The largest private room in the Zui Xian Lou was occupied by Xiao Ming, who sat carelessly at the head of the table. Lu Yuman, Lu Laoda, and their several subordinates sat by his side with smiles plastered on their faces.
After ordering over a dozen dishes, Xiao Ming said, "Bring five roasted ducks."
Lu Yuman thought to himself, "He's ordered so many at once, can he possibly eat them all?"
Though Lu Yuman found it strange, he dared not voice his thoughts. Nowadays, no matter what Xiao Ming wanted to eat, as long as the restaurant had it, he wouldn't dare object.
When the dishes arrived, Xiao Ming showed no politeness and began to eat and drink heartily.
After Xiao Ming and Ye Xiao had eaten their fill, there was little left on the table. Xiao Ming had consumed all five roasted ducks himself.
Lu Yuman and Lu Laoda stared in disbelief. "Is this even human? His appetite is greater than five people combined."
"Brother Xiao Ming, are you done eating?" Lu Yuman asked obsequiously.
Xiao Ming nodded and replied, "It was alright."
The two men looked at Xiao Ming with anticipation, eager to know why he had gone to the transport company to cause trouble.
Xiao Ming glanced at them and said, "I just arrived yesterday, and someone captured my elder brother's friend. You must find this person for me."
"Brother Xiao Ming, who dares to be so bold as to move against your elder brother's friend?" Lu Yuman inquired.
"My elder brother's friend is an Enforcement Elder of the Martial Alliance. He was captured by people from the Zhen Dong Company. I can't find out where he's being held, and my elder brother can't intervene easily to rescue him."
Lu Laoda had long heard that the Martial Alliance had appointed an Enforcement Hall Elder, a person of immense power, who was the number one contender in the Martial Alliance Grand Competition this year.
"Brother Xiao Ming, is your elder brother's friend named Hu Lei?" Lu Laoda asked.
Xiao Ming nodded, "Yes, it's Hu Lei."
Upon hearing this news, Lu Laoda trembled. The Enforcement Hall Elder of the Martial Alliance had been captured in Mian Yin City. If anything were to happen to him, the Martial Alliance's higher-ups would surely skin him alive.
"Brother Xiao Ming, I'll call my master immediately and ask him to send some experts to help," Lu Laoda said to Xiao Ming in a panic.
Although the people of the Martial Alliance might not be exceptionally strong, they were numerous and had members in all walks of life. With their assistance, it would be easier to find Long Xiao.
"Alright, tell your master to send a few who can fight."
While Lu Laoda was on the phone with his master, Xiao Ming inquired about the Zhen Dong Company from Lu Yuman.
The Zhen Dong Company was quite large. Lu Yuman's company had business dealings with Zhen Dong, so he had a more detailed understanding of them.
After Lu Yuman finished explaining the situation with Zhen Dong Company, Xiao Ming asked him to describe the appearance of Zhen Dong's chairman. Turning to Ye Xiao, he said, "Sister, the one who captured him is the chairman of Zhen Dong Company, Nangong Jindong."
Ye Xiao asked, "Lu Yuman, do you know where Nangong Jindong usually lives?"
Lu Yuman nodded and told Ye Xiao that Nangong Jindong owned four properties in Mian Yin City, and he usually resided in a villa in the downtown area.
After clarifying the specific locations of Nangong Jindong's four properties, Ye Xiao called Ye Mei and relayed all the information she had just gathered.
"Senior Sister, my people are already monitoring Zhen Dong Company. We'll soon find out where Brother Long is being held."
"Zhen Dong Company is collaborating with the Japanese. They must be involved in some shady dealings. Send people to investigate thoroughly."
"Senior Sister, I will gather as much information as possible, please rest assured."
After the meal, Xiao Ming and his group left the restaurant. Lu Yuman said, "Brother Xiao Ming, I have a vacant villa in the city. Why don't you stay there?"
Following Lu Yuman to his villa, they found that although it was a bit small, the environment was pleasant and quiet. Xiao Ming and Ye Xiao were very satisfied.
Xiao Ming called Luo Tianshui to inform him of the change of residence. They waited until evening for Luo Tianshui to return.
As soon as Luo Tianshui returned to the villa, he eagerly told Xiao Ming and Ye Xiao that the Japanese must have a grand conspiracy in Mian Yin City.
"Sister Ye Xiao, Zhen Dong Hospital and Zhen Dong Biological Research Institute have many experts sent from Lin Chuan Pharmaceutical. They seem to be conducting some secret experiments."
"How do you know they're conducting secret experiments?" Xiao Ming asked, puzzled.
Luo Tianshui explained to them that he had been consulted for feng shui that day and discovered that the employer's family tomb had been disturbed. He had inquired about the situation. The employer told him that someone in the family had passed away some time ago.
Not long after the grand funeral and burial, strange things began to happen. People repeatedly reported seeing figures moving around their family's tomb at night.
To figure out what was going on, the young men of the family kept watch near the tomb. They discovered that the figures moving around the tomb at night were not people, but illusory shadows.
Luo Tianshui examined the tomb and found that someone had tampered with it, causing hallucinations to anyone who approached. Based on the methods used, the perpetrators seemed to be Japanese Onmyoji.
"Onmyoji are scheming against an ordinary family's tomb, what do they want?" Ye Xiao asked.
Luo Tianshui shook his head, "I couldn't figure it out. This family is fine in all aspects; there are no missing persons or misfortunes."
"Then what about the secret experiments?" Xiao Ming asked.
"I heard about that from a villager. He said that all the people who have gone missing in Mian Yin City recently have been captured by the Japanese."
"How did that villager know that the missing people were captured by the Japanese?" Ye Mei asked curiously.
"He saw the Japanese capturing people. When the police came to the village to investigate, he told them what happened, but we haven't heard of any breakthroughs in the case since then."
After some discussion, the three decided to go to that village again the next day to investigate what the Japanese and Zhen Dong Company were up to.
As dawn broke, the three of them drove off towards the village Luo Tianshui had visited the previous day.
Upon reaching the vicinity of the village, they did not enter but first went to the cemetery. They circled the graveyard for a while but found nothing unusual before entering the village.
The three of them inquired everywhere but found nothing all morning. At noon, while eating some food they had brought in the car and preparing to explore the area in the afternoon, a villager approached them.
"What are you three looking for?" the villager asked.
When Xiao Ming saw the villager, he felt something was odd. The villager's accent had a subtle difference from the locals.
"Are you from this village?" Xiao Ming asked.
The villager nodded and said, "Of course. You should leave and mind your own business."
Xiao Ming suddenly lunged forward to grab the villager, but the villager retreated with incredible speed, and Xiao Ming missed.
Xiao Ming chuckled, "You're not weak. Brother Luo, Sister Ye Xiao, capture him."
The three of them surrounded the villager, who smiled and said, "You want to capture me? You're thinking too much."
As the villager finished speaking, his body flickered, and a puff of smoke erupted, instantly shrouding the surroundings in darkness, as if it were night.
Xiao Ming coughed a few times from the smoke and quickly retreated, moving out of the smoky area. To his astonishment, the village had vanished. He found himself standing in a deep mountain gorge, surrounded by lush forests.
"How is this possible? Brother Luo, Sister Ye Xiao?" Xiao Ming shouted.
There was no sound from the surroundings. It seemed as if all the sights were frozen, not even a breeze stirred.