Refusal

To be honest, Xiong Wenwen's mother, Chen Shumei, is indeed a very beautiful woman. She is mature, gorgeous, and gentle. Although she is around thirty years old, she doesn't look old at all for a modern urban woman and is still very charming and alluring.

Under normal circumstances, she would definitely have many suitors.

However, she was very unlucky; her son, Xiong Wenwen, was Ghost Tamer, and she herself was indirectly involved in the paranormal world.

This circle is terrifying and cruel; death is as commonplace as eating a meal.

A woman's beauty has no value in this circle, because most of the Ghost Tamer are no longer normal people, and after their bodies are corrupted by demons, their human emotions and desires gradually fade away.

Of course, it's not just women's beauty that matters; men's good looks are also meaningless.

Chen Shumei clenched her hands nervously, her face filled with shame and sadness. She had risked everything, even her dignity, to beg Captain Yang, only to be met with a heartless rejection.

Her beauty and figure, which she was usually so proud of, held no appeal whatsoever in front of this young man Yang Jian.

They weren't even as interested as a cup of tea on the table.

But she had no choice, because Chen Shumei didn't know many people in the circle and couldn't find anyone to help her. The only person she could find was Yang Jian, whom she had met before and who had her contact information.

Yang Jian wondered if he had been too harsh. Looking at the silent and ashamed Chen Shumei, he changed his tone and said, "I can give you Cao Yanhua's phone number. He's the Deputy Minister at Headquarters. Talking to him about your situation might be helpful. But I'll say it again: I can't risk my life for Xiong Wenwen, whose fate is uncertain."

"If it were any other task, I would help you because of Xiong Wenwen's precognitive abilities, but the matter Xiong Wenwen is involved in is far too dangerous. So, Aunt Chen, let's end our conversation here."

"Let's pretend that everything that just happened never occurred."

Yang Jian wrote down Cao Yanhua's phone number and asked Chen Shumei to call him, but he didn't know if it would be effective.

"Okay, I'm leaving."

His attitude was firm and unchanged; he simply left a phone number and prepared to leave.

"I... I'll take you, Captain Yang," Chen Shumei said absentmindedly, staring at the phone number on the table.

"If you hear anything from Xiong Wenwen, please let me know. I know another way to leave the painting. If they get lost, they can come to me." Yang Jian offered a small helping hand before leaving.

To be honest, this help is practically unnecessary.

Each ghost painting represents an exit. There are at least five ghost paintings at Headquarters, which means there are five exits. The exit of the ghost painting in his hand is not particularly important.

"Okay, thank you, Captain Yang," Chen Shumei nodded.

Although Yang Jian refused her help, she was not angry or resentful. On the contrary, she was even more polite than when she first came to his door.

Chen Shumei knew in her heart that her request was unreasonable; otherwise, she wouldn't have deliberately left her phone number for help before Xiong Wenwen left last time. Perhaps Wenwen had already foreseen the danger at that time. She only regretted not insisting on refusing Li Jun's request then.

It's too late now.

Yang Jian glanced at Chen Shumei, who looked haggard and lost in thought, then left without looking back.

To be honest, Xiong Wenwen was bound to experience something like this sooner or later.

From the day you become Ghost Tamer, it becomes impossible for you to study and grow up healthily like a normal child. Sooner or later, you will die from the resurgence of vengeful ghosts or from supernatural events.

"However, Xiong Wenwen's disappearance proves that the Ghost Painting Incident is starting to get complicated. I should leave here as soon as possible and not linger any longer," Yang Jian thought to himself as he walked down the street.

Now that he has resigned, he no longer needs to take on this responsibility, and orders from Headquarters will no longer be issued to him.

Although he lost many rights, he also avoided a lot of trouble. Under normal circumstances, this Ghost Painting Incident would probably have dragged him into it again.

"There are a few things I need to do before I leave."

Yang Jian's eyes flickered slightly.

He quickly hailed a taxi and said, "To the Ping An Hotel."

Since he was going to leave, he couldn't go alone, so Yang Jian decided to officially confirm the team formation and take several Ghost Tamer with him.

Soon.

He went to the Ping An Building again, having already made a phone call on the way.

At this moment, Huang Ziya, Zhang Lei, and Wang Jiang were already sitting in the lobby on the first floor of the hotel, waiting.

"Captain, over here." Huang Ziya immediately waved and gestured.

Yang Jian walked over and said directly, "To make a long story short, I've finished dealing with some personal matters these past two days and am now preparing to return to Dachang City. You all should have discussed the team formation process before. I have a few spots available for you to join my team, but your authority at Headquarters will be reduced to some extent."

"If nothing unexpected happens, I will be leaving today. Please consider it and give me your answer."

"Of course I'm going to Dachang City with the captain. I don't want to participate in missions assigned by Headquarters; they're too dangerous, and I could die at any time," Huang Ziya said first.

After becoming Ghost Tamer, her goal was the same as Yang Jian's: simply to survive. She came here this time only to try and solve the problem of the resurrected vengeful ghosts.

Now that Huang Ziya has temporarily resolved her own problems, she naturally won't stay any longer.

The college student, Wang Jiang, hesitated slightly. Although he acknowledged that Yang Jian was very capable and a qualified candidate for captain, it was still a bit hard for him to accept that he would give up his position as the person in charge of a city and go to Dachang City to be a team member.

"If we go to Dachang City, will the person in charge retain their status?" he asked.

Yang Jian said, "You should have already checked my information and know that my situation is rather special. Although I am a team leader, it's just a title. The area under my jurisdiction is very small; I am only responsible for the security of Dachang City. If it were any other team leader, there would definitely be extra cities assigned to you."

"You actually want to be in charge? Don't you know that being in charge of a city is a very dangerous thing?" Huang Ziya said with a sneer.

Wang Jiang remained silent.

He was still reluctant to give up his position as the person in charge of a city. After all, he came to this city for this purpose. Originally, this did not conflict with joining Yang Jian's team. After all, a team leader is responsible for many areas and many cities, so it is not difficult to give him the status of a person in charge.

"Zhang Lei, what about you?" Yang Jian didn't say much to Wang Jiang.

The person he values is Zhang Lei.

This person's abilities are terrifying, but also extremely dangerous.

"I won't live much longer unless I find a way to control a second ghost," Zhang Lei said.

His shirt billowed slightly at the chest, revealing a terrifying human face, with the vague outlines of the person's limbs beside it, making it seem as if a corpse had grown out of him.

If this continues, Zhang Lei will soon die, and his body will become nourishment for the birth of this ghost.

Yang Jian said, "Your abilities are too strong. The more ferocious the ghost you control, the faster the Ghost Tamer dies. You haven't been Ghost Tamer for long, and you haven't misused the ghost's abilities. Your rapid recovery has exceeded my expectations. If you want to control a second ghost, you need to apply, and even after approval, you'll need to wait for a while."

"Theoretically, it's too late."

Zhang Lei, smoking a cigarette, frowned and said, "I know, I might have made it in time, but the incident with the Ghost Messenger at the base ruined my plans. The situation is worse than I imagined, and last night while I was sleeping, I could feel the ghost on my chest struggling, trying to break free from my body."

"In the next two weeks, I will definitely be killed by a ghost one night. Although I really want to go to Dachang City to get away from trouble, I'm afraid I won't be able to leave now."

After saying that, Zhang Lei sighed helplessly.

He was also there to deal with the resurgence of the vengeful ghost, and becoming the person in charge was just a way to gain merit so he could apply to control the second ghost.

Yang Jian thought for a moment and said, "I have a spot that I can transfer to you. Call Wang Xiaoming and tell him that this is my condition."

Previously, Wang Xiaoming had agreed to three conditions, and he had decided to let Wang Xiaoming solve the problem of Zhang Lei's ghost resurrection.

If we succeed, Zhang Lei will be a very strong teammate.

"Is... is there enough time?" Zhang Lei asked, looking at him in astonishment.

"Give it a try. If you die, that's fine. If you survive, come find me in Dachang City," Yang Jian.

Zhang Lei's deathly pale face showed a hint of human emotion, and he hurriedly stood up and said, "Thank you, Yang Jian, no, Captain."

"It's nothing, just helping each other out," Yang Jian.

Wang Jiang, who was standing nearby, watched with envy.

Giving away a spot so readily, that's really generous. He then shamelessly asked, "Captain, could you give me a spot too?"

Yang Jian looked at him and said, "I only have one spot, so you'll have to figure it out yourself. Besides, you haven't joined my team."

A very direct refusal.

Wang Jiang paused for a moment, then lowered his head dejectedly, but still stubbornly said, "It's not too late for me to join now."

"No need, you're more suited to be the head of a city," Yang Jian refused outright.

The ability to find teammates is one thing, but the most important thing is trust.

Wang Jiang had been hesitant and indecisive, with too many thoughts on his mind; Yang Jian didn't want someone like that.

"By the way, where's Feng Quan? He's been missing for a while now, hasn't he? Where did he go?" Yang Jian ignored Wang Jiang and asked instead.

He remembered that Feng Quan had left last time to go see Tong Qian.

As a result, the two of them disappeared without a trace. Logically speaking, it shouldn't take this long to find someone, especially since Tong Qian is also within the city limits. Now that he's leaving, Feng Quan and Tong Qian are two indispensable teammates.

One is a veteran Ghost Tamer with extensive experience.

One is an anomaly created by Yang Jian himself using the method of making human skin paper.

"I don't know." Zhang Lei and Huang Ziya shook their heads together.

"Captain, didn't you call and ask?" Huang Ziya said.

Yang Jian said, "I lost my phone and can't contact him right now. Can you use the phone to locate Feng Quan? I'll go find him myself."

"Okay, no problem," Huang Ziya said.

She quickly took out her GPS-enabled phone and tried to make a call, but was told, "I don't have enough permissions; I can't locate too far away."

"Contact your operator and have them report that I, Yang Jian, am looking for Feng Quan. Ask them to provide an address," Yang Jian said.

Huang Ziya nodded in agreement.

The Headquarters is very efficient; an address was sent directly to Yang Jian's phone in no time.

"I've received the text message. I'm leaving." Yang Jian checked the message and immediately frowned.

The address has changed; it's no longer in the city center, but in a small county town relatively close to the city.

"Captain, do you want me to come with you? I don't have anything to do right now, and I'd also like to meet Tong Qian." Huang Ziya tossed her long, thick black hair, stood up from the sofa, and said with a smile.

Yang Jian nodded and said, "Okay, after we find Feng Quan and Tong Qian, we'll leave here immediately. Zhang Lei, go to Wang Xiaoming and take care of your situation quickly."

"I'm also afraid of dying. Don't worry, I'll contact Professor Wang right away." Zhang Lei immediately started connecting with his operator.