"Had enough yet? Officer Zhang, satisfied now? Such a big, living person—where do you think he could've gone?"
Inside the monitoring room, I watched the surveillance footage—something felt off. Only the camera at the Public Security Bureau entrance caught Justin Huang on tape; none of the other cameras showed even a shadow of him.
Standing behind me was the deputy captain of the criminal police, Deputy Lowell Martin. He was in his thirties, sporting a short haircut, and looked sharp and capable. He stood right at the doorway to the monitoring room.
"Deputy Martin, may I ask—when Justin Huang arrived, what did you say to him?"
"I don't care what kind of special department you people are from. All I know is, your ghost-chasing tricks are useless when it comes to real investigations."
"May I ask why the missing persons cases are being suppressed?"
"Suppressed? Many missing persons end up in other counties, and some have already been found. It's nothing unusual. You're just listening to Frank Niu bragging, aren't you? Seventy-three disappearances—pure nonsense. That guy's a leech, always spouting rubbish."
I finally understood what it means to lie with your eyes wide open.
"Any other questions? Officer Zhang, I have no authority to ask what your special department really does, but for something as trivial as finding missing people, leave it to us regular cops."
With that, Deputy Martin left.
The street was deserted. Every shop had its doors shut. A few dogs lounged in the sunlight, but when they saw me, they erupted into frantic barking. As I walked closer, their hackles rose, and they crouched low, ready to pounce.
I glared at the dogs, and they scattered, yelping as they ran away. I approached a house with someone at the door and knocked.
A middle-aged woman was hanging clothes in the yard. She came over, and I quickly explained why I was here.
"Young man, are you here to see Granny Nina for a fortune reading? Ah, you’re too late. Granny Nina is getting on in years and doesn’t do readings anymore. She was always so accurate, though."
I insisted and got directions to Granny Nina’s house. I followed the street to its end, where a stone staircase wound up the hillside. About seven or eight meters up, I saw a small earthen house, a tiny vegetable garden, and a few fruit trees.
I climbed up. Just as I neared the garden, an elderly woman’s voice called out.
"Go home, guest. I no longer concern myself with worldly matters. Please don’t disturb me."
I froze, realizing from her tone she wasn’t welcoming.
"Are you Granny Nina? My name is Ethan Zhang. I’m here to ask about Stagnant River and the water ghosts."
There was no response. I stood there, hesitating, but eventually walked into the garden path. Suddenly, it felt as if I’d plunged into deep water—surrounded, suffocating, crushed by the pressure.
I dropped to a squat, gasping for air, saliva dripping from my mouth. It lasted only a second or two. I looked around—nothing out of the ordinary. The earthen house and the garden were as peaceful as ever.
(Omitted: Meta note about chapter continuation, not part of the narrative.)
"What’s going on?" I muttered. Suddenly, the wooden door creaked open and slammed against the wall. The squeaking of mice filled the air.
A hunched old woman stood there, one eye closed, her face deeply lined. Two brown, rodent-like teeth jutted up to her chin.
She leaned on a cane topped with a mouse’s head. Suddenly, she raised it.
"Mice gather, earth and wood unite, the omen of bound mice…"
I tried to stand, but behind Granny Nina, a massive shadow rose, morphing into a giant mouse silhouette. With a piercing squeal, it lunged at me.
Instinctively, I gripped my sword of Deathbane Aura and swung at the giant mouse.
"Fire births earth, shatter the deceitful clouds—ha! Sink!" Granny Nina shouted, stomping the ground with one foot.
The ground vanished beneath me, and I pitched forward. The shadow mouse pounced, then split into dozens of smaller mice that crawled all over me, their squeaks chilling my bones.
"Don’t move! If you do, these mice will turn vicious and gnaw you to the bone."
Granny Nina’s stern voice rang out. All around me, the mice grew fierce, their fur bristling.
I sat in a small pit, hands raised. After a long moment, Granny Nina approached, pointing her cane at me.
"Speak. Why are you here?"
"Granny, I’m not a bad person. I’m with the Ghost Burial Squad, here to deal with the ghost in Stagnant River."
Granny Nina lowered her cane and opened her mouth in surprise.
"Ghost Burial Squad? Since when do you use ghosts to do your work?"
I gasped, even more surprised than she was.
"Granny, look—I’m human, not a ghost. I swear."
Granny Nina came closer and pinched my cheek with her rough, gloved hand. Only then did I notice the gloves weren’t hands at all; peeking out was a patch of dark skin, reminding me of Damian Chen from the Nether Syndicate.
"Granny, are you with the Nether Syndicate?"
"Oh, you’re a sharp one," she replied.
I was right. Granny Nina was indeed a member of the Nether Syndicate. I’d seen their cat-like elder release feline creatures before—very similar to this—and his hands were just as dark.
With a thud, Granny Nina planted her cane in the ground. Instantly, the earth returned to normal and all the mice vanished.
"Come in and sit, young man."
I got up, trembling, and followed Granny Nina indoors, sitting at a small round table.
"It’s about that water wraith, isn’t it? That stretch of Stagnant River hides its source thanks to a centennial water wraith. That’s its lair."
"Granny, you’re so powerful—why not deal with the water wraith yourself?"
Granny Nina shook her head.
"I’m old, and I’ve killed too many ghosts in my life—my karma is heavy. My time is near, and I know where I’ll end up. Besides, that water wraith hasn’t caused trouble in the village, so I leave it be. Ghosts have their paths, and so do humans."
I nodded, understanding.
"Since you came to me, I’ll teach you a way to find the river’s source. It’s dangerous, though—are you willing to try?"
"Dangerous?"
"You’re shrouded in Deathbane Aura, but even that won’t protect you from the wraith’s wrath. That’s why it’s dangerous."
My heart skipped a beat. I nodded.
"Granny, please tell me. I just want to find that thing as soon as possible."