Hu Jiu had already made his escape. The area shrouded in darkness really was a malicious ghost's Ghost Domain. Fortunately, he could just barely open a Ghost Domain of his own. Though he could only sustain it for a few seconds, a single instant was enough for him to get away.
Standing in the sunlight, he looked back. Nothing about the surroundings had changed; they were exactly as they had been when he entered. The only difference was that it was far too quiet.
A plump stray cat walked past him, only to vanish abruptly after a short distance. The dark Ghost Domain was like a separate space, invisible to those outside it. If he took a few more steps forward, he would immediately return to the area shrouded in darkness.
The old woman ghost had set her sights on Liu Mingguang, and he was trapped in the Ghost Domain with his vision severely impaired. Even if he survived, he would probably come out of it badly battered!
At that thought, Hu Jiu headed straight home, with no intention of fighting Liu Mingguang to the bitter end. He hadn't revealed his identity anyway. Wei Xiyuan, the Ghost Tamer from Beifeng Commune, had done all the bad things. What did any of it have to do with him, Hu Jiu?
"Buzz~"
Hu Jiu concealed himself on his way home. As soon as he stepped inside, he heard the satellite phone ringing.
He picked it up and saw that there were already more than a dozen missed calls.
Now that the call had finally connected, Lin Guangning's furious voice immediately came through. "Hu Jiu, why didn't you answer the phone just now? There's an emergency in Linjiang City, and we urgently need a Ghost Tamer to handle it. You've delayed this long. Do you have any idea how much worse the situation could get?"
Heh, this little bitch never learns. Sooner or later, I'll give you the whole package: a ruined home and a dead family! Countless vicious thoughts surged through Hu Jiu's mind, but he spoke unhurriedly. "I'm terribly sorry. I dealt with a B-class supernatural incident not long ago, and I was in terrible shape. I fell into a deep sleep, so I didn't manage to answer the phone."
Lin Guangning took a deep breath and dropped the matter. After all, they needed Hu Jiu to carry out an urgent mission without complaint right now. She didn't doubt what he had said either, because the satellite phone's location had never changed; it had stayed at Hu Jiu's home the whole time.
Surely no one would go out without their satellite phone or cell phone?
Lin Guangning briefly described the situation in Linjiang City. Hu Jiu nodded as he listened. "What does headquarters want me to do?"
"Support Liu Mingguang!" Lin Guangning said urgently. "According to his location, Liu Mingguang seems to have been attacked at home. Go investigate the situation first, and try to rescue him if you can."
"This person in charge of Linjiang City is a bit too useless." Hu Jiu's tone was mocking. "I was the one who dealt with the last supernatural incident, and now I have to support him too. How about this? I suggest headquarters remove Liu Mingguang from his post and make me the person in charge instead."
"After all, if you don't hold the position, you can't direct its affairs. I'm not officially in charge, so a lot of people won't listen to my orders. When the time comes, that could easily cause a supernatural incident to spread and lead to unnecessary casualties."
"I'll report your words to my superiors. Now please carry out the mission immediately!" Lin Guangning said stiffly.
"Understood. For public safety and social stability, it's my duty!" Hu Jiu declared righteously before hanging up. He changed clothes and sauntered out.
He couldn't wait for Liu Mingguang to drop dead on the spot, so how could he possibly go support him? Besides, headquarters had withheld some information. They hadn't even mentioned Beifeng Commune, only calling the attacker an unknown Ghost Tamer.
After he had delayed for quite a while, the satellite phone rang again. Lin Guangning wasn't calling to hurry him along; the situation had changed. Something abnormal had appeared near Liu Mingguang's home. Witnesses said passersby had suddenly disappeared while walking, and a Ghost Domain was suspected to have formed.
Linjiang City's security forces had taken a hit, but they could still spare personnel for an emergency evacuation and cordon.
Most of the people living near Liu Mingguang's home were either wealthy or influential. Headquarters wanted Hu Jiu not only to do everything he could to support Liu Mingguang, but also to try to rescue the trapped "ordinary people."
"A Ghost Domain has already appeared?" Hu Jiu feigned shock. "Headquarters wants a rookie Ghost Tamer like me to handle something this troublesome? Are they sending me to my death? It doesn't matter if I die, but once I'm dead and the malicious ghost revives, things will only get worse..."
"Precisely because there's a Ghost Domain, only a Ghost Tamer can be sent to deal with it." Lin Guangning sounded anxious. "That Ghost Domain's range is expanding, and many ordinary people are in danger. Only a Ghost Tamer can find out what's happening while protecting themselves. If you can rescue the survivors and discover the source ghost's abilities, that would be a major achievement too."
Hu Jiu sneered at Lin Guangning's words. There was a reason he had always been wary of headquarters, even falsifying containment records. They treated Ghost Tamers as cannon fodder and couldn't even offer a fucking decent empty promise!
Having Ghost Tamers use the power of ghosts to rescue ordinary people was truly unrealistic in this era of supernatural revival. When a Ghost Tamer sacrificed their life, there was no glory, only a revived ghost! Even more people would die!
"For the safety of the people, I'll try to gather information about that Ghost Domain and do everything I can to capture and contain the source ghost." Hu Jiu spoke his lies with ringing conviction, without saying a word about supporting Liu Mingguang or rescuing survivors.
Expecting others to become slaves to morality was a common failing among some people in positions of power. Although Lin Guangning was only an operator at headquarters, her mindset was probably like that of a saleswoman at a luxury brand store, confused about her own position. Hearing Hu Jiu speak so nobly, her tone softened a little. "Headquarters is contacting other Ghost Tamers for help. Go without worrying; you don't have to worry about anything else."
She was lying. Headquarters was indeed contacting other Ghost Tamers, but most Ghost Tamers wouldn't lift a finger without a reward in sight. Unless the benefits were sufficient, they absolutely wouldn't act lightly. Only rookie Ghost Tamers were easy to fool, but before long, rookies turned into old hands too. Besides, sending a rookie to a supernatural incident involving a Ghost Domain could backfire.
By comparison, Hu Jiu was fairly easy to deal with. He didn't start asking headquarters for one thing after another the moment he opened his mouth. For once, Lin Guangning thought a little better of him, but she apparently hadn't heard the saying: sometimes, what's free costs the most!
After the call ended, Hu Jiu made his way to the scene at a normal pace.
So much time had passed. He wondered whether Liu Mingguang had died yet. If not, he would have to finish him off in time.
Police cars kept rolling out, and fully armed officers put up a cordon. But there was never a shortage of onlookers. Quite a few curious bystanders watched from a distance, some took photos and uploaded them online, and the bolder ones even tried to run over for a closer look.
"With this many people deployed, what on earth happened?"
"No idea. Let's just watch from here. Don't get too close."
"Maybe someone's been killed."