Hu Jiu's development of the Ghost Book was still very rudimentary. He had considered using it as a Death Note or an all-purpose Doraemon, but there were too many restrictions to test it freely like a conventional weapon.
That problem, however, should soon be resolved.
He opened the Ghost Book, picked up his pen, and wrote a line...
He used the Ghost Book's mechanism to interfere with reality. In the near future, he would encounter the Ghost Pen in a plausible way. When the time came, he would seize the opportunity and try to take things a step further, going from the Ghost Book's holder to its owner, or even its master!
He didn't know whether this was the right answer, but with no idea where to begin, he could only seize the sole clue he had!
It had to be said that the former person in charge, Liu Mingguang, had indeed been conscientious. Though he had done plenty of unscrupulous things, he had also dealt with plenty of supernatural incidents in the city, which was why Hu Jiu was so free at the moment.
A few days later, the Satellite Phone rang. A major supernatural disaster was suspected to have occurred in Yuzhou City, and Headquarters was urgently calling on nearby Ghost Tamers to investigate.
Hu Jiu neither refused nor bargained. After all, he was a good person~
Heh, time to find somewhere else to stir up trouble.
Yuzhou was a city built beside a lake. He chose to travel there by water and take in the scenery along the way.
A thin mist hung over the lake. It smelled a little strange, as though mixed with a scent that didn't belong in nature. The sightseeing boat rocked as it moved slowly through the waves. Hu Jiu looked around. He was the only tourist aboard the small boat. "Is it usually this quiet here?"
"Of course not. It used to be lively, but now people aren't very willing to come," the captain replied.
Hu Jiu asked again, "Why don't they want to come? I heard Yuzhou City is holding a civic culture festival. There should be plenty of people coming for the fun."
"That was before. A lot of young people used to come here to have fun, but..." As the captain was sighing, the water suddenly surged, and the boat jolted.
"Watch out!" the captain warned.
Hearing that, Hu Jiu lowered his head and looked into the lake. Waves rolled across the surface, and the water, which had been fairly clear, gradually turned murky. Occasionally, unfamiliar fish swam past. Looking through the surface, he could see less and less the deeper he looked. It was pitch-black, as though some indescribable creature were peering up from below.
The feeling came out of nowhere. Fortunately, nothing happened along the way.
After reaching shore without trouble, Hu Jiu met an acquaintance.
"Mr. Hu, we meet again." Wang Xianhui smiled. Two strangers, a man and a woman, stood beside her.
The man was young and wore a black trench coat, its upturned collar covering half his face. The woman had short, gray-white hair and sharply defined features. She looked to be of mixed descent and was especially eye-catching.
When Hu Jiu said nothing, the unfamiliar man politely introduced himself. "I'm Sun Miao, just an ordinary person. The white-haired lady is Ye Songlan."
"Oh," Hu Jiu replied perfunctorily.
Wang Xianhui said, "Yue Renchun, the former person in charge of Yuzhou City, has disappeared. Headquarters appointed a new person in charge, and I came to test them, but some unexpected circumstances forced me to stay here and assist with the investigation."
Hu Jiu looked slightly puzzled. "You don't seem worried at all?"
"Worrying won't help. There's nothing I can do. It's too much of a waste of time and energy to dwell on things I'm powerless to change. I might as well take the opportunity to relax, and Yuzhou City happens to be holding a culture festival." Wang Xianhui looked entirely unconcerned as she pointed ahead.
In the gradually thinning mist, skyscrapers stood one after another. Hu Jiu dimly made out a strange figure floating in midair. Only after looking closely did he realize it was a giant inflatable doll.
Its face was as white as porcelain, and its cheeks and lips were bright red, readily bringing to mind the lifelike paper figures used at funerals. Giving an inanimate object the features of a living person was bound to produce an uncanny valley effect, and the inflatable doll's enormous size made it even more oppressive and eerie. A breeze blew past, and the doll seemed to wave. Together with its blank smile, it was enough to make one's scalp tingle.
"What's that thing?" Hu Jiu asked.
Wang Xianhui said nothing. She didn't want to comment on that hellish creation.
Sun Miao, on the other hand, spoke up enthusiastically. "I'd guess someone attending the culture festival made it."
Yuzhou City's culture festival had once been fairly conventional, but at some point, it had gradually turned into a cosplay party for young people, full of memes and all manner of creative antics.
"I heard some strange things have happened in Yuzhou City recently." Hu Jiu seized the opening to ask, looking away from the creepy doll.
"Strange things happen every year. Most are caused by people, so they're no big problem. This city is very harmonious and peaceful. Even if something abnormal happens, the person in charge of Yuzhou City will quickly resolve it and nip the danger in the bud," Sun Miao said meaningfully.
Hu Jiu nodded. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a faint look of disdain on Ye Songlan's face as Sun Miao spoke.
"If Yuzhou City really were dangerous, the person in charge here should have ordered the culture festival canceled long ago. How would he dare let so many people gather here? If anything happened, he couldn't bear the responsibility. Reasoning backward, you can see that it should be safe here," Sun Miao added.
The unnecessary remark only made Hu Jiu more suspicious.
When they entered the city, traffic was sparse, and the streets were especially deserted.
"It's really quiet." Hu Jiu glanced at the giant inflatable doll. It was held in place by just one thin cord and looked very precarious. Several people stood beneath it, apparently arguing.
"Perhaps it's because of an earlier supernatural incident," Sun Miao said vaguely.
Ye Songlan suddenly cut in. "A pink mist was drifting around Yuzhou City before. It caused people's minds to become confused. Even though the person in charge claimed it had been contained, the public would still feel panicked."
Sun Miao quietly glared at Ye Songlan, seemingly reproaching her for saying too much.
People in matching uniforms could often be seen patrolling the streets. Sun Miao explained that they were all patrol officers from a special department who would never overlook any abnormal phenomenon suspected to be a supernatural incident.
Hu Jiu looked at those expressionless people with some skepticism. Their expressions were hard to describe: stern, yet numb. Only the occasional movement of their eyes showed that they were still alive.
As he passed them, Hu Jiu seemed to hear an unintelligible whisper by his ear, but when he listened closely, he could no longer hear it.
"The culture festival starts tomorrow morning. I'll arrange accommodations for you first, Mr. Hu, and we can all get together tonight." Sun Miao went on talking like a host. Yet so far, he had never revealed his identity.
Passing the giant inflatable doll, the group continued along the road and soon came upon an enormous square.
Sun Miao pointed at it. "That's the main venue for the culture festival. The first event will be held here tomorrow."
"The first event?" Hu Jiu readily played along with Sun Miao, acting like a mild-mannered, modest ordinary person.
"The culture festival lasts three days. Besides the cosplay festivities, there are comic conventions, concerts, and so on. It's all about eating, drinking, having fun, and going wild for a good time." There was a wistful note in Sun Miao's voice as he spoke.
"During traditional holidays, it's all social obligations everywhere you turn: pressure to get married and have children, comparisons and lectures, overtime and shifted days off, and 'making dumplings.' When you finally want to relax, you can only turn to these lowbrow festivals."