Chapter 110: Mysteries Amid Contamination

“Officers, who are you…?”

Before anyone took a step, several middle-aged men in relatively clean clothes suddenly dashed out from a nearby courtyard, nervously eyeing Yenir and his group.

The one blocking the way appeared to be the leader of the Settlement, seemingly a first-stage fighter.

Prepared as ever, Chen Yong stepped out of the group in a few strides and calmly replied:

“We’re from the Military of the Zhenjiang Security Zone.”

“We received reports that the water source here has been contaminated, so we came to check it out.”

With that, Chen Yong waved the badge in his hand.

No sooner had he finished speaking than the leader’s face darkened:

“I knew it!”

“I knew that damned woman’s jump into the river and her death would bring us nothing but trouble!”

He suddenly pounded his thigh. A flash of resentment crossed his eyes—as if he’d said too much—and he quickly added:

“Officers, you should go back. There’s nothing here to worry about!”

“The river is perfectly clean; we guarantee the water is fine!”

Tension was high. For the Settlement, water was the sole resource, and now that investigators had arrived, a few men behind the middle-aged one clenched their fists tightly.

“Jumping into the river? When did that happen?”

“So the river really has been contaminated, right? What made her jump?”

“It’s too hard to explain. We’re taking you with us!”

Assuming the role of inspectors, Yenir asked in a low, steady voice. He noted that these men seemed far sharper than other survivors—at least, they weren’t numb. Their awakened constitutions likely gave them a better resistance to supernatural events.

Startled by Yenir’s imposing tone, the leader hesitated for a moment before forcing a smile:

“Seven days ago…”

“Sir, her death has nothing to do with us! She stole from the Settlement—she jumped into the river on her own!”

“After she died, her body was immediately washed away!”

“Those days, torrential rains and raging waters swept her away in an instant!”

Yenir’s gaze hardened. He sensed that although they were uneasy, they weren’t hiding much—or rather, very little.

“Why would stealing drive her to jump? Were you forcing her?”

Standing by Yenir, Chen Yong was the first to question.

Though he rarely encountered supernatural cases, hearing the Settlement folks speak like this made him suspect that perhaps the woman was coerced into jumping, her resentment sparking a paranormal event.

If that were true, everything would suddenly start to make sense.

Caught off guard by Chen Yong’s probing, the leader paled and hastily put on a mournful expression:

“No, sir!”

“She jumped on her own! We didn’t force her—you can all vouch for that!”

“Exactly! It really has nothing to do with us. Who knows why she jumped!”

“Right, sir—we don’t want you to wrong us!”

Chen Yong’s face darkened amid the chattering crowd, and he instinctively reached out for the leader, not believing their words!

In the next moment, both Yenir and Fang He grabbed him and shook their heads slightly.

Noticing they acted in unison, Fang He glanced at Yenir in mild surprise.

Lowering his voice:

“Don’t make a move.”

“We’re not sure who in the Settlement is at fault. If the culprit is inside, acting rashly would be like inviting our own doom…”

“Don’t be fooled by how normal they seem. If everything were truly fine, no one would overlook anomalies in the Settlement.”

After Fang He finished speaking, Yenir nodded subtly and silently pointed at the hands of the group before him.

Chen Yong glanced over instinctively and noticed that, whether it was the leader or the normally appearing survivors behind, their fingers were wrinkled and had turned pale from prolonged soaking.

They, too, had been submerged in water, oblivious to the fact that they’d been immersed for far too long.

After Yenir quietly explained, his peripheral vision caught sight of a two-story building nearby, from whose corner water continuously trickled out.

Noticing these details, Chen Yong suddenly gasped, realizing his earlier actions were indeed rash, and he fell silent.

Taking a step forward, Yenir calmly looked at the leader and signaled that there was no need to be nervous:

“Where is the household of the deceased?”

“Take us there.”

“If we clear up the matter and it turns out not to involve you, we won’t trouble you any further.”

Meanwhile, his mental energy spread steadily outward as he carefully scanned the surroundings for any irregularities.

A river jump… a woman… submersion…

Piecing the clues together, he began to form a tentative theory…

……..

After a few minutes of winding paths,

the middle-aged man reluctantly pointed to a dilapidated bungalow after leading Yenir and his team over the muddy terrain.

“This is the place. Only an old lady and a little girl remain in that household.”

“Sir, if you don’t believe us, ask them. The woman’s river jump had nothing to do with us!”

With that, the Settlement leader, as if eager to leave, instinctively started to walk off.

Noticing this odd behavior, Yenir’s eyes narrowed, but he did not stop him. With a slight nod, he prepared to enter and investigate.

His senses told him there was only one person inside.

On the other side, the experienced Fang He grabbed the middle-aged man as he passed by:

“Find us two courtyards—somewhere nearby.”

“We’re staying here tonight.”

With that, Fang He handed over a few compressed biscuits and several Credit Points.

The middle-aged man’s earlier look of apprehension vanished as he examined the food and money, replaced instantly by a smile.

“No problem, no problem. I’ll get right on it!”

Upon hearing this, the man hurried off in a panic.

…

After the outsiders left, Yenir and the others turned back, only to hear Fang He explain with a hint of impatience:

“We’re definitely staying here—and we’ll split up.”

“We probably won’t find much today. These people’s minds… are already off-kilter.”

Pointing to his own head, Fang He traced a circle:

“They rarely speak of anything regarding the ghost. We have to piece together the clues ourselves—even see it!”

“The most clues are on the ghost. Only by knowing how it died can we develop a solution!”

After a vague explanation, Fang He chose not to elaborate further.

He valued every bit of experience with supernatural events as if it were hidden prowess. As a second-stage fighter favored by Wang Zheng, he had honed his skills through several near-death encounters.

Then, as if struck by a thought, he suddenly let out a strange, bitter laugh at Yenir:

“At night, that thing usually targets either the strongest or the weakest.”

“If we’re going to crack this case, deaths are inevitable. Brace yourselves!”

Fixated on Yenir, his narrow eyes glinted with a hint of delight.

He wasn’t the weakest in the group, nor the strongest. With his innate talents, no one was safer than him…