To make matters worse, after that night, the number of missing persons around Mulian Village increased to twelve.
A total of seven people had vanished in that single night.
The investigators worked tirelessly and finally picked up a trace of a clue.
Among the second batch of missing people was a mildly famous internet influencer. On the night of his disappearance, he had been setting up and testing his equipment, accidentally recording the entire process of his own vanishing.
In the footage, the influencer was initially lying on his side on the bed watching TV. Suddenly, he sat up and faced the doorway, as if listening intently.
Immediately after, his breathing grew heavy, and a look of sheer terror washed over his face. Gasping for air, he flailed his arms wildly at the empty air, screaming hysterically:
“Get lost! Get away! You wretched cat, get away from me!!”
“Get away! Ah!”
“You wretched cat! Get away! No!”
—He seemed to be wrestling with an invisible creature in the empty air until he was utterly exhausted, collapsing to the floor with a bloodcurdling scream.
The recording cut off right there.
However, sharp-eyed investigators noticed a blind spot:
The moonlight shining through the hotel window was a hazy, murky yellow, casting a foggy golden hue over the entire frame.
—At first, the investigators had assumed it was just the color of the room lighting.
“Isn't this an influencer? I remember news breaking a while back about him abusing cats, sleeping with fans, and scamming his followers...”
“There can't really be a ghost, right? Otherwise, how do you explain a perfectly fine person suddenly going crazy?”
“Phooey! Prosperity, democracy, civility, harmony...”
“So all these missing people have something to do with the yellow moon?”
“Look at the shadow. It's not that the moon itself is yellow; it's because the air is yellow, which makes the moon look yellow.”
Someone boldly raised a conjecture:
“That yellow moonlight... could it be miasma? Miasma is common in the southwest region. In deep mountain forests, decaying leaves and animal corpses ferment under microbial action, forming a kind of toxic gas.
If a person inhales too much of this toxic gas, they experience breathing difficulties, and severe cases can even be fatal. Could this yellow mist be related to miasma, causing those who inhale it to hallucinate?
As for the multiple supernatural incidents at night and the strange events around the Mulian Village scenic site, could they also be connected to miasma?”
—This conjecture instantly gained the approval of most people, but was soon rejected by another.
“It's not miasma. Miasma only appears in uninhabited, dense forests, and requires specific temperature and humidity conditions.
However, I agree with the earlier point that this unknown yellow gas likely possesses hallucinogenic effects, which is why none of the victims noticed anything wrong on the night they disappeared.”
The speaker was a tall, thin young man with a ponytail. His features were plain, but his complexion was pale, carrying a smooth ivory sheen.
He coughed softly as he spoke, looking over calmly. His eyes were as gentle as water, making no one feel the slightest discomfort:
“Miasma formation requires prerequisite conditions. The Mulian Village scenic area covers an area of 312 square kilometers, and if you include Mulian Lake, the area is even larger.
Attempting to create such a large-scale hallucinogenic miasma using current technological means would be nearly impossible. Therefore, I am more inclined to believe that a genuine supernatural phenomenon has indeed occurred around Mulian Village.”
Everyone at the meeting sank into deep thought. Some, bewildered, leaned toward their colleagues to whisper:
“Who is that...?”
“Someone from the Special Investigation Bureau that was set up a while back—a member of the guidance team sent down from Jingbei. I heard he's a lay monk who practiced on Mount Emei, named Zhuang Sinan or something...”
“The SIB... Wait, are there monks on Mount Emei?”
Someone raised a quiet doubt, but Zhuang Sinan turned a deaf ear to it. He merely took a light breath before continuing:
“I speculate that the changes around the Mulian Village scenic area might be related to the sudden appearance of the yellow mist. These changes may not be perceptible to us humans, but they manifest in plants and animals.
I have already submitted a request to higher authorities to second specialized equipment and research staff from the Southwest Region. I believe that as long as we locate the source of the yellow miasma, we can resolve the issue at its root.
As for the testing location, I intend to set it in Mulian Village.”
Half a month ago, Jingbei proposed that all provinces and prefecture-level cities across the country should establish Special Investigation Bureaus. In particular, it was specified that Jingbei would dispatch guidance teams to direct the establishment work.
Zhuang Sinan was one of these members.
His suggestion was quickly adopted, and military tents began sprouting up quietly like bamboo shoots after rain.
Meanwhile, the search for the missing individuals did not halt.
The local government mobilized a large police force to conduct a carpet search toward Qingmeng Mountain, attempting to track down the missing people.
...
Nan Zhi knew nothing of the turmoil in the outside world.
Nearly half a month had passed, and she remained in her meditative posture, standing still like a stone statue without moving an inch.
The chaos and clamor outside had nothing to do with her.
She felt as if her entire body were immersed in a warm hot spring, a soft, comfortable warmth filling her limbs.
It felt as though she were back in the amniotic fluid, feeling immensely warm and cozy.
...
“Drip... drip...”
Water droplets seeped out one by one from the bear cave's rock walls, falling to the ground and splashing into a small puddle. Curled up in a ball inside a half-open suitcase, the golden treasure-seeking mouse held a round pill in its paws, nibbling away.
[Ding!]
[Zhang Qiuyu: Ahhh, why aren't you back yet? Slacking off, eating lunch, and getting off work all by myself is so boring.]
[Zhang Qiuyu: Just thinking about how I'm slaving away in the office while you're out there living your best life makes my teeth itch.]
[Zhang Qiuyu: Where are you today?]
The notification chime chimed crisp and clear from the smartphone connected to the power bank. Corn flipped over skillfully, tapping on the phone screen with its two tiny paws:
[Nan Zhi: Traveling is all about relaxing the mind and body.]
[Nan Zhi: Yes, I'll still be staying outside for a while longer.]
[Nan Zhi: Youth has no price tag; take the train straight to Lhasa.]
—Using pre-arranged lines Nan Zhi had saved on the clipboard.
Corn skillfully opened the photo album, picked a random landscape photo alongside a pre-prepared selfie, and sent them over.
It was getting increasingly skilled at this.
And increasingly indifferent.
Zhang Qiuyu didn't notice anything amiss either. After complaining a bit more, she ended the chat.
[Ding!]
[Shi Hongjiang: Sister Zhizhi, do you know what that health supplement you gave me actually is?]
[Shi Hongjiang: That stuff is the real deal! It's so valuable, why did you just give it to me so casually!]
[Shi Hongjiang: The village has been super weird lately. A bunch of people in lab coats showed up, disinfecting everything and taking our temperatures. They even made us move outside, saying there was a toxic gas leak.]
[Shi Hongjiang: There are some things I can't really explain in text. I'll call you later.]
[Shi Hongjiang: (Missed Call)]
[Shi Hongjiang: Sister Zhizhi, are you busy?]
[Shi Hongjiang: Grandpa and I are staying in the county seat right now. But don't worry, the government folks told us we can move back once they clean up the toxic gas source. I'll go check on your family's old house then.]
[Shi Hongjiang: There was an extra pill in the medicine bottle you gave me, so I'm mailing it back to you. You wouldn't believe how many oranges our tree produced! I'll mail you a bunch—I know how much you love them.]
[Shi Hongjiang: Sister Zhizhi, did something happen to you?]
[Shi Hongjiang: Sister Zhizhi, please call me back! Things haven't been peaceful around the village lately!]
[Shi Hongjiang: (Missed Call)]
The phone kept ringing continuously, but the treasure-seeking mouse didn't know how to reply, leaving it scratching its ears helplessly.
—Why did this guy send so many blocks of black text?
Didn't he know it was just a mouse with a limited vocabulary?
As for calls...
It twitched its nose in distress. Its master hadn't told it what to do in a situation like this!
Corn almost burst into tears.
It was just a poor, hardworking treasure-seeking mouse that liked digging up treasures.
Why make things so hard for it?
[Ding-ding-ding-ding-ding!]
The ringing grew increasingly frantic. Just as the large golden mouse was pacing in anxious circles, completely at a loss, a fair-skinned arm suddenly reached out from the side and picked up the call:
“Hello?”
—It was Nan Zhi, completely naked.
Her limbs were long and slender, and steam seeped steadily from every pore across her body, making her look as though she were cloaked in rising mist.
【Cultivator: Nan Zhi】
【Level: Level 40】
【Cultivation: Foundation Establishment Level 1】
...
【Cultivation Methods: 《Small Huanzhen Manual》 (Great Perfection), 《Moon-Worshiping Breathing Method》 (Tier 2 Mid Stage), 《Great Huanzhen Manual》 (Tier 1 Early Stage)】
【Skills: Five Thunder Protection Curse, Mirage Pearl Escape, Water Shield Art, Flying Fire Art, Wood Binding Art, Earth Mud Art, Sharp Gold Curse.】
【Currently Equipped: "Butcher’s Daughter", "Mountain Lord’s Curse" (Luck stat -10, Combat power -5)】
【Heavenly Treasure Tree Lottery Ticket: 35】
Foundation Establishment, achieved!
Rate on N.U.
