Chapter 345: Missing Everyone

Meeting Li Yuning for the first time, Wang Han was also taken aback by her appearance and age; admittedly, this girl was exquisitely beautiful and dainty, but her age was likely not yet that of an adult, even though she claimed to be eighteen.

Regarding Wang Han's arrival, Li Yuning did not seem surprised; it was as if she had long known he would come to seek her out. The two merely exchanged greetings, and she then had Wang Han drive her to investigate.

Wang Han was somewhat stunned by Li Yuning's overly familiar reaction, only realizing something was wrong after the car had driven a few meters. At this moment, Li Yuning began to explain the information on their target: "We are going to find Ms. Luo Zhen, the helmswoman of Luo Clan Jewelry. In Zhao Qian's home computer, I found the E-mail correspondence between the two of them, both mentioning a mysterious banquet. I suspect it must be the next 'Socialite Gathering', but the time and location were encrypted by them, replaced with special symbols. It is a pity that Zhao Qian is already dead, so we cannot learn the truth from her."

"I also couldn't find anything in Zhao Qian's home that could decipher their encrypted language. I suspect they had long since memorized another set of encryption, so items like codebooks were likely destroyed long ago. Thus, we can only start with Ms. Luo Zhen; perhaps we can learn the news from her."

Wang Han understood, but still couldn't help asking in confusion: "You seem to have known I would come?"

Li Yuning nodded very candidly and chuckled: "I know, and I also know you sought out Uncle Li Hao before this."

Wang Han's gaze shifted slightly; he felt as if he were being watched. "Could it be that while I was coming to find you, Team Leader contacted you?"

Li Yuning shook her head, her gaze then falling on Wang Han's backpack. "You bought something from the shop, didn't you? I can feel it. You really are lucky."

Upon hearing this, Wang Han's expression changed even more drastically. He never expected that Li Yuning would even know about this, and her words and expression seemed to imply she had some close connection to that Forest Cabin.

Li Yuning smiled and said: "Big Brother Shopkeeper never harms anyone. As long as you follow the instructions he gave you, you will be fine."

Hearing Li Yuning use such an intimate term for the young man in white from the Forest Cabin, Wang Han felt as if he had fallen into an ice cellar, and cold sweat poured out uncontrollably.

After this, Wang Han dared not ask any more questions, only driving cautiously, occasionally glancing at Li Yuning with vigilance, his heart filled with trepidation.

Although Wang Han, having left the Law Enforcement Bureau, could not obtain Luo Zhen's address, Li Hao, who had returned to the Law Enforcement Bureau, could. With one phone call, Li Hao immediately found the permanent address of Luo Clan Jewelry helmswoman Luo Zhen in Baizhou City, and Wang Han immediately navigated there.

Because Wang Han had heard Li Hao speak of the thrilling experience he and Li Yuning had at Zhao Qian's house yesterday, he was full of caution and panic regarding this investigation. As he got out of the car, he was secretly building his mental fortitude; if he encountered a monster, or even something more dangerous and disgusting than the Son of Cruelty, he had to be brave and dare to resist like Team Leader.

However, just as they arrived at Luo Zhen's house, Li Yuning hadn't even gotten out of the car; she just sat inside, looked out the window, and exclaimed "Eh," followed by saying: "That's strange."

Wang Han and Li Yuning broke into the house where Luo Zhen lived and searched every corner of her home. Even though they found the hidden secret room and saw the crazy scene that had once taken place there, they could not find any trace of Luo Zhen.

The female tycoon of a group with billions in assets had gone missing!

Afterward, Wang Han and Li Yuning could not find any useful clues in Luo Zhen's home. The house seemed as if it had been abandoned. They wanted to check the cameras in Luo Zhen's home but discovered that all the electrical appliances in the house had been infiltrated by a strange, viscous, dark red liquid. The appliances were already damaged and unusable, so there was no way to investigate the surveillance. The two did discover the relationships between Luo Zhen and other wealthy women in Baizhou City, so they sent these discovered names to Li Hao at the Law Enforcement Bureau to help with the investigation. Meanwhile, they were attracted by the eerie scene in the backyard seen from the south window on the second floor of Luo Zhen's house, so they went to investigate the backyard situation first.

They saw that the vegetation planted in Luo Zhen's backyard had all carbonized as if they had experienced a sudden, unexpected fire. Everything appeared gray and white, devoid of life. Wang Han just tried to touch them with his hand, and those things were so fragile they all crumbled into powder and fell to the ground.

"What is going on?" Wang Han found such a phenomenon hard to believe; he had never seen such an incredible sight.

"These plants, animals..." Li Yuning tapped her fingertips lightly on the flowers, grass, and trees to the left and right. Everything she touched dissipated, and even the insects on those plants were severely "carbonized." "They have all been drained of their life force. Only when every cell in the body is drained of life force will they 'dry out' so thoroughly."

"Drained of life force?" Wang Han's mouth opened slightly. "What kind of existence could achieve this level? This backyard is nearly three hundred square meters in total; what kind of thing could do this?"

"I don't know either, but it is very likely related to the thing Zhao Qian summoned using the ritual yesterday. I felt an aura of the same origin, only much more powerful," Li Yuning speculated.

While the two were searching for other clues in this miserable gray-white land, news came from Li Hao, and the information he reported to them was not very optimistic.

Missing!

Just like Luo Zhen, the targets that Li Yuning and Wang Han had asked the Enforcers to investigate had all gone missing without exception. The places where they lived all had the mysterious Ritual Array that Zhao Qian had painted with blood in her secret room yesterday.

The investigation seemed to have reached a stalemate. Wang Han revealed a look of confusion; if he remained stuck here, he would ultimately be unable to escape death.

"There is no other way; we can only try doing that." Li Yuning bit her lip in frustration, her eyes flickering as she thought quickly, but in the end, she could only think of a method she was reluctant to use and which didn't seem correct.

Wang Han could not figure out how Li Yuning could still break the deadlock. "How else can you investigate?"

"Investigate? There is no need. Just find someone to interrogate," Li Yuning shook her head.

"Who else could it be?"

"Zhao Qian," Li Yuning gave a dead person's name that made Wang Han's heart jump with fear.

Wang Han cried out somewhat voicelessly: "But isn't she dead?"

"Nowadays, the people who die in this world will eventually return to one place." Li Yuning looked at Wang Han and, not hiding it from him, said bluntly, "In front of Big Brother Shopkeeper's shop, that river with the strange color gathers all the dead souls that have passed away in this world."