The Black Cloud has been contained.
Linjiang City has once again been blessed by the sun.
Hu Jiu told Qian Ying that he was trapped in the clouds and fighting against the Source Ghost, which stopped the spread of the Black Cloud and effectively interrupted Black Cloud killing pattern.
Qian Ying and all the police officers had no doubt about Hu Jiu's words.
Hu Jiu took credit for the work, and then he became a hands-off manager, leaving all the cleanup work to Qian Ying.
This city is bound to experience a population exodus, but what does that have to do with Hu Jiu?
He was just an ordinary hero.
Contact Xiao Mei, fabricate some intelligence about the Black Cloud, and ask her to submit a report requesting permission to visit Fu Youhua.
During this time, Hu Jiu dealt with a minor Supernatural incident left behind by Zhang Shucheng, stripped him of all his equipment, mainly to skim off any passing feathers, before handing him over to Headquarters.
Linjiang City gradually returned to normal production and daily life.
Hu Jiu made a backup of the list of Evernight members that Han Yang had provided.
"Tian Shan..."
The name caught his attention, but that was all he noticed.
The old man Hu Jiu encountered in the Ghostly Ancient Tomb was the same old man who told him that all the Fierce Ghosts in the world evolved from fragments of the Only True God.
I'll put Old Deng aside for now and play with him when I have some free time.
Hu Jiu had another, more important thing to do.
The date circled in red on the calendar is approaching; it's the time when he controlled the Ghost Finger in his past life.
Everything else was put on hold for the sake of that finger.
In truth, the Ghost Finger isn't very useful; its only purpose is to stab people to death.
Hu Jiu didn't develop any useful abilities, but he still managed to survive for a long time by relying on them.
If it weren't for unforeseen circumstances, he probably could have continued to survive.
The Ghost Finger is actually the finger bone of a right index finger, which is golden in color and glows with a bloody light.
For Hu Jiu now, the commemorative significance of the Ghost Finger far outweighs its practical use.
Unfortunately, he waited for a long time at the place where he encountered the Ghost Finger in his previous life, but nothing happened.
Could it be the butterfly effect?
Since his rebirth, his fate has been completely disrupted by his own hands, and it's not impossible that the Ghost Finger has moved to a different position.
Xiao Mei sent a message to Hu Jiu, informing him. "The compensation for handling the Tianji, Frozen-to-Death Ghost, and Black Cloud Incidents, as well as the compensation for the Eternal Night Organization, has been delivered to Linjiang City. Please check your mail."
However, Hu Jiu did not receive these resources that day.
When the situation was relayed to Xiao Mei, she was shocked. "That's impossible! The Resources Department has already distributed the resources, and there are dedicated staff members responsible for transferring them to you. Are you sure you didn't receive them?"
Hu Jiu only said, "Of course I'm sure. If you don't believe me, you can investigate for yourself whether the Headquarters staff have actually arrived in Linjiang City."
"Our Special Operations Department here has not received any Headquarters specialists recently."
Xiao Mei hurriedly explained, "It's not that I don't believe you, it's just... I'm a little surprised. That's a rather huge amount of resources."
"Oh?" Hu Jiu raised his voice slightly. "A huge amount of resources? Could it be... that they were embezzled or deducted along the way!"
"That's impossible!" Xiao Mei immediately denied.
"The people responsible for escorting Supernatural resources have all undergone rigorous testing by Headquarters, and they don't operate alone..."
"Alright!" Hu Jiu interrupted Xiao Mei.
"Don't bother explaining to me, I only care about the results."
The call was disconnected.
Hu Jiu might not care about those resources, but... what he doesn't care about is still his, and that doesn't mean others can take it at will.
Xiao Mei followed the normal work procedure and reported the matter to her superiors.
It's not like she lost anything, what's there for her to be so worried about?
However, on the surface, she had to appear to empathize with Hu Jiu and share his hatred for the enemy.
After being reported through multiple levels, the news finally reached the office of Vice Minister Zhang Hongwen.
Zhang Hongwen's lips curled into a barely perceptible sneer, and he immediately dialed the number to hold the Resources Department accountable!
"Vice Minister, is there anything I can help you with?" Lu Mou, the Minister of the Resources Department, emphasized the word "Vice" on the other end of the phone.
Zhang Hongwen questioned quite seriously, "Why haven't the resources allocated by Headquarters to Hu Jiu, the person in charge of Linjiang City, been delivered yet?"
"I remember informing you to send those resources promptly. Did you ignore my words?"
Lu Mou was stunned. "It hasn't been delivered yet? That's impossible!"
"After you gave the order, I immediately allocated resources and sent people to Linjiang City. Hu Jiu's importance doesn't need you to remind me; logically, he should have received it long ago."
Are you sure he really didn't receive it? What if he received it but then lied about it?
Zhang Hongwen's smile deepened, "I'll investigate Hu Jiu's side and conduct further confirmation. You also need to investigate your side. We need to work on both fronts and find the root of the problem as soon as possible!"
"I understand." Lu Mou hung up the phone with a gloomy expression.
He naturally understood the seriousness of the matter; the resources he sent to Hu Jiu were indeed substantial, but Hu Jiu claimed not to have received them.
He was unwilling to doubt his subordinates, but without solid evidence, he could not unjustifiably suspect a powerful Ghost Tamer.
Necessary investigations are indispensable.
Lu Mou was full of confidence when he issued the investigation order.
However, the investigation results were a slap in the face to him.
"What did you say? They ran away!"
"Do you know what you're saying? How could the transportation staff possibly abscond!"
Lu Mou was furious, his face filled with disbelief.
The person who came to report could only remind him again, "Minister Lu, I'm not joking."
"There were two specialists in charge of transporting the resources. One of them, Wang Xun, was attacked by the other, Li Zhaoqiang. According to the message Wang Xun sent back before his death, Li Zhaoqiang did indeed run away with the resources."
Lu Mou's brows furrowed tightly, like a Shar Pei puppy. A storm raged in his heart, as if he had sensed a conspiracy.
"Li Zhaoqiang is just an ordinary person. Although he has a lot of Supernatural resources, they are of no use to him. Why would he do such a thing?"
Several guesses flashed through his mind. Now that things had come to this, Lu Mou could only immediately contact the investigation and intelligence departments to locate Li Zhaoqiang's current position on his Satellite Phone and investigate his travel trajectory through his identity information.
Although this is likely to be ineffective, if Li Zhaoqiang's decision was not impulsive but premeditated, he would definitely have discarded the Satellite Phone and stopped using his ID card to travel.
But... all the necessary procedures absolutely cannot be omitted!
Given such a serious oversight, Lu Mou could only hope to rectify the situation.
It's best to prevent him from finding out that it was some insiders who were stirring up trouble for power and profit!