Bai Xiao

The shadows receded, and Gao Ming and Zhu Miaomiao returned to the real world.

Rain fell on her, and Zhu Miaomiao slumped to the ground, still clutching the Fire Axe. Only now did her taut nerves finally relax.

Without pulling up her raincoat's hood, Zhu Miaomiao stared blankly at Building Four. Not long ago, ten investigators had gathered at its entrance, but now only two remained. They had all trained together at the Investigation Bureau, and every one of their faces was still vividly etched in her mind.

Zhu Miaomiao nodded, looking at Gao Ming with respect. The man before her might sound a little cold when he spoke, but when danger struck, he really did charge straight into it.

"Let's head back."

"The Investigation Bureau's equipment is still inside." Zhu Miaomiao tossed the Fire Axe into the truck's cargo compartment, then ran back into the building to start carrying things out.

Half an hour later, Gao Ming rode the Investigation Bureau's electric scooter ahead to lead the way, with Zhu Miaomiao following in the truck. They took a long detour before finally returning to the vicinity of the Lishan Investigation Office.

Before they could even get off their vehicles, a crowd of staff members surrounded them.

"The Black Ring of the Deputy Team Leader of Investigation Team One lost its signal! We can't reach the others either. What happened last night?"

"It was only a level-one anomaly event! Why did so many investigators go there?"

"Who are you? I don't recognize you."

Amid the clamor, a young man with a fierce, icy demeanor stepped forward. He went straight to the truck and opened its rear doors. When he saw only equipment inside, with none of the other investigators, he stood rooted to the spot.

Seeing this, the other staff members fell silent too. The atmosphere grew oppressive.

A long time passed before the young man turned and walked toward Gao Ming. "I'm Bai Xiao, leader of Investigation Team One at the Lishan Investigation Office. Bai Qiao is my younger sister. What did you encounter last night?"

"The danger level was assessed incorrectly. What happened in Building Four on Minlong Street wasn't a level-one anomaly event. It was level two, possibly even level three." Gao Ming held nothing back. "In this anomaly event, the more frightened and panicked you became, the closer you came to death, because every fear gradually took physical form."

"We've never encountered an Anomaly Event like that before." Bai Xiao stared coldly at Gao Ming.

"Team leader, Gao Ming is right. The monsters we imagined became real. It was fear itself hunting us." Zhu Miaomiao's uniform was in tatters. She had clearly been through a great deal.

"So Bai Qiao's misjudgment put both her and every reserve Investigator in Investigation Team One in danger?" Bai Xiao's voice was icy. He was struggling to suppress his emotions.

"Anomaly Events can change in all sorts of ways. No one can predict what will happen next. All we can say is that we still don't understand them well enough." Gao Ming set his helmet on the electric scooter. "You don't have to grieve too much, either. They're only lost in the shadows. There's still a chance they could return someday."

Bai Xiao's lips moved slightly, but in the end, he said nothing and climbed into the truck alone.

"I heard Team Leader Bai has a terrible temper. Be careful," Zhu Miaomiao whispered in Gao Ming's ear.

"Mm." Gao Ming nodded. In truth, compared with the enormous plan he had in mind, none of this was worth worrying about.

After entering the Investigation Office, Gao Ming and Zhu Miaomiao took out their Black Rings and, with guidance from the staff, reconstructed the entire Anomaly Event. Bai Xiao and the other members of Investigation Team One listened in as well.

Halfway through the reconstruction, Chen Yuntian, the Office Director of the Lishan Investigation Office, hurried over. Eight Investigators had become lost inside an Anomaly Event. This was no small matter.

The reconstruction took two hours. The information Gao Ming and Zhu Miaomiao had obtained was uploaded to the General Bureau, and everyone gained an understanding of what they had experienced the previous night.

"I gave you three days to get yourself ready. I didn't expect you to arrive before I even got back." Chen Yuntian called Gao Ming over to a corner. "Last night's Anomaly Event caught everyone off guard. Something none of us wanted to see happened. Fortunately, you arrived early, or we might have lost everyone. If no information had made it out, that would have been the real failure."

A trace of pain lurked in Chen Yuntian's eyes, but he let none of it show. "Gao Ming, you did well. Still, you can take it a little easier over the next couple of days and get used to working with the other team members. After all, once you enter an Anomaly Event, you'll have to trust each other to watch your backs. You need to have complete faith in one another."

After giving Gao Ming a few reminders, Chen Yuntian hurried away.

"What did the Office Director say to you?" Zhu Miaomiao followed Gao Ming curiously.

"He told me to get along with everyone." Gao Ming went up to the second floor and pushed open the door to Investigation Team One's office.

The spacious office now seemed deserted. Apart from Bai Xiao, only three veteran team members wearing Black Rings remained.

The three had been saying something to Bai Xiao, but they all fell silent when Gao Ming entered.

Gao Ming paid no attention to their attitude toward him. He found Qin Tian's old desk, sat down, and began searching for haunted houses. He hadn't joined the Investigation Bureau to enjoy its benefits. He intended to use its resources to accomplish certain things.

Absorbed in his work, Gao Ming kept refining his plan in his mind. He didn't seek Bai Xiao out, but Bai Xiao came over to him instead.

A chair scraped across the floor as Bai Xiao sat down opposite Gao Ming. "Qin Tian used to sit where you're sitting."

"I know. His name is still in the folder on the desk." Gao Ming didn't look up.

"The moment any Investigator joins the Investigation Bureau, they've already imagined the worst possible outcome and prepared themselves for death. Qin Tian did. Bai Qiao did. So did I." Bai Xiao's voice trembled slightly. It was clear that his emotions were in turmoil, but he was trying hard to control himself. "Taking your own pain out on someone else is foolish. What I want to tell you is that, as a member of Team One, you don't need to worry about being isolated or betrayed by your teammates. Our only enemy, at any time, is the Anomaly Event. Only with that resolve can we help more people survive the great catastrophe!"

Gao Ming slowly raised his head. He hadn't expected Bai Xiao to say these things to him.

"Qin Tian and I both came from Xinhu. We faced life and death together, so I trust his judgment." Bai Xiao extended his hand to Gao Ming. "Welcome to Investigation Team One."

Studying Bai Xiao closely, Gao Ming could tell from his microexpressions that he wasn't lying. Every word came from the heart. For the first time, Gao Ming felt the strength of "humans" so clearly. Compared with "ghosts," humans seemed to have no advantage at all, but in the coming catastrophe, they wouldn't necessarily lose.

"The new reserve members may arrive this afternoon. We're heading to the East District on a joint assignment, so we'll have to ask you two to stay here on duty tonight. Thanks for taking care of it." Bai Xiao fetched a brand-new uniform from the wardrobe for Zhu Miaomiao.

"An assignment in the East District?" As far as Gao Ming knew, the DC District was the most prosperous part of Hanhai. It seemed only natural that the Investigation Bureau had chosen to prioritize protecting it. After all, not every human life carried the same price.

"What may be Hanhai's first level-four anomaly event has appeared there. Every branch will send experienced investigators." After a brief pause, Bai Xiao added, "Qin Tian died in that anomaly event."

"How about we go over together tonight?" Gao Ming wasn't really sure what to expect either. A level-four Anomaly Event corresponded to a Strange Tale-level game, and not one triggered ahead of time like Zhao Xi's.

(End of chapter)