Inside Xuanxiao Temple, Zhu Ci, a special envoy from the Supernatural Investigation Bureau, led a group of investigators to seal off the entire temple.
Looking at the skeletons displayed in the Daoist temple, Zhu Ci let out a long sigh.
The situation in Shanque City is still unresolved; almost the entire population of the city has perished, and the subsequent public opinion impact of this event will undoubtedly be enormous.
The government is doing everything it can to block information in order to avoid causing panic.
Less than a day later, a similar supernatural event occurred at Xuanxiao Temple, a thousand miles away from Shanque City.
Zhu Ci was urgently dispatched to Xuanxiao Temple to handle this matter.
Coincidentally, both incidents were related to a woman named Bai Jingjing.
Bai Jingjing is currently a key focus of the Supernatural Investigation Bureau!
Thinking of this, Zhu Ci looked again at the corpses that had turned into withered bones, and her stomach churned.
This death was far too gruesome; it really makes one's sanity drop.
After all the witnesses signed the confidentiality agreement, Zhu Ci walked deeper into Xuanxiao Temple.
This incident is different from the one in Shanque City. In Shanque City, almost everyone died, and the survivors were driven insane by fear. However, there are many eyewitnesses in Xuanxiao Temple, and most of them are still sane, so more useful information can be obtained from them.
"Hello, Liang the Perfected. I am Zhu Ci, a special investigator from the National Bureau of Emergency Strategic Investigation, Control and Logistics Support for Paranormal Phenomena, and I am in charge of investigating this case."
Zhu Ci looked at the upright-sitting Liang the Perfected, cleared his throat, and asked, "Regarding Ms. Bai Jingjing, I'd like to know why she came here, and what her purpose is? Could you recount the events of today in their entirety?"
Although the other Daoist priests and tourists had been questioned briefly according to the usual procedure, the Daoist priests and tourists in Xuanxiao Temple only told about the appearance of the ghost and the process of Bai Jingjing exorcising the demon. They knew nothing about the other causes and consequences. After all, after Bai Jingjing arrived, she only had the most contact with Liang the Perfected, and Liang the Perfected also concealed Bai Jingjing's identity from the other Daoist priests in the temple.
At this moment, Liang the Perfected's expression was not very good.
After Bai Jingjing subdued the mischievous skeletons, Liang the Perfected took the initiative to maintain order and called the police. Before the police arrived, he instructed his men to conduct a simple count of the dead.
Before the total number of tourists and Daoist priests in the temple could be figured out that one person was missing, Bai Jingjing mysteriously disappeared.
The Investigation Bureau arrived quickly, and it was the first time Liang the Perfected had learned that the country had an organization specifically for handling such supernatural events.
The area around Xuanxiao Temple has been sealed off, and the investigation is expected to continue for some time. During this period Xuanxiao Temple will have to suspend operations. Thinking about the disciples who died in the temple, Liang the Perfected felt a headache coming on.
The losses are too great.
Is this the price to pay for keeping evil spirits in a Daoist temple?
However, if given another chance, Liang Zhenzhen felt he would still keep Bai Jingjing. The allure of magic was simply too great for him to resist.
Those who wish to become Daoist priests, besides cultivating their minds, all dream of comprehending the mystical arts of Daoist tradition.
Faced with Zhu Ci's question, Liang the Perfected was very cooperative. "Whatever Mr. Zhu wants to know, I will answer to the best of my knowledge."
Seeing that the old man Liang the Perfected, looked haggard, Zhu Ci felt a little sorry for him, but still went through the motions according to procedure.
Liang the Perfected didn't hide anything and told Zhu Ci everything he knew. Actually, what he wanted to ask Zhu Ci at this moment was whether there were any officially affiliated supernatural beings or Daoism masters in that so-called "Supernatural Investigation Bureau" who actually knew magic.
Have the government's upper echelons secretly begun practicing immortality cultivation, without telling the common people?
Liang the Perfected wasn't angry about the government's cover-up. He was now eager to build a good relationship with Zhu Ci and try to get some information out of him to see if there was any way to enter the Supernatural Investigation Bureau and find out if there was a complete path to cultivation and pursuing the Dao.
Meanwhile, all other people in Xuanxiao Temple who knew the truth were also under investigation, and they were all isolated and questioned separately to ensure the accuracy of the information.
However, these eyewitnesses and those in the know, like Liang the Perfected, couldn't help but ask the investigators questions about supernatural powers.
The investigators remained tight-lipped, refusing to divulge any secrets.
The higher-ups are taking this matter very seriously, and the entire Supernatural Investigation Bureau is paying close attention to it. As the person directly in charge of this incident, Zhu Ci is also extremely cautious, afraid of missing any detail.
Zhu Ci also understood why the authorities attached such importance to supernatural events.
In this era of rapid technological advancement, the sudden appearance of mystical entities like the White Bone Spirit and Skeleton Ghost monsters is something no country would treat lightly.
Especially given that several living superhumans have already been discovered, if a nation were to acquire this kind of supernatural power first, its national strength might be elevated to a new level!
There are also some more secretive, dark, and unspeakable reasons, such as... the allure of "immortality"!
The emergence of extraordinary powers has brought the deception of "immortality," which has led countless ancient emperors to willingly jump into the fire, back to the surface.
Who says that modern people with higher education don't yearn for immortality?!
Zhu Ci clenched his fists, banishing all inappropriate and blasphemous thoughts from his mind, and focused his attention on the important matter at hand.
Bai Jingjing is a very important person.
How was she able to absorb the black smoke that blocked Shanque City? And what was her purpose in coming to Xuanxiao Temple?
Was she simply disposing of the skeletons that attacked Xuanxiao Temple, or... was she the mastermind behind it all?
All of these issues need to be clarified; we cannot draw conclusions based on only one side of the story.
Even if Bai Jingjing only obtained that extraordinary power by accident, the Investigation Bureau must find her as soon as possible and bring her under control.
Otherwise, if her power gets out of control, it will be another disaster!
When watching movies or TV series, almost everyone has fantasized about having superhuman powers.
No one cares about fictional things that only exist in works of art, but when supernatural powers actually appear in reality, the ability to control the life and death of others will only cause panic and more unpredictable things.
Therefore, the government will definitely not reveal the existence of supernatural powers to the public; the fewer people who know about them, the better.
Down the mountain, Hu Jiu sat in a hot pot restaurant by the street, ordered a hot pot, and watched with great interest the investigators coming and going in Xuanxiao Temple.
As the source of all the disasters, Hu Jiu certainly knew why these investigators were so nervous.
He orchestrated the Supernatural disaster; the Supernatural he spread were like sparks, while the world was a lump of flammable material that wasn't so easily ignited. Only when there were enough sparks could it be set ablaze.
When Supernatural disasters accumulate to a certain extent, they can lead to a true Supernatural Revival in the world!
"The guise of White Bone Madam is quite useful. Bai Jingjing is also shrewd, indifferent to life and death, and has a weak moral compass; she's a useful weapon."
"Let me think, what other famous demons and monsters can I create similar ones to cause trouble?"
Hu Jiu ate hotpot while thinking about things, enjoying the soothing music playing in the restaurant. It was a very pleasant and comfortable experience.
At that moment, Hu Jiu was the only customer in the shop. A soft footstep came from behind, and the still charming proprietress came out from the kitchen carrying a plate of fruit.
She had a smile on her face.
However, if someone were to observe closely at this moment, they would be shocked to discover that although the proprietress was smiling, her eyes were brimming with tears.
"Oh dear~, why are you crying? All I did was cook your unfaithful husband and your unfilial son ~" Hu Jiu tilted her head, seemingly very puzzled.
"Your current son isn't your biological child at all; he's your husband's and his mistress's child. They switched the babies at birth. Your real son is long dead. I've helped you, so why are you crying?"
Hu Jiu genuinely couldn't understand it. Family, love, friendship... all the emotions that caused him pain and entanglement were things he couldn't comprehend.
I don't understand why humans evolved such a disgusting emotional feedback mechanism.
But he didn't care. He just happened to have his eye on the hot pot restaurant and did a good deed on a whim.
The proprietress held the fruit, tears streaming down her face, but her body was powerless to resist. She could only gently feed the fruit pieces from the plate to the monster who had killed her husband and child!
"Kill him, kill him! Slit his throat with a knife! Waaah... Why? Why is my body out of control!"
The proprietress was screaming frantically in her heart, struggling constantly.
To her, Hu Jiu was just a complete stranger. He produced no evidence and immediately accused her husband of having an affair and that her son was born to his mistress.
Even though she had some doubts about her husband and children, the proprietress was more inclined to believe them.
What if it's just a misunderstanding?
What if there's something else going on?
And even if all these terrible things are true, you'd develop feelings for a dog after raising it for over ten years, let alone a living person!
However, she could only watch as Hu Jiu chopped up her child and put him in a pot to boil.
"Click--"
A sharp pain shot through her as the proprietress realized that her hand had been ripped off by Hu Jiu while she was feeding him.
"Click--"
Another sound of bones and flesh shattering filled the air. Amidst the proprietress's immense terror, Hu Jiu began the live dismemberment project.
A cold wind blew in through the window, and soon Hu Jiu was the only one left in the hot pot restaurant.
"I can't understand it. I was clearly helping her, so why does she hate me so much? I rarely do good deeds, and since she won't accept my kindness, then... just die!"
A chilling atmosphere permeated the entire hot pot restaurant. The boiling broth was as red as tomato juice, and strange rules appeared on the walls. Thus, a haunted restaurant was born.
Du Zhong was making a name for himself overseas and would occasionally contact Hu Jiu to keep each other updated on their progress.
Du Zhong impersonates various gods or demons, forming different factions and then letting these factions fight each other. It's a typical PvP gameplay. Although the death rate is very high, Du Zhong at least leaves them some hope, allowing them to see a glimpse of a false but bright future.
Hu Jiu's approach was completely different from Du Zhong's. Every chess piece he casually threw down was designed to bring people utter despair from beginning to end, and the more they learned about it, the more desperate they became.
Struggling desperately until death.
Du Zhong was having a blast, but he still needed Hu Jiu's support, since he couldn't change his character's appearance or easily make others become Ghost Tamers.
After finishing the hotpot meal, Hu Jiu slowly stood up, pushed open the door, and disappeared at the end of the street.
The lights of the hot pot restaurant behind me flickered a few times. The proprietress appeared in the kitchen, busy at work. Her husband sat at the cashier, idly resting his chin on his hand, lost in thought. A boy of about ten years old ran around the restaurant. Under the warm yellow light, everything was so cozy, yet it inexplicably revealed a hint of unknown unease.
Hu Jiu pulled out a map, closed his eyes, and pointed to a city at random. Whichever city he pointed to, he would go there to cause trouble.
New Yan City is a bustling first-tier city. Although it was late, the city was still brightly lit, especially the downtown commercial district, which was bustling with people and vibrant with lights.
Hu Jiu wandered through the streets and alleys, searching for a suitable vessel to contain the Fierce Ghost.
He gradually walked towards the edge of the city and soon discovered something interesting.
It was a residential area with overgrown weeds on both sides of the road. Some plastic bags and garbage were piled up at the entrance of the community, and the sanitation was not good. There were also very few streetlights, and under the cover of night, the community appeared somewhat gloomy and eerie.
Through the green belt, it was clear that lights were still on in the buildings within the community, with only a few apartments completely dark.
It's probably not time to rest yet at this point, except for some elderly people.
The buildings in the neighborhood were dilapidated, seemingly old houses with decades of history. As soon as Hu Jiu entered, he saw a missing person notice.
A female college student named Tian Tian went out for a late-night snack one night because she was hungry, and then she never came back. She disappeared without a trace, neither alive nor dead.
Her parents searched for her frantically, but a month passed without any results.
Her mother suffered a mental breakdown, and her father aged ten years overnight, forcing them to consider the realities of the situation more carefully.
A beautiful girl can disappear for a month; a lot can happen.
Can they be saved? If they are saved, will they be intact? Will they be able to live a normal life afterward? Is it still worth searching for them?
When Hu Jiu entered Tian Tian's house, he smelled a rotten odor.
Two corpses, which appeared to have been decomposing for some time, sat on the dining table, maintaining their last pose before death.
The table was laden with a sumptuous meal, and there were three sets of bowls and chopsticks, but unfortunately, they had all spoiled from being left out for too long.
The bodies were Tian Tian's parents. Her father wanted to give up searching for his missing daughter and planned to have another child, but her mother couldn't accept it and poisoned the food.
"Perfect material for a ghost story." Hu Jiu looked at the night view outside the window and an idea came to him.