See the Law of Deception

Chapter 23 Out of Control (4)

Without any warning, some people disappeared.

This undoubtedly cast a shadow of doubt over everyone present.

In the real world, there are many ways to find missing people, but inside the station, everyone knows that the missing person is unlikely to have a good ending.

"I can't get through on the phone."

No one seemed surprised by these words.

Smart devices are always the first to malfunction on the platform. It seems that ghosts possess some kind of special magnetic field, or perhaps this is a necessary part of the process, leaving people isolated and unable to communicate.

Sometimes, mobile phones can even become a hindrance, with many people choosing not to bring any smart devices into the venue.

After all, nobody wants their phone to suddenly ring while they're trying to escape a ghost.

"Let's all go look for it together, but we must always pay attention to whether anyone around us is acting strangely."

We've already reached the C-level instance; we can't just abandon someone who suddenly disappeared. We're not looking for him to save him, but for clues, to find out why he disappeared.

"Do you want to come with us?"

When assigning locations to search, Wei Ling suddenly came over.

Lu Jinzhao glanced at her sideways; she smiled faintly, appearing to be kind.

But who knows?

Lu Jinzhao did not refuse, after all, she did not know anyone and did not think that going alone was a good thing.

After leaving the courtyard, perhaps in order to get closer to Lu Jinzhao, Wei Ling took the initiative to share her analysis.

"At present, if that person is not lying, the problem most likely lies in the ancestral hall and the altar."

"What's unclear now is why he suddenly disappeared. Was there some trigger?"

"Our current plan is to first eliminate the places we've already visited, and then go to the ancestral hall, the altar, and the places Li Haoyang has been. What are your thoughts?"

Is it that radical?

Lu Jinzhao is 100% certain that someone will stay far away from these three places.

However, it is quite unexpected that this girl, who looks a few years younger than me, would have such an aggressive attitude when facing danger.
Lu Jinzhao did not object; in fact, her approach in [Summoning Ghosts] was clearly not very prudent.

The three of them set off together to the scouting location they had agreed upon with the others. Along the way, Lu Jinzhao noticed that the village seemed rather lifeless.

There were very few pedestrians on the road, and almost all of them were elderly. It makes sense, since young people wouldn't stay in the village.

Because no one cultivates the land, the fields are almost all abandoned, and many houses along the roadside are clearly uninhabited for a long time.

There is no doubt that this village is heading towards extinction.

Finally, she found a house that was home, but when Wei Ling knocked on the door, the other person didn't respond for a long time.

"what's the situation?"

She knocked on the door several more times, and finally, a woman who looked to be in her fifties or sixties opened it.

"Who are you?" Her face was gloomy, and she was dressed in the most common clothes for rural women. Her exposed skin also showed the marks of years of hard work, but her gaze at the three of them was particularly unfriendly.

Is it because today is a special day?
Wei Ling asked her if she had seen any trace of Li Haoyang, while Lu Jinzhao quietly observed the room behind the woman.

The light was dim, and the door was only half open, so there wasn't much to see, but it was enough for Lu Jinzhao to sense something was amiss. "Something's not right."

The room, visible only through a crack in the door, was neither clean nor tidy. The woman herself appeared to be dressed neatly, and even though her clothes were old, they were clean. So why was the room so messy?

"I didn't see it." The woman replied briefly and immediately closed the door, looking like she didn't want to say anything more.

Wei Ling was stunned for a moment, probably not expecting to be treated so rudely.

However, inside the station, as "outsiders," none of them dared to offend the "locals" before figuring out the situation.

Who knows what will happen next?
"Never mind, let's try the next one."

After visiting several more houses, I found them all empty and uninhabited. Finally, I arrived at the door of one house and saw an old man smoking in the yard.

"Finally, we've seen people." Wei Ling sighed. "Why is there so little population in this village?"

“That’s how it is in mountain villages, isn’t it?” Ye Jingyun explained. “The situation in my hometown isn’t much better than here. The young people have all left, and the old people are passing away one by one, so naturally there are fewer and fewer people in the village.”

Lu Jinzhao didn't reply, but looked at the courtyard and the pile of moldy and damp firewood, and questioned Ye Jingyun's statement.

"Grandpa, have you seen this person?" Wei Ling briefly described Li Haoyang's appearance. The old man's eyes were cloudy and his hearing was not very good. After listening to Wei Ling's words, he took a long time to react before slowly shaking his head.

"never seen it"

After answering, Wei Ling was about to leave when the elderly man, who looked to be over eighty years old, suddenly looked up and said, "Young lady."

What's your zodiac sign?

Strange question.

Wei Ling immediately became alert: "Sir, why are you asking this?"

The old man held his pipe in his hand, his cloudy eyes fixed on Wei Ling, trying to make out her features: "You look a lot like my granddaughter. I haven't seen her in a long time."

Did you go to study abroad?
“Born in the Year of the Dragon,” Wei Ling replied.

"You were born in the Year of the Dragon, so that doesn't match." The old man shook his head, no longer looking at her, but instead turning to Ye Jingyun and Lu Jinzhao: "What about you two?"

It seemed like just casual conversation, but a strange feeling arose in Lu Jinzhao's heart. She replied, "I was also born in the Year of the Dragon."

Actually, no, but instinctively, Lu Jinzhao lied.

“Me too.” Ye Jingyun hesitated for a moment before replying.

Upon hearing their answers, the old man's previously amiable expression suddenly darkened.

His cloudy eyes revealed no emotion, but one could hear his aged, almost decaying voice drawling out: "...Liar!"

But Lu Jinzhao remained calm and said, "Grandpa, why would we lie? If you don't believe me, that's fine, we're leaving."

After saying that, she turned around and walked out of the courtyard.

Seeing this, Wei Ling and Ye Jingyun quickly followed. After walking a little further away, Wei Ling asked with some confusion, "Don't you guys think the old people here are acting strangely?"

"Did he ask us about our Chinese zodiac signs? What's the meaning behind that?"

Lu Jinzhao frowned. As the investigation progressed, she felt more and more that this mission was not simple. However, there were still too few clues, making her feel as if she were in a fog, unable to find a way out.

(End of this chapter)