Chapter 614 - Chapter 614: 611

Chapter 614: 611

9:30 in the morning.

In the conference room of the headquarters, a special meeting had been convened today because of Yang Jian’s matter. Not many people had arrived, but all present were key figures of the headquarters.

Vice-Minister Cao Yanhua, Professor Wang Xiaoming, Team Leader Shen Liang, Ghost Dominator Wei Jing, Captain Li Jun… and the operator Liu Xiaoyu.

Liu Xiaoyu had been forcibly woken up. She had been unconscious when found, and her head was still dizzy; she had no idea what had happened. She only knew that she seemed to have been knocked out by Yang Jian last night.

“Yang Jian hasn’t shown up yet?” Cao Yanhua checked the time, and another ten minutes had passed.

Normally, he would have arrived early for such a meeting, especially since Yang Jian was known to be punctual.

“Not yet,” Shen Liang had been keeping an eye on the comings and goings outside the headquarters.

Cao Yanhua nodded and continued to wait.

Soon, it was 9:50.

Cao Yanhua asked again, “There are ten minutes left until the scheduled time, has Yang Jian not arrived yet?”

“No, there are no reports of Yang Jian entering the headquarters,” Shen Liang replied.

Cao Yanhua remained silent and continued to wait.

At ten o’clock sharp, Yang Jian still hadn’t arrived, and there wasn’t a soul to be seen near the headquarters.

“Is he late?” Cao Yanhua frowned, “Or could it be that he has already used the Ghost Domain to get here?”

“There’s no sign of Ghost Domain coverage; everything is normal,” Li Jun said.

When it reached 10:30, and Yang Jian still hadn’t appeared, Cao Yanhua couldn’t help but slap the table, “Yang Jian must have stood us up. He isn’t planning to come.”

His slap awoke Wang Xiaoming, who had been sleeping with his head down across from him.

Wang Xiaoming lifted his head and yawned, then said calmly, “So, Yang Jian did not show up, right?”

“You guessed he wouldn’t come back?” Cao Yanhua asked.

“Something like that.”

Wang Xiaoming continued, “The likelihood of him coming to the headquarters for a meeting is no more than forty percent. After all, he’s already planning to resign. Strictly speaking, he’s no longer a captain, and he has also taken out his entire circle of friends. Furthermore, there was a slight oversight in the headquarters’ decision-making process before, so Yang Jian has become cautious.”

“Cautious of what?” Cao Yanhua asked with a frown.

Wang Xiaoming replied, “Cautious that this is a trap—a banquet set to take him down. Yang Jian is very aware that his value is not great anymore… He used the Eight-Tone Music Box, suffered a terrible curse, and how many days can he live? According to his thinking, his death might benefit the situation more than his life. After all, last night’s incident was huge, and he even personally dealt with Jang Shangbai. These issues haven’t been resolved, and he has also made it clear to us that his death would lead to terrifying supernatural events.”

“That’s paranoia.”

Cao Yanhua was somewhat annoyed now, “He proposed his resignation to Liu Xiaoyu, and I haven’t approved it. He’s still a captain, how could the headquarters possibly take down its own captain? Liu Xiaoyu, quickly, call Yang Jian and tell him to come to the meeting immediately. Tell him that I, Cao Yanhua, give my life as a guarantee that we will not lay a hand on him. If he doesn’t trust me, I can personally go to the entrance of the headquarters to pick him up.”

Liu Xiaoyu was also somewhat startled, seemingly frightened by Wang Xiaoming’s speculation.

The headquarters wanted to take down Yang Jian?

But looking at the situation… it seemed somewhat plausible.

Wang Xiaoming said, “It’s useless, he won’t come to headquarters. He is wary of Old Qin, and having met Wei Jing, he has already developed a sense of crisis. I had Wei Jing send him a message last night to lower his guard, to let him know I wasn’t hiding such a unique individual, but it seems now that it hasn’t had much effect.”

“Moreover, I did indeed consider proceeding with a plan to take out Yang Jian last night.”

“What?” Cao Yanhua was startled, looking at him with some disbelief.

Wang Xiaoming’s expression remained calm, “It’s a perfectly normal line of thought. After all, if Yang Jian were to die, the harm he could cause afterward would be immense, equivalent to an S-class paranormal event. If we take him out beforehand, it would be akin to nipping a paranormal event in the bud, which could be worth it to some extent.”

“I know he is suffering from a curse, but the purpose of this meeting was to discuss how we could help him,”

Cao Yanhua grew even more anxious, not expecting that Professor Wang would really have considered setting a trap at a feigned peace offering.

“He doesn’t trust us, and the curse from the Eight-Tone Music Box has not been resolved, so there is not enough reason to convince him. If I’m not mistaken, Yang Jian plans to get on that bus in the next few days or is seeking some kind of informational help…” Wang Xiaoming said, “He has alternative plans, so it’s normal for him to forgo the meeting after careful consideration.”

Cao Yanhua was taken aback; if one carefully considered Yang Jian’s perspective, it actually made some sense.

At that moment, Wang Xiaoming stood up, “Let’s go to Ping’an Hotel. Yang Jian should be waiting for us there right now, but we need to hurry. I reckon he’s already prepared to leave the urban area.”

“You had already guessed this, so why didn’t you say so earlier?” Cao Yanhua asked.

“I didn’t sleep last night and overslept a bit just now, but considering your habit of banging on the table, Deputy Director, I should have been woken up around ten o’clock.” Wang Xiaoming looked listless, the picture of someone who hadn’t gotten enough rest.

Taken aback, Cao Yanhua didn’t know what to say and hurriedly set into motion, taking several people with him to rush to Ping’an Hotel.

Arriving late would mean one less captain at headquarters today.

And once Yang Jian left, if the matter of his social circle became exposed, it would trigger a series of chain reactions.

Indeed, Yang Jian had not gone to the headquarters for the meeting, but neither had he left the place. He was sitting on the couch in his room, packing up some things.

A box that held a dead man’s head.

A pair of embroidered shoes.

An eerie firewood knife.

A funeral shroud for the dead.

In addition, there were two scapegoat dolls and a few white Ghost Candles.

The red Ghost Candles were gone; he had given one to Huang Ziya and another to his classmate Miao Xiaoshan. He had no spare ones left, as it was indeed somewhat difficult to obtain more of these items.

“The curse of the Eight-Tone Music Box really is troublesome,” Yang Jian murmured as he put the packed items into a body bag, the melody echoing in his mind, and fell into deep thought.

He hadn’t gone to headquarters, not because he didn’t want to make the trip, but because he was hesitating.

This hesitation was the result of careful consideration. Yang Jian knew that he had disrupted the social circle yesterday and also taken out Jang Shangbai. The former was just a matter of personal grudges, but Jang Shangbai’s death was concerning the matter of a captain.

Consider this.

A former captain who had resigned, who was about to be revived as a fierce ghost, who had taken out another captain last night, and who nearly caused a major paranormal event…

How should such a person be dealt with?

In Yang Jian’s mind, the answer was surely to take him out, as keeping him around was too dangerous.

It was precisely because of this consideration that Yang Jian decided not to go to the headquarters.

Perhaps the moment he entered the headquarters, there would be hundreds of Hatchet Men lying in ambush on both sides, and when Wang Xiaoming clapped his cup as a signal, Li Jun would lead people to charge out. If they then shouted, “I have General Wei Jing to battle Yang Jian”… wouldn’t that spell the end for me?

Not to mention, the mascot Old Qin might also be present.

Even with the bizarre Firewood Knife, it was impossible to fight one’s way in and out.

Therefore, to be cautious, he chose not to go.

“If they really have the intention to talk to me, they should come to the Ping’an Hotel in person, and they won’t bring too many people,” Yang Jian speculated in his mind.

“Captain, are you packing to leave?” At this moment, the door to the room burst open, and a woman’s voice rang out.

Yang Jian came back to his senses, slightly lifted his head to look, and saw Huang Ziya leaning against the door. Her slender, straight legs looked even longer in high heels, and the unreasonably generous curves above her delicate waist outlined a beautiful and graceful silhouette, while her flawless melon-seed face wore a slightly frivolous smile.

The only discordant note was her jet-black, dense hair, almost reaching her waist, exuding a bizarre aura.

“Yeah, I’ve finished what I need to do here, so I’m off to take care of some personal matters,” Yang Jian said.

Huang Ziya replied, “Then what about the team formation? You can’t just sneak off on your own. If we don’t have someone to lead the team, the chances are high we might all get wiped out in the next supernatural event. You wouldn’t want to see a beauty like me die at the hands of those ghostly creatures, right?”

After saying that, she tossed her black hair to show off her astonishing charm.

Yang Jian took a look; “Have you used that ghost’s power again?”

He noticed that Huang Ziya’s figure and appearance had changed once more. The change was indescribable; it seemed like some areas had become slimmer while others had gained a bit of flesh, overall making her figure and face even more perfect.

“Indeed, Captain, you have a discerning eye. I spent the whole night researching and finally have the most perfect body and face.”

Huang Ziya spoke confidently: “I am now definitely the most beautiful woman in Asia. I’ll be the one in charge of looks in the team from now on since we need to meet with people. Just look at Zhang Lei and Wang Jiang, and the deadpan face of Feng Quan. Obviously, they can’t go out like that.”

“Who are you calling ‘deadpan’?” A voice suddenly came from behind, and Zhang Lei walked over, his face stiff as though he was dead.

“Just look in the mirror, and you’ll know I’m not wrong,” Huang Ziya turned and said.

Upon seeing Huang Ziya in her current state, Zhang Lei was stunned for a moment; “Who is this great beauty?”

“Can’t recognize me, can you?” Huang Ziya smiled.

Zhang Lei sized her up and down, genuinely amazed by the exceptional beauty before him: “An illusion? Huang Ziya doesn’t look like this. She’s skinny and unattractive…”

Before he could finish, Huang Ziya cut him off: “Shut up, this is my true form. You must have remembered wrong before.”

“It’s unbelievable, truly unbelievable. It’s a miracle in the Supernatural Circle, it feels like you’ve changed your skin entirely. Is that body real?”

Zhang Lei was somewhat astonished and couldn’t help reaching out to touch, to see if he could feel the warmth of a living person.

“Trying to take advantage of me?”

Huang Ziya huffed lightly and walked straight into the room, sitting down on the sofa. She then looked at Yang Jian and said, “If the captain wants some intimate contact with Asia’s number one beauty, I might agree.”

“Do you think you’re prettier, or is the woman in this photo prettier?” Yang Jian took out a photo and placed it on the coffee table.

“Hm?”

Huang Ziya’s eyes flickered as she looked at the woman in the photo.

Perfect, flawless, stunning, exuding an intellectual beauty that seemed out of place in this era.

“Impossible, there can’t be such a gorgeous beauty in this world,” Huang Ziya immediately said, “The photo must be Photoshopped.”

Yang Jian said, “Indeed, there is no beauty as stunning as this, but the photo is not fake because this woman is not human… She is the woman from the Ghost Painting,”

“What?” Huang Ziya exclaimed in shock.

Zhang Lei also walked over in surprise, “I have seen information on the Ghost Painting. The woman in the painting is indistinct, her facial features are hazy, as if they are not fully drawn, with only a pair of hands… Captain, have you seen what the Ghost Painting looks like?”

“Sort of, so my point is for you to remember the appearance of the Ghost Painting. Maybe you will have the chance to encounter it after I leave the city. Don’t fail to recognize it when the time comes,” Yang Jian said, “As for the photo, take a picture and keep it. It might be an intelligence asset that could be useful to you. Hand a copy over to Feng Quan and the others later.”

“If you’re leaving, I might as well go back to Dachang City with you,” Huang Ziya said, “I dare not touch an event of this level of supernatural intensity.”

Zhang Lei said, “I haven’t resolved my issue yet. If it gets resolved, I won’t stay here either.”

“I know you want to solve the issue of the vengeful ghost’s revival, but I’m powerless to help now. The things I have won’t assist you, so hope for a solution from headquarters,” Yang Jian said.

“Let’s hope so,” Zhang Lei replied.

Yang Jian then started to ponder again, thinking that the Ghost Shroud could probably extend the life span if the vengeful ghosts were to revive.

But he didn’t voice this out loud.

Because he needed the Ghost Shroud too, if he resolved the Eight-Tone Music Box curse but then faced the problem of vengeful ghost revival, then he would have to use the Ghost Shroud as his fourth ghost to control.

Of course, this was a contingency. If possible, he would not want to wear the death-shrouded garment.

“Additionally, let’s put forming the team on hold for a few days. If I’m still alive after a few days, we can discuss it,” Yang Jian then said.

He indeed had the idea of forming a team of ghost handlers, and there were enough people: Feng Quan, Tong Qian, Zhang Lei, Huang Ziya, Wang Jiang… With Xiong Wenwen, that would just do.

But some incidents had occurred in the meantime, preventing many things from going smoothly.

“Captain, are you going to do something dangerous?” Huang Ziya asked in surprise.

Yang Jian said, “Not exactly, I’ve encountered a little problem myself. I’m cursed by a vengeful ghost and need to resolve it. If I can, I’ll survive; if I can’t resolve it, I’ll be dead in a few days.”

“What?” Zhang Lei was shocked, “How can such a thing happen all of a sudden?”

Huang Ziya was also taken aback, looking at Yang Jian with some disbelief.

“It happened after a fight with some friends. Although the news hasn’t spread yet, you’ll know in a few days,” Yang Jian explained.

Only then did Zhang Lei remember the eerie incident from the previous night. He had even received information about Yang Jian’s death, but later he learned that Yang Jian was still alive. The conflicting information had confused him, which is why he came up this morning to check on the situation and understand exactly what had happened,

He hadn’t expected that the Ghost Domain which appeared last night was actually the result of a fight between Yang Jian and his acquaintances from the Supernatural Circle.

“No need to make a fuss. In any case, I won…” Yang Jian paused, his gaze subtly shifting towards the floor below.

Cao Yanhua and Wang Xiaoming had arrived.

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