Chapter 46

Chapter 46: Domestic Violence Village 1

The white woolly moon hung high in the sky, and ghostly shadows crept on the ground.

Near midnight, the moonlight was barely visible, the sky dark enough to make it impossible to see one’s hand in front of their face. This made things tricky for the students leading the prisoners ahead, and for the big brothers following behind.

Captain Zhao and a few of his fellow officers sneaked around, hiding behind concrete boards and trees, too scared to jump over puddles, afraid that the sound would disturb Zhou Dafu ahead of them.

They came upon another thicket of trees.

One of the brothers whispered, "Captain, look at the road, it looks like we’re heading toward the Shuixi Gate Station..."

Captain Zhao nodded silently, signaling, and the group stealthily followed.

In the dark night, Shuixi Gate Station stood quietly, unnoticed.

The officers watched as the three students led Zhou Dafu like they were walking a dog, taking him down into the construction pit at Shuixi Gate Station.

Captain Zhao: "…"

Captain Zhao’s heart sank, and he cursed under his breath, "Damn, these little brats, they really have some guts."

One of his subordinates couldn't help but respond, "Captain, didn’t you order the security at the police station to relax to make it easier for the spiritual academy students to handle Zhou Dafu?"

Captain Zhao didn’t want to admit it, so he slapped his subordinate on the back of the head, "I told them to use some tricks to get the truth out of him."

"Who told them to sneak out at night and crawl into holes in the ground?"

The subordinate rubbed the back of his head, mumbling, "Well, you also drugged Wang Cai."

Captain Zhao shot him a sideways glance, "What are you talking about?"

The subordinate quickly replied, "Nothing, nothing, bro, let’s catch up."

"The students are probably heading to check out that old collapsed site from not long ago."

Captain Zhao: "Catch up."

The group quickly followed.

They listened to the sounds and moved in silence.

Captain Zhao was genuinely worried about the three students.But, he was also genuinely trying to solve the case.

After weighing both sides, he took this last resort.

Captain Zhao truly felt a bit guilty in his heart.

However, he had dealt with ghost hunters before.

He was somewhat familiar with Li Xianzhou.

Since the hand signature had been given, it meant that Li Xianzhou trusted these students — trusted that they wouldn’t get themselves killed out there.

Moreover, those who had the Yin-Yang Eyes, the few Captain Zhao had met, each one was more capable than the last.

Their minds were quick, they could take on three opponents without issue.

If they were normal people entering the martial force system, they would definitely become bureau chiefs or hall directors in the future.

Look at Ming Yue, who had just scared Zhou Dafu half to death in the middle of the night with a ghost act.

At such a young age, she could see through the police's intentions — this was one thing, but she also understood human nature, knew when the security was relaxed, and was willing to be a knife for the task, biting hard when necessary.

Decisive and resourceful, without hesitation or fear, quick to act.

Far more valuable than simple hardware skills.

Straightforward, a future pillar of the community.

But the ghost hunters operated outside the national system, they were an extrajudicial organization.

They had power, but because they were disconnected from the public, they lacked real control.

However, on the other hand, they were in charge of the Yin-Yang realm.

The Yin-Yang realm was one of the few places that the government couldn’t interfere with.

...Where else would the "grassroots" need to worry about control for the ghost hunters?

As they approached Shuixi Gate Station, the tall concrete eaves hadn't been completely sealed yet, slowly covering overhead. The officers shuddered, wrapping towels around their feet to reduce noise, not daring to relax, following the four people ahead deeper inside.

The road really twisted and turned.Fifteen minutes.

The police almost lost track of them three times.

Captain Zhao had a good sense of direction. Watching the group ahead stop after a turn, he furrowed his brows for a moment, then lowered his voice and asked, “The general direction we’ve been heading… is this towards the Moon Sea Jade Court?”

A subordinate took out a compass, checked it, and nodded. “We’re underground here.”

“If we go another 100 meters or so, and then go up for about five meters, we’ll reach the underground parking level of the Moon Sea Jade Court.”

Captain Zhao frowned.

He recalled the chaotic rumors surrounding the Moon Sea Jade Court in his mind.

Domestic violence.

Many wives from out of town.

Demolition residents.

Women who had disappeared without a trace over the years.

Similarly, the subordinates were thinking along the same lines as Captain Zhao.

One person quietly asked, “Captain, that female corpse we dug out from the Shuixi Gate collapse last year — is she a resident of the Moon Sea Jade Court?”

“Our team hasn’t been here long, and we only know half of everything. Why should we clean up the mess left by the previous team?”

In the darkness, Captain Zhao shot a warning glare at him. “Don’t speak nonsense about things you don’t know.”

“Watch your tongue!”

“She was obviously a homeless scavenger.”

The subordinate shrank back but was unconvinced. “A scavenger?”

“Captain, do you think we don’t know? A scavenger is ‘three no’s’! No identity, no background, no information!”

“They could be buried underground for a lifetime without anyone ever knowing.”“What's the difference between those companies and enterprises that call their employees 'temporary workers' when something goes wrong?”

Captain Zhao didn’t reply.

The young subordinates, full of energy and ignorance, spoke recklessly. Just because he was leading the team and could stop them didn’t mean he didn’t know anything.

Shuixi Gate was an old city wall, and strange things were common there.

When the district was divided, Shuixi Gate was included in the new district—this was a matter that had already caused trouble for the new district government.

In recent years, the new district had been striving to become a national civilized district, but it repeatedly failed. The social issues in Shuixi Gate weren’t insignificant—they definitely made a real contribution.

A civilized district? If your crime rate is high, what’s the point of calling it civilized?

Seeing that Captain Zhao didn’t respond, the subordinate, feeling a bit cold behind him, whispered, “Was she really beaten to death by her husband?”

“Geez, I don’t know how long she was buried.”

“I heard from the guys who switched teams that when they dug her up, it was just a skeleton.”

“And it was broken, the bones weren’t complete.”

“Missing a hand, missing a head.”

Captain Zhao: “……”

Captain Zhao lifted his gaze to the earthen wall. The hole in the ground was dark and eerie, cold winds howled, and it was freezing in the late night. He could no longer tolerate it and slapped the subordinate on the back of the head. “Stop telling ghost stories and know when to choose your audience!”

Then, he added, “Handle your own matters properly!”

“As for the Moon Sea Jade Court, we’ll investigate when it’s time to!”

The collapsed pit was damp, exuding a strange mildew odor.

The eerie energy clung to the walls like moss, densely spread out, hissing and gasping. As soon as Ming Yue stuck her head in and jumped down, she felt a rush of chilling energy hit her face—it was like a gust of blood wind, rushing straight toward her left eye."Safe."

She gestured with her hand.

The remaining two students kept Zhou Dafu at the back, cautiously stepping forward, following into the cave.

The cave looked spacious from the outside, but the further they went, the narrower it became, only allowing one person to pass through at a time.

On the ground, the flashlight of the Chrysanthemum phone shone brightly, but underground, it was pitch dark.

Even with such a strong white light, it couldn’t penetrate the ten-meter distance in front of them.

In the quiet cave, only the sound of several pairs of feet softly pressing against the ground could be heard.

Ming Yue, at the front, felt a bit of sweat on her palms.

She kept feeling like there were faint footsteps behind her, but every time she turned around, there was nothing to see.

Bai Linlang, who was following closely behind, was becoming a bit tense due to Ming Yue's behavior.

"Ming Yue, stop turning around."

"If you turn around again, I feel like I'm going to transform."

Ming Yue: "……"

Ming Yue abruptly turned around, shining the flashlight from below upwards. Her face, looking like a skeleton, was terrifying. "Transform, like this?"

Bai Linlang: "……"

Bai Linlang, very dignified, didn’t scream. She shook her hand and slapped a Yang energy talisman firmly onto Ming Yue’s forehead. "Focus on the road!"

"Keep fooling around, and I’ll knock you out!"

Ming Yue pouted, pushing the talisman to the back of her head and continuing forward.

The further they went, the more something felt off.

Ming Yue stopped.

She turned around. "Uncle, your work team really has a spirit of exploration...""Next collapse, are you going to add a few more feet for them to dig?"

She spun around like pulling noodles, allowing the people behind her to see ahead—

In front, it was pitch black, but upon closer inspection, several side tunnels appeared.

Moreover, the soil walls of these side tunnels were uneven, looking as if they had been scratched by a dog.

Zhou Dafu: "……"

Zhou Dafu was stunned, his voice hoarse. "This is impossible."

"It’s this section," Ming Yue said.

"I personally poured the black dog’s blood."

"It’s right here."

"......"

Ming Yue stared at him, silent, her gaze oppressive.

The burly man, standing at 1.8 meters tall and wide, looked panicked, gazing at Ming Yue, trying to prove his innocence:

"No, little classmate, trust me!"

"We are all honest workers! After we transported the bones out, we never reopened this tunnel!"

"Really! These side tunnels weren't dug by us!"

Ming Yue remained silent.

She squatted down and leaned over to smell the soil mound at the side tunnel.

The soil, connected to endless yin energy, was a special medium with a certain memory.

The transmission of smell was slow, and the scent dissipated just as slowly.

The black dog’s blood was extremely yang.

The soil could retain a significant portion of it.There was indeed a trace of blood in the soil here.

But it was already very faint.

If it weren’t for Ming Yue's exceptional senses, which could rival that of a police dog, she probably wouldn’t have been able to smell it.

"......" Ming Yue lifted her left eyelid, bringing her eye close to the soil.

The yin energy that had slowly accumulated in her left eye was gradually weakening.

As expected, there was residual yang energy.

Zhou Dafu hadn’t lied to her; this place had indeed been splashed with black dog’s blood.

Ming Yue thought to herself.

"Want to eat dirt? Move aside."

Behind her, Bai Linlang squeezed forward, pushed Ming Yue aside, and began filling a bottle with the soil as evidence.

An Xueru stroked the soil wall and muttered, "The digging marks are showing a thread-like pattern."

"It looks like some sharp tool—"

Before she could finish, she saw Ming Yue squat down, forming her hand into a claw shape, and scratched at the soil wall, leaving several dog claw marks:

"How about it? Is it this kind of thread-like mark?"

Upon closer inspection, aside from Ming Yue’s small, chubby hands, which left marks slightly thicker than the original, everything else was identical.

"……"

Exactly the same.

An Xueru’s face turned pale upon seeing it.

Zhou Dafu, terrified, sounded hoarse: "That hand!"

"It’s the hand that was tapping me, ahhh!"

"It ran away, ahhh!"

"It’s the hole it dug, ahhh!"The grown man yelled loudly, his voice carrying a long way.

An Xueru impatiently shouted at Zhou Dafu: "What are you yelling for?!"

"Annoying!"

Ming Yue was startled by the two of them, and the rustling sound started appearing in her ears again.

"Alright, alright."

"Speak slowly." Ming Yue quickly intervened to calm things down.

Bai Linlang was digging slowly behind, but she wasn’t done. The dirt she kept brushing away kept falling onto Ming Yue’s foot. Without turning her head, Ming Yue called for help:

"Director Bai! They’re starting to argue!"

"Come quickly and mediate!"

Before she could finish, she saw both An Xueru and Zhou Dafu’s facial expressions change at the same time. Their nostrils flared, their eyes widened, and they opened their mouths to expose their tongues and throats, staring straight at Ming Yue’s back—!

It was like two famous paintings screaming in unison!

What’s going on?

Ming Yue: "???"

Ming Yue felt someone patting her on the back.

At that moment, An Xueru and Zhou Dafu both screamed loudly!

"Ahhhhhhh—!!!!"

"Student, student! Behind you, ahhhhh!!!"

"Hand, hand, hand, hand, hand! Someone is patting you behind, Ming Yue, someone is behind you, ahhhhhhhh!!"

The two were shouting incoherently.

Ming Yue: "......."

Ming Yue’s back stiffened, and she almost wanted to throw a shoulder throw! Luckily, she held back in time, or else she would’ve had a friendly handshake with a ghost’s claw!"Why are you yelling? Didn’t we just set up the damn dog trap? Ahhhh Ming Yue, ahhhh!"

Behind her, Bai Linlang had just stood up from squatting, but halfway through her words, her mouth faltered, immediately joining the other two in their luxury KFC scream fest.

The three of them screamed in unison, deafeningly loud.

"......"

Ming Yue didn't dare to look back.

She was afraid that a ghost's hand might slap her, gouging out her eyes.

Suddenly, a lightbulb went off in her head. She remembered the Yang Qi talisman on top of her head.

With a swift motion, Ming Yue turned around, once to the left, once to the right, swinging the Yang Qi talisman like a snake, causing the Yang Qi on the talisman to stir—

"Bang!"

The skeletal hand was stunned by the chaotic assault of Yang Qi.

Ming Yue felt something hit the back of her head. Seizing the opportunity, she quickly turned back and threw the Yang Qi talisman!

As expected, once the talisman stuck, the active hand immediately fell from the air.

The trio of screamers: "Ahhhhhh—huh?"

The Yang Qi talisman on top of her head had already turned black from corrosion.

Ming Yue took a deep breath twice, mentally preparing herself, and turned around.

A skeletal hand, as thin as a chicken's claw, was lying in the pile of yellow talisman paper. The finger joints were bent, continuously tapping on the ground, hopping around.

It was really just one hand.

No flesh, no skin, just dry bones.

It was a terrifying sight—amidst the pitch-black surroundings, the white bone stood out in a chilling way.

Ming Yue: "......"

Ming Yue patted her chest: "Damn, eyes wide open now."