Chapter 459: The Devil’s Possession?

Possessed by the devil?

Lu Xin hesitated for a moment. The first thing that flashed in his mind was that Ghost-type ability user he had once captured—a guy who claimed he could enter other people’s minds. But that fool was nothing more than an arrogant idiot, hardly even a devil…

He furrowed his brow and asked seriously, “What exactly is going on?”

“Well…”

Vice President Xiao hesitated as if he wanted to speak but then held back.

After a brief pause, he said, “Before we start, may I ask: do you lock him up no matter who he is?”

Lu Xin reacted for a moment before suddenly understanding Vice President Xiao’s concern.

He then shook his head with a smile and replied, “Of course not…”

“We usually just take care of them directly.”

“…”

“Ah…”

Vice President Xiao shuddered slightly, his eyes staring blankly at Lu Xin.

“If you ever encounter something like this, you’d better tell me right away.”

Lu Xin looked at Vice President Xiao and said earnestly, “We aren’t ghost hunters, but some things are far more dangerous than a mere encounter with spirits.”

“Even if you run into ghosts, only you suffer then. But if these matters are mishandled, many lives could be lost. To be honest, I recently took part in a cleanup mission where nearly a hundred colleagues were killed…”

He paused briefly at that point.

The aftermath work in Happy Town involved many aspects and stages.

But for him, the most pressing concern was how to get those ‘suicide notes’ into the right hands.

He didn’t want to confront the grieving families alone, nor did he want to return the notes in such a hasty manner.

So he was waiting for Qinggang to assign that part of the work.

……

“A hundred?”

Just as Vice President Xiao picked up his red wine to drink, he suddenly choked and looked at Lu Xin with a hint of terror in his eyes.

A hundred colleagues—what a terrifying number that is!

He could feel the heavy weight embedded in that figure.

At the same time, seeing the recent anxious and frantic activity in Qinggang, he understood just how serious this matter was.

“Little Lu, don’t get me wrong—I’m not trying to cover for him…”

He coughed and downed a large gulp of red wine to steady himself before continuing, “Honestly, I’m not even sure what exactly is happening. It just feels off, and I can’t bring myself to talk to anyone about it—that’s why I thought of asking you…”

Lu Xin nodded slightly, sensing some tension in the Vice President’s manner.

Wiping his mouth and sitting up straight, he maintained a gentle tone and said, “Go ahead.”

“Yes, yes…”

Vice President Xiao agreed quickly, adjusting his posture.

It was clear he was struggling internally.

Having heard Lu Xin mention that those involved in such incidents are either confined or eliminated, he was worried. Yet after waiting for Lu Xin for so long, and overwhelmed by his own fear of these matters, he decided to speak up.

After some hesitation, he murmured, “This incident involves a friend of mine…”

“That friend, surnamed Gao, has been my playmate since childhood. His family runs a massive business.”

He added with a slight shake of his head, uneasy as he continued, “He’s always been a good-natured guy, rarely losing his temper. Despite his towering build, his demeanor is as gentle as a girl’s; sometimes, even if you kick him, he wouldn’t get angry.”

“…”

“Yet, one day during a gathering with a few friends, he inexplicably took an interest in another friend’s girl. Without any regard or decorum, he boldly announced that he liked her and intended to make her his girlfriend. At first, we all thought he was joking, but then—”

“Right in front of everyone, he suddenly lunged forward and forcefully kissed that girl…”

“He went berserk—grabbing her face and literally started devouring her…”

“…”

“Hm?”

Lu Xin paused in surprise and asked, “A love triangle?”

“No, no, listen…”

Vice President Xiao’s face turned red as he explained, “It wasn’t that simple. That day, when we saw what happened, we were all horrified.”

“We rushed to pull him away and made him apologize to both our friend surnamed Li and his partner, but he only responded with a cold sneer.”

“Our friend Li was furious and even charged at him.”

“But then…”

His voice trembled slightly as he continued, “Friend Gao—who’s normally so gentle, the kind of person who never loses his temper even when bullied—suddenly grabbed a dining knife and stabbed our friend Li right in the stomach.”

“…”

Lu Xin pictured the scene and couldn’t help but furrow his brows.

Lost in thought, he glanced toward the spot by Vice President Xiao’s shoulder and asked, “Then what happened?”

Vice President Xiao patted his shoulder reflexively and replied, “Our cheerful gathering turned into a scene of bloodshed. What more could we do?”

“We had to rush friend Li to the hospital and even called the police. But Gao’s family has strong connections—after a short explanation at the Security Hall, he was let off without even being detained. We all thought he was outrageously over the line.”

“But that was just the beginning. He went even further afterward.”

“While friend Li was still in the emergency room, he began harassing the girl relentlessly outside.”

“…”

Taking a deep breath, Vice President Xiao said, “You have no idea how far gone he is. His face turned downright ferocious as he threatened the girl: either stay with him or both your lives are over.”

“That vicious?”

Lu Xin frowned and looked at the Vice President’s shoulder, asking, “Is this true love then?”

“Ah, um…”

Vice President Xiao was momentarily dumbfounded. “This isn’t a matter of true love at all…”

“He’s never acted like this before!”

Growing agitated, he waved his hand before adding,

“That day, we were all beside ourselves. Every friend present was ready to cut ties with him, yet he just walked off with a cold laugh.”

“We assumed he was just drunk or had a momentary lapse, planning to explain himself once he sobered up.”

“But to our shock, starting the very next day, his behavior only worsened.”

“First, friend Li’s family came knocking on his door, demanding answers for the assault. Even though we were all old acquaintances—he was once treated like family—he actually kicked them out and even smashed their car…”

“Then he had someone track down the address of friend Li’s partner and drove right to her doorstep…”

“I only heard later that he spent three or four days persistently harassing her, using threats and coercion. He even broke into her room in the dead of night, stood by her bed watching her, invaded the mall where she worked, bought up all her merchandise, and even abducted her into a sports car on the street…”

“In short, he managed to coax that girl into his clutches while friend Li was in the hospital.”

“By the time we learned of it, the girl had already been staying at his place for a couple of days.”

“When someone went to confront him, they encountered a terrifying sight: the girl, beaten into a bizarre shape with injuries all over—even her face was lacerated—cowering in the bathroom and crying…”

“And friend Li, still hospitalized, ended up with wounds that tore open, leaving his bed soaked in blood.”

“…”

Vice President Xiao shook his head sorrowfully and said, “We were all so incensed that we went over to confront him, fully prepared to cut ties.”

“But we never expected him to be even more vicious. Not only did he tell us to scram, he even attacked us physically. The three of us couldn’t hold our own against him and his bodyguards; he practically chased us off, threatening to kill us if we got any closer…”

As he spoke, he pulled down his collar to show Lu Xin a dark purple bruise on his neck, a clear sign of a vicious grip.

Lu Xin frowned, his gaze shifting to Vice President Xiao’s shoulder, and asked, “Why didn’t you report this to the police?”

“We did…”

Vice President Xiao twisted his neck in frustration and said, “But when the police arrived, he flat-out denied it all. He even threatened the girl, claiming that she had willingly followed him. With his family’s powerful connections, even the Security Hall couldn’t do anything about him…”

Lu Xin pondered for a moment and then remarked, “That really is infuriating.”

“Can people really change so quickly?”

“…”

“No, no…”

Vice President Xiao quickly waved his hand and said, “It isn’t that simple. To be honest, I was furious at first, but the more I thought about it, the stranger it became. How could a man change so drastically in an instant?”

“He was never like this before—otherwise, we wouldn’t have been able to put up with him for so long.”

“It’s as if he suddenly transformed completely, becoming a different person altogether.”

“And it wasn’t just his uncontrollable temper or his unreasonable aggression. The scariest part is…”

Lowering his voice, he continued, “I noticed something profoundly odd about him…”

Lu Xin, intrigued by his mysterious tone, looked up curiously.

“There are so many ways in which he doesn’t act like a normal person…”

Vice President Xiao lowered his voice even further and said, “His strength has become unnaturally great, and he seems jumpy all the time.”

“And he appears to be terrified of statues—things like deities. He used to be a devout Buddhist, and his home was filled with religious statues. Now they’re all covered up with cloth. Also, when we went to see him that day, one friend who wore a cross around his neck immediately went into a state of hysteria at the sight of it, screaming as though he had seen something truly horrifying.”

“Afterwards, we discussed it among ourselves, and we all agreed…”

“…”

He said, his voice a bit tense and low, “I’m convinced that he’s been possessed by the devil.”

“Uh…”

Lu Xin perked up slightly, his interest piqued by the story.

Listening to all this, he noted that the incident was very different from the ghostly encounters he’d experienced before.

After a moment of thoughtful silence, he fixed his gaze squarely on Vice President Xiao and said, “First of all, there are no such things as ghosts in this world.”

“Besides, if a devil were truly afraid of Buddhist statues and crosses, wouldn’t that be a sign of disloyalty?”

“…”

“Uh…”

Vice President Xiao was at a loss for words, staring blankly.

Lu Xin let out a soft sigh and added, “Still, I think I can go check it out with you.”

Only then did Vice President Xiao relax, glancing at his wristwatch and whispering, “I’ve already invited him. He should be here any minute…”

“Hmm?”

Lu Xin slowly folded his hands and rested his chin on them, fixing Vice President Xiao with a steady look.

That look unsettled Vice President Xiao, who feared Lu Xin’s displeasure for calling the man over without his consent. He started to explain his own thoughts, but before he could speak, he noticed that Lu Xin’s gaze had shifted again to his shoulder.

With a deep, almost curious look, Lu Xin said softly, “So you mean he’s the one…”

“…”

“Whoosh!”

Vice President Xiao’s hair practically stood on end as he realized that Lu Xin had been staring at the seat behind him all along.

He nearly lost his footing, spinning around in a panic.

The restaurant had been nearly empty since they arrived. To facilitate conversation, Xiao Yuan had dismissed the waiters from the kitchen, and only a few lamps lit the area where they were dining. The rest was swallowed by darkness. Just behind him, near the restaurant door where the light couldn’t reach, a tall figure stood quietly amidst the shadows.

Silent and unspeaking, with an icy glare, no one knew how long he had been there.