Chapter 23

That was a whole eye-opening experience for Lu Xin.

In less than half an hour, a fleet of trucks thundered into the barren industrial area. Within minutes, groups of men in protection garments alighted from the trucks. Some of them began to set up makeshift lighting equipment, while others quickly built up pumps and extended long, rubber pipes into the lake.

At the same time, more than half a dozen teams had started to dig up water canals with shovels at the side.

Apparently, they had calculated that it was best to channel the water in the lake to a nearby lowland.

That wasn’t all. Some distance away, a fleet of military trucks drove in and skidded sideways to form a line around the lake. Soldiers in full military uniform cordoned off the whole area with the trucks being the natural barrier. Before long, the abandoned industrial area transformed into a busy place.

As the ten water pumps roared to life, the water level in the small lake fell rapidly.

Lu Xin and Qin Ran had never seen any project as grand as that before. Their jaws dropped. “Unbelievable!”

“Handling psyche corruption is a very dangerous task in itself. If you fail to do it properly, not only will you put your life on the line, unfathomable disasters may ensue as well. Therefore, when we work, two rules must be strictly obeyed.”

Chen Jing told Lu Xin in a calm voice over the radio, “Firstly, make full use of your material resources.

“Secondly, if you can’t solve it via the normal means, use firepower.”

“…”

Lu Xin was dumbstruck. After a long moment of silence, he exclaimed, “Teamwork makes the dream work…”

…

“Alright. We’re almost done. Assistance Team, back down. Investigation Team is up. Ready the fire!”

When the water level fell to less than half, Chen Jing issued a command.

All the Assistance Team members retreated at once. Some had even left behind their trucks or shovels.

Within merely a few seconds, the entire area was empty again, leaving only Lu Xin, Qin Ran, the three people from the Investigation Team, and Lu Xin’s sister.

This time, however, it was different from a while ago. In the distance, Lu Xin could see layers of armed forces and eyes filled with curiosity and caution.

“After the lake dries up, it’s still up to you people to conduct the investigation.”

Chen Jing’s voice came from the earpiece. “Even until now, we’re still unable to determine how infectious this corruption source is.

“From the data we’ve gathered, it’s unlikely to be highly contagious. However, these sorts of strange incidents often take on an unpredictable turn of events. We can’t afford to lower our guard. It’d be fine if it’s not very infectious, but if it is, having too many people around may provide more host bodies for the corruption. That would result in a greater disaster.”

Lu Xin understood at once.

True, the soldiers were wary of the potential Psyche Monster at the bottom of the lake.

But they were cautious about Lu Xin and all the other members of the Investigation Team too.

If any of them had been corrupted, the soldiers would shoot them without mercy.

“Now I understand why this is such a high-paying job…”

Lu Xin mumbled.

Chen Jing laughed. “Your attitude is commendable. I will request additional rewards for you.”

Lu Xin immediately felt better.

…

Before long, the lake had almost been pumped dry. The muddy lakebed and scattered puddles of water were exposed under the dim white light. Swarms of fish and shrimps were struggling and skipping on the surface, gasping for water.

“Alright! It’s time.”

Everyone in the Investigation Team put on their helmets, except Lu Xin. The team members turned to look at him with confused eyes.

“I’m good.”

Lu Xin waved his hand.

Chen Jing had told him before that one of the advantages of being a psyche mutant was that they wouldn’t be so easily corrupted. Moreover, it appeared that Lu Xin was able to see the true nature of those Psyche Monsters. The helmet, on the other hand, might actually hinder his vision, making it hard for him to see the monsters clearly or dodge their attacks in time.

Lu Xin had made the decision after careful consideration, but that had also made him even more mysterious in the eyes of his teammates.

Is that what they call “mutants”?

They thought.

As members of the investigation team, they also knew a handful of those with special powers in Qinggang. But it was their first time working with one.

A long time ago, especially before the discovery and recruitment of psyche mutants, the investigation of psyche corruption often came at the cost of the lives of normal people like themselves…

…

Equipped with detectors and guns, Lu Xin, together with the other investigators, slowly stepped into the mud on the bottom of the lake.

A green light blinked on the silver detector screen. That was a relief.

They pushed forward, one step at a time. In Lu Xin’s eyes, however, his sister was running across the muddy floor. She was fast, dashing here and there, leaving a faint, blurry shadow behind her under the moonlight. Nevertheless, no matter how soft the mud was, she left no footstep behind her.

Finally, as though she had found something, she suddenly stopped and pointed at the center of the lake.

Lu Xin pretended not to see her, but he deliberately led the other members of the team toward the center of the lake.

From some distance away, they could already see a puddle of water in the center.

Lu Xin’s sister was standing about eight meters away from the puddle, pointing at it.

Lu Xin and the other team members drew closer. Suddenly, the light on the detector turned red.

At the same time, a soft voice said, “Qin Ran, you killed me…”

“Who is it?”

Lu Xin and the other three investigators stopped short at once.

They felt a sudden chill down their spines.

The soft, faint voice returned. “Qin Ran, you killed me. I will take your life…”

“It… It… It’s there….” one of the investigators said with a trembling voice.

Following the direction he was pointing, they saw a goldfish about the size of a palm lying on the muddy floor. Unable to breathe, the fish was gasping desperately for water, and the soft voice came from its mouth again.

“Qin Ran, you killed me…”

The spotlight focused on the fish. It was strangely pale.

The fish had pitch-black eyes. They stared at the shore in Qin Ran’s direction as the fish continued to scream.

Not sure whether it was a hallucination or reality, the red moon in the sky seemed exceptionally bright at this moment.

The scarlet red glow surrounded everyone.

All of a sudden, they heard another voice, shouting, “Qin Ran, you killed me. I will take your life…”

Lu Xin and the others quickly turned toward the sound and saw another dying fish in the mud.

“Qin Ran, you killed me…”

“We’re no enemies. Why did you kill me…”

Soon, there was a third one, overlapping with the voice of the first two.

And then, it was followed by the fourth, the fifth, and the sixth…

More and more fish had started to speak. With their voices joined uniformly together, it became increasingly louder. In the end, it was almost deafening. Lu Xin and the rest stood still as they witnessed the strange and crazy sight before them.

Under the red moon, all of the fish were screaming at the top of their lungs. Their voices were sharp, piercing through the listeners’ ears.

“Qin Ran killed me. I will take your life…”

“Qin Ran killed me. I will take your life…”

“Qin Ran killed me. I will take your life…”