Chapter 365: Chapter 365: The Vanished Woman (Requesting Subscription)
Pei Yan leaned against the booth near the street, gazing out at the endless stream of cars. Despite being near the end of October, the southern weather was not much cooler. He sipped his cold drink while gently massaging his slightly warm chest.
The chest bore the new disguise mark from the Investigation Hall. Looking down at his left arm, which appeared to be flesh, only Pei Yan knew that beneath the surface lay a cold mechanical arm. Thanks to the disguise mark, he could finally wear short sleeves outside.
While he idly tapped his fingers on the table, a group of people pushed open the cold drink shop door and quickly found Pei Yan’s spot, heading straight toward him.
After the newcomers ordered what they needed, Pei Yan turned his head and asked, "How did the investigation go?"
Jiang Feiyang took a big gulp of the ordered smoothie and wiped the sweat off his forehead with a tissue as he replied, "That’s right, there was indeed a woman living here before. People nearby hadn’t seen her for a while. Earlier, Jiumu and I broke into her home, and no one was inside. Everything was neatly arranged, with no signs of disturbance. There were few items indicating her identity."
Taking another sip of his drink, he continued, "The house’s layout is simple, with the television as the only entertainment facility. I don’t know how such a young girl managed to stay in such a place for so long! I’d go nuts if it were me! By the way, Pei Yan, did you discover anything?"
Pei Yan nodded and said, "Check your phones in the group chat!"
Upon hearing this, everyone took out their phones and opened the group chat. As Pei Yan explained, "I have gained control over all the surveillance equipment in this area, analyzed the footage from the past month. Unfortunately, this is a small town, so the cameras aren’t densely installed, but I still found some clues."
He lightly tapped the table, and a picture automatically appeared in the group chat. He explained, "This is our mission target, Zhu Yuping. This is her image from a week ago, the last time she appeared in a high-tech camera."
"Pregnant?" Xia Yu looked at the woman wearing a sun hat in the picture, then flipped through the photos sent to her within the hall, she asked in confusion.
"Yes, pregnant. We learned this during our interviews with the locals, who said she moved here about two and a half months ago, not showing at that time. Now she seems about five to six months pregnant," Ye Jiumu replied, scratching his head.
Wang Wenze turned his head and teased, "You know about this?"
"The old ladies said it!"
"Alright, Pei Yan, do you have any other clues?" Ye Ruozai stepped in to rescue his embarrassed younger brother and asked.
"Yes, after discovering her last known location, I focused on the surveillance from that period, looking for suspicious characters. Although there were many outsiders entering and leaving the town during this time, most turned out to be residents from nearby. After filtering, these two people appeared suspicious." Pei Yan glanced at the tabletop again.
Staring at the image reappearing on their phone, Liang Qian raised her eyebrows and commented, "Foreigners?"
"Exactly, foreigners. They are the strangest people to appear here during this period. Though the town’s scenery is decent, it’s not a famous tourist spot, having only a few farmhouse-style accommodations. These two drove to the town’s outskirts but chose to walk in, stayed for about two hours, and left by car. Two days later, Zhu Yuping disappeared."
"Did they return after leaving?" Shangxing asked, looking at the image.
"No, but I still find them very suspicious."
Ye Ruozai asked again, "Did you upload the pictures to headquarters? What does headquarters say?"
Pei Yan chewed on the fruit salad in his mouth and replied, "Uploaded. No specific news has come back yet, but for now, we can confirm there are no entry-exit records for these two!"
"Sneaking in, huh? That’s an even bigger issue!" Jiang Feiyang finished his smoothie and pushed the empty cup aside in displeasure, "What’s going on here? Let the gods bite among themselves, why meddle? Do you think we’re ready to be Good Samaritans?"
With Jiang Feiyang’s words, everyone fell silent. Pei Yan continued to eat his fruit salad. Just three days ago, the local police department received several secret reports. All these reports were forwarded to the Investigation Hall. While the letters weren’t notable, the content stood out, pointing directly to the existence of the Investigation Hall with Du Guangyuan as the signer.
The letter from Du Guangyuan detailed several divine forces infiltrating the country today, kidnapping a Chinese woman. He ambiguously suggested that the woman held a great secret. He included the woman’s address and photos, stating that if the Investigation Hall rescued her and safely relocated her, he would pledge allegiance and reveal the location of a key figure in interdimensional invasion.
After receiving the letter, some suspected it might be a trap. However, after extensive discussions, this idea was dismissed as the method seemed too naive for a trap. After careful consideration, the hall decided to send the newly formed Elite Squad to investigate the matter.
As one of the hall’s top priorities, Pei Yan was initially not supposed to partake in this mission. Yet unexpectedly, Lin Junzhao awoke within him, insisting that Pei Yan join while she acted as an observer, sparking heightened attention from the hall. After negotiating with other original clones hidden within the hall, it was approved for Pei Yan to join the mission squad.
"Setting aside divine intentions, this girl is still one of our compatriots!" After a while, Liang Qian’s words broke the silence, pulling Pei Yan’s thoughts back from memory.
Jiang Feiyang responded cynically with a cold snort, "So what? Once aligned with the divine, does that matter? Haven’t we been backstabbed by so-called compatriots enough?"
"Regardless, the child is innocent," Xia Yu murmured, rubbing the water glass.
Listening to this, everyone fell silent again. Only Jiang Feiyang muttered unhappily, "Child? Born a divine’s little demon brat."
"Enough. Discussing this is meaningless now. Before understanding her specific identity, we can’t determine her connection to the divine. Regardless of mission assignment or humanitarian impulse, we have a responsibility to rescue her," Ye Ruozai ultimately decided.
"No wonder you are the captain, your words just have level!" Jiang Feiyang leaned back and raised a thumbs-up in jest.