Hidden Evil

"Captain, did you see that? Feng Quan suddenly disappeared." Huang Ziya stared blankly at the wasteland in the distance.

"I saw it."

Yang Jian stood on the roof of a building, looking out, but Feng Quan was no longer in sight.

"Feng Quan is right. Tong Qian's signal was a trap. Someone had already set up a scheme to lure Feng Quan into it. He must have been being watched for a long time. It's just unclear why the other party would do something like this, offending two leaders and even alienating Headquarters. This is not a smart move."

Even when communicating with Headquarters via social media, one has to compromise a little.

"What do we do now?" Huang Ziya asked.

"Let's go take a look. It's just an ordinary Ghost Domain. It won't be difficult for me to infiltrate it," Yang Jian said.

He has never been afraid of anyone, not even when it comes to the depths of the Ghost Domain.

At the same time.

Feng Quan, standing in this eerie place, stared intently at the man in the trench coat with his dim, lifeless eyes. Without a doubt, this man was Ghost Tamer, and he had seen him before, but because it had been a long time and his memory of him was not vivid, he had forgotten him.

"Since we know each other, why are you targeting me? We have no grudge against each other." Feng Quan's expression was calm and he showed no fear.

He dares to handle paranormal events all by himself, so naturally he's not timid or afraid of trouble.

If it really came down to a fight, Feng Quan believed that taking down this guy shouldn't be too difficult.

"There's really no grudge between us; we're practically colleagues. It's just that you were unlucky enough to be found by following the clues, so I'm in charge of cleaning up the mess."

The man in the trench coat slowly approached. "A newcomer, Tong Qian, just disappearing is nothing. These days, it's not uncommon for managers to go missing. I didn't expect anyone would actually care. Headquarters should be busy dealing with the WeChat Moments issue and the Ghost Painting Incident right now. They probably don't have time for other minor matters."

"If you really want me to not find it, just destroy the phone," Feng Quan said, as he seemed to sense some danger, and a thick fog gradually appeared around them.

However, the fog wasn't as thick as it was outside, to the point where you couldn't see your hand outstretched; it was clearly restricted to some extent.

The man in the trench coat stopped in his tracks. He grinned, his lips torn open again, making him look ferocious and terrifying. "I did think about it, but that would only attract more attention from Headquarters. After all, if a person in charge's phone is destroyed and the signal disappears, Headquarters can't possibly ignore it. People, after all, still harbor a bit of wishful thinking, and people like us are no exception."

After hearing this, Feng Quan understood.

This guy deliberately left Tong Qian's phone number to create a false impression for Headquarters, making them think that Tong Qian was still safe and had just gone missing. This way, the chances of them sending someone to investigate would be very small, since Headquarters was also having a headache over the Ghost Painting incident.

Of course, if Headquarters really did send someone to investigate, then the investigators would also die mysteriously in this small An County, just like Feng Quan was attacked before.

However, the fact that Feng Quan wasn't killed made things a little more complicated.

"So, you want to kill me here and stop the investigation at Headquarters?" Feng Quan said, "Is Tong Qian that important that you have to go to such lengths?"

"This is our business, it has nothing to do with you. But I'm not planning to kill you here anyway, after all, you are indeed a bit troublesome, a real headache."

The man in the trench coat took off his hat, revealing sparse hair riddled with cracks, as if it had been ripped apart by something and then healed.

Each crack could tear the skin apart, and it seemed that these wounds had not yet healed, and every movement could cause them to reappear.

The tearing pain was constant, yet the man seemed oblivious, his expression numb, as if he had long since grown accustomed to it.

Feng Quan paused for a moment, seemingly recalling something from the cracks and wounds on this person. His eyes narrowed, revealing a look of surprise and doubt. "It's you, Pei Dong. You're still alive."

At that moment, he confirmed the man's identity.

One of the first batch of leaders at Headquarters was named Pei Dong, codenamed "Ghost Touching Head".

Although the code name was ordinary, even a little funny, this guy was dangerous. He used to be wary of him for a while, but then he heard that Pei Dong had been caught while handling a paranormal event in the city he was in charge of and had disappeared without a trace. After a while, no one cared about him anymore.

His file has also been sealed.

After all, the people in charge have changed several times, and some of the original people have long the Forgotten.

"Oh, you recognized me? Have you changed a lot? I used to be a proper rich, handsome, and successful man, but now this thing has tormented me into this state. Heh. You, on the other hand, are still the same, no noticeable change."

Pei Dong touched the hideous wounds on the head.

With a little force, all the wounds popped open, as if the entire scalp was about to be torn apart, making the scalp tingle.

But soon all the wounds healed, and it looked the same again.

"But you were going to die sooner or later anyway. How many of the people in charge from the same batch are still around? Here's what we'll do: I'll give you a chance today. Give up on the investigation of Tong Qian, and we'll pretend that nothing happened. Just report to Headquarters that Tong Qian is missing. I doubt Headquarters will waste any more manpower and resources investigating her."

Feng Quan said, "That's so good? But would you believe me if I really agreed? They've already dragged me into the Ghost Domain, so they probably won't let me off so easily."

"Don't say that. I thought it would be a newbie, since this kind of thing is usually left to newbies. Who knew it would be an expert like you? If we really wanted to kill you, there would definitely be losses. And if you accidentally unleashed a ghostly resurrection, that would be troublesome too."

"Do you think I'm a three-year-old? You'll know it's me as soon as you see my ghostly mist shrouding Xiao'an County."

Feng Quan wasn't fooled. He coldly replied, "Knowing this, you still used a signal to lure me here. You must have already planned to kill me. But you can't do it alone; you must have accomplices."

In a one-on-one fight, he wasn't afraid of Pei Dong, and he remembered that Pei Dong didn't have Ghost Domain.

Of course, it's possible that during the nearly one year he was gone, he controlled a second ghost.

Even if one controls two ghosts, it is difficult to kill Ghost Tamer of the same level, because if they fight, both of them will die, which is not worth it. Therefore Ghost Tamer rarely cause trouble for each other unless they have a good reason.

Pei Dong grinned, tearing the skin on his cheek again. "Feng Quan, do you know? If a Ghost Tamer dies suddenly enough, the ghost inside his body won't be able to revive. And that level of ghost can be controlled by a living person. At this point, all you need to do is have someone else actively allow the ghost to invade, and then what will happen?"

Upon hearing this, Feng Quan's eyelids twitched, sensing a strong sense of urgency.

"The answer is simple: a new Ghost Tamer will appear." Pei Dong looked up slightly at the empty, unfinished building around him.

In the corridors of those buildings, several strange figures appeared out of nowhere. These figures were not human, but rather five Ghost Tamer.

Feng Quan's face darkened. The ghostly mist around him gradually thinned, and he, who had been hidden in the thick fog, began to appear.

His Ghost Domain is being invaded.

"Nothing is easier than directly inheriting the ghost from the body of the Ghost Tamer. It's safe, risk-free, and you don't need to deal with those complicated paranormal events or analyze the patterns of those ghosts. You just need to kill the previous Ghost Tamer."

"Simple and direct."

Pei Dong pointed at Feng Quan; "After the first attack, you could have found a way to leave. I didn't intend to kill you. We're not greedy; we'll quit while we're ahead. After all, we're not exactly high-ranking people. We only set this trap to see how things went. Who knew you'd actually come?"

"So you killed Tong Qian?" Feng Quan asked seriously.

He finally understood what Pei Dong had been doing after he disappeared; he had been hunting down other Ghost Tamer and stealing the ghosts from their bodies.

Indeed.

If it's sudden enough, Ghost Tamer is easy to kill; they're much easier to deal with than a demon.

However, this method is cruel and easily attracts the attention of Headquarters.

No normal person would allow these lunatics to exist.

"It's alright to tell you. Tong Qian is even more special than I imagined. He's of great value to us. He's still alive, but this news is probably useless to you now, since you're about to die. I'm a decent person, and out of respect for our past as colleagues, I'll let you go with a clear understanding of your fate," Pei Dong said.

Feng Quan's expression changed slightly.

He knew that Pei Dong wasn't genuinely trying to tell him the truth; he was waiting for his ghostly mist to be suppressed so he could kill him instantly.

The ghostly mist gradually thinned and was about to disappear completely.

This situation is very wrong.

When he first entered this place, the ghostly mist was still present around him, but now, the Ghost Domain here seems to have become stronger.

"Suppressing my ghostly mist must be making things difficult for him, but Pei Dong doesn't seem to be changing. Could it be that this Ghost Domain comes from someone else?" Feng Quan looked at the figures standing far away inside the buildings.

Could the Ghost Domain belong to one of these people?

Pei Dong wasn't in a hurry. He was waiting for Feng Quan's ghostly mist to dissipate. Once the mist was gone, Feng Quan would be unprotected, and he could easily kill him by using the power of just one ghost.

Feng Quan watched as the thick fog around him dissipated, but he remained calm.

Normally, he would have definitely failed today. Even if he turned into a mound of earth, it wouldn't matter; he would still be dead.

"Brother Leg, hurry up and come in, I can't hold on much longer," Feng Quan thought to himself, feeling a little panicked.

Ten seconds later.

The ghostly mist completely disappeared, and Feng Quan reappeared clearly in this Ghost Domain. His body was covered in black, foul-smelling Grave Soil, used to balance the ghostly mist and prevent its resurgence.

"Let's do it." Pei Dong grinned again.

Inside the building, a figure twisted and vanished instantly. Immediately afterward, a shrill scream echoed around them. The scream was terrifying, unlike anything a human could make; it sounded like the horrifying roar of an unknown, malevolent spirit.

After the cry rang out, the Grave Soil Feng Quan began to fall in a flurry.

The Grave Soil that buried a ghost was originally meant to erode Feng Quan, but now it has become a protective barrier for him. However, this barrier is too fragile. Once the Grave Soil falls away, he will be as vulnerable as an ordinary person and die immediately.

The eerie screams echoed through this Ghost Domain. Feng Quan had no room to escape; he could only stand there and endure the attack from the vengeful spirit.

"Brother Leg, hurry up! There are so many people on the other side. I'll die if you don't come soon. Don't let anything happen to you now!" Feng Quan felt his body was collapsing.

As the Grave Soil falls, his skin and flesh also peel away. This flesh and blood have long since mixed with the Grave Soil, forming his body. But once all the Grave Soil mixed with his flesh and bones falls away, he will be completely finished and will have no chance of surviving.

But the next moment, something unexpected happened.

The echoing, terrifying screams abruptly ceased, and then everything around was enveloped in red light. The dim surroundings seemed to have been illuminated, and everything was tinged with a scarlet hue.

"What happened?"

Pei Dong's cracked face stiffened; he felt a strong sense of unease in the face of this sudden change.

"A clever fellow, thinking this Ghost Domain was still there, but it turns out it's long gone from Xiao'an County. Quite cunning. If it weren't for the decent coverage of my Ghost Eye, I might not have been able to find it."

A cold voice rang out, and Yang Jian's figure suddenly appeared in the nearby open space.

A red eye on his forehead darted restlessly as he walked over, removing his gloves, the black shadow behind him swaying as if he were about to rise from the ground.

"Feng Quan, are you alright? I've been going fast enough. You wouldn't have lasted more than a few minutes, would you?" Yang Jian glanced at him.

Feng Quan was alright; he seemed to be fine, except that some parts of his skin had peeled off, making him look incomplete.

"It's okay, I really couldn't have held on if I had arrived a minute later."

Feng Quan breathed a sigh of relief. He had only lost some flesh and skin, which was not serious and could be considered a superficial injury. If it had continued, his body would have been completely destroyed.

"Ghost Eye. Yang Jian?"

Pei Dong frowned upon seeing this person, clearly not recognizing him at first. However, when he saw his face clearly and compared it with the information in his mind, his eyes narrowed and he couldn't help but take a few steps back.

"Are you kidding me? You fought with Fang Shiming from your WeChat Moments and you're still alive? You're actually still alive?"

Upon seeing Yang Jian, he acted as if he had witnessed something utterly unbelievable.

It seems that in his eyes, Yang Jian was already dead.

"Oh, you think I should be dead by now?" Yang Jian looked at him. "Looks like you're well-informed and know quite a bit."

In fact, Pei Dong's idea was not wrong.

Yang Jian did indeed run into trouble and disappeared for a while, so it's normal that people mistakenly thought he was dead.