Wen Jingyan's disappearance was something no one had anticipated.
That day, he left work as usual, showing no signs of anything unusual. After leaving the Investigation Bureau, he never reappeared, and all contact information was lost. The Investigation Bureau tried every means but could not find his location.
Initially, this matter did not cause much of a stir. Wen Jingyan was usually very busy, did not have much contact with other people, and did not cultivate interpersonal relationships.
Cheng Linzhou quickly arranged for the newly arrived Ghost Tamer Li Ming to replace Wen Jingyan in his work. The lower-level staff of the Investigation Bureau were unaware of Wen Jingyan's disappearance.
Only Feng Qian was panicked; he was afraid that his superiors would find fault with him and make things difficult for him.
Feng Qian held his phone and dialed Wen Jingyan's number for the thirteenth time, but only a mechanical female voice came through the receiver. "The user you dialed is not in service. Please try again later." This cold statement sounded like a silent mockery.
There are three new Ghost Tamers in the Investigation Bureau: Chen Zhanji, who is mentally ill; Li Ming, who comes from a military family with impeccable credentials; and Fang Zhitu, who is powerful and has mastered two Fierce Ghosts.
Although Fang Zhitu was the strongest, it was Li Ming who took over Wen Jingyan's work.
The day after Wen Jingyan disappeared, Li Ming took office. The speed of the replacement was so fast that it was as if the consultant who had contributed so much to the Investigation Bureau had never existed.
Many people in the Investigation Bureau are talking about this privately.
"I heard that Consultant Wen's authority has been transferred to Mr. Li?"
"It's true that people fade away after they've left, but this is happening way too fast..."
"Don't talk nonsense, this was specially approved by the bureau chief."
Does anyone know why Consultant Wen suddenly disappeared?
"I heard it was a voluntary resignation, without even a handover."
Feng Qian didn't correct these gossips and rumors. Now no one knows where Wen Jingyan went. Surveillance footage shows that he walked out of the Investigation Bureau at 6:07 p. m. that day and then disappeared forever in the blind spot of the cameras.
In the following days, the Investigation Bureau operated smoothly.
The Investigation Bureau invested considerable resources in the "Lucky Casino" project, but to date, there have been no results. A high-level meeting unanimously decided to cut losses and shut down the project.
The eerie die that led to the "Lucky Casino" was retrieved and sealed away, and Feng Qian could no longer possess it.
Feng Qian obediently handed over the dice...
That's impossible!
He had anticipated this day would come, so he made a fake die in advance to deceive everyone.
Although the dice were public property belonging to the Investigation Bureau, Feng Qian's act of appropriating them for himself was undoubtedly a corrupt act of embezzlement. Yet, he showed no remorse or guilt whatsoever, and even felt that it was perfectly justified.
The people below will follow the example set by those above.
No longer needing to investigate the "Lucky Casino's" operating mechanism, Feng Qian's frequency of field investigations and handling Supernatural events increased, and the director would sometimes assign him to assist Li Ming.
Feng Qian, a seasoned Ghost Tamer, seemed to have suddenly become Li Ming's underling, but he didn't say much, just lazing around in a Buddhist-like manner.
That day, Feng Qian assisted Li Ming in handling another Supernatural incident. When he returned to the Investigation Bureau, he happened to run into Director Cheng Linzhou.
"Little Feng," Cheng Linzhou's gaze lingered on Feng Qian's face for a moment before he asked directly, "How's your cooperation with Li Ming going lately?"
"That's great," Feng Qian replied earnestly. "Li Ming is amazing. He's meticulous and goes to great lengths when handling Supernatural events. His execution is exceptionally strong; he's the most dedicated Ghost Tamer I've ever seen."
Hearing this, Cheng Linzhou's lips curled into a fleeting smile, then he frowned slightly. "Li Ming's efficiency in handling Supernatural events is still a bit low. Wen Jingyan can handle multiple Supernatural in a day, while Li Ming can only handle one at most a day, and then needs to rest for a day or two before he can take action again."
Feng Qian didn't know what to say. Since his debut, he had only dealt with Ghost Tamer like Bai Jingjing or Wen Jingyan, and he himself possessed a rather special lucky constitution. Their efficiency standards for handling Supernatural events should not be applicable to Ghost Tamer.
However, judging from Cheng Linzhou's expression, it seems he genuinely dislikes Li Ming?
"Aren't there still Chen Zhanji and Fang Zhitu? The three of them combined can barely match Wen Jingyan, right?" Feng Qian's tone was tinged with sarcasm.
Cheng Linzhou's lips tightened into a thin line. In fact, the combined efficiency of these three newcomers was not as good as that of Wen Jingyan.
Chen Zhanji keeps talking about how he's going to recover, but he can't actually do any work.
Fang Zhitu had only made a move once before, but this time he had a clear price tag: not only money, but also gold, and the Source Ghost after resolving the Supernatural event would also belong to him.
Fang Zhitu appears to be an introverted, quiet, honest, and submissive person, but in reality, he is a shameless and shrewd individual who will not yield an inch when it comes to his own interests. Trying to blackmail him with the principles of national righteousness is useless; he often resorts to silent and passive-aggressive tactics.
Cheng Linzhou has been driven bald by Fang Zhitu lately; this guy is practically a living father!
Cheng Linzhou once thought that Wen Jingyan and Feng Qian were just troublemakers, and that after Wen Jingyan left, he should get better and better and gradually increase his control over the Investigation Bureau.
I never expected there to be someone even stronger!
Without comparison, there is no harm done. Compared to Chen Zhanji and Fang Zhitu, Wen Jingyan is simply too gentle, and even Feng Qian seems more adorable in comparison.
Are there no normal people among the unofficial, Ghost Tamer?
Fortunately, there is still Li Ming, who is truly docile and obedient. If he were stronger and more efficient at handling Supernatural events, he would perfectly fit the image of Ghost Tamer's subordinate that Cheng Linzhou envisioned.
Because Chen Zhanji and Fang Zhitu each had their own reasons for not dealing with the Supernatural events, and Feng Qian was just going through the motions, the pressure ultimately fell on Li Ming.
Feng Qian reminded Li Ming, "Don't push yourself too hard. You're still so young. Take care of your health. The lives of the people are precious, and so is yours."
Li Ming paused for a moment, then shook his head. "These are responsibilities I must bear; I cannot shirk them."
His like-minded comrades all sacrificed themselves in the laboratory. He is the only successful case of artificial Ghost Tamer. He is not only himself, but also carries the will of his comrades on his shoulders, so he must face all of this!
Feng Qian didn't try to persuade him further; he and Li Ming were a classic case of "those who walk different paths cannot make plans together."
As time went by, the domestic situation visibly deteriorated. Centered on Lan City, a number of high-level Supernatural events broke out in the surrounding areas in a short period of time, and were rapidly radiating outwards.
The Investigation Bureau has been extremely busy lately, and many people have sensed an impending storm.
Information about Fierce Ghosts and Ghost Tamers has gradually spread abroad, but they don't readily accept this concept; they find it hard to believe that resurrected Ancient Gods are all "demons."
Two weeks later, Li Ming was dispatched to a textile factory warehouse to handle a Supernatural event.
He set off at nine o'clock that morning, and the accident happened around 10:30 a. m.
In the conference room, Cheng Linzhou's face was grim; the live feed on the projection screen left everyone frozen in place.
Inside the textile factory warehouse, Li Ming knelt in a pool of blood. His right hand was gone, replaced by a writhing cloud of blood mist.
Clearly, the Fierce Ghost "Blood Handprint" he was controlling was about to revive out of control.
Worse still, the Source Ghost of the Supernatural events in the textile factory warehouse, the "Crying-Face Ghost," is slowly emerging from the blood mist, and the Supernatural phenomena of the "Blood Handprint" and the "Crying-Face Ghost" are intertwined.
"Impossible!" Cheng Linzhou slammed his fist on the conference table in anger. "It's only been a little over half a month, why is Li Ming's ghost on the verge of resurrection?!"
Suddenly, Li Ming looked up from the screen. His skin was melting and peeling away, but a relieved smile appeared on his face. His mouth opened and closed as if he wanted to say something.
Unfortunately, he couldn't say his last words before the scene abruptly ended.
Li Ming sacrificed himself, Blood Handprint revived.
The conference room was deathly Silence. Feng Qian counted his heartbeats, his eyes darting left and right.
Fang Zhitu remained silent as usual, like a plastic mannequin, showing no emotional fluctuation whatsoever.
Chen Zhanji, however, seemed to be imagining something else entirely, and raised his hand to wipe away the tears from the corner of his eyes.
"Half a month! Only half a month, damn it!" Cheng Linzhou's voice seemed to be squeezed out from between his teeth, breaking the Silence of the room.
He hurled the water glass from the table, and as it shattered, he roared, "Why did this happen? Doesn't the Research Department have anything to explain?!"
Li Ming, the Ghost Tamer on whom he had placed high hopes, only handled seven Supernatural incidents in the half month after taking office. He suddenly died while handling the seventh Supernatural incident, and the Fierce Ghost Revival on the spot. The Blood Handprint became entangled with the Supernatural events at the scene, forming an even more terrifying Supernatural event.
Cheng Linzhou simply couldn't accept this fact. How could a Ghost Tamer, created at the cost of so many lives in the laboratory, be so obedient and do whatever he was told, be a short-lived ghost?
Feng Qian rolled his eyes, watching the bureau chief spitting as he spoke, and just wanted to laugh.
The head of the Research Department, a researcher involved in the Ghost Tamer experiment, hurriedly adjusted his glasses. He couldn't understand why Li Ming had recovered so quickly.
Unable to answer Cheng Linzhou's question, his gaze shifted to the three Ghost Tamers present.
Noticing his gaze, Chen Zhanji, ever the considerate one, spoke first, saying, "Ghost Tamers are inherently short-lived, and overuse of their abilities can accelerate the Fierce Ghost Revival. Given Li Ming's extremely high workload, the fact that he could endure it for over half a month is already quite remarkable."
These words drew everyone's attention. Cheng Linzhou temporarily suppressed his anger and asked, "What do you mean by 'extremely high workload'? Li Ming only takes action once every day or two, and you dare call that 'high workload'!"
Now it was Chen Zhanji's turn to be shocked. "You, you all..."
He was speechless for a moment and couldn't utter a word.
Fang Zhitu had been silent for a long time, suddenly sneered, his contemptuous gaze sweeping over everyone present. He said, "I don't know what has caused you to have this misconception about 'Ghost Tamers,' but I can tell you definitively now that ordinary Ghost Tamers should never use the abilities of Fierce Ghosts repeatedly and continuously. That's definitely overworking yourself and will burn through your lifespan."
"Some people here always think that Chen Zhanji and I are slacking off, but actually, handling one Supernatural event per week is already very efficient. We're taking risks to do our work. Frequently using ghostly abilities will only lead me to the same fate as Li Ming."
Cheng Linzhou felt completely overwhelmed. "Are Ghost Tamer really that fragile? Wen Jingyan and Feng Qian could handle multiple Supernatural events in a single day before, how come they're perfectly fine, showing no signs of recovery at all?"
Feng Qian, who was called out, remained silent. He didn't know much about Ghost Tamers, but he already had a vague guess in his mind.
Sure enough, Fang Zhitu's next words confirmed his guess. "Director, don't treat special cases as the general phenomenon. Wen Jingyan's strength is among the best in the country, and I've also heard that Feng Qian has a very rare Koi Constitution. Isn't it a bit too much to use these two special individuals as a benchmark?"
Cheng Linzhou's face was as black as the bottom of a pot, and the other executives present looked at each other in bewilderment.
They finally realized, belatedly, the true value of Wen Jingyan's talent!
Compared to Li Ming's tragic situation, they realized just how rare Wen Jingyan and Feng Qian, two Ghost Tamer would never recover no matter how hard they worked!
"So that's how it is." Cheng Linzhou gritted his teeth. "The biggest problem facing Ghost Tamers is actually survival?!"
Fang Zhitu smiled helplessly. The process of the Supernatural Revival was about to enter its middle and late stages, but the Investigation Bureau had only just realized this. It was too late.
Fortunately, his purpose in joining the Investigation Bureau was not to save anyone, but to take advantage of the situation, especially to fleece people, particularly gold.
Cheng Linzhou and the other executives felt their hearts were bleeding. It was like playing a gacha game and getting a top-tier SSR card right at the start, a card that would make you invincible. But because they were newbies and didn't understand what SSR meant, they carelessly dismantled the SSR card as material.
Wen Jingyan left too decisively. If he had made a big fuss before leaving, but then dragged his feet and dawdled, it would mean that he didn't really want to leave and hoped someone would try to persuade him to stay, which is why he deliberately made such a big commotion.
Those who truly want to leave will simply walk away without warning, after careful consideration.
Wen Jingyan will probably never come back. Heaven knows Cheng Linzhou only wanted to limit Wen Jingyan's power and make him more obedient, so why did he suddenly leave?
But it was too late for regrets now. Cheng Linzhou quickly adjusted his emotions and resumed his facade as an elite bureaucrat.
We've already lost Wen Jingyan, we can't afford to lose Feng Qian too.
Cheng Linzhou first ordered the textile factory warehouse to be sealed off in an attempt to prevent the resurrected "Blood Handprint" and "Crying-Face Ghost" from escaping.
Then he urged the Research Department to produce a new Ghost Tamer as soon as possible.
The Research Department was in a dilemma because the mortality rate was too high, and fewer and fewer volunteers in the military were willing to participate in the experiments.
The experimental results became increasingly strange; some subjects were on the verge of success, but always failed at the last minute.
This happened so many times that researchers even began to suspect that Wen Jingyan might be withholding some crucial information about the knowledge of Ghost Tamers.