The officer, addressed as Mr. Li, didn't even look up. His gaze remained locked on the data from an active rift on the main screen as he casually replied, "What kind of anomaly? What's the energy level? Is it a routine skirmish between alien races, or has a new race emerged?"
"It's neither..." the technician replied, his voice hesitant. "Data shows a sudden, extremely high energy reaction originating from the core area of a small-to-medium sized rift. It's one that was confirmed closed for over half a month."
Mr. Li finally tore his eyes away from the screen. He frowned. "A closed rift? Isn't that normal? The channel is closed, but the Celestial Abyss Race inside aren't all dead. It's just them fighting amongst themselves. No matter how high the energy level gets, they can't stir up any real trouble. Keep monitoring. There's no need to make a fuss."
"But, Mr. Li..."
"That rift... is the Painful Labyrinth."
Mr. Li's movements froze.
