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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter 471: Human Skin Puppet (34)
"Brother Qi, are you really coming back? I divorced Peng Yan; she ran off with a street vendor. Now I'm all alone at the Funeral Home, and it's just too hard to manage."
I had never told Fatty about what Peng Yan did, and I was surprised that this woman had the audacity to leave with someone else. I felt sympathy for Fatty's situation. I told him that I didn't need any money; if it came down to it, he could temporarily hold onto it for me. Once I returned to the Funeral Home, we would regroup and get things back on track.
Fatty left in high spirits, and I was about to head out as well.
It was strange that Qin Jian hadn’t called me. As soon as I stepped outside, I dialed his number. To my dismay, the call wouldn’t go through; the message indicated that his phone was off.
I remembered that last time he was also unreachable because he was with Chi Xinrong, deliberately turning off his phone to avoid being disturbed.
Now he was off again—what on earth was going on?
With Qin Jian's phone still unreachable, I went to a breakfast shop and grabbed a bite to eat. My eyes felt heavy and tired, yet sleep eluded me. After filling my stomach, I stepped out of the breakfast shop and tried calling Qin Jian again. Fortunately, this time the call connected.
"Ma Qi, where are you?"
"South Street Breakfast Shop."
"Okay, don’t leave; I’ll come pick you up." Qin Jian arrived quickly. As I got into the car, he handed me the phone he found at Gousi's house. "Listen to this."
I took the phone and pressed the power button, asking him what I was supposed to listen for.
Qin Jian replied, "Just dial any number and see what happens."
I was genuinely curious about what he was up to. If I dialed a random number, would it reveal this phone's original number? That seemed likely. So, I dialed Qin Jian's number again, and his phone rang on his end.
I held the phone to my ear, initially hearing nothing unusual, just silence without any static. Suddenly, a faint, eerie sound emerged, as if it were slowly approaching from a great distance, finally reaching my ear: “Bone Devourer Messenger.”
The voice startled me, causing my ears to buzz. I quickly pulled the phone away and asked Qin Jian, “Did you hear anything?”
Qin Jian replied while driving, “I heard a song, a soft and sorrowful tune, like a dirge.”
Strangely enough, what I heard was: “Bone Devourer Messenger.”
“Huh? What’s that?”
“I don’t know.” For some reason, I suddenly felt a bit afraid of this phone. It was as if it concealed a terrifying demon ready to emerge and devour people at any moment. I tossed the phone onto the back seat, deciding to avoid it for now and shifted the topic to my insomnia from last night.
Noticing my severe insomnia and seeing that I really didn’t look well, Qin Jian suggested we go see the wild ghost.
I was genuinely curious about this wild ghost. Qin Jian had mentioned it countless times, but I had never met this person. Now that he brought it up again, I wanted to see them.
As soon as Qin Jian heard I was willing to go, he immediately drove me there.
No matter how vivid your imagination might be, you would never guess that the wild ghost lived deep in the mountains. It took Qin Jian several dozen miles of driving to reach this place, which was a remote area relatively close to the city.
The population here was remarkably sparse; we could only see a village far off in the distance. It was only when we arrived that Qin Jian revealed the truth. Earlier, when I called him during breakfast and he didn’t answer, it was because he was in a meeting where new decisions were being made.
Our duo had been unable to prove our capability in three bizarre death cases we were investigating. Delaying further would have negative repercussions; the bureau intended to classify these three cases as one of the most complex unsolved cases of 917.
Damn it! We were already following up on these three cases along with the kidnapping incident. The investigation had reached a boiling point but hit a bottleneck. This wasn’t the outcome I wanted; I had done my best—what else did they expect from me? Honestly, could I impose these thoughts on Qin Jian?
"No! Look at Qin Jian," his expression was stern, and his eyes burned with anger. In truth, he wasn't doing well either.
I thought that if we were given a little more time, I would surely achieve something. But that was just wishful thinking; in reality, some people were unwilling to let us continue like this.
The idea was simple, but the reality was harsh. The bureau stated that they wouldn't support idle people, and I was just one of those idle individuals. It certainly seemed wasteful for the bureau to allocate five thousand a month for someone who wasn't contributing.
Well, it was as expected. My master had foreseen this; what else could I do?
"What about this phone?"
"It's nothing. If you think it can be useful and help with the three cases, then keep it. Since the bureau isn't providing us with funds, we'll manage on our own. Solving these three cases will be the best proof of our capabilities."
"Alright, I'll keep it."
As we spoke, the car twisted and turned along a muddy road overgrown with weeds and filled with potholes. I felt like I was going to fall apart from the jolting; this was the most uncomfortable car ride I had ever experienced, and surprisingly, I hadn't dozed off.
Qin Jian was absolutely right. The matters regarding the Plastic Model, the Human Skin Puppet, and the mysterious deaths of Gousi and Xie Ke all required our investigation. These three cases were intertwined and would demand significant time and resources. Some in the bureau were unwilling to invest in such expenses, so it was only natural that they wanted to disband our duo.
As the car slowed down, Qin Jian finally noticed something different about me and quickly asked, "Are you feeling sleepy?"
"No," I sighed and replied, "I've never felt this awake before."
Qin Jian seemed surprised by my current state. After a brief pause, he said, "From now on, we both need to focus on our own tasks. Do you have any plans?" Hearing him say this made me a bit unhappy; this change came too quickly and unexpectedly. When he initially asked me to join him, I had imagined various scenarios but never thought we would disband so soon.
This situation truly validated the saying from folklore: where there is gathering, there must be parting; in life, there are no feasts that do not end.
"This is the place where the Wild Ghost retreats for cultivation. I don't even know how many hideouts he has, sometimes here, sometimes there." Listening to Qin Jian, I began to imagine what the Wild Ghost looked like. He was a thin old man with piercing eyes, resembling a mix between an ancient figure and a monkey uncle.
Alternatively, he might have an ethereal presence, holding a whisk in one hand, palms together, referring to himself as a mountain dweller or something similar. No matter how I guessed, I couldn't picture him as a well-dressed, portly uncle.
From my years of observation, I've found that those who prefer to live alone in remote mountains often exhibit various eccentric behaviors and multiple personalities. Of course, this is just my one-sided assumption; I knew I shouldn't jump to conclusions. After Qin Jian parked the car, we got out and entered the house. Until I saw anyone, I still held onto my previous assumptions about the Wild Ghost's appearance.
In my mind, I also included the Wild Ghost's home. What could be good about living deep in the mountains? It was merely about taking from nature—stone benches and wooden chairs, with gourds made from calabash.
However, once we entered the house, all my assumptions and imaginations were ruthlessly overturned.
The layout of the house was just right, constructed in a traditional courtyard style that is rarely seen nowadays.
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