Commander

"Who is the extra person?"

At this moment, Luo Yi also noticed something was wrong.

But faster than him was the girl named Zhang Yinyin. She reached out and grabbed another camera, her actions so direct they were startling.

After a while.

"There isn't," she put down the camera, her expression turning grim. But what she said next made their hearts uneasy.

She lowered her voice and said, "In this video, there are only 48 people."

Zhou Taifu, trembling uncontrollably, stared intently at the camera in Jiang Cheng's hand, his voice rising uncontrollably, "So, one of our cameras captured a ghost?!"

No one answered.

This was the only possible answer.

At this moment, hearing it from his own mouth only served to alleviate his anxiety.

As expected, it was similar to their initial guess.

These two cameras had a story.

The one gifted by the NPC could capture eerie existences invisible to the naked eye.

No one spoke.

The atmosphere became terrifyingly oppressive.

"Alright," Luo Yi stepped forward. He exchanged a glance with Zhen Jianren, finding no objection from him, and then said, "Don't be so pessimistic. At least we've found the ghost from the mission."

"Next," he paused, "we need to confirm the ghost's identity."

Unexpectedly, Yu Wen immediately replied, "How do we confirm?"

"First, we'll use the photos to identify the ghost's appearance, and then with the photos..." Looking at Yu Wen, Luo Yi's expression was one of confusion.

This was not difficult to understand, as Yu Wen was clearly not a novice.

Why would she ask such a question?

As soon as he finished speaking, Jiang Cheng handed over the camera in his hand. "Then I'll trouble you," he said, nodding.

Though somewhat puzzled, Luo Yi still took the camera and began comparing who the extra person could be.

Not long after, Luo Yi seemed to have discovered something, his expression becoming peculiar.

Fatty asked him what was wrong, but he didn't answer. Instead, he took the other camera from Zhang Yinyin.

The other camera was normal.

It was just that the lens was damp, and the video it captured was not very clear.

"How... how could this be?!"

Yu Wen looked at Luo Yi, who was losing control of his emotions. The calmness in her eyes was identical to Jiang Cheng's.

He paused both cameras on the final chorus scene, wanting to compare and find out who the extra person was.

But bizarrely, he failed.

Luo Yi seemed to have gone mad, his eyes turning red. He compared everyone one by one, from the first row to the last, from left to right. He hadn't missed anyone.

But the final result was that everyone who appeared in the first photo could be found in the other photo.

There was no extra person.

But this was impossible, because the first photo clearly showed 49 people.

And the second only had 48.

Jiang Cheng, after noticing the anomaly in the number of people, had keenly grasped this point. His understanding was that it was caused by the restriction in the mission.

"That's enough," Zhen Jianren stopped Luo Yi. His mental state was already unstable, and there might be other dangers hidden in the photos.

Away from the camera, Luo Yi's condition visibly deteriorated, as if his energy had been drained.

After escorting Luo Yi to his bed to rest, Zhen Jianren gritted his teeth and looked at Yu Wen. "What do we do next?"

After all, he was certain that the item was in Yu Wen's hands.

"Mr. Hao," Yu Wen turned to look at Jiang Cheng, "Do you have any ideas?"

Jiang Cheng did not decline. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Since the ghost appeared in this way, I think she must be a student here, and most likely participated in the chorus."

"Of course," he paused, "I mean, in the past, that is, before she died."

"So after her death, her obsession lingered, and she came to the rehearsal site to repeat her past experiences," Zhang Yinyin said, frowning.

Jiang Cheng glanced at her and felt that the feeling she gave off was different from the first time he saw her. He understood, "I think the word 'resentment' is more appropriate."

Everyone deeply agreed.

"Do you remember what the woman in charge of rehearsals said?" Yu Wen looked up, her expression somewhat strange. "Back then, Long Tao only stayed in the restroom for a little longer, and she immediately suspected something had happened to him."

Fatty nodded like a chicken pecking at rice, "That's right, I remember too. I was scared to death then."

"So... she must know something," Zhou Taifu said slowly, stroking his chin. "We can start with her. The next time we meet, we can subtly inquire about what she meant by 'something happened'."

He seemed like a different person now, not only keeping up with everyone's train of thought but even taking the initiative to offer his own insights.

With their thoughts clarified, the next steps were much simpler.

Based on the clues they had gathered, the group pieced together the narrative of their current mission.

The ghost had been a student before her death.

Female.

Died for an unknown reason.

Most likely a violent incident, otherwise her cruel methods of killing couldn't be explained.

Compared to simple slaughter, this felt more like a premeditated act of revenge.

Yu Wen boldly proposed a theory: the girl might have been dismembered after suffering sexual assault.

Her reasoning was that the academy, a large institution, had remarkably few male staff, and even security personnel were female, which was highly unusual.

However, if the girl's case had put the school under immense pressure, leading them to dismiss a large number of male employees and teachers, it would make sense.

"So, our immediate priority should be to verify the girl's identity," Jiang Cheng stated, sitting upright with a distinguished air. "I will now assign tasks to everyone."

"First," he emphasized, "one team should go to the rehearsal area to gather information."

"Second, another team should go deep into the student body to inquire about any rumors," he paused. "The school administration will undoubtedly try to cover this up, but it's hard to guarantee that no whispers will reach the students. They're particularly curious about such things."

He took a deep breath and surveyed the room. "Next is the equipment center. Since the camera that captured the ghost came from there, we'll need a team for that as well."

At this, everyone's expression darkened.

The first two tasks were somewhat acceptable, but the last one...

The thought of the old man's pale face and sickly appearance made them feel uncomfortable from the bottom of their hearts.

"I agree with your plan," Yu Wen's expression shifted slightly. She looked into Jiang Cheng's eyes for a moment before her lips moved, but no sound came out.

However, Zhen Jianren, standing beside her, sneered, "You've got it all figured out, haven't you? Using your authority to command, you want others to scout the dangerous equipment center for you."

With one person speaking up, others chimed in. "Exactly, the equipment center is the most dangerous. Whoever wants to go can go, but I'm not going!"

As if worried about being ostracized, Zhou Taifu, his voice raised, tightened the thin vest he was wearing and continued to shout, "I have no problem with the first two tasks, if you want me to do them."

Thanks to Yihuai for the reward and monthly ticket!