Chapter 38: The Withering of Culture

Xu Chen received the feedback from Captain Chu and conducted an online search, only to confirm that there were no literary works related to Cthulhu.

This piqued his interest, leading him to investigate exactly how this world differed from his own. The results were clear: there were vast discrepancies. The information available online was sparse regarding history, and even modern history was riddled with ambiguity. Foreign sources were no better—in some cases, even worse than domestic ones.

The most direct impact of this was on the tourism industry, but unexpectedly, it also affected historical fiction and film. He examined the domestic cultural tourism sector and found it withered to an almost unbelievable degree compared to his original world. For instance, the Mausoleum of Taihao, which had been excavated in his previous life, simply did not exist here. Had Xu Chen not unearthed it himself, the people would have remained unaware that they even had an ancestor named Taihao. Moreover, even with his discovery and organization of the excavation, the scale of the mausoleum could hardly match what he remembered; the stone tablets buried deep underground had been largely destroyed by that "special erosion," with very few surviving.

Furthermore, classic novels passed down through history were also missing—at least half of them, by his estimation. He checked the Four Great Classical Novels and found them severely incomplete; only "revised" versions were sold, never the originals. These revisions were reportedly commissioned during a past cultural movement, drafted by a committee of literary and historical scholars. Xu Chen reviewed them and found that, while well-written, they lacked the essence of the classics.

Many foreign masterpieces had also been lost, such as Dante’s *Divine Comedy*, which he recalled from his history classes. He also flipped through the *Bible*, though he didn't examine it thoroughly; he couldn't detect any gaps, but then again, he wasn't a believer and had never read it before.

After finishing his research, Xu Chen rested his head on his arm and sighed wearily. The internet reflected significant real-world issues. He had noticed these discrepancies years ago, initially assuming this parallel universe was merely unique. Now, however, it was clear the problems were systemic. This world’s Earth could be summarized simply: cultural decay and entertainment above all else. Indeed, the void left by the lack of culture was filled by other things. The revenue from the tourism industry was not lower than that of his original world, but since cultural tourism had failed to gain traction, something else was reaping the benefits.

That something was the modern amusement industry. The same held true for literature; historical themes were rare in film, and when they did appear, they leaned toward fantasy. If one had to draw a comparison, Xu Chen felt it was like watching historical films from India, with superheroes flying everywhere. The repercussions of this cultural void were extensive, and as Xu Chen traced the consequences, the situation appeared grim—and worse, it was deteriorating. The antagonist, possibly linked to Cthulhu, was still using that "special erosion" to destroy historical artifacts.

Xu Chen had acted as a whistleblower, sounding the alarm to the public. It was Elder Ge who had first identified the problem and keenly sensed the identity of the mastermind. However, Elder Ge had since passed away, and his state funeral was the top news story of the week. It was only through news reports that Xu Chen learned the elderly man had been a dual academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Engineering—a master of both theory and practice. The "Osprey" system he designed had secured near-absolute dominance over the nation’s territorial waters. Incidentally, it was the deterrent power of the Osprey system that allowed this parallel Earth to take control of the nuclear power plant without encountering objections. Indeed, while that island wasn't marked as part of the country's territory on maps, it was within the Osprey system’s coverage.

Beyond that, Elder Ge was a rare polymath with expertise in biology, mathematics, and physics. He had only met with Xu Chen because he happened to be on leave at the time and was fascinated by the mystery, hoping to use his vast knowledge base to decipher these anomalies—and he had actually made some progress.

Xu Chen sighed, feeling a pang of blame toward the late elder. While he had provided clues about the mastermind, it now seemed more important to understand *how* the antagonist was achieving these feats. He immediately realized he was being a backseat driver; it was likely that Elder Ge considered the information about the mastermind’s identity to be the most critical piece of the puzzle. Without the elder’s tip, he would have been completely in the dark. Still, he couldn't grasp why Elder Ge hadn't shared the methods of the antagonist with his students sooner, especially when there had been plenty of time before Xu Chen arrived. He reasoned there must have been a cause—perhaps the information was dangerous, or the elder was uncertain, or he simply deemed it unnecessary.

Perhaps he had recorded the notes he thought he had taken, intending for his students to find them, yet the mastermind had not spared him. With his cognition partially distorted, he hadn't realized that what he recorded were merely strings of meaningless circles.

By now, the questions were piling up, and the clues were dwindling. Even though Xu Chen generally kept a cool head, he could not help but feel a sense of melancholy as he looked at the flickering candlelight of a civilization battered by a raging storm. He wanted to shield the flame with his hands, but he wasn't qualified; those who were had already fallen.

Xu Chen tapped at his computer, searching for news of Elder Ge’s funeral. It was nearing its conclusion. Having been born in this country and benefited from it, and considering the elder’s contributions to the defense of civilization, it was only right that he pay his respects.

"Elder Ge, my voice is too small to attend your service in person. I’ll send you off online," Xu Chen murmured as he watched the live broadcast of the casket being slowly lowered into the earth.

Suddenly, a news ticker scrolled across the bottom of the screen, announcing that the United Nations was preparing to convene a meeting to discuss the mounting pressure on the global healthcare system and to deliberate on customs inspection protocols.

Seeing this, Xu Chen inexplicably thought of Song Tian. Frowning, he pulled out the notes he had taken days before he was taken away by the soldiers. He had left them in the classroom, but his thoughtful monitor had packed his things and returned them with his handouts. The notes were easy to find, tucked between the pages. He glanced at them:

*[Various carcinogenic factors: tobacco, alcohol, aflatoxin, nitrites, radiation, etc., can also lead to the onset of cancer.]*

For some reason, a strange intuition struck him. He felt these things were connected—that the broken threads might finally be coming together.