Hello, Welcome to Merit Supermarket (SUPERMARKET)
No one could have expected to hear such bad news right after arriving.
Jiang Chenyi silently took note of this person, then refocused his attention on the five individuals before him.
From the current perspective, these were the only five people in the police station that required attention. Judging by their strength, Jiang Chenyi was more than capable of handling these five unknown Souls.
The only thing that remained uncertain was the method they used to control these police officers.
Thinking of this, Huo Yunxi looked at them with an expression devoid of any emotion, much like looking at livestock ready for slaughter.
No, there was a slight difference.
At least when he looked at chickens, ducks, cows, sheep, and pigs, he would inwardly marvel at how delicious their meat was.
Before he could ask how to uncover these matters, he saw Jiang Chenyi turn and leave the police station.
Huo Yunxi quickly followed. After exiting the main gate, he finally asked, "Aren’t you planning to fish for information anymore?"
Jiang Chenyi chuckled softly, and a tool the length of an arm gradually appeared in his hand. When Huo Yunxi saw the complete form of the tool, three question marks seemed to pop up above his head.
"What… what is this for?"
The item Jiang Chenyi had traded for this time resembled a bubble wand used by children to blow bubbles, except it was an enlarged version.
The young man didn’t explain and just simply said, "You’ll know when you see it."
Then he stood at the entrance of the police station, watching as Jiang Chenyi forcefully blew out a giant bubble.
The bubble floated into the air, shimmering with a kaleidoscope of colors under the sunlight. If it had been the size of a palm, it would have been the epitome of beauty and fantasy.
But the bubble Jiang Chenyi blew out was large enough to hold several people inside.
But that alone wasn’t enough.
After the bubble floated into the air, it stopped and then, under Huo Yunxi’s gaze, expanded several times its size until it enveloped the entire police station.
"Wait just a little longer, and then we can go in."
The "little while" Jiang Chenyi mentioned was a mere three minutes. After three minutes, they entered again, and Huo Yunxi noticed that the colors inside seemed off.
Moreover, this time they entered without using the Black Umbrella to conceal their presence.
As he looked at the surreal, dreamlike scene before him, his gaze gradually became somewhat dazed.
"Stay calm and don’t let yourself be affected!"
Fortunately, before he lost consciousness, a hand tightly gripped his wrist.
Huo Yunxi felt a pang of alarm. He had always been confident in his strong will, believing he wouldn’t easily be swayed.
But in this place, it had only taken a minute and a half for his mind to start being entranced.
When he focused his gaze again, the auxiliary police officers who had been listening to instructions earlier now appeared as if they were asleep with their eyes half-closed and devoid of any light.
As for those who had been controlled, Huo Yunxi was somewhat surprised when he saw their condition.
When he had seen them before, they had seemed no different from puppets or marionettes. But now, they lay on the ground with their eyes closed and their faces wearing contented smiles, as if they were in the midst of a beautiful dream.
Finally, Huo Yunxi turned his attention to the five individuals—they were also asleep, but their state was completely different from the others.
These five were either slumped over the table or lying on the ground, and more like they had suddenly fainted out of nowhere.
Jiang Chenyi walked over to them and tilting his head as he examined one of them. After a while, he spoke, "Do you know what this bubble does?"
Huo Yunxi honestly shook his head, then suddenly felt a strong pull on his hand. In the next second, the scene before them instantly changed.
The police station was still the same police station, but the surroundings had become much livelier, and the atmosphere was no longer as cold as before.
In front of them, the previously sleeping police officers were now all awake and were gathered in the office while excitedly discussing something.
These officers were sipping coffee while organizing the topographic maps in their hands, and the discussion grew increasingly intense.
Upon seeing the topographic map, Huo Yunxi's eyes immediately widened.
Wasn't this the village they had visited before?
Listening more carefully, he heard them suspecting whether this village was a trafficking village. The leading officer seemed quite certain about it and even intended to take the lead and personally investigate.
From what these officers were saying, they had originally planned to investigate this village?
"This is a scene from a year ago, when they were still not under control."
The bubble's ability was actually to recreate memories, albeit in the form of a dream, and it had a certain hallucinogenic effect.
Jiang Chenyi had chosen to trade for this because he wanted to know how the police station had fallen.
However, he hadn't expected that the police station had only fallen a year ago...
In the next half hour, they watched the entire process of the police station's fall at five times the normal speed.
The first to have their body taken over was the officer who had previously said he would investigate the village.
And that person was not among the officers they saw now; it was unclear whether he had resigned or something else.
This person seemed to be quite valued as he was often assigned important tasks by the Chief, and was quite familiar with the Chief.
After he returned from the mountain village, the Chief became the second to have his body taken over.
Then came the third, fourth, fifth, sixth... and the other officers who were controlled like puppets.
After watching all this, Jiang Chenyi finally understood how these people had controlled the others.
"They really are puppets..." he sighed deeply as a small knife suddenly appeared in his hand.
He walked over to the officers who were having pleasant dreams, and the sharp blade pierced their abdomens.
Immediately, something that looked like a worm or a snake was hooked out by the Merit on the tip of the knife.
Huo Yunxi felt nauseous just looking at it.
Thankfully, he wasn't human now, or he really might have vomited from disgust!
He had seen worms and snakes before, but the long, squirming thing Jiang Chenyi had pulled out was utterly repulsive.
The young man took out a prepared box, stuffed the thing inside, and then proceeded to do the same to the others, fishing out the Poisonous Worms from their bodies.
"There's no need to be so disgusted. This is actually a kind of medicine, it just looks a bit like a worm."
"..."
Huo Yunxi didn't speak, just silently turned his face away with his expression full of resistance and disgust.
Seeing this, Jiang Chenyi's eye twitched slightly.
However, he understood why Huo Yunxi reacted so strongly. The creation of these medicines required a large amount of flesh and blood to nourish them. No normal person could ever like them.
The dozen or so police officers who had been stabbed in the abdomen by Jiang Chenyi showed no signs of blood or wounds. Huo Yunxi immediately knew that the knife must be another item from the supermarket.
The Black Umbrella, the bubbles, and now the small knife—who knew how much Merit the young man had spent this time.
After dealing with these things, Huo Yunxi tied the five individuals together. The rope he used was no ordinary rope; it was one formed from his Spiritual Power.
In the next moment, the bubbles burst, and the eerie dream instantly returned to reality.
Before the others could fully awaken, a scream jolted them awake, and they instinctively turned their heads in the direction of the sound.
Then, they saw a young man gripping the top of someone’s skull with his hand and his fingers seemingly clutching something invisible.
Next, he tightly grasped something and yanked it outward with force, causing the person to let out a series of agonized wails.
Still not fully conscious, they instinctively wanted to rush over, but they were quickly stopped by a tall figure.
"What are you doing? Look carefully, they’re not your real comrades."
The man’s words made them pause. Upon closer inspection, their muddled minds instantly cleared—these were the "mutated" colleagues and the Chief!
Because they were tied together, these individuals had no way to escape, even if they wanted to.
Moreover, Jiang Chenyi had already set up a barrier around them targeting Souls. Even if they abandoned their bodies, they couldn’t leave. They could only watch helplessly as their Souls were forcibly extracted.
One by one, the other police officers stared in shock as Jiang Chenyi repeated the extraction process. Though they didn’t fully understand what was happening, the screams of those individuals filled them with a sense of grim satisfaction.
After extracting the five unknown Souls, the dozen or so controlled police officers gradually began to wake up.
"Ah… it hurts… why does my stomach hurt… and my head too. Who hit me?"
The seven auxiliary officers who hadn’t been controlled stared with red eyes as their seniors woke up from their numb, puppet-like state.
The seniors seemed to have no memory of being controlled. When they opened their eyes and saw the auxiliaries’ red eyes, they instinctively asked, "What’s wrong with you? Did you pull all-nighters and end up with rabbit eyes?"
It was their seniors! Their comrades from a year ago!
Before the seniors could figure out what was happening, the auxiliary officers rushed forward and hugged them tightly.
The past year had been excruciating for them.
They couldn’t speak, couldn’t call for help, and couldn’t resist. They had watched helplessly as their comrades turned into malevolent puppets.
A whole year had passed, and they never thought they’d see their comrades regain consciousness.
After the initial shock, those who were hugged gradually began to recall their memories from the period of control.
They were like puppets, but not entirely. Unless it involved matters within the police station, they appeared no different from normal people.
So, aside from the internal members of the police station, no one else had noticed they were being controlled.
At that moment, the Chief and the others whose bodies had been taken over also opened their eyes.
Seeing them wake up, the others immediately turned their heads with their expressions so fierce it seemed they might pounce at any second.
But Jiang Chenyi's words made them stop in their tracks, all frozen in place: "The Souls within their bodies have been completely extracted. What has awakened now are the original people."
The original... people?
The young man nodded at them with certainty: "They are not dead; their Souls were merely suppressed by outsiders."
At this point, he sighed deeply: "From beginning to end, they could see everything that happened. Unfortunately, they couldn't break through the restraints and reclaim their bodies. Like you, they are victims."
He raised the box in his hand and raised his voice: "The true culprit is here."
Seeing Jiang Chenyi's actions, Huo Yunxi knew he was helping the Chief and the others. Without these words, those people might have been torn apart by others.
Jiang Chenyi's words were indeed effective. The hatred in their eyes turned into grief and pain.
As for the Chief and the others, they were completely stunned as they looked at their bodies, which they had been separated from for a year.
It was like a dream.
A year had passed.
They had struggled for a year, and even they hadn't expected to return to their bodies one day...
Watching them cautiously touch their own faces and bodies, then slap themselves hard, the pain on their faces constantly reminded them.
You have finally returned.
Tears slowly streamed from their hollow eyes. They covered their faces, knelt on the ground, and wept silently.
Witnessing the scene of overwhelming grief, Jiang Chenyi and Huo Yunxi sighed silently in their hearts.
"Let's go, let them vent their emotions."
At most, they could help catch the culprit, but when it came to psychological issues... it was better to let them resolve it on their own.
They left the office and walked into the courtyard outside. Huo Yunxi called Director Long, detailing the situation and urging her to bring people over to take charge.
Afterward, the two of them casually sat under a tree while listening to the intermittent sobs coming from inside.
"What a tragedy..." Huo Yunxi felt a pang of sorrow in his heart as he listened to the cries.
"If it were me..." He paused with his voice choked with emotion. "If my comrade had their body taken over by an outsider and committed many wrongs, even if I knew they were innocent, I probably wouldn’t be able to forgive them."
Huo Yunxi pursed his lips.
It seemed he was easily affected by such scenes.
"Even if they returned and regained their senses, I absolutely wouldn’t be able to face them again." Especially if they had harmed their former companions.
Jiang Chenyi remained silent. He had no colleagues, no comrades, and even friends were few.
But, if it were Huo Yunxi...
Even if he knew Huo Yunxi was innocent, if the other had hurt him, he would likely find it difficult to face him as well.
The two sat quietly with neither speaking and only the sound of weeping echoing around them.
By the time Director Long arrived with her team, it was already dark.
All the police officers from the station were there, including those who hadn’t been on duty earlier.
Aside from those who had been controlled, Jiang Chenyi had also removed the restraints from the others.
Meanwhile, during the wait, Jiang Chenyi asked Gu Sheng where the nearest branch of the association was located near Xiaocheng.
Gu Sheng was puzzled when he heard such explosive news from Jiang Chenyi.
If it weren’t for the distance between the capital and Xiaocheng, he would have rushed over immediately.
Thus, when Director Long arrived, the first thing Jiang Chenyi said to her was, "The Celestial Masters from the nearby branch are also on their way."
He patted the box in his hand and said with a bitter smile, "The culprits are all here."
Director Long found his demeanor somewhat strange.
Why wasn’t he happier about catching the culprits?
As others took over the station, Jiang Chenyi recounted everything he had seen.
"We still don’t know what else these people have done... Let’s wait until tomorrow... When the Celestial Masters arrive, we’ll interrogate them." But Jiang Chenyi felt that the information they would uncover would be deeply unsettling.
After listening, Director Long also fell silent.
With the police handling things, Jiang Chenyi decided to find a place to rest for a while.
However, before he could get any sleep, three Celestial Masters arrived at the station’s entrance.
Director Long brought them to the backyard, and upon seeing them, Jiang Chenyi narrowed his eyes slightly.
It was none other than another familiar face.
"So it’s you?"
Just like the first time they met, the young man was dressed in dark blue, but his aura had become much purer.
Upon seeing Jiang Chenyi, the man approached him with a stern expression and bowed deeply with utmost respect. "Thank you, Mr. Jiang, for your guidance. Otherwise, Wei would not have realized that I was already in deep trouble."
During their first encounter, the man had been quite arrogant, but now...
Jiang Chenyi frowned.
It wasn't that he had any issues with the man, but why had he suddenly become so formal and polite?
Aside from the young man who called himself Wei, there were two older individuals.
"Gu Chen."
Dressed in a Zhongshan suit, he appeared to be in his forties or fifties. From his demeanor, he seemed like a rather serious person.
"Wei Yuanshou."
This man was the oldest of the three, but he also possessed the most profound Merit. With a cheerful smile, he was the type of person who easily won others' favor.
The two of them simply introduced themselves by name for the sake of addressing each other later. Jiang Chenyi wasn't particularly concerned about this. He didn't engage in small talk and instead got straight to the point by explaining the current situation.
The three of them immediately turned their attention to the box. Gu Chen reached out to touch it.
However, before he could make contact, his hand was blocked by another.
"Don't touch it yet."
Gu Chen followed the hand upward and, upon seeing Huo Yunxi's face, his pupils contracted sharply, and he began to retreat frantically.
His actions startled the others.
When Wei and Wei Yuanshou sensed the aura emanating from Huo Yunxi, their faces showed a hint of shock.
What shocked them even more was that a Black Cat emerged from the Bell on the wrist of Jiang Chenyi, the Supervisor.
Two Spirits—a Humanoid Spirit and a Cat Spirit—stared directly at them, as if on guard against something.
The Cat Spirit was one thing (Wu Tuan: ?), but the Humanoid Spirit, who had previously been completely unnoticed, now fully unleashed its aura. The overwhelming presence left the three of them with no resistance whatsoever.
Huo Yunxi gave them a cold glance, his words equally icy. "You can look, but don't touch.”
He wasn't being overly cautious on purpose, but if the box were opened, the five Souls inside would quickly escape.
At this point, no one could be sure whether these three Celestial Masters harbored ulterior motives. Until sufficient trust was established, it was best for them to keep their distance from Jiang Chenyi.
Jiang Chenyi patted Huo Yunxi's hand, signaling him to relax.
"You've traveled a long way. Why don't you rest first? They..."
"No need to rest! We're not tired!" Wei puffed out his chest with his expression filled with righteous determination.
However, in the next second, Wei Yuanshou covered his mouth.
The old man smiled kindly at them. "This matter can't be rushed. Let's rest first. We can discuss it tomorrow when everyone is refreshed."
With that, he dragged Wei away.
After the three of them left the police station, Wei Yuanshou finally released his hand. Wei frowned while looking at his uncle with confusion and a hint of grievance. "Uncle, why didn't we just settle this quickly?"
His uncle glared at him in exasperation. "Didn't you see that the Supervisor has been working all day?"
Moreover, when the kid said they didn't need to rest, hadn't he noticed the faint killing intent emanating from the Spirit beside the young man?
Looking at the young man's serious yet slightly aggrieved expression, Wei Yuanshou felt a headache coming on.
Previously, it was due to excessive arrogance, but now it's better. The arrogance is gone, but he still can't read people's expressions.
Ah, what a headache!
Seeing them like this, Gu Chen, who was standing nearby, also joined in with a smile, "Since the culprit has already been caught, what's the rush? Moreover, if you want to know the whole story, don't you also need the cooperation of the parties involved?"
He pointed to the brightly lit police station with a very serious tone, he said, "Even if you want to know the truth and to understand their motives, you have to consider the feelings of the victims..."
Wei followed the direction he pointed and saw more than twenty police officers inside, all with mournful faces.
Even if Jiang Chenyi wasn't tired, it was unlikely that these victims would cooperate.
Wei immediately realized that he had been too hasty and apologized dejectedly, "I was wrong..."
Wei Yuanshou shook his head, "You shouldn't be apologizing to me, forget it, come back here!"
He grabbed Wei, who was about to rush back, feeling the pain of encountering a Husky, "They should have left by now. Even if you want to apologize, it's not too late to do so tomorrow!"
Even if they hadn't left and just directly rushed in like this, he suspected his junior would be beaten up by that Humanoid Spirit.
Oh, perhaps the Cat Spirit could toy with his junior without the Humanoid Spirit even needing to intervene.
……….
After they left, Huo Yunxi and Jiang Chenyi also departed from there.
However, before leaving, he specifically mentioned a name to Director Long, "Later, have your people investigate a man named Zhou Guoci. He was the first to have his body taken over by a soul, but later, for some reason, his figure completely disappeared."
He didn't lower his voice when he said this.
Coincidentally, the chief of the police station walked over and, upon hearing this name, seemed to be in a daze.
Then, he showed a look of fear as he grabbed Jiang Chenyi and Director Long's arms, and tearfully begged them, "Please, save Guoci! He's still in that village! He's locked up in that village! He was given to the villagers by those bastards to vent their anger!"
Hearing the word "village", Jiang Chenyi and Huo Yunxi's hearts tightened.
The secrets hidden in that village were truly numerous!
Not to mention that it was a village of human trafficking, but the fact that Zhou Guoci had his body taken over after going to the village alone was enough to indicate a close relationship between these souls and the village.
And now, the chief's words further confirmed this.
Jiang Chenyi rubbed his temples, "Forget it, let's not rest. Let's go find him first."
As soon as he finished speaking, he was pushed next to Director Long.
"I'll go, you rest well." Huo Yunxi said.
Seeing that Jiang Chenyi still wanted to speak, this person actually pinched the young man's mouth and shaped it into a little duck's bill.
"You're human, I'm not. Don't worry, by the time you wake up, everything you want will be here."
Huo Yunxi chuckled lightly and stroked Jiang Chenyi's face.
In the next instant, he, along with the Bell, disappeared.
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