The public sector of EDEN was directly managed under Kamishiro Enterprises' Valhalla Server.
This was also the largest public region in all of Cyberspace EDEN, through which countless people passed every day to transfer into smaller digital spaces.
And speaking of that, one really had to explain the basic structure of the EDEN network.
Just like the traditional internet, EDEN was a massive online system formed by different companies and organizations.
Among them, the public zones jointly maintained by Kamishiro Enterprises and the Japanese government were the most strictly regulated and widest in coverage—a truly neutral space.
In theory, any Japanese citizen who completed real-name registration could use their Digital Avatar to log into this region, then hop from there to smaller digital zones requiring specific permissions.
If one absolutely had to make a comparison, these large and small public areas were a bit like different search engines—responsible for directing traffic toward other digital spaces.
Thus, anyone logging into the public sector possessed no special privileges. Other than seeing this gorgeous electronic world, they were no different from ordinary people in reality.
Only after leaving the public area and entering private digital spaces would they gain near‑"godlike" powers.
As for whether one wanted to build a massive sandbox world in their private digital space—
Or personally experience supernatural abilities like those in games—
That all depended on the purpose of each digital zone and the server performance behind it.
However, that didn't mean all EDEN users relied on the public areas for jumping around. Just as not everyone depended on search engines to reach the sites they wanted, EDEN users had alternatives.
Just like the traditional internet, aside from using search engines, one could directly access a digital space by searching for a specific "address."
But unlike the traditional internet, these "addresses" were usually bound directly to a user's data account, with the standard format of "XXXX.UDL."
For the simplest analogy—say you buy a virtual game called Dragon Quest. The developer gives you a virtual program named "Dragon Quest.UDL."
With this program, you no longer need to transfer through the public sector. You can jump straight into the game world next time.
And depending on the level of "Dragon Quest.UDL" you purchased, your status inside the game would differ.
From hero to dragon, from native villager to god…
Whatever role the player wanted to experience, they would need to purchase the corresponding "Dragon Quest.UDL."
A very… capitalistic way of "privilege distribution."
In a remote corner of EDEN's public sector—one commonly regarded by many as "the entrance" to EDEN—
Two streaks of bright silver light flashed past, followed by the descent of two indistinguishable figures who landed steadily upon the platform.
From outside, no one could see their real appearance—only a pair of walking mosaics indicating that someone had indeed arrived.
The surrounding people didn't even give them a second glance, continuing their own affairs without surprise.
This was EDEN's protective measure for new logins—and also one of the main reasons most hackers disliked the public sector.
Here, countless strict rules severely limited a visitor's privileges, a suffocating experience for those used to having total freedom.
But at the same time, this was also the most secure area in the entire EDEN network. Once inside, it was practically impossible for ordinary hackers to steal or attack another person's Digital Avatar.
Doing so would be equivalent to picking a fight with Kamishiro Enterprises and the Japanese government themselves. Not even the boldest hacker would dare provoke the entire world like that.
"I have to admit, the security measures in EDEN's public sector really are world‑class."
Lowering his head to inspect the slowly forming Digital Avatar, even a hacker like Chen Ze had to acknowledge the intense effort Kamishiro put into keeping the public space safe.
This method of protecting every single user from all angles truly gave ordinary people a great sense of security, ensuring EDEN's stable operation.
But for "fake" users like Chen Ze, these extreme protections caused enormous trouble.
Anyone who knew the basics of EDEN understood that every Avatar in the public sector was generated directly from the user's personal information—identical to their real appearance in theory.
Thus, the moment an obviously abnormal Avatar appeared in a public EDEN zone, there was only one explanation: a hacker.
And not just any hacker—one of the low-level kind who tampered with identity data and caused recognition bugs.
Exactly the state Chen Ze was in right now.
Unlike that semi‑private digital space earlier, the public sector's "identity verification system" had clearly detected the irregularities.
Chen Ze's Avatar failing to finish reconstructing—remaining stuck as mosaic—was proof enough.
"So that shady dealer actually sold me a fake ID?"
Glancing wordlessly at Renamon, who seemed to be suppressing laughter, Chen Ze suddenly understood everything.
"You knew from the start, didn't you?"
Before the Hikarigaoka Incident, Renamon had given him a special set of "Agumon" data. At the time, he had assumed it was just her strange sense of humor and didn't think more of it.
But judging from the situation now, Renamon had clearly anticipated the problem and given him that identity data as a precaution.
"Why didn't you warn me earlier?"
Seeing her reaction, Chen Ze couldn't help feeling exasperated. He understood her mood—but was watching him struggle really that entertaining?
"It is entertaining."
As if she had seen through his internal complaint, Renamon watched Chen Ze's ever‑recombining, system‑rejected Avatar and let a sly smile slip across her face.
"Who told you not to use the 'Agumon' data?"
"And besides, it's not like I didn't warn you."
At those words, Chen Ze instantly understood her true intention.
"So in the end, you just wanted to see my 'Agumon form' again?"
Ever since they returned from Hikarigaoka, Renamon had been eager to see his Agumon form once more—Chen Ze knew that well.
That unusual variant form held obvious allure for Renamon, who had always pursued digivolution above all else.
Unfortunately, once they returned to the real world, Chen Ze—due to various concerns—had never logged into that data form again.
Which had led to… all of this.
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