Just like yesterday, a meeting was convened early this morning.
It was still hosted by Wang Xiaoming.
All those who should have been present were, those who weren't probably couldn't make it anyway.
"Ye Feng and that He Chuan couldn't have died, could they? The two of them didn't even show up," Zhang Han said, quite astonished.
As a former member of the Xiaoqiang Entertainment Club, he still found Ye Feng's absence unbelievable.
"Who knows, maybe they're dead, maybe they're hiding and don't want to get involved in this mess, or maybe he ran away. After all, with his abilities, it's not impossible for him to find a way to leave Dachang City," Zhao Kaiming said with a grin.
"What happened yesterday, Zhao Kaiming, weren't you with them?" a ghost controller asked.
Zhao Kaiming said, "We ran into a little trouble, got separated, and after that, I don't know what happened. I can't keep track of such a big person with hands and feet."
He acted as if it was none of his concern.
Yang Jian didn't say anything, just sat on the side eating buns.
"Where did you buy the buns? The breakfast shops in Dachang City are all closed now, I didn't even have anything to eat yesterday," Sun Yi remarked, somewhat surprised looking at Yang Jian.
"Steamed at home, do you want some? My treat," Yang Jian said.
Swallowing, Sun Yi replied, "Then I won't be polite."
And so, the meeting room gained two more people eating buns.
Seeing Yang Jian still in the mood to eat buns, Zhao Kaiming's face darkened: "Ghost Controller Yang, are you happy about Ye Feng's disappearance? Makes sense, after all, you have one less enemy, worth celebrating with a few buns."
Without hesitation, Yang Jian picked up a bun and threw it straight at Zhao Kaiming, hitting him on the head.
"What are you doing?" Zhao Kaiming rose to his feet abruptly.
"Offering you a bun, stuffed with pork," Yang Jian said.
"Are you trying to start trouble?" Zhao Kaiming asked.
"Are you trying to pick a fight?"
Yang Jian looked at him and said, "I agreed not to conflict with you just a few days ago, yet you are itching to stir things up already? I haven't said a word just now, yet you can't wait to drag me into it. Since you don't want to honor our previous agreement, I don't mind playing along.
Ye Feng's disappearance is none of my business, but if you went missing, I think a proper celebration would indeed be in order."
Zhao Kaiming's expression shifted uneasily; he wasn't one to endure insults well, but he knew that breaking his deal with Yang Jian was not a good choice, so he forced a smile and said, "Ghost Controller Yang is joking. I was just speaking off the cuff, let's pretend I never said that."
"That's more like it," Yang Jian said.
"We'll see how long you can keep that smug attitude," Zhao Kaiming thought darkly to himself.
At that moment, Wang Xiaoming hurried over, looking exhausted and with red eyes, indicating he probably hadn't slept all night, busy with who knows what.
"Has everyone arrived? Good, I'll cut to the chase. Ye Feng and that He Chuan disappeared yesterday, probably around this location on the map." He immediately started the slideshow, pulled up the map of Dachang City, and drew a circle on it.
"Zhao Kaiming said that before they encountered a supernatural event here, it was very likely the Ghost Infant. The disappearance of Ye Feng and He Chuan is related to this."
Zhao Kaiming added, "However, before Ye Feng vanished completely, he sent me a text message. The content was incomplete, likely because he hadn't had the chance to input everything, so there was only one character."
After speaking, the slide on the projector flashed, and a screenshot of the message appeared before everyone's eyes: 7.
A very simple number.
Everyone immediately furrowed their brows, indicating their confusion.
Wang Xiaoming said, "This message reveals too little information. Does anyone here have any good ideas?"
"Maybe he encountered seven ghosts, warning us that it's dangerous there," Sun Yi immediately spoke up.
"It could also be that he wrote the wrong thing in a rush and sent out a mistake," Zhang Han said.
Zhao Kaiming suddenly smiled and said, "Maybe it wasn't even sent by him, but by that thing, hinting that the remaining seven of us are all going to die. We were originally nine, and now with Ye Feng and He Chuan missing, assuming they're dead, the remaining seven would correspond precisely to the seven of us."
"Damn, Zhao Kaiming, don't talk about such scary things, alright?" exclaimed a ghost-controller, startled.
"What's your take on this, Yang Jian?" Wang Xiaoming asked.
Yang Jian said, "There's nothing to deduce from just a number—it's a bit ridiculous. This digit that Ye Feng sent out before he disappeared holds no significance, it's just wasting our time. I think we can temporarily ignore it, but ignoring it doesn't mean we can overlook it. We can make a note of the number for now and see if we can combine it with some other useful information later."
"We might be able to disregard the message, but the disappearance of two ghost-controllers can't be ignored. We're already two people down on the first day; this is extremely detrimental to our operations going forward," Wang Xiaoming said with a grim expression.
"Professor Wang, aren't you trying to capture the third-stage Ghost Infant? The site of the incident could be an opportunity. This time, I think we shouldn't split up. We might as well act together and try to catch that Ghost Infant," Zhang Han said.
However, Yang Jian shook his head and said, "Ye Feng was wearing a shroud that could withstand attacks from malicious ghosts. If even he succumbed, I think everyone else going will just be marching to their deaths. This thing can't be overcome by sheer numbers; it requires a strategy. Isn't Professor Wang researching the third-stage Ghost Infant in an attempt to find a method?"
Zhao Kaiming spoke calmly, "So, are you saying that we're facing an obstacle on the very first day? If we're too scared to go to dangerous places, and there's no activity elsewhere, dragging this out will likely lead to serious problems."
"Would sending ourselves to our deaths solve anything?" Yang Jian sneered. "Don't forget, Ye Feng had two ghosts inside him, and with He Chuan's, that makes three. If they're truly dead, then the ghosts within them have undoubtedly escaped. Even if they haven't revived, they'd almost be there. Imagine how dreadful it would be by then; it's probably unimaginable."
Finally, Wang Xiaoming made up his mind and declared, "Seven days. If there's no progress in capturing the third-stage Ghost Infant within seven days, everyone will investigate this place, including myself."
Yang Jian's expression changed, somewhat surprised.
Wang Xiaoming was a bona fide ordinary person. Was he really daring enough to risk his life going to a haunted place to investigate?
Did he feel so carefree because he knew he was protected?
Or did he think that after seven days, his safety could no longer be guaranteed, and so he wanted to make a desperate attempt?
But he was the boss now; he could do as he pleased, and Yang Jian couldn't do anything about it.
Of course, Wang Xiaoming had his own considerations. He was racing against time. All signs indicated that the supernatural events were becoming more and more severe. If no breakthrough was found, everything might become irreversible.