Lin Mou walked over, took the phone from Zhao Wu's hand, and used Zhao Wu's fingerprint to unlock the screen.
On the screen was the message editing interface, with the text: 【Group Leader Lin has...】
Evidently, this message hadn't been finished, let alone sent.
Lin Mou deleted the message and placed the phone back into Zhao Wu's hand.
Every member involved in this operation had been sacrificed.
A look of sorrow appeared on Lin Mou's face as he pulled out his communicator and dialed the command center's channel.
“This is Lin Mou. The observation team encountered an abnormal event during the mission; the entire team has suffered heavy casualties.”
“The anomaly zone expanded extremely fast, and we were trapped in the abandoned mining area. I managed to lure away the source of contamination, but the others... I'm sorry... I couldn't save them.”
There was a long silence on the other end of the communicator. “Group Leader Lin, what is your current location? We will send support immediately.”
Lin Mou gave a set of coordinates and hung up.
He leaned against the stone wall at the entrance of the mine tunnel, slowly sliding down to a sitting position. He lowered his head into his hands, his shoulders trembling slightly.
The wind blew out from inside the mine, carrying a faint, metallic scent of rust.
...
After returning to the Bureau, Lin Mou underwent a rigorous investigation.
After all, so many people had died at once. The entire observation team, except for the captain, had been wiped out.
Such incidents were not unheard of in the history of the Zhongzhou Supernatural Management Bureau, but they usually only occurred during high-risk missions.
For a mere observation mission to result in so many casualties naturally drew high-level attention from above.
An investigation team arrived from the General Bureau and interrogated Lin Mou for a long time in a windowless room.
Lin Mou's answers were watertight. His expression, tone, gaze, and body language all perfectly complemented his narrative.
To deceive others, one must first deceive oneself. Thus, at this moment, he was truly grieving for the sacrifice of his teammates.
The investigation team could find no motive or reason for Lin Mou to sabotage his own team. They didn't even consider that possibility, assuming it was just a tragic accident. The investigation was merely a formality.
Consequently, the investigation team's final conclusion was that Lin Mou was not at fault. The suddenness, danger, and unpredictability of the supernatural incident were the primary causes of the casualties.
Group Leader Lin had performed heroically during the mission. Despite being heavily injured, he insisted on covering the rear to protect his team's retreat. Although he failed to save everyone, he had made his best effort.
The report was sent to the superior's desk, and the leader signed and stamped it without even looking.
The investigation team departed.
Lin Mou walked out of the interrogation room and stood in the hallway. His shoulder was still wrapped in bandages, and he walked with a slight limp.
The injuries were all real. He had indeed allowed himself to be hurt in the mine tunnels; these wounds had to exist to help clear him of suspicion to a certain extent.
Now, no one knew that he had been in contact with an evil god. The next step was to try and refine the medicine.
...
After parting with Qin Sansi, Yue Shi passed through the clouds, exited that strange domain, and returned to the drab residential building in the west district of Liming City.
The elevator was the same as always. The external cabin swayed as it moved, the steel cables and pulleys screeching and creaking.
When he reached the 12th floor, he stepped out of the elevator, walked through the corridor lined with trash bins, pulled an electronic key from his pocket, and swiped it over the lock.
The door opened, and the lights turned on automatically.
The Snow Leopard leaped from his arms and pounced straight onto the sofa, curling into a ball.
The Information Ghost floated out and dived headfirst into the computer.
A moment later, its voice drifted out from the computer's vents: “Something happened on Lin Mou's end. His observation team encountered a supernatural incident on the way back and suffered heavy losses. He was the sole survivor. The Bureau's investigation team did a cursory check, determined Lin Mou was not at fault, and even suggested he be given an award.”
Yue Shi sat on the sofa, the image of Lin Mou's middle-aged face appearing in his mind.
Yue Shi naturally kept a close eye on every move of someone who had so proactively embraced extreme evil.
“Ruthless and cold-blooded.” He gave Lin Mou a high evaluation. He truly was a bad seed who had embraced corruption on his own.
The Information Ghost floated out of the computer and hovered beside him, tilting its head. “You don't seem surprised at all.”
“Why should I be?” Yue Shi pulled the Snow Leopard toward him, his fingers slowly combing through its fur.
“Believers of extreme evil are different. They believe in ‘evil’ itself and won't blindly hand over their fates to a god.”
“Lin Mou has completely discarded his conscience and morality. He will silence witnesses and exploit everything he can. A person like that doesn't need much guidance from me; he can handle everything perfectly on his own.”
The Snow Leopard rolled over, revealing its fuzzy belly. Yue Shi looked down and smiled. “Having someone like Lin Mou rising through the ranks of the Bureau is like having a massive tumor right in their heart.”
A tumor growing in the heart of the enemy—nothing could be more delightful.
He set the Snow Leopard down and stood up to walk to the window.
The blinds rose to the top, revealing the streetscape of Liming City.
It was devoid of any aesthetic beauty.
Yue Shi thought of his other chess pieces.
Yu Duanhong was dead, and with his malicious ghost resurgence, the Knocking Ghost had been contained by the Bureau.
But so what?
The Knocking Ghost was originally Yue Shi's. Now that the Bureau had it, it was as if they had voluntarily swallowed poison, planting a landmine within their own ranks.
Furthermore, Yu Duanhong's body contained not just the Knocking Ghost, but another ghost as well. He wondered if the Bureau had discovered it yet.
Yue Shi withdrew his gaze, letting it fall on his reflection in the glass window.
I'm so damn good-looking.
After two seconds of narcissism, he said flatly, “Don't worry about Lin Mou's side. Let him mess around on his own.”
He turned and walked to the desk, sitting down in front of the computer. The screen was lit, as the Information Ghost had helped collect a lot of recent intelligence from the Bureau.
“Yu Duanhong is in the Bureau's containment facility. Although he's dead, who says a dead man can't have self-awareness?”
Yue Shi's finger slid across the touchpad as he asked, “What about Jiang Kun?”
The Information Ghost floated beside the screen. “Jiang Kun is still a low-level investigator. Didn't you give him an Update Gift recently? The Great Art of Human Alchemy... he seems quite pleased with it.”
Yue Shi nodded. “The system is Jiang Kun's only reliance, and it's also the leash I've tied around his neck. He's been far too lax these years, lacking any real ambition. I need to dangle a carrot in front of him and then apply some pressure.”
The Information Ghost was speechless. “The system missions are so absurd. Aren't you afraid he'll just throw in the towel and quit?”
Yue Shi said with a smile, “Don't worry, he's already developed a path dependency on the system. Moreover, once he uses the ‘medicine,’ he'll never be able to leave it.”
The evil technique of refining medicine from the living offered immense gains, but the side effects were equally massive.
The Snow Leopard had fallen asleep, its breathing light and its belly rising and falling.
Yue Shi couldn't help but rub it, waking it up.
“I'm not even sleeping, so why are you?”
Rate on N.U.
