Chapter 24: [Code S701—Humanoid Weapon]

Hua Ling left.
The room was left with only Ji Yun.
In his third uncle’s house, he didn’t feel like an outsider.
Seeing some clothes still left on the bed, he tidied them up casually.
Although it was late, for some reason he didn’t feel sleepy.
Ji Yun took the website address that Hua Ling had written on a piece of paper and typed it into his phone.
Clicking in required logging in first.
Ji Yun entered Hua Ling’s account username and password.
Only then did he access the page.
At first glance, the name was very straightforward: “Gossip Forum.”
Probably a play on the five elements and the eight trigrams.
Ji Yun even checked the registration requirements.
It turned out this forum was invitation-only.
In other words, a new member had to have an invitation code from an existing member to register.
Ji Yun, who was used to hanging around niche forums, could understand this.
This invitation system ensured the forum’s safety by preventing outsiders from interfering.
Most importantly, it allowed some insight into the interpersonal relationships among the extraordinary individuals.
If something went wrong, there would be direct clues.
The forum was rudimentary and straightforward.
It had only two sections: Black Market and Gossip Jianghu.
Looking at this simple page, Ji Yun was tempted to mock the official programmers’ outdated aesthetics.
But the next moment, when he clicked on the Gossip Jianghu section, he was immediately glued to the screen by the posts.
A mysterious world unveiled itself to him.
...
“Massive supernatural incidents have occurred in Fengbei Village, Nanyang. Rumor has it that the Paranormal Bureau dispatched eight squads—hmm, something big is coming…”
“In Jiuquan Town, Jinling, endless iron chains were discovered deep in an ancient well, suspected to be the newly found ‘Dragon Lock Well.’ Any water spirits want to give it a try?”
“Warning about the haunted Hengtaidu Hui abandoned building in Nanjiang City! The earthbound spirits have reached vengeful ghost level, and they’re the result of the real estate boss’s own misdeeds. Vengeful souls are out for blood. Fellow practitioners, approach with caution and protect your virtue…”
“The haunted Room 407 of Cecil Hotel in Jinghai: a spirit hunter who went there yesterday died. The ghost there has reached ‘urban legend’ status. Please assess your strength before accepting any task related to this.”
“Ancient floating corpses found in large numbers in the Dilong River of Jizhou. Historians speculate it’s a relic from the pre-Qin ‘Ancient Xu Kingdom.’ Rumors say a level three evil entity has been unleashed...”
“Zombie attacks reported in the Cangshan ancient tomb cluster. The Paranormal Bureau in Rongcheng is officially offering a 1 million yuan travel allowance plus 30% profit sharing for temporary workers. Anyone want to team up?”
“...”
Just by reading these post titles, Ji Yun was profoundly shocked and thought: Is this still the world I know?
This was way more explosive than the usual supernatural forums he browsed.
It felt like playing with toy guns all his life, now suddenly standing in a warehouse full of real firearms—an indescribable shock.
Most of the posts’ content could easily be mistaken for fantasy novels.
So bizarre, even fiction writers wouldn’t dare invent such stories.

Ji Yun casually clicked into the “Cangshan Ancient Tomb” post and saw there were quite a few replies.
“Pfft, such a low hiring fee and only 30% profit sharing—how dare they post a recruitment notice?”
“It’s low, but it’s the official Paranormal Bureau recruitment. Payment is reliable.”
“Yeah, zombies are the least dangerous supernatural threat. Plus, it’s led by the officials, so the risk is low and the reward decent.”
“Perfect, my custom Maoshan talismans just arrived. I’m ready to go. Anyone want to team up? The ghost inside me is waking up; I need some ‘food.’”
“...”
Before getting involved, he didn’t realize supernatural incidents were happening all over the country.
This section seemed to gather many extraordinary individuals nationwide.
And these were only the incidents the officials hadn’t dealt with, handled instead by civilian practitioners.
Although some of the jargon was hard to understand, the gist was clear.
Ji Yun grew increasingly alert as he scrolled.
These real supernatural cases greatly satisfied his fantasies about the mysterious world.
There were too many posts to read through.
Ji Yun skimmed rapidly, picking out points of interest.
As he scrolled, he even found many posts about Jianghua City.
He recognized many familiar place names—ones he encountered in everyday life.
“Breaking news! The number of supernatural incidents in Jianghua City is rising sharply. We might see a concentrated outbreak soon. I just formed a ‘Spirit Exploration Squad.’ Any experts want to join forces?”
“On February 5th, during excavation on the Caiyun section of Jianghua Metro Line 9, an ancient tomb from a previous dynasty was uncovered. Three zombies escaped; one remains missing. Be careful.”
“The water ghost at Zhongshan Reservoir is too rampant. Seven people have died this year from swimming there illegally.”
“That reservoir is huge and deep. Some practitioners have checked it several times but never saw any ghostly figures.”
“Damn it, we can’t let that thing get away with it. We must drain the water!”
“...”
“The Paranormal Bureau must be slacking off. The haunted dilapidated building on Xibei Road should have been sealed long ago. Now two more have committed suicide by jumping.”
“...”
These posts were exchanges and banter among civilian practitioners.
The posting dates ranged from old to new.
What surprised Ji Yun most was that many of these incidents—he had seen in the news before!
He realized then that the so-called accidents reported in the news were actually supernatural events!
For example, the construction site collapse on Line 9 that killed five people.
The newspaper reported it as a construction safety accident, but it turned out to be a zombie attack?
And the Zhongshan Reservoir—people dying from wild swimming every year had become routine for citizens.
They thought those swimmers were just reckless and deserved it.
But it was really hauntings.
Though it’s the same world, this Gossip Forum revealed a bizarre, fantastical side of it.
Ji Yun finally understood that the authorities had always been covering up these supernatural incidents.
It wasn’t that they ignored them—they simply couldn’t handle them.
Or maybe they lacked manpower.
However, as Ji Yun continued reading, a question arose in his mind: Why were these civilian practitioners so eager to tackle these supernatural incidents?
Wasn’t it dangerous?
His mind swirled with thoughts.
While browsing, he came across a post made just yesterday, but with a high number of replies.
The title read: [Breaking News!!! X Foundation Offers Over 100 Million Reward!]
Ji Yun clicked on it.
“Have you heard? The X Foundation lost an S-class containment object. Lately, many people in the community are talking about it.”
“No way, I hadn’t heard. Those foreigners have deep pockets and are offering huge rewards worldwide now. Provide accurate clues and get 10 million USD—I’m so jealous.”
“What kind of containment object has such a high bounty? I thought S-class objects were permanently sealed. How could it be lost?”
“Apparently, an unidentified person infiltrated the X Foundation’s secret offshore containment facility on some remote island and stole the lab’s item [S701—Humanoid Weapon]. It was smuggled back into the country. The last sighting was on Hong Kong Island, then it disappeared… Several provinces have reward notices, so it must be true.”
“What special effects does it have?”
“Unknown. So far, only the containment number has leaked out. Judging from the foreigners’ reaction, it’s not just a threat; it probably has other uses. After all, those Westerners love researching strange things.”
“...”
“Huh, could this be the mission Hua Ling mentioned?”
Ji Yun’s first thought upon seeing the post.
And since Hua Ling was sent here by the Foundation, it meant the containment object might have appeared in Jianghua?
Ji Yun scrutinized the post but found no useful information and gave up.
There were too many posts to finish reading anytime soon.
Curious, Ji Yun wondered what was in the forum’s “Black Market” section.
Clicking on it, the gateway to a new world opened again.
“Hui Jin Trading Association offers unlimited purchase of ‘Nether Gold’ at 10,102 yuan per gram today; ‘Soul Sand’ at 700,000 yuan per gram; various grades of ‘Soul Beads’ negotiable; high-quality talisman materials…”
“‘Ruins·General’s Tomb’ survival guide. Suspected to have level two zombie-type evil entities. 30,000 points exchange, official contracts…”
“Looking for several ‘Colored Paper Dolls’ of the Lu family from Quanzhou, with big waves and gentle ghost spirits. Skilled paper doll craftsmen, please private message. Price negotiable.”
“Urgently seeking level two evil entities: zombie-type starting at 100 million yuan, ghost-type starting at 120 million. Good quality negotiable... urgent!”
“Tomorrow at Jia De Shi Auction House in the harbor district, an antique ‘Tiger Painting by Luoshan Jun’ will be auctioned. Verified as a second-level flesh-and-blood type evil entity. Interested parties should take note…”
“For sale: level one evil entity ‘Nameless Ghost Fire,’ fire-type evil entity; produced by [Ruins ID C3221—Mountain Village Corpse Curse], official records available. Will trade for equivalent cultivation method-type evil entity…”
“...”
It was like a second-hand marketplace.
Posts included photos and prices.
At first glance, Ji Yun was struck by the pinned message: “Nether Gold worth over 10,000 yuan per gram?”
He shuddered with excitement: This is a fortune!