Chapter 20: The Shadow of the Town

"Those fools, bastards, sons of bitches... If it weren't for the rules that prohibit us from attacking ordinary people, I would have shot their heads off!"

After the police chief of Wuye Town personally apologized and "compensated" John for the three days of "injustice," Ye Qi and John, holding the case files, bid farewell to the enthusiastic police chief and headed to the only hotel in town. Clearly, John was still very upset about the three days of detention, even after receiving an apology and a substantial compensation, he continued to curse incessantly.

Sitting opposite John, Ye Qi felt a warm sensation in his heart as he listened to John's long-missed curses, and the corners of his mouth curled up slightly. However, Ye Qi wouldn't reveal his true feelings and instead said in the usual manner they interacted: "It seems the food in Wuye Town's jail is pretty good, John. You still have so much energy!"

"Really? Then you should try the green, eco-friendly food—breakfast potato juice, lunch steamed potatoes, and dinner mashed potatoes. I'm sure it will be unforgettable for you!" John, looking at Ye Qi's playful smile, immediately retorted, but there was a hidden smile in his eyes.

"Alright, let's not talk about those potatoes anymore! Let's discuss the case!" Ye Qi shrugged, wisely changing the subject. "What's causing all this? Ghouls? Dark wizards? Or something else?"

"Before I tell you, I need to ask you, Ye! Why are you here? Don't tell me you snuck out on your own!"

"No! Of course not! I'm not a rebellious teenager who would run away from home! I was officially sent by Old Ward to help you! If you don't believe me, you can call Old Ward! And I..."

"Damn it! That old miser, has his head been squeezed by a door? This mission is not something a rookie like you can handle! When we get back to Talin, I'm going to have a serious talk with him!"

Before Ye Qi could mention his "awakening" and promotion to an Apostle, John jumped up, cursing and pulling out his phone to call the merchant. As soon as the call connected, John started cursing without waiting for the merchant to speak: "You greedy, miserly, hell-bound old bastard! How could you send Ye to find me! Do you know... What? What did you say... Ye awakened with fire control and became an Apostle? And he hunted a titled vampire... Oh, I see, then I'll hang up first, and we'll have a drink when we get back... What? Did I curse you? No, no, absolutely not! Old Ward, we've been friends for so many years, it must have been a bad connection just now... What? What? Old Ward, I can't hear you! The signal is too poor here! I'll hang up, we'll talk when we meet!"

"Damn brat, did you do that on purpose?"

As soon as John hung up, he saw Ye Qi trying to suppress a laugh and glared at him.

"It was you who called Old Ward before I could finish speaking!" Ye Qi immediately shook his head, indicating it wasn't his fault. "Now, can we talk about the mission?"

Although he knew Ye Qi wasn't telling the whole truth, John, well aware of Ye Qi's stubborn nature, realized that even if he persisted, Ye Qi would find a way to escape. So, he directly started discussing the case.

"This mission is far from just ghouls or dark wizards! Although I haven't investigated for long, I found that four more people in Wuye Town died abnormally during the tomb raiding! One was a couple; the man strangled the woman while they were intimate and then committed suicide. The other two were close friends who ended up shooting each other, one with his head blown off and the other with his heart pierced. Based on my years of experience, these four deaths are definitely related to the tomb raiding! And there's one more thing that worries me: the demon hunter Parker, who asked me to assist, has been unreachable. I suspect Parker is in trouble!"

"Any suspects?"

With the combination of tomb raiding, murders, and the disappearance of the demon hunter Parker, Ye Qi's brows furrowed, thinking about the dangers of a C+ level mission.

"I was only in the jail for half a day, so I did my best to gather this information! As for suspects, I can only confirm that the person is definitely from Wuye Town. Who exactly, we'll have to find out through our efforts!"

"Alright, let's start the investigation after lunch!"

"Oh, great! Finally, I can say goodbye to those damn potatoes!"

Lunch didn't disappoint John. After tasting other foods again, he was full of energy and led Ye Qi to start the investigation.

Everything in Wuye Town started with the tomb raiding, so their first stop was naturally the raided cemetery. Unfortunately, the cunning murderer left no clues. Apart from a few empty tombs, they found nothing.

They spent the afternoon in the cemetery and returned to town when it was completely dark. However, as they stepped into Wuye Town, both of them, with their keen senses, felt something was off. Normally, a small town like Wuye would be quiet and peaceful after dark, except for the bar. But today, the streets were full of people, and even their conversations were whispered, creating a tense and paranoid atmosphere.

Ye Qi and John exchanged a glance, both seeing the gravity in each other's eyes. Ye Qi's hand involuntarily gripped the M500.

"Mr. Jack! Mr. Jack!"

Just as they were about to investigate what was happening, the police chief, accompanied by two officers, ran up to them, panting heavily. "Something's wrong! There's trouble at the central square!"

"What happened?"

"Someone was killed!"

Upon hearing that someone was killed again, Ye Qi and John immediately rushed to the central square. When Ye Qi saw the corpse, he immediately understood why the atmosphere in Wuye Town was so tense—on the clock tower in the central square, a body was hanging upside down. The corpse itself wouldn't cause panic, but what did was that the corpse's eyes and internal organs had been removed, and it was gutted and hung there. Blood flowed down the walls of the clock tower, pooling on the stone ground of the central square in a shocking red puddle.

"It's Parker!"

John whispered in Ye Qi's ear, and the demon hunter's brows furrowed even more.