Volume One, Chapter Eight: The Second Mysterious Clue

On the road, Chu Xinghe was explaining to Wei Hongying and Wang Defa:

“Although the intelligence was false, it doesn’t mean there is no way to contain the anomalous.”

“Since in my previous life I successfully contained an anomaly, and according to the three laws of anomalies, only an anomaly can counter another anomaly, then...”

“There must be another anomaly here!”

What Chu Xinghe planned to do was to find a way for the two anomalies to clash with each other, so he could reap the benefits like a fisherman waiting by the riverbank. It was a beautiful idea, but soon met with skepticism.

“Boss, what you say makes sense, but I was at the scene last time. There was no mention of a second anomaly nearby,” Wang Defa said. This incident had drawn a lot of attention; if there were a second anomaly, it couldn’t have been hidden.

Wei Hongying added, “I was responsible for recording statements at the time, and no witness reported seeing any anomaly aside from the Withered Finger.”

“That is indeed a point of doubt. But besides the possibility of a second anomaly, I can’t think of any other solution back then,” Chu Xinghe admitted. He knew himself too well: he was just an ordinary person, and there was no way he could have subdued such a terrifying anomaly with his bare hands.

“Alright, but if there really is a second anomaly, how do we find it? If there’s not a single witness, it either means those who saw it are dead, or the anomaly is hiding extremely well.” Wang Defa, being a D-level officer, understood this much.

“If the witnesses were dead, then it wouldn’t concern the later me. So it must be the latter.” Chu Xinghe’s eyes consciously scanned the surroundings. “You should pay more attention to anything resembling mirrors.”

“Mirrors? Didn’t we already prove the intelligence was false?” Wang Defa scratched his head.

“A perfect lie often contains a part of the truth.” Chu Xinghe glanced at Wei Hongying. “It’s easy to fool someone with amnesia like me, but not so easy to fool Hongying. And with such a tight timeframe, fabricating a lie on the spot tends to have holes.”

“The best approach is to tell the truth, but omit key details—like describing an anomaly that looks like a mirror as just an ordinary mirror.”

Though the difference was just a few words, it could cost a person their life.

“Damn! That makes sense!” Wang Defa slapped his forehead, then looked back at Chu Xinghe. “Boss, how come you’re so strong even with amnesia?”

“I have amnesia, not dementia, thank you,” Chu Xinghe rolled his eyes inwardly. If he weren’t amnesiac, he wouldn’t be here talking at length; he’d just roll up his sleeves and charge in.

Wei Hongying watched Chu Xinghe speak so confidently, feeling even more impressed than Wang Defa. When Wang Defa first met Chu Xinghe, he was already brave enough to face anomalies head-on; but when she met him, Chu Xinghe was still a timid boy who barely spoke.

And all this happened in less than a single night.

Perhaps they’d all been mistaken. What Chu Xinghe truly relied on was not the anomalies themselves, but his powerful adaptability.

“Is there something on my face?” Chu Xinghe turned around, noticing Wei Hongying staring intently at him, and instinctively touched his face.

“Hmm, some dust. Let me wipe it off for you.” Wei Hongying reached out gently, her eyes full of affection.

Wang Defa tactfully stepped back a few paces. In his past life, he had always encouraged Chu Xinghe to win over Wei Hongying. His boss was fierce in fights but surprisingly reserved in matters of the heart. This life, at last, there would be no regrets.

But as he remained alert, he noticed a faint white shadow flickering behind the glass door of the hall. In the high-pressure, nerve-wracking atmosphere, even the slightest movement could greatly unsettle someone.

“Who’s there?”

Wang Defa issued a warning, and Chu Xinghe and Wei Hongying immediately became vigilant, all three staring at the doorway and ready to duck behind the pillars.

“Wang Shao, it’s... it’s me.”

A woman in light pajamas slowly emerged from behind the door—it was the young model they had parted with not long ago, Li Wei.

“Damn! You scared me to death.” Wang Defa exhaled deeply. He had no special feelings for this young model, but they had shared a night together. He wanted to ask Chu Xinghe if she could come with them, but before he could speak, he saw Chu Xinghe still staring at Li Wei as if she were a threat.

“Stop right there! Stay where you are!” Chu Xinghe commanded sharply, halting Li Wei’s approach.

“W-What’s wrong? Please, can you take me with you?” Li Wei stopped, looking terrified, unsure of what she had done to upset Chu Xinghe.

Wang Defa knew his boss wasn’t heartless, so there must be something wrong with Li Wei. But he looked around—her legs were still fair, her figure still perfect—no sign of any problem.

“Boss, what’s wrong with her?” Wang Defa decided to give up trying to figure it out.

“Look at the glass door behind her,” Chu Xinghe said in a low voice to Wang Defa and Wei Hongying.

“The glass door?” Wang Defa looked confused, then took a closer look behind Li Wei and suddenly swore loudly.

The glass door reflected many things—there was the money tree at the entrance, the welcome banner—but one thing was missing—

Li Wei’s reflection.

She was standing right in front of the glass door, yet the glass showed no sign of her, as if she vanished into thin air.

“B-Boss... what do we do now? Should we just run?” Wang Defa had no thoughts of chivalry left and wanted to get as far from Li Wei as possible.

“Run? We’re out here looking for clues about the second anomaly!” Chu Xinghe’s lips curled slightly, his eyes gleaming. It was just like waking up to find a pillow beneath your head.

“Damn! There really is a second anomaly!” Wang Defa realized belatedly. Indeed, only an encounter with an anomaly could explain Li Wei’s abnormality.

He was truly convinced now: your boss is always your boss, even with amnesia.

...

“Waaah o(╥﹏╥)o”

Li Wei stared at the empty reflection in the glass door, trembling and collapsing to the ground, crying uncontrollably.

“Enough crying. Since you survived an encounter with an anomaly, it means it wasn’t a highly dangerous one. If you cooperate with our investigation, you might still be saved.”

Chu Xinghe sighed with relief as he saw her emotionally distressed but normal reaction. Anomalies weren’t emotional; they were like merciless natural disasters—

They destroy you without a second thought!

“I’ll cooperate, I’ll cooperate... I’ll do anything as long as I survive.”

Li Wei’s will to live was strong. She wiped her tears and looked at Chu Xinghe pitifully, pulling her pajamas lower to show her sincerity. Her actions, combined with her words, stirred some wild thoughts.

“Ahem~”

Chu Xinghe cleared his throat. He just wanted to ask a few questions but felt awkward. He glanced nervously at Wei Hongying.

Wei Hongying seemed to catch his look and straightened her back defiantly, as if to say, “There’s something at home!”

“Ahem, first tell us where you went after we parted ways, what you did, and if anything strange happened along the way.” Chu Xinghe quickly refocused.

“I was terrified and just wanted to escape. After leaving the hotel, I ran and ran for several blocks. But in the blink of an eye, I was back at the hotel entrance. Then I ran into you guys. Nothing else happened.” Li Wei crossed her arms over her chest somewhat deliberately, enhancing the visual impact.

Chu Xinghe was deep in thought and didn’t notice Li Wei’s coquettish posture. What she described was called “ghost trapping,” a classic symptom of an anomalous realm. Unless a powerful anomaly master breaks the boundary, one is trapped until death.

As for her claim that nothing else happened, it was probably true. This explained why no one witnessed a second anomaly. Even someone like Li Wei, who had direct contact with an anomaly, didn’t sense anything unusual—let alone others.

“Then recall again—did you encounter any mirrors or mirror-like objects along the way?” Chu Xinghe asked.

“Mirrors? Yes, yes. There’s a fashion street outside the hotel filled with full-length standing mirrors.” Li Wei clutched at a lifeline.

“No time to waste. Take us there now.” Chu Xinghe said decisively. No matter if there were mountains of blades or seas of fire ahead, he had to push forward.

“I... my legs are weak. Can you help me?” Li Wei looked pitifully at Chu Xinghe. Wang Defa was ignored; this was the future top anomaly master, and if she could hitch a ride on his coattails, her life would be set.

But Chu Xinghe and the others remained unmoved, keeping a safe distance of two meters. Helping her was simply too dangerous.

“Suddenly I feel stronger. No need to trouble you.” Li Wei awkwardly stood up, deciding saving her own life was more important than clinging to someone’s leg.

Following Li Wei, their steps grew lighter. Finally, a glimmer of hope appeared.

But as they just stepped out of the hotel entrance, a figure approached from the opposite direction. Emerging slowly from the shadows, the streetlight illuminated the woman’s delicate face.

Their breaths caught, faces darkened. Unmoving, they took a step back.

Because the face—

Was unmistakably another Li Wei!