university campus lights.
She spoke quietly into her communication device.
"Begin preliminary observation around major libraries and research buildings."
A voice replied through the earpiece.
"Understood."
Su Yan looked toward the skyline thoughtfully.
"Let's see who you are…"
"…mysterious activator."
Meanwhile—
Li Wei opened the new system map.
Dozens of small glowing markers appeared across the city.
Libraries.
Museums.
Archives.
Research centers.
And a few locations he had never heard of before.
His next destination would be much easier to choose now.