Escalating Tactics

"...You mean the human world has already been invaded by aliens? They disguised themselves as humans and secretly replaced our friends and family, so the relatives and friends around us may no longer be the people we knew?" Bai Qing's eyes widened. Though she had said she was willing to believe what Zhang Heng told her, as an ordinary person with normal intelligence, reason, and nine years of compulsory education, hearing something like this for the first time was still hard to believe.

"Yes. Earlier at KFC, you mentioned that your father had been acting strangely lately—coming home earlier after work and looking through photos alone in his room. I thought your father was the one who'd been replaced," Zhang Heng said. "And what your mother described last night was very similar to another victim I encountered before. But because it was too similar, I became suspicious of her as well. I knew those things were trying to deal with me, so I didn't rush to a conclusion. After going home to get my equipment, I drove back here."

"You were here last night?"

"Yes. I arrived at around 12:48 and parked outside your residential compound, but I got too sleepy midway through and slept for a while." Since he still did not understand the connection to this dungeon, Zhang Heng did not tell Bai Qing about the strange dream he had had.

"Then according to what you're saying, my father should have been the one replaced. My mother noticed something was wrong, so my father... that thing killed my mother to silence her."

"No. From what I understand, those things have always been cautious. Aside from the three children who drowned, they don't seem to have directly killed anyone. Compared to such a simple and brutal method, they prefer