As the car was about to leave the city, Wen Wen drove while asking about the situation. "Tell me about it now. I don't know much about this case. Tell me the approximate location of the incident, the number of missing people, any unusual phenomena, and so on."
"The section of road where the incident occurred is Highway 315. It's less than half a day's drive for you. It's a high-frequency area for disappearances. More than twenty people have gone missing... more than ten people this week alone, and it's unknown if there are more."
Lin Lu took out a small notebook with the case information and read it to Wen Wen.
"Among the missing people are a couple traveling by bicycle, long-haul drivers, and self-driving tourists. It's not yet certain where exactly they disappeared, but it should be in this section of the road."
"Then what evidence do you have to prove this is a supernatural event? Perhaps these people were kidnapped and forced to work in a black coal mine."
Even while driving, Wen Wen remembered all the information Lin Lu had given him and asked questions.
"Black coal mines wouldn't abduct old men who can't walk..." Lin Lu rolled her eyes and said, "You almost misled me. The long-haul drivers' large trucks and the self-driving tourists' vans have all been found by the Furong River City police in the past few days..."
"Someone saw the missing people drive their vehicles to crowded places, get out, and leave, and they haven't been seen since."
"All of them like that?" Wen Wen asked, frowning.
"That's right. Many of the missing people have appeared, but they haven't shown their faces since. The only thing that can be confirmed now is that they all spent the night on that road before they disappeared," Lin Lu explained.
Wen Wen pondered for a moment. "Disguises, hypnosis, coercion, organized illegal gatherings, causing such phenomena doesn't necessarily mean it's a supernatural event. For a case that might not be supernatural, they sent the three of us..."
"Either you have important information you haven't told me, or Lin Zhe Yuan has some ulterior motives," Wen Wen said with a pout.
"If I could see those cars first, perhaps we could get more clues... but we're halfway there, let's go to the crime scene first."
Lin Lu looked at Wen Wen unnaturally. She knew that this mission wasn't really for this case, but rather to get them to familiarize themselves with each other on a mission.
"Hey, you new guy, share your opinions too. Although I don't have high expectations for your intelligence, even a fool thinks a thousand times and gets something. Perhaps you can give me some useful hints."
Wen Wen provokingly said. Yan Xiu had always disliked him, and he saw no need to get a cold shoulder.
"I have no opinion. I am an elite from Glory Church, unlike you crude people. Just follow my lead then," Yan Xiu said coldly.
Wen Wen was stunned for a moment, then looked meaningfully at Yan Xiu's mask. This guy looked arrogant, but seemed like a comedian!
Lin Lu's expression was also strange. How could one follow his lead when he was wearing a mask?
...
On the outskirts of Furong River City, in the south, there was a long-abandoned mansion. The courtyard was overgrown with weeds, and several children, about seven or eight years old, were playing there, catching grasshoppers and mantises.
For them, this was a rare moment of fun, which they would lose as they grew older and lost their childlike innocence.
Suddenly, a man, hunched over and draped in black cloth, entered the mansion, attracting the surprised gazes of the children. No adults usually came here.
The man pulled down the black cloth, revealing a face painted with white oil paint, and smiled eerily at the children.
The children screamed and ran out of the courtyard. This man was the Bewitching Clown, Grendy, who had escaped from the underground sewer earlier.
Grendy let out a light哼, pushed open the door, and entered the courtyard. He went to the study, fumbled with a worn bookshelf, and a passage leading to the basement appeared.
The basement was pitch black. In the center was a Western-style coffin, which inexplicably added a chilling atmosphere to the basement.
Grendy extended his fingers and flicked the coffin twice. The coffin slowly opened, and a figure in a black suit sat up, looking at Grendy with cold eyes.
"What do you want from me? Although we came to the Hua Mansion District together, it doesn't mean we are allies."
"I'm not trying to befriend you, but I have a commission for you. A low-level vampire is working for the hunters, and I need you to help me get rid of him."
Grendy handed the figure in the coffin a small bottle containing reddish soil.
"This is his blood. You should be able to find him with this."
The figure did not take the bottle but said coldly, "Heh, I am not your subordinate, and you don't need to command me. Why don't you do it yourself?"
Grendy tightened the black cloth around him and said in a low voice, "It's inconvenient for me right now."
"It's not inconvenient, you're in big trouble! Your blood smells bad now!" The figure sneered, his scarlet eyes mocking Grendy.
Grendy let out a low roar, and green patterns flashed on his face. "Stop wasting time. Are you taking the job or not? The reward won't be less for you!"
The figure froze for a moment. What were those things on Grendy's face earlier? Whatever they were, they were very dangerous to him!
"Are you sure it's just a low-level vampire?" The figure asked, taking the small bottle.
"Would I lie to you!"
The figure sniffed the bottle, and his eyes lit up.
"The smell of this blood... it's my bloodline. I'll take this job!"
"It's your bloodline? Then this mission is indeed suitable for you," Grendy chuckled.
...
The car drove along the road. The scene of the incident could be anywhere. Lin Lu and Yan Xiu looked out the windows on both sides, searching for potential targets, while Wen Wen focused on driving.
The traffic on this road was not heavy, and there were few buildings along the way. They saw very few suspicious things. Both of them had strained their eyes but found nothing.
Suddenly, Wen Wen stopped the car and got out, puzzling the other two.
"You said earlier that among the missing people were a couple traveling by bicycle, right?" Wen Wen said to Lin Lu and the others who had followed him.
Lin Lu nodded. "That's right. One is named Li Xiaoyan, and the other is Gao Xiang."
"Then look, are these two bicycles theirs?" Wen Wen pointed to the bicycles locked to a tree by the roadside.
Lin Lu flipped through the資料 and nodded. "They are."
"They took the time to lock their bicycles, so it shouldn't have been a sudden attack. But why did they stop here..."
Wen Wen walked around the bicycles, and then his gaze sharpened.