Late at night, two days later.
Rose Security Company.
In the spacious conference hall on the top floor, soft lighting illuminated the entire room.
"Chairman, was there something urgent you called us together for in the middle of the night?" a tall, burly man in a hat asked casually, gently wiping the knife in his hand.
The others present lounged about, some sitting, some standing, and some chatting, all seemingly relaxed and at ease.
The chairman put on a stern face. "Don't rush. Take a look at this first."
He tapped the keyboard in front of him. A screen descended behind him, and the projector came to life.
A few seconds later, terror appeared on their faces. "A special anomalous phenomena research agency directly under the military!"
Ordinary Ghost Tamers might not have known about the Anomalous Research Department, but the Rose Security Company had extensive connections and knew full well how powerful the Research Department was. It was a coercive institution in the truest sense!
That was why, even though the Rose Security Company had been falsely accused over what happened in Yuzhou City, it had immediately accepted the blame, not daring to go against the authorities.
"Why has the Research Department come to us?" asked a young man wearing glasses.
The chairman tapped the keyboard again, and the projector displayed a new document. "The Research Department has evidence that the [Ghost Marsh] incident in Yuzhou City was orchestrated by Yue Renchun, the local person in charge, and that Hu Jiu, the person in charge of Linjiang City, may have colluded with him. The Research Department has issued orders and will send a special agent to assist us in secretly arresting those two, thereby proving our innocence."
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. It was only a matter of capturing two Ghost Tamers. Even if they were the people in charge of their respective cities, no one thought they would be too difficult to handle.
But the man with glasses frowned. "The Research Department is more than capable of arresting them themselves. Why insist on dragging us into it? I'm worried they're acting on their own without Headquarters' approval. Once it's over, they'll pin all the blame for attacking the people in charge on us!"
The chairman nodded gravely. "You're right, but we have no choice. You've all heard about the destruction of Beifeng Commune, haven't you? Whether it's Headquarters or the Research Department, the strength of state agencies like them is beyond imagination. It's just that the current situation in the country is so complicated that the leaders above don't want to waste energy on internal strife."
"But once the situation stabilizes, there may be a reckoning. An arm can't twist a thigh. No matter how powerful a civilian organization is, it's unlikely to be stronger than the state. Compliance is the best option."
The man with glasses lowered his head, vaguely feeling that something had been off about the chairman lately. It wasn't as though this was the first time he'd learned how powerful Headquarters and the Research Department were. Hadn't he been wildly arrogant before anyway? Why had he suddenly chickened out?
Someone suddenly made a suggestion. "Can we stay out of this? Couldn't we quietly tip off Headquarters about the Research Department acting on its own?"
Pairs of eyes turned toward him as though he were an idiot.
"Headquarters and the Research Department are two sides of the same coin, like a married couple who can't be separated. If your boss's wife quietly tells you to do something and you turn around and tattle to your boss, even if they quarrel for a while, what do you think will happen when they make up... will you still have an easy time of it?"
After listening to the chairman's measured explanation, the person who had made the suggestion suddenly remembered working at a private company jointly run by a married couple. With two big bosses and two people calling the shots, whenever they disagreed, the ones who got hurt in the end were always the employees at the bottom!
"And most importantly, Headquarters might well know what the Research Department is doing. It's very possible they're simply turning a blind eye." The chairman rubbed his temples, looking deeply troubled.
The Rose Security Company had inexplicably been made to take the blame and seemed to have been drawn into some kind of conspiracy. Getting out wouldn't be so easy.
"Don't be pessimistic, everyone. Get ready for tomorrow's operation. Just go and capture those two Ghost Tamers. It's not such a big deal. I'll shoulder everything else!"
With that, the chairman announced that the meeting was over.
The next day, a group of fully armed Ghost Tamers gathered at the Rose Security Company. They were all disguised, attempting to conceal their identities.
The Anomalous Research Department had sent a tall man with a kindly face. He became the team's leader by default, exchanged a few pleasantries, and then headed straight for Yuzhou City.
They found no one there.
Yue Renchun wasn't home. He had only just left, and he hadn't concealed his whereabouts, so the group followed him to Linjiang City.
Unfortunately, they were still a step too late.
After wiping out Beifeng Commune, Hu Jiu and Yue Renchun had arranged a time when they were both free and set out together, bringing their tagalong Ye Songlan. Their destination was Yuezhao City.
Yue Renchun: "Headquarters called, demanding to know what we're going there for."
Hu Jiu: "To save someone."
Yue Renchun: "Save who?"
Hu Jiu: "A friend of yours."
"Huh?" Yue Renchun was a little confused, then caught on. "You just made up an excuse!"
Hu Jiu emphasized, "I didn't make up an excuse. You did."
Yue Renchun curled his lip. "What's the difference?"
"No difference." Hu Jiu looked completely calm.
In fact, there was a big difference.
From Headquarters' perspective, Yue Renchun had taken the initiative to seek out Hu Jiu, made an excuse to brush them off, and headed to Yuezhao City. He was the mastermind, while Hu Jiu was most likely just cannon fodder being manipulated.
The devious and cunning Hu Jiu didn't want to take responsibility. "If you don't think that excuse works, you can also say we were chasing Zhao Lifeng and followed him all the way to Yuezhao City."
"That reason is a bit more plausible." Yue Renchun didn't care at all about Hu Jiu's little scheme. He was extremely proud of himself now, full of vigor, and felt like a child of destiny. His Fortune-and-Misfortune Perception was also active...
"We've got a string of tails behind us," Yue Renchun warned.
Hu Jiu said, "Ignore them. Let's see if they have the guts to follow us into Yuezhao City!"
The answer was no.
The Rose Security Company's Ghost Tamers all stopped outside the city. The Research Department's special agent didn't act rashly either, instead immediately contacting his superiors and reporting the situation.
"Why did those two come here?" the burly man in the hat asked quietly.
"How would I know?" A thoughtful look flashed across the face of the man with glasses.
Yuezhao City was a small county town, and a bizarre supernatural incident had enveloped the entire city. It was called "bizarre" because, although the incident covered a wide area, there had been no casualties so far.
However, people who entered Yuezhao City found it difficult to get out again. The city was filled with strange rules, and there were only two ways to leave: follow the rules and find the correct exit, or force one's way out using an extremely terrifying Ghost Domain.
After sending people to investigate, Headquarters had left it alone for the time being.
The residents were in almost no danger, and communications signals hadn't been cut off. They could still go online, but Headquarters had imposed internet controls: any keywords related to Yuezhao City's anomalies were deleted the moment they were posted. In such a remote little county town, as long as public opinion was controlled and supplies were delivered regularly, there really was no urgent need to deal with it.
Someone had once suggested that Ghost Tamers with Ghost Domains bring Yuezhao City's residents out in batches, but the proposal had been rejected. Ghost Tamers with Ghost Domains were already scarce, and those with sufficiently powerful Ghost Domains were even rarer. The range of their Ghost Domains also had to be considered. Moving an entire city's population might exhaust them to death, and using experts of that caliber as transport workers wasn't worthwhile.
Besides, the residents simply couldn't leave the city. They were all ordinary people, and they were still alive and well. If they ended up suffering supernatural erosion after entering a Ghost Domain, the loss really wouldn't be worth the gain!
Yue Renchun and Hu Jiu had already shown their credentials and passed through the cordon.
It was unclear what benefits or threats the Research Department had offered, but after quite a while, the Rose Security Company's people followed them in.
Yuezhao City, outside a department store.
Fashionably dressed young men and women strolled arm in arm. Several students passing by were animatedly discussing the flaws in a hit TV drama, while food delivery riders on motorcycles weaved through the streets...
Everything looked peaceful and harmonious.
Hu Jiu cautiously surveyed his surroundings. He couldn't see any sign of a supernatural incident at all, but ever since he had entered the city, the Ghost Book tucked against his chest had been restless, as though it had met its destined other half and couldn't wait to become one with it. Even Hu Jiu seemed to have been infected by the impulse.
"Let's find somewhere to stay first," Yue Renchun said beside him.
Hu Jiu nodded.
Like a marionette, Ye Songlan followed closely in Yue Renchun's footsteps.
On the way, Hu Jiu said, "According to the information, the situation in this city is a little like a new kind of horror story popular online—rules horror. It's as if Yuezhao City has become the setting for one of those stories. Going by the usual formula, we might see a strange notice by the road or pick up a scrap of paper covered in messy handwriting, with a whole pile of mind-bending and contradictory rules written on it..."
Yue Renchun rolled his eyes at that. "What kind of daydream are you having? This is reality. If they gave you a whole bunch of known rules in advance, believe it or not, those superintelligent researchers at Headquarters could find every flaw and loophole in minutes. Only support teams in novels act like their intelligence has been nerfed, a bunch of salted fish who can do nothing but shout 666."
Hu Jiu ignored Yue Renchun's jabs.
Yuezhao City's rules horror was indeed cruel and realistic. There was no "organizer" telling the "players" rules whose truth was hard to discern in advance. They had to take the initiative to explore and test everything, then piece the rules together bit by bit.
On the other hand, the danger level was also very low. Even breaking the rules caused no mishaps. There seemed to be no punishment mechanism, which was why the city had maintained good order to this day.
The two rules that had been worked out so far—
1. Do not break the law or disturb public order.
2. If you encounter someone in difficulty, please take the initiative to help.
There was too little information available for Hu Jiu to make anything of it.
Yue Renchun couldn't even be bothered to analyze it. With his strength, Yuezhao City couldn't trap him. He was only fulfilling his promise now in exchange for the crucial puzzle piece in Hu Jiu's possession. He really needed that ghost!
He was slightly interested in the source of the rules horror, but not much. It was too weak; after making a fuss for so long, it hadn't killed a single person. He was mainly curious why Hu Jiu had set his sights on it.
Just then, a little girl suddenly walked up to them with a smile and looked up. "Hello, uncles and auntie. Your bags are so heavy. Would you like me to carry them for you?"
Yue Renchun froze for a second. How had he become an uncle? Shouldn't she have called him big bwother?
Hu Jiu smiled. "What a helpful child you are, but the bags we're carrying are too heavy. We don't need your help."
The bags were full of gold items and the like.
The girl's eyes reddened at the rejection, but Hu Jiu wasn't swayed in the slightest. He lifted his leg to continue walking.
Yue Renchun, however, seemed to have softened toward the little girl. But he didn't move himself. Ye Songlan stepped forward instead. "Little sister, I'd like to find a hotel with nice surroundings. Could you take me there?"
A smile instantly returned to the girl's face. "The hotel is very close. Please follow me."
Quite a few passersby nearby were discreetly watching the scene, their expressions strange.
Yue Renchun subtly signaled for Hu Jiu to follow. They had both noticed the changes in the passersby's expressions.
Was the little girl doing a good deed under the influence of the rules? Or did she have some other purpose?
The girl led the way at the front, with Ye Songlan close behind her. Hu Jiu and Yue Renchun trailed side by side, keeping their eyes and ears open.
A few minutes later, the girl stopped and pointed into the distance. "We're here. That hotel has nice surroundings, and it's relatively cheap too."
"Thank you, little sister," Ye Songlan said gently.
"You're welcome. It's what I should do." The girl looked delighted and skipped away.
Hu Jiu and Yue Renchun exchanged a glance as they watched people occasionally entering and leaving the hotel. Had they really just met a kindhearted child, with no hidden danger or conspiracy?
"Are the rules at work? Could this supernatural incident actually benefit human society?" Yue Renchun muttered to himself.
Out of caution, they didn't stay at that hotel. Instead, they changed direction and headed somewhere with fewer people.
Hu Jiu's view was that there was no telling how long it had been since Headquarters' information was updated, so they might as well let Ye Songlan scout ahead first.
Yue Renchun was shocked and looked at Hu Jiu as though he were a beast. "Little Lan is our companion, and more than that, she's my dearest friend and family. How can you let her go into danger alone?"
"Heh." Hu Jiu gave him an abstract, anthropomorphic smile.
In the distance, an old woman suddenly fell over. There didn't seem to be any surveillance cameras or pedestrians nearby.
Hu Jiu and Yue Renchun were walking forward when the scene before their eyes suddenly blurred.
"Careful!" Yue Renchun growled.
A second later, their vision returned to normal. Somehow, they had moved back to where they had been more than ten steps earlier.
Hu Jiu drew a sharp breath. "It looks like the supernatural incident in Yuezhao City is more serious than we imagined. Headquarters' information didn't mention anything like this."
"Don't move around yet. Let's see exactly what action triggered that mechanism," Yue Renchun said.
Ye Songlan continued walking forward on her own, while Hu Jiu and Yue Renchun stood where they were and watched.
After she had walked more than ten steps...
Whoosh—
Ye Songlan flashed back to her original position.
Hu Jiu's expression grew grave. "I didn't notice a thing."
"Neither did I!" Yue Renchun carefully and quietly stepped backward.
He had only taken a few steps...
Whoosh—
Yue Renchun returned to his original position as well.
His expression didn't look good. "We seem to be locked to this spot. We can't get too far away from it."