Standing in this abandoned construction site, a flood of emotions washed over me.

  This was exactly where I had found Alice. For so long, I had possessed an unbelievable power yet never encountered an unbelievable adventure. It was only from that moment onward that the first real chapter of my life finally began to unfold. This place was the land of my destiny, the very spot where my story truly started.

  To outsiders, the area looked bleak and desolate, but in my eyes, it was as though someone had applied a magical filter. The weeds swaying in the cold wind, the piles of construction debris stacked nearby, and especially the unfinished building towering ahead—all of them carried an almost prophetic aura.

  The lower floors of the half-finished structure still had relatively intact outer walls and partitions, while the upper levels remained open to the elements, lacking both walls and dividers. From a distance, they resembled nothing so much as tiered parking decks suspended high in the air.

  Investigator Kong’s detached voice broke through from beside me. “Z, are you familiar with the urban legend that circulates around here?”

  “I am,” I replied. “They say this place is haunted. Back when construction was still underway, a site supervisor who wasn’t wearing a hard hat passed beneath one of the buildings. Unfortunately, something heavy fell from above and struck him square on the head.

  “After he died, the site began experiencing inexplicable hauntings that frightened everyone involved. Eventually, the project was abandoned, and the construction team pulled out entirely.”

  Investigator Kong nodded in confirmation and led the way into the interior of the unfinished building. My view shifted from bright daylight to dim, eerie shadows.

  He seemed to be mentally organizing the information he knew before picking up where I left off. “That’s more or less the story. It happened before I was transferred to this area. But there’s a recent development that’s been gaining traction over the last few days—you’ve probably heard about it too. Word is that the evil spirit lurking here has started trying to abduct female college students passing by after classes.

  “The victims claim that while walking past late at night, they spotted a blood-soaked man standing on one of the upper floors of the building. The next thing they knew, they had blacked out for a moment and suddenly found themselves inside the structure, with that twisted, blood-drenched figure slowly advancing toward them step by step.

  “Fortunately—or unfortunately—the spirit seems to have very limited power. After teleporting the victim inside, it couldn’t sustain the effort and could only watch helplessly as she panicked and fled. It wasn’t able to recapture her.”

  That matched the version I had heard. The pity was—or rather, thank goodness—that what I encountered here wasn’t some clichéd, unoriginal evil spirit straight out of the rumor mill, but Alice, who had brought me nothing but “luck.”

  This time, Investigator Kong was clearly investigating the local urban legend in his official capacity as a Luo Shan probe, and it was my first time exploring an anomaly alongside someone from a proper supernatural organization.

  In the past, I had always operated alone, misunderstood by everyone around me. Now, here I was partnering with someone who took anomalies seriously, and the novelty of it stirred something in me that bordered on genuine emotion—almost moving.

  He asked casually, as if the thought had just occurred to him, “Have you ever come here to investigate before?”

  “I…” I started to say yes, but then remembered certain traces left inside the building from the night before last. I changed course mid-sentence. “No, I haven’t. I was actually planning to check it out soon.”

  “Is that so? Perfect timing, then. Let’s take a look together. I came by twice shortly after the rumors first started spreading and didn’t encounter the spirit either time. Still, the way the victims described their experiences didn’t sound like lies, so I figured it was worth another visit.” His demeanor, so solemn when he’d impersonated a police officer, had now turned almost playful. “Maybe it’s because I’m not a female college student. The spirit probably has no interest in a middle-aged guy like me, so it refuses to show its face.”

  As we spoke, we passed along a corridor beside one of the rough, unfinished rooms on a lower floor. Investigator Kong suddenly let out a surprised sound and stepped inside to inspect.

  That was precisely the spot where I had discovered Alice. Faint bloodstains from the previous night still lingered on the floor—which was exactly why I had claimed earlier that I’d never been here.

  Investigator Kong crouched down and touched the dried blood.

  Stolen novel; please report.

  “This is… blood. Human blood?” A thoughtful frown crossed his face. “It looks fairly recent… Has someone already been killed here?”

  “Maybe there really is an evil spirit after all. Investigator Kong, do you have a way to draw it out?” I pretended ignorance about the blood and asked with feigned concern. “What if it just refuses to appear?”

  “Don’t worry. I’m a professional, after all—I have my methods.” He gave a confident smile and stood up. “Some anomalies follow very specific activity rules: targeting only children, only the sick, or—in cases like this—only people of a certain gender. That’s why they won’t easily show themselves to anyone outside their preferred prey.

  “But we probes can’t just give up an investigation because of something like that. We have ways to bypass those restrictions, at least to a certain degree.”

  My curiosity was thoroughly piqued. Was he about to demonstrate in front of me the real skill that forces anomalies to reveal themselves?

  Honestly, I was far more interested in the investigative techniques of Luo Shan probes than in the combat prowess of demon hunters.

  Investigator Kong pulled a silver-gray rectangular plate the size of a smartphone from his pocket.

  The surface was covered with a dark gray paper-like film. He peeled it away, revealing simple yet profound engraved symbols carved into what looked like metallic talisman paper.

  “I don’t know if you’ve heard this saying: anomalies attract other anomalies.” He explained to me, “The exact mechanism isn’t fully understood, but when narrowed down to evil spirits, there are theories that make sense.

  “It’s similar to how a starving person finds high-calorie, high-fat food irresistibly delicious. Empty, hollow evil spirits crave high-quality souls. When one appears in front of them—even if it doesn’t fit their usual hunting preference—their instincts take over, and they can’t help but lunge.”

  I eyed the “metallic talisman” in his hand and ventured a guess. “So this item has that kind of soul sealed inside it?”

  “What? No way—that would be way too sinister!” He looked momentarily exasperated before continuing. “This is just a tool that emits the same aura as a high-quality soul to nearby evil spirits. If the rumors are true and the spirit here is a low-grade one driven purely by instinct, then even though it normally only targets female college students, it should still salivate at this bait and rush over without thinking.”

  “I see…” I scanned the surroundings, staying alert for any sudden appearance. “But if the evil spirit really shows up, won’t you be in danger, Investigator Kong?”

  “I carry protective talismans issued to all Luo Shan probes. Low-level evil spirits can’t harm me.” He chuckled. “And even if something unexpected happens, you’re here, aren’t you? Let me see what you’ve got, prospective demon hunter Z.”

  Hearing that, I made up my mind: I was going to show off here.

  Simply showing off in a normal way probably wouldn’t cut it. Since Zhu Shi believed my defense and mobility were lacking and that I couldn’t last long on the demon hunter path, I needed to demonstrate a skill I had never used in front of her before. Even if Zhu Shi wasn’t here, letting Investigator Kong witness it would be a good start.

  If I just talked big, they might think I was bluffing. But if I proved myself in real combat, no one could deny it.

  I focused intently, scanning every shadow, eagerly anticipating the evil spirit’s sudden attack. Investigator Kong also fell silent, eyes sharp and watchful.

  But after a long while, the space remained deathly quiet. A puzzled look appeared on Investigator Kong’s face.

  More time passed before he finally broke the silence. “How… nothing’s happening at all?”

  “Could the urban legend here actually be fake?” That was my first thought.

  “That shouldn’t be the case. Based on my past experience, there’s a very high chance an evil spirit really does exist here…” He looked baffled and glanced down at the metallic talisman again. “The Soul-Bait Plate hasn’t malfunctioned either… Could there be some other factor preventing the spirit from approaching?”

  “The rumors say it only appears late at night. Maybe the timing is wrong?” I suggested.

  “Evil spirits do fear sunlight, but we’re indoors—and this is the very place where the spirit was supposedly born. Even if it dislikes daylight, the lure of the Soul-Bait Plate should be irresistible.” He pondered deeply. “Unless there really is no evil spirit here after all? Or perhaps some other influence is keeping it away…”

  “Let’s wait a bit longer. Maybe it’s just still ‘getting up.’” I had grown used to dashed expectations over the years and had far more patience in situations like this.

  He gave a slight nod, and we continued waiting together. Yet after a long stretch, there was still no sign of the spirit.

  Last night Zhu Shi had said that anomalies and I seemed to repel each other mutually—that was why I had always failed to encounter the things I pursued.

  Could the reason the evil spirit wasn’t appearing now be the same?

  Even the Soul-Bait Plate, designed to attract evil spirits, apparently couldn’t overcome this mysterious repulsion. Logically, though, Alice’s jinx-like luck should have already canceled out my own “anti-miracle” effect… so how did that fit?

  Could it be that there really was no evil spirit here?

  Or was this place—my “land of destiny”—determined to be exceptional even in this regard?

  With no other choice, Investigator Kong finally put the Soul-Bait Plate away, and we left the unfinished building together for the time being.

  Once we were some distance from the abandoned site, he turned to me apologetically on the way. “Sorry about that. I brought you here hoping you’d get to witness an anomaly firsthand, but it ended up being a complete bust.”

  “It’s fine. I don’t mind—I’m used to it.” My mindset remained fairly steady.

  “Used to it…” He gave a helpless smile, then fell into thought. “Actually, that brings up a question I’ve been meaning to ask…”

  “What is it?”

  “Since you’re so determined to pursue anomalies and possess such extraordinary abilities, why have you never revealed yourself?” He studied me with genuine curiosity.

  “What do you mean?” I asked back.

  “Even though you only recently learned about Luo Shan’s existence, you must have suspected from the very beginning that some kind of supernatural organization operates in this country.” A spark of intrigue lit his eyes. “If you had simply demonstrated your powers openly in broad daylight in front of random passersby, Luo Shan would have come knocking on your door sooner or later, and you could have made contact that way. Why didn’t you ever do that? Were you afraid the authorities would treat you like a lab specimen—lock you up, or even dissect you for study?”