Chapter 225

Chapter 225

"Hua Jinli is dead."

A lamp went out, and the smoke formed into the face of a beautiful woman, but her twisted expression marred the beauty. The old man guarding the lamp hall stretched his neck to listen, hearing a string of curses, seemingly directed at a "liar."

The wind blew, and the shadow formed by the smoke immediately dispersed, vanishing into the sky.

The old man ran out of the door, ready to report this matter to his master.

From a distance, it became clear that everything in this antique-style house, including the lamps throughout the room and the old man himself, was only toy-sized.

The old man began to grow as soon as he stepped out of the door, reaching the size of an ordinary child in just a few steps. He passed by a puppet maid in a black dress carrying a tray, climbed the stairs covered with crimson carpet, and arrived at the study on the second floor.

The door opened by itself, and the old man cautiously entered.

The fifty-square-meter room was decorated in a lavish and ostentatious style, consistent with the overall architecture. The hand-woven silk curtains and the faint warmth from the golden high-legged incense burner all contributed to the luxurious atmosphere. But the most extravagant element was the room's owner.

This person had meticulously groomed white hair, tied at the ends with a gemstone hairband. A large blue sapphire dangled from their right earlobe, and their eyes were as pale as the full moon. They were gently stroking the thick fur of a giant white wolf.

The person sitting opposite him had a completely different aura. He had soft brown hair, wore rimless glasses, and was dressed in casual white attire. His eyes were narrow and his expression cold.

Despite his good looks, he wore shoe covers, gloves, and a mask, giving off a faint scent of disinfectant. It all seemed rather odd.

Seeing the white-haired man wave him over, the old man came in to report the incident.

"Just arrived and already dead? When did Zone Three become a den of tigers and dragons?"

The old man shrank back, unable to respond to such a question. Fortunately, the man didn't need an answer; he was mostly asking himself.

"Recently, there seem to be many strange occurrences..."

Even a single butterfly can cause a storm, let alone so many talented individuals selected from various academies. Once they familiarize themselves with the environment, they no longer wish to hide their brilliance.

New talents emerge constantly, making both the human side and the eerie side unclear about the current situation. Some wait quietly, while others take the initiative. Hua Jinli was one who took action, but she died.

Survival of the fittest is the norm among the eerie, so her death was not surprising.

Hua Jinli herself didn't feel much about it. After accepting death, she received numerous implanted commands, making her a loyal employee of the gourmet restaurant, dedicated to protecting it above all else.

In a sense, although she still existed, she was indeed dead.

The employee list of the magical gourmet restaurant displayed a row of images, where the eerie beings who had died remained seated, unable to escape. They could move around or even visit neighboring areas, but they chose to stay within the confines of their images.

Ji Xinghai didn't bother with them; he was looking at his menu.

Lemon soda, from D-level eerie 'Rain Alley Girl,' with the characteristic of cooling, priced at 1 eerie coin.

Fried charred bones, from D-level eerie 'Charred Bones,' with the characteristic of courage, priced at 1 eerie coin.

Chopped pepper fish head, from C-level eerie 'Headless Corpse,' with the characteristic of improving vision, priced at 5 eerie coins.

Turtle jelly, from D-level eerie 'Maple Mountain Ghost,' with the characteristic of detoxification, priced at 2 eerie coins.

Milk shaved ice, from D-level eerie 'White Penguin,' with the characteristic of maintaining calmness, priced at 1 eerie coin.

Tomato fish, from C-level eerie 'Hua Jinli,' with the characteristic of bringing good luck, priced at 8 eerie coins.

D-level eeries provided drinks, snacks, and small dishes, while C-level eeries provided main courses. However, the variety was too limited.

He recalled the list of eerie groups, not particularly concerned about what Hua Jinli had said about the eerie beings in the North District targeting him.

Adding new items to the menu would inevitably lead to conflicts with eerie groups, sooner or later.

As he pondered, he leaned against a wooden pillar and fell asleep.

The moon faded as dawn approached, and distant smoke rose. It was already morning.

An old rock-and-roll enthusiast, carrying a speaker and walking his dog, came to the park for a stroll. He saw Ji Xinghai standing with his hands in his pockets, leaning against a round pillar, his eyes closed. Rising steam had formed droplets on his eyelashes, and his face was covered with dew, making it appear pale.

The old man didn't want to meddle, but after circling around, he couldn't help approaching.

"Hey, kid, are you okay?" the old man asked kindly, carrying his speaker.

He slowly opened his amber eyes, which, despite being alive, exuded an inhuman aura. The old man was startled and instinctively glanced at his dog, confirming it was quietly sitting by his feet before feeling slightly relieved.

How could this kid be so handsome, like a painting?

Before Ji Xinghai could speak, Qin Yu appeared, holding an umbrella handle. The quiet black dog suddenly stood up and barked fiercely at him.

The old man was startled. Despite his cool tattoos and rock-and-roll style, he was still just an ordinary old man.

But seeing Qin Yu approach and squat beside Ji Xinghai, saying, "We should go," the old man perked up!

"Are you his brother?"

His words stunned both of them. Ji Xinghai tilted his head in confusion, and Qin Yu turned to look at him, his eyes behind the sunglasses losing their usual composure.

"How can you be a brother? Wearing sunglasses to look cool, but not taking care of your little brother? Bringing him to the park to sleep? With this weather changing, if he doesn't catch a fever, he must have a good constitution."

Sick?

"Ao..." The black dog suddenly sensed danger and retreated, cowering behind the old man.

Qin Yu instinctively reached out to touch Ji Xinghai's forehead with the back of his hand. Ji Xinghai recoiled, but hit the pillar behind him. He looked up, his eyes darting around, clearly uncomfortable.

"..." Despite being human, Ji Xinghai had a physique strong enough to walk bare-chested through snow without catching a cold.

"..." He had become an anomaly, but still retained his human memories. Qin Yu, subconsciously thinking that his fragile human creditor was sick.

"Only worrying now?" The old man seemed to have some sad past too, rubbing his red, wrinkled face and his brown beard, suppressing his sudden emotions before saying, "As an older brother, you need to be more careful."

Though their thoughts differed, both of them outwardly showed a compliant and quiet demeanor, "You speak, we listen," which softened the indignant old man's tone: "I know you young people have your own ideas, but health is important too. Have you eaten breakfast? I'll treat you to breakfast—the famous Giant Beef Patty from this area."

In the end, they left the park with the warm pies the old man gave them. As they were leaving, the old man’s black dog kept barking at Qin Yu, barking once and then hiding behind the old man, checking if it was safe before barking again.

"You rascal." The old man patted the black dog's head, not noticing Ji Xinghai looking back at him.

The old man had an accident-prone constitution, attracting anomalies—ghosts—fortunately, he had a retired heroic dog that could warn and deter them.

Living in a world where anomalies were so common was quite tough for someone with this constitution, he thought.

If unlucky enough to encounter a strong and aggressive anomaly, even having the black dog might not help much.

Ji Xinghai, while eating the signature Giant Beef Patty as big as his entire face, pondered over the old man's advice on being a good older brother. Qin Yu, carrying the paper bag, was filled with the old man's teachings on leading by example.

That morning, one of them enjoyed the treatment of a grandson, and the other did too.

"We'll stay a few more days."

With thirteen days until the grand opening of the food shop at the end of the month, the two originally planned to travel around nearby cities, searching for suitable anomalies to add to their menu. But Ji Xinghai changed his mind.

Qin Yu didn't ask why; he had been paying attention to Ji Xinghai's condition: human bodies were indeed more fragile than anomalies, something he needed to be more mindful of in the future.

Indeed, they stayed in Bauhinia City for the next few days. During this time, a large number of D-class anomalies and a few C-class anomalies disappeared, along with a couple of active B-class anomalies.

Even the locals and students noticed something was amiss.

"This level of cleaning suggests that students from a certain academy have joined forces and intend to establish Bauhinia City as their base."

"There hasn't been any conflict with the local official organizations, right? Should we try too?"

Motivated by this, the students also accelerated their pace, causing surrounding anomalies to suffer catastrophic fates. However, these anomalies left traces after being physically eliminated, unlike the situation in Bauhinia City.

Extraordinary beings in the North District experienced confusion due to the unusually long holiday, even ordinary people posted online in bewilderment: "The roundabout near my house hasn't had an accident for three days, and my grandfather hasn't encountered anything strange when going out. It's amazing."

The local anomaly incident department couldn't figure out what was happening. At this moment, a newly promoted C-class investigator stepped off a plane.

With a discounted ticket, he landed just after 1 AM, standing alone on the street corner.

"I'm back, Aoki City."

A taxi with red stripes stopped in front of him in the thick fog, the driver enthusiastically greeting him: "Where would you like to go, sir? I know Aoki City best—I've been driving here for over twenty years."

"Still working at this hour?" he asked with a smile.

"Yeah, got to make a living."

The rear door of the taxi opened automatically, waiting for him to get in. The light above the back seat dimmed, leaving only the driver's side illuminated, casting deep shadows on his face.

"Where to?"

"Aoki Hotel."

"Achoo!" The White Wolf, who had been lurking in Aoki City for years, sneezed, experiencing a biological reaction for the first time as an anomaly, "Who's cursing me?"

It had just returned from The Fourth Hospital. The White Wolf had sought out the director of the hospital, but the director wouldn't see it. Recently, its surgery schedule was packed, even working late into the night.

It relished the feeling of cutting open humans.

Despite being a notorious high-level anomaly, occasionally inducing others to commit crimes, the director of The Fourth Hospital possessed extraordinary medical skills. The human side couldn't afford to kill it, nor did they have the means to do so, so both sides coexisted peacefully.

When the White Wolf suddenly wanted to maintain Aoki's environment together, it wasn't interested.

What was the point compared to lost lambs? They would offer their bodies and souls, fearing it wouldn't enjoy them fully.

Ideological differences led to an unpleasant parting between the White Wolf and the hospital director. But finding other anomalies... they were even more reclusive and eccentric than the director.

Of course, to most anomalies, the White Wolf was the odd one out, preferring group action and organization, seeing other anomalies as its kind.

Kind?

How could they possibly be its kind?

'Is it crazy?'

'Is this the aftermath of becoming an anomaly through flesh and blood?'

'Is it related to a husky?'

"..."

Standing at the hospital entrance, watching the brightly lit outpatient building at two in the morning, the White Wolf's anger surged.

A wisp of green smoke rose from its feet as the little old man arrived, reporting cracks in the lake behind their mansion and unusual movements among the puppet maids inside.

The White Wolf temporarily set aside the matter, deciding to return home first.

The night in Aoki was quiet; at this hour, even party-goers were asleep. The night watchman at Aoki City's anomaly incident department, dozing off, received an urgent notification.

Another anomaly had mysteriously disappeared, and this time it was their city next to Bauhinia City, with the infamous Midnight Taxi vanishing.

"The car is there, but the driver is gone."

"When I found the car, it was empty. Will there still be a reward?" A newly arrived investigator in Aoki City, unable to find work elsewhere, discovered the abandoned taxi parked by the roadside. Recognizing the license plate, he remembered the infamous killer taxi.

He reported it to the city's anomaly incident department.

"Has our city's strangeness also become about people vanishing without a trace?" muttered the person in charge, who had detected the residual energy at the scene but still handed over the payment. What a lucky fellow, stumbling upon a few bizarre incidents just by walking down the street.

"Can you exchange it into currency? Thank you."

He exchanged it into currency. The payment for such special work was after tax, so the full amount of twenty thousand was transferred.

After the abandoned car was towed away, the lucky investigator called for a new car. He sat in the back seat: "Qingmu Grand Hotel, thank you."

The air seemed to carry a warm, sweet scent of red beans, but when he sniffed closely, it vanished.

The driver chatted with someone through his earpiece while driving, occasionally glancing at the rearview mirror, only to see the passenger engrossed in their phone.